Interview With Alexa Donne!

Today I'm pleased to present an interview with Alexa Donne! Ms. Donne is the author of the YA book Brightly Burning, which releases May 1st!

The bold font are the questions I asked, the regular font are her answers, and the bold italic font are my comments about her answers.

1. Would you please describe your debut book, Brightly Burning, in seven words?

Jane Eyre in space, aka Space Angst!

2. Brightly Burning is a reimagining of Jane Eyre. Are there any other classic books you would like to retell?

That is a GREAT question, and slightly tricky to answer without revealing the secret of my follow-up to BRIGHTLY BURNING, which is another classic retelling set in the same universe. I’ll say that, like so many readers, I adore Jane Austen and have designs on adapting one or more of her books, for sure. I especially love Pride & Prejudice, Emma, Persuasion, and Sense & Sensibility (so… most of them? haha). I also love Dickens’ Great Expectations, Elizabeth Gaskell’s North & South, and a number of Shakespeare plays (especially Hamlet!). One classic I don’t have any particular designs on: Wuthering Heights. I’m a one Bronte sister kind of girl! *sits on hands so as not to spill secrets*

I look forward to seeing what the follow up will be! :)

3. Random question! What Hogwarts house would your main characters be sorted into?

This was too much fun, so I’m including my extended core cast of characters (with a note on who their Jane Eyre analog is!). I also totally waffled on a few of these, especially Stella and Hugo and I may change my mind later :P

Stella (Jane): Ravenclaw

Hugo (Rochester): Hufflepuff

Jessa (Adele): Slytherin

Karlson (St. John): Gryffindor

George (N/A): Hufflepuff

Bianca (Blanche Ingram): Gryffindor

Mari (N/A): Slytherin

Xiao (Mrs. Fairfax): Hufflepuff

4. What's one piece of advice you would give aspiring authors?

Don’t give up. It seems super obvious, but seriously: the key difference between an author who succeeds (in being traditionally published) and one who doesn’t is that the author who “makes it,” typically, simply didn’t give up. Rolled up into this is challenging yourself to grow, being willing and able to kill your darlings and move on from projects that aren’t working, and pushing yourself to both explore new genres & stories while also leaning into your strengths and what you love. I also advise doing your research/due diligence so you are as prepared as possible for the industry and all its ups and downs. The struggle doesn’t end when you get an agent or a book deal!

Really great advice! :)

5. What are some books you're looking forward to reading in 2018? And if you've already read some '18 books, which books have you loved?

So far I’ve only read AMERICAN PANDA by Gloria Chao, and I adored it! It was an emotional rollercoaster--I laughed out loud, I cried (more than once!) and every character just leapt off the page. I highly recommend it to ANYONE who likes engaging, funny character driven books. I’m not usually a big YA contemporary reader but it just checked every box for me!

I’m anxiously awaiting a number of 2018 books, including but certainly not limited to: THE SKY IN THE DEEP by Adrienne Young, DEAR RACHEL MADDOW by Adrienne Kisner, NOT EVEN BONES by Rebecca Schaeffer, ONE GIANT LEAP by Heather Kaczynski, NIGHTBLOOD by Elly Blake, HEART OF IRON by Ashley Poston, THE BELLES by Dhonielle Clayton, DEFY THE WORLDS by Claudia Gray, NOTHING LEFT TO BURN by Heather Ezell, HEART OF THORNS by Bree Barton, A COURT OF MIRACLES by Kester Grant, DARK OF THE WEST by Joanna Hathaway, and SHIP IT by Britta Lundin.

I'm looking forward to lot of these! :)

Thank you so much to Ms. Donne for participating in this event! :)

Author bio: Alexa Donne is a Ravenclaw who wears many hats, including fan convention organizing, teen mentoring, college admissions essay consulting, YouTube-ing and podcasting. When she’s not writing science fiction and fantasy for teens, Alexa works in international television marketing. A proud Boston University Terrier, she lives in Los Angeles with two fluffy ginger cats named after YA literature characters. Visit her at www.alexadonne.com or on most social media spaces @alexadonne.

Here are a few links:

Her Website

Her Twitter

Her Instagram

Her Goodreads