Frequently Asked Questions

What inspired you to write about foster children in The Decoding of Lana Morris?

Tom has a cousin in Nebraska, a near-saint, who, along with her husband, once took in special needs foster kids, and we were disturbed by the way a sweet, difficult, cheerful boy in their care was taken from them. He was learning to be happy and productive in her house, but the state decided to move him into a group home and medicate him because medication and group care was cheaper. He regressed, and that seems like an unforgivable waste.

How do you write together?
When will your next book be published, and what's it about?
Do you divide up the characters by gender, with Tom writing the boys and Laura writing the girls?
Will there be a sequel to Crooked?
Where do you write?
Which ideas tend to come first—the characters that populate your books, or the storylines that drive them?
Do you see characters’ faces as you write?
Is the paper from Ms. Hekkity’s shop (in The Decoding of Lana Morris) truly magical, or are the events following the drawings merely coincidences?
How often do you revise?
What kinds of books did you read as a teenager, and what do you read now?

How do you write together?

When will your next book be published, and what's it about?

Do you divide up the characters by gender, with Tom writing the boys and Laura writing the girls?

Will there be a sequel to Crooked?

Where do you write?

Which ideas tend to come first—the characters that populate your books, or the storylines that drive them?

Do you see characters’ faces as you write?

Is the paper from Ms. Hekkity’s shop (in The Decoding of Lana Morris) truly magical, or are the events following the drawings merely coincidences?

How often do you revise?

What kinds of books did you read as a teenager, and what do you read now?