Know about your Authors

@thaliagrace-

Pen Name: Jordin Verona

Username: thaliagrace-

Is your pen name your legal name? If no, then how did you make up one?

It's not my legal name. I chose a first name that was similar to my actual first name, and the last name I stole from one of my favourite movies 10 Things I Hate About You, where the character's name is Patrick Verona.

How many books have you published till date?

My profile would lead you to believe that it's 16. But it's been more than that. After 8 years on Wattpad, I've unpublished a lot of manuscripts to revamp them and I'm slowly trying to clear out my drafts. I probably have 50+ drafts at the moment that still need written!

What are your future projects?

One I'm really excited about is revisiting an original story I'm writing called RISE UP. It has superpowers, Greek Deities, and fierce women. I have a mystery/thriller I'm working on that was supposed to be my NaNoWriMo project, but became more of a back burner project when I thought up another story. And I write a lot of romances, so there's a few of those on the horizon as well!

What is writing to you?

Writing is something I could spend the rest of my life doing and never lose interest. When I first started on Wattpad in 2011, I used Wattpad to write fanfiction—I still do, but less so than I did before. Writing helped me escape my life and enter worlds that were only limited by what my imagination could think up. Writing is what I want to do for the rest of my life, should the opportunity arise and I would love to continue to build worlds for as long as I can.

Is being an author, your long time dream or a hidden passion you found out later?

You know, I thought it was a hidden passion I discovered at 14. That's the age I remember realizing that this is what I want to do with the rest of my life, you know? But I was looking through an old yearbook just recently, actually, from when I was nine years old. In it, we had to fill in what we wanted to do for a career, and I'd written author or photographer. So I think my path was tendered towards writing from the start, really. Because 12 years later, it's still what I live and breathe to do.

What genre books you like to work on?

I try to branch out and not focus on the genre when I'm writing. But I'd be lying if I said I didn't bring myself a lot of joy when I write my multitude of romantic comedies. Dialogue is kind of my niche, so characters that talk a lot—like those in romantic comedies—are really the ones who, in my head at least, bring out the best in my writing and bring out the best in me.

If we challenge you to write a book of another genre we suggest, then would you take it up?

It really depends on what genre and whether I have inspiration from that genre. I'd be open to hearing the challenge before I decide whether I would participate or not—though I usually am game for a challenge.

Then we would love to read a Vampire Romance Comedy book from you soon.

Writing is a reality that paints a beautiful fantasy. What do you think are the charms of writing fiction/non fictional books?

I think the charms are that if you are really passionate about what you're writing, your characters become real. Readers believe that what's happening to them could happen in real life, and they learn to love your characters as real people, just as you have. The charms of writing for me are that I get to interact with people who love my characters and relate to my characters. I've had people message me about books that I've written where they say that this character felt like their personal story and helped them overcome obstacles. And that's what it's really about for me. Creating something that someone can relate to, that someone can get lost in, that someone can escape something, even if only for as long as the book lasts.