Fantasy Authors Interview

Meet Vanna Grace

                                 Interviewer: mikaelkrownmk

A fan of Epic Fantasy and the writer of Magic Minister with over one hundred thousand reads, Vanna Grace or Ellowyn graciously shared her thoughts about writing and the Fantasy genre to our team. Here's how her lovely interview went:

Tell us a little about yourself?

I'm a cliche English-majoring college student with a love of coffee and hedgehogs. I started my first novel, Magic's Minister, in 2015 and I finished up my second novel, Magic's Memories, this year. Writing is one of my biggest passions and I've loved being able to share it with the people on here.

What do you think makes a successful book?

A successful book to me is one that has characters that I become invested in. I don't have to like them or all of their actions, but I have to care enough to want to know what happens to them.

How do you come up with names of your characters?

Names can be hard! Since I write fantasy, I try to come up with specific naming conventions for some of my different kingdoms. For instance, in Abreyla where most of my books are set, it's common to find names that use the letter "y" and for female names to end in the letter "a". Other than that, I usually just say sound combinations out loud until I find one that sounds like it would fit the character. First names aren't that difficult for me but last names give me sooo much trouble.

Describe your perfect writing area?

For my writing work area, I have a "desk" made out of a low shelf inside my closet (yes, really) that I've converted into a writing space. I have little fantasy art pieces and quote art cards stuck to the wall in front of me. There's also a bag of chocolate nearby. I like this because I can isolate myself and focus but also step out of the closet and pace around my room when I need to think. I think that's what makes up any good writing space for me. A place to focus and the space to brainstorm.

Define Fantasy in your own words?

Personally, I would say that Fantasy is a genre of fiction focused on fantastical places, people, and powers. It varies WIDELY throughout different subgenres but often draws inspiration from old stories of creatures and legends.

What's your favorite fantasy subgenre to write or read?

My favorite sub genre is probably fantasy-romance, but I'm hesitant to say that because I enjoy a very specific kind of romance in my fantasy stories that are a bit outside of what people may think of when they hear the name. With a few exceptions, I don't really care for the alpha-hot-guy trope and a lot of the fantasy romances that I've seen lean that direction. I definitely write what I like to read, so I suppose you could say that I like character-focused fantasy stories with cute romances. I'm a sucker for magic nerds (see: my fantasy duology's male lead, Sedgewick). I also like settings with interesting magic systems.

What's your favorite fantasy book on wattpad?

I don't know that I have a favorite fantasy book on Wattpad. Far too hard a choice and some of the ones that I really loved have actually gone on to be published and are no longer on the app. I could probably name a few that I've really enjoyed though. @Marc_Morrell 's Silver Blades series is a really fun swashbuckler style fantasy. I've also enjoyed reading @Tweeter109 's novel The Third Neriphé about a young soldier's descent into darkness. I also have to shout out my internet wifey @mahana258 . She has several fantasy books up and all of them are worth a read.

Hobbies?

Besides writing, some of my other hobbies are reading, playing Dungeons and Dragons (all of the fun of character-making, none of the plotting struggles!), taking power naps, and chatting with my fellow writers!

Most used app?

Most used writing app or app in general? For my writing, I tend to use Scrivener for outlining and writing my novels. When I'm working on a short or experimenting with a potential new project then I use either Evernote. I also use Google Docs for sharing a piece with some of my fellow writer friends when I'm not ready to put it up on Wattpad. While not a writing app, I'm also on Discord quite a bit. There's a lot of good groups made up of Wattpadders on there and I've made some of my best friends that way.

A city or country you'd like to visit?

I'd love to visit Venice someday. One of the cities in Magic's Minister is inspired by it and its canals, so I'd love to see it in person.

How do you relax after a long day?

To relax, I'll often hop on Discord and chat with some of my writer friends. Sometimes I'll just lay back a daydream for a while. It's good to have that time where your just letting your imagination be free without trying to write it all down coherently.

Thanksgiving or Christmas?

Christmas! I love the meaning, the festivities, the traditions. No offense, Thanksgiving, but what did you expect...

Winter or summer?

The favorite season question is one I ask myself every year... I hate being cold but I also love wearing sweaters and dislike bugs so there's really not perfect answer. Maybe summer if nothing is buzzing around me.

Kittens or Puppies?

Kittens over puppies, please. If we're just looking at cute animal photos though, I'd rather see some hedgehogs.

What would you like to tell up-and-coming writers out there?

My advice to writers just starting out would be this:

1. Make friends who write and who care about your writing. You won't believe how big a difference it can make to have a small group of people cheering for you (and if you're a good friend, who you cheer for as well). I don't know that I would have finished my two novels on here without the support my friends gave me when I was struggling.

2. Read. Read inside and outside of your genre. Read award-winners and popular favorites. Read niche books just to your taste. Read *well-written* books. You'll improve your grammar, vocabulary, and story craft just by reading. I cannot underestimate how important this is.

3. Finish. Finish, finish, finish. Don't fall into the trap of starting a new book every time the one you're working on gets difficult. Beginnings are intoxicating. I adore writing beginnings, but that new book excitement will putter out and then you'll be left with five half-finished projects. If you really need a break from your main project then I like to write quick, fun shorts with my characters.

4. This is a slightly looser piece of advice but in general, don't edit or rewrite your book until your first draft is completely done. It's very easy to get discouraged about your writing and want to go back and "fix" all the problems you see with the first twenty chapters before writing the next thirty. Sometimes, very rarely, this might be necessary if you've written yourself into a corner or if you've decided to make sweeping, gigantic changes to the whole concept of the book, but in general you'll just get sucked into "editing" your beginning over and over again and never finish the actual book.

5. My final piece of advice is to be gentle with yourself. We writers can be so harsh about our works. Find something about yours that you genuinely love and cling to it. All negativity is just as bad as having too much of an ego.

Thank you for your time spent on this interview Ellowyne.