Ask the Author: Anna Staniszewski
Answered Questions (30)
Anna Staniszewski
Thanks so much for reading! The Dirt Diary was inspired by a story I heard on the radio about a girl who had to clean houses with her mom, and she even had to clean the houses of some of her classmates. When I heard that, my brain started spinning with all the embarrassing things that could happen in that kind of scenario, and I knew I had to write them down!
Anna Staniszewski
It seems that wherever I go--even if I'm halfway around the world--I bump into people I know. It always feels like such an unbelievable coincidence, and I've sometimes thought it would be a fun little mystery to use in a book!
Anna Staniszewski
I just finished two books on my summer reading list: Midsummer Mayhem by Rajani LaRocca and The Downstairs Girl by Stacey Lee. They were both delightful!
Anna Staniszewski
Anna woke up, desperate for coffee. She stumbled to the kitchen and opened the cabinet, only to find that the coffee WAS ALL GONE. ;-)
Anna Staniszewski
Thanks so much, Michele! I don't have plans to write a 5th book in the series--I think Rachel would hate me if I messed up her life yet again--but I've been having fun working on new projects that I hope you'll also enjoy. :)
Anna Staniszewski
Hi Yasmeena! I have two big tips when it comes to writing. First, try to work on your story a little each day so that you're sure to finish it. And second, learn to love revising! The first draft is fun, but revising and finding ways to make the book better is actually my favorite part--it's like a big puzzle that I get to solve! Happy writing!
Anna Staniszewski
I've often dreamed of living in a magical library, so I'd have to choose the world of Lirael by Garth Nix which contains a library full of magical creatures and mysteries. Yes, the book also contains zombies--eek!--but if I just shut myself up in the library, I think I'd be okay. ;-)
Anna Staniszewski
I do! I currently reside in New England.
Anna Staniszewski
This is a tough one, but I think I would have to go with Elizabeth Bennett and Mr. Darcy in Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen. I love when two characters start off flawed and, through their interactions with one another, push each other to become better people.
Anna Staniszewski
Congrats on your book! When it's ready to go, I would suggest going through Createspace (you'll likely need a parent or guardian to help you set up an account) which you can use to publish your work to Amazon and other platforms. That way you have a lot of control over your book and you can do it pretty much for free. As for writer's block, I find that when I get stuck it's usually because the story has made a wrong turn somewhere. In that case, I go back to last place where I thought the story was working and try to figure out what went wrong. I hope that helps!
Anna Staniszewski
Books 1-4 in the series are all out, and as it stands, I don't have plans to continue to the series. But I'm working on new projects that I hope you'll enjoy! :)
Anna Staniszewski
I loved writing Jenny's story, but after three books, I think she's tired of me messing up her life! I'm so glad that you enjoyed her story and that you'd like for it to continue. It sounds like you have some great ideas--maybe you could try writing them down and see where they take you?
Anna Staniszewski
Jenny's story was inspired by the fairy tales and fantasy novels that I grew up loving, although I'm not sure exactly where her character came from. I just sat down one day and wrote a scene about a girl who comes home from school to find a talking frog sitting on her bed. She was so annoyed at the sight of that frog that she threw him out the window! I knew I had to tell her story!
I'm so glad you enjoyed the series, and while I loved telling Jenny's story, I'm actually really happy with how the series ended. Also, I bet Jenny is relieved that I stopped messing up her life. ;-)
I'm so glad you enjoyed the series, and while I loved telling Jenny's story, I'm actually really happy with how the series ended. Also, I bet Jenny is relieved that I stopped messing up her life. ;-)
Anna Staniszewski
I don't currently have plans for a fifth book (and I'm sure Rachel would appreciate it if I stopped messing with her life!) but I actually never planned to write a fourth book, so I guess you never know!
Anna Staniszewski
Thanks so much for reading! The idea for The Dirt Diary came from a story I heard on the radio about a girl cleaning houses with her mom. I thought it would make a great premise for a story, especially if the girl accidentally found out secrets about her classmates in the process. For follow-up books, I tried to come up with new embarrassing situations to put Rachel into. :-)
Anna Staniszewski
I always keep an eye out for story ideas because you never know where they might come from! The Dirt Diary, for example, was inspired by a story I heard on the radio about a girl who had to clean houses with her mom, and I'm With Cupid was inspired by a short passage in the British children's classic The Children of Green Knowe.
Anna Staniszewski
Sadly I can't send out copies of my books, but you should be able to find them in libraries and bookstores!
Anna Staniszewski
Sorry for the delay! Somehow I missed this question. Book 4, The Truth Game, was released at the beginning of May.
Anna Staniszewski
I'm happy to say that there will be a fourth book in the Dirt Diary series. In fact, I'm working on it right now! Tentatively called The Truth Game, the book will be out in May 2016.
Anna Staniszewski
My last name is Polish. In Poland, it would actually end in an "a" because I'm a girl (Staniszewska), but after my family and I moved to the US, we all started using the masculine form of the name so that people didn't get confused.
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