Questions and answers from world-builders, character-designers and story-makers

“I’ve always loved stories which are set in our world but where something is just shifted slightly to one side.”

“As long as your escapism is rooted in strong characters and plot, emotional entertainment, believability, and intrigue, you can escape anywhere.”

“Keep writing, believe in yourself, develop a thick skin, and own the fact that, if you write, then you are a writer.”

“That’s the beautiful thing about storytelling, really. You could give the same prompt to 100 writers, and you would get 100 different stories.”

“I feel like everyone has stories in their heads, it’s just that some people have a need to get them out. I can’t stop the stories in my head, so I have to do something with them.”

“My pen followed me everywhere, giving shape to whatever was in my head at the time.”

“I think the most interesting aspect of developing character is how they acquire a life and personality of their own”

“Worldbuilding is by far my favourite thing about the fantasy genre – whether reading it or writing it”

“I become my characters when writing, feeling what they feel, and interpreting the world around me through their lenses.”

“Ideas come quickly, but they need space to grow”

“Enjoy your writing and don’t be put off by criticism when it is constructive.”

“I don’t have stories of good and evil, I write stories of people, and people are both.”

“Relationships, generally, are a recurring theme. How do people relate to one another through technology, art, and social structures? How do relationships shape individuals? How do we see ourselves within our communities? These are the questions I’m drawn to through character development...”

“This is the best time in history to self-publish. There’s no old-boy network between you and your readers.”

“I think it's important to look outside the novel for inspiration because we become so subsumed by the story that it can narrow our view.”

“I focus on characters and I just let the ideas come as I write.”

“If you believe you have something to say about a topic you love, say it. Write it.”

“Grow elephant hide – thick skin may not be enough.”

“Writing feels like playing Tetris a lot of the time, it’s about shape shifting and moving the parts around until they click, and you get that ‘ahh’ feeling”

“Adding magic to the real world is very tricky. Humans are very complicated and clever creatures and collectively we adapt and change to one another and come up with things that no one person could conceive alone.”

“The heard word is lost, the written letter abides”

“She’s also the queen of the tiny moment, the thing unsaid. I love the tiny little beats underscoring her characters’ interactions.”

“I keep coming back to the power of landscape.”

“I used my experience as someone who has lived under dictatorship”

“The one thing that every author I know has in common is perseverance.”

“I think writer's block isn't a thing, at least not in the way people typically think about it...”

“I never want the reader to be too familiar with a place, but it’s nice to be able to reflect familiarity, with a spin.”

“What else does a writer need to invest in other than some paper, a pen and a room of one’s own.”

“There’s no right or wrong way to write a book. The main thing is to get it finished!”

“Getting constructive feedback – and the constructive bit is vital - on your work is absolutely essential to growing as a writer.”

“My biggest aim was to ensure that every character, hero or villain, was believable”

“[My] characters test the limits of my philosophical and theological paradigms. They push beyond the borders and into untamed space with resolute force”

“Beyond the protagonist, I rely heavily on a strong supporting cast so I spend a lot of time developing relatable characters.”

“If I get stuck and get ‘writer’s block’, it’s my mind’s way of telling me I’ve gone wrong somewhere with the story.”

“Drawing mind maps helps me far more than simply writing lists on paper or on a computer screen. I find it especially helpful when I am first thinking about a new story.”

“I create pretty detailed character spreadsheets, including a Google image of someone who I think represents the character”

“Don’t get it right, get it written”

“Worldbuilding is absolutely my thing, and it’s more a joy than a challenge.”

“I’m very interested in toxic masculinity, and I feel like everything I write – poetry and fiction – has an eye on wanting to get to the bottom of it.”

“Empathising with people who don’t think like I do is one of the hardest—and most rewarding—parts of writing fiction.”

“Even with the veil of fiction, even transfigured through the eyes of my characters, it’s difficult to write about that which truly scares you or hurts you.”

“That good and evil are often a matter of where you stand. That violence is utterly destructive for both victim and perpetrator, but at the same time has a glamour that fascinates us. That wizardly mentors do not necessarily have the best interests of the world at heart…”

“Roam the countryside, if I get the chance, or travel further afield. Routine isn’t great for the imagination, and a change of scenery always gets you out of a rut, so to speak.”

“Sometimes the logical thing to do is the hardest thing: killing off a character, acts of betrayal, making mistakes which have dire consequences - allowing my children to leave the nest and live their own life is probably how my abilities are most tested.”

“I try to reflect the true cost of heroism in my work, which is often high and doesn’t involve much in the way of rewards.”

“More often than not I find myself writing about civilians forced by circumstance to solve crimes. “Ordinary people experiencing the worst day of their lives””

“I have a million ideas. The difficult part is deciding which of those ideas are the right ones for me.”

“Many authors speak of outlining a story with all the basic ideas and story lines. I just sat down and started writing. The characters and stories flowed like a faucet almost faster than I could put them on the screen.”

“Pretty much all my stories have one thing in common, an underdog. I don’t know why I love that archetype so much, but so far all my MCs have been drastically underestimated, sometimes by others, and often by themselves”

“Good characters make stories interesting. They’re where the gold is at.”

“Keeping ideas fresh is always an obstacle, of course, as well as the amount of research required when taking inspiration from certain mythologies.”

“I live life. I laugh, I cry, I travel, I keep my eyes and ears open and always carry a notebook and pen!”

“It’s not always easy to fathom the mind of a serial killer though, or indeed accurately portray the inner voice of a thirty year old woman when you’re neither.”

“I'm not sure I do fully overcome the challenges, I think I try and find a way around them.”

“I find myself talking to them, arguing with them, walking around with them beside me.”

“Even if you can barely squeak out a paragraph. Don’t worry about editing and making things perfect. Just write”

“I write only when inspiration strikes. Fortunately it strikes every morning at nine o'clock sharp.”

“If you’re starting out, then write as much as you can. Twenty minutes a day will get you into the habit. Set deadlines and make a declaration.”