How was your sleep/dreams writing this?
Intense! Majority of times, my dreams were normal, but I did often dream of Kurt related situations that were agonizing to wake up from. I was always in the place of Lindy in those dreams, which is embarrassing to admit, haha. As for my sleep — it was definitely limited when I was going through periods of binge writing.
Did you ever have moments where scenes or dialogue just popped into your head out of nowhere and left you dazed?
ALL THE TIME! Some of the most defining moments in 'In The Sun' were things I'd just thought of randomly with no real planning. An example that popped into my head as I was writing was Lindy's acid trip earlier in the book. That was random for sure, but I loved it because it was an example of how different she and Kurt were. Another example would be Lindy's spontaneous trip to Paris to see Kurt in 1994. I had never planned on that!
Was it this long because deep down you never wanted to end it (him to go)?
Absolutely. I found myself stalling the end of this story for weeks and even months just because I was in no way ready to say goodbye to Kurt and Lindy. Even now, it's very difficult for me to think about not writing them.
Have you got any plans/ideas to write general fiction or any other genre?
As of now, no! But hopefully in the future I'll be able to take a step back from fan fiction and create a general fiction story. It will most likely be music related.
Were there any deleted scenes from this book? (As in chapters that were going to be published, but then weren't at the last minute)
I don't recall ever having actually written a full chapter that didn't end up published, but I did have some ideas that got tossed to the wayside. Usually it was because those scenes were either extraneous, unnecessary in furthering the plot, or just got plain boring to write. One example is pretty obvious in the last several chapters — I did not include any material involving supporting characters like Trae or Beth because at that point, they were no longer super important to the story. Also, TMI, I wrote a lot of sexual scenes that got trashed because I'm a wuss.
How do you feel about Lindy's father and his attempts at reforming their relationship?
Although I often put a lot of myself into my characters, this trait of Lindy's is one I do not share with her. I'm actually a grudge holder, and I think that I would have had a harder time forgiving Lee personally. But for the sake of Lindy's character and the story, I was really keen on mending her relationship with Lee. I felt it was important in showing what kind of person Lindy was. To me, her forgiveness of her father showed how she was capable of also forgiving Kurt.
If you could change different parts in this book, which would they be?
I think that I wouldn't necessarily change anything major, but I would definitely love to go back to the first 50 or so chapters and edit them. A lot of what I wrote back then felt rushed because I was so desperate to put out content (and I was excited too!) So I would love to return to the early beginning of 'In The Sun' and perhaps slow the pace down and elaborate more on certain aspects of Lindy and Kurt's relationship and Lindy's life.
Do you think you'd ever write a book about Charlie?
Maybe, if that's what you guys wanted. It would be a short book — no more than 20 chapters.
Would you ever write another Kurt fanfic?
Yes, absolutely. I have a few short stories related to Kurt already in the works, and I would totally start a collection of one-shots specifically about Kurt, Lindy and their family. Right now though, my devotion is going into 'Out of The Red,' my Dave story!
What goes on inside your head as your write a story?
In the case of 'In The Sun,' I literally immersed myself in Kurt and Nirvana. Everything plays out in my mind like a movie when I write, which can actually be bad since screenwriting and novel writing are very different concepts. But I have a very imaginative mind, so I really did enjoy watching those scenes play out like movie scenes in my head as I wrote them. It made it all the more special and meaningful to me.
Will characters in this book make an appearance in 'Out of The Red?' Will there be a Lindy cameo?
You guys have no idea how badly I wanted to keep this original character lineup in 'Out of The Red.' But, it's my personal belief that when writing a story that deals with the "Dave" perspective, it's important to stick to the truth of what actually happened in Kurt's life. So sadly, that means no Lindy, Charlie, Trae, etc. 😢 I think it will be pertinent to keep Kurt's life accurate in my new story because it really did impact Dave and influence who he is.
