Amy Mason Doan is the bestselling author of the just-released novel The California Dreamers, as well as Lady Sunshine, The Summer List and Summer Hours. Before turning to fiction, Amy worked as a reporter and editor for The Oregonian, San Francisco Chronicle, Wired, Forbes, and other publications, where she interviewed everyone from beer-brewing monks to billionaire CEOs. Amy has an M.A. in Journalism from Stanford University and a B.A. in English from U.C. Berkeley. Amy grew up in Danville, California, and now lives in Portland, Oregon, with her family.
But what terrifies her to bits? Read on to find out…
Is there any fear you’ve overcome in your life?
Public speaking. I’ve quit jobs because they wanted me to do it, but I’ll stand up in front of crowds now to promote my books. As a midlist author, it’s important. I underwent hypnotherapy to get up the guts for my book launch before my first novel came out in 2018.
And now people say, “You’re such an extrovert! You’re a natural up there!” etc.
I. Am. Not.
I just know how to fake ease quite well now. I’m proud of my courage, and there are nice moments—especially when I’m done. But it’ll never be fun for me.
What are your phobias?
Veins! Omg, veins.
This girl in seventh grade knew I didn’t like wrist veins. I’d made the mistake of telling her they bugged me. So one day in our English class she decided it’d be hilarious if she pantomimed digging hers out with a pencil across the room from me. I nearly fainted.
Unfortunately, I have “difficult” veins for phlebotomists, whatever that means. They aren’t visible, and it can be hard to get an IV going with me. Once my mom was sitting with me as I got prepped for a knee surgery in San Francisco (skiing injury in Tahoe!).
And the nurse said, “Oh, you’re a tough one. And she kept poking and poking me, and I was bleeding quite a lot from one arm that had a lot of failed attempts.
My mom, who also hates veins, got so woozy at the sight she had to put her head between her knees. All the doctors and nurses rushed to help her, ignoring me as I bled out…
Kidding. I was fine. But my mom and I still laugh about that day.
“The nurse said, “Oh, you’re a tough one. And she kept poking and poking me, and I was bleeding quite a lot from one arm that had a lot of failed attempts.”
Have you ever had any paranormal experiences?
Both of my dear grandmothers died on the same day within a few hours of each other. They’d had long, healthy, rich lives and died of natural causes—both at 92. So that was a little freaky the day it happened, and of course it was sad. But eventually my extended family and I came to make jokes about how they were “baking pies together” in the afterlife, because they were both excellent bakers, especially of piecrust.
My dad’s mom’s name was Johnnye and my mom’s mom was Alice. And a few months after it happened, I was walking down the baking aisle in a grocery store in Portland looking for flaked coconut, and I saw the names Alice and Johnny out of the corner of my eye. These boxes were right next to each other—Jiffy Cornbread Mix, turned to the side so you could see the recipe for Johnny Cakes. And a special Alice-in-Wonderland movie tie-in cake mix. And the Alice one wasn’t in the right place! I guess someone had changed their mind and lazily mis-shelved it! It belonged across the aisle. What are the chances?
Eerie, right? But also kinda sweet. I decided my grandmas were having a little fun with me.
What scares you most about the writing process?
That I’ll be forced to publish a book I don’t like. And there are SO MANY months—even years—of not-liking before the liking stage begins. That whole, scary, grinding process where the document in Scrivener (or Word, or whatever you use) has only the most tenuous connection with the beautiful story you want it to become. It’s the only way to get there, of course. So far it hasn’t happened. I know none of my four books is perfect, but I’m proud of each one.
What is your greatest fear as a writer?
That I’ll finish an amazing manuscript and realize someone else just published the same plot. Now that I’m on novel five, I realize this is a predictable stage in my writing process and it only means I’ve grown to love the darn thing—otherwise I wouldn’t be terrified of it not becoming a published book. My author friends have said they develop the same paranoia when the book’s getting good.
What’s your favorite horror movie or television series?
I watched this movie called Ghost Story when I was in my early teens. I was at a slumber party and it freaked all of us out. It was about these four old men who had committed manslaughter back when they were in college, and the girl they’d killed kept haunting them. All of them had been in love with her. They’d stuffed her in the trunk of their car and pushed it into a lake or river. She haunted them with wet hair, her clothes dripping, like she’d just emerged from the water. So creepy.
Fred Astaire played one of the men.
What is your weirdest fear?
Fred Astaire. See above.