It’s Coffee Chat time!
Our guest for coffee and book talk this week is D. G. Driver, an author of YA and MG fantasy novels.
Welcome, Donna! How do you take your coffee?
DGD: With hazelnut creamer and a packet of Splenda every morning.
Ally: While I get our mugs ready, please introduce yourself to readers.
BIO:
D. G. Driver is an award-winning author of books for teen and tween readers. Contemporary fantasy is her favorite genre, but she has also written fairy tales, romance, and horror in her short fiction. Along with writing, she is a teacher at an inclusive early childhood education center and is often found either directing or performing in a theatrical production somewhere around Nashville.
Ally: Tell me something unique/unusual that isn't in your regular bio. “I played Peter Pan in the spring musical my senior year of high school. I stopped wearing makeup for the months that we rehearsed and performed the show. I have never worn makeup on a regular basis since.”
Author Contacts:
www.facebook.com/donnagdriver
www.twitter.com/DGDriverAuthor
www.instagram.com/d_g_driver#
https://www.amazon.com/D-G-Driver/e/B00J70QN64
www.goodreads.com/author/show/7867013.D_G_Driver
www.bookbub.com/profile/d-g-driver
D. G. Driver is an award-winning author of books for teen and tween readers. Contemporary fantasy is her favorite genre, but she has also written fairy tales, romance, and horror in her short fiction. Along with writing, she is a teacher at an inclusive early childhood education center and is often found either directing or performing in a theatrical production somewhere around Nashville.
Ally: Tell me something unique/unusual that isn't in your regular bio. “I played Peter Pan in the spring musical my senior year of high school. I stopped wearing makeup for the months that we rehearsed and performed the show. I have never worn makeup on a regular basis since.”
Author Contacts:
www.facebook.com/donnagdriver
www.twitter.com/DGDriverAuthor
www.instagram.com/d_g_driver#
https://www.amazon.com/D-G-Driver/e/B00J70QN64
www.goodreads.com/author/show/7867013.D_G_Driver
www.bookbub.com/profile/d-g-driver
INTERVIEW:
Ally: I see you’re featuring two YA ghost stories today. Why did you choose to write about ghosts?
DGD: I am fascinated with ghosts and the idea of guardian angels. In my life I feel confident I’ve encountered spirits a handful of times. I’m really drawn to shows and movies where the ghosts are either there to be helpful to the living or vice versa. These are the kinds of ghosts I’ve included in my two novels.
I originally wrote Lost on the Water to be about a girl getting lost on a lake in an old rowboat and having an adventure. However, as I wrote it, the idea of a local ghost legend haunting the lake helped me to fill out the plot and give the story more depth, excitement, and mystery.
All the Love You Write began as a short novella about a ghost teaching a teen boy how to write love letters. When the reader finds out who this ghost is and why he’s helping, it’s a sweet and tearful moment. That story is still the beginning of this novel. I decided to expand this story into a full-length novel by really diving into the back story of the ghosts, so the reader gets to know their true hearts and why they are interfering with Bethany and Mark’s relationship.
Ally: Where do you get so many story ideas?
DGD: A lot of the time I get story ideas from tidbits in the news. The very beginning concept for of All the Love You Write came from a news story about how cursive was being taken out of elementary school curriculum. I thought it would be a shame if the art of writing pretty love letters by hand disappeared.
Lost on the Water began as a brainstorm. A publisher was looking for children’s novels that were set on water, and this was one of the ideas that came to me. That deal never came to fruition, but after several revisions the book was finally picked up by Fire and Ice YA Books and published last year.
Ally: Do you use a professional editor? If not, what do you do to ensure a quality book?
DGD: Both Lost on the Water and All the Love Your Write are published with small press Fire and Ice YA Books, an imprint of Melange Books. They are professionally edited and proofread. I am given multiple rounds of proofreading copies before the books go to print.
Ally: Do your characters come to you fully formed with names and backgrounds?
DGD: No. I’m usually a plot person. I come up with the story idea first and then figure out as I’m outlining who the characters will be and how that will affect the storyline. Lost on the Water was particularly interesting because my original draft of the book had my main character as a 12-year-old boy. After many rewrites, Dannie is now a 14-year-old androgynous girl masquerading as a boy, giving the book much more interesting twists and turns.
As mentioned above the first part of All the Love You Write was already a novella centered around Mark, so I had him pretty figured out before I started adding on to the story. I had to come up with more details about the ghosts, and the final third of the book is all about Bethany. She had to be a lot more than “the girl Mark loves” for this book to come alive.
Ally: Do you write with a theme or message in mind?
DGD: I usually start with a vague theme, but as I go through rewrites the themes become more vivid to me and I am able to highlight them a little more. Lost on the Water is most definitely about secrets and lies. All the Love You Write is a lot about trusting the heart.
Ally: Do fans influence your writing? If so, in what way?
DGD: In the case of All the Love You Write, absolutely! My novella about Mark and his ghostly tutor was published in 2015. Many of my readers asked me to turn the story into a full-length novel because they wanted to know what happened next. It took me a while to figure it out, but I did initially start the full-length version because of these requests.
Ally: How did you choose the titles of your featured books?
DGD: Lost on the Water – A Ghost Story got its finished title from the daughter of a friend of mine on Facebook. I put out my title ideas, and several friends voted or made suggestions. I liked this one the best. The book was almost called The Secret of Center Hill Lake (which sounded a bit like a Nancy Drew novel). The title All the Love You Write comes from an old song Elvis used to sing called “Love Letters”. The novel is centered around love letters, so it seemed perfect to me.
Ally: Sooo, which speed questions did you choose?
Ally: I see you’re featuring two YA ghost stories today. Why did you choose to write about ghosts?
DGD: I am fascinated with ghosts and the idea of guardian angels. In my life I feel confident I’ve encountered spirits a handful of times. I’m really drawn to shows and movies where the ghosts are either there to be helpful to the living or vice versa. These are the kinds of ghosts I’ve included in my two novels.
I originally wrote Lost on the Water to be about a girl getting lost on a lake in an old rowboat and having an adventure. However, as I wrote it, the idea of a local ghost legend haunting the lake helped me to fill out the plot and give the story more depth, excitement, and mystery.
All the Love You Write began as a short novella about a ghost teaching a teen boy how to write love letters. When the reader finds out who this ghost is and why he’s helping, it’s a sweet and tearful moment. That story is still the beginning of this novel. I decided to expand this story into a full-length novel by really diving into the back story of the ghosts, so the reader gets to know their true hearts and why they are interfering with Bethany and Mark’s relationship.
Ally: Where do you get so many story ideas?
DGD: A lot of the time I get story ideas from tidbits in the news. The very beginning concept for of All the Love You Write came from a news story about how cursive was being taken out of elementary school curriculum. I thought it would be a shame if the art of writing pretty love letters by hand disappeared.
Lost on the Water began as a brainstorm. A publisher was looking for children’s novels that were set on water, and this was one of the ideas that came to me. That deal never came to fruition, but after several revisions the book was finally picked up by Fire and Ice YA Books and published last year.
Ally: Do you use a professional editor? If not, what do you do to ensure a quality book?
DGD: Both Lost on the Water and All the Love Your Write are published with small press Fire and Ice YA Books, an imprint of Melange Books. They are professionally edited and proofread. I am given multiple rounds of proofreading copies before the books go to print.
Ally: Do your characters come to you fully formed with names and backgrounds?
DGD: No. I’m usually a plot person. I come up with the story idea first and then figure out as I’m outlining who the characters will be and how that will affect the storyline. Lost on the Water was particularly interesting because my original draft of the book had my main character as a 12-year-old boy. After many rewrites, Dannie is now a 14-year-old androgynous girl masquerading as a boy, giving the book much more interesting twists and turns.
As mentioned above the first part of All the Love You Write was already a novella centered around Mark, so I had him pretty figured out before I started adding on to the story. I had to come up with more details about the ghosts, and the final third of the book is all about Bethany. She had to be a lot more than “the girl Mark loves” for this book to come alive.
Ally: Do you write with a theme or message in mind?
DGD: I usually start with a vague theme, but as I go through rewrites the themes become more vivid to me and I am able to highlight them a little more. Lost on the Water is most definitely about secrets and lies. All the Love You Write is a lot about trusting the heart.
Ally: Do fans influence your writing? If so, in what way?
DGD: In the case of All the Love You Write, absolutely! My novella about Mark and his ghostly tutor was published in 2015. Many of my readers asked me to turn the story into a full-length novel because they wanted to know what happened next. It took me a while to figure it out, but I did initially start the full-length version because of these requests.
Ally: How did you choose the titles of your featured books?
DGD: Lost on the Water – A Ghost Story got its finished title from the daughter of a friend of mine on Facebook. I put out my title ideas, and several friends voted or made suggestions. I liked this one the best. The book was almost called The Secret of Center Hill Lake (which sounded a bit like a Nancy Drew novel). The title All the Love You Write comes from an old song Elvis used to sing called “Love Letters”. The novel is centered around love letters, so it seemed perfect to me.
Ally: Sooo, which speed questions did you choose?
- a. book you're currently reading – making my way through The Grisha Trilogy by Leigh Bardugo. Just finished book two.
- b. an item on your bucket list – I really really really want to visit Italy, especially Venice.
- c. hiking or sunbathing – My days of tanning are over. That said, I love sitting under a big umbrella at the beach reading a good book.
- d. last book that made you cry – The Good Goodbye by Carla Buckley
- e. If you couldn't write anymore, what would you want to do? I’d do more theater directing and try to figure out a way to travel more.
 Lost on the Water – A Ghost Story Genre: YA contemporary fantasy Published: 2018 Rating: PG One girl’s daring adventure turns into a long frightful night lost on the water. Forced to leave the California beach behind to spend the summer with her grandma in rural Tennessee, Dannie is certain this will be the most boring summer of her life. Things start looking up when a group of local kids, mistaking her short hair and boyish figure, invite her on their ‘no girls allowed’ overnight kayaking trip. Obviously, her grandma refuses to let her go. But Dannie suspects the real reason is that the woman is afraid of the lake, only she won't tell Dannie why. Longing for freedom and adventure, Dannie finds an old rowboat hidden behind the shed and sneaks off on her own to catch up to her new friends. It seems like a simple solution … until everything goes wrong. Dannie soon discovers this lake is more than just vast. It’s full of danger, family secrets, and ghosts. Buy Links: www.dgdriver.com/lost-on-the-water.html https://www.amazon.com/Lost-Water-D-G-Driver-ebook/dp/B07F983SKT https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/lost-on-the-water-d-g-driver/1129039626?ean=2940162058595 https://www.kobo.com/us/en/ebook/lost-on-the-water https://books.apple.com/us/book/lost-on-the-water/id1409276778 And through July 31st, it’s half off at Smashwords – only $2.50! https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/874656 |  All the Love You Write Genre: YA contemporary fantasy Published: Coming August 2019 Rating: PG-13 A story about young love, first love, true love, timeless love, and the power of love letters. Mark and Bethany are two mismatched high school seniors in a new relationship. It’s doomed to fail. Mark has adored Bethany since middle school, and she’s finally giving him a chance. Only, he’s clumsy at romance and knows he’ll lose her because of it. Bethany thinks Mark is sweet. Only, she’s afraid to commit her whole heart to him because he’s going into the army and she’s headed off to college. Fifty years earlier, a boy and a girl from the same high school shared an amazing love story. They have now returned as ghosts and are interfering in Mark and Bethany’s relationship. Who are they? Why do they care what happens to Mark and Bethany? Buy Links: This book will be released in August, 2019. Pre-sale information will be available soon. More information at www.dgdriver.com/all-the-love-you-write.html or follow D. G. Driver on her social media to keep up with the release. |
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