Q&A with Janet Fox

 

 

 

Janet Fox is the author of the new middle grade novel The Mystery of Mystic Mountain. Her other books include Carry Me Home. She lives in Montana.

 

 

Q: What inspired you to write The Mystery of Mystic Mountain, and how did you create your character Becca?

 

A: My (very creative) writer son was visiting me, and I was brainstorming a new book with a mystery at its center, when he came up with a character named “Pearlhandle Pete, Robin Hood of the Mountains and Plains” and I loved that idea so much I had to run with it.

 

The setting and the mystery followed right behind, with inspiration from one of my all-time favorite books, Holes.

 

All my characters take a lot of time to create, though I knew Becca would be struggling with who she wants to be as a person – does she want to be popular, no matter what, or does she want to be a true friend even if that costs her in popularity?

 

Being a “fish out of water” as she is in this story makes that question come into focus.

 

Q: The story takes place in Montana--how important is setting to you in your writing?

 

A: Oh, so important. Setting to me is another type of secondary character – and it can also be an antagonist, or an ally. Even the old dude ranch has a part to play.

 

Plus, I love Montana. It’s beautiful and mysterious and challenging, too. I live here, and I want to share it with the world through my stories.

Q: The Publishers Weekly review of the novel says, “While chasing clues, meeting otherworldly spirits, and rebuffing a greedy social media star, Becca learns that the only treasures worth fighting for are the kind that can’t be spent.” What do you think of that description?

 

A: I love that so much because the reviewer definitely got the theme. I wanted to make the point that there are much more important things in life than money or fame, because right now I think those things are being elevated over honesty and integrity. And that’s what Becca does have to learn.

 

Q: Did you know how the novel would end before you started writing it, or did you make many changes along the way?

 

A: I always know how my stories will end before I start writing because that’s how I map my character’s arc of change. That’s a key driver – how the character changes irrevocably. Knowing the ending helps me develop character growth and change more smoothly and naturally over the entire course of the story.

 

Q: What are you working on now?

 

A: I have four projects going right now, and I alternate among them: a picture book, a YA novel featuring a dragon but in a contemporary setting, a middle grade novel about a girl who has to save a magical forest, and a nonfiction craft book for kidlit writers.

 

Q: Anything else we should know?

 

A: My next project on which I’m the co-author is a nonfiction YA about Rosalind Franklin, the woman who discovered the structure of DNA but was pushed aside by the men around her. She had an amazing life. That one will be out in 2026.

 

--Interview with Deborah Kalb. This post was created in partnership with Janet Lewis. Enter the giveaway for your chance to win a signed hardcover copy of The Mystery of Mystic Mountain, some fun swag, and a signed copy of Carry Me Home!