Kiersten White is the #1 New York Times bestselling, Bram Stoker Award-winning, and critically acclaimed author of many books for readers of all ages, including the And I Darken trilogy, the Sinister Summer series, the Camelot Rising trilogy, Star Wars: Padawan, Hide, Mister Magic, and Lucy Undying. Her books have been published in over twenty territories, and her novel HIDE is currently in development with Universal Television and Peacock.

I had the opportunity to interview Kiersten, which you can read below.

First of all, welcome to Geeks OUT! Could you tell us a little about yourself?

I’m so happy to be here! I’m the author of dozens of books for readers of all ages. I like caffeine and naps and unsurprisingly have a hard time sleeping at night. Between writing and revising an average of four novels a year, parenting three kids, and all that napping, I really only have enough time left to obsess over the enormous tortoise that lives in my backyard. Her name is Kimberly, and she’s perfect.

What can you tell us about your most recent book, The House of Quiet? What was the inspiration for the story?

The House of Quiet is my newest young adult novel, about a world in which impoverished young people can undergo a dangerous procedure granting them psychic abilities…but at great cost. When Birdie’s younger sister Magpie disappears after the procedure, Birdie infiltrates the mysterious House of Quiet—a treatment center for those whose new abilities are too dangerous to live with. But nothing inside is what she expected, and soon she’s fighting not only for her sister’s life, but her own and those of everyone around her.

The inspiration came from two places. The first was a dream in which a young woman had her hand pressed against a windowpane, staring out at swirling, impenetrable fog. The atmosphere was like a held breath. Something was out there, and as long as she kept looking, it wouldn’t reveal itself. But I knew the moment she looked away, everything would be lost. Someone in that house would die.

Who was the girl? Where was that house? And what was coming for them?

While I was mulling those questions, I read an article about extremely wealthy people taking plasma from teenagers as a way of rejuvenating themselves. Though that doesn’t apply directly, it got me thinking sideways about power and powers and how the two aren’t the same thing.

As a writer, what drew you to the art of storytelling, especially young adult fiction and thriller/mystery?

I was always going to be a writer. Ever since I can remember I’ve had a story going in the back of my head. I got my start in young adult fiction in 2010 when the category was blowing up; I’ve since expanded to middle grade and adult, but young adult will always have a special place in my heart. There’s something so exciting about being on the cusp of adulthood and finally having the power to make decisions that will impact your whole life. I also love the firsts of that time period. First love. First heartbreak. The devastation of realizing for the first time that the people in charge have no idea what they’re doing.

I also just love genre in all its forms. I think adding a layer onto reality (whether that’s horror, thriller, mystery, fantasy, or a combination of all the above that makes my books difficult to shelve) lets me dig into actual issues in a heightened way. First love already feels like life or death. How much more so if you were trapped in a deadly house, falling in forbidden love that could cost you everything?

How would you describe your creative process?

It’s a nightmare! Let’s just say that upfront. From the outside, I look incredibly productive and that seems admirable but it comes at such a high cost.

I usually have several ideas on simmer. I research, take notes, daydream of scenes or plot ideas, and squirrel away lines and feelings I want to use. 

Then it’s time to write, either because of deadlines or because suddenly the amorphous idea has gelled into something I know will make a great book. I draft in really concentrated spurts. Most books take me between a week and a month to get a first draft. While I’m drafting, I forget how to drive places I go every day. I miss appointments. I can barely carry on a conversation. By the end, I’m spent. Completely drained emotionally, mentally, and physically. 

I give myself about a week to recover, and then I do a revision based on what I already know needs to change. After that, the book is out of my hands for a bit, at which point I vow to clean out my closet, make those doctor / haircut / home repair appointments, and otherwise get my life in order.

But then I start a new book instead, because when I’m not working my brain eats itself alive.

What are some of your favorite elements of writing? What do you consider some of the most frustrating and/or challenging? 

Honestly, I love almost everything about writing. I love the high of chasing a story through a first draft. I love the satisfaction of revision, taking what I wrote and turning it into what I was trying to write all along. I love the fiddly line editing stage, where I smooth out all the rough edges and read the whole book aloud to myself to make certain every word is what I want it to be.

For me, the most challenging part of every stage is starting. It always feels impossible until I start, even now. 

As a creative, who or what would you say are some of your greatest creative influences and/or sources of inspiration in general?

I feel like a magpie (no relation to Magpie from The House of Quiet, who is in a rather dire situation) in that I’m always collecting shiny things. A line in a song. The way it feels to look onto a starkly beautiful landscape. A glance between characters on a TV show, heavy with everything they aren’t saying. A baffling or startling or infuriating news article. Things that make me happy, things that make me swoon, but especially things that make me angry. Anger is an emotion I was socialized to avoid, but I’ve found it to be tremendously nourishing to my own creativity.

Aside from your work, what are some things you would want readers to know about you?

Nothing. I want you to know nothing about me. I want to be the thing whispering to you from the darkness. I want to be the least important part of any of my stories.

The older I get, the more uncomfortable I am with feeling like I need to perform certain aspects of myself to support my career. This is constantly in conflict with the reality that social media and marketing are a necessary part of what I do.

But really, in the end what I want readers to know about me is something I hope comes across in all my books, but in The House of Quiet especially: I care about you. I want you to know that you’re deserving of love and happiness and safety. And I also just want to tell you a really good story.

What’s a question you haven’t been asked yet but that you wish you were asked (as well as the answer to that question)?

Did you grow up watching X-Men: The Animated Series, and, if so, was it a huge influence on The House of Quiet, and also who is the best member of the X-Men?

Oh wow, I’m so glad you asked! I was obsessed with that series as a kid. I loved the drama, the humor, the anger and the pain and the politics and the flirting. It was the first thing that really made me consider the cost of being extraordinary and who might benefit from or try to take advantage of those with powers. Which naturally led to a lot of what we see in The House of Quiet. I view it as my own gothic dystopic love letter to the X-Men.

And the best one is Rogue, sugar.

What advice might you have to give for aspiring writers out there?

Take care of your bodies. Develop healthy habits, both for working and for coping with stress and rejection. Guard your wrists, especially.

(I really think that if you’re determined to be a writer, you’ll put in the time and work it demands. You don’t need my advice on that front. So, in the meantime, get a supportive seat and don’t screw up your neck forever!)

Are there any other projects you are working on and at liberty to speak about?

I’m working on so many and can’t talk about any of them. But I will say my next adult book, out March 2026, is one of my favorite things I’ve ever written. I combined my love of history, serial killers, forensic detective work, and Dracula and Van Helsing into a dark, swoony, romantic hunt through Europe in the late 1890s. Enemies to lovers! Extremely queer! The 1900 Paris World Fair! Plus, I got to wander through Amsterdam and Paris taking photos and eating pastries and calling it research. Being an author really is the best.

Finally, what books/authors (LGBTQ+ or otherwise) would you recommend to the readers of Geeks OUT? 

I recently read and loved A Dark and Drowning Tide by Allison Saft. Rival folklorists hunting for magic and trying not to admit their feelings for each other!

You can’t go wrong with Heather Walter’s vicious, sapphic fairytale retellings. Start with Malice.

I’ve never stopped thinking about Malinda Lo’s brilliant A Line in the Dark, with the most morally gray protagonist I’ve read.

Aiden Thomas’s Cemetery Boys has all the magic and atmosphere I find myself craving when life gets a little too normal, but with so much sincerity and heart.

And finally, Andrew Joseph White’s (no relation) Hell Followed With Us for if you want some mind-bending dystopian horror that grapples with real world issues.