I had the pleasure to interview Carolyn for the wubs.net and wow, was I glad I did! What a wealth of talent! Actor (over 200 projects), Writer, Voice-Over maven and of course, the portrayer of our favorite Legal Eagle, Diane Miller. Visit Carolyn at her website, www.carolynhennesy.com

Carolyn has written the Junior Book: Pandora Gets Jealous due out December 27, 2007. It's a wonderful tale of the mythic misadventures of "Pandy" who naturally, lives in Ancient Greece. This book is one in a series of seven due out from Hennesy. I've read it and love it; it's not just for "Juniors" that for sure! Fun Fact: Did you know that Carolyn voiced Bambi's mother in Disney's "Bambi 2"?

WQ: How did the idea for this book come to you? Little voice in you head, a dream, something you've thought about for a long time, a conversation with someone that sparked the thought?
Carolyn: I was in an informal writing "workshop" about four years ago, working (actually, I was really just noodling around) on a series of short stories about misunderstood women in fiction, along the lines of "Wicked" but with a much more classical bent. And when I say short stories...they were short. One of the stories concerned 13-year old Pandora...not the full grown, fully fleshed out woman we've come to know through classic mythology. My Pandora was/is your average teen...how much fun is it to see a teen deal with her comeuppance for a wrongdoing. Essentially, the chapter where her father "calls her on the carpet" (so to speak) was really the entire short story...of course, it's been revised now.
Through a set of circumstances (kismet...fate, I'm certain), a prolific novelist was in the room during one of those workshops, heard a rewrite of my story and said, "You know what this really is? It's not a short story...it's a novel for young adults. No, make that three novels! What happens is A, then B, then C. Write a thousand words a day until you're done. Go!"
And I went.
And six weeks later, I had my first novel.

WQ: Did you study mythology in college (you seem to know everything!) or is it just an interest?
Carolyn: I started studying Greek and Roman (and a little Norse) mythology at the age of 10 during summer school. A teacher at my elementary school, Mrs. Ebert, taught the class and she was far, far ahead of her time in her methods. She didn't sugar coat anything. Odin plucks out his eye, Zeus mates with Leda as a swan, the followers of Dionysus actually tore everyone to pieces, Amazons cut off their breasts to be better able to handle a bow. She's telling this to ten year old kids and we were rapt. No giggling, no snickering. We were simply entranced. At least I know I was. And we're reading classic books...not kids' stuff. And I just stayed with it. Read everything I could all through high school and at university. And mythology is so fantastical that it really stays with you. I didn't have to do tremendous amounts of research for book one. Book two, however, takes place in Egypt...and I was not so well versed on Egyptian myths. Lots of research for that one. But, as I always say...these are works of fiction. If I fudge a little, so be it.

WQ Why a Junior Book?
Carolyn: I just thoroughly enjoy writing for this age. Hey, I'm STILL thirteen on some days and in some ways (if you ask my husband, he'll say everyday!) We ALL are. These books are for every girl who is going to go through what we all went through, and that can be some tough stuff. Really tough. But it's fun to say to girls everywhere "Look, if Pandy can mess up this big and step up to the plate and try to make it right," you can go through your stuff and come out just fine on the other end, too!
I must say, that while the real message is for the target audience of tweens, adults LOVE this book, too. A really good sign!

WQ: What was the writing journey like for you? Was it easy or difficult?
Carolyn: The first book flowed out of me. I kept looking on my shoulder to see if I had a muse sitting there. It was really like "spirit" writing. I just kept saying, "Okay, Pandy, THAT'S what you want to do next? Well, then go for it!"
Writing is delightful when I'm in it. Sometimes getting started is a little troublesome. But I try not to be too hard on myself when I find I'm wandering away from the computer to make a sandwich in the middle of a chapter. I just know that the ideas will always be there...even after I'm done eating tuna fish. And sometimes I have to get away from the page to really visualize the big picture, see everyone's next moves in my mind's eye.