Author Interview: Editors Rosiee Thor and Vania Stoyanova on Curating the Chaos and Connection of Why on Earth

What happens when aliens invade… and it’s kind of a mess? That’s the irresistible premise behind Why on Earth, a sci-fi YA anthology curated by editors Rosiee Thor and Vania Stoyanova. With a mix of laugh-out-loud moments, emotional depth, and intergalactic mayhem, this collection of stories explores the very human side of first contact, awkwardness, heartbreak, hope, and all.

We caught up with Rosiee and Vania to talk about how they brought this cosmic concept to life, balanced humor with heart, and worked with a stellar lineup of contributors to craft a cohesive yet wildly inventive anthology. From building alien biology to navigating unexpected story arcs, they shared how Why on Earth came together as a celebration of identity, connection, and the strange, beautiful mess of being human (or alien).

Keep reading for behind-the-scenes insights into the editing process, collaborative worldbuilding, and why not every story needed an alien to tell a truly out-of-this-world tale.

Why on Earth

by Vania Stoyanova, Rosiee Thor, Alex Brown, Beth Revis, Emily Lloyd-Jones, Eric Smith, Julian Winters, Laura Pohl, Maya Gittelman, M.K. England, Rebecca Kim Wells, S.J. Whitby
on February 4, 2025
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With stories from NYT bestselling and debut authors, Why on Earth uses an accidental alien invasion to explore love and identity.
What starts as a simple rescue mission for a crew of teen aliens to recover one of their own soon becomes an interstellar encounter no one will forget.
Captain Iona is organizing an impromptu retrieval for her brother, an undercover alien posing as a movie star. But her efforts go awry when a technical malfunction turns her heroic rescue into an unintentional invasion. With tales of disguised extraterrestrials stuck in theme parks, starship engineers hitchhiking to get home, and myth-inspired intergalactic sibling reunions, each story in this multi-author anthology explores the universal desire to be loved and understood, no matter where you come from. After all...aliens are just like us.
"This anthology twinkles with an adventurous spirit, quirky personalities, hope, and a sense of belonging. Stellar."―Kirkus Reviews
“Out of this world!”―Scott Reintgen, New York Times bestselling author of A Door in the Dark
“Epic fun exploring themes of acceptance and the desire to connect, regardless of species, Why on Earth is an absolute blast!”―Alechia Dow, author of The Sound of Stars
“A delightful collection of offbeat, otherworldly stories filled with heartwarming moments and loads of entertaining, imaginative writing.”―Kimberly Jones, New York Times bestselling author of I’m Not Dying with You Tonight
“An all-star lineup of brilliant authors with stories that make you laugh, feel, and cheer.”―Danielle Paige, New York Times bestselling author of Wish of the Wicked
“Whether it’s a story to build the world we’re beaming into, misguided crushes in the middle of an alien invasion, or the most charmingly awkward teen alien this side of the Milky Way, there will be plenty for readers to enjoy in this anthology!”―Preeti Chhibber, author of Payal Mehta’s Romance Revenge Plot

Interview with Rosiee Thor and Vania Stoyanova

With Why on Earth blending alien encounters with themes of love, identity, and belonging, how did you work with the authors to ensure that each story captured the humor and heart of a rescue mission gone wrong, while still exploring deeper, universal themes like connection and self-discovery?

Vania: Because our contributors are brilliant!

Rosiee: To be honest, I think we got really lucky with our lineup of authors on this. We gave them a brief about the anthology premise at the beginning, and we sent them the prologue we wrote together to give them a sense of the tone, but we had no idea they would all send in such heartwarming stories that not only connected in terms of worldbuilding and timeline, but also on much deeper thematic levels!

Vania: We knew roughly what their stories would be when they pitched us ideas but we were so blown away when we got each story. They sent US on a journey.

Rosiee: They really did! And from there, it all came together almost seamlessly.

In your role as editors, how did you maintain a balance between giving the authors creative freedom while ensuring that the tone and style of the anthology remained consistent throughout? Were there any specific methods in keeping the stories aligned with the overall vision of the collection?

Vania: As we mentioned, we kind of knew the direction of each story and how they would fit within the overarching story. I think it also helped that we had put together a small world-building doc that helped outline the basics of the aliens and situation so everyone had the same foundation.

Rosiee: We really tried not to dictate too much from the get-go. We wanted the authors to feel free to invent within their stories and engage with alien tropes they love. We didn’t want to stymie them with hard and fast rules, so we waited until we had the first drafts of stories to determine what the final worldbuilding would be. We needed it to be consistent through all the stories without causing too much upheaval in what our authors had written.

The result was a very cool collaboration of efforts. While we shared our own worldbuilding ideas (we briefed them on the basics of the alien biology and culture), so much of the technology included in the anthology was contributor-led. One contributor introduced the idea that the aliens’ cloaking devices couldn’t get wet, and that had ripple effects through nearly half of the stories. Once we had the first drafts of stories in, we compiled all these ideas into an official worldbuilding and consistency document for all the contributors to share. They all met the challenge with creativity and collaboration in mind, and I think it shows in the final product!

While the stories are interconnected, not all of them feature alien characters, and some focus solely on humans. What was your thought process behind allowing these two stories to focus on human characters, and how do you think their inclusion impacts the overall theme of interstellar cooperation and understanding across different cultures?

Rosiee: We really love the range of the different types of stories that this anthology makes room for! If an alien invasion actually happened, we know not everyone with a story worth telling would be someone who encountered an alien. We thought it would be interesting to see the way a first contact event impacted both those who had encounters and those experiencing the ripple effects of an event like that from afar.

Vania: At the heart of it the anthology is about humanizing the unknown. The word “alien” itself is filled with negative connotations. So it’s kind of poetic that the stories within this anthology without the aliens are still about being able to overcome a tough situation or realization because of the event of the invasion.