Young Adult Author Lynne Hansen

If you live in Tampa Bay, Why are you here?

Tampa is the perfect city for me--large enough that we get all the best touring bands and shows, but small enough that you can get to just about anywhere in the Bay area in about 20 minutes.

How long have you lived here?

20 years.

What neighborhood do you live in, why did you choose it and what do you like about it?

I like my Citrus Park neighborhood because I'm less than a mile from the Veteran's, which makes it just as easy to tool over to St. Pete to the State Theatre to see The Bouncing Souls, as it is to glide into Ybor to see The Dollyrots at The Orpheum, or to pop downtown to catch an indie flick like Wristcutters: A Love Story at Tampa Theatre.

If you were to move to a different neighborhood, what would it be and why?

Maybe someplace closer to my husband's day job to lessen the commute.

What is your favorite thing about Tampa?

The diverse arts community. There's always something fun and interesting going on in town.

What kinds of things are you involved in?

I'm a member of a number of writers' organizations including the Artists and Writers Group, the Horror Writers Association, and the Society of Children's Book Writers and Illustrators. I'm also an avid supporter of Tampa Theatre.

Tell us about what you do.

I write dark fiction for teens and have seven novels to my credit including two young adult historical horror novels (THE RETURN and THE CHANGE), a contemporary YA horror novel (ALTDEATH.COM, written with Sally Bosco), three dark, time travel historicals (A TIME FOR WITCHES, SHADES OF BLUE AND GRAY, and RECKLESS REVOLUTION, all for SparkNotes, the educational publishing division of Barnes & Noble) and RAVE NEW WORLD, an SAT vocabulary novel that contains over 1,000 vocabulary words and definitions in footnotes.
I regularly go into middle schools and high schools and talk to teens about reading, writing, and history. I believe in order to be successful, every child needs to find and nurture his or her own creative spark. I enjoy helping kids do that.

If you live in Tampa, Why do you stay?

I think Tampa is one of the most underrated cities in the state. There's a whole bunch of Florida apart from those laid back Key West folks, quirky Miamians, or Mouse-bound tourists.

Where else have you lived?

Working backwards from Tampa, I've lived in Daytona Beach FL, New London CT, Saratoga Springs NY, Port Orange FL, and Peoria IL.

What kinds of things are you interested in seeing on Brand Tampa?

Surprise me!