
Imagine you have
written a novel during high school and just for fun you submit the manuscript
to a publisher after self-publishing it, and they buy it. Wow, that is what
dreams are made of, and that was the beginning of Charlotte McConaghy’s writing
career only a few short years ago.
Her latest novel, Avery,
the first in a romance fantasy series has just been released. So, knowing what
curious creatures my wonderful readers are, I invited Charlotte to my blog as
part of her blog tour to share some insight into her books and writing process.
She also shares some fantastic advice on writing, with which I highly agree.
Make sure you check out
Avery,
available now and visit some of Charlotte’s other blog tour spots. A few are
even running competitions.
ABOUT CHARLOTTE McCONAGHY
Charlotte grew up with
her nose in a book and her head in the clouds. At fourteen, her English teacher
told her that the short story she'd submitted was wildly romantic but somewhat
clichéd, so she decided to prove him wrong – and write a novel. Thus began her
foray into epic fantasy, with sweeping romances and heroic adventures, and as
much juicy drama as she could possibly squeeze in.

Her first novel, Arrival,
was published at age seventeen, followed by Descent when she was twenty,
launching The Strangers of Paragor series, which is adventure fantasy for
teenagers.
Soon she started her
first adult fantasy novel, Avery,
the prologue of which came to her in a very vivid dream. This novel didn't come
together fully until she had finished a degree in screenwriting at the
Australian Film, Television & Radio School in Sydney, and then all at once
it seemed to fall into place. Avery
will be the first book in a new series called The Chronicles of Kaya.
Charlotte currently lives in Sydney, studying a
Masters in Screenwriting, which allows her to explore different aspects of her
writing and indulge in her passion for film and television. She will, however,
always be a novelist at heart, still unable to get her nose out of the books. (Reprinted from Random House Australia website)
Now lets speak with Charlotte. I'm the one in red writing.
1. Charlotte, congratulations
on your great writing success. Your first novel, Arrival, was published when you
were seventeen. Can you tell us how that came about, when we hear so many
stories of authors struggling for years to gain a publishing deal?

That
one was a bit of a fluke, I think. I’d written that book throughout high
school, and then for fun my mum helped me to get it self-published, as I never
thought it would get commercially published. Once we’d done that, I sent it to
Black Dog Books, which was a Melbourne publisher, and they picked it up, as
well as the second in the series, which was a huge surprise. And though those
books are out of print now, it really helped to get my adult novels read by
larger commercial publishers like Random House and Pan Macmillan, who I’m with
now.
2. Now the traditional
question but one I always think is the most interesting to know: What was the
inspiration behind your latest book Avery,
and how long did it take to write?
I
had an incredibly vivid dream one night, about a man being killed in a stone
fortress, and about the woman who loved him being bound to die because of it. I
woke up and realised it could be a great prologue for a novel, and so the
concept of people dying in pairs came to me. I then wrote a first draft of
Avery in a few months, and let it sit for a while as I thought about it. I
studied screenwriting in that time, and as I started to learn about story
principles and craft skills, I worked out what was missing from the original
draft and how to strengthen it. By the time I wrote a new draft it was a couple
of years after the first, and when I sent it to Random House they picked it up,
which was awesome.
3. What is your writing
routine, daily, and over the life of writing the book?
I’m
a night owl, so I do most of my writing through the afternoon, evening and late
into the night. When I’m working on a novel (which most of the time I am) I try
to work full time – every day – for a solid two or three months until I feel I
have a first draft of the story. After that, depending on when the novel is due
for submission to the publisher, it’s really good to let it sit for a few weeks
or months so that you can get some perspective on what it needs. Then it goes
to the publisher, and the editing starts, which means I do another draft with
the feedback from the editor to help me. And lastly the proofreading, then it’s
released. Between books I also write screenplays, which doesn’t take up as much
time but is just as challenging, if not more so.
4. Your advice for young
writers, some who may be just like you were and still studying at high school
and, in fact, all writers?
My biggest piece of
advice is always the same: write as much as humanly possible. Practice,
practice, practice. Each time you write, you’re developing your skills and your
voice. Don’t angst over one project for years – finish things and start new
things as much as you can. Read constantly – this helps you to establish your
taste in writing, and inspire you to be better yourself. Write with passion
about things you love – this will come through to your readers and it will make
it easier for them to connect emotionally with your work. Lastly, be determined
and don’t give up if you happen to get rejections.
5. Name your three favourite
novels and how they have inspired you?

6. What’s up next for you?
I’m
currently writing Isadora, which is the third and last book in the Chronicles
of Kaya series (the sequels to Avery). I need to get this book done by the end
of the month for a publication this year. I’m also currently editing a book
called Melancholy, which is the sequel to Fury, and part of my dystopian sci-fi
series. I’ve been working on a couple of feature films, and a television
project. And after I’ve done all of those the world will be my oyster! I’m
looking forward to coming up with an entirely new idea for a novel, or even a
new series of novels.
Thank you so much for taking the time to visit
here, Charlotte. Congratulations on your writing success. You are quite the
inspiration. Good luck with Avery and your future books.
Thanks
so much for having me, Susan, and great to meet you! It’s been a pleasure to
chat J
Charlotte
Avery Blog Tour
AVERY is a sweeping fantasy from
26-year-old Australian author Charlotte
McConaghy.
AVERY
– the first book in The Chronicles of Kaya series – is a novel about
loss and identity, and finding the courage to love against all odds. Charlotte
has created a vivid and unique world of magic, mystery and, most importantly,
twisted and lovable characters. Among the century-long wars and deadly sibling
rivalries, AVERY
is at its heart two beautiful and captivating love stories.
Over the coming weeks Charlotte
will be stopping by a number of fantastic Australian book blogs to talk about
the book and answer some great questions.
Be sure to follow her
stops along the way and join the conversation using the #Avery hashtag!
TOUR SITES AND DATES
• Thursday 29 January
2015: Aussie Author Challenge –
Interview and Giveaway
• Saturday 31 January
2015: Book Muster Down
Under – Sneak peek
• Thursday 5 February
2015: Speculating on SpecFic –
Review
• Friday 6 February
2015: Book'd Out – Review
• Monday 9 February
2015: An Adventure in Words –
Review
• Thursday 12 February
2015: Inside my Words –
Review
• Friday 13 February
2015: Words Read and Written –
Review and interview
• Monday 16 February
2015: Stephanie Gunn blog –
Review
• Tuesday 17 February
2015: A Word Shaker – Review
• Thursday 19 February
2015: Inside My Words –
Interview
• Tuesday 24 February
2015: Thoughts by Joy – Review
• Thursday 26 February
2015: The Rest Is
Still Unwritten – Review
• Friday 27 February 2015: The Rest Is
Still Unwritten – Interview
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