Emilie Knight – Author Interview

This week’s post is an Author Interview with Emilie Knight, her new book Dagger and Scythe is officially released tomorrow! It’s the second title in the Ichorian Epics series, the first being Era of Undying.

Here are Emilie Knight’s answers to my questions.

Emilie Knight – Author Interview

How long have you been writing for and what made you start writing?

I’ve been writing seriously for a few years. I’ve been writing since high school, but in 2017 I really sat down to focus on it as a career with novels, rather than short experiments for myself.

Do you write for a living, or do you also do other work?

I work in a call center in a car dealership. It’s a fine job, customers can be rude quite often, but the people I work with make the days worth it.

I’m not a writer full time yet, but I plan to be. I went down the self publishing route too, so it takes a considerable amount of effort. I am entirely on my own in regards to hiring editors and marketing the book myself.

What’s the day job, and how do you fit in the writing around it?

At the call center I do most of my writing on my lunch hour.

Were you always good at telling stories, or has it come to you as an adult?

I always told stories, but I don’t know if they were really any good. As an adult though I’ve been able to study the craft more and read as often as I can. So they are much better today than my high school days, but they weren’t all bad back then. I just have a better idea at what I’m actually doing now.

Were you good at English in school?

Yes, I got average grades but I liked most of the books we had to read, so that gave me a boost. That was when I really learned about the gothic macabre stuff too, we got to read Dracula and Frankenstein in my final year of high school.

What do you read for enjoyment?

Horror and Fantasy mostly. My favourite authors would have to be J.K. Rowling and Stephen King obviously, but I also love Christopher Paolini’s Inheritance Series, Mark Lawrence’s The Broken Empire trilogy, and Christina Henry’s dark fairy tale retellings.

What advice would you give someone who wants to be a writer?

Take your time; there is no rush to be the next big thing. And in regards to writers block, or building up the skill, start with small word counts and work your way up. And just enjoy the craft of writing for your own sake.

What is the most useful advice you’ve been given?

Build a habit. Writing daily is the best, but breaks are important. I try to get at least 500 words in a day, but if I get only 300 I won’t beat myself up over it.

What is the strangest advice you’ve been given?

I’m not really sure, maybe in regards to marketing everything, it was something along the lines of “putting yourself out there.” I’m an introvert so advertising myself is intimidating.

How do you deal with the stranger reviews?

I love them. I can take them as constructive criticism and role with it.

Who do you write for?

Partially for myself, which may sound weird. I’m writing stories I know I will like, and I know a few others would like them too.

What sort of things do you write?

Dark Fantasy mostly. I’m trying to blend fantasy and horror together.

Tell me about your current work?

That would be Fractured Memories. There’s nothing supernatural about this one, which is weird for me. But it’s a mystery thriller, with a noble woman trying to become queen to take revenge of a few men who hurt her, while another woman who is a prostitute turned assassin, is trying to lead her own life.

Do you do much research? If so what is your favourite source?

A lot of my fictional world, Ichorisis, is based on Greek Mythology and History. I’ve read texts like the Iliad and Odyssey, and other mythology works, those are my favourite.

What do you have in the drawer? (i.e. what have you written but not yet published)

That would be Fractured Memories, but there is more to come. I’ve got another idea about a tribe of giant spiders with a human queen battling a plague, plus Dagger and Scythe will get a sequel at some point.

Describe your writing process, what, where, when and how please?

I’m a sporadic writer. I stick with small word counts, and the distractions at work pull me out of the groove, but I can get right back into it fairly easily. I write mainly in the afternoon, and I handwrite all of my first drafts. I’ve got dozens of journals, most of them holding my first three novels.

What is your best method or website for promoting your books?

Finding and contacting reviewers and bloggers has been the best method for me.

What question do you wish I’d asked you?

Everything here was really thorough; I’ll just throw in that in my spare time I love playing video games like Skyrim, Witcher 3, or Subnautica.

Where can you read Emilie Knight’s words?

Emilie Knight has a website that she keeps updated with short stories and experiments (the latter are super short, basically a paragraph that she liked but couldn’t fit in a story.) It’s here – https://www.emilieknight.com/

And you can get Dagger and Scythe by Emilie Knight on October 1st in ebook, paperback, and hardcover over on Amazon. There are two links above for Amazon UK, and the ones below for the main Amazon.com site:
Ebook – https://www.amazon.com/Dagger-Scythe-Ichorian-Epics-Book-ebook/dp/B07QXDG82C/

Paperback/hardcover – https://www.amazon.com/Dagger-Scythe-Ichorian-Epics-Book/dp/199909140X/