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Ask the Author: Danya Kukafka

“Ask me a question.” Danya Kukafka

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I see in your Acknowledgments that you gives thanks to the Acorn Yarn Shop. There is an Acorn Yarn Shop just down the street from where my wife and I live in Northeast Seattle. Is that the same yarn shop?
Danya Kukafka This is definitely the same yarn shop!! I got really into knitting during the pandemic, and spent so much time at Acorn Street shop, they offered me a job. I worked there for about a year, until my schedule wouldn't allow it anymore. If you go in, say hi to Janet and Mary for me! And you might just catch me there adding to my gigantic yarn stash...
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Hi Danya! I have never read such beautiful prose until I read (just finished) Notes on an Execution. I feel so lucky to have stumbled upon it and you. I have a question about your use of second person for Ansel's chapters. Why did you choose to use that narrative perspective? Why choose it over first person or third? Thank you in advance.
Danya Kukafka Thank you, Rennie! This is a great question. The first few drafts of the book were actually written with Ansel's perspective in the third person. For years, the first line was actually: "He is a fingerprint." I knew something wasn't quite working, but I couldn't figure out exactly what it was. One day, while watching yet another Ted Bundy documentary for research, I wondered: why do we love Ted Bundy so much? Why do we watch these movies and documentaries and podcasts over and over, thirty years after his death? I asked myself these questions, too. I realized that some strange, perverse part of me wanted to know what it was like inside his head, wanted to understand how someone could be so incredibly evil. That day, I decided to put the reader themselves directly in Ansel's mind: "you" are the serial killer. I rewrote everything in the second person, and it completely came alive.
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Not a question! But writing in the hopes that you read this? I try, as a challenge, to read 12 books a year that are freshly published in that year, I've been doing it since 2017. Notes On An Execution captivated and moved me in a way that no book has in that time. It was heart-wrenching, immersive and beautiful. I'll be recommending it to all my friends and colleagues. Thank you so much for what you've given us.
Danya Kukafka This warmed my heart. Thank you so much, Rob.
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Just finished Girl in Snow--holy Moses!--and I am wondering: will we see any of these characters in your next book? Cameron is particularly riveting, and I won't say more lest I ruin it for others. I used to teach teenagers and am impressed by how well you captured the boundary-pushing behaviors that make adults involved wonder what will be outgrown, and what signifies real trouble that will carry forward.
Danya Kukafka I'll be moving away from these characters in my next book-- it's hard to say goodbye, but I think their world has come to a close. I'm so glad you enjoyed the teen perspectives, though, and there is a good chance my future work will feature young characters too. Teenagers are fascinating to me for that exact reason. Thanks so much for reading, Donna!
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Do you ever read nonfiction? If so can you recommend me something
Danya Kukafka I do! My favorites are Leslie Jamison's The Empathy Exams, or anything by Maggie Nelson (I love The Argonauts). I also just read Sarah Gerard's new essay collection, Sunshine State, which manages a wonderful combination of journalism and memoir. Online, I've been following Ashley Ford and Jia Tolentino.
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