Welcome Back, Krissi Dallas
Krissi Dallas
loves pop music, mismatched socks, and fried chicken. She lives in Fort Worth,
Texas with her youth minister husband, Sam, and enjoys hanging out with her
quirky middle school students and building the magical, and mysterious world
that makes up the Phantom Island series. Be sure to check out Windchaser,
Windfall, Watercrossing, and the latest release, Watermark. Krissi loves
connecting with teens, as well as readers and writers of all ages! You can
stalk her online at www.KrissiDallas.com.
Find out more about Krissi in her interview here (by the way she is ADORABLE!!):
Why
do you write for Young Adults?
Working
with teens is my heartbeat. As a junior high teacher and the wife of a youth
pastor, I've seen teenagers change the lives of others and impact a society in
powerful ways. With that age group, everything is do or die, life or death
DRAMA, and I love that about them. If you can set the heart of a teenager
on fire, they can and WILL accomplish great things. My writing flows out of
those real-life experiences and tries to somehow capture the urgency and
passion of that age group and all that they can (and want) to be.
Who is your favorite character you
have written or read about?
I
think my favorite character I've written is my main villain in the Phantom
Island series. I won't say who it is exactly (that's part of the fun of the
series - figuring out who to trust), but I will say that it is a female. I find
myself fascinated by her--by understanding what makes this woman tick, why she
makes certain choices, and what she truly believes. She's the hero of her own
story, however twisted it is, and I both love and hate her. It was only after I
wrote her that I realized, she's ME. The darkest part of me. The person I might
become if I gave into my every self-serving, innately dark desire. She's
the Anti-Krissi and, by extension, the Anti-Whitnee since my main character is
based off of a lot of my own traits.
What
is one thing you would like your readers to know about you?
I
want readers to know that I love Jesus. Above all other things I fangirl about,
my relationship with Christ is the most satisfying and most
motivating aspect of who I am. It's just as simple as that. And everything
I write, the light AND the dark, funnels through that worldview.
In
high school, where did you fall? (Prom Queen/King, Gamer Geek, Brainy/Book
Nerd, Jock, Shy/Quiet Scholar, Skate Rat, Stoner, Class Clown, etc.)
I
had two sides - the girl who sat and got lost reading books and writing stories
in spirals in the back of class when she should've been studying (NERDY!) and
then the girl who sang and acted onstage, took leadership roles, was voted
Class President, etc (BOSSY!). If my life now speaks anything of my life then,
it says that I spent my teenage years making a lot of loyal friendships and
strong relationships with people who still matter to me today and support my
endeavors. Best teenage years ever.
It’s
the dawn of the zombie apocalypse, what 3 things are a must to take with you
when you flee your home for refuge from the undead hordes??
Are
you kidding? In a zombie movie, I'd be, like, that first extra who gets killed
off in the opening scene. I'm not built to survive. So I guess I'd take my
husband and my two Yorkies - and hope that they've got the skills to get us
through. My little five-pound pups are FIERCE, y'all.
If you didn't get the chance to meet her last year, don't miss it at the 2014 Montgomery County Book Festival
on February 15 at Lone Star College - Montgomery.
