Here is my interview with the lovely Darklisa721, the author of 'Beauty and Her Most Famous Beast' which, in my opinion, is amazingly good. She is also a great book cover maker, she's made the covers to both of my stories on wattpad, the thread links are posted on her page. Hope you enjoy!
How did you find out about Wattpad?:
I accidentally stumbled upon it one day when I was looking for some good books to read. I had been to the library more times than I could count and it seemed like I had already read all the good books, so I tried the internet. I don’t remember what I typed in on Google that made Wattpad appear but I am really glad that it did!
-What made you start uploading?:
At first my plan was just to read other peoples stories, but the more I read the more I wanted to write one of my own. I had already tried to write two other books but I never finished them so this is my chance to write and finish a book and get peoples feedback on it along the way!
-Your story Beauty and Her Most Famous Beast is a revamp of Beauty and The Beast in a much more modern setting with a different plotline, where did you come up with the idea?:
Beauty and the Beast has always been my favorite Disney Princess movie and I really liked the idea of doing some sort of spinoff of that. While reading other peoples stories I enjoyed the ones with the plotlines that included famous people. I decided to have a famous guy as the Beast because the tabloids and magazines create all these stories and make stars out to be “beasts” sometimes. I thought that it would fit pretty well and then the story just kind of took off from there.
-Theo is a very charming character, is he based on anyone?:
I wish ! He is pretty much the guy I wish I could find someday famous or not. A nice and sweet but confident, smart, and handsome guy. I have this image in my head of exactly who he is and it’s really great getting to write about it so other people can enjoy him as well.
-Who’s your favorite author?:
Outside of wattpad my favorite author would have to be Susan Elizabeth Phillips. She creates the most beautiful, funny, and interesting romance stories that I have ever read. She has the ability to draw you in and her characters have so much depth that you feel like you have known them all of your life. Each character has their own unique personality and all her books are great reads.
On wattpad I don’t have a favorite author because there are so many good books that I have read. I actually started a Collection of the Best Romances on Wattpad and in there I put all the stories I have read that I think are superb.
-Favorite fictional character?:
So my dorky answer is Indiana Jones because he is hot and kicks butt, but my real answer is Kenny Traveler from the book Lady Be Good by Susanne Elizabeth Phillips. He is a gorgeous famous golfer and one of the sweetest male characters that I have read about.
-You make book covers, which are extremely good, what made you start making them?:
Thank you! I first joined Wattad to read but I quickly got into cover making while I was trying to find a cover for my own stories. I realized that if I wanted a cover that matched my story perfectly I was probably going to have to make it myself. That is why I spend a lot of time combing through different pictures for each person that requests a cover from me. I want to try and create something unique that matches their story that looks beautiful at the same time because not everyone has the time to just jump into cover making so they can create their own covers.
-Where do you get your inspiration from?:
Cover Inspiration:
I get my inspiration from the book store. I will go in there and walk around and look at the different covers and how they reflect each story. I never copy any covers I just use them as a jumping off point of what fonts and colors look good together. Despite the fact that people tell us not to judge a book by its cover we can’t help but do it. That is why when I see someone with a great story but an okay cover I always volunteer to make them one so the outside matches in the inside!
Writing Inspiration:
My inspiration usually comes from my experiences. I write better about things that I have seen or experienced for myself and ideas easily come to me when I’m standing where I want a scene to be. I can just clearly picture what I want to happen.
I also think about all the different romantic movies I’ve seen and all the romantic books I have read and what I would have liked to see in them. I also get really wrapped up in my characters so creating scenes for them isn’t too difficult and I always have fun bringing them closer.
-What’s the coolest thing that has ever happened to you?:
I’m not sure because I have been lucky enough to get to do a lot of amazing things. I have traveled to lots of different places like, Tennessee, Louisiana, Virginia, Florida, New York, Hawaii, and Texas. I have had the privilege of doing a lot of unique things while growing up and it’s hard to just pick one. One event that stands out in my mind though was the time I was in Hawaii and I got to see the Black Pearl up close because they were filming Pirates of the Caribbean. It was great getting to have something from a movie brought to life in front of my eyes. It was a very magical experience.
-What is your favorite romantic film?:
This is one of the hardest questions ever but I think my three favorites are Letters to Juliet, Sweet Home Alabama, and Titanic. They all really stuck with me and the plot lines are great!
-Is there anything you would like to say to your fans?:
Just a big thank you to all of my fans for reading my stories and liking my covers. It is the greatest feeling to check Wattpad and see that someone likes your story or has commented on it. It’s great to know that my work is appreciated and it motivates me to write and create! Thank you !!!!!!
