Veronica Roth will be at YallWest as Keynote Speaker this weekend
Veronica Roth has certainly made a name for herself on mainstream level, but that’s not preventing her from attending a young adult book festival where she’ll get to interact with many other YA authors and many more YA fans. Yallwest teen abassador Emma Blum sat down with Veronica to discuss the Divergent series and her love of writing.
If you were to have lunch with any of your characters, which would you choose? If you were to have lunch with any character, whether it be from a book, a film, or a television program, which would you choose?
I would probably have lunch with Uriah. He just seems like a delight. He also enjoys food to a higher degree than most of the others. As for any character, I would currently have to say Ron Swanson from Parks and Recreation. We would probably both eat bacon, and read in order to avoid superfluous conversation.
One of the main themes in the Divergent series is sacrifice. Throughout the series, Tris struggles with the idea of sacrifice and what it means to her. What does sacrifice mean to you?
That’s a big question! I think sacrifice is incredibly powerful, but not always good. If it is offered freely, and for the sake of love, it can change your life (and other people’s lives). If it’s done out of self-loathing or guilt, it can be harmful and damaging. My understanding of it is constantly evolving, but it’s something I’m always mulling over, which is why it’s such a central theme of the Divergent books.
READ MORE: Shailene Woodley on Tris and Four relationship
Why do you love to write and is your favorite part about writing?
I love immersing myself in other worlds and stories, and feeling them challenge me. (This is the same reason I love reading!) My favorite part of the writing process, though, is revising. It’s a kind of exquisite pain to rip your draft to shreds, and hugely satisfying to put it back together better than it was before. Watching a draft grow—and with it, you and your writing—is wonderful.
If you lived in the Divergent world, what would you do if you awoke to a simulation taking place to discover that you are Divergent? Would you travel to Amity to seek refuge, hide with the Factionless, break into Erudite headquarters, fight the Dauntless, etc.?
Honestly, I’m pretty sure that I would be factionless in the Divergent world, so I would probably defect from my faction and assist with the factionless revolution in an administrative capacity. I’m good with spreadsheets, and bad with anything requiring physical adeptness.
SEE MORE: Insurgent cast display their accent talent
Tris Prior is an complex character that has fascinated many readers. What is your opinion on Tris? What do you like and dislike about her; what do you think makes her such a beloved character?
Well, thank you, first of all! I love Tris; she’s by far my favorite character in the series. I like how she trusts her gut, and I admire her selflessness. I dislike her impulsiveness and how harshly she assesses other people. (Actually, I like those things, too, on a character-level—but I wouldn’t like them in a friend, let’s say.)
Read the rest of the interview on Tumblr.
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