Author Spotlight - Ava Dellaira - Ontario Teen Book Fest
I had the opportunity to send a few interview to Ava Dellaira, author of the book Love Letters to the Dead, I can't wait for the release of her new book In Search of Us which will be released in March.
You can also find more details about Ava on he website: https://avadellaira.com/
a) When: Saturday March3rd , 9 am to 5 pm
b. Where: Colony High School 3850 E. Riverside Drive, Ontario,
CA 91761
c. The Ontario Teen Book Fest Website: http://www.ontariotbf.org/
d. It is a free and unticketed event. There is also a FREE lunch provided by
Panera Bread!
e. Use the hashtag #ontariotbf to join in on the fun!
The event is sponsored by Once Upon A Time. They will have
books available for purchase at the event. There will also be t-shirts
and posters available for purchase as well.
Their website: http://www.shoponceuponatime.com/
There are also a few stops on this blog tour, the rest of them are featured here:
ONTARIO TEEN BOOK FEST BLOG TOUR SCHEDULE
FEB 19th
Spotlight on Jennifer Brody - What A Nerd Girl Says
Spotlight on Abdi Nazemian - Read Now Sleep Later
FEB 20th
Spotlight on Anthony Breznican - Starkiller Reads
Spotlight on Lilliam Rivera - Movies Shows and Books
FEB 21th
Spotlight on Jessica Cluess - The Readers Antidote
Spotlight on Cindy Pon - My Fangirl Chronicles
FEB 22th
Spotlight on Keynote Speaker Ellen Hopkins - Germ Magazine
FEB 23th
Spotlight on Aditi Khorana - Nite Lite Book Reviews
Spotlight on Mary Pearson - Adventures of a Book Junkie
FEB 24th
Spotlight on Emily Ziff Griffin - Nite Lite Book Reviews
Spotlight on Brandy Colbert - Read Now Sleep Later
FEB 25th
Spotlight on Keynote Speaker Josephine Angelini - The Readers Antidote
FEB 26th
Spotlight on Isabel Quintero - What A Nerd Girl Says
Spotlight on Amy Spalding - My Fangirl Chronicles
FEB 27th
Spotlight on Jonathan Maberry - Seeking Bazinga
Spotlight on Keynote Speaker Jeff Garvin - Movies Shows n Books
FEB 28th:
Spotlight on Ava Dellaira - Book Lovers Book Reviews
Spotlight on Kim Turrisi - Starkiller Reads
MAR 1st:
Spotlight on Jessica Brody - Adventures of a Book Junkie
MAR 2nd:
Spotlight on Robin Benway - What A Nerd Girl Says
Spotlight on Lindsey Summers - Seeking Bazinga
1) What was your inspiration to write "Love Letters to the Dead?”
I had many different inspirations, but the most significant was the loss of my mother, who had died suddenly a few years before I began Love Letters. Just as Laurel’s letters helped her through her grieving process, writing the book did the same for me.
2) Did anyone in particular inspire the characters?
Many of the characters in Love Letters were inspired by my friends and family. For example, Aunt Amy was very close to my own aunt (who passed away when I was in 7th grade), and my best friend from high school (who is still my best friend!) is named Hannah… The book is fiction, of course, and the characters became their own people with significant differences from those that inspired them, but some of the people who are closest to me could certainly pick out bit and pieces of real life stories and memories!
3) If I could change one detail about the story, which would it be and why?
Though I'm sure I would make all kinds of changes and edits to the book now if I could, I know it was the best that I could do at that moment in time. I actually never read it again after I finished the very last draft, so that I couldn’t make myself crazy!
4) Which authors/writers have influenced your writing?
I’ve had so many influences, from a really wide range of writers. I feel like every time I read a book I really love, it influences who I am as a writer, too. To name a few who were important to me while I was writing Love Letters to the Dead or my new book, In Search Of Us—Stephen Chbosky, Laurie Halse-Anderson, Jennifer Egan, Junot Diaz, Jesmyn Ward, James Baldwin, Joan Didion.
5) What would you like to write about in the future?
I am just starting out on new book, but I’m still in the very early stages. I almost never feel ready to talk about a project until I feel like I’ve been with it long enough to discover what it wants to become.
6) What has been the best fan encounter you've had?
It’s impossible to pick just one! Getting to know readers both in the US and around the world has been one of the greatest gifts of becoming a writer. I have been humbled by the bravery, the heart, the grit and the grace of many readers I’ve had the opportunity to come into contact with, whether in person, or through, letters, messages or emails. There is nothing more rewarding or meaningful than to hear a reader tell you that your story has helped them in some way.
7) Any author/write you would like to collaborate with in the future?
Though there are of course many writers whom I admire deeply and would be beyond honored to work with, so far I’ve found that novel writing is such an interior and personal experience, I would have to learn new ways of working in order to collaborate on one.
8) What experience(s) from your life have influenced you writing or the book?
I think that all of my life experiences have influenced my writing! In terms of my new book, In Search of Us, it was influenced both by my relationship with my mom, as well as by my relationship with my now-husband, moving in together and starting to imagine having a child.
9) What did you enjoy the most about writing "In Search of Us?”
In Search of Us was a difficult book to write, but I learned a lot from it. The story goes back and forth in time between a mom and a daughter when they are each seventeen—Marilyn’s takes place in LA in the late 90s, and Angie’s now. I wrote the two narratives separately, and then cut them together at the end. I didn’t quite know if it would work, but I was almost surprised by how naturally they fit. I loved seeing the ways in which the past and present echoed each other in the story. This was important, because one of the themes of the book has do do with the (sometimes invisible) influences that the past has on the present, and the importance of bringing those to light.
Another one of the pleasures of writing the book was the music, which plays an important role in both stories. I had a lot of fun walking around Los Angeles with my headphones on, getting lost in the world of the novel. In the book, Marilyn’s boyfriend (and Angie’s father), James, makes Marilyn a mixed tape, which Angie later discovers. Listening to the 90s R&B music to create that tape was delightfully nostalgic.
10) What can your fans expect from the book?
There are a lot of different aspects of the book, so I think different readers will take away different things from it. It’s both a love story between two seventeen years olds, and a and a mother-daughter love story. It’s a book about identity, about legacy, about family, about falling in love, about trying to discover and understand one’s place in the world.
I am very grateful for the opportunity to be able to send Ava these questions but also join in the bloggers on this tour as well as the rest of the authors involved. There is also a rafflecopter giveaway, the prize is an Ontario TBF poster signed by all the authors which can be found here: http://www.rafflecopter.com/rafl/display/8952c82035
Thank you!
I had many different inspirations, but the most significant was the loss of my mother, who had died suddenly a few years before I began Love Letters. Just as Laurel’s letters helped her through her grieving process, writing the book did the same for me.
2) Did anyone in particular inspire the characters?
Many of the characters in Love Letters were inspired by my friends and family. For example, Aunt Amy was very close to my own aunt (who passed away when I was in 7th grade), and my best friend from high school (who is still my best friend!) is named Hannah… The book is fiction, of course, and the characters became their own people with significant differences from those that inspired them, but some of the people who are closest to me could certainly pick out bit and pieces of real life stories and memories!
3) If I could change one detail about the story, which would it be and why?
Though I'm sure I would make all kinds of changes and edits to the book now if I could, I know it was the best that I could do at that moment in time. I actually never read it again after I finished the very last draft, so that I couldn’t make myself crazy!
4) Which authors/writers have influenced your writing?
I’ve had so many influences, from a really wide range of writers. I feel like every time I read a book I really love, it influences who I am as a writer, too. To name a few who were important to me while I was writing Love Letters to the Dead or my new book, In Search Of Us—Stephen Chbosky, Laurie Halse-Anderson, Jennifer Egan, Junot Diaz, Jesmyn Ward, James Baldwin, Joan Didion.
5) What would you like to write about in the future?
I am just starting out on new book, but I’m still in the very early stages. I almost never feel ready to talk about a project until I feel like I’ve been with it long enough to discover what it wants to become.
6) What has been the best fan encounter you've had?
It’s impossible to pick just one! Getting to know readers both in the US and around the world has been one of the greatest gifts of becoming a writer. I have been humbled by the bravery, the heart, the grit and the grace of many readers I’ve had the opportunity to come into contact with, whether in person, or through, letters, messages or emails. There is nothing more rewarding or meaningful than to hear a reader tell you that your story has helped them in some way.
7) Any author/write you would like to collaborate with in the future?
Though there are of course many writers whom I admire deeply and would be beyond honored to work with, so far I’ve found that novel writing is such an interior and personal experience, I would have to learn new ways of working in order to collaborate on one.
8) What experience(s) from your life have influenced you writing or the book?
I think that all of my life experiences have influenced my writing! In terms of my new book, In Search of Us, it was influenced both by my relationship with my mom, as well as by my relationship with my now-husband, moving in together and starting to imagine having a child.
9) What did you enjoy the most about writing "In Search of Us?”
In Search of Us was a difficult book to write, but I learned a lot from it. The story goes back and forth in time between a mom and a daughter when they are each seventeen—Marilyn’s takes place in LA in the late 90s, and Angie’s now. I wrote the two narratives separately, and then cut them together at the end. I didn’t quite know if it would work, but I was almost surprised by how naturally they fit. I loved seeing the ways in which the past and present echoed each other in the story. This was important, because one of the themes of the book has do do with the (sometimes invisible) influences that the past has on the present, and the importance of bringing those to light.
Another one of the pleasures of writing the book was the music, which plays an important role in both stories. I had a lot of fun walking around Los Angeles with my headphones on, getting lost in the world of the novel. In the book, Marilyn’s boyfriend (and Angie’s father), James, makes Marilyn a mixed tape, which Angie later discovers. Listening to the 90s R&B music to create that tape was delightfully nostalgic.
10) What can your fans expect from the book?
There are a lot of different aspects of the book, so I think different readers will take away different things from it. It’s both a love story between two seventeen years olds, and a and a mother-daughter love story. It’s a book about identity, about legacy, about family, about falling in love, about trying to discover and understand one’s place in the world.
I am very grateful for the opportunity to be able to send Ava these questions but also join in the bloggers on this tour as well as the rest of the authors involved. There is also a rafflecopter giveaway, the prize is an Ontario TBF poster signed by all the authors which can be found here: http://www.rafflecopter.com/rafl/display/8952c82035
Thank you!
