Prolific and independent author Danielle E. Shipley is the subject of today’s featured interview.
Hi Danielle! First off, please tell us a bit about yourself. Have any super powers or secret talents?
I’ve been told by incredulous humans that I have cyborg-level powers of organization and discipline. Just call me the Dark Overlord of Get It Done Town. (Has a more totalitarian ring to it than “mayor”, don’t you think?)
Can you tell us a bit about what inspired your story in the anthology?
While brainstorming possible story ideas with my mom and remarking upon her occasionally comical memory problems, I recalled having read somewhere that people are most likely to forget something after having just passed through a doorway. Prompted to imagine why that might be, we ultimately figured the only logical explanation was an invisible creature lurking in the threshold and snatching our thoughts as we go by. I paired that theory with two of the main characters from my debut novel, “Inspired”, and ta-da! The short story “Train of Thought” was born.
What have you been up to lately? Do you have any books out right now? Are you working on anything new?
From May of 2013 onward, I’ve been self-publishing a series of fairytale retelling mash-up novellas, The Wilderhark Tales. The second-to-last volume – “The Sky-Child and Other Stories”, featuring spins on Jack and the Beanstalk, Sleeping Beauty, and more – launched July 7th, and I’ve got plans to release the series’ final book in October. In between, I’ve had short stories appear in a number of anthologies via J. Taylor Publishing (young-adult anthology “One More Day”) and Xchyler Publishing (paranormal collection “Legends and Lore”, fantasy collection “The Toll of Another Bell”, and steampunk collection “Steel & Bone”); my next project with Xchyler – another paranoramal anthology – is slated for this October, too. And of course, there’s my aforementioned novel, “Inspired” (also with J. Taylor Publishing). It’s been a grueling schedule, and I’m overdue for a break. We’ll see if I can stick to my plan to catch my breath for a few months before plunging into my next self-pubbed series. (Robin Hood lovers, stay tuned!)
I’m always fascinated by where and how people work. What is your writing setup like? Any tools you enjoy using?
As we speak (well, as I type), I’m crouched atop my bed, laptop balanced against the mattress and my knee. This, more often than not, is my work space. My play space. My if-I’m-awake-I’m-probably-there space. I named my blog Ever On Word primarily because I’ve always got an Microsoft Word document (or five) up on my screen, filled with my stories, my outlining notes, answers to interview questions… you name it.
Most writers are lifelong readers and books tend to be important to them. What books or stories have most influenced your life (genre stories or otherwise)?
Clearly, I owe a lot to the countless versions of fairytales I’ve been exposed to over the years. And I wouldn’t even recognize my life now if I hadn’t developed a huge crush on Robin Hood / the Merry Men / Sherwood forest itself; it’s been a destiny-changer. I was relatively late to the game with speculative fiction (my childhood favorites were mysteries, historical fiction, and screwball comedies), but about the time I started to realize what a disappointment real life can be, stories that blend reality as we know it with magic at which we can only guess grew increasingly attractive to me. I’m honestly not sure I know how to write a story where everyone’s 100% human.
Where can we learn more about you and your writing?
Hang out with me on my blog, EverOnWord.wordpress.com, or find me on Twitter or my authorial Facebook page; if I’m not talking about me or my writing, the chatter’s probably Disney-related. …or else my characters have taken over again. And if you want easy linkage to all my available works, you want my website, Deshipley.com.
Thanks Danielle! We’ll be sure to keep an eye out for everything that comes next!
If you’re intrigued by the inspiration behind “Train of Thought”, consider getting yourself a copy of “The Best of Luna Station Quarterly: The First Five Years” and read it for yourself, along with the other forty-nine awesome stories and gorgeous cover art by Julie Dillon.