Welcome to Who’s on Fourth where we interview one member of the YeahWrite community, and the interview will publish the fourth Monday of each month. Next in the series features Arden Ruth interviewing Danielle Dayney.
YeahWrite on YeahWrite: Arden interviews Danielle
It’s hard to believe it’s only been just over a year since Danielle first stumbled onto our community. She found us through the luck of a Google search, and lucky for us, she stuck around.
I found YeahWrite last year in April. I made a decision to start writing more, found YeahWrite during a little Google search, and I haven’t left since. There are so many reasons I stick around. First and most importantly, I have made some great friends. I don’t have a group of creative friends outside of this online community, and I’m not sure I would have the drive to continue trying each week without the support I get from them. But then there’s editor feedback (which I crave) and my competitive side (I’m working on one of those coveted nonfiction editor’s picks).
We thrive on comments like these, where community is key. If you’re looking for that, try joining our private Facebook group, the YeahWrite Coffeehouse.
You can usually find Danielle on our nonfiction grid which opens each Monday, but she honestly loves them all, which we find to be a good thing. As always, I love to hear what advice our YeahWrite veterans would give any newbies or lurkers out there who have yet to dive on to one of our grids.
Try to comment on the other work and get to know the other writers. Also, this is a fantastic community with caring members and supportive editors, so jump in and have some fun!
We do love to have fun around here… Like most of us, Danielle first found a love for writing at a young age, but it began to flourish later in life.
My earliest memory of writing is from second grade. My teacher really encouraged me, so I wrote a couple of books. She ended up taking me to the Young Author’s Conference we had locally. I remember meeting Bernard Waber, and he signed the book I wrote with a green pen. During my first semester of college, my English professor asked me to come write for him at his local music magazine, The Glass Eye. It was a cool opportunity. I reviewed new CDs (do they still make those?) and interviewed bands. My biggest interview was the drummer from Hoobastank!
Oh Hoobastank. I’m having some serious college flashbacks at the moment! While Danielle doesn’t have any major goals for her blog besides keeping a consistent writing habit, she has a lot going on behind the scenes.
Right now, I’m taking a class online through Gotham, and after that, I’d like to finish my novel. I also have a memoir that I finished last year, but I shelved it because it needs more work than my brain can accept right now.
I sure know that feeling. When Danielle isn’t writing though, you can find her doing any number of things.
I’m usually cleaning up Legos, playing with my kids, or yelling at my dogs for digging through the garbage. Also drinking coffee. I’m ALWAYS drinking coffee. I also love distressing furniture when I’m not writing. It’s my other creative love and often where my writing ideas come from.
Oh, you want more? Well here are five things you never knew about Danielle:
- She’s terrified of cats.
- She can’t swim.
- She won her 5th grade spelling bee (which was a really big deal to her mom and the only trophy she received until high school).
- Speaking of high school, she was the captain of the dance team; they were the Spartanettes (imagine Kelly green and lots of gold sequins).
- Her first real job was passing out breadsticks at a fast food Italian restaurant called Fazoli’s.
Are you ready for the YeahWrite #324 Weekly Writing Challenges opening this week? We hope so! Your badges await in the sidebar. Grab the code, paste into the text or HTML view of your post, and submit your post to the grids for a little friendly competition. We’re glad you’re here.
Early (discounted!) registration for Super Challenge #5 (nonfiction) is now open! Be sure to sign up for our email blast so you don’t miss out on any announcements for upcoming challenges.
About the author:
