Cynthia Darwin lives in Galveston, Texas with her husband Roger Sturgell and assorted animals. She is a mother and grandparent. Her professional career includes broadcast journalism, public relations and real estate. She holds a degree in Communications and a Master of Business Administration from The University of Texas at Austin. Cynthia’s athletic endeavors include sailboat racing, triathlon and running. She does not skate.
Q & A WITH THE AUTHOR
What else have you written?
Writing has always been part of my professional career, including a handbook on working with the opposite sex in the workplace. “Darla” is the first novel I felt comfortable letting people read. There are others on the shelf.
If you don’t skate, what prompted you to write a novel about roller derby?
Honestly, the title of this book just popped into my head and I started laughing. Then I started writing. To write about roller derby, about which I knew nothing, I relied heavily on the Texas Rollergirls website from Austin, www.texasrollergirls.org, for technical information and the Houston Roller Derby clubs, www.houstonrollerderby.com, for personalities and fact checking. But as I wrote, I began to appreciate the sport and the women who participate. They come from all careers, incomes, races and ages, and from clubs across the world. Their stories show roller derby is truly an analogy for life, which is what the Trilogy is all about.
Are you Darla? Are the people and experiences in the book a part of your life?
No, I am just Cynthia. Like all authors, though, my life experiences and the people around me influenced the Darla stories.
As a former athlete/competitor and mother of gifted athletic children, I feel the glory of victory and the agony of defeat along with Darla in Book One. Reggie McIntyre, the pushy reporter in Book Three, is a reflection of my years in journalism and broadcasting, but more of a cross between modern TV reporters Geraldo Rivera and Anderson Cooper.
In Book Two, Charlie’s character came from my very brief, summer ballet instruction at the North Carolina School of Performing Arts, where I found quickly I was a better dancer than I was an actress. Devin came along to provide a different kind of love story than one you might expect. Because we all love a love story.
But Darla is her own person as she skates through each of the Books. I enjoyed getting to know her as much as I hope you do when you read the book. There were mornings I would wake up to a mental tap on the shoulder and Darla asking, “Are you going to finish it today? I have things to say and places to be!” She wrote her own character.
What do you want readers to take away from the Trilogy?
Darla can be read on whatever level suits the reader. It is a quick and fast-paced story with humor and twists, and can be finished on an airplane ride. Or, read it more slowly for the nuances. It is in the quiet spaces and the empty blanks between the words that Darla’s story and message take form for other readers. For those readers, I hope they will find their own version of the twinkle lights and share the experience.
We have to ask. Do you hear voices and see lights like Darla does?
Much of Darla’s story is a parable. Maybe some people hear voices. I don’t. But those pieces of guidance may also be inspiration, hunches, manifestations or strong guesses. Some form of the twinkle lights may be visible for some, or others may have just an intuitive knowing of which path to follow. Or perhaps there is guidance just beyond our grasp of understanding. Some people call that God’s message, a higher spirit of themselves, or maybe ten thousand angels watching over. That’s the beauty of Darla’s story. You take what you want from it. And see or hear whatever you see and hear.
What is next for Darla?
I don’t know. She is pretty unpredictable. For the moment there is no sequel, but maybe there are more stories in the series. Or maybe she will show up on TV or stage. I’d like to see that.
Don’t see your question here? Send your question to Cynthia.
