Today we’re joined by the author of Wicked Women story ‘Red Ribbons’ – Stephanie Burgis, take it away!
Tell us a little about yourself and what you like to write:
Tell us a little about yourself and what you like to write:
I’m
a total history geek and a former musician. I grew up in East Lansing,
Michigan, and I spent a couple of years living in Vienna, Austria, but
nowadays I live in Wales, surrounded by castles and coffee shops, with
my husband, Patrick Samphire (whom I met at the Clarion West science
fiction & fantasy writing workshop!), our two kids, and our sweet
old border collie mix. I write wildly romantic historical fantasy novels
for adults, fun, funny adventure fantasy novels for kids (my first MG
trilogy was set in Regency England, with balls, highwaymen and magic),
and short stories that leap all over the fantasy and science fiction
field.
How long have you been writing and how did you get started?
I decided when I was seven years old that I wanted to be a professional writer, because writing was the only thing that was more fun than reading – and that’s been my career goal ever since!
Which authors have influenced you and why?
So many! Jane Austen, JRR Tolkien, Georgette Heyer, Robin McKinley, Emma Bull, Judith Tarr, Patricia McKillip, Terry Pratchett, Terri Windling…and that’s only the authors I’d really imprinted on by the end of my teens! I love humour, I love romance, I love banter, I love beautiful writing, I love feeling a true sense of wonder as I read, and I love stories that are full of genuine emotion.
Both history and fiction are replete with women who aim to misbehave – do you have a favourite wicked woman and why?
Just at the moment, Agent Carter – I looooove seeing her on TV!
Your first adult historical fantasy novel – Masks and Shadows – will be coming out next year, what can you tell us about it?
It’s a wildly romantic novel set at the palace of Eszterháza, in Hungary, in the late 18th century, full of dark alchemy, forbidden love, blackmail, and dangerous opera.
How useful do you find making collages and music playlists when writing your books, and do you have a playlist or collage for Masks and Shadows?
How long have you been writing and how did you get started?
I decided when I was seven years old that I wanted to be a professional writer, because writing was the only thing that was more fun than reading – and that’s been my career goal ever since!
Which authors have influenced you and why?
So many! Jane Austen, JRR Tolkien, Georgette Heyer, Robin McKinley, Emma Bull, Judith Tarr, Patricia McKillip, Terry Pratchett, Terri Windling…and that’s only the authors I’d really imprinted on by the end of my teens! I love humour, I love romance, I love banter, I love beautiful writing, I love feeling a true sense of wonder as I read, and I love stories that are full of genuine emotion.
Both history and fiction are replete with women who aim to misbehave – do you have a favourite wicked woman and why?
Just at the moment, Agent Carter – I looooove seeing her on TV!
Your first adult historical fantasy novel – Masks and Shadows – will be coming out next year, what can you tell us about it?
It’s a wildly romantic novel set at the palace of Eszterháza, in Hungary, in the late 18th century, full of dark alchemy, forbidden love, blackmail, and dangerous opera.
How useful do you find making collages and music playlists when writing your books, and do you have a playlist or collage for Masks and Shadows?
I
make collages and music playlists for every book! I used to make them
on paper, but nowadays I tend to make them as Pinterest boards (and you
can see my Pinterest board for Masks & Shadows: https://www.pinterest.com/stephanieburgis/masks-and-shadows/
In Masks and Shadows, a lot of the story revolves around the opera house where Haydn worked as the court composer, so of course I listened to a lot of Haydn’s operas as I wrote, along with the fabulous soundtrack to the movie Farinelli (because the romantic hero in Masks & Shadows is a superstar castrato singer).
Are there any differences in your approach to writing middle grade fiction versus adult fiction, and are there particular things you can or can’t do in each?
My MG novels are shorter, faster-paced and more streamlined than my adult novels. My adult novels are more romantic; my MG novels are funnier. I love writing them both!
What’s the appeal of short fiction for you and do you have any short fiction recommendations?
Going to the Clarion West science fiction & fantasy writing workshop in 2001 taught me to love good short stories. Some of my favorite short story writers are Sarah Monette (her collection The Bone Key is my favorite short story collection ever! ), Zen Cho, and Aliette de Bodard, and I also really adore Kij Johnson’s story ‘At the Mouth of the River of Bees.’
Room 101 time: what one genre cliché would you get rid of?
Over-usage of sexual violence on the page (or screen) as an easy way to establish villainy – and especially sexual violence against women that’s used, narratively, to motivate male characters into action.
What are you up to next?
I have a new MG fantasy series starting in 2017 with The Dragon with a Chocolate Heart. It’ll be published by Bloomsbury in both the US and UK.
Thanks for joining us Stephanie!
Stephanie Burgis grew up in East Lansing, Michigan, but now lives in Wales with her husband and two sons, surrounded by mountains, castles and coffeeshops. Her trilogy of Regency fantasy novels was published in the UK as The Unladylike Adventures of Kat Stephenson and in the US as the Kat, Incorrigible trilogy. Her first historical fantasy novel for adults, Masks and Shadows, will be published by Pyr Books in 2016, and her next MG fantasy series will be published by Bloomsbury Books, beginning with The Dragon with a Chocolate Heart in 2017. Find out more on her website – http://www.stephanieburgis.com/
In Masks and Shadows, a lot of the story revolves around the opera house where Haydn worked as the court composer, so of course I listened to a lot of Haydn’s operas as I wrote, along with the fabulous soundtrack to the movie Farinelli (because the romantic hero in Masks & Shadows is a superstar castrato singer).
Are there any differences in your approach to writing middle grade fiction versus adult fiction, and are there particular things you can or can’t do in each?
My MG novels are shorter, faster-paced and more streamlined than my adult novels. My adult novels are more romantic; my MG novels are funnier. I love writing them both!
What’s the appeal of short fiction for you and do you have any short fiction recommendations?
Going to the Clarion West science fiction & fantasy writing workshop in 2001 taught me to love good short stories. Some of my favorite short story writers are Sarah Monette (her collection The Bone Key is my favorite short story collection ever! ), Zen Cho, and Aliette de Bodard, and I also really adore Kij Johnson’s story ‘At the Mouth of the River of Bees.’
Room 101 time: what one genre cliché would you get rid of?
Over-usage of sexual violence on the page (or screen) as an easy way to establish villainy – and especially sexual violence against women that’s used, narratively, to motivate male characters into action.
What are you up to next?
I have a new MG fantasy series starting in 2017 with The Dragon with a Chocolate Heart. It’ll be published by Bloomsbury in both the US and UK.
Thanks for joining us Stephanie!
Stephanie Burgis grew up in East Lansing, Michigan, but now lives in Wales with her husband and two sons, surrounded by mountains, castles and coffeeshops. Her trilogy of Regency fantasy novels was published in the UK as The Unladylike Adventures of Kat Stephenson and in the US as the Kat, Incorrigible trilogy. Her first historical fantasy novel for adults, Masks and Shadows, will be published by Pyr Books in 2016, and her next MG fantasy series will be published by Bloomsbury Books, beginning with The Dragon with a Chocolate Heart in 2017. Find out more on her website – http://www.stephanieburgis.com/
No comments:
Post a Comment