Author Interview: Samaire Wynne

I recently had a chance to chat with Samaire Wynne, the author of the "Meridian Pack" series, the first volume of which, Awakening Fae: Fated Mates, I reviewed here.

 

Deborah J. Ross: Tell us a little about yourself.  How did you come to be a writer?  

Samaire Wynne: Well, I have loved books and reading since I was a very young child. Wanting to create stories and books came naturally from that.

 

DJR: What inspired your book?  

SW: I love urban fantasy and have read many wolf-shifter books, and I thought I’d try my hand at that genre. I thought I would be taking a break from writing about fae creatures, but they crept into my story anyway!

 

DJR: What authors have most influenced your writing?  What about them do you find inspiring?   

SW: Madeleine L’Engle, Walter Farley, Susan Cooper, and Neil Gaiman have influenced me the most. They write about utterly fantastical places and characters, and I loved getting lost in their stories. They taught me how to write.

 

DJR: Why do you write what you do, and how does your work differ from others in your genre?  

SW:  I love writing fantasy: It’s my favorite genre. I write about characters that my readers end up caring deeply about, especially when the characters find a family of friends. “Found Family” is the theme running through every book I’ve written. As to how my work differs from others in the Urban Fantasy genre, I am not sure. There are some really fantastic writers and storytellers out there creating some amazing books. I hope I stand out to readers. I love world-building and character backstories, and I love creating stories. I don’t think I’ll ever stop.

DJR: How does your writing process work?  

SW: To begin a new book, I always write a detailed outline. A typical 100,000-word book will have an outline at least five to seven pages long detailing character quirks, motivations, and backgrounds, and outlining the entire story from start to finish. I write early in the morning. Most of the time, I use the Pomodoro Method and write in 25-minute sprints. I try to see how many words I can write during each session, and I usually get so involved with the story that I write well into the afternoon.

DJR: What have you written recently? What lies ahead?  

SW: I’m currently writing the sequel to Awakening Fae. It’s titled Ruthless Savage and takes the Meridian Pack into Europe to investigate why they’ve become the target of the reigning Wolf Council, the governing body that oversees all wolf-shifter packs.

DJR: What’s the strangest or most touching fan mail you’ve ever received?  

SW: I’ve received many wonderful letters, but I cherish the ones that say my stories have inspired the person to write their own.

DJR: What advice would you give an aspiring writer?  

SW:  Read as much as you can and as widely as possible. That’s how you learn. When sitting down to write, push all doubt and worry aside and just get the story down on paper. You can always fix it later, but you must get it down first. I also recommend brainstorming what your story is about and writing an outline for it. This makes the process much easier and pulls away the mystique that often produces anxiety, which can freeze a writer.

Samaire Wynne is a Puerto Rican author of over 20 novels in various genres, including horror and urban fantasy. She is Editor in Chief of Black Raven Books. She has been writing professionally for over 11 years.

A longtime Californian, you can find her skulking about in southern Virginia. If you were to visit her at twilight, she might serve you flower tea or butter whiskey on her back deck. If she excused herself and strolled into the forest, you might be tempted to wander after her. Past a stream, you’d see a stone well at the edge of her property, and you might hear voices coming from deep inside.

If you were to trip and tumble down the embankment, you might be stolen away by faeries keen to offer you a cookie or a bit of mead in a flower cup.

And if you were to drink it, you’d awake to find that a hundred years had passed...