Interview with Emily De Silva

Khayrun Gure: What authors did you dislike at first but grew in?

Emily De Silva: That’s a good question. I don't think there are any authors I disliked and grew into. The only example I can think of off the top of my head is Stephen King, but even him I don’t think I have the authority to say that because I haven’t read fiction novels. I’ve only read his memoir on writing. I don’t like his style of writing and couldn’t finish his novel yet, but I plan to do so. I will see if I like him then.

KG: Where did your idea come from? What was your inspiration when writing your piece?

ES: Well, I think it mostly came from a previous project I was trying to write. It was supposed to be a memoir because that was my original goal, and I was kind of struggling with that idea and I wasn’t sure how I was going to do it. So I thought, why don’t I write in second person? I tried to do that and incorporate the trauma elements, and it wasn’t really working out for me. I kinda overused the second person, so I thought, why don’t I scrap the whole memoir idea? I created a character and changed the story but kept the trauma element, just not as the main focus. In terms of what inspired me, I think I mostly pulled inspiration from authors that I look up to, like Pittacus Lore, who wrote the I am Number Four series and Neal Shusterman, who wrote the Scythe series. I love the world-building in Scythe and pulled a lot of that style and tone as inspiration for my book.

KG: Why do you think it is important to write in the genre you chose?

ES: Yeah, that's an interesting question. I wasn’t really thinking too much of the importance of writing fiction. It’s already a super popular genre in the publishing industry. Honestly, I just wrote it because I felt most comfortable in fiction and what I like to read is sci-fi and fantasy young adult novels, that kind of thing. I wasn't specifically thinking about the importance of it.

KG: What’s your favourite underappreciated novel?

ES: I think it would have to be Sleep No More by Aprilynne Pike. I feel like not a lot of people talk about that book but I really enjoyed it. I fell in love with the characters and loved the plot. There is some gaps with regard to clairvoyant thing and seeing the future. It didn’t really matter to me as much as I loved the characters and story. I think people should read it.