So, I was talking to Christina "DZA" Marie about her new release (out
today!) of a graphic novel that goes alone with a previous graphic
novelization and several novellas. She's passionate and then some about
writing fiction that says the right things and makes the kind of social
statements she thinks need to be made. And is another one out there
proving that doesn't mean you can't write entertaining kick-butt
literature.
Did I mention there are DRAGONS?
But, hey, here's what she had to say:
1. Tell us how you see yourself, first as a person, then as a writer.
I’m
a partially over-caffeinated zombie who started the blog Dragons,
Zombies & Aliens while being an extremely over-caffeinated
zombie in college, because everyone else was stressing about finals and I
needed somewhere to gush about all the fantasy and sci-fi books,
movies, and shows that I love. Full-time I work as a community support
staff—that’s job coach and PCA for people with disabilities—and when I
realized I had no social life decided to volunteer for the Sexual
Violence Center in Minneapolis.
As a writer, I adore
fantasy and science fiction and am apparently incapable of writing
anything without throwing some degree of magic or highly improbable
science into it. The last few years I’ve written about LGBTQ+ angels,
witches from Minnesota, and Canadian cannibals from the future.
2.
Many people going the traditional route in particular make a point of
leaving social commentary out of their work. You're not one of them.
Tell us why.
Two reasons.
The
first is that most great SFF works do have some sort of social
commentary in their writing. Star Trek made a point to have its cast be
as diverse as possible in the era of the Civil Rights movement and
criticized the Cold War. Harry Potter talks a lot about prejudice and
how it can be wielded as a weapon by people in power. Rick Riordan has
recently been tackling LGBTQ+ and POC issues in his Percy Jackson and
Magnus Chase series. So handled properly, social commentary makes good
writing even better.
The other reason is because
stories that don’t grapple with some sort of issue seem really...hollow
to me. Social issues such as racism, sexism, religious persecution,
ableism, homo/transphobia, and so many others affect all of us every day
of our lives. Why wouldn’t you write about it?
3. What put you on the path to writing?
I’ve
been writing since I was twelve, though I’ve only been getting
published since I was twenty (so, three years now). Some people think my
writing passion is genetic, as both of my parents are also published
authors, but I like to think it would have happened even if I’d been
born into a family of mechanics. It’s too much a part of my life to
imagine being without it.
Mostly, I started writing
because I was getting sick of seeing all the stereotypes and lack of
relatable women in my media. Even at age twelve, I saw far too many
girls and women in books, shows, and movies who cowered in the corner
while their boyfriends saved the day. And someone—it was probably my
mom—said that I should write what I want to read. So I did. The first
(several) manuscripts sucked, but it got me going.
4. Why graphic novels?
Graphic novels are a new thing for me. Originally,
Sovadron
was designed as a traditional novel. But then I realized the story just
didn’t have that rhythm, so I opted for a series of novellas. But at
the time of that realization I was working with Endless Ink Publishing
on their sci-fi illustrated novella series Earth’s Final Chapter (see
above: future Canadian cannibals) and thought, You know? My work would
be pretty epic in graphic novel format. It’s something I’ve never done
before and I love sinking my teeth into projects like that. You have to
shake things up from time to time.
5. Was there anything in particular that inspired your stories and novellas?
Everything
inspires my stories and novellas. Usually historical or contemporary
social issues (another reason I can’t write SFF without throwing some of
that type of commentary in there).
Specific to
Sovadron,
that was inspired by my family’s Dungeons & Dragons adventures.
The five major characters we meet in the series—Shakairra, Rain,
Elkvein, Gundar, and Kyne (who was originally played as a guy named
Quarrel-Kyne)—were characters played by me, my dad, and my brother. I
loved our adventures so much that I decided to write them down, but
quickly grew tired of the same old medieval European setting. After some
trial and error and a bachelor’s in history that focused a lot on the
United States, I settled on creating a world inspired by post-colonial
America (late 18 th /early 19 th century), and then just let the
characters loose.
6. How do you manage your time to write?
A question for the ages!
Honestly,
a lot of it comes down to “write whenever you can,” since I work
full-time, have been working a temp part-time position with a local
political campaign, and have recently started volunteering. I carry my
laptop with me everywhere.
I’m scheduled to be a PCA for one of my clients all day and she’s taking a nap? Time to write.
Sitting in the crisis unit with no phone calls or paperwork? Time to write.
It’s one in the morning and I can’t sleep no matter how hard I try? That is prime writing time.
7. What are your favorite things to read, either genres, authors, or any other descriptor.
Honestly,
I read pretty much anything. Fantasy is my personal favorite, though
I’m usually reading a history book alongside it. Partly for research for
my own stuff, but also simply because I love learning new things.
Some
of my favorite authors to date are Rick Riordan, George R. R. Martin,
Robyn Bennis, Sara J. Maas, Margaret Fortune, and April Daniels. That’s
YA urban fantasy, grimdark fantasy, steampunk military, YA(?) epic
fantasy, hard sci-fi, and superhero genres, respectively. I’ve got more
favorites listed on
my website.
8. Do you consider yourself a character writer or is there something else you focus on?
Character
writer, definitely. I find stories that are not driven by characters to
be incredibly boring. If a character isn’t doing anything and is just
going along with the flow, they either need to die or just not be in the
story at all. I get that there are some stories—and real-life
situations—where someone is initially kind of thrown into the plot or
dragged along against their will (i.e. Hunger Games), but so long as
they turn around and start actively contributing to what’s going on
relatively quickly, then it’s all good.
9. Tell us what projects are exciting you at the moment and why.
Oh, boy, what isn’t exciting me at the moment?
Obviously there’s
Sovadron.
Right now we’re chugging along at publishing just one chapter at a time
because budgets suck and I thought it’d be a great idea to self-publish
this. (I still stand by that, but it’s a pain.) But I believe there’s
some real potential in this story and people are going to love it. It’s
new, it’s engaging, and full of action, adventure, and violence.
Outside
of graphic novels, I work with a small publishing agency called Sic
Semper Serpent doing a series of short stories called Twisted Tales.
Basically, I re-write classic fairy tales into something a little more
feminist. So far we’ve done The Little Mermaid, Rapunzel, and Beauty and
the Beast—now completely free of Stockholm syndrome! Currently I’m
working on a short for them called “Tower of Dragons,” basically a flip
of the traditional “princess trapped in the tower must be rescued by
valiant knight who slays the dragon and marries her” plotline.
And
early next year I’ll be returning to Earth’s Final Chapter. I left the
Canadian cannibals on a hell of a cliffhanger so they’d hire me for some
sequels. Worked like a charm.
10. Why should we not read your graphic novel Sovadron?
- It’s illustrated by John Hawkins, who is way better at art than anyone has any right to be.
- It’s an epic fantasy not based on medieval Europe, instead using a completely different setting.
- Due to budget restraints we can only publish it one chapter at a
time at a snail’s pace. (At least until enough people buy it or become
patrons on my Patreon page.)
- Girl turns into a super-strong werewolf and crushes the skull of a giant in the first chapter. Giants’ brains are icky.
- In the prologue, the immortals are stupid enough to curse the super
evil goddess Sovadron to sleep forever in a coffin beneath the world she
literally just tried to take over, because that never goes wrong.
- On a related note, I may have stolen some plot points from Rick Riordan.
- And some grimdark elements from George R. R. Martin.
- It’s full of powerful women, characters of color, characters with
disabilities, and characters who identify as LGBTQ+. Anyone who’s ever
sympathized with Nazis or been called a “broflake” should probably stay
away.
Bonus: What does the "DZA" stand for?
Dragons, Zombies and Aliens! The name of
my blog for fantasy, horror, and sci-fi.
Thank you so much for interviewing me!
Want to learn more: Here's how to find her!
Website: http://www.dzamarie.com
Blog: http://www.dzamarie.com/blog and http://www.dzamarie.com/favorite_books.html
Patreon: http://www.patreon.com/dzamarie
Sovadron page: http://www.dzamarie.com/sovadron.html
FB: https://www.facebook.com/ChristinaDZAMarie/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/CM_DZA
Pinterest: https://www.pinterest.com/cmarie_dza/
John Hawkins: http://www.johnhawkinsart.com
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