What I Like about You: Kieran Scott

A good storyteller makes you care about characters who, in real life, might not interest you or cause you to feel connected to them.  A good storyteller makes you care about these characters’ problems whether or not they’re the sort of problems you would normally care about.

Enter Kieran Scott.  I first heard about her novel I Was a Non-Blonde Cheerleader several years ago, but it was only recently that I had a chance to pick it up.  I had immediately loved the title (I’m terrible at creating titles, so I admire a catchy one) but didn’t think I’d be too into the book…cheerleading was never exactly in the cards for me.  When I was about twelve, my own dad ironically nicknamed me “Grace,” based on my unerring ability to routinely hurl myself into stationary objects for no good reason.  (But how cool that my dad taught me the valuable skill of being able to laugh at myself.  That one has come in handy more times than the ability to do a back flip, I’m sure!)  Growing up, I didn’t think cheerleaders had “real” problems; I would have scoffed at the suggestion that they ever worried about fitting in like the rest of us did.  So, I was all set to be immune to the charms of Kieran’s main character, Annisa, who is a short-haired brunette trying to fit in with the blonde Britney lookalikes at her new school.

But you know what?  I’ve got to hand it to Kieran…it wasn’t long before I actually really, really hoped the squad would accept Annisa and that they’d ace their competition and all end up great friends.  Go figure!  I can chalk my reaction up only to Kieran’s skill as a storyteller.  She made me care, and I enjoyed the book.  Fellow writers, read and learn.  Give your readers a reason to relate to your protagonist, and we’ll follow him/her anywhere.  Even to cheerleading competition!

What do YOU think about Kieran Scott’s novels?  Has anyone checked out the He’s So/She’s So trilogy?  On my list….