I'd like to thank Mikey Brooks for inviting me to take part in the Children's Writers Blog Hop. You can find his post here as well as links to four other awesome authors that are part of this round of the hop.
Now, onto the questions:
1. What are you working on right now?
Right now I'm working on the sequel to my MG fairy tale fantasy THE TROUBLE WITH TOADS that is tentatively titled as THE TROUBLE WITH (fill-in-the-blank). TOADS began the story of Bettony, an ugly stepsister who wasn't about to sit back and accept the fate common to all ugly/wicked stepsisters. Namely: a quick and sudden demise or a long life filled with drudgery and unhappiness. For Bettony, the solution is magic. Unfortunately, magic is also the problem.
In the sequel, Bettony not only has to wrangle with her magic, which has a distressing tendency to have a mind of its own, but she also has to navigate Society with its Rules of Propriety, formal balls, and coming to terms with who she truly is inside--magic, warts, and all.
I'm also dabbling with the sequel to OF WIND AND WINTER. OF FIREBIRDS AND FROST picks up right where WINTER left off with Aneira--the future Snow Queen--trying to find her place in a world when she is neither completely mortal nor quite immortal.
2. How does it differ from other works in its genre?
My books--in general, and this series specifically--are a mix of old and new. Same and different. All of them, so far, have fairy tale elements and tropes woven through. A few are re-tellings with a twist (The Fairy Godmother Dilemma series; the third book in the Tales of the Snow Queen series), but the rest are original tales with threads of fairy tales woven through.
My Secret Stepsister Society series (THE TROUBLE WITH TOADS, THE TROUBLE WITH (fill-in-the-blank)) is different in that it's from the ugly stepsister's point of view. Not only that, but the ugly stepsister is the heroine and the premise of the series is that even ugly/wicked stepsisters ought to have at least a shot at having a Happily Every After. Because, really, what does it say about society if only the obedient and beautiful are deserving of happiness? (Not to mention that *technically* even Cinderella was a stepsister.)
3. Why do you write what you do?
Writing what I do, to me, is the purest form of being myself. I write the stories busily spinning themselves in my self-conscience. I write at an MG level because that is the age range I most love. Kids are bright and intelligent, inquisitive, and open to the possibilities of What Could Be (No Matter How Unlikely).
The stories that make it into the world are stories that grabbed hold of me and didn't let go. They're different parts of me thinking through questions I might have, experimenting with ideas, and in general Things I'm Trying to Figure Out.
4. How does your writing process work?
For me, a story always begins with either the premise or the character. More often, it begins with a character. I'll get a faint wisp of the character--an expression, their voice, a bit of back story, or a thread of what's going on in their lives right now--that grabs hold of me and won't let go.
Literally.
My sub-conscious mind is where all the story making happens. Plots are woven, characters fleshed out, and ideas created. My conscious brain is only there is so far as it keeps me upright and my fingers moving. My brain rarely allows me the courtesy of peering behind the curtain into my sub-conscious, so I generally have no idea what I'm going to write even as I'm writing it. :)
I've learned early on that if I try to interfere with the Story (i.e. sit down and plot or write what I think ought to happen), I end up with writer's block. So I sit down as often as I can--during nap time and after the chipmunks are tucked snug in their beds--and just allow myself to write.
Me again. Because I evidently slipped on the Time-Space Continuum, I don't yet have the links to the authors I'll be tagging. >.< I will have the links posted next Monday on my blog. And because I always love finding new kidlit authors, if you're one or know of some awesome kidlit authors, let me know in the comments below. :)
PS: If you have sent an email and/or book request, I probably got it. Due to a Real Life Avalanche I'm still dealing with, on top of expecting another chipmunk, I'm massively behind on my general behindedness. I apologize for the inconvenience, and will be getting through the emails/requests as quickly as I can. Thanks for your patience!
3 Comments on Children's Writers Blog Hop, last added: 9/12/2013
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Oh wow I write the same as you! Subconscious is where the story comes from. I just try to keep up and get the words down.
You're so dang attractive, Danyelle, you may even get MOI to believe in fairies, @ least for awhile.
Stay on groovin' safari,
Tor
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