Meg Cabot, author of The Princess Diaries, has sold millions of books worldwide, two of which were made into popular Disney movies. Cabot recently talked with The Post's Ashley Lutz to promote the release of her latest book, Big Boned, which chronicles the adventures of character Heather Wells and goes on sale Nov. 20. The author also discussed her own experiences as a college resident director, her Lisa Bonet haircut and her Midwestern heritage.
Post: What was your own college experience like?
Cabot: I was at Indiana University and I lived in the crunchy-granola hippie dorm. You had to apply to live there and I took creative writing in the dorm, which was super-fun and I loved it G? I was an art major, so I was always working on my portfolio and I got my hair cut like Lisa Bonet. It was great.
Post: Your character Heather Wells is a resident director at a college, a position you held for seven years at New York University. What do you miss about the college atmosphere?
Cabot: I miss the students; it was so fun. When you're living in a building with 700 18-year-olds, it's always an adventure. At noon, they'd all wake up and come down and complain about something new. There was always something going on, and I miss that excitement and the kids. It was almost exactly like the book.
Post: What is your most crazy story from managing the dorm?
Cabot: I was still working at the dorm when a publisher called me to talk about a book, and one of my students was like Meg
Meg there's a brain on the elevator! So I had to ask the publisher to hold and I go out into the hallway and there was actually a brain on the elevator. I had to call the NYC coroner to come to see if it was a human brain, which of course it wasn't, it was a cow brain ... It was ridiculous.
Post: Your books are noted for being frank about the characters' shortcomings (from Princess Diaries protagonist Mia Thermopolis' inability to do algebra to Heather Wells' weight problems). Do you hope this theme in your books will encourage readers to be more self-assured?
Cabot: Yeah, I think books often make the characters seem really perfect and put together, which I don't think is realistic. I want the readers to know it's okay to mess up. Your life isn't going to be ruined if say, you don't get into an Ivy League school. Most of us didn't and we're fine. There's so much pressure out there to be perfect, and I think that's ridiculous. I want to put out the message that you don't have to be a size eight, or whatever, to be good. I base most of the characters after myself, and I think that makes things a little more realistic.
Post: You were raised in Bloomington, Indiana. How do you stay true to your Midwestern roots as a world-renowned author?
Cabot: I actually still have a place outside of Bloomington and was just there. I think when you're raised in the Midwest, it's really hard to get away from those kind of values. I mean that in the best way of having small-town values, not being small-minded ... I think that comes through in my writing G? and I think it's a good thing.
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