Member Spotlight: Allie Nava

Why is writing important to you and why do you think it’s an important medium for the world? “Over the years, people have asked me why I write fiction, and my answer to that question is a fairly simple one. I chose fiction decades ago as my creative medium because storytelling is one of the most powerful forces in the universe. It is a force that can influence and shape lives for the better…” – from Allie Notes’ newsletter post 09/18/24 In my new book July and Everything After, I tell a story of resilience and transformation against extraordinary odds, leveraging an overlooked historical event, 1983’s Black July, as a vessel through which to weave this tale across Asia and America.

What are your tried and tested remedies to cure writer’s block? I cherish travel as a means through which to learn about new places and people and experiences, both nationally and internationally, and therefore as a way to unlock new perspectives and ways of thinking. I find that these new perspectives and ways of thinking lead to new creative flows of thought and writing.

What is your favorite time to write? I tend to write at various times of the day, and often find ideas popping into my head even when I’m even exercising or showering. So I use a notetaking method on my phone to keep track of new ideas when I can’t be at my computer typing during the day.

What’s the best piece of writing advice you’ve ever received and would like to impart to other writers? There are too many great pieces of advice I have received from generous beta readers, agents, editors, publishers, publicists, and fellow authors to just call out one piece of advice. The lesson I have learned from that is to keep my ears and mind open, and learn from as many people and perspectives as possible. One example of a great piece of advice I received was around pacing, from an agent who represented one of my favorite writers. That stuck with me as I revised my book and it helped me better relate to the reader experience.

What excites you most about being a writer in today’s age? Currently, I am learning a lot from the convergence of ancient thinking and modern science, for example, in the arenas of meditation, positive psychology, and neuroscience. I have tried to bring some of those learnings into my book, in a fictional format, hopefully to benefit the reader who picks up my book.

Allie Nava’s July and Everything After is out now with DartFrog Books.