Liza Palmer is Always Ready
to Kill Her Little Darlings

An exclusive Authorlink Interview with
With the author of More Like Her

By Paige Crutcher
May, 2012

Frannie’s new boss, Emma, symbolizes perfection in motion. A reminder of all things impeccable, she’s an enviable thorn in Frannie’s side. But you can’t judge a book, or a person, by its cover. The life Frannie so desperately covets is revealed to be one of tragic deception, and the fallout nearly costs her everything. In Liza Palmer’s MORE LIKE HER, chance, fate, and tragedy collide when perception is shattered and reality is unveiled. The loss that breaks Frannie’s heart will heal more than the past; it will make whole a once broken future.

AUTHORLINK: What do you believe makes a great story? Is there an element that you believe must be present?

PALMER: As usual, John Steinbeck can answer this question way better than I can. He said, "If a story is not about the hearer he will not listen. And here I make a rule - - a great and interesting story is about everyone or it will not last."

AUTHORLINK: You do a stellar job keeping the reader captivated and on the edge of their seat. Would you talk a little about pacing and tension?

PALMER: It's all about constantly asking yourself if the sentence, the scene, the paragraph, the word, the chapter you're writing moves the story forward. Always ready to kill your darlings in lieu of doing just that. It's all about the narrative and sometimes we, as writers, have to get out of the way in order for it to smoothly continue unencumbered.

AUTHORLINK: MORE LIKE HER showcases both the mature and immature relationships in love. Many people struggle to escape the shadow of a bad romance. How important was it to show that amidst the most extreme chaos that is life, true love (in the form of a sister, friend, or mate) will prevail and find its way home?

PALMER: I think it's the most important thing, right? We're here on this planet to make connections - that's what we yearn for. To connect to each other, to the universe around us... all of it. But, so often life gets in the way and love and connections somehow feel luxurious or not as important. And without it, none of the other stuff matters, you know? The idea of being safe and sound, the feeling that you have a home with someone... there's nothing like it. Especially in the face of extreme chaos...when being safe and sound feels very far away.

AUTHORLINK: How do you create authentic and relatable characters? Do you pull from yourself, or are the characters organic creations?

PALMER: I think drawing characters is akin to meeting anybody new. The first draft is you hanging out at Starbucks together and just chatting - outward appearances, small talk... But, then the second draft is you maybe having a long dinner or a drive where you dig in a bit more. Dig into family and past relationships, guards are let down and maybe they share a bit more. The key to character development lies in looking at it like any other relationship. Someone's not going to tell you why they hate their father the first time they sit down with you. It takes time.

AUTHORLINK: What is the most difficult aspect of writing for you (plotting, outlining, etc)? How do you conquer the stalls and hiccups that occur when taking on the (sometimes) daunting task of writing a novel?

PALMER: If you're doing this right, each book you endeavor to write is just beyond your grasp. Just a little bit outside of where your last novel was. And this is the right way of creating, but it's terrifying and life altering all at the same time. I think just keeping that spark alive is the hardest thing to do. Staying in wonder. Staying in the positive and finding the joy in writing. More than discipline and outlining and and and... hope is sometimes the hardest thing to commit to each day.

AUTHORLINK: I’m assuming you have, but did you ever have your heart broken? And did you use that experience to channel Frances and her turmoil (and occasional shenanigans)?

AUTHORLINK: Friendship is a huge theme to MORE LIKE HER. You give grace to each character, as well as show their flaws – making them authentic and three-dimensional. How do you develop your characters? Is there a process or do they come to you fully formed?

PALMER: Each character is different - once again, just like people. Some come fully formed and some reveal themselves to you gradually. I love when you go back over your earlier draft and say to yourself, "That character wouldn't say that!" Once again, I think it's just time spent together and understanding how all the characters fit together as a unit. What is their purpose in the narrative? Yes, they're funny or whatever - but what job are they doing in the novel? What path are they embodying? Why are they in my main character's orbit?

AUTHORLINK: You put readers in the eye of the storm. And you do it with honesty and with elements that are evocative (being at a school, during an emotional breakthrough, as the clouds part so-to-speak). What was it like to give yourself over to such a powerful and heavy scene?

PALMER: I knew it was going to be a rough one, so much so that I tried to get out of it. In the beginning I was going to cheat and put The Scene as the first chapter. That way, it would be easier to write about the brutality because I didn't really know the characters that well, you know? I didn't want to know them because I knew what I was going to have to do to them. But, that didn't work - of course it didn't. It was one of the most emotional scenes I've ever written - no, THE most emotional scene I've ever written. I was a wreck. Still am.

AUTHORLINK: There’s an expression, “Your perception creates your reality.” How would Frannie respond to such a statement?

PALMER: I think she would think about this statement for houuuuurrrsss, nayyyy dayyyyyyys. Then she'd have an epiphany about it. Then she'd want to talk about it. A LOT. Then I think she'd implement it into her daily life moment by moment, knowing that she can be her own worst enemy at times. (I love this expression, by the way... very cool.)

AUTHORLINK: Could you give us a peek into where Frannie is today? (Please!)

PALMER: I imagine Frannie lying in some fluffy bed, the blue haze of the early morning streaming through the windows. Her head resting on Sam's chest as his arm curls around her. A sigh. A smile. And no nightmares. (cut to: Frannie's cell phone on the bedside table, full to bursting with Jill's texts demanding to know everything (and she means everytttthing) about the previous night's events. A photo of Jill's new baby as Frannie's phone's wallpaper.

AUTHORLINK: Finally, if you weren't a writer, what would you be?

Liza Palmer is the internationally bestselling author of Conversations with the Fat Girl which Booklist says, "…manages to infuse a message of self--acceptance that isn't heavy-handed or cloying. This quick-witted author is sure to develop a following." Conversations with the Fat Girl became an international bestseller its first week in publication, being named a Target Breakout book, as well as hitting Number 1 on the Fiction Heatseekers List in the UK the week before the book debuted. Conversations with the Fat Girl has been optioned for series by HBO by the producers of Rome, Band of Brothers and Generation Kill.

Palmer's second novel is Seeing Me Naked, which Publisher's Weekly says, "consider it haute chick lit; Palmer's prose is sharp, her characters are solid and her narrative is laced with moments of graceful sentiment."

Palmer's third novel, A Field Guide to Burying Your Parents, which Entertainment Weekly calls a "splendid novel" and Real Simple says "has heart and humor" was released in January 2010. Garnering praise and critical acclaim, A Field Guide to Burying Your Parents was also named by Los Angeles Magazine as a book to watch in 2010.

Palmer currently lives in Los Angeles and after working on the first season of Pop-Up Video is back to work on her next novel. She now knows far too much about Fergie.

Paige Crutcher is a wordie, writer, book addict, blogger, National Authors Examiner and columnist for authorlink.com. Visit her articles at: http://www.examiner.com/authors-in-national/paige-crutcher, her blog: http://paigesprose.blogspot.com/ or follow her on Twitter: @PCrutcher.