Laura: Hello, Danica. Welcome to What to Read Next Podcast.

Danica: Hello. Thank you for having me, Laura.

Laura: So happy to have you here. Tell us a little bit about yourself.

Danica: Well, I am the debut author of The Truth According to Ember. I am a citizen of the Chickasaw Nation, I have an MBA from USC Marshall School of Business, and I have a two-and-a-half-year-old daughter.

Laura: I love this so much. So, when did you start writing? Were you always a writer, or was it something you picked up later in life?

Danica: I've been a storyteller all my life since I could talk. The first movie I saw in theaters was Pocahontas. I was two years old, and my father took me. I was obsessed and started imagining I was Pocahontas. My sisters and I would play out the story, and it evolved from there. When I was 14, I started theater and improv, dreaming of being on Saturday Night Live. I created original characters and sketches, even filming some for my senior project. I wrote one-act plays in high school and, without knowing about fan fiction as a community, wrote my own stories in journals.

Laura: I didn't know about fan fiction growing up either. My friends and I wrote stories about Menudo, pairing ourselves with the band members. It was our own version of fan fiction.

Danica: That's hilarious! I did similar things in my journal, writing stories about boys at school. Writing has always been a way to control and explore emotions for me.

Laura: That's wonderful. So, let's talk about The Truth According to Ember. When did you start writing this novel?

Danica: I wrote two books before that and self-published them. They did pretty well, but I took them offline. One was Pride and Prejudicial, a Jane Austen fan fiction. I started The Truth According to Ember as a screenplay in 2020. After my father's passing, I found it difficult to continue writing. But in 2022, I committed to finishing it, writing late at night, early in the morning, and on weekends. It took six months to complete.

Laura: And now it's coming out soon! I love the premise and the exploration of identity and joy. What was your process for developing the character arc?

Danica: Themes often reveal themselves as I write. I used the Save the Cat beats and outlined the story. Feedback from my critique partner, Ellie Todd, helped me refine the lies and conflicts. I layered in more lies to build tension. My husband also helped by listening to chapters and giving feedback on the humor. The writing process involved a lot of revising and workshopping.

Laura: I appreciate stories that bring joy and show healthy relationships. It's essential to have positive representations in romance.

Danica: Absolutely. I wanted to depict Native joy and resilience, showing that we deserve to be the leads in our own stories and experience love. The protagonist, Ember, goes through a personal journey, learning that she doesn't need to change who she is to find happiness. Her love interest, Donawa, is a well-adjusted hero, offering her a different perspective on life.

Laura: Thank you for bringing this story to the world. It's important to have diverse and joyful narratives. Do you have any book recommendations for our listeners?

Danica: Yes! Here are a few:

Pride and Protest by Nikki Payne

Sex, Lies, and Sensibility by Nikki Payne

The Spoiler by Ellie Todd

The Bride by Julie Garwood

Assistant to the Villain by Laura Thalassa

Say You'll Be Mine by Nina Kumar

Four Weekends and a Funeral by Ali Palmer

The Rodeo Queen by Marcella Bell

The Wildest Ride by Marcella Bell

Lizards Hold the Sun by Danny Trujillo

When Stars Have Teeth by Danny Trujillo

The Kiss Countdown by Etta Easton

When I Think of You by Maya Ariels

Laura: These are great recommendations! Where can our listeners find you online?

Danica: You can find me on Instagram at @danica_nava.

Laura: Thank you, Danica, for being on the show.

Danica: Thank you so much, Laura, and thank you to your listeners.