[Sarah]

I don’t even know how to start. When I found out that you reply to these posts, I was so excited. I am so happy. I was first introduced to your books through the Swindle series, oh how I loved those books. I love each character and the dog was the best part. I loved the u details and the mini jokes built in. I have read almost all of your books, but my favorite remains the On the Run Series. It is such a wonderfully sweet book, made just right for a young audience. You manage to create a world so realistic and true to the real world while still maintaining it right for kids.

Funny thing is, I am 20 years old, and still a big fan of your books. I am a voracious reader, and read upwards to 50 books a year, and so very few books leave an imprint in my mind. The Swindle Series, On the Run, and The Hypnotist are some that have. I adore those books, the characters, the sweet stories that are perfect for young minds. You make them so vivid, memorable and relatable that makes every kid want to read. Really, you wrote books such that you didn't preach good, but rather weaved in justice, kindness, and empathy so subtly that children are forced to reflect on their own life.

I had a lot of questions, and I hope you can answer some of these questions which I have had for many years now.

 

1. What happens to Bo and his “gang”? I adored them and wanted a bit about them at the end of that book. They were such memorable characters , and again so realistically written. 

2. I feel like Holyfield deserved something. If it were not for his bugging devices, Meg and Aiden would never be free. As much as he was evil for stealing Turnbull's farm; he deserved a little something?

3. Was Chelsea stealing or her dad? 

4. What happened to the radio big mouth? Would he technically be free since the Falconers were innocent? 

5. Would have loved something about Meg going back and repaying the places she stole from as that was her main talking point. Would have been cute and a satisfying ending.

6. You made the Clam Chowder sound so delicious! 

7. What was your inspiration for the series?

8. Who was your favorite lesser-known character in the series (aside from the major ones)?

9. When you started, did you have an ending planned or did you go with the book without a planned ending first?

10. Which book do you think was the most realistic? Least?

11. Was the reveal about Frank Lindenauer being Hairless Joe planned from the start, or did that twist come to you later?

12. What are your favorite books outside of your own? Authors?

13. For people who have different career paths but yet have so many ideas and stories that could be potential books, what is a suggestion you have? 

14. Would the Falconers be realistically accepted into society? Would most continue to believe them to be guilty? 

15. Which book of the On the Run Series do you love the most? For me it is Book 2 because of 

16. Was there ever a scene or plotline you wanted to include in On the Run but had to cut?

17. How did you come up with the idea for The Hypnotist? The concept was so intriguing!

18. If you had to go on the run like Aiden and Meg, what’s the first thing you would do?

19. Have you ever revisited a book you wrote years ago and wanted to change something about it?

20. What’s a lesser-known fact about your writing process that might surprise your readers?

21. How did you balance making Aiden and Meg smart, resourceful kids without making them seem too lucky or unrealistic?

22. How did you research fugitive life and law enforcement for On the Run?

 

I hope you continue to write Mr. Korman and continue to inspire young minds to read and write. Your books are beautiful and I hope you realize you have fans of all ages who remember your books long after they have read them.

I sincerely thank you for taking time out of your day to read and answer my questions, and you have no idea how excited I am in prospect of hearing back from you.

 

Thank you Mr. Korman for the beautiful books that pushed me to read and opened my eyes to the world.

 

Sarah

 

Hi, Sarah,

Thanks for posting and for being such a loyal and true fan! I appreciate it very much. 

Yes, I do reach out to my readers and answer mail, but 22 questions is quite a lot, so I'll try to put together some replies that will, I hope, satisfy your curiosity.

Your questions: First, the series you loved so much is out of print, which I find agonizing! I hope it will reappear one day, perhaps as a one-book affair.

I don't even like clam chowder, so if I made it sound delicious,it was strictly hyperbole! My inspiration for ON THE RUN and, later, KIDNAPPED, was a desire to see if I could write a longer series and keep the story going. What I do doesn't really call for what you call inspiration. It just takes a lot of thinking and planning. In other words, it's WORK!

When I started, did I have an ending planned? Of course! I plan completely before I ever put a single word down on paper.  It's not possible for me to write a coherent story unless I know the climax/ending, and I'm writing toward something.

My favorite author is Kurt Vonnegut. Best book ever written: THE SIRENS OF TITAN. 

Favorite book in ON THE RUN: I've written 105 books so far, and ON THE RUN was a lot of years ago, so I can't come up with the title. It's the one where Meg thinks Aden is dead, but she is moving on with the quest, intending to save their parents even if she has to do it alone. Aiden's line "She was really something!" That stuck with me, and is still in my head! I even recall tearing up a bit writing it.

The identity of Hairless Joe was planned from the start. Believe me, I never surprise myself with a story. It always has to be planned, otherwise I don't know what I'm writing about.

I loved the idea for THE HYPNOTISTS, but apparently, my audience didn't. That series kind of fell flat -- maybe because it just didn't measure up to MASTERMINDS, which is still a huge hit.

Aiden and Meg were underdogs, which meant the reading audience was always going to root for them. Of course, they couldn't be too cocky or smart-assy. But the readers loved them and wanted them to succeed.

And, finally, I didn't research fugitive life or anything else for ON THE RUN. The only research I did was to consult a road map now and then to make sure I had the geography right.

OK? Sorry I couldn't find the time to go into more detail, but there are edits to make, books to write, book tours to go on, etc. Thank you again for your support for my work, and especially for ON THE RUN, which I happen to feel is some of my best work from the early years..

                                               Kindest regards, Sarah,                                     -----Gordon Korman-----