Quintette asks writers five quick questions. This week’s interview is with:
Jane Elliot
1. What’s the name of your latest story – and how hard was it to pick a title?
My latest book is called Smoothie, and it was actually my easiest title ever! Usually I worry and fret about titles, but one of my favorite parts about Smoothie was the idea that something small — like going out for a frozen treat — could have life-changing consequences. I wanted my title to reflect that idea.
2. If you could choose anyone from any time period, who would you cast as the leads in your latest story?
Melissa McCarthy for Heather, no question. Natalie’s a bit tougher — I can’t decide between Zoie Palmer of today or Linda Hamilton post-Terminator 1 and pre-Terminator 2. Maybe a combination of the two?
3. What five words best describe your story?
Adventure, personal growth, comedy, romance
4. Who is your favourite fictional couple?
At the moment it’s Phryne Fisher and Jack Robinson from Miss Fisher’s Murder Mysteries. I love the respect between them, despite their different backgrounds and social class, and I love the slow build of their romance as Jack adjusts to the idea that he’s in love with a “modern woman” of the 1920s. (Fingers crossed that there will be a season 4 – I want to see how Phryne deals with the concept of *shudder* monogamy!)
5. What song has had the most impact on your life?
I’ve never been particularly musically inclined, and didn’t own a single piece of music until I was nearly in high school. Then I heard R.E.M.’s Losing My Religion and my entire understanding of music changed. I’ve built a very eclectic music collection since then and listen to a wide variety of bands, but I still get a thrill every time I hear Losing My Religion.
About Smoothie
Nothing much ever happens to Heather, until the day she’s innocently minding her own business when a bomb goes off – and she’s swept up into the kind of adventure that only happens to people on TV!
Thankfully she’s about as prepared and resourceful as a girl can be, because all of a sudden she’s in the middle of a road movie along with an extraordinary woman named Natalie and the two of them find themselves running for their lives into and out of a mess of complicated situations in which nobody is ever quite what he or she might appear to be.
About Jane Elliot
Jane Elliot has been writing novels, short stories, and screenplays for over twenty years. She believes that fiction can help promote understanding and acceptance of alternative and marginalized societal groups and most of her writing is focused on relationships, be they platonic or romantic, between individuals from all walks of life.
Buy Smoothie
Smoothie