Welcome Author Danette Haworth

Today on my blog I am hosting Danette Haworth, author of Violet Raines Almost Got Struck by Lightning. Following last month's theme on my blog ("Earth Month"), I decided to ask Danette a few nature-related questions about her wonderful book.

I read Danette's book in two days, only putting it down when my toddler was practically begging me on her knees to play with her! Violet Raines Almost Got Struck by Lightning is an absolute gem! The voice is captivating, the characters melt your heart, and the plot is unique and cleverly written. Girls and boys of all ages (as well as adults) will be able to relate to the characters in this book, so I highly recommend it!

Danette is giving away a free copy of her book today to one random winner. All you have to do is leave a comment on my blog today and I will pick a winner at random. I will announce the winner on my blog tomorrow, so please check back to see if you won so I can get your snail mail address!

And here is what Danette has to say...

Hi Danette. Thank you for joining us today on my blog!

Thanks Kim! After reading your website, I saw we had much in common!

I read on your website that you grew up in an Air Force family. How did moving frequently and living in different places influence your childhood and your writing?

We did move constantly and I hated it! Because my dad was an Air Force recruiter, we lived in regular towns and my brothers, sister, and I went to public schools, always the new kids. The one time we lived on base was excellent—everyone was new, either moving in or moving out—all you had to do to make friends was step outside and join the kickball game on the playground.

On the plus side, adapting to my many new schools helped me become more sensitive than I might have been otherwise. My brother and I kid that we were trained sociologists before we ever left elementary school! As a new kid, I learned to pick up nuances in the crowd, read expressions, analyze social dynamics—all skills that help me now in my writing.

As a new mom, I'm reliving my childhood through my daughter; many forgotten memories surprise me and help me as a writer. With your book Violet Raines Almost Got Struck by Lightning, you took on the challenge of writing about a girl entering adolescence. How were you able to successfully write about such a trying, difficult time in a child's life? Did you use memories of your own childhood to help you relate to Violet, the main character?

Oh yes! I remember boys in fifth grade teasing me about my bra, and yet these boys were my friends. It was weird to be evolving in ways they could see! But the feelings Violet has are feelings we still have as adults: jealousy, guilt, anger, loss, love of family and home, joy. It’s just that in writing for middle grade, these feelings can be expressed in their raw (and more honest) quality.

With summer right around the corner we're all enjoying the outdoors, which ties in perfectly with your book. Violet is very fond of nature and exploring the outdoors as she struggles with her confusion about becoming an adolescent. How did you use concepts of nature to help and/or hinder Violet in her maturation process?

When Violet first came to me as a character, I saw her in my mind’s eye. One look at her and I knew she spent all her time outside; she was surrounded by the swampy woods of the Econlockhatchee River, which is not far from my house. I instantly had a vision of her dirt road neighborhood and the smallness of her world. I loved it.

I couldn’t tell Violet’s story without her environment.

Because Violet practically lives outdoors, I wanted to convey the experience of living in Florida—especially in the summer. Florida’s landscape is different from the rest of the continental United States; look in gardening books, and you’ll see that we’re classified as a tropical zone. I want readers to feel the heat pressing down on them; I want them to dart for shelter with Violet when the storms roll in, charging the air with electricity you can feel.

Since Florida is the lightning capital of the United States, lightning took a big role in the book. Anyone living in Central Florida can tell you how frightening it is to be caught outside during a storm in the summer. And dangerous. A few years ago, four houses got struck by lightning in my neighborhood in the same summer, with one house getting struck twice!

Lightning is a formidable, violent force that cannot be ignored. It’s so powerful that it shapes the events of Violet’s life this one particular summer. Lightning storms draw Eddie and Violet together (and provides electricity between them) and at other times, lightning drives the friends apart, including Lottie.

What’s the worst thing that can happen to best friends? Getting separated. What’s even worse than that? Your best friend goes to live with your worst enemy! Lightning struck Violet and Lottie’s friendship and served as the perfect vehicle to throw Violet’s life out of whack.

Thanks for sharing the first chapter of your book with us on your website! It's extremely well-focused and grabs the reader. I love it! You've successfully included in the first chapter a few different characters, the initial ideas of the plot, and great dialogue. One aspect of your writing style that ties it all together so well is the way you've used the five senses (touch, taste, sight, sound, and smell). As a preview to the rest of the book, can you tell us what role the use of senses in your writing had when showing Violet's coming of age? Did her own sensory awareness of her body and others around her help her with her struggle to become an adolescent?

Thank you for the high compliments!

I love this question because it allows me to elaborate on Violet’s relationship with nature. When the woodpecker tree gets struck by lightning, Violet’s first reaction is delight—she can’t wait to see what it looks like now! But when she gets there, she realizes the tree could have been killed. Her heart is full of gladness when she sees it’s still green, and when she touches the scar left by lightning, she’s moved that the tree would hold onto life against such cruel circumstances.

I think this scene displays a subtle shift in Violet, the shift from thinking about one’s own gratification to thinking about others. The “other” in this case is a tree, but that’s valid for Violet because of her close relationship with the outdoors.

Children today are surrounded by technological advancements (e.g., TV, iPODs, computers, cell phones, video games, etc). Consequently, many of them don't spend as much time outdoors and may harbor a fear or dislike of being in nature. How does your book overcome this possible roadblock for some of its readers who may not be in touch with nature as well as Violet is?

When my brothers, sister and I were kids, we’d shout, “Bye, Mom,” race out the back door, and disappear into the woods for hours. That’s freedom! What adventures we had, building forts, climbing mountains, discovering caves, going down to the creek and balancing across rocks. I wanted to deliver some of that experience to readers.

Violet can’t stand being stuck inside. To her, the woods are a friendly place. Readers will be standing right by Violet’s side when she spots an alligator, and they’ll sit with her on the porch swing as she watches lightning crackle the sky. They’ll feel the blasting heat of the sun and the coolness of the shade when Violet slips under the canopy of oaks and palmettos near the river.

You’re right in saying technology keeps our kids inside. Even the structures of planned communities physically discourage outdoor play—unless you go to the community park. Even though we moved a lot, my parents always bought houses right off the woods. I pointed this out to my mom recently, and she was surprised to realize it! She grew up in farm country in Michigan, and I think she has an inherent need for the outdoors, as do I. The woods are at the core of Violet’s being, and I hope readers will gain the sense of how wonderful nature is.

As a final question, do you have any advice for writers who don't place a big emphasis on nature in their writing but still wish to include important aspects of it in their writing?

That’s a good question! The important thing, especially if nature isn’t a big character in the story, is to not throw it in there just to make sure it’s there. You must be true to your protagonist and the story events.

That said, nature touches us even when we aren’t doing outdoorsy things; using little touches of the natural world can not only make a story more real, but it can enhance the emotion or conflict in a scene.

For example, I always get gnats in the house when I have bananas sitting on the counter. So let’s make up a woman who’s sipping coffee at her kitchen table, thinking about the heated conversation she had with her husband yesterday. A gnat flits by a couple of times, and she absentmindedly waves it away. But as she sits there thinking, her anger escalates and so does her annoyance with the gnat. Just as she remembers the worst thing her husband said, the gnat flies into perfect range and BAM! she smashes the bug flat. If only her husband could be taken care of that easily.

Thank you Danette for answering these questions!

Kim, thank you for the great questions! I really enjoyed being able to present a different take on Violet. I loved talking about the nature in the book because the setting, as I mentioned earlier, is based on a real river, a place I’ve hiked and canoed in, and I love it.

Thank you for hosting me!

Danette is giving away a free copy of her book today, so readers please leave a comment on this post and I will choose a winner using random numbers! I will announce the winner on my blog tomorrow!

To follow Danette on her blog tour, please stop by her blog Summer Friend to see the schedule!

Thanks again Danette!