It’s been a while since I did a blog post. I’ve been in a bit of a creative slump, so I’m combating it by knitting a jumper , watching movies and playing Pokemon Go with my kids.
However, I haven’t stayed offline totally; I have too many author friends on Facebook to let go entirely – I have to keep up with their exploits, book launches and all the other fun that goes with them.
There’s a game that a lot of them are playing (Created by Author M. L. Preston) called “20 Author Questions” and I thought I would use the questions as the basis of a blog post for my readers (yes, all four of them *Grins and Winks*) and I’ll put them into an FAQ Page for anyone else that wants to find out about me!
1.) What is your Author name: I have two – Kira Morgana is my Pure Fantasy / Children’s pen name and A. E. Churchyard is for my more adult stories.
2.) What is the first book you ever published: That was “The Tower and The Eye: A Beginning”. It was originally self published but then was picked up by Pfoxmoor under their Pfoxchase imprint.
3.) What is your publiversary? March 2011
4.) What is your favorite book you’ve written thus far: I don’t have a favourite yet.
5.) What book took you the longest to write: That would be “Kingdom of The Seven Towers” – the first draft of that was 180,000 words long.
6.) How long did it take you? It took me five years to finish, with various short stories interspersed when Puff ran out on me for the main project.
Sadly I lost the original story, but I have all the notes and maps (just the basic world building took me a year) and I know the basic plot, so I’ve been working on rebooting it.
7.) What kind of music (If Any) do you listen to while you write? I listen to all sorts of music while I write when I can, but most of the time, my background noise is children’s TV…
8.) Who is your favorite character from any of your books? I have several favourites. From Quargard (The Tower and The Eye) it’s Pigsnout the Wanderer; From Arking Down (The Angel’s Crown), it’s Rilx the Vir’Astillian; and in The Land Far Away it’s Pika the Phluph.
9.) What are you currently working on: I’m editing “Pigsnout the Wanderer” for Blue Hour Publishing and writing the first draft of a couple of different projects – a novella called “Snow & Kitsune” and a novel called ” Teacups & Time Travel”.
10.) Do you have anything you snack on while you write? I drink a lot of Limonata, Lime cordial and soda water, Tea and Coffee. Snacks wise, my weakness is sweets, especially what most people think of as kids sweets – pick’n’mix, Haribo, Starbursts…
11.) What is your favorite quote or line from one of your books: I don’t have one at the moment, but I’d be interested to hear if any of my readers have one!
12.) Are you a self-published or traditional published author? I’m a Hybrid. I have a collaboration with another author/illustrator, Maria K. on The Land Far Away series and The Tower and The Eye is published by Blue Hour Publishing. I also indie publish through Smashwords and Amazon.
13.) What is your writing inspiration? I’m inspired by all sorts of things. Snow & Kitsune is inspired by Ancient Japanese culture and folklore, The Tower and The Eye is inspired by my love of Sword & Sorcery / Tabletop RPG. Arking Down is a mish-mash of influences from Science Fiction and Fantasy.
14.) What genre do you write in? Fantasy / Science Fiction Fantasy mostly. I have tried Horror, but my heart isn’t in it.
15.) Do you have any writing rituals? Not really. I get interrupted too much to be able to develop any!
16.) Do you have a specific place you write or time? My Writing Nook is all packed up at the moment (damnable damp) so it’s the couch for me at the moment; not a great option because I am interrupted too much / get distracted easily.
17.) Do you have any advice for Aspiring writers? Write what you want to write. Not what you think will sell, not what you think publishers and agents want to read, not even what you think other people will want to read. Write your stories for yourself and have fun doing it, and they will find readers.
18.) What are your writing goals? If any? To entertain my Readers, to have fun doing it and to get as many books out into the world as I possibly can before I wander over the Bifrost to the Summerlands…
19.) What authors inspire you and your writing? David Eddings, Terry Pratchett, Robert Jordan, Dianne Wynne Jones, Monica Hughes… the list is too long for this question! I am constantly finding new authors to read and love – my latest ones are Gail Carriger and Ben Aaronovitch.
They inspire me to write and are my heroes, but I try very hard to keep my writing “voice” my own.
20.) What will be your next release? If you know and when? Hmm – Nothing is Scheduled at the moment; but as “Pigsnout” is in editing, that will probably be the next book out – unless I can get “Snow & Kitsune” finished first. Watch this space!
The World of The Teigr Princess 