Kiki Dranias is of Greek-Canadian descent. She is an avid lover of music, fashion, literature, and cool people.
Q&A
Please tell our readers a little about yourself.
My name is Kiki Dranias (the III), and I’m of Greek-Canadian descent. Music, fashion, literature and cool people are my thing. I have a nice life, with my nine year old’s well-being as priority. I’m a pretty wild and open person, with a Rastafarian Buddha-believing heart. Oh and I like to go all the way (and back).
Could you tell us a bit about your book and why it is a must-read?
Blood is blue. is a five-section 33-poem collection. The book was hand-crafted locally in a purple hard-bound cover, with an elegant graphic presentation. This collection is about love and it’s about death and about the celebration of life. The work is personal and it aims to unveil the wilderness of our world, one both beautiful and at times ugly. The poems hail writing as well as a sincere love for personal truth and integrity. The poems delve into images, characters and experiences such as love, nature, death, terrorism, jealousy, eroticism and family. It should be read because recently a Phd specialist called it “an anti-fear kick against the pricks, a pro-creative manifesto.” (!!)
What inspired you to write your book?
My demons and my lust for a life I want to be proud of, are what inspired me to write this Blood is blue.
What was the most challenging aspect of writing your book?
Telling the world I’m a writer was big for me. I struggled with some of the themes, because a lot of the subject matters deal with very truthful and personal experiences. But overall the book is being well- received, so I feel content with it.
Do you have any unique or quirky writing habits?
I prefer writing in the morning with coffee and I don’t like to write in the afternoon. Often I do the fine-polishing to loud music on headphones.
How did you come up with the title for your book?
I wanted the title to make a correlation between the power of ink and to the one royal-line I believe we all come from.
Is there a message you want your readers to take away from your book?
If you’re a writer, I say write. If you are a person who likes to read, I say keep reading, as without you, writers are nothing.
Do you have any advice for the yet-to-be-published writers reading this?
I have a character in my children’s book, whose name is Jimmy, and like Jimmy’s father’s advice to him, I say to you, “the weapon you pick to win this battle, be a sword dipped in love yet sharper than all other.” So when you’re dipping for ink…
What are you working on now?
I’m now working on finishing a children’s book, I’ve started a new poetry collection and I’m hoping to get a poetry writing gig for a cool fashion/lifetsyle mag somewhere. Purple Divine is my brand and with it I created purpledivine.com, an e-commerce site that aims to promote anything poetic. Purple Divine is also a publisher, and coming soon through the site is Dreaming in Autism, an award-winning play by Christine Rodriguez.
What is your preferred method to have readers get in touch with or follow you (i.e., website, personal blog, Facebook page, etc.) and link(s)?
Via purpledivine.com or email, Facebook and Instagram all work fine for me. Not a big twitter fan but I guess I should start… You can order Blood is blue. at www.purpledivine.com and you may reach me at kiki@purpledivine.com
