Dark Days Author Interview: Kiersten White

My personal challenge with the Paranormalcy series was to write a paranormal romance that was both a good story within the genre and also a gentle send-up of the tropes. It was fun to write, but I’ll admit, by the end of the series I was ready to live in a new voice. (There’s a scene in ENDLESSLY where Evie gets tased. It was maybe a little passive aggressive on my part…) MIND GAMES was the result of craving something completely new!

MIND GAMES is most definitely way different than the Paranormalcy series! I kinda loved the darker tone! 

Whichever one I was writing in at the time was the one I wanted to keep writing. I’d reluctantly switch, and then by the end of that section I’d want to stay in that voice instead of switching. That, to me, was what proved both were essential to the story.

I must say that I getting into each of their heads depending on the situation, but Fia was my favorite. Her honesty is pretty awesome.  

Probably the line that started the whole book: “The moment he bends over to help the sorrow-eyed spaniel, I know I won’t be able to kill him. This, of course, ruins my entire day.”

I must say that that line is pure perfection. It really draws you in! I love how she’s so upfront about it, like it’s no big deal that she was supposed to kill him.  

Oh, no. I never talk about cute boys. Who wants to talk about cute boys?? Let’s talk about economics!

Wait. Nevermind. There are actually two cute boys. One, James, is the is-he-or-isn’t-he-a-bad-guy love interest. But he’s so adorable screwed up! The other, Adam, is just your typical sweetheart teen medical genius. Dime a dozen, those guys.

James! Swoon. That boy is so tortured and has major daddy issues. I love him.  

Who says I’m not? *sabotages HarperTeen’s rivals*

Really, I think what the story comes down to is being in control of your own destiny, which is something all teenagers struggle with. Someone is always telling you what you can and can’t do, what your future should be, what choices you should make. But in the end, you’re the one who has to live with the consequences, and it’s your future you’re building. Make it your own!

I really love this answer. It’s so true! 

Hallway Darren who smells of mustard.

Wait. No. I’d have to go with the girl who has perfect instincts: Fia. Unless one of her instincts was to use me as zombie bait to protect Annie.

Haha I totally LOL’d at the Darren thing. And I could so see Fia doing that! Ahh! 

Fia was born with flawless instincts. Her first impulse, her gut feeling, is always exactly right. Her sister, Annie, is blind to the world around her—except when her mind is gripped by strange visions of the future.

Trapped in a school that uses girls with extraordinary powers as tools for corporate espionage, Annie and Fia are forced to choose over and over between using their abilities in twisted, unthinkable ways…or risking each other’s lives by refusing to obey.

In a stunning departure from her New York Times bestselling Paranormalcy trilogy, Kiersten White delivers a slick, edgy, heartstoppingly intense psychological thriller about two sisters determined to protect each other—no matter the cost. 

Kiersten White is the NYT bestselling author of the Paranormalcy trilogy. She has one tall husband and two small children and lives near the ocean, where her life is perfectly normal. Visit her at www.kierstenwhite.com.