Can you tell us a two sentence horror story?
Not in 2 sentences but in 100 words!
I did it with an apple with the first one and it went wrong. I have used a pumpkin for the second one. She thought I was her Fairy-Godmother, her saviour. As the pumpkin is reversing back to its normal size, with her inside, I’m glorying in her screams, enjoying the sight of her running blood, mingled with the orange juice of the pumpkin. There will be no ball for this one, no Prince Charming, no happy ending, only her crushed bones, her sightless eyes! I am winning… Now don’t lie to me, Mirror, who is the fairest of them all?
If you could travel to any fictional book world, where would you go and what would you do there?
I would love to be a fly on the wall in Philippa Gregory’s or Kate Mosse’s books. Observe the events and absorb the ambience, without being seen would be fantastic!
What books are on your summer reading list this year?
I read all the Highlander series by Diana Gabaldon! Misty Scotland, atmospheric landscapes and great characters!
How do you deal with writer’s block?
It does happen, believe me, and when it does, it’s no use to insist and get frustrated. The best course of action is to walk away and take a mini-holiday from your characters: they’ll miss you and clamour to be heard once again when you least expect it. Once, I woke up at 3am and I had to open my laptop and have my heroine scream her outrage at being duped and used. She felt better and so did I. Don’t let writer block scare you, it’s a natural process in the life of any author. You are an author but also a real person who deal with life occurrences, so let life take over for a while if you are stuck as a an author. It’ll pass and you’ll feel better for it.
What’s the best thing about being a writer?
You are the master/mistress of your time. You create new worlds and populate it with living and breathing characters. You suffer and rejoice with them. Sometimes they take over: a few times I had something in mind for a particular character and then he/she ended up acting in the complete opposite way! Your characters make you think you are in charge but…that’s not always the case.
What’s your advice for aspiring writers?
Sometimes, you might get a good idea and start on a story, then it peters out and goes nowhere so you start on something else. However, you don’t discard any of your ideas, you can always revisit any of them later on and develop them if you think they are worth it. If you have an idea, don’t procrastinate, don’t try to find excuses, don’t say ‘I have not time’ or ‘I’ll do it another time’. The time is now, for each of us. The hardest part is not the writing, I find, but the marketing, promotion and ‘get to be known’ business. I have little experience with social media and none in marketing but I work hard and I like interacting with anyone so I am optimistic that one day it’ll come together.
What are you currently working on?
I have just finished my second book and it’s currently going through editing. I hope to publish it in 2020, so watch this space! I have started a third book too, written a few short stories, entered a few competitions, tried to come to terms with social media and the hardship to be a new, unknown author, trying to get reviews and raise interest in my characters.
How do you get inspired to write?
Inspiration becomes part of your life. Sometimes a word, a gesture, a feeling, is all it takes to give you the germ of an idea. The idea grows and grows (most of the times) and becomes a story. Sometimes you write pages and pages in one day, other times you sit there and nothing comes to you. Those are the times when I leave it and start doing something completely different and absolutely unrelated to writing.
Where did you get the idea for your most recent book?
My background is quite colourful and there is a lot of family lore about some of my ancestors. I got the idea about this book last year while I was on holiday at my favourite place in the world: Crete. However, I like to travel around the Mediterranean. There are so many myths, legends, stories and annedoectes that.