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A Conversation with Nikki Haase, a Dystopian Sci-Fi Author
Nikki Haase is a self-published author who uses the alphabet to help readers hallucinate into other worlds, leaving this one behind if only for a moment. Besides writing, Nikki enjoys reading, dyeing her hair unnatural colors, and procrastinating.
Nikki Haase (pronounced Ha-Sea) is a dystopian sci-fi author who started writing when she was just a child, having written her first novel-length story at the age of thirteen or so.
She has had a total of five books published (one being a contemporary new adult) but four have been pulled from the shelves due to a publishing company picking them up!
They will have re-release dates announced soon! In the little bit of spare time she has, Nikki can be found playing with her two dogs, a pom-chi named Kira, and a beagle mix named Ares. Or, you’ll catch her lying in her hammock outside on a nice day with her nose in a book.
Nikki has her associate’s degree in English Literature and Language Arts and is currently enrolled at SNHU earning her Bachelor’s in Creative Writing with a Minor in Marketing. “It warmed my shattered spirits and wrapped its warmth around me like a favorite childhood blanket. I almost wanted to stay within the walls of smoke and dark red and orange flames, forever encased in its mysterious comforts”Nikki Haase
Let’s get started with a quick rapid fire.
Q1.If you could be transformed into one animal, which one would you choose?
Octopus!
Q2. Finish the phrase “the way to my heart is…”
Surprise me with puppies to play with! Or tacos 🙂
Q3. Are you more of an introvert or an extrovert?
Definitely an introvert!
Q4. Do you watch shows one episode at a time or binge whole seasons?
I prefer bingeing the whole season when I can.
Q5. Would you rather travel to the past or to the future?
Ohh…uh…past. Yeah, past. Definitely past.
Q6. What is your last Google search?
“Starbucks Social Media Digital Marketing Analysis” – I’m in college, or I love Starbucks.
Q7. What object do you misplace or lose the most?
Crystals that I stick into my nearly nonexistent pockets and my phone.
Q8. What is the kindest thing someone ever did for you?
My boyfriend made me tacos after really crappy day at work (it’s like he knows me something).
Q9. If given the chance to start your life over, would you take it?
Nope.
Q10. What is the best present you have ever received?
Oh! My stepdad built me a bookshelf!
Q11. Describe your style in one word.
Wannabegothbuttoolazytoputanyrealeffortintoitmostdays or casual.
Q12. If you were to devote the rest of your life to philanthropy, what cause would you choose?
World Hunger, I’ve worked in fast food before and the amount of fresh food that gets thrown away is disgusting (I’m looking at you Dunkin Donuts).
It’s time for a more detailed conversation, Nikki.
You’ve answered our rapid fire brilliantly, Nikki. Now, it’s time for our readers to know more about the person behind the book.
Q. There’s a grand stage surrounded by fifty thousand people listening to authors introducing themselves. They are bored and restless of listening to introductions all day. It’s your turn. How would you introduce yourself?
Ah, starting off easy I see. No really, this one’s tough. I think I would ask the crowd a question first about if they enjoyed a certain book or a certain genre. Ask someone in the crowd their name and what their favorite book is. And then go on to explain who I am and what I do.
Q. Well, that will keep you in our thoughts. So, what books did you grow up reading?
Hahaha! Oh, lots! Young adult, fantasy, sci-fi, contemporary fiction, non-fiction. My Nana is someone who will hand me a book and go “I hated it, read it” and my dad’s TBR list is bigger than mine! He ended up building himself a much bigger bookshelf lol. Needless to say, I just grew up around and was exposed to all sorts of books.
Q. Interesting. Has writing and publishing a book changed the way you see yourself?
In a way, yeah. I’ve been writing for as long as I can remember. I had a lot of rough patches in my past, so publishing—especially getting picked up by a publishing company—never really crossed my mind. It showed me that I’m capable of much more than I realize.
Q. Would you share something about yourself that your readers don’t know (yet)?
I think agreeing with certain rumors (not all, of course, some you have to squash) about yourself is hilarious and makes the actual rumor lose its power. Let me explain. A few years ago, I broke my arm longboarding. Naturally, people at work were curious, so I told them what happened. Due to whisper down the lane that transformed into me getting hit by a car and eventually ended with me breaking my arm cliff-diving. I said “Yup, that’s how it happened” to every single one
Q. Now comes the most anticipated question that every author must answer. How do you process and deal with negative book reviews?
Honestly, now my answer might be a bit boring, they just don’t bother me. Yeah, they suck, but I’m not going to let them stop me from writing. My books aren’t going to be for everyone, and that’s okay. All in all, I laugh it off.
Q. What comes first for you — the plot or the characters — and why?
Characters. Definitely the characters. I’m mostly a pantser. When I initially sit down to write, I don’t know where the story is going. I just roll with it until the plot reveals itself.
Q. How do you develop your plot and characters?
I barely know the plot myself when I first start writing the draft. Once I get the hang of it though, I’ll create bullet points of the general direction I want to story to go in. Most of my characters have a few attributes of people I know in real life or have small attributes of myself.
Q. What does literary success look like to you?
If just one person buys my books and falls in love with the characters, or tells me it changed their life, I’m happy. And that has happened. Next step is turning this into a full-time career!
Q. Let’s talk about your book. Tell us about it. No major spoilers.
Ok so! Experiment X: Sacrifice, which will be re-released on a date that I cannot say just yet 😉 is about a young woman, Karen Turner, who discovers that she is part of a secret government experiment to create super soldiers. Through a wave of tragedy and a newfound family of escaped “Subjects”, Karen learns that she is able to manipulate and conjure fire. With the help of her new superpowered friends, she must burn down the very facility that created her.
I’ve been told it’s like Hunger Games meets Avatar the Last Airbender. 
Q. What part of the book did you have the hardest time writing?
This scene with a pretty gruesome death. I can’t say much, or I’ll give it away, but I describe how his flesh is melted into the carpet. Or any scene that involves verbal abuse from Dante.
Q. If you could meet your characters, what would you say to them?
“Listen, I am so sorry for everything you’ve been through. But please, for the love of the gods, do not kill me” lol
Q. What is your writing process like? Are you more of a plotter or a pantser?
Definitely a pantser! I try to lie to myself and say, “I’ll plot this one!” and then less than halfway through it goes off the rails and I give up. So, I guess I’m technically a plantser? I think that’s what it’s called. “Black, purple, and dark blue colors painted the swollen skin of his cracked and bleeding perfections. His drunken monster had finally gotten what it deserved most. Utter fucking pain. Physical destruction”Nikki Haase
Q. Let’s talk about the process of writing. When you’re writing an emotional or difficult scene, how do you set the mood?
Music! I put some headphones in, find music that suits the scene I’m writing, crank them up as high as I can stand them, and shut the world out. I don’t know, it almost fully transports me into the world that I’m creating. I’m usually able to see the scene play out like a movie in my head with the music.
Q. What has helped or hindered you most when writing a book?
What has helped is other people encouraging me along the way. Also, to be fair, people that said I wouldn’t make it for whatever reason have helped too in their own way—I like proving people wrong. A hindrance would be the pesky 9-5 I have haha.
Q. It’s been fun. Now, before we wrap this up, do you have any suggestions to help me become a better writer? If so, what are they?
A first draft is meant to be bad. Let it be bad. Just write it. You can fix it later. Don’t edit while you write. And, when you do edit, read the manuscript backward (I do the last page to the first page) because you’ll catch more mistakes. Oh! Also, some advice I got that I hate but it works: write your first draft in comic sans. I don’t know why it works, but it does. Just, trust me on this one.
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