R.A. Goli Interview by Clarendon House

As you know, R. A. Goli’s short story collection Unfettered was released a couple of days ago. (You don’t know? Where have you been?)

You can get the amazing but very Adults Only collection here at Lulu, kindle version coming soon. And now, in a special ‘behind the scenes’ Interview, you can meet the author herself!

Welcome Roberta! And thanks for answering these questions for us!

1. How long have you been writing?

I don’t remember when I started, but I remember writing a lot as a young teenager, often in classes that weren’t English related. No wonder I’m so bad at math! As I got older, I only wrote sporadically, and never seemed to finish anything. I always talked about writing, but somehow, I’d stopped making time for it. It was only a couple of years ago when I had a long break from work that I got back into writing on a regular basis and I feel like I’m doing alright so far.

2. What in particular attracts you to the genres you write in?

I predominantly write fantasy and horror, so it’s no surprise that these are the genres I read mostly too. I’d always loved the shock value of the horrifying and gruesome death, or the quickening of my heart at the creep in the dark coming closer… closer. And what’s not to love about fantasy? Whole worlds are created, there are battles, and magic, and beasts unheard of in our realm. It can be violent, sexy, heartwarming, funny, but best is its ability to transport you to that other world and make you believe it’s real.

3. How does a story take shape with you?

I perform a summoning ritual and small black fluffy creatures crawl out of the ducted-vacuum port and whisper ideas to me. All they ask in return is for me to vacuum more often. They feed on dog and cat hair and say they can’t believe how much there is in my house.

Other times I find inspiration in the call for submission I’ve chosen to write for and the story unfolds as I go.

4. What are your most productive writing habits?

Ha ha ha. Oh, this is a serious question? Well, let’s see. I do my best to write or do something writing related most days, though if I’m working a lot of shifts at my day job, this plan falls by the wayside. Trying to write a little on most days is a good way to keep at it. I don’t say every day because I believe it’s okay to have a day off, even from your dream.

5. What is the main thing you would like readers to take away from reading your collection?

I hope they’re entertained and that I manage to surprise them. This collection is a mix of genres but hopefully the readers will enjoy all the stories and some tales will stay with them long after they’ve put the book down.

6. Tell us about your novel.

There was a call for fairy tale inspired novella-length stories and I was drawn to Snow White. The Eighth Dwarf serves as a prequel, following Tiberius, a dissatisfied dwarf who forms an alliance with a powerful witch. The lure of money, titles and power leads Tiberius to perform increasingly violent tasks at the witch’s insistence. He’s thrust into the life he thought he wanted, but after meeting Snow White, he begins to wonder if the cost is too high.

7. What are your writing goals and ambitions?

Short-term goals are to continue writing short stories and I’m planning on writing another fairy tale novella or two. I’m building up to novel length. Like most writers, I hope to one day actually make a living writing what I enjoy, but let’s leave the fantasy to my stories.

8. What advice would you give to other writers?

Write a lot. Read a lot. Get yourself a good beta-reader. It takes a lot of practice but you will get better. Be open to critiques or suggestions, good beta-readers and editors will help you improve your stories. Don’t compare yourself to great/famous authors, that’ll just make you feel inferior.

9. Do you have a favorite or couple of favorite stories from the collection?

I think The Seer is a very good story, I also really like Clash of Goddesses and Winter’s Widow. I genuinely feel for Gothel in Hidden, I enjoy the tension and gore in Dead and Breakfast and A Fool’s Errand makes me laugh. So those would be my top six I guess.

10. What would you be doing if you weren’t a writer?

I’d continue working my day job as a veterinary nurse. It’s quite separate from my writing, except for that one poem where the vet (or vet nurse) deals a special kind of revenge on her cheating ex-boyfriend.

Thanks Roberta! Keep writing!

In case you missed the first link, you can get a copy of Roberta’s spicy collection here – but a word of advice: don’t read it alone at night…

[image error] http://www.clarendonhousebooks.com/anthologies