Eddis, Attolia, Sounis

I was lucky honored (and rediculously excited) to get to spend some time hanging out with MWT and Bookish Babe during the NTTBF19 weekend, so here are a few other tidbits I gleaned from various conversations and a few questions I asked.

First, though, I want to say that it was amazing to meet and talk with another fan that I didn't convert. Don't get me wrong. I'm a librarian book dealer. I love finding the right people to introduce to MWT's work and watching them grow to adore the books. But meeting a member of Sounis IRL was wonderful.

In part, QoA was about turning a 2-dimensional character (one you don't really care if they die) into a 3-dimensional character (one you might really care if they die).
[This may have been part of a panel discussion and I just didn't get it written down.]

While MWT's typical answer as to the "correct" pronunciation of names in her books is generally "not telling," she did provide recordings of how she pronounces them to the narrator of the audiobooks. (I'm assuming Steve West; I missed the name.) However, the one name he did not ask about was her own. So he mispronounces "Whalen."

The god Anet's name is an acronym from the book that MWT read to inspire her poetry in TaT: Ancient Near East Texts

Q: I read in an interview that you found writing Greek-style mythology difficult. Was writing writing middle eastern-style poetry easier?
MWT: Yes. [And actually a fairly detailed conversation about how she really wanted to write in Mediveal sytle verse, but came to realize the the rhyme/rhythm just didn't work for the modern ear and no one would read it.]

Q: Are you a "Princess Bride" fan?
MWT: The book or the movie?
Q: Either, both?
MWT: I know a lot of people love the movie, but I prefer the book.
Q: Okay, then. I noticed that  you use the phrase "As you wish" twice in QoA. Was that an intentional reference?
MWT: Probably. It's such an iconic line and I love to reference other texts.
[I think this was when we got into a discussion about the line between referencing a text and plagerism. MWT has a good anecdote about romance novels distributed through Amazon's author program. She expressed some concern that her use of other author's lines might cause her similar problems. Personally, I think the difference between referencing one line and basically copying entire passages wholesale is pretty clear. The former is an homeage; the latter theft.]

Q: How much time elapses between the end of KoA and the begining of TaT?
MWT: [shakes head] Not telling.
[I feel like an insider now. I got my very own "not telling."]

The other thing I learned is that as long as you're not asking questions that will result in a "not telling," MWT is actually quite talkative. Also, gracious, funny, and delightful.

Sorry it's taken me so long to get back. My husband had this thing about getting the taxes finished.... Priorities?!

FYI, the other panelists were: Tomi Adeyemi, Melissa Albert, Zoraida Cordova, and Tessa Gratton. I only tried to write down the gist of each question and the gist what MWT said. You may accurately assume MWT was much more eloquent that what I type.

That said, both MWT and Bookish Babe were there, so they can chime in to correct me. Or, perhaps, if we leave really good gifts on the alter, MWT will expand on some of her answers for us.

Hopefully I can still read and understand the notes I took.

Q: Magic is too big to be it's own genre. How would you describe the genre of magic in your books?
MWT: Rather than magic, my books have divine intervention. Gods and goddesses are real and interact with the "normal" world.

There was some panel discussion about "magical realism" and the fact that it's a specific term for a very specific genre that's generally considered to "transcend" young adult fantasy. A few panelists said they work in a "genre without a name."

Q: How do you decide what part of mythology you keep and what part you make up on your own?
MWT: I was interested in the evolution of religious sensiblity: people say they believe, but don't expect god to show up at the door. After visiting Greece, I knew I wanted a Greece-like setting, but I also wanted 3-dimensional characters, not the 5th/6th grade 1-sentence summary "everyone" knows about the gods in the Greek pantheon. I knew I wanted a female head of the pantheon. I wanted to create a sense of Greek mythology without breaking it, but also for it to feel natural, not forced.

Q: What fantasy trope do you detest?
MWT: Love triangles where 2 hot guys are in love with the main character. That said, it's not the trope, it's what you do with it.

Lightning Round Questions:

Q: Chilling Adventures of Sabrina or Sabrina, Teenage Witch
MWT: original comic book

Q: Harry Potter House - sort yourself
MWT: Lev Grossman's The Magicians - wants desperately to get into a magic college

Q: Wake up early or stay up late to write?
MWT: I prefer to write than spend time thinking, "I have not written." It's not what I prefer, but when writing The Thief, I wrote between 4:30 and 7:30am because that's when my husband took the baby. Having specific writing times helps provide "lanes to stay in" so you focus and know that's what you're "supposed" to be doing at that time.

Q: What book would you recommend to someone who just finished your book?
MWT: Strange the Dreamer by Laini Taylor

Q: What book made you want to be a writer?
MWT: Not What You Expected by Joan Aiken. For a time in childhood, I did what I had learned Roald Dahl did, and carried a pencil and pocket notebook everywhere so I could write down any ideas for a story that same to me. None did.

I din't write down audience questions, but these are things MWT said in response to them:

Writers use writing to process things in real life.

I've never gotten the same buzz from writing a book as from reading one.

Always on deadline. [looking up and all around]

One of the most dangerous things for a writer is self-indulgence -- even with "writer's block." You need to be prepared and open-minded about doing whatever you need to do to write. (Even if that means keeping a box of Entenmann's donuts in the freezer so you can have a power donut everyday before you start writing.)

Don't be surprised if it doesn't come quickly or if you don't know what you're doing. Even after your first book has been published.

People come to a text with certain expectations and you have to work with those expectations. [in context of the Greek pantheon]

When you're dealing with a living religion, you're dealing with people's peace of mind.