Bright Burning Stars Blog Tour: Q&A with A. K. Small!

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**This post is sponsored by Algnoquin for the release of Bright Burning Stars by A. K. Small**

 I was a ballet dancer for 15 years, so it is no surprise that I loved A. K. Small's debut novel, Bright Burning Stars, about two ballet dancers, Marine and Kate, at a prestigious ballet academy in Paris. BBS explores the dark side of the ballet world, and the pressures that come along with it. A. K. Small tackles issues such as eating disorders, mental illness, and body shaming in such a profoundly touching way. Although it is a book best suited for older teens/YA readers, I highly, highly recommend Bright Burning Stars! I gave it 5/5 stars, and I can't wait to see what A. K. Small does next!

 A. K. Small, also known as Angela, so kindly agreed to do a Q&A with me about books and ballet!

 As a former ballet dancer, how many of your own experiences went into crafting Kate and Marine’s story?

 I think quite a few. It was a combination of watching a lot of dance while I drafted BBS, but in the end, I relied mostly on the memory of my own experience. There is nothing quite like holding an arabesque or landing a perfect pirouette. Once you have done it, you can close your eyes and relive it. I was never talented enough to dance at the Palais Garnier, but I performed on various stages and I tried to transfer my own performances onto the page.

Did you intend to shine a light on some of the problematic elements of the professional ballet world, such as eating disorders and body shaming?

I did, but I will say that I picked ballet as my “sports arena” because I spent years in the studio honing that craft, yet I could have chosen gymnastics or track or tennis. Eating disorders and body shaming happens everywhere and shining a light on those issues was crucial to me in the hopes that teens would know to seek help and recognize symptoms.

What are your favorite ballets, both classical and modern? Personally, I’ve always loved the Rubies variation in Jewels!

Aw, love that question! Me too, Rubies! What a fantastic piece. I love Swan Lake, especially Odile’s variation. I love a Midsummer Night’s Dream, a Suite of Dance because I love Bach. I love Adam’s Violin Concerto and Alice in Wonderland. I love Twyla Tharp and Martha Graham’s works. The older I get the more I love the fusing of classical and more modern and edgy work. I’m thinking of Marie-Agnès Gillot (a principal dancer at the Paris Opera) performing a choreography by someone like Carolyn Carlson. You need the classical technique, but you get the freedom of experimenting. Or anything by Béjart. I also like what Benjamin Millepied does. And a little secret: the Benjamin in BBS was named after Millepied. ☺

[Quick note from Isabella: Benjamin Millepied did the choreography for the film Black Swan, which is where he met his now-wife Natalie Portman!]

You definitely hit the gold mine for beautiful covers! How much input did you have on the cover design?

What a good question! I had some. It was true team work. Algonquin’s incredible art director and my beloved editor found Ruben Ireland, the artist. I immediately fell for his work—it’s incredible—and as we were looking at first drafts of the cover, I’m the one who begged for a black background because that’s Ruben’s signature and I felt it played well with older teens. I also made sure her foot was arched. But the rest is Ruben—her fierce gaze especially—and my Algonquin team. They found the movement in the ribbon and the sparkles. Not to mention the tutu!

XOXO,

Isabella

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