Each day this week, I will feature a new Q&A with Ellen Meister (author of the soon to be released SECRET CONFESSIONS OF THE APPLEWOOD PTA), along with a link to one of her stories. Here’s a link in case you missed Day One.

Q & A

MC: Not only do you yourself have a great sense of humor (and impeccable timing), but so do your characters. Can you trace your humor line? Where did it come from? When did you first know you could make people laugh?

EM: Thank you, Myf! To be honest, I think the humor comes from a desperate place. As a child, I didn’t think people had very much reason to like me, and so I bent over backwards to entertain. And getting a laugh … boy, that was something!

By the time I got to college, that drive to entertain had built to a manic crescendo. I was always doing accents, voices, impressions, routines, schtick. Picture a female Robin Williams on speed, only my fuel was mostly coffee and adrenaline.

But college, as I’m sure you remember, is a time of deep introspection. (Remember sitting up with friends all night, just talking? God, there was so much to say!) And slowly, a maturity crept in and I calmed down a bit. I was gratified to learn that I didn’t have to be “on” all the time for people to like me.

But that entertainer still resides somewhere deep inside, and she comes out when I write.

Read:

Ellen is a funny woman. But don’t just take my word for it, check out this story:

Tighter Abs in Six Weeks