Who are you?
I’m DeAndra Davis. I’m currently an Instructor at Florida Atlantic University where I mostly teach composition, literature, and creative writing and I’m based in South Florida.
What do you write?
I like to think that I write a variety of things. While my debut is contemporary young adult, I also love to write horror and fantasy! I think mostly my writing is always me trying to answer some question that’s lodged in my brain.
In terms of how I got started writing, I’ve been doing that for as long as I can remember. First, with little poems and then with short stories. I also write creative non-fiction every so often. I told myself I was going to be a lawyer, but after majoring in English and taking a few creative writing workshops I knew that writing was the way to go so college is really when I dove into the practice in earnest. I committed myself more to writing then and never stopped. My debut was actually an idea I’ve had since undergrad that has morphed and followed me until it became the book.
I can’t say that there are any themes or words I avoid in my writing. I kind of like to think that nothing is really off limits in a book. I do try to limit the words that I’m apt to repeat. “Just” is such a word that I rely on often and I try to go back and edit those out.
As far as loving what I do? Yes! I love the fact that I get to be an author. It’s amazing bringing stories and characters to life that didn’t exist before and even more fun to interact with other authors and their stories. It’s such a privilege. I most definitely adore what I do and hope I get to do it for a long time.
Where do you write?
I’m a mom so I write any and everywhere. Most of the time, it’s in the notes app on my phone when I don’t have anything else. When an idea strikes me, or a line of dialogue, I immediately whip out my phone and jot it down before I forget it. So, my notes app is filled with future ideas, unused scenes or snippets, and all sorts of fun stuff. When I’m a little less chaotic, I tend to use my computer often and write either at a desk or in bed, but that’s when I’m in the thick of writing. When it comes to plotting things out, I use a notebook. I like to write character profiles and try to diagram what the book might look like in a notebook so it’s easy to flip back to when I’m typing. It’s also good to have those profiles so I remember what color hair someone has or how tall they are.
When do you write?
I’m a really driven person, and I’m neurodiverse and prone to hyper focusing, so I like to set my own goals. If I’m on deadline, I’ll usually have an end goal for when I need to have something in by, but the daily goals are set by me. I like to push myself! When I’m actively drafting, I try to write no less than 1500 words a day if possible. I’m all about word count goals. I can’t write by time limit at all. Sometimes I’ll just decide that I’m going for a chapter a day, which is harder, but it depends on how I feel. I’ve written over 10,000 words in one day before when I was really in the zone. I’m also more of a night writer than a morning writer. I can’t focus much in the morning. I’m too sleepy.
Why do you write?
I feel like a big part of the reason I write is because I don’t know what I’d do with my brain if I didn’t. So many ideas and characters inhabit my thoughts and if I didn’t get them out on paper, I think I’d lose it. Beyond that though, I love being able to share my stories with people and see them connect with them. I love having people fall in love with the characters that I’ve grown to love and see them root for them or even against them! Something about the connections that are built when a story is written really drives me. What inspires me is more my life, my experiences, my family, and my culture. I thrive on taking what’s already there and twisting it, making it grander. I enjoy playing with the what ifs. That inspires me.
How do you overcome writer's block?
When I have writer’s block with one thing, I tend to try to write something else. Most times if I’m stuck with one story working on another will dislodge something in my brain. If I have block altogether and just can’t write, sometimes I try to do little free writes. For me writing without pressure alleviates the stress and then I can get back to the work. Sometimes, I need to be blocked. Sometimes I just need to rest and take a break away and refill the creative well. I enjoy playing video games especially when I’m really blocked because I inevitably always get a new idea from that.
Bonus: What do you enjoy doing when not writing?
I love playing video games and reading when I’m not writing. Gaming is such a huge part of who I am as a writer, and I think they inform some of my ideas and the way I plot things out. I’m always picturing things almost as if they could be played through when I write. I definitely spend more than a few hours lost in a video game world because it helps me build new worlds of my own! Reading does the same thing but in a different way. Other writers inspire me and challenge me. I love losing myself, basically, in any way I can.
My thanks to DeAndra Davis for today's interview.