Short Story Studio | Interviews

★ | @smidorii

❝Stories that reflect you, your culture, your unique perspective of the world, they'll always be worth telling, and don't let anyone else try to convince you otherwise. ❞

—smidorii

Author of 'Waves of Us'

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What was your aim with the short stories : Rosé and Honey. What message did you want to get across?

My initial aim with both short stories was to simply tell a compelling story in a limited amount of words. I tend to let my inspiration roam free when writing novels, and they often end up a lot longer than intended because of that. So to challenge myself to be both concise and compelling was fun. As far as the message, they conclude with different endings that pull unique emotions from the readers. In the end, they're both explorations of difficult relationships that deal with a lot of ups and downs, compromise and forgiveness, which all helps them eventually find their own kind of ending. Exploring complex relationships between interesting characters is always the driving force of any of my stories.

For you, what makes a great short story?

Any short story, or any story really, that has characters I can't help but feel attached to are good to me. Characters are always what drive a story, and when time or word count is limited, it can sometimes be difficult to connect with them. But give me a compelling character any day and everything else can play second fiddle.

We can see that most of your works express a certain Taylor Swift lore. And we're fascinated by this Swiftian storytelling. What would you say is the major benefit of writing stories inspired from music?

 I live and breathe for Taylor Swift, it's true. For my real answer, music is by far my biggest inspiration. I spend most of my days listening to and being inspired by it. Taylor Swift has always had such a great way with words, but it wasn't until her album Folklore that I felt like she wasn't just expressing her feelings but actually telling a story of its own. Music can often change what words mean. The way they blend with a singer's unique vocal qualities and artistic choices, as well as having backing instrumentals that set the tone. Using music as inspiration can shift the way you view certain words, and when you revisit old songs as you grow as a person, you can see the shift in a new perspective.

Pop or Indie?

Hard choice but indie has always been what I find most comforting!

What's coming up next for you?

As far as future short stories are concerned, I actually have a handful I've been working on behind the scenes! They'll be a little longer than Rosé and Honey, but my favorite short story will features its own folklore, and, because it's me, a return to another small town/beach town!

A final parting word of advice?

The best piece of advice I will always adhere to myself and encourage of others, especially my fellow bipoc writers: tell your stories, whatever they may be. Stories that reflect you, your culture, your unique perspective of the world, they'll always be worth telling, and don't let anyone else try to convince you otherwise. 

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Thank you for chatting with us, Stephanie!

If you'd like to read 'Rosé' or other works by Stephanie,
She can be found on Wattpad as smidorii

Thank you and until next time!