Lindsay Eland is the author of SCONES AND SENSIBILITY, a humorous middle grade novel released by Egmont-USA on December 22, 2009.
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Seek tirelessly and you shall not find a contemporary heroine of middle-grade literature as refined and romantic as Miss Polly Madassa. Still swooning over the romantic conclusions of Pride & Prejudice and Anne of Green Gables, twelve-year-old Polly decides her purpose in life: helping along lonely hearts in search of love. Polly's only task this summer is to make deliveries for her parents' bakery, leaving ample time for this young cupid to find hearts to mend--beginning with the kite-store owner, Mr. Nightquist, who will pair perfectly with Miss Wiskerton (the unfairly labeled town curmudgeon). Polly's best friend Fran Fisk is in desperate need of a mother ever since hers ran off with a man she met on the Internet; Polly must find a match for Mr. Fisk. And while she's at it, it wouldn't hurt to find Clementine, Polly's teenaged sister, a beau worthy of her (so she can shed that brute, Clint). Polly's plans are in full swing, so she definitely cannot be bothered by the advances of classmate Brad Barker.
But maybe Polly should have turned her attention to Miss Austen's Emma next, because she quickly learns the pitfalls of playing matchmaker. How will Polly patch up her own relationships, while ensuring that destined love can take its course?
THE MAGIC 8 1. Mindi Scott: At age eight, what did you want to be when you grew up? And at age eighteen? Lindsay Eland: When I was eight, I actually wanted to be a singer…oh yeah, baby. My sisters and I would put on performances for the neighborhood with our tennis racket guitars, and my best friend and I were often heard writing our own songs and recording them onto a tape. Eighteen…hmmm…this was the age that I probably changed what I wanted to be the most. I wanted to be an actress, a singer, a dancer, a nurse, a dental hygenist (my dad’s a dentist), and an elementary teacher all within my senior year of high school. LE:
Where authors answer eight of life’s most important (and magical) questions.
Uh huh.
2. MS: Which Breakfast-Club-style label would have best fit your teenage self? (Clever Examples: The Bad Ass, The Athlete, The Hottie, The Dork, The Genius, The Psycho, The Social Butterfly, The Band Geek, The Drama Queen/King, The I Wish I Were a Vampire, The Entirely Something Else.)
3. MS: What are some of your superstitions and/or phobias?
LE: I actually don’t have any superstitions, though I do have a phobia of spiders, heights, being stranded in the ocean, and I hate complete darkness…so you would never, ever find me on one of those shows where you have to eat spiders, and then bungee jump into the ocean in the complete darkness.
4. MS: Without giving away too much from your book, which character or scene are you the most pleased about having created, and why?
LE: I really do love my main character Polly. She makes me laugh out loud and is so extreme in every way that I love. I actually wish I could act and talk and dress like she does…so basically, I wish that I was born in the Regency era just like she wishes.
5. MS: Was there any certain music that inspired you while you were writing this book, or is there a song that could serve as your protagonist’s theme song?
LE: I would say the soundtrack for Polly would be from the new Pride and Prejudice movie. Very elegant, classical, and romantic.
6. MS: What’s up next for you as a writer?
LE: I’m continuing to write, write, write, and read as much as I can get my hands on. I always have ideas stirring or waiting in the wings, so when I finish with one manuscript, I jump right into the next.
7. MS: And, now, the most important question of all: Beatles or Elvis? Please support your answer. ;-)
LE: Most definitely The Beatles! My dad is a HUGE fan, so I grew up listening to them in our station wagon crooning to everything from Help! to Lucy In The Sky With Diamonds and Norwegian Wood. Elvis is handsome, but the Englishman have my heart!
8. MS: Okay, your turn. Do you have a question you’d like me to ask my Magic 8-Ball on your behalf? (I’m telling you, this thing is scarily accurate! Well, except for when it’s lying.)
LE: Hmm…will I star as Elizabeth Bennet (Robert Pattison being Mr. Darcy, of course) in the next remake of Pride and Prejudice and will he be as romantic as Colin Firth was?
(Oops. Technical difficulties due to my camera being in another state and my phone being the only device available for this purpose.)
MS: Thank you so much, Lindsay!
LE: Thank you so very much for having me, Mindi!
For more information about Lindsay Eland and SCONES AND SENSIBILITY, check out www.lindsayeland.com