And the Stars Were Burning Brightly by Danielle Jawando is an emotionally rich story about mental health. We follow 15-year-old Nathan, who is looking for answers in the aftermath of his brother Al’s suicide with Al’s former classmate, Megan. Jawando’s writing is gripping and heartbreakingly raw. I interviewed Danielle, who was one of my undergraduate tutors, about her debut novel. We discussed mental health, the need for Northern representation, and the impact of covid on both And the Stars Were Burning Brightly and her latest novel.

Shaniah: The piece inspired by And the Stars Were Burning Brightly performed by Cara Thompson perfectly encompasses the message behind the novel as well as showcasing the settings of Manchester and Wythenshawe. What did you think of the performance and was it a conscious decision to base the novel in Wythenshawe? 

DANIELLE: I thought Cara’s performance was really moving and it made me cry. She read the book, went away, and wrote the poem because my publisher got in contact with her via Block Books. I’d never seen it until the day I met her when she came to Wythenshawe to film it. It’s incredible because it both links to the book but feels like a piece that could stand alone. It really was a conscious choice of mine to set the book in Wythenshawe because as you know, reading YA, there’s hardly any Northern representation. The only other thing set there is Shameless which offers such a negative representation of what it’s like to be from a working-class council estate (although it did start off well). I just thought, I’m from here so why would I not set the book here? It’s important for young people to see themselves in books, not just young children of colour, but also children from working class Northern areas. 

“Don’t feel like your stories don’t matter because you’re living in the North and that stories in the North don’t matter.”

Shaniah: In your author’s note to the novel, you are blisteringly honest about how your school experiences mirror those that Al faces in the novel. Did you set out to write a semi-autobiographical novel and what advice would you give those writing autobiographical fiction?

DANIELLE: I didn’t set out to write in a semi-autobiographical way. I just wanted to write something I felt strongly about and something I thought would make a difference. It just so happened that, in part, my experience was similar. I think I was trying to not write it that way but a lot of myself crept in, as so often does with writing. There are a lot of aspects that are the same, but there’s so many that are different because I thoroughly researched what other young people go through. At the time of writing, there was a girl on GMTV who had been invited into a WhatsApp group called ‘Who Are We Going To Kill Next’ where they were trying to get her to kill herself. There are also so many catfishing stories I read about. In And the Stars Were Burning Brightly, you see the more extreme side with the website and Al, but you also have Megan who has a picture taken of her and posted on Instagram for 24 hours. The damage and stress caused are clear.

It’s not quite autobiographical because I’ve hidden a lot within several layers of fiction. I can advise that if someone wants to write about something that they find painful, the way to do that is through fiction and finding a different way in. I often change the gender of my characters, which automatically gives me a bit of distance, or I set it now. If the subject is tricky, find a way where you’re able to get your message across but still protect yourself as a person and not be too traumatised by what you’re writing. 

Shaniah: You previously worked as a storyline writer for Coronation Street and had several short plays performed in Manchester and London. I enjoyed that we got a dual narrative from Nathan and Megan but also hear Al’s thoughts at the start of some chapters. Has your screenwriting background impacted the way you wrote dialogue and structured the book?

DANIELLE: Definitely. Writing plays really helped me with dialogue because when I write dialogue, I try to imagine how real people speak. I always tried to make it as natural as possible. Working on Coronation Street helped me with the structure of the book. I find YA and TV are quite similar because you must keep your audience’s attention. You can’t describe indefinitely as there’s got to be a certain amount of plot. It’s the same with television because of the high switch-off rate. When wrote the book, I tried to imagine each chapter as I would the end of an episode for Coronation Street. In alternating between Nathan and Megan, I’d think, what’s the best hook to leave this chapter on or where am I building this chapter to? When we were writing Coronation Street, we built towards a dramatic moment. That also happens in And the Stars Were Burning Brightly when Nathan finds out at Al’s funeral. It just made writing the novel so much easier. 

“I find YA and TV are quite similar because you must keep your audience’s attention.”

Shaniah: In an interview with The Bookseller, you say that “it’s such an honour and a privilege to be able to write for teenagers.” The novel deals with mental health, suicide, and bullying. Al’s story is, unfortunately, one too many can relate to. Why did you want to tackle such sensitive topics for a YA audience? 

DANIELLE: That’s a good question. Before I worked at MMU I worked at a FE college for about six years. I strongly about working with young people and always knew that I wanted to write the book for a teenage audience. It just came back to what I had been through and, I think sometimes when I sat down, I thought, you know, I really want to write the book that I wish I’d had at 15. That maybe it could help some young people in a similar position. Alongside that, I was aware that there were a lot of articles going around and lots of teenagers talking about how difficult it is. I know the conversations about mental health are a lot more open than they used to be when I was at school, but I still think there’s so much stigma around opening up about mental health. It’s still seen abnormal so I wanted to normalise the fact that Nathan is obviously struggling with his anger, depression, and panic attacks. There’s nothing abnormal about that. That it is normal. The most important thing you can do is take those first steps towards reaching out to someone and help. When I was at school, I couldn’t see that because school feels like it’ll last a lifetime. I imagine now that social media is so much more prevalent, it feels the same or even worse. That’s why I wanted to write for a YA audience, and it is an honour because I love working with young people. Whenever a person says I read your book and I really liked it, I feel really lucky.

Shaniah: There is an inherent lack of Northern representation in publishing. What advice would you give to aspiring writers, particularly writers based in the North?

DANIELLE: It’s hard because there’s the perception that if you want to be a writer or work in publishing, then you have to move to London. People can’t always afford it, or they might just not want to live there. There are so many amazing organisations here and the North is becoming much more of a hub and I think publishing is realising this. Children’s Books North and New Writing North are incredible. New Writing North do the Northern Writers Awards for Young Writers and for writers who have got works-in-progress. Common Word in Manchester offer workshops and mentoring. There’s also Writing West Midlands and Megaphone who are based in Birmingham. Megaphone was set up for underrepresented writers of children’s and YA fiction and for those not in London as well. 

If you want to get into television, the BBC is in Media City. The most important thing would be making contacts with those organisations and keeping an eye on their websites. Form your own network in the North like your own community of writers. I think that’s important. Don’t feel like your stories don’t matter because you’re living in the North and that stories in the North don’t matter. There’s a perception that if I write things set in Yorkshire, for example, no one will want to read it. It’s refreshing to have stories outside of America or London. 

“The North is becoming much more of a hub and I think publishing is realising this.”

Shaniah: Have you got any favourite authors from the North or any favourite authors in general?

DANIELLE: I really love Liz Flanagan who wrote Eden Summer. We looked at that one in class, didn’t we?

Shaniah: I think so!

DANIELLE: Liz is an incredible YA and middle-grade writer. Hebden Bridge features heavily in Eden Summer. Marie Basting is originally from Liverpool and lives in Manchester. She has a middle grade book called Princess BMX. In terms of YA, oh god, I’ve got so many! I absolutely love everything Patrice Lawrence writes. Alexandra Sheppard who wrote Oh My Gods is an incredible writer. Obviously Malorie Blackman. I really love Christina Hammonds Reed who wrote The Black Kids. Alex Wheatle is an incredible writer, as is Benjamin Dean whose middle-grade novel Me, My Dad and the End of the Rainbow is so joyful. Lara Williams who is from the North and wrote Supper Club (which is actually adult fiction). 

Shaniah: How did covid impact the publication of And the Stars Were Burning Brightly (published in March 2020)? How has impacted the writing of your second novel (forthcoming in March 2022)?

DANIELLE: Luckily, I managed to get my launch in, but it was quite hard because the book came out and I felt like I threw it into a black hole. I think the biggest thing was not being able to go into schools and do events with young people. My second book was initially going to be published in 2021 but it got pushed to 2022. It was just so hard to write. It was so hard to concentrate. I’ve always thought, I’m a homebody and can’t write in a café, but I found it so difficult to be productive and creative. I remember the point when we could go out for a walk once a day for twenty minutes. I think that going outside didn’t feel like a break either because of the fear of covid and everything else that was happening. I really struggled with it, but things are a lot better now and slowly getting back to normal.

Shaniah: Tell us about your new novel.

DANIELLE: When Our Worlds Collided is also set in Manchester. It’s about a 14-year-old boy who gets stabbed and it brings together three teenagers from different walks of life. It looks at police brutality and racism in the force, the media and how it operates in wider society. 

DANIELLE JAWANDO was born in Manchester. Her previous publications and broadcasting credits have included a short story “Paradise 703”, which was published by DeadInk in 2012 (and long-listed for the Finishing Line Press Award in 2011). She has also had several short plays performed at the King’s Arms in Manchester, and at Stratford Circus in London. In 2015, she worked on Coronation Street as a storyline writer and last year, her short story “The Deerstalker” was selected as one of the six finalists for the We Need Diverse Books short story competition. You can find her on Instagram at @danielle_jawando.

SHANIAH SHIELDS is a bookseller and MA Publishing graduate. She is a committee member for Children’s Books North and contributes to The Publishing Post. She dreams of working in children’s publishing to help all children see themselves in books they read. You can find her on Twitter @s_publishpoint and on Instagram @booksandbaking_.

And the Stars Were Burning Brightly by Danielle Jawando
Published by Simon & Schuster Children's on 5 March 2020
Genres: Coming-of-age, Debut, YA, Black British
Pages: 400
Format: Paperback
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An emotionally rich and current story of suicide, mental health, bullying, grief and growing up around social media. When fifteen-year-old Nathan discovers that his older brother Al has taken his own life, his whole world is torn apart.
Al was special.
Al was talented.
Al was full of passion and light…so why did he do it?
Convinced that his brother was in trouble, Nathan begins to retrace his footsteps. And along the way, he meets Megan. Al’s former classmate, who burns with the same fire and hope, who is determined to keep Al’s memory alive. But when Nathan learns the horrifying truth behind his brother’s suicide, one question remains—how do you survive, when you’re growing up in the age of social media?