Q&A
When did you decide you wanted to be a writer?
I’ve created stories since I was a little girl, imagining epic dramas for my Barbie dolls. I wrote my first short story when I was eight years old. It was titled “A Dream I Wish Was True” and it was a complete rip off of a skit from The Brady Bunch Variety Hour. My first original story was a year later titled “Adventure in the Bread Drawer”, and it was about a girl who shrinks and meets a family called the Germs in a stale Twinkie. While in school, I was convinced I couldn’t be a writer because my spelling was appalling. The invention of spell check saved me.
What inspired you to write DARK PARTIES?
Dark Parties was the result of my move to the UK. Both the US and UK are struggling with immigration issues. I believe that diversity makes us stronger. So I said, what if we closed our borders to people and ideas? Dark Parties is my answer.
What was DARK PARTIES path to publication?
Dark Parties started as a short story, which I submitted to the SCBWI British Isles Undiscovered Voices anthology. I let my friend and fellow editor Sara O’Connor and my niece Megan read it. They both wanted to know what happened next and encouraged me to write the rest of Neva’s story. I told myself that if my story was selected, then I would write the novel. And, luckily it was included in the anthology. My agent received a copy…and the rest, as they say, is history.
DARK PARTIES is about one girl’s quest to rebel against an unfair government. Would you be a rebel if you were trapped under the Protectosphere?
I would like to think I would be a rebel and stand up and speak out for what I believe in. But that’s an easy thing for me to say from my apartment in London. That’s a much different decision when there’s a gun or Protectosphere standing in your way. I want to believe that I would have walked along side Martin Luther King, for example. I want to believe that I’d step in when I see injustice. But the honest answer is, I don’t know.
Dark Parties is my way of reminding myself that it’s the small wars we fight on a daily basis. Telling the person that repeats the racist joke that it’s not acceptable. Voting for the candidate who supports diversity, not some antiquated value system. Rebellion comes in many forms and the war on diversity and equality is fought on private battlefields everyday. I hope I’m at least fighting a good – albeit small – fight.
What did you choose to write a dystopian novel? Why this story?
I didn’t set out to write a dystopian novel. I wanted to explore issues of identity – both personal and national. I built my world and developed my characters to enhance my ability to examine this theme. But in the writing, the world, characters and plot evolved and influenced each other in a way that, I hope, ties them inextricably together.
Dystopian novels allow readers and writers to explore ideas and themes in a way contemporary fiction can’t. You whittle away the part of the real world that doesn’t serve your story. Dystopian stories also can offer a complete escape from everyday life. Practically it allows writers to rid teen protagonist of pesky parents, cell phones and the internet, which allows for greater adventure and risks.
I still find it amazing that I’m drawn to write dystopian novels. I’m the biggest optimist. I believe the best in people and have great hope for the future of the planet and humankind.
The following is a questionnaire originally used by French television interviewer Bernard Pivot. James Lipton ends each interview on Inside the Actor’s Studio with this set of questions.
What is your favorite word?
Enthusiasm. As Ralph Waldo Emerson said: Nothing great was ever achieved without enthusiasm.
What is your least favorite word?
Belly. Don’t know why, but I’ve always hated the word.
What turns you on?
A challenge. I love to set goals and reach them. I love making plans and methodically developing strategies, tactics and timelines.
What turns you off?
Ignorant people who mistreat others for their skin color, sexual orientation, size – any prejudice really.
What sound or noise do you love?
Loud rock music. I’ve always loved to play whatever my favorite song is at the moment over and over and over again. And it’s even better when I can play it loudly and sing along at the top of my lungs.
What sound or noise do you hate?
Repetitive noises like ventilation fans, blenders or power tools.
What is your favorite curse word?
Um, my mom might read this so I’ll respectfully pass.
What profession other than your own would you like to attempt?
Actor. I’ve always loved acting, but I was never very good at it. I starred – and I use that term loosely – in junior and high school and some amateur theatre productions. One of the most exhilarating moments is when the theatre curtain goes up – when I’m on either side of it.
What profession would you not like to do?
Anything involving snakes or spiders!
If Heaven exists, what would you like to hear God say when you arrive at the Pearly Gates?
Your family and friends are waiting for you.