Your Favourite Wattpad YA Authors

TahliePurvis

Author: TahliePurvis

Books Well-Known For: Bulletproof and The Girl He Left Behind

How long have you been writing? I've always like writing, but didn't start writing actual stories until I was 11. At the age I attempted, very badly, to write novels which were awful and I think I ripped off Twilight and Vampire Academy in one sitting. But we learn from our mistakes!

What do you love about writing? I love creating the characters. The characters over time have becomes my favourite over world-building and plot. Writing can sometimes be a kind of lonely thing when you're sat at your laptop and tapping away on the keyboards to a blank page. But when you have created characters that feel like another part of you, you can't help but get excited to keep going back to them with every chapter you write.

What's your favourite genre to write and why? I've always had issues writing in genres. I kind of forced myself to write contemporary YA which I enjoyed in the beginning but recently I branched out into a sort of historical/fantasy-ish hybrid thing and I've had the most fun writing that kind of genre so far. There's something about writing about a time and place that isn't currently our own that makes it even more fascinating to let your work be a part of.

Do you have any advice to offer aspiring authors? If you're serious, put the work in. There isn't a point where you suddenly know everything and you get to stop working as hard as you did before. Being a writer is constantly learning and growing and adapting. Reading is going to be your biggest benefit, so don't just limit yourself to reading one genre. Branch out and learn and study other books. Through that you can find your own voice easier. But these things always come over time so don't put yourself down because things don't happen right away, or in a year, or in five. Patience is sadly the one thing you need a lot of as a writer, but motivate yourself enough and you can honestly do anything.

Do you plan to have a future involved with writing? Ideally, I would love for some part of my future to be linked to writing. It's something I've loved for years and worked within for years and the idea of it not being a part of my future when its been so integral to my past would be sad. I do hope that I can work towards getting myself opportunities that open up writing in my future.

What project are you currently working on? Currently I'm working on my novel Rani & Raja. It's an older YA, tipping into new adult, book set in a fictionalized ancient India about a king's daughter, Seeta, marrying a lord so the two of them will become the future king and queen (Raja and Rani). But a tyrant king from another kingdom starts to ruin their plans to rule. It's only got Indian characters which has been fun to write and delve into over the last two months.

To conclude the questions today, can you tell us a fun fact about yourself? I have two succubi, one is called Otis and the other is Bob. I had one called Sparta but he's sadly no longer with us. Oh, and I plan to get a cactus and call it Jesus (pronounced Hey-Zeus, not actually Jesus I'm not gonna tell people I need to water Jesus.)