A Peek Beneath the Surface: Author Interview

Today’s post is Part Three of the Rise of the Grigori Beneath-the-Surface series… but it’s mostly about me. Thank you to Cherie Colyer of Write. Read. Live. for hosting the original interview.

Other posts in this series:

Part One: Introducing the Rise of the Grigori Series

Part Two: Where Mythology & Imagination Meet: Creating a Real-World Mermaid Fantasy

On to the interview!

Swimming mermaid image by Nsey Benajah, @nseylubangi, courtesy of Unsplash.

What inspired you to write this book?

The initial idea for the world of the undines (UN-deens) came while watching the Australian young adult mermaid show H2O: Just Add Water in 2010. What happened to all the mermen? I wondered. Why must mermaids in most tales find human husbands or drag sailors beneath the waves?

My brain wouldn’t leave that alone, and, for the first time ever, I had an idea for a fiction novel. The only problem was that I didn’t know how to write fiction! This was the idea that inspired me to learn how.

Over the next seven years, I did a ton of research about mermaids, matriarchal societies, ancient myths, the Atlantic Slave Trade, and more, while also taking a course about novel writing and publishing my first two novels (both contemporary). After all the practice and research, I finally had the groundwork in place to tackle this epic fantasy about an all-female mermaid culture that had to capture human men to survive. It would be another two years before I published it.

Two years later in November 2021, I published the next volume, The Sphinx’s Heart. I’m currently taking a short break to write some sweet small-town romance before tackling book three.

Tell us three things we’d find if we looked under your heroine’s bed?

Not much, not even dust bunnies. My heroine, Calandra, is a practical, utilitarian sort who likes working with her hands, but she was also raised in a palace. So the servants make sure her room stays spic and span at all times. She has a stone working hobby, though, so I bet she has some interesting crystals and rocks she’s found stashed in the back of her wardrobe, which she doesn’t bother filling with something as frivolous as fancy clothes. And a few data stones, which is her culture’s equivalent of books—she loves to read and learn.

Tell us about a book that stayed with you long after you finished reading it.

My dad gave me the first three books from the Chronicles of Narnia for my ninth birthday, which was probably the beginning of my love affair with fantasy novels. I bought the rest of the series myself, and have spent the rest of my life looking for books that revive the wonder and magic I felt reading those for the first (or second, or third) time.

Another was The Island of the Blue Dolphins by Scott O’Dell. I read that many times. I was enamoured with the bravery and determination of the female protagonist—she was my Moana. I especially loved that it was based on a true story.

These two novels (and many others) contributed to my lifelong love of both history and fantasy, and to my belief that being a girl didn’t have to be a limitation.

Guilty pleasure… books you can’t get enough of?

Right now, it’s paranormal women’s fiction. I got hooked by Lindsay Buroker’s A Witch in Wolf Wood series, in which I’m all caught up [and which has since been concluded], and I just recently started trying other authors in this genre. Wit, witches, and wolf shifters—I’m hooked.

What do you do when you’re not writing?

Besides read? Lol. My “day job” is as a developmental editor and copy writer, so I get to play with stories and help other writers all the time, which I love. I’m also a mom of three teenage boys and a wife to my Prince Charming. We live a quiet life on an acreage in northern Alberta, Canada in a really amazing community. Oh, and I design knitwear patterns in my spare time—my “hobby business.”

What makes you laugh out loud?

Practically everything. Seriously, I’ve been known for my quick, loud, and distinctive laugh my whole life. I see the humour in almost everything, even very serious moments. However, I’m also deeply affected by other people’s pain, so it’s not like I laugh when I shouldn’t—most of the time.

My husband and kids know how to tickle my funny bone best. But I’m also particularly fond of word play, clean stand-up comedy, and sitcoms like Brooklyn Nine-Nine and The IT Crowd. And did I mention the witty paranormal women’s fiction I’ve been reading lately?

Is there anything specific you want to tell readers?

The standalone prequel for the Rise of the Grigori series is available as a free digital download when you sign up for my newsletter. The Waterboy is a novella that tells the origin story of Calandra’s brother, Zale, the male protagonist of the series—the first undine male born in three thousand years. His mother raised him in England, away from her people, and when he discovers his powers, bad things happen that set him on the path of his destiny. You can grab the free eBook by signing up here. It’s also available to purchase on audiobook at that link or on your favourite audiobook platform.

Covers for The Undine’s Tear, The Waterboy, and The Sphinx’s Heart in front of a blue image of the lower side of water’s surface. Text: Rise of the Grigori Beneath the Surface Blog Series

---

Next week: Narcissa, cousin to the protagonists of The Undine’s Tear, gives us the inside scoop about what Calandra is really like.

Are you on my newsletter list? I send out regular specials and deals on my and others’ books, plus behind-the-scenes looks at my fiction and writing process. Oh, and as I mentioned in the interview, you get the prequel of the Rise of the Grigori series as a thank you for joining.

Happy Wednesday!