Interview with L. Danvers

Hello everyone,

This not-so-sunny Friday evening, I’d like to introduce a Young Adult author, L. Danvers. She has written some eye-catching Vampire, Dystopian, and Sci-Fi fiction and has participated in Creatures of the Dark Anthology with me recently (because it’s the best). Non-subtle humble bragging aside, let’s get into the interview and get to know her!

Q1. Could you tell us a little bit about yourself?

L: Sure! I’m a wife, a mother of two young children, a dog-lover and, of course, a YA author.

MAY: I already feel like you’re ahead of me in life in most aspects. I am a cat-lover myself.

Q2. What do you enjoy doing when you’re taking a break from writing?

L: Honestly, just chilling out and watching TV. Game of Thrones, Doctor Who, Riverdale, The Real Housewives… I watch it all!

MAY: I really need to catch up on GoT. I think I last was on season 4? There are so many spoilers flying around by now that I feel like I’m watching the series without even trying.

P.S. And you can never have too much Dr Who. Awesome series.

Q3. Have you ever fallen into a writing slump? If so, what did you do to get out of it?

L: I tell myself I’m going to step away from writing for a week to give myself a break. But it never fails—an idea hits me within a day or two, and I jump right back in.

MAY: I wish I was as lucky as you. There were times I was uninspired for two weeks at a time. Sometimes, I felt like the slump would never end, but, as you’ve said, it does end, eventually.

I think what helped me was when I decided to force myself to write anything at all, no matter how small or silly. As long as I can have fun writing the story and forget the financial aspect of it, that can really fire up my brain.

Q4. Imagine you were taken to Crescent Cave as a blood slave, much like your main character in Curses and Crowns, what would be the first thing you would do?

L: Oh gosh. Probably cry. It would not end well for me…

MAY: There are people who often think that we base our heroines and heroes on ourselves. I find that to be quite funny. And, I agree, I would cry a puddle around myself if I was stuck in the HH universe.

Q5. What was the first story you’ve ever written?

L: My first book was Stellix (later republished as Conspiracy Unleashed). It’s a fun read filled with mysterious disappearances, conspiracy theories and chilling discoveries. The idea first came to me after binge-watching an Ancient Aliens marathon, so you can probably imagine that it’s a wild story.

MAY: I’ve actually never seen Ancient Aliens. *Puts it on to-watch list*

The first story for me was Russian Roulette. I spent a lot of time travelling to and fro university. I think it took me about 3 hours a day in total by buses (I had to take more than one each way), which is a lot of time wasted. So, I kept writing my first book that way. Well, there were also many boring lectures…through which I lived by writing or doodling… I swear, I never failed an exam in my life!

Q6. Writing is a journey for many of us. What is the craziest place your journey has taken you?

L: Hm. That’s a hard question. I suppose I just find it crazy (as in crazy–awesome) that people from all over the world have read my books. It absolutely blows my mind that people living in countries I dream of visiting one day have read something that I’ve written!

MAY: I know the feeling. It’s surreal. The only thing that helps me get over it is that no one in Ireland knows me (phew). Most of my readers are in the U.S. or the U.K.

Q7. Oreos or custard creams?

L: Oreos! With milk to drink, of course.

MAY: This is a tough choice for me, and I only realised it after I written the question. Apparently, I don’t eat the custard creams like “you’re supposed to”, according to my fiance, and I don’t eat Oreos “like you’re supposed to”, either, according to the internet. I just bite the cookie and om nom nom it. It’s hard to understand why people have lengthy rituals for their cookie-eating.

Q8. Let’s have fun and pretend you were dropped off on an uninhabited island in the middle of the ocean via a pink helicopter. You can bring with you two things, what would they be?

L: First, I love that it was a pink helicopter! Probably one of those satellite phones so that I could call for help. And bottled water.

MAY: In all of the survival shows I’ve watched, no one has ever asked for a satellite phone. People would rather torture themselves in the wild. Since you’ve got the phone and water, I guess I’ll ask for a hunting knife and a pot. Hope you know how to make fire…

Q9. What writing advice would you give to aspiring YA authors out there?

L: Read as many books as you can—both in your genre and about the craft of writing. Listen to podcasts to learn more about the publishing industry. And make connections with fellow authors.

MAY: I think it can be daunting trying to make friends with super successful authors, although most of them are really nice people. I think it comes with being a little star-struck.

Q10. Do you have any ongoing projects or new releases you’d like to share with the readers?

L: I’m currently working on the Vampires of Crescent Cape series. The second book, Fangs and Fortune, Releases May 12, 2019, and I’m working on the third book in the series now.

You can read the bite-sized origin story, Blood Heirs, by joining my Readers’ Group at ldanvers.com/subscribe.

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MAY: Thanks for your time! I hope this was a fun interview for you to participate in 🙂

If you’d like to find out more about L. Danvers and her work, you can find here at the following sites:

Amazon
Book Slayers Squad Facebook Group
Facebook
Instagram
Pinterest

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