We’re never sated when it comes to the work of author Megan McCafferty. Having already provided us with Sloppy Firsts and Second Helpings, McCafferty is set to offer her fans a third serving of Jessica Darling’s hilarious escapades come April 11. Charmed Thirds is sure to provide readers with more of what they love: ultra-expressive journal entries crowded with the always dramatic life of Jessica Darling, who journeys through adoloscence and into young adulthood. Like the others, this newest installment will be delivered to you in that great dry sarcasm that is so smart and biting—it will be difficult to put down.
Charmed Thirds will find Jessica in Columbia University, persuing a career in the magazine industry. As always, her hyperactive mind will have you laughing at every new character and outrageous situation that appears. Life outside of Pineville, New Jersey is not all picture-perfect though, as college introduces Jessica to a whole new set of conundrums. There’s the issue of her long-distance relationship with Marcus Flutie, which becomes increasingly difficult with a fresh batch of univeristy hotties falling at her feet. Then, there’s Jessica’s internship at a trendy magazine, where she’s faces more attitude than all her years at Pineville High (if that’s even possible).
McCafferty has established quite a following with the series, having introduced us to one savvy young lady we cannot seem to get enough of. Part of the books’ appeal is that McCafferty manages to create a fictional world where every juicy detail can be appreciated by teenagers and adults alike—not only for their humor, but for their truth as well. Besides the novels, McCafferty’s website serves as a neat way to explore the life of teenage girlhood.
SparkNotes talked with the Young Adult novelist about how she got to where she is, what’s next for Jessica, and whether there really is a modern-day equivalent to 80s cult-flick, Sixteen Candles.
Can’t wait to read Charmed Thirds?
SparkNotes: When did you decide that you wanted to pursue a career as a writer? How did you go about achieving that goal? What were some of the things you did along the way to improve your writing skills?
Megan McCafferty: I don’t know if I ever considered being anything else. My mother says I’ve always had a vivid imagination and that I was making up stories shortly after I learned to talk. Later, my first grade teacher, Mrs. Mohr, gave me a notebook with the words I LOVE TO WRITE on the cover. And over the next two decades, I filled dozens of similar notebooks with poems, short stories, and other creative ramblings.
In high school, I was the editor of the newspaper, won various writing awards, and had a poem published in Seventeen magazine. My writing skills earned me a scholarship to a conservative college that I should have known better than to attend. I transferred to Columbia University in New York City, where I had access to internships at Sassy, Interview, and YM magazines—the last of which directly led to my first job. Being a magazine editor taught me to make every word count, but didn’t give me much creative latitude. After four years in the industry, I left magazines to pursue my first love: fiction. I’d taken several creative writing seminars over the years, and the assignments I turned in for those classes evolved into the first draft of Sloppy Firsts.
SN: Did/do you ever consider exploring a different genre or did you always want to write about/for young adults?
MM: I didn’t give much thought to fitting into a particular genre. I set out to write the type of book that I enjoy reading, and I just happen to be a sucker for teen angst. I knew that if I didn’t dumb-down or overdramatize Jessica’s plight, her story would appeal to those who were still suffering through high school, as well as those who, like me, graduated years ago.
SN: How much do feedback and book reviews play a role in your writing? Do you tend to pay attention to your critics or just ignore them and do your thing?
MM: Confession: I’ve been known to kill an afternoon obsessing over online critiques from book reviewers and fans. I can usually brush off the bad reviews and not get too big-headed about the positive ones. But yes, there have been times when I’ve wanted to track down a critic to explain how she just doesn’t get it.
I respect my fans and love how passionate they are about my characters, but I would never alter a storyline just to make them happy. Some writers get trapped by their need to please, so they end up writing the same safe book over and over again. I want to challenge myself and my audience with each new novel. Will I always be successful? No. But it’s impossible to write a book that will be loved by everyone, so there’s no point in even trying. It sounds corny, but all I can do is write the best book I can write.
SN: In the past, you’ve expressed your love for 80s teen films, like Sixteen Candles. You’ve also said that Jessica Darling can be described as a modern, female version of Holden Caulfield of Catcher in the Rye. What’s your opinion of today’s teen fare? How do you think YA movies/television/literature these days compare to some of your influences?
MM: Movies: Worse. In my opinion, there has yet to be a teen comedy that can compete with Sixteen Candles or Fast Times at Ridgemont High. Mean Girls? Meh. Tina Fey should have used my books for source material…
TV: A draw. I don’t watch much TV. The last truly great TV show about high school was Freaks and Geeks. Every episode was perfectly balanced between humor and heartache.
Books: Better. When I was in high school, I barely read for pleasure because there didn’t seem to be much out there beyond Sweet Valley High. Now publishers recognize that there’s money to be made off the youth market, so there are a lot more options. That means there’s still plenty of crap, but there are also far more beautifully written books. I admire authors like M.T. Anderson, Ann Brashares, and Carolyn Mackler who write intelligent books for and about teens that blur the boundary between YA and regular “adult” fiction.
SN: With Jessica, you’re really able to accomplish the subtleties of an honest teenage voice, from her emotions to her dry humor. How do you do this? As time goes on, do you find it increasingly difficult to channel that tone?
MM: Jessica is definitely an extension of my personality, but she’s not me. She says and does things that make me cringe because I would never say or do them myself. She’s become her own person, and I know her so well that I can put her in almost any situation and know how she would react. Fortunately, Jessica and I are both getting older together. I write my books in real time, so she’ll always be a decade younger than I am, which is not an insurmountable age gap. I mean, it’s not like I’ll be seventy-six and she’s still sixteen. What’s more challenging are the details: the clothes, slang, music, technology, etc. So to get them right, I spy on students all the time. I live in a college town, and it’s like I’m doing research every time I walk out the door.
SN: Your website is an excellent and attractive portal to your career and background. What made you decide to include your teenage journal entries on the site? How have you found keeping a journal helps you with your writing?
MM: I created the (retro)blog as a way of answering three questions: 1.) Why don’t you blog? 2.) What were you like when you were younger? 3.) How much of Jessica Darling is you?
I kept a journal between the ages of ten and twenty-six, so I had hundreds of pages of material. I wanted to start a blog, but I wasn’t interested in dishing the intimate details of my private life, or commenting on current events and pop culture. I wanted to do something different. Like most of my ideas, I don’t remember how or when I put two and two together, but I’m glad I did. To my knowledge, mine is the only (retro)blog of its kind. Now readers can see for themselves where I end and Jessica begins.
I don’t keep a journal anymore in the way that I used to, as a way of documenting the daily minutiae. The notebooks I carry around now are for jotting down story ideas. Jessica Darling’s journals have taken over the need to write my own.
SN: What are you reading these days? What are some of your favorite YA novels?
MM: I just read two great new books. It’s Kind of a Funny Story by Ned Vizzini is about a fifteen-year-old who cracks under the pressure of his supercompetitive high school and checks himself into a mental hospital. It’s so funny and relatable that it made me wonder whether I should have sought professional psychiatric help at some point in my life.
Nick & Norah’s Infinite Playlist by Rachel Cohn and David Levithan is a story about sex, love, and music told in alternating his and hers chapters. I was so jealous when I finished this book. I was like, “I want to collaborate with someone!” It comes out next month.
SN: What can we expect for the future of Jessica Darling and your books? Do you foresee the story making it to the big screen? Will there be more books? Action figures? T-shirts?
MM: I’ll continue writing about Jessica for as long as I’ve got something interesting to say about her world. If I get bored or burned out, I’ll stop. I think of every book as the last one, that is, until I get to the end and I realize I’ve got ideas to spare. That said, I’m sloooooooowly getting started on the fourth Jessica Darling book, about her first year in the “real world” after college graduation. I’m thrilled to take Jessica through the next phase of her life, but I’m so excited and distracted about the publication of Charmed Thirds that I’m not getting much accomplished lately!
I’ve had a few run-ins with Hollywood, but no deals. I’m open-minded about a movie, but the chances are overwhelming that the book-to-film would suck. Successful adaptations like Election or The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants are few and far between.
Someone craftier than me should license a line of You, Yes, You T-shirts, or T-shirts emblazoned with some of Jessica’s catch-phrases: Blahdiddyblahblahblah, Interwenchion, Assplosion, and so on. And as for the action figures, I can only imagine what twisted positions girls would invent for a bendable, flexible Marcus Flutie…
OMG!!!!!!!!!
[1] Posted by: Krazgurl06 | April 9th, 2006 at 9:11 pmIt was so funny i was on spark notes getting ready for a test tomorrow and what do my eyes fall upon..charmed thrids!!!I am the type to ignore ads on spark notes but this one i clciked instantly!!! I can’t wait till i have this book in my bare hands!! I just got so mad when i read that excerpt and where it stopped!!! Thanks for putting this up ~krazgurl