Louis Sachar

Where and when were you born?

I was born in East Meadow, New York, USA, on March 20, 1954 and lived there until third grade. My dad worked on the 78th floor of the Empire State Building!

What were you like at school?

I enjoyed school and was a good student, but it wasn't until high school that I became a big reader. When I was nine, we moved to California. There were orange groves all around, and we would divide up into teams and have orange fights. The “ammo” hung from the trees, although the best ones were the gushy, rotten ones on the ground.

What were your favourite subjects?

I loved reading but I studied Economics at college and then went on to study law. I also spent time working as a Teaching Assistant in Elementary School. After high school, I attended Antioch College in Ohio. I had a short but surprisingly successful career as a Fuller Brush man. For those of you too young to know what that is, I went door-to-door selling cleaning products! Eventually though I packed it in and became a full-time writer.

When did you know you wanted to be a writer?

I became a writer because I loved books so much and I wanted to be like my favourite authors! Some of my other favourite authors include Margaret Atwood, E.B. White and J.D. Salinger.

What do you do in a typical day?

I write every morning, usually for no more than two hours and nobody is allowed in my study apart from my two dogs Tippy and Lucky. I spent two years on my latest novel and nobody, not even Carla my wife or Sherre my daughter knew anything about it until it was finished. Then they were the first to read it.

Do you ever get writer's block?

I get writer's block a lot! Usually I just try and get through it — to write anything, because I know I'm going to do four or five drafts of a book. So, maybe the next time I get to this point, I'll have a better idea of what to do. So, I just do anything just to get through it!

What's your favourite book?

Charlotte's Web by E.B White is one of my favourite kid's books and The Catcher in the Rye by Salinger is another favourite.

How did you get the idea to write the book Holes?

I never think of an entire book at once. I always just start with a very small idea. In Holes, I just began with the setting; a juvenile correctional facility located in the Texas desert. Then I slowly make up the story, and re-write it several times, and each time I re-write it, I get new ideas and change the old ideas around. In the end, it's really hard to say how I thought up each part.

Who is your favourite character in your book Holes?

Kissin' Kate Barlow.

Louis' Top Tips for budding writers

Read, find out what you like to read, and try to figure out what it is about it that makes you like it! Also don't worry if you have to re-write things! My first drafts of things are always awful!

Do you have any hobbies?

In my spare time, I like to play bridge. You can often find me at the bridge club in Austin, or at a bridge tournament somewhere around the country.

What makes you proud?

I get a tremendous feeling of accomplishment from starting with nothing and then somehow creating a whole story with a setting and characters! That's the greatest thing about writing.