Ask the Author: Siri Mitchell
Answered Questions (12)
Siri Mitchell
Hi Jackie --
Congratulations on your win! No -- the books do not have to be read in any particular order.
-Siri
Congratulations on your win! No -- the books do not have to be read in any particular order.
-Siri
Siri Mitchell
Hi Jessica -- I'm so glad you enjoyed Chateau of Echoes! Cranwell's novel was loosely based on the diaries of Alix that had been previously published. (Remember that Freddie had found them at the beginning of the book and turned them over to the University of Rennes II.) His ending would have been the same as the real Alix's. Does that make sense?
-Siri
-Siri
Siri Mitchell
Thanks for asking. I'm so glad you've been enjoying my books! I took a break from writing last year and although I'm hard a work on a new story, it won't be published this year. I hope you'll be able to read something new from me in 2018.
Siri Mitchell
I'm so glad you enjoyed the story! I had so much fun writing it and Jack was such an interesting character to develop. He did have a good heart, didn't he? At the moment, I don't have any plans to develop a story for him, but I try never to say never about my stories!
Siri Mitchell
The best thing to do when you don't have anything yet written is to write. Something. Anything! You can't edit what you haven't written. Could it be that you're intimidating yourself by thinking you have to know exactly what you want to write before you start writing? Most writers discover their stories as they write them. It could be that you're not an 'outline' writer. You might be a spontaneous, 'seat-of-the-pants' writer. In that case, my best advice is to start. It doesn't matter if what you write is good or bad. As you work through your drafts, you'll hone what you've started with. That's what editing is for. Good luck!
Siri Mitchell
Hi Cintia -- I don't usually write my books from start to finish -- I jump around. If I'm stuck on one scene, I just leave it and work on a different one. When I'm blocked on a section, it's usually because I don't understand my characters well enough. I give myself permission not to write until I do.
Hope that helps!
Hope that helps!
Siri Mitchell
If it's due to not knowing my characters well enough, I'll take a break from writing until I do. If it's because I'm just not certain which path a scene should take, then I'll work on a different part of the story until I decide.
Siri Mitchell
I picked up a book on Victorian-era female botanical illustrators (that's a mouthful!) at a used book sale. I was shocked and enraged to discover that most of the time, they had to publish their work under a male name or give it to a male editor for inclusion in a compilation. The outrage stayed with me and eventually turned into Like a Flower in Bloom.
Siri Mitchell
The luxury of having a whole book to explore a theme or answer a question I've been asking myself.
Siri Mitchell
Write! In this profession, you really have to learn by doing. Every writer has their own process. You won't know what yours is until you're able to discover it.
Siri Mitchell
A historical set at the U.S. Military Academy at West Point in the 1850s. It will be released in the spring of 2016.
Siri Mitchell
I can't wait for Inspiration. Inspiration is like a cat: she's only interested in what I'm doing when I'm ignoring her. The surest way to get Inspiration to join me is to just sit down every day and get to work. She'll show up at some point -- she can't stand not to!
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