Episode 16: Danika Stone
So I got the absolute pleasure to interview author Danika Stone, who I actually got a chance to meet at Comic Con 2017 and it was freaking amazing, and know a bit about her that we don't find out about simply by reading her published works.
So I got the absolute pleasure to interview author Danika Stone, who I actually got a chance to meet at Comic Con 2017 and it was freaking amazing, and know a bit about her that we don't find out about simply by reading her published works.
Internet Famous is OUT NOW!
Below you will find more about the book itself along with buy links! Be sure to check that out (specially that cover, that cover is so 100% my style of art-which is why I voted for that mwahahaha)
Danika Stone, Author Bio
Internet Famous
Danika Stone is an author, artist, and educator who discovered a passion for writing fiction while in the throes of her Masters thesis. A self-declared bibliophile, Danika now writes novels for both adults (Edge of Wild, The Intaglio Series and Ctrl Z) and teens (Internet Famous, All the Feels and Icarus). When not writing, Danika can be found hiking in the Rockies, planning grand adventures, and spending far too much time online. She lives with her husband, three sons, and a houseful of imaginary characters in a windy corner of Alberta, Canada.
Ms. Stone is represented by Morty Mint of Mint Literary Agency.
Hi
Danika, so glad to have you here today, congrats on your newest book!
Thank you so much, Vale! I can’t wait to
share Internet Famous with your
Vale’s Bookshelf readers.
So
both of your books on the Swoon Reads branch have been largely about fandoms,
and as a massive fan of many things, I really want to know more about the fan
in you!
This is completely TRUE. I love all things
fannish.
Lets
get started shall we.
Absolutely!
What
fandoms are you a part of?
I tend to move in and out of fandoms
according to the season. Right now, I’m completely absorbed by Stranger Things, The 100, Game of Thrones,
The Walking Dead, and Sherlock (BBC). But my fandom ties go way, WAY back. (Harry Potter is one fandom I’ll never
leave!)
Top
5 favorite actors/actresses:
Oh goodness, this one is tough! I have so
many that I love. Hmmm… since I have to choose I’ll go with the actors /
actresses who I imagine as my characters. (Please tell me other writers do
this!)
1.
Rinko Kikuchi – my fan!cast for
Madison Nakama. (Internet Famous)
2.
Bob Morley – who’d be amazing
as Laurent. (Internet Famous)
3.
Emilia Clarke – who I love in Game of Thrones and who’d make a
kick-ass Liv Walden. (All the Feels)
4.
Ezra Miller – definitely my
vision of Xander! *swoons* (All the Feels)
5.
And since I have a spare, I’m
going with Alicia Vikander who could play pretty much anyone, but who I’ve been
imagining in a role of my current WIP. *zips lips* No spoilers here, though!
V: If other writers don't do this, they totally should because I feel like readers totally have actors in their minds are we read... At least I do xD
And Alicia is a queen, even with the fact that you imagine her as a particular character is just bound to be a perfect book.
Do
you read fanfiction? If so how often and what fandoms? Do you have any
recommendations?
Yes, I read fanfic. :) I honestly don’t
know any YA writers who don’t read it.
As to how much and which fandoms, it tends to follow whatever I’m obsessing
over and how much free time I have. (Right now, I’m mid-edits so I don’t have
much.) One recommendation I have for Game
of Thrones is reginathorn’s Brienne / Jaime series. Regina’s writing is
absolutely brilliant! She really has a voice on par with George R.R. Martin.
V: Oh I love me some Jaime and Brienne so I 100% am taking that rec
Have
you ever written fanfiction? If so what fandoms?
Yes, I have. No, I’m not saying for which
ones. Ha ha! Sometimes old stories are meant to fade away. I have to say, however, that writing fanfic
is an incredible way to hone your
writing skills. I would strongly suggest it for anyone who wants to publish.
You get so much feedback, and it teaches you to meet deadlines. Both of those
are key to RL writing success!
V: I have already failed at ever being an author then. I did start one a while back and even had more written chapters but I stopped publishing them.
But hey, great tip for everyone! I should totally get back to it xD
In
your books, being part of a fandom has helped characters cope with their
feelings (non ship feels that is), how do you personally relate to that?
When my father died many years ago, I was
completely lost. I found myself escaping into television. At that time, the Battlestar Galactica series was just
ending, so I borrowed the DVDs and started on the miniseries. At the end of
three hours, I was hooked!
The show was amazing. I was absorbed into
the story of the last remnants of humanity trying to survive, moving on despite
losing everyone they loved. The problem was, there were some very controversial deaths in the show.
*SPOILER ALERT*
When Kara died, I felt like I’d lost my father
a second time. I couldn’t let her go. I started reading fix-it fics, and when I
ran out of those, I wrote my own. It was cathartic and helped me move past my
raw emotions over my father’s sudden death.
How
did you first feel when people started fangirling over stuff YOU wrote?
It honestly is the best feeling in the
world! You write a book because you have an idea you just can’t let go… and if
someone else loves it too, it’s so
much better. If you enjoy something a writer wrote, TELL THEM. I adore talking
to fans!
V: Yall heard it here folks, dont be afraid to contact your favorite author and tell them how much their work is appreciated. I always had that idea but its always so nice to get confirmation that authors do in fact love being fangirled over xD Even if its incoherent blabbering because youre freaking out so much... Like I did... *stares at table for hours* Oh god why
Biggest
difference between writing teen books and adult books? As in, is there a
different path that you follow when it comes to writing the book?
At their heart, a good story is a good
story, so I have to say that for the most part teen and adult books have more
similarities than differences. Having said that, they definitely have different
audiences. That matters.
I have the same writing process, but I keep
my audience in mind as I write. Since I teach at a high school, I often ask
myself if I’d be comfortable with my teen students reading what I’ve written. Edge of Wild (Stonehouse, 2016) has a
number of incredibly violent murders in it. NOT okay for my students! But All the Feels and Internet Famous (Macmillan, 2016 and 2017) are certainly
teen-friendly. I am thrilled whenever I hear that one of my students has read
my books.
V: Oh wow that is actually a fantastic way to picture it, whether you'd be comfortable sharing it with students and such.
You've
mentioned before, that you needed GIFs to express how you felt back when your
book was chosen by Swoon reads, so fire away with the GIFs!
Seeing the Swoon Reads message in my email:
Talking to Holly and Lauren on the phone:
V: This is one of my favorite gifs ever xD
Working through the edits:
Seeing my book FOR REAL in a bookstore for
the first time:
I
personally need to listen to music as I work on my blog, does Madison (Internet
Famous) have a playlist while SHE works?
I am a huge fan of playlists! (How do you
get any work done otherwise?!) For Madi, she spends most of Internet Famous in the midst of an 80’s
Rewatch for her blog, so her playlist would be ALL retro tunes!
1.
“Take on Me”, Aha Listen here
2.
“Girls Just Want To Have Fun”,
Cindi Lauper Listen here
3.
“You Spin Me Right Round”, Dead
or Alive Listen here
4.
“Don’t You Want Me”, The Human
League Listen here
5.
“Livin’ On A Prayer”, Bon Jovi Listen here
6.
“Thriller”, Michael Jackson Listen here
7.
“Don’t You Forget About Me”,
Simple Minds Listen here
8.
“I Wanna Dance With Somebody”,
Whitney Houston Listen here
9.
“Wake Me Up Before You Go-Go”,
Wham! Listen here
10.
“How Soon Is Now”, The Smiths Listen here
You have no idea how much FUN it was to
select these songs! I’m feeling the whole Internet
Famous 80s vibe right now.
V: Okay, I seriously have half of this playlist on my phone xD I will totally need to listen to these songs when I start reading the book!
So...
You cosplay. What has been the funnest character to play, and... Is there
evidence?
I’m not sure I can pick an all-time favorite,
because that always changes, so my fave is usually the one I’ve most recently
cosplayed. For that I’m going to go with Rule 63 “Eve” Rogers, which I
cosplayed at Dragon Con this September. My editor, Holly West, came as Agent
Carter. I think we look pretty fabulous together!
V: Oh I love this! And it IS totally fabulous!
V: This has got to be one of my favorite interviews that I have ever done, let's blame it on the fandoms! Be sure to add internet famous to your goodreads list and pre-order or order when you get the chance and ALSO be sure to visit Danikas Website and also,
my review for Internet Famous can be found HERE
my review for Internet Famous can be found HERE
Goodreads Description:
High school senior and internet sensation Madison Nakama seems to have it all: a happy family, good grades, and a massive online following for her pop-culture blog. But when her mother suddenly abandons the family, Madi finds herself struggling to keep up with all of her commitments.
Fandom to the rescue! As her online fans band together to help, an online/offline flirtation sparks with Laurent, a French exchange student. Their internet romance—played out in the comments section of her MadLibs blog—attracts the attention of an internet troll who threatens the separation of Madi’s real and online personas. With her carefully constructed life unraveling, Madi must uncover the hacker’s identity before he can do any more damage, or risk losing the people she loves the most… Laurent included.
Be sure to buy
Amazon The paperback is only 6.46! Thats a cup of coffee and a half!
