But Water for Elephants kicked it up a notch. I don’t know where my infatuation first started. The characters aren’t heroic or perfect, they’re reflections of average people doing their best in a setting I’ve always found interesting-the circus. Though there are fantastical undertones throughout the story, I really wanted to bring magic to the “real world.” What I mean by this is that my book doesn’t have all the tropes that mass-market books do. This specific plot called to me because I wanted to mix magic and mystery. They always say “write the book you want to read!” I’ve always been drawn to YA, but I like to bring a spin to things that I haven’t seen before. With The Invisible Circus, I knew I had to give the story a chance to grow.

I call these my “mental movies” because I can create anything in my mind, it’s just TBD if there’s enough passion to create a real book out of it. Like, just picturing a scenario I find interesting or want to happen in real life. Normally, ideas come to me through daydreams. So Franklin now has a father and I have an amazing partner who supports my writing dream. Two summers ago, I met the love of my life. Luckily, most of these friends have stayed in the area… having a support system makes all the difference when writing books and questioning my sanity/skill. My dearest cat Franklin and I started post-college life in a one-bedroom for four years, where we hosted a lot of parties with our friends.

I feel really blessed that I fell into a career centered around words-I’m literally always typing something, so I’m just waiting for the carpel tunnel to kick in 🙂 I work as a creative consultant, which mostly involves writing for large and small companies. I’m a Midwest girl-I grew up in ND and moved to MN for college, where I’ve stayed since. Lindsey Bakken Photograph by Claire Irwin

The invisible circus book