Author 20 Questions Special Edition
With the release of the Hallow 13 Anthology upcoming, all five authors, KJ Bradford (KJB), Libby James (LJ), TJ Lundin (TJL), Twyla Menezes (TM), Sunny J Rowley (SR) were happy to play a Special Edition of Author 20 Questions.
1) Describe the your anthology piece in 10 words or less for people just learning about it.
KJB: Romantic fever dream of cursed lovers.
LJ: A picturesque UK village is perfect but why and how?
TJL: Flapper ghost haunting a skeptic of the paranormal.
TM: Everything isn’t what it seems.
SR: Red Riding Hood meets Scottish Folklore Monsters.
2) Do you play music while you write — and, if so, what’s your favourite?
TJL: I alternate between movie/video game scores or classical strings music.
3) What would you say to an author who wanted to design their own cover?
KJB: I made my own cover so I am certainly not against it but I would say only do it if you have the time to create something you’ll be proud of. I spent 12+ hours over the course of two days on the design alone and many more hours tweaking it to make sure the dimensions and colours were perfect. Your cover is very important and can make or break whether or not someone picks up your book. If you have the time and dedication to make one yourself, totally go for it! If not, look for budget friendly options. There are many lower priced options that are quality out there, you just have to search.
4) How do you find time to write?
SR: It’s hard. I work full time, have a spouse, a two year old and other family and friends. My writing time is after my son goes to bed, and before I have to sleep for work the next day. If I am lucky, that is a full hour and a half to two hours. I just have to make that count.
5) If you could offer one piece of advice to aspiring writers, what would it be?
TM: Never give up. Your audience will come eventually; don’t be afraid to put yourself out there.
6) What are your favourite blogs or websites for writers?
LJ: I don’t really read blogs anymore and to be honest I find the best thing for writers, especially self published writers, is social media. I have gained a whole load of new readers by advertising my book and got interest in it by posting daily.
7) What inspired your story ideas and characters in your anthology piece?
KJB: Alice in Wonderland but make it cursed and trippy.
LJ: The film Hot Fuzz actually inspired my anthology piece. It is about a town that wants to be the best. So I took this idea and made it a lot darker.
TJL: I wanted to write something cute and spooky and kept coming up with this grumpy professor character who is a huge skeptic of the paranormal, but lives in Salem where many believe. He’s not afraid to buy the haunted house in town, and it grew from there.
TM: I love haunted houses and slashers, so I smashed them together. I also love going to haunted houses. I experienced a doll haunted house and thought it would be fun to recreate it in my story.
SR: Scotland. I love living here, and really wanted to use it in a setting. The story had several different versions, but was always based in Scottish Folklore.
8) What books helped you the most when you were writing your (first) book?
LJ: A lot of Wiccan and pagan books that I already own as well as my own book of shadows. If I am being honest I watched shows more than I read books, shows such as Most Haunted gave me ideas and inspiration. But I knew I would always go into the horror paranormal genre because I read books by Paul Trembley and Stephen King.
9) Does anyone in your family read your books?
TM: No one in my family reads BUT me. About five or six of my family members tell me they plan to read my book, so we shall see if they do.
10) What was the most unexpected challenge you encountered while writing a book?
SR: Getting stuck on a scene, or worse a word, and having your mind hit the brakes on anything until you figure it out. There are some days when you can’t jump over a snag and then come back.
11) When you’re writing an emotional or difficult scene, how do you set the mood?
TJL: Music always speaks to my soul. I like to choose a song that I feel fits the scene and just listen to it on a loop several times before I start writing. Then I just dive in. What I write may be raw and in the moment at first, but I learn to embrace that.
12) What was the best money you ever spent as a writer?
KJB: The money I paid to get my debut edited, it was a lot and every penny was worth it. My debut wouldn’t have been the same without Ciara’s (editor) expertise.
13) Did you have to research for your anthology piece? If so what?
KJB: I did a bit of research on fairy lore, brushed up on the plot of Alice in Wonderland, and read lot’s of Aesop's fables. The kind of research I did for this was more for vibes rather than the authenticity of anything.
LJ: No, I didn’t need to research anything.
TJL: I did read up on how seances are typically performed. It involved reading from several websites and talking to some friends who use crystals
TM: I did! I didn't know what some of the names were called at the fairs! I couldn’t for the life of me think them up.
SR: Yes. I did so much research on Scottish Monsters. But it was so fun to read about
14) What do the words “writer’s block” mean to you?
TM: When you lose creative motivation in your writing, and your process slows down.
15) Did you ever consider writing under a pseudonym?
KJB: I go by my initials rather than my first name, that’s kind of a pseudonym, right?
16) Describe your ideal home library.
LJ: My ideal home library would be a whole room with spooky decor and comfy seats. I would have a fireplace and plants to bring the outside, inside. That would be the dream.
17) If you could spend a day with another popular author, whom would you choose?
TJL: Harley Laroux. She seems so fun to hang out with and I’d love to learn more about her.
18) How long have you been writing or when did you start?
SR: So long, around 26 years. I loved writing stories as a kid in English class. And I continued it all the way through to university. I stopped after I graduated, but mainly do to having to adult and general life.
19) What is your favourite line from your anthology piece?
KJB: “I can’t see anything but the fucking leaves falling around me and it feels like a piece of my soul is being ripped out and just when I think I might die from the pain,” his mossy green eyes slide to her oak-brown gaze, “I wake up.”
LJ: “The black eyed children? The ones the village people are scared of. Listen to them, my child. They are not the ones you should be afraid of.”
TJL: “She may one hundred percent be a ghost but this other side—this seductress side—was pure siren as she continued to lure my soul across the bounds of existence.”
TM: “This was supposed to be a haunted house, not a crime scene.”
SR: “I can smell it in you. I smell your blood, the blood of the old gods. I smell your power, the power of the old gods. You smell of the sun and the moon and all the stars.”
20) What other projects are you currently working on?
KJB: Too many. I have my fox story, which is set in the same world as the anthology, it is supposed to be my epic fairytale romance. My wolfy project with three POVs that I add to whenever the spark hits me. My big dragon story, a dual POV of a 300 year old Elf and the retired assassin thats supposed to kill her. My little dragon story, which is set in the same world as my debut, and is a coming of rage story that just hit me and demanded to be written.
LJ: My novel White Tree Coven book one, two and three. One is coming out soon, book two is waiting for betas, and I'm working on book three. Also doing some more anthologies which are out of my comfort zone but I am enjoying trying to write them.
TJL: Will be publishing a spicy, treasure hunting adventure for a kickstarter campaign in spring of 2025, and also drafting a villain novella for my current portal fantasy series.
TM: Too many! Book two of A Maple Ridge Duet, a slasher short story, and I’m outlining some novellas for TSG.
SR: Currently working on my October Short Story challenge. I am also editing my novel Daughter of the Eyolas Tree (Project Seer). As well I am currently writing Project Mystery, and I plan to start Project Sin and Project Seer B2 before the end of the year.
Hallow 13 Anthology releases on Sunday, 13 October, and will be available on Amazon. You are able to learn more about the above authors and their works on their websites below.