Q. how did you come to write Just Desserts?

A. When I was deciding what Just Desserts, the second Dessert Schneider book should be about, my oldest daughter said, "The Annoying Siblings Club." And I said, "You're right, as usual." When I started writing, Charlie, Dessert's younger sister, who up until now has been a bit of a doormat, rose up and stood in her power. Dessert's world was turned upside down . . . how was she going to deal with these terrible Annoying Siblings who were ruining her life? As in Dessert First, I turned to my childhood and my three kids for inspiration. At my wedding, my brother gave my husband a warning, in the form of an anecdote. And he told the story of one of my "white elephant sales." These sales involved my putting all my junk on my bed with price tags. My brother was six years younger and a willing shopper. He also liked a good gamble. So I filled a white Leggs pantyhose egg with sand, and put a sign on it that said "Surprise!" The price was twenty-five cents, his entire allowance. Without hesitation, he made his purchase and I said, "Open it over a waste basket." That's what he did, and all those years later, he remembered it like it had happened yesterday. And these are the kinds of memories I turn to for inspiration, once Charlotte tells me what to write. And whenever I'm stuck, I go to Jefferson Elementary School and talk to the students. I usually leave the building in a better place.