The 20 Questions Spectacular!!!
~ Sophie Davis VS Madison Daniel ~
1. Well hello
there, Madison.
We’ll start off this
game of 20 Questions with an easy one: How much of you is in Max, your
protagonist in the Ember series?
MD: Probably about 50% me,
50% rockstar superhero. Ember and the character of Max were the first things I
created in literary form (back in 2008), and at the time, I was told to “write
what you know...” Well, that’s what I did. And all I really KNOW is 80’s
movies, comic books, music and the awkwardness of teenage angst. Ha.
SD: I can totally
picture you as Nicolas Cage in that 80’s cinematic masterpiece, Valley Girl ;) Hahaha, I hope our readers look up the
cover! (kidding, kidding)
2. How about you, Sophie?
How much of yourself goes into the stories you create?
SD: Talia, the main character in Talented has
some similarities, both physical and in personality. But I have other characters that have a lot more
of me in them, and some with a lot of my closest friends.
3. I know
that Max has trouble choosing between the two female characters in Ember; how
much of a ladies man were you in high school?
MD: Hmmm...tough question.
There were two versions of me back in school, the easy-going, soft-spoken, frontman
to my local rock band AND then there was the shy, awkward, hopeless romantic,
that just wanted to connect with that “one” special person. Let me put it this
way, I looked like the kind of boy your father would hate for you to bring
home, but was actually the exact kind of young man your parents always told you
to look for. Basically, a ‘good boy’ in a ‘bad boys’ body.
SD: Haha, so a wolf in
sheep’s clothing?
Nice.
Sounds like my kind of guy now, though back
in those days I would have gone for the straight-up wolf.
4. All right, describe your
teenage experience in 10 words or less...GO. :)
SD: Fun, embarrassing, bad decision making, some
of my favorite years!
5. Tell us
about your first girlfriend.
MD: Enlightening,
artistic, challenging and smelled like strawberries. That’s all you’re
getting...hehehe.
SD: Strawberries… now why
does that sounds familiar?
Ohhh, right,
that’s Samantha from
Ember’s
scent…you heard it here first ladies- we found Madison’s kryptonite!
6. Tell us about your LAST
relationship. BOOM.
SD: It’s a tragic tale of love, Madison. We first met in college, where we bonded over
dirty dishes and pickles – we worked at a sandwich place. I fell in love with his long hair and angry
attitude, not sure what he saw in me, but I did wait tables in some very short
shorts. While it was obvious we both
pined for the other, we never professed our love. I left our small college town for D.C., while
he headed south to warmer weather – Miami to be exact. He married a Brazilian supermodel. I got a Master’s degree. He divorced the Brazilian supermodel. I got a law degree. And then if finally seemed like the right
time to get together. Unfortunately, our
mutual attraction only existed in theory.
In reality, we had nothing in common.
So after a year of flying back and forth between DC and Miami, we parted
ways. Since then, only one boy sleeps in
my bed, my Benji look-alike, Humphrey.
7. Who were
you most nervous to have read your first book?
MD: He hasn’t read it yet.
So, I can’t answer that question just yet. BUT it’s always nerve-racking to
show your words to your family.
8. What was the most
surprising reaction you received after showing your work to the ones closest to
you, good or bad?
SD: My uncle called my mother to tell her how
funny the first book was. He said I must
have a terrific sense of humor. The only
problem is, the book wasn’t supposed to be funny…
9. Do you
have a writing outfit? Do you get
dressed every day when you’re working on a novel, or are you the ratty
bathrobe, holey boxers type?
MD: I’m definitely a jeans
and T-shirts kind of guy. Casual, yet proper. Nothing feels as good as a nicely
worn, old pair of jeans.
10. Your perfect location
to work, write, and play...the beach? Or the park?
SD:
The beach.
I recently went to a destination wedding in St. Croix and I spent the
majority of my time sitting on the beach with my HUGE laptop, writing.
It was the best week of my life.
11. What was
it like writing from the perspective of a teenage girl?
MD: I love it. I’ve only
done it a little bit, in the Ember series. BUT I’m actually working on an all
new series from the perspective of a teenage girl. Honestly, I think boys and
girls are fundamentally made up of all the same ingredients. Fear, love,
acceptance and the joy of discovering something new. We just process those
ideas a little differently, that’s all.
12. What’s your favorite
character emotion to write about in your stories?
SD: Hmmmm.
Hard one. Oddly I’m going to say
anger. I think about every time the
parking attendants ticket my car at 7:01 (it has to be moved at 7:00am for
street cleaning), just as I am running outside in my pajamas to move it, and I
put all of that frustration at the parking people into my characters.
13. How have
you found the transition from writing songs to writing out whole novels?
Did any of your books start as songs, but
then you realized that the story needed to be told in depth?
MD: They’re quite
different. There is a similarity in the layout and structure building though.
My song writing is usually based around the song title or the groove or hook of
the song AND I’ve found that my stories come to me the same way. Either a title
sets me in the direction of the story I am writing or the main plot twist or
hook decides the path I choose. Great question!
14. Any favorite bands?
Songs? Music inspiration?
SD:
Definitely the Foo Fighters; I even traveled
across the pond last fall just to see them play at the Reading Festival!
They played a three-hour set and I was in
heaven.
I’ve also been known to rap Biggie Smalls in some of my finer
moments.
In general, though, I listen to
a lot of different music for inspiration when I write.
I have playlists for books, scenes,
characters, you name it.
15. What are
the worst song lyrics you’ve ever written?
MD: Ha. Probably something
to do with “big butts.” Just kidding. :)
SD: Those other brothers can’t deny…
16. Any literary crushes?
Favorite authors or books?
SD: I don’t think I have any literary crushes
right now- that special place in my heart reserved for character crushes is all
Agent Derrick Morgan from Criminal Minds. Favorite authors, hmm, there are a lot. Stephen King, Dean Koontz, and Mary Higgins
Clark are my old standbys. I read just
about any new book they put out, regardless of whether it sounds good.
17. What is
your biggest quirk?
MD: I’m a bit of a gadget
whore. I’m always chasing after the newest electronics. I think it has
something to do with all the pretty lights! I’m also addicted to eyedrops. The
stronger the better. Not too weird, I hope.
SD: Me too! My best friend and I always crack up about
the ridiculous number of chargers we have to pack every time we take a
trip. It’s a far cry from when we
backpacked around Europe, carrying around paperbacks and –gasp!- sans cell
phones. As for the eyedrops… yeeeah,
totally normal…
18. What’s the nicest
thing you’ve ever done for a complete stranger?
SD:
Wow, really making me dig deep for this
one.
I guess the nicest thing I’ve ever
done for a complete stranger is pay for difference when she didn’t have enough
money for the bill at Target.
19. If you
had a helicopter, what would you name it?
MD: Easy! “THE REAPER!”
Why? Because when someone says they’re scared to fly in my chopper I can jump
up and scream... “DON’T FEAR THE REAPER!” That would rock! No? Okay then, how
about “Hank.” Yah, I like Hank. Come fly the friendly skies with me and Hank.
Word.
SD: Best. Answer. Ever. Definitely stick with the first one- more
cowbell, anyone?
20. If I offered to fly
you anywhere in my helicopter, where would you like to go the most?
SD:
Can you take a helicopter from here to
Switzerland?
My favorite place in the
world is Interlaken, Switzerland.
You
can run off the top of an Alp with a parachute and spend 10 minutes just
floating down.
You can also be pushed
off of one in a big rubber ball- it’s called Zorbing- but I drew the line at
that.
Sophie, I just wanted to
take a second to thank you for sharing your thoughts with me and our readers.
This interview was a blast! You’ve been fantastic to get to know. I see great
and epic things ahead for you. I’m sure your fans think the same. Let’s do this
again! Write on! Rock on!
~ M
Thanks Madison! And thank you for taking the time to answer
my questions; we’ll definitely have to do it again. I wish you continued success with your books
and music!
I’d also like to give a shout out to
Derinda Love over at YATR- she made it possible to get this out to our readers
on all of these amazing blogs, and she donated the gorgeous charms bracelets
with our book covers (made by Cassie Chavez over at Cassie’s Crafty Creations!)
Now let’s give away some prizes!
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