Member Spotlight: Dana Alison Levy

Why is writing important to you and why do you think it’s an important medium for the world? I write for kids, and I write because stories can be invaluable in creating connections and sharing lives. Dr. Rudine Sims Bishops referred to books as “windows, mirrors, and sliding glass doors” and kids truly need this kind of magic. They need to know they are not alone. They need to know that their experiences and feelings are shared by others, including others whose lives, looks, and histories, are totally foreign to them. I truly believe that books for kids can be some of the most beautiful literature around. Also, writing for kids is just really fun. There are shenanigans and fart jokes and cats causing a ruckus…who doesn’t want to write about that stuff?

What are your tried and tested remedies to cure writer’s block? Notebooks, freehand writing, talking to myself (and recording it on a voice app), often starting by saying “what I really want to say in this book is XXX…” and seeing what comes next. Brainstorming over the phone or Zoom with my long-suffering and beleaguered critique partners. Also taking a break! I don’t believe that you have to write every day to be a writer. If that works for you, great, but many of us have fallow seasons and productive seasons, and that’s okay too.

What is your favorite time to write? Morning. But I have tried to get better about creating conditions for writing even when it’s not optimal. I try really hard not to be precious about the creative process — I need that muse to show up when I need her, not when the perfect candle is lit and the oasis is beautifully tranquil (which is rarely, in my house). I do create a playlist for whatever book I’m working on, and I play it consistently, so that it becomes a bit of a Pavlovian response: when I hear those songs, I am in that story. Using the playlist, I can (at least try to) write anywhere, any time (hockey rinks, airports…so it goes!)

What’s the best piece of writing advice you’ve ever received and would like to impart to other writers? Trust the process, be gentle with yourself…but WRITE. While it’s true you don’t have to write every day to be a real writer, you do have to write sometimes. You have to put words down, let them be bad, and then keep going. Also, you have to remember that being a published author (or aspiring to be one) means you want or at least are willing to walk a balance beam between art and business. Publishing is very much a business, and you have to learn about it and respect it. However. If you start writing from a fear of that business, rather than a creative wellspring, then I think you’re pretty well doomed. So it’s a dance, sometimes uncomfortable, and you have to be willing to do it. (If you’re not willing, then by all means write whatever you want with no concern for the business at all, and do it for your own pleasure, or for self-publishing for a small audience, or whatever you want! That’s cool too…as long as you’re not expecting publishing to change its rules for you).

What excites you most about being a writer in today’s age? I worked for a literary agent in the 1990s, I have family members who have been published authors since the 1970s, and I’ve been published since 2014. A lot has changed over the years I’ve been in and around publishing, and some things are really discouraging (see also: book bans, AI, Amazon). But other parts of today’s environment are amazing! When my first novel, The Misadventures of the Family Fletcher, was published for elementary age kids, it was kind of a big deal because there were gay dads. In the decade since, there are so many incredible LGBTQIA+ titles for kids! So many beautiful stories being told, and so many kids, so many families, finding themselves in books (back to those mirrors!).

Dana Alison Levy’s Not Another Banned Book is out now with Delacorte Press.