Q&A with E.V Fairfall

[onceuponatimeareview]

Hi everyone this author galdly said yes to doing this. I'm super excited to read her book. I'm super thankful that she agreed to do this. Anyways she will be stopping here at the end of November. Remember look at all the questions before you put them down because we don't want repeating questions. So start asking questions away. And drop in at the end of November to see if you questions have been answer. :)

[onceuponatimeareview]

I guess I'm going to be the first to ask questions. :)

How did you come with the idea of this book?

What inspired you to become a writer?

What do you have to say for aspiring writers?

[Ronnie]

I have a few questions for the author

What is your favorite part of writing a book?

Do you feel like your characters determine your plot or does your plot create your characters?

What are you writing next?

[Cindie]

I would like to ask E.V. Fairfall a question? How did you portray such a graphic feel for a forest and a Deer. It was very believable.
I loved the concept of "The Mother of the Earth" creating the animals. Thank you for such a "Good Read".
Cindie O.

[KelleyAnn]

Do you have any daily routines or habits that you have to do to get into writing for long periods of time?

[Jennifer]

I have two questions:
How did you write from the point of view of Brice?
Also, when you started writing this book did you know how the characters would turn out in the end? For example, did you know Brice would turn out the way he did?

[Michelle]

First off, I'd like to thank you for taking the time to share your book and views with the rest of the world. Transformed was a fun read, and certainly got me wondering about a few things. I'll have to give it another read-through sometime.

I found your take on the creation myth to be really interesting. Did anything specific influence your take on it? I particularly enjoyed how you would take a familiar framework, and then would bend it a little bit to demonstrate flexibility and interpretation.

I also found Thea's animal preferences to be telling of her personality and/or mood. Is there a correlation between her outer animal shape and her internal sense of being? Or a specific reason you chose each animal (Cricket included, of course)?

What are some of your inspirations for writing? Do you pull from any particular books, or music, or maybe life experiences?

Thank you again for writing Transformed! I look forward to reading whatever you write next. Speaking of which, are you currently writing something?

[E.V.]

How did you come up with the idea of this book “Transformed”?
I grew up with deer everywhere, mountain lions living under my neighbors’ deck, baby foxes living at the bottom of my driveway. The windows from my room overlooked a forest that exposed the purest form of wildlife in their most relaxed moments. As a child I didn’t understand how I could see that and then go into town and see trophy heads of those same animals, hovering dead in every direction. As an adult I married into a family of hunters and I had to explore the reasoning behind people’s choices and the differences of how a life is viewed. I wanted to explore it from the perspective of characters who held these beliefs in extreme forms. This naturally made Mother Earth the most reasonable option to defend animals, and the antagonist someone who killed animals for sport. This challenge to explore opposing viewpoints was part of what ignited my passion to write it and understand humanity.

What inspired you to become a writer?
You know that itch? The one that you get when your hands are full, or you’re washing the dishes? It drives you nuts until you finally itch it? That is what it felt like for me but I couldn’t figure out what it was until I started writing; it calmed me and soon I couldn’t help but turn to a piece of paper for answers. As for a writer of books... there was this statistic I heard that 95% people say that they will write a book in their lifetime but only 1% ever do it. I wanted to be that 1%. However, I don’t believe that statistic is correct, but it definitely made me motivated.

What do you have to say for aspiring writers?
3 things. Write, read and go to a writers conference. These things are essential. The more you write and read, the better you’ll get at the craft. As for the conference, it is the moral support, friendship, and information that make sure you don’t get into a bad publishing deal and help you survive the trials of being a writer.

What is your favorite part of writing a book?
Good question. My favorite part is the first draft. It is fun and full of growing moments. There is a saying, “writing the book is the easy part,” and that couldn’t be more true. After the first draft comes the re-writes, re-writes, re-writes, and more re-writes. I like the re-writes when they are done, but they aren’t as fun as the first draft. :P

Do you feel like your characters determine your plot or does your plot create your characters?
For me I always have a loose plot in place before I start. From there I create the characters. About one third or half of the way in my characters are very full and I know them well. What happens is, they kind of take over. Not by writing the story but by the kind of people they have become. Their morals and values, passions, and beliefs drive them in different directions. I can no longer tell them to change because to me, they are full of life. It would be like asking my sister to be nice to me; it just isn’t in her nature. lol. So this does change the plot. (BTW my sister isn’t that bad. :P)

What are you writing next?
I'm closing up on line edits for "Sleeping Tom" , which will be released February 14th. And I'm in the middle of the sequel "Waking Gabriel". The story is about a girl who falls in love with a boy who has multiple personalities.

Do you have any daily routines or habits that you have to do to get into writing for long periods of time?
I think one of the challenges of writing is staying motivated. Sometimes more for some than others. I have a star chart (doesn’t that sound cool? Also very intelligent, as if I can actually map the stars...). It isn’t like that though. My star chart is a calendar and each star = 500 words. I didn’t always do it that way; I always just wrote my word count at the end of the day but my favorite author Laini Taylor uses gold stars. She inspired me to do the same. However, I can’t find gold star stickers anywhere... yet! Mine are multi-colored.

I’m switching the order of you questions Jennifer :)
When you started writing this book did you know how the characters would turn out in the end? For example Brice?
That is my favorite question because the answer is no. In the first draft (mind you there were many, many drafts) there was only one boy and that boy was going to change and see that he needed to have compassion but about 30,000 words in, I couldn’t change him. He was already down a different path. So I started over, with two boys. This gave me the freedom to explore the two opposite characters (Thea and Brice) and their search for understanding (at least for Thea).

How did you write from the point of view of Brice?
Mmmm... I’m not sure exactly how to answer that question. It wasn’t always easy. He changed a lot from draft to draft and became increasingly more self-centered. I used a lot of real hunting stories. I opened my eyes to people who were less than kind to butterflies and who laughed at dying eyes and I used that to drive him as a character.

I also found Thea's animal preferences to be telling of her personality and/or mood. Is there a correlation between her outer animal shape and her internal sense of being? Or a specific reason you chose each animal?
I grew up surrounded by a lot of wild animals, but most often deer. I always found them to be very graceful, cautious, and gentle. They blend in well with their surroundings and they leisurely graze without a care in the world (that is, until they hear a branch crack and go into flight mode). That is what I wanted Thea to embody, an appreciation for each blade of grass and for her to instinctively run at the sign of trouble. Her mountain lion form is her grounding form. She fears the predator and she fears the body of a predator but she also relishes the strength it gives her. As I get older, I’ve found that very few things, if any, are black and white. Of course one can say something is black or white within their own life or opinion of a situation or belief, but when you add the outside elements and other people, it can be hard to tell. This is Thea’s struggle and I believe that her struggle is mirrored with every form she takes. On the topic of “right and wrong/ black and white,” this brings me into answering your question: Was the creation myth inspired by a lot of different elements? Did anything influence your take on it? The answer is yes, to both. I think the idea of right and wrong for animal rights is what got me going. You are probably thinking, “What does that have to do with a creation myth?” Well… Within different religions, animals are present, worshipped, or at least categorized. I was curious to research the views in each religion surrounding these aspects of respect and placement. This curiosity led me to taking cultural diversity classes and religious studies classes. It was all very enlightening. Note: I was not a vegetarian while writing this book, but I am now.


What are some of your inspirations for writing? Do you pull from any particular books, or music, or maybe life experiences?
Yes for life experiences, I think every writer pulls little things and twists experiences to create a new life for them. As for books, I find that reading anything is both inspiring, and motivating. Though I am totally hooked on Laini Taylor’s writing style. She is amazing.