It was theater and Broadway where she initially hoped to pave her professional path. Instead, she fell in love with the process of writing and her very first novel became an instant success. Liesl Shurtliff is the New York Times bestselling author of 'Rump: The (Fairly) True Tale of Rumpelstiltskin' and other books in the (Fairly) True Tales series and the Time Castaways trilogy. Her books have been named to several state award lists and have won many awards, including a Children's Book Award from the International Literacy Association. Liesl lives with her husband and four children in Chicago and found some time to chat with us about:

• Finding her voice as a writer
• The importance of seeing any experience from all sides
• Why audiences resonate with things that are both familiar and new
• How her passion for theater and Broadway influence her work
• Impact of fame on her confidence and understanding her limitations
• Learning to chill out
• Her approach to connecting with the audience on a personal level
• The need to finish, as you can revise bad writing but not a blank page