Ask the Author: Stefan Bachmann
Answered Questions (12)
Stefan Bachmann
That's so nice to hear! And I'm so happy you enjoyed CINDERS AND SPARROWS. I'm not planning a sequel to it right now. My next children's book is out in June and is all monster hunting and drama and traveling across the land, whereas Cinders was a bit more cozy. After RELEASE THE WOLVES, I think I will go back to cozier stuff for a bit, but whether Zita will get a second outing... I'm not sure! I loved writing her story, though, and definitely have a few ideas about what might happen next.
Stefan Bachmann
Hi, Effie! The Peculiar and The Whatnot are a duology, so I don't think I'll be returning to that world any time soon. That said, Bartholomew and Hettie and Pikey all went back to Bath in the 1850's, and it's a little duller and more quiet now that many of the faeries have left England, but I'd say they're very happy together. Maybe I'll write a short story about their further adventures someday, but it might be better not to because it means they lived out the rest of their days peacefully. Thank you for reading! :)
Stefan Bachmann
Aw! This is the nicest, thank you. I'm not 18 anymore (my first book - the one that says I'm 18 on the flap - came out in 2012), but I'm so very happy you're enjoying the books.
If it's any consolation, I almost never love my own writing either. Writers are often quite harsh with themselves, which is usually a good thing, but don't let it stop you either. What helps me to practice is writing short stories or even just vignettes, and trying to make them as atmospheric and clear as possible. Also, reading sections out loud and is so, so helpful, as is thumbing through your favorite book and trying to pinpoint *why* it's your favorite and how the author uses his/her words.
To extend your writing vocab: read allllllll the books. I don't recommend using a thesaurus or dictionary and looking for odd words. I think the words need to feel natural to you and your style, and also the story that's being told, and for that to happen they have to be in your head already.
Also, for me it's helpful to remember that in the end writing is just a craft, like bricklaying or gardening, and the more you do it the better you become. :)
If it's any consolation, I almost never love my own writing either. Writers are often quite harsh with themselves, which is usually a good thing, but don't let it stop you either. What helps me to practice is writing short stories or even just vignettes, and trying to make them as atmospheric and clear as possible. Also, reading sections out loud and is so, so helpful, as is thumbing through your favorite book and trying to pinpoint *why* it's your favorite and how the author uses his/her words.
To extend your writing vocab: read allllllll the books. I don't recommend using a thesaurus or dictionary and looking for odd words. I think the words need to feel natural to you and your style, and also the story that's being told, and for that to happen they have to be in your head already.
Also, for me it's helpful to remember that in the end writing is just a craft, like bricklaying or gardening, and the more you do it the better you become. :)
Stefan Bachmann
Yay, thanks for reading! :D I'm glad you liked TP. I think a lot of different writers made me love stories and want to write my own, but there was definitely one who got the ball rolling for me. I remember being ten or eleven and hearing about a homeschooled teenager in Montana who wrote a dragon fantasy book and became a bestselling author at 18 and I was like "I'm homeschooled! I like fantasy books! I'M TOTALLY QUALIFIED FOR THIS!"
So, that was Christopher Paolini. He's great. It wasn't his books that inspired me so much as the fact that he did what he did at a young age and was super successful. I definitely think he paved the way for a lot of young writers to have the confidence to pursue publishing in the 2000's.
Favorite authors would be JRR Tolkien, Philip Reeve, the Brontë Sisters, Leo Tolstoy, Catherine Fisher, Lemony Snicket. A billion others... So, so many. :)
So, that was Christopher Paolini. He's great. It wasn't his books that inspired me so much as the fact that he did what he did at a young age and was super successful. I definitely think he paved the way for a lot of young writers to have the confidence to pursue publishing in the 2000's.
Favorite authors would be JRR Tolkien, Philip Reeve, the Brontë Sisters, Leo Tolstoy, Catherine Fisher, Lemony Snicket. A billion others... So, so many. :)
Stefan Bachmann
Hi Sarah! Thanks for picking up the paperback! :) So, I love the *idea* of hardcovers. I like how publishers sometimes make them total works of arts, with dust jackets and end-papers and bookmark ribbons and gloss and embossed-ness. I probably buy many more paperbacks, though, because I do most of my reading on the train and squashing lovely hardcovers into my bag seconds before jumping off at my stop BREAKS MAH HEART.
So what usually happens is: I buy a book in paperback. If I love it I'll buy the hardcover afterwards for my shelf and then gift the paperback to someone who I think might love it as well.
I don't really listen to audio books. I'm not sure why. I just prefer paper books.
So what usually happens is: I buy a book in paperback. If I love it I'll buy the hardcover afterwards for my shelf and then gift the paperback to someone who I think might love it as well.
I don't really listen to audio books. I'm not sure why. I just prefer paper books.
Stefan Bachmann
Hi! I would *love* to do a second Cabinet of Curiosities anthology. There aren't any concrete plans for one right now, but if the publisher asked for one I would definitely not be opposed. :) Also, thank you so much for reading and following the website!! I will tell the other curators this, and I know they'll be pleased too. Thanks. :D
Stefan Bachmann
I haven't thought about it in detail, no. I always imagined England would be fairly protective of the faeries in a weird way. Like, "We loathe you and keep you as slaves, but you're still ours and no one else can have you". Because the faeries *did* do a lot to shape and develop English culture and technology in the books, even if it was indirect. In the second book, it's implied that faeries have been a subtle part of the world for a long time, and only really burst on to the scene in England. But yeah, a short story would be kind of cool for me too. Maybe about some British faerie soldiers in America circa 1812, or a leech faerie skulking around St. Petersburg during Catherine the Great's reign. I will put it in my idea book. :)
Stefan Bachmann
Hi, Azreena! Aw. Thank you. :) I play three instruments moderately well (recorders, organ, piano) and two instruments pretty badly (harmonica and violin). Composing is my major at uni right now, so I do write a lot of music, yeah. Thanks for reading!
Stefan Bachmann
Hi! The publishing process was pretty normal for me. I sent out queries to literary agents, got some rejections, despaired, rewrote a bunch, sent more queries, got an agent, awesome agent sold the book... I wish I had insightful tips to give, but a) I have no clue and b) really all one can do is go slightly crazy and work hard and read everything and not give up until one has a book interesting/weird enough that people will pay money for it. Also, maybe don't think of yourself as a young writer. Just as a writer. The work you have to do is the same. I don't know if that's remotely helpful, but good luck! :) You can do eeeeeet.
Stefan Bachmann
This is super sad, but I just went and looked at my bookshelves, and I have an alarming lack of non-American, non-British books. Which is a BAD THING and must be remedied. That being said, I adore 19th Russian writers, so maybe something by Tolstoi or Dostoyevksy? I do love my volume of Tolstoi short stories!
Stefan Bachmann
Thank you so much, you cool person! :D There are definitely some things that go along with book-writing that I don't love, but they are infinitely, innnnfinitely outnumbered by the good things. I'm super grateful and happy to be published and read, and all the experiences that come with that, and I think it's important to focus on that.
If you're asking because you want to know whether it's really a cool thing or just GREAT BOGUS LIES, you should totally go for it. Some people will judge your writing differently because you're young, and that's a downside, but it's also their problem, not yours.
Thanks for the question! :)
If you're asking because you want to know whether it's really a cool thing or just GREAT BOGUS LIES, you should totally go for it. Some people will judge your writing differently because you're young, and that's a downside, but it's also their problem, not yours.
Thanks for the question! :)
Stefan Bachmann
Hi Caleb! I grew up in a house with loooooots of books, and some of those books were amazing, and I'm pretty sure if you read enough great, resonant books it will make you want to write some yourself. Good books have that effect. I don't think it has anything to do with age. :)
About Goodreads Q&A
Ask and answer questions about books!
You can pose questions to the Goodreads community with Reader Q&A, or ask your favorite author a question with Ask the Author.
See Featured Authors Answering Questions
Learn more