Yay to my second blog tour with Fantastic Flying Book Club! I absolutely love getting approved for these tours, and I’m excited to do an interview for this post! Click on the banner for the full tour schedule and come and see what kind of questions I got to ask Danielle Stinson!

about the book

Rose Montgomery parks her family’s trailer in Fort Glory, Oregon with one goal: to carve out a new life for herself and her little brother, Charlie. They need a fresh start for their family, and she thinks she’s finally found it in a town where nobody knows them. 

But Rose’s plans come crashing down when, in an instant, Fort Glory disappears and every person in town vanishes into thin air—including Charlie.

Rose and four other teens become trapped in the Fold, a patch of woods caught halfway between the real world and the lost town. In the Fold, a mysterious force suspends the laws of physics, and everyone’s inner darkness has the power to kill. 

To survive the Fold, Rose must unravel the clues Charlie sends her from the missing town. And Rose has to find Charlie soon—or he’ll be gone forever. 

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• What was the inspiration behind this debut novel?

Rose and Charlie are the heart of the book, and their voices came to me first. I really wanted to capture the sibling bond that was such a huge part of my own life growing up. Moving constantly with the military and then spending an AmeriCorps year working for Habitat For Humanity, I was always keenly aware of the importance of roots. All these things became the seeds of Charlie and Rose’s story. I knew they were being kept apart by something major— something that was as singular as they are. Then I had a dream about places/ building disappearing, and I knew this was the story I was meant to write. 

• Growing up as a military child, which location had the most impact on your life and why?

I love this question even though it’s definitely tough to choose! By the end of HS, we’d moved close to a dozen times. I loved certain places at specific ages. For example, Alaska is an outdoorsy 5^th graders paradise, and it doesn’t get better than a housing barracks in Leavenworth, Kansas overrun with kids when you’re in 6^th grade. But I’d say our time in Europe had the most lasting impact on me. My love of history, magic and adventure was born there. Germany in particular. We lived there several times over the course of my life, and those memories are precious to me. We returned again when I was in 10^th and 11^th grade, and those years were among my most formulative because I spent them travelling and meeting so many different people, some of whom remain my closest friends to this day. 

• Where did you get the idea of “The Fold” from?

The Fold was 100% inspired by what physics I remembered from high school and my love of science fiction in general. Then I started researching, and I fell headfirst down the rabbit hole of truth that is infinitely stranger and more amazing than any fiction. 

• If you weren’t an author, what would your dream job be?

I’d love to be a walking tour guide in a magical city like Edinburgh, Assisi, or Rome. Spending your days outside, treading cobblestone paths steeped in history and magic, and then communicating that excitement to people from all around the world. Yeah, that would be a pretty good gig. 

• What was your favorite book(s) growing up and why?

There were so many, but my high school favorite was definitely East of Eden by John Steinbeck. I loved his working man’s style and his observations about human nature. His characterizations blew me away, and the themes of his work reflected some of my most closely held beliefs about human dignity and how the choices we make define us. 

• Do you see parts of you in any of the characters in this novel?

Though Rose is purely fictional, I do feel a certain connection to her. She is super introverted and has a small inner circle of people for whom she would do anything. She is devoted to her family and was born with an old soul, which are all things I relate to. 

• What would you say is the main message that you want readers to remember after finishing the book?

There are a few big themes that run throughout the story, but if I had to pick one, I’d say it’s that some of the greatest truths in this beautiful universe must be felt, not seen. 

Thank you so much for having me and Before I Disappear on Sometimes Leelynn Reads!

Thank you so much Danielle Stinson for answering these questions! After reading this book and getting to hear from Danielle herself, I really can’t wait for all of you to read and enjoy this book. I know you’ll love it as much as I will. Stay tuned for my review later on this week!