Thank you to Anna Staniszewski, author of My Very Unfairy Tale Life and My Epic Fairy Tale Fail for answering my interview questions.
1.Was there a specific moment or idea that inspired writing My Very
Unfairy Tale Life and My Epic Fairy Tale Fail?
The series evolved from a scene I wrote several years ago as a break from
a dark, depressing project that was sucking the life out of me. I
needed something fun to work on, so I sat down and wrote a pretty
absurd scene about a girl and a talking frog. The girl was so funny
and spunky that I knew I had to find out more about her.
2. If you had to go back and do it all over, is there any aspect of
writing or getting published that you would change?
I don’t think I’d change any part of the process. It was long and
hard and sometimes frustrating, but I think those struggles made the
payoff that much sweeter. Maybe I would warn my younger self that I
was embarking on a journey that would require some serious patience,
but that’s about it.
3. Do you see bits of yourself, your family, your friends, or your life
in your characters that surprise you?
It’s funny the things that work their way into my characters without me
even realizing it. The minor characters in my books tend to have
traits that reflect me (an obsession with tea, candy, and shiny
things) but they also have a lot of characteristics that seem to come
out of thin air.
4. Do you have any set writing routine or rituals, or do you work as
inspiration strikes?
My writing routine depends on where I am with a manuscript. If I’m
drafting (which I find to be the hardest part) then I usually set a
word count goal for myself to help me get through to the end. Once I
have a full draft, then I often spend entire days revising until the
manuscript is in decent shape.
5. What was your favorite chapter (or part) to write and why?
The opening chapter of the first book changed a lot during the revision
process. The story was originally in third person, but when I decided
to rewrite the first chapter in first person to see how it would
sound, Jenny’s voice really came alive. After that, it was so much
fun to see her tell her own story.
6. Are there certain characters you would like to go back to, or is
there a theme or idea you’d love to work with?
I love twisting fairy tales, so I wanted to focus on that even more in
the second book. In My Epic Fairy Tale Fail I decided to send Jenny
to the land where all fairy tales comes from. I loved playing with
fairy tale stereotypes and seeing how far I could push them.
7. What do you do when you are not writing?
When I’m not writing, I teach in the Children’s Literature program at
Simmons College, I read A LOT, and I hang out with my family (and
play with my dog).
8. Is there anything that you would like to say to your readers and
fans?
Thank you, thank you, and thank you!
Born in Poland and raised in the United States, Anna Staniszewski grew up
loving stories in both Polish and English. She was named the
2006-2007 Writer-in-Residence at the Boston Public Library and a
winner of the 2009 PEN New England Susan P. Bloom Discovery Award.
Currently, Anna lives outside of Boston, Mass. with her husband and
their adopted black Labrador, Emma. When she’s not writing, Anna
spends her time teaching, reading, and challenging unicorns to games
of hopscotch. You can visit her at www.annastan.com.
No comments:
Post a Comment