Carol Gorman stops by Hayden Auditorium Monday
Matthew Gross
Issue date: 10/18/06 Section: News
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Gorman, a former middle school teacher, is the author of the popular "Dork" series of books aimed at young adults, which includes the award-winning "Dork in Disguise" and "A Midsummer Night's Dork."
"I wanted her to come to hopefully talk in front of students who are going to be middle grades teachers," Douglas Hatch, an associate professor in curriculum and instruction, said.
Gorman talked about her books, her struggles in the literary industry as well as her writing process.
"I like to write humor and I think kids respond to humor," Gorman said. "I remember very well what it was like to be that age and a part of me hasn't really grown up."
"There's a lot of action and a lot of dialogue, and I think kids really like that," Hatch said about Gorman's books. "It's just very accurate in portraying young adolescents, what they're like and what they think."
Along with the "Dork" series, Gorman is also the author of "Chelsey and the Green-Haired Kid" and "T.J. and the Pirate Who Wouldn't Go Home."
Her latest book, "Stumptown Kid," is a mystery set in Iowa in the 1950s. The story revolves around Charlie Nebraska, a young boy whose father is killed in the Korean War. Charlie befriends an African-American baseball player with a dark secret, and once that secret gets out, it puts Charlie's new friend in grave danger.
"A young person dealing with a problem that is universal is key," Gorman said about what makes a good story for young adults. "Like wanting to be yourself but also wanting people to like you," she said.
Gorman majored in theatre at the University of Iowa and began teaching middle school in Cedar Rapids, Iowa shortly after. She got into writing after her husband read some of her old letters to friends in which she "elaborated the truth" and encouraged her to use that creative flair to write stories for young adults.
"I just love doing it," Gorman said about writing.
"What I liked most about the theater was taking a play with lines on a paper and translating that into a physical person with vocal patterns and physical patterns. But when I started writing, I realized I was inventing the whole world and all of the characters."
Despite the popularity of the "Dork" series, Gorman said not to expect a new book anytime soon.
"I decided that I probably won't write another in the 'Dork' series, but I had two students come up and give me great ideas," Gorman said. "If I ever do another one, I might use the little plots they gave me."
Gorman's next book, "Games," comes out in January. The story focuses on two boys who are made to play games in order to work out their differences.
After "Games," Gorman is making her first foray into the world of adult literature with "Happy Woman Blues." The story revolves around a woman who is contacted by the FBI to spy on her neighbors, who may or may not be drug runners.
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