C.D. Payne's debut novel, Youth in Revolt: The Journals of Nick Twisp, has already raised high tides in California where the book has been available for the last two years. Among those swimming in its torrents are: Steven Spielberg, who considered making a movie out of the book; FOX television network, currently working on a pilot based on the book; a San Francisco theater company that has a play based on Book One of the novel; and soon to be millions of fans nationwide now that Doubleday has publication rights to the book.

Youth in Revolt follows the adventures of Nick Twisp, a 14-year-old character who plays out all of adult America's adolescent fantasies in a somewhat amoral, mildly diabolical, and satiric fashion. Nick's supporting cast includes his divorced father, who always reminds his son that the alimony payments stop once Nick hits 18; the inscrutable Sheeni Saunders, an adolescent knockout who coaxes Nick's revolt; various representatives of the Bay area law enforcement community, and a host of others. Although the book is written primarily for adults, the book's reception by high schoolers and college age students has given even the author a surprising little titty-twister. MELVIN reporter Anton Crane contacted Payne at his home in San Francisco.

Click here to begin the interview, or here to read a review of the book.