Interview with Danielle K. Roux

Danielle K. Roux is the author of This Will Kill That a YA dystopian novel published through the Parliament House Press and has another amazing cover! In my interview with her today, she talks about her latest project, her writing process and what’s in the works.

District City is full of monsters. Not the kind that appear particularly vile from the outside. The kind who murder innocent people for no apparent reason. Abandoned houses are haunted by wayward spirits. Leaders of rival Colors clash over the secrets of a brutal past.

After the Plague thinned out the population, Rin Morana figured people would have stopped killing each other. No such luck. Her parents disappeared, and now she is set to take over as the new Lady Morana, head of the Green faction. To be a leader, Rin must contend with her relationship to her rival, Lady Amaya, as well as her own history of violence.

A series of riddles take Amaya Verity out of her isolated room in the Blue compound and into the hidden spaces of the City. Running away from captivity, Amaya takes shelter with Rin at the old Sydis house. There she meets two young men with demons of their own to contend with and abilities to match. Alan who is hiding out from his abusive ex, and Kazuki who might be the only person in the City that remembers the events of the Plague.

As they dig deeper, Amaya and Rin must decide whether to fight monsters or become them.

What inspired you to write This Will Kill That?

I was interested in writing a film noir story about a dystopian city where there was a stabby girl being awesome. Then my wife had this elaborate dream about this city where aura colors were visible and people were divided by color, but had no idea what the colors meant, or why they were important. I incorporated that and created some characters to navigate this strange and treacherous space. 

It’s great when you get ideas from other people. It makes them feel like they were part of the process. Which characters in your book are you most like? Unlike?

I’m the most like Rin. I have her impulsivity and drive to try and help others, but also her lack of confidence and the way she’s prone to just blow things up when things go sour. I don’t literally blow things up, though. The character I’m the least like is Raith, he’s a bit of a lawful evil character. He believes in rules and principles, doesn’t question the system, because the system benefits him. He’s also physically larger and stronger than many of the other characters and he feels he needs to “protect” them, sometimes by doing things that actually hurt them in the end.

How long have you been writing? Did you always know you wanted to be a writer?

I’ve been writing since I was nine or ten. I’ve always written but only recently thought that I wanted to be a writer, I think I never had the confidence in myself to put my work out there. I’d always heard such scary stories of bad reviews and rejections… but it’s really not all bad, there’s a lot of amazing people out there cheering you on, and so many writers who support each other through the tough stuff that it’s really a much better career than I thought it would be!

I see the support from other writers and fans of my work. It does make you want to keep going and to create other worlds for them to enjoy. Tell us about your writing process. What is the journey from idea to a published piece?

I usually think on an idea for a while… I daydream in scenes, play things out and map out a few things before I start drafting. Then I just start drafting and let the journey unfold… I often reread and revise as I draft. I also bounce ideas off people, to see if they would work. After that, it’s beta readers and content edits, line edits, galley edits. All the edits until I’ve got something more cohesive and polished to publish. 

Where do you do most of your writing?

Mostly on my sofa or in bed. I plan to set up a desk space in my new apartment, but I think it’s going to be more for the business of writing and less for the actual writing. I like to be comfy when I’m creating worlds.

I love the couch and my bed, too, although I do have an office with a standing desk. Do you have a writing goal you want to achieve? What does success look like for you?

My short term goal would be to finish my current projects and take on more! I think as far as fame and fortune go, being a New York Times Bestseller and getting that Netflix series would be the pinnacle of success… but also, just having people read my books and feel a connection with my work.

What are you working on right now?

I’m working on more of the This Will Kill That series, a Rosemary’s Baby inspired comedy duology, and an Elizabethan space fantasy with gay space pirates, dragons, and floating castles.

Wow! Your projects sound really ambitious. A lot more for readers to look forward to. Thank you for stopping by today. Where can your fans connect with you, Danielle?

I have a website, dkroux.com, but I am most often active on Instagram @daniellekroux where I post pretty things and Twitter @dkroux where I am sometimes funny.

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