What did Linda Joy Singleton and her Best Friend Do?

Hello, hello! And please welcome to the friendship blog,  YA Author,  Linda Singleton.  Linda Joy Singleton is the author of over 35 books for kids,  including YALSA honored THE SEER series and DEAD GIRL WALKING trilogy.

 I had the pleasure of meeting Linda at an SCWBI conference way back in 2009 and today we all get to chat with her about teen friends!! Hello Linda!  Tell us, did you have a best friend in high school? If you did, are you still in touch?
 I have had the same best friend since I was 10 and we are still very close even when we go for months without seeing each other. We just spoke for two hours on the phone last night, catching up with our family and personal drama.

I am so jealous. I find that so cool since I moved around a lot when I was young. So, d id you ever have a big fight?

 When we were teens, we had MANY disagreements. Usually it was a misunderstanding or something one of us said that caused hurt feelings. We were in a dance group together so had the same group of friends which caused some boyfriend drama. Usually she was the one who got mad at me for something I said (I often spoke without thinking back then) and she wouldn't talk to me for a few days, but then we'd talk it out and be closer than ever. One unusual thing we started doing was having "confessions" and revealing some of our deep jealousies, like how I envied her for always getting A's when I got B's and how she envied me for having a more supportive family. It was often a surprise to realize that we secretly envied each other for different reasons.

That’s very cool, and also so true. We often envy things in others we wish we could have.  So, what did you and your best friend most love to do?

Together we were like a creative explosion of energy. We made up games--even writing games when I became passionate about writing. We would create crazy titles, write  them on strips of paper and put them in a bowl then whatever title we drew we had to write. She wrote one called "Whose Teeth are in the Fishbowl" and I wrote one called "Angel in the Bathtub." We wrote newspapers, created a town with siblings included, had our own secret club and left each other messages in mailboxes hidden in bushes outside our windows. We were extremely crafty, too; sewing, crocheting and making our own holiday gifts.

Sounds like good clean fun. I should have taken lessons from you! So! What did you love most about you teenage best friend?

Playing with our pets, making up games like hunting for clues in our room, hiding our Halloween candy, and a game of solving the murder of my Teddy bear Freddy. One year we made elaborate yarn dolls and wrote stories about them and competed in competitions. She always made the best ones. I envied that.

And what did you learn from your best teen friend?

We learned from each other about acceptance, sharing deep thoughts such as our mutual interest in paranormal topics, and how to forgive. We are still learning.

Forgiving is a great lesson. And paranormal topics are so FUN to chat with friends about. Of course, I always get scared. Is your relationships with friends different at this stage in your life?

We have both become mothers and as our kids grow up we both have small grand kids now. When we talk, it's about our families and how they are doing. Once that's out of the way, we go deep and talk of our feelings, world issues, fears and joys. Even when things got tough (and they did!), we have a best friend bond that's very special, and we treasure each other.

The best friend bond really is something that can’t be beat. Thanks so much for stopping by to share your friend with us!!

Find Linda on her Blog !