1. What’s your favorite thing that someone else has written?

Hands down, my favorite book is Watty Piper’s The Little Engine that Could.

2. What are you working on writing now?

Right now, I’m working on a contemporary YA novel. Hilariously, that’s all I really have at the moment. The genre, the tone, even some of the characters have yet to reveal themselves.

3. When you were a kid, what did you want to be when you grew up?

            Happy. J

4. Why do you think people read thrillers?

I feel as though the answer is in the genre name. We love to be thrilled and go on wild rides. What better place to do it than from the comfort of your favorite armchair, with a cup of tea in your hand, and a plate of cookies on the side table?

5. What does the writing process look like for you?

Endless revisions, really. To quote James Michener, “I’m not a very good writer, but I’m an excellent rewriter.”

6. What is the most challenging part of writing a novel?

I feel as though one of the toughest things is to persevere, through the writing blocks, the boredom, the times when we’re not writing well, the times when we detest every word we’re writing, to push through all the doubts to remind ourselves, we’re playing in a playground, that story creation may leave us with untied shoelaces and scraped knees, but in the end, it’s the thing that lights us up and brightens our world.

Award-winning author NATASHA DEEN writes for kids, teens, and adults. She believes the world is changed one story at a time, and as a Guyanese-Canadian whose family immigrated to Canada, she’s seen first-hand how stories have the power to shape the world. When she’s not writing, Natasha enjoys visiting schools, libraries, and other organizations to help people to find and tell the stories that live inside of them. She also spends an inordinate amount of time trying to convince her pets that she’s the boss of the house. Natasha is the author of the Lark Ba series (CCBC Best Pick for Kids & Teens, Starred Selection) and the Guardian series (Moonbeam Award, Sunburst Award nominee, Alberta Readers’ Choice nominee). Her latest novel, In the Key of Nira Ghani, is a Junior Library Guild selection and a Barnes and Noble Top 25 Most Anticipated Own Voices novel. Visit Natasha at www.natashadeen.com.