Interview With Author Lelina Durrette
Tell us about yourself and how many books you have written.
I was born in New York City and raised in Guinea, West Africa by globe-trotting parents. After pinballing around Europe as an accidental tourist in my teens via boarding school, I landed briefly in Virginia, where I earned a degree in Psychology and became a wife and mother. After moving to Texas with my husband and children in 2000, I put my nomadic lifestyle behind me and settled into the role of carpool mom, preschool teacher and caretaker. The Girl Who Was Too Much and Not Enough is my first Young Adult novel.
What is the name of your latest book and what inspired it?
The Girl Who Was Too Much And Not Enough was inspired by current events and by climate change. I also drew on my experience growing up as a curvy girl, who never really felt like they “fit in” with society’s size and beauty standards. It was important to me to let young people know that they are “enough” just the way they are, despite, and even because of, their self-perceived flaws.
Do you have any unusual writing habits?
I tend to do a lot of my writing longhand in notebooks, and type it up on my laptop one chapter at a time. I carry a small notebook with me at all times for when inspiration strikes.
What authors, or books have influenced you?
I love Stephen King, Grady Hendrix, Anne Rice and Chuck Wendig, just to name a few of my favorite authors. My reading tastes are quite eclectic, though, ranging from horror to mystery to vampire novels to bodice-rippers. It really depends on what I’m in the mood for. I also tend to be a hopeless romantic.
What are you working on now?
I have several projects that I’m working on simultaneously, which is good, because when I encounter writer’s block with one storyline, I can usually move on to something else and make some headway. I’m currently writing a horror novel, an adventure/romance and a sequel to The Girl Who Was Too Much And Not Enough.
What is your best method or website when it comes to promoting your books?
I’m fairly active on social media and have been working on expanding my followers on all of the major platforms. I enjoy interacting with different people online and I try to reply to messages in a timely fashion. I also have a relationship with several local indie bookstores, and am working on setting up a few small signing events for my new book. Word of mouth is also a great resource!
Do you have any advice for new authors?
If you think you have a story to tell, be persistent and never stop believing in yourself. The path to publication looks different for everyone. Even if you receive a stack of rejection letters, like I did for many years with various projects I was working on, stick with it and don’t get discouraged.
What is the best advice you have ever heard?
A piece of advice that I’ve always embraced is just to be yourself. There’s a tendency, especially online, to curate a very specific type of persona, which may not always be authentic. With me, what you see is what you get. I would much rather be relatable than “perfect”.
What are you reading now?
I just finished reading How To Sell a Haunted House and We Sold Our Souls, both by Grady Hendrix. I’m currently reading The Chestnut Man by Soren Sveistrup.
What’s next for you as a writer?
Hopefully, what’s next for me as a writer is more writing and more published books! I have many stories to tell, and as I’ve gotten older I’m not as self-conscious about telling them as I was in my youth. I guess wisdom really does come with age.
If you were going to be stranded on a desert island and allowed to take 3 or 4 books with you what books would you bring?
The Stand by Stephen King, for sure. I think it’s one of the most incredible books ever written. Gone With Wind has always been one of my favorites. I read and re-read The Lion, the Witch and The Wardrobe over and over again when I was little, so I would bring that along for nostalgia alone, and probably The Fault in Our Stars just because it makes me cry every time I read it.
Author Websites and Profiles
Lelina Durrette Amazon Profile
Lelina Durrette’s Social Media Links