HW: Where did the idea for Traveler start?
LD: When I was six, we were living in England and I saw a BBC production of Alice Through the Looking Glass. After the show was over, I passed by an ornate mirror we had in our hallway, stopped to stare, and I swear to you, I saw my other self blink. I still get an uneasy feeling if I look at a mirror too long.
HW: Do you ever get writer’s block? How do you get back on track?
LD: Oh, I get writer’s block all the time. I mean all the time. There’s only one cure for that: You write. Even if it’s bad, even if it takes the plot in an odd direction, even if you have no idea where you’re going with it. You can always fix it later, but you can’t do that if there’s nothing to fix.
HW: What’s the best writing advice you’ve ever heard?
LD: From every writer ever: Just write. Just do it.
TRAVELER
Discussion Questions
1.??Mario has a lot of influence and power as a Dreamer. Do you think he’s looking out for Jessa, or does he have his own agenda? Would you trust him?
2.??Why do you think Finn tries so hard to keep an emotional distance from Jessa in the beginning?
3.??Do you think Jessa’s life experiences make her a more resilient person? And if so, do you think she will be a better Traveler?
4.??If you were to see your family in another reality, perhaps slightly or—as in the case of Danny—very altered, would it be frightening? Or intriguing?
5.??Do you think Jessa should feel guilty for letting Pirate Finn kiss her a second time? Would you have kissed him?
6.??Jessa doubts her own writing talent after finding out her dreams have been influenced. Do you think that finding out her dreams were real has any bearing on her talent as a writer?
7.??With her newfound ability, Jessa can now live many lives. Do you think she’ll still want to live in her “home” reality, or will she become more independent, like Finn?
8.??How do you think Jessa and Ben’s dynamic will change now that she has the other Jessa’s memories of her time with Ben?
9.??Would you find it difficult to let a different version of you live your life for a while? Would it be hard to trust yourself?
10.??If you could alter one decision you made in your life, then climb through the mirror and live in that altered reality, how do you think your life would have changed?
Fighter. Faker. Student. Spy.
Reagan was born to be a spy,
but will she turn her back on the world’s top secret agency for love?
ONE
“Reagan, everyone is going on Saturday,” Harper says, in between bites of overcooked meat loaf and runny lunchroom mashed potatoes. “You’ll be, like, the only senior not there.”
“I’d rather eat glass,” I say, taking a long swig of Vitaminwater. I ran six miles before school and my body is in dire need of electrolytes. I can feel it. I hate getting up early to train, but it’s a million times better than waiting until the afternoon. I’d much rather be hanging out or studying with Harper and Luke, but skipping is not an option. I made that stupid mistake only once and that was enough for me. My parents were the kind of pissed that bypasses the yelling and screaming phase and goes straight to the silent treatment and punishment. They gave me a training session the next day that made my legs shake for an hour. A twelve-mile run followed by five hundred push-ups, a thousand sit-ups, and two hours of Krav Maga. Pure hell. In most households, I’m pretty sure that’d be considered child abuse. But what was I supposed to do? Call Child Protective Services? Tell them my parents forced me to work out for six hours because they’re operatives for a part of the CIA the world, even most of the US government, doesn’t know about and I’m training to be an operative too? I don’t think so. So every morning, I pull my butt out of bed at five on the dot to train before school.
“I don’t understand why on earth you would want to miss one of Mark’s parties,” Harper counters, tucking a loose strand of her long, wavy blond hair behind her ear.
“You know my two party rules,” I reply, counting them down on my fingers. “Number one: Drinking Mad Dog 20/20 will make you sicker than eating at a strip club buffet. Number two: No good ever comes from attending a Mark Ricardi party.”
Mark’s gatherings at his parents’ estate outside the New Albany Country Club community were sort of famous. I’ve only been to one of his parties and left before things got totally out of control, but the stories that come out of that house … my God. People always end up going skinny-dipping in the pond or losing articles of clothing (or just their dignity) during tequila-induced twerk-offs. Someone always gets into a huge fight or breaks something or cheats on their girlfriend. People always leave Mark Ricardi parties with the taste of expensive liquor and regret in their mouths.