As part of the Witchling Tour hosted by Itching for Books here is my interview with Ari Harper
Nera is a normal teenage girl living in Ireland-or so she thought. Her world is forever changed when she discovers that she is descended from a long line of witches. To her horror she finds she is the one that is supposed to stop the curse that has taken the life of every girl before her. As if that isn't enough, she must learn to use magic and her trainer is a man named Bones. He is the son of Mari, Queen of the Witches, and a god. It is Bones that has been entrusted to teach her the skills she needs to stay alive, which wouldn't be so bad if he didn't have an uncanny knack for pushing her buttons. Can Nera learn what she needs while staying immune to the charms of the man that gets under her skin at every opportunity?
https://www.facebook.com/
Ari Harper never wanted to grow up.
To offset the limitations of aging ungracefully, she created her own set of unique worlds where she can be and do whatever she wants.
Gods, witches and demons surround Ari while she spins her magic, doing mainly what they tell her to do. Given a chance, she prefers to work amongst chaos, which is good because she is constantly surrounded by children, all clamoring for attention. Some of them end up in her stories, some of them even get to die grisly deaths or be cast away to another realm.
What research went into writing Witchling?
Quite a lot actually. I had to find the right town to base the books in and Google Earth was my best friend for weeks until the right piece of coastline twigged with me. I have a huge collection of research books but that didn't stop me buying another one. The spells in the series are all taken from history as are the gods. I wanted to keep it as authentic as I could.
What was the biggest challenge in the writing process?
It's usually the middle part for me but in this series I think it is going to be the last book. I've been putting off writing the final draft because I don't want to say goodbye to my characters.
What is your favourite Paranormal YA?
City of Bones. I loved the books and can't wait to see the movie.
Three interesting or unknown facts about Witches.
A lot of our everyday practices are in fact spells. You could have been burned at the stake for something as simple as lighting incense or a candle.
There are more of them around than you could possibly imagine. I know quite a few.
Some of today's practices are taken from pagan history, e.g. candlemass, groundhog day.
Why did you use Irish culture/folklore as the backdrop for this story?
Because to me, Ireland is the land of witches. There is something magical about the place. It is so full of history and rituals.
Scavenger Hunt Question #5
How did Nera's parents meet?
Great interview. Thanks for participating :)
ReplyDelete