
She's as happy as she looks. Seriously. Makes my day when I see one of her emails arrive in my inbox.
Okay, so Cambria signed with Vickie about a month before I did, and guess what? She's celebrating her big news this week by giving away new prizes every day. Also, in an incredible act of generosity, Cambria asked to interview ME during HER agent signing celebration week. For real. This should tell you a little bit about Cambria. Not enough? I also interviewed Cambria just so you could get to know her a little better. Check out how our little chat went:
Me: Hi Cambria! So happy to have you visit! I spruced up the place just for you. What do you think of my new sculpture?
Cambria: Thanks for having me! Two thumbs up on the sculpture…but uh, I think Sculpture Jared would prefer NOT to be sporting a tiara. Just sayin'.
Err...well. About that. See, there was thing, and then--look, a flying pig!
*Cambria glances out window*
*Carol spinning-kicks tiara off Jared's head*
*Cambria turns back around, eyebrow arched high*
Oh, what a shame. You missed the pig. It was FAST. Anyway...eh hmm. Back to the interview. In two words or less, please tell us ALL about yourself.
Punchy fun!
My, you are concise. *Carol’s distracted by shirtless Jared Leto*
*Cambria takes opportunity to flash a real bio at readers*
Well, two words really isn't a whole lot, especially since I'm the Queen of Rambling AND Queen of Tangents. You probably didn't realize you were interviewing royalty today, huh? Okay, okay…in all seriousness, I write contemporary YA and live in Maryland with my husband (BicycleDude) and two-year-old daughter (Toddler Trouble). I have a blog and also contribute to Adventures in Children's Publishing. Oh! And I'm running an awesome contest this week, so go check it out (and enter for a chance to win a crit from Carol!)
Oh, so sorry! Got a bit distracted. A fly, you know.
*Cambria tucks hands behind her back. Whistles.*
Eh hmm. Maybe you could tell us a little bit about where you are in your publishing journey and how it’s gone for you?
I signed with Vickie Motter of Andrea Hurst Literary Management in February and after doing a couple rounds of revisions, just went out on sub last week. It's been exciting, nerve-wracking, and fast and slow all at the same time.
Holy catfish, that's fast. How exhilarating! Must be hard to do anything but refresh email. What is your project about?
The story I queried is a contemporary YA called LIFE AFTER SEND. It's about a popular girl who sends a sext to her boyfriend, who must then deal with the social backlash when the picture gets a rather public viewing.
Dang, that sounds awesome. So timely and relevant to today's teens! I look forward to reading it. Would you tell us a little bit about what you’re working on at the moment? Any new projects?
I'm writing the first draft of another contemporary YA about two teens in love who question their place in each other's lives when what they thought they knew, turns out to be wrong. It's a dual narrative…and um, there's some other stuff that happens too. Obviously I need to work on my one-line pitch.
No work necessary. That has definitely piqued my interest. But I'm curious how you go about creating your new stories. Would you tell us a bit about your writing process?
My first drafts are usually all over the place because I'm an in-betweener – I outline a little and pants a LOT. But once I have the story down on the page, I create a big storyboard, which helps me see the major areas I need to fix, things like plot threads and pacing. After that, I send it to my critique partners to rip apart. And then it's REVISE, REVISE, REVISE.
Sounds like we work in similar ways!
Alright, it’s time for some invasive questions.
London or Fiji? Bring on the huts on stilts! Fiji for sure!
Beans or filet mignon? Depends on what kind of beans we're talking about…if we're talking about JELLY BEANS – then totally the beans! If not, then filet mignon.
Croissant and cappuccino or biscuits and gravy? Croissant and cappuccino!
Chocolate or Jared Leto? Hmm…tricky…I would say Jared Leto ONLY if I'm guaranteed Jared a la Jordan Catalano.
Dude, it’s been so AWEsome to have you here, I want to capture this moment forever with a picture. Smile.

Now this, folks, is Cambria Dillon. Smart, sweet, supportive, thoughtful, and super talented. She's got a mega bright future ahead of her. Be sure to stop by Cambria's blog and wish her a hearty congratulations! And while you're there, remember to enter her giveaway. For today, I've offered up a five page critique of the winner's manuscript, and Cambria's also giving away a SIGNED copy of FEED by M.T. Anderson. Holy cannelloni. And that's not even all. She's giving away prizes every day with a super prize on Friday. Go check them all out. And while you're there, you can take a peek at my interview with Cambria, in which you can get a glimpse of my agent story.
Thanks so much for stopping by, Cambria! It was a pleasure and an honor to have you.
Love this!! This was one of the most entertaining interviews I've seen! LOL I'm not surprised you were involved, Carol ;o)
ReplyDeleteCambria sounds awesome as does her books!! I'll hop on over and check yours out. So awesome to see great things happen to great people.
I'm SO an in-betweener too. <3
I have to know...what is it with Jared Leto?
ReplyDelete(& who is Jared Leto? *do I get scorned for this?*
Congrats!! She signed and is already out on subs...wonderful! So much going on over here.
ReplyDeleteAwesome interview! Can't wait to read anything you girls write! Good luck on submission! :)
ReplyDeleteVery fun interview. Good luck with submission Cambria.
ReplyDeleteWe're so thrilled for both of you! And Cam, we're the luckiest ever to have you as a part of ACP. We can't wait to read your books, girls!
ReplyDeletexxoo
M&M
What a fun interview!! Yay for awesome agent-mates!!! I can't watch the clip as I'm at work but huge congrats to the both of you for being all agented and agent mated!!! Yay! take care
ReplyDeletex
Fun interview! Congrats to Cambria! Her book sounds very relevant and timely!
ReplyDeleteAnd any mention of Jared in a post makes it a five star post for me! :)
Wonderful interview- Congratulations!
ReplyDeleteAnother fun interview! Congrats to Cambria! Her book sounds great!
ReplyDeleteNice to meetcha, Cambria! You're not Welsh, are you? Cuz Cambria's the Latin name for Wales. Or was, when people were speaking Latin a lot. They don't do that much anymore so now they just call it Wales. Or Cymru. Or whatever they call it in Wales (I don't speak Welsh...do you?)
ReplyDeleteI mean, you don't *look* particularly Welsh. Not that I really know what Welsh people look like, never having met one. And not that I'm into judging people's nationality by looks alone, in today's heterogeneous, multicultural society. I dunno. You *could* be Welsh. Uh...are you?
Oh, and congratulations on the signing and subbing and such!
...
*cough*
*grin*
The excitement continues! Love it...:)
ReplyDeleteCongrats on being on sub, Cambria!
ReplyDeleteI love that idea of creating a big storyboard. Wonderful interview.
ReplyDeleteMy So-Called Life? One of the best short-lived shows ever.
What fun! Hopping over...
ReplyDeleteBoth interviews were a lot of fun, ladies. :)
ReplyDeleteAlso, my process is VERY similar.
And, I have been in love with Jared for SO long...hello Jordan Catalano. And I love him with pink mohawk or black emo bangs or blonde and long. It's all good.
Though when he got fat for that one role, that wasn't a good look.
Huggles,
Lola
Wow. Just wow.
ReplyDeleteThat may be the funniest interview I have ever read. Thanks ladies, and congrats to you both!
Cambria sounds awesome. You ladies are super lucky to be agent-mates! Thanks for making me laugh this morning. :)
ReplyDeleteWoohoo! Congratulations, Carol!! Your story sounds fabulous. No wonder you knocked Vickie off her feet. ;-) And welcome to subland! My MS has been on sub for oh, about three weeks now. EEK. I hope it goes by super fast for you, and that maybe you'll hear something even sooner!
ReplyDeleteBTW, Firework ... what a brilliant choice! That song has been my inspiration for several months now! Good luck, and see on the shelves soon!
P.S. No need to enter me in the contest ... I just wanted to congratulate you on your fabulousness--:)
All this cross interviewing is FUN!!
ReplyDeleteI especially love Cambria's HEEEEEYYY pose in her picture there. It's so her!
Heart you both!
That's so fun that you are making new friends that have the same agent! What a fun interview. Good luck on subs Cambria!
ReplyDeleteThanks everyone for your AWESOME comments. How great a host was Carol? She's amazing and I really didn't mind Jared's tiara, so not sure why she had to go all Karate Kid on him, but that's Carol for ya -- full of ninja kicks and smiles!
ReplyDeleteAnd thanks to all those who popped over to my blog to catch Carol's interview. She really does rock.
Simon -- Your comment cracked me up, but sadly, I'm not Welsh. Or Cymrunian. Or whatever you called it...though I do like that one dog breed -- Welsh corgi, right? Lovely little animals.
This is fun!
ReplyDeleteOh, Jordan Catalano. My 17 year old heart just skipped a beat.
Great interview - you two made me laugh this morning! Best of luck with the subs Cambria!
ReplyDeleteYou two are WAY too cool and adorable! I'm feeling like I need to get a bit cooler and more adorable to be in your very presence. Great to get to know both of you better!
ReplyDelete::Kris goes to get her cool on::
this interview is great! *loves happy YA peeps* Jared Leto=awesome. Just saying lol :)
ReplyDeleteThanks for sharing!!
Fun interview! And congrats to both of you!
ReplyDeleteawwwwww you know what's funny? I met Cambria before I knew you two were going to be agent sisters--and I STILL thought of you because I knew the two of you would hit it off :)
ReplyDeleteAlso, would you mind sending me Jared's head? I don't even care if the tiara is still on it...
Great interview. Congrats Cambria. And that's awesome that you two are connecting.
ReplyDeleteYou can tell you girls get on very well. This was hilarious! Much luck to Cambria with her one-line pitch. :)
ReplyDeleteFun interview! Jared a la Jordan Catalano - yep, better than chocolate. :)
ReplyDeleteCongrats to you both!
What a fun interview! Best of luck to you both as your publishing journeys continue! :)
ReplyDeleteAwesome interview! I can't wait to meet your other agent buddy. Heading over to her blog now!
ReplyDeleteFirst of all, Congratulations! Secondly, what an awesome interview. I look forward to more of these!
ReplyDeleteNice to meet you, Cambria! (Cute name, btw). Great interview, Carolina! <3
ReplyDeleteThat book sounds like a very interesting read. So NOW, isn't it?
Have a great day--yippee for the weekend!
♥.•*¨ Elizabeth ¨*•.♥
What a cool part of the publishing business, Carol! And not much talked about at all. It's great that you're such good friends with your agent-sister!
ReplyDeleteAnd Cambria, you are gorgeous. Truly lovely.
Jai
Oh, my goodness!! I seriously just clapped for you. major congrats on the agent. That is huge news, i am so very excited for you. And I cannot wait to read your work in print! Oh, I love your blog!
ReplyDeleteRusso @ www.threegnomes.blogspot.com