I was born Caroline Hunter Smith in Baltimore, MD, and grew
up in a pointy white house with my mom, dad, older brother, and
feisty dog. I attended an all-girls school where I learned, among
other things, that I really loved to read, and that writing English
papers never seemed to be as painful for me as it was for other
people. (I also learned that I was not meant to do Calculus. There
are several people who will vouch for this.)
I went on to major in English Literature at James Madison University. When I
graduated, I moved to New York City, and for several years entertained
myself by pursuing careers that were wrong for me. Eventually I succumbed to my urge to write and enrolled in a fiction-writing workshop.
I was hooked. I continued taking
workshop courses, and in 2005 obtained my MFA in Creative
Writing from The New School. Shortly thereafter, I married
a marvelous man named Michael Hickey, sold my first book,
and became children's author Caroline Hickey.
Q: How long have you been writing?
A: I've always loved words--reading them and writing them. I
started writing bad poems when I was about eight years old.
I even had one published in our school lit journal in sixth
grade. It was about a bird and the first line went something
like, “Oh, happy is the bird that sings in flight, whose eyes shine like jewels in the early sunlight.”
It was putrid.
Q: Why do you write for kids and teens?
A: Because it's FUN! Also because I think younger readers are more open. By the time
one has become an adult, one’s ideas about
the world are pretty well formed, and books make less of an impression.
Q: What are some of your favorite books?
A: The Princess and the Goblin, No Flying in the House, The
Witches, From the Mixed-Up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler,
Lois Lowry’s Anastasia books, The Egypt Game, and anything by
Beverly Cleary. I have a million favorites.
Q: Did you always want to be a writer?
A: No, I wanted to be a ballerina. Then a pediatrician. Then
a judge. Go figure.
Q: What are you working on now?
A: A new middle grade book about a young girl who accidentally uncovers a family secret. Dum, dee dum dum...
