Author Dani Dassler’s first book P.R. is the story of Andrea, a delinquent high school punk who is forced by her high school to take up track. (That or be expelled!) It is a rousing tale of a clash of cultures as well as a story about a resilient punk who drives herself through her chaotic life.

Dani Dassler hails from some town you’ve definitely never heard of in a stinky, unshaven armpit of Southern California. She is a runner as well as a down-with-the-street punk who is active in the Southern California scene. Her book P.R. brings to mind the writing styles Stephanie Kuehnert and Adrian Tomine, setting her stories in more than a few worlds.

What inspired you to tell the story about Andrea and her journey from perfunctory student to pavement pounder?

Life, I guess. I’ve always been a storyteller. I’ve wanted to write professionally since my earliest memory. And I was only 16 when these characters and this story came to me, even though it took me 14 years to actually commit to writing it.

I definitely pulled some of the content from personal places (I was a teenage punk and I ran track and cross country) but the book is fiction. It isn’t based on me or anybody I knew or have known. It’s Andrea’s story.

But my hope, in telling it, is to give some visibility to the deeper plights of “challenging” kids, so they won’t need to feel so tainted or alone. And you know what else? You can be a punk jock. You can do whatever you want and be whatever you want. You can bet on yourselves.

Also this was my contribution to not only keeping the scene alive and helping the youths find punk rock but advocating for sports as an intervention strategy for at risk youth.
Any sport, really, but, have you tried running? It’s the besssssst!

Did you already have an outline when you started writing this story? Or did you feel it out as you were writing it?

I knew two things when I started this book 14 years ago: who the characters were and how it ended. Everything else kind of just came to me as I wrote it. I was like a woman possessed. Once I decided to write the thing I would get up, write for eight hours or more a day, go to bed and get up to do it again. I had the entire first draft done in three weeks!

I did start working from a timeline as the book progresses past chapter 5, just to keep my dates straight, but overall, there was very little formal strategy that went into creating it.

Tell us about your main character Andrea, the central figure in PR. How did she come to be?

Andrea is an incredibly tough, loyal girl. She came to me when I was teenager and adolescence is never an easy time in life especially when things outside of a kid’s control compound that already challenging stage of development. I like to think Andrea came to be because she is who we all hope we can be in less than ideal circumstances: unapologetically ourselves and undefeatable.

There are some intense scenes in this book, including graphic depictions of domestic violence. What was it like to write out those scenes? Did you find outlining them difficult?

It was very emotionally draining to write the more graphic scenes in my book, I’m not gonna lie. I felt heart sick. Because it’s authentic. Because I know so many kids carry those kinds of burdens in the shadows behind the masks they have to wear every day in public.

Writing the scenes was like living them: stressful and emotional. I didn’t outline the scenes though. I knew what was going to happen and it just…kind of…did. Sometimes when I’m writing I feel less like an author and more like a conduit for the story. It tells itself.

You show an intersection of cultures in PR, when one of your characters convinces some jocks to go to a punk show, which I thought was a big crux of the entire story.

It was! The clashing of the cliques! The best part of that for me was how open minded the runners were. Like Andrea wasn’t expecting that. I don’t think anybody would expect that. But my experience has always been that runners are some of the nicest, most encouraging people you’ll ever meet. You gotta be a little weird to run for fun, right?

Anne Lamott said “Don’t pretend you know more about your characters than they do, because you don’t.” I know sometimes my characters start to take on a life of their own and sometimes do unexpected things. Did Andrea ever do something that surprised you?

I understand completely what you mean! There were times I thought the story was going to go one way and it went another way entirely! Not so much in THIS book, but in others I’ve been working on. I guess I was a little surprised at how comfortable she ended up getting with Crunchy Matt. I never quite expected her to let him in as much as she did. She let her guard down more than I would have liked her to. But these characters really are their own people. They sometimes frustrate us.

I know I reveal a lot about myself through my writing. You cannot read my writing and not think “I bet this guy has done drugs before and has been to a lot of punk shows.” This leads a lot of people to assume my writing is mainly autobiographical. What would you say to someone who said they believed you were just writing your own story with PR?

Yeah, yeah, pretty much everybody, even people who knew me really well and were there were like, OMG did this happen to you? Are you Andrea?!

To these people I will admit only that any really good, relatable and believable story is going to have some solid roots in reality. Authors write what we know, yeah? But P.R. is fiction. There are parts of me in all of my characters, all of the scenes. But I won’t tell you how much or which ones. Because it ISN’T my story. It’s Andrea’s. And her friends.

In reading this book, it’s obvious to me you’ve hung out with musicians and have been to a lot of shows. Musicians showing up late for practice, and getting their friend in for free by making them roadies for example. Sounds familiar! Were you still involved with the scene? Before Covid hit that is?

Ab-so-fucking-lutely!

The last show I got to see was the Horrorpops reunion at the Wiltern in February. Before that it was the Casualties at the Legion, Rancid and Pennywise at the House of Blues, and the Distillers at the Ventura theater. I live for the circle pit. They cancelled my Trio-Bad Religion show in March which was fucking devastating. I’ve been aching for a show ever since. Time for the return of the illegal garage show, I think.

Your writing style is very neorealistic, very plausible. I can see these things actually happening in real life. You provide a lot of detail and really put people in the scene. What kind of feedback have you gotten about your writing style?

Not much yet! P.R. is the first of my writing that I’ve ever really let loose into the world. So far, though, my readers have echoed those sentiments. The characters felt very real to them and they became engaged and invested in the story quickly. I am always open to feedback.

Where are you, or where were you with your running? Were you running races?

I’m struggling with my running at present. I have a nasty tendency to train hard for two seasons and then crap out over the summer. Because it’s hot. And I’m NOT one of those, “let’s get up at five am and run through the desert” bitches. I always pick up again when the weather turns, though and that’s where I am currently—starting all over.

I was running races before the Vid . I love races.

I had one 5k or one show planned for every month of this year, but the last in person race I did was the Jingle Bell Jog in December. Races are such an important motivator for me. I’m really competitive. Virtual races are fine, better than nothing, but just not the same.

Who are some of your favorite writers? Can you recommend some books?

Can I?! I better just do a few.

I wouldn’t say I have favorite authors, really. Maybe Louis Sacher and Shel Silverstein.

I definitely have favorite books, though. I will forever love and endlessly recommend The Crimson Petal and the White by Michael Faber. It is without a doubt, one of the best novels I have ever read. You must read it. Everyone. All of you. Immediately.

I mostly love children’s literature. Most of the books I’ve ever read have been young adult or children’s books and I’d urge everybody not to write them off based on the age recommendations. These books can be very deep! I’ve read and reread all the Anne of Green Gables books by L.M. Montgomery—these are pure and beautiful.

The Harry Potter series, obviously. (You wouldn’t believe how many people will tell me they’ve seen the movies but never read the books. Like…I can’t with them.)

The Outsiders by S.E. Hinton (This movie was actually really good!)

The Perks of Being a Wallflower by Stephen Chbosky for those who need a good dose of emerging angst

PR is available on Amazon.com in paperback and Kindle form!

The sequel to PR: Coming Up Gray!