Tribute to The Hunger Games

In honor of the release of MOCKINGJAY, (okay, yes, I'm a week late) here is a brief glimpse into the elegantly warped mind of Suzanne Collins. All I can say is, bless a woman who can squish 1984, American Idol, Project Runway, Spartacus, and slasher porn together into a young adult book. Also, bless any successful author who finds their literary inspiration whilst channel surfing.

Here are the first five parts to Collins' interview (There's also an excellent interview with Borders, but I couldn't post it due to the annoying shots of audience members self-consciously blinking throughout)

Part 1


Part 2


Part 3


Part 4


Part 5


And then of course, I had to include a snippet from another interview because it answers two of my favorite questions. How do you write? and What do you read? Because, you know, if you find out those two things (along with their Ipod playlist) then you really discover what makes genius people tick.

Q: How do you typically spend your workday? Do you have a routine as you write?


A: I grab some cereal and sit down to work as soon as possible. The more distractions I have to deal with before I actually begin writing, the harder focusing on the story becomes. Then I work until I’m tapped out, usually sometime in the early afternoon. If I actually write three to five hours, that’s a productive day. Some days all I do is stare at the wall. That can be productive, too, if you’re working out character and plot problems. The rest of the time, I walk around with the story slipping in and out of my thoughts.


Q: What were some of your favorite novels when you were a teen?


A: A Tree Grows in Brooklyn by Betty Smith
The Heart Is a Lonely Hunter by Carson McCullers
Nineteen Eighty Four by George Orwell
Anna Karenina by Leo Tolstoy
Slaughterhouse-Five by Kurt Vonnegut
A Wrinkle in Time by Madeleine L’Engle
Lord of the Flies by William Golding
Boris by Jaapter Haar
Germinal by Emile Zola
Dandelion Wine by Ray Bradbury