Dani Vee is the creator and host of the hugely popular Words & Nerds Podcast, and has facilitated panels at literary festivals such as BAD Sydney Crime Writers Festival and The Sutherland Shire Writers’ Festival.
To celebrate the release of her debut children’s book My EXTRAordinary Mum, Dani takes on our Ten Terrifying Questions! Read on …
1. To begin with why don’t you tell us a little bit about yourself – where were you born? Raised? Schooled?
I’m an only child (I know – don’t judge me!) My mum used to buy me Golden Books when we went grocery shopping so I wouldn’t complain about how boring it was! In high school I fell hard for English and knew reading and writing would need to be my thing! I was an English Teacher/ Head Teacher for many years!
2. What did you want to be when you were twelve, eighteen and thirty? And why?
When I was young I wanted to be a vet strangely enough, then at eighteen a rockstar (because who doesn’t want to be Shirley Manson) and then although I got back on track and studied English literature. At thirty it was very tempting to become a professional backpacker but reality has a way of being very persuasive (also you can only have so many baked beans toasties)
3. What strongly held belief did you have at eighteen that you don’t have now?
The optimism that life was going to be a shoe in. Once again reality came knocking and I realised that anything that matters is actually very hard, but that’s why it matters! I still have a ridiculous amount of unrealistic optimism but that’s what gets me up in the morning.
Picture books are fun, so I want readers to have had fun while reading it.
4. What are three works of art – this could be a book, painting, piece of music, film, etc – that influenced your development as a writer?
Oscar Wilde’s The Picture of Dorian Gray inspired me to explore and be unafraid of exploring the darker side of ourselves. Jane Austen influenced me because she was way ahead of her time in giving women voices and having them push back against society’s expectations of women. Her work was an act of defiance disguised as romance. It may be a cliche but how can you go past good old Shakespeare for continuing to resonate with humans 400 years after his death! If you write about people and real issues it will always resonate!
5. Considering the many artistic forms out there, what appeals to you about writing a children’s book?
Picture books are magic because they are memories. They are the first books a child is read, usually by their parent or a loving adult. They encourage conversation and creativity, and they remind you of the magic of childhood.
6. Please tell us about your latest book!
My EXTRAordinary Mum is about reclaiming your identity after motherhood! This mother takes her child roller skating, rock climbing,and jumps into waterholes without her swimmers! She loves a mosh pit, she has tattoos and takes adventures without a destination in mind! Mums are fun and adventurous and free-spirited, we are more than the bringers of band-aids and sunscreen! The book is FUN, feminist and touches on not only those wild adventures but the quieter moments for mental well-being! Kids love seeing their mums in a new light and it’s something that resonates with every mum I know!
7. What do you hope people take away with them after reading your work?
Picture books are fun, so I want readers to have had fun while reading it. As adults I’d love for them to recall the wild adventures they took (and will still take!) and encourage conversations with their children that open up a whole new world of knowing each other. My kids were pleasantly shocked when I told them about my mosh pit days!
8. Who do you most admire in the writing world and why?
I’ve interviewed more than 500 authors on the Words and Nerds Podcast and every single one of them have inspired me along the way. Writing is magical, fun, it’s a grind, it’s hopeful, it’s hard and there are more rejections than celebrations. How can you not admire our Australian literary friends?!
9. Many artists set themselves very ambitious goals. What are yours?
I just want to make people feel something. If my work resonates with readers by making them think or laugh out loud or remember who they used to be, I couldn’t ask for more!
I’d love to keep writing books for kids, as well as delve into writing crime fiction. Watch this space!
10. Do you have any advice for aspiring writers?
Trent Dalton said write with your heart and soul which is exactly what I did and My EXTRAordinary Mum was signed. My Publisher James Layton said ‘I hate your ending, delete it.’ I did and the book is so much better for it! Hold those words loosely, you’ll never run out of words.
Thank you for playing!
—My EXTRAordinary Mum by Dani Vee & Alexandra Colombo (Larrikin House) is out August 1st.
My EXTRAordinary Mum
Get to know the author of My EXTRAordinary Mum.
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