Welcome back, my fellow creatives! I’m thrilled to continue sharing some lovely indie authors I’ve met in our community–it’s so great to connect with folks again. This month, please welcome the fantasy author Stefanie Parks!

You mention your childhood in Derbyshire is a powerful inspiration for your fantasy writing. Are there any particular examples from Derbyshire you’d like to highlight?

Derbyshire always provides the inspiration for my settings. Particularly the market towns of Belper and Matlock. I was lucky enough to live in both these places, and they feature heavily in my writing. I love the sense of history there. In Belper, there’s the old, red, brick mill that greets you as you drive into the town. In Matlock, the forests behind the estate where I lived always seemed old and magical. 

What is your favorite childhood book? Were any childhood stories an inspiration for your book The Butterflies of Meadow Hill Manor?

My favourite childhood books were: The Faraway Tree, Tom’s Midnight Garden and The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe. These all contain elements of magic and magical places, which is what I love to create. The Grandfather Clock in my book is a direct reference to Tom’s Midnight Garden!

Oh, C.S. Lewis has always been a favorite of mine, too! I love how magic can be found in the everyday, humdrum places. I got to see the wardrobe that inspired him once, and that was like a pilgrimage for me. 🙂 It’s also inspiring to connect with other writers. What other authors are you friends with, and how do they help you become a better writer?

Here in New Zealand I’ve met some amazing writers; Nod Gosh (About Nod — Nod Ghosh) Jenna Heller (About Me | Jenna Heller) and Heather McQuillan (Teaching Writing | Heather McQuillan Writer and Teacher | New Zealand) spring to mind. They’re very supportive and inspiring. I read their work and try to learn from them. I’ve also met a number of amazing indie authors on Instagram. I find the Insta book community a really supportive place. 

How awesome you’ve found so much support in this kickin’ author community! Does your family support your career as a writer, too?

My family and friends are very supportive of me and are always trying to persuade people to buy my books!

That’s awesome! It’s always beautiful to hear someone loves our work. Best-selling status would be nice and all, but just hearing folks enjoy our stories is all that matters, don’t you think?

Success for me is people enjoying my stories. Every time someone tells me they enjoyed my book I’m delighted. 

It can be rough getting anything published, though. What are common traps for aspiring writers?

I think the biggest trap new writers can fall into is not creating good writing habits from the start. To get into writing, you need to write. A lot. It doesn’t need to be perfect to begin with; it just needs to exist. I used to spend way too long editing my writing every time I opened my laptop, which wasn’t helpful. Now I write consistently. I get the words down and then edit once I have a completed first draft. 

What would you consider to be the most unethical practice in the publishing industry, and how do we indie authors work around that?

I think the development of AI is going to be a problem. I don’t want to read stories written by a robot. Technology is a great tool, but let’s keep our stories coming from humans!

Indeed! I love writing so much, but then it feel like a chore when you’ve got to dig into the editing and such, lol. Some folks love writing as a chance to connect with something inside. Do you view writing as a kind of spiritual practice?

I don’t think I would describe writing as spiritual for me. It’s more of a creative process that I get a lot of enjoyment from. I love crafting magical places and concepts!

Oh yes, building a magical world can be a joy. What kinds of research do you do to help you build your story-world?

So far, I’ve only published magical realism, which is based in the real world but with elements of magic. World-building is a skill I am still developing. I follow Brandon Sanderson’s advice when it comes to world-building. I select an aspect of cultural and environmental difference, and I think about how it would impact the world I’m creating. If you haven’t checked him out, his lectures are on YouTube for free – such great learning!

How do you select the names of your characters? Character names come from a variety of places. Sometimes they’re based on people I know, sometimes I pick a real name and change a few vowels, sometimes I search for names with certain meanings. I’ve also noticed that I often like old fashioned names. 

I like visiting cemeteries from time to time for those old-fashioned names, too. That takes time, though, and time’s so hard to come by.

I am not making a living from writing. I work full time in a disability support service. This means my biggest challenge is finding the time to write. I try to write before work, during my lunch break and in the evenings. It can be a struggle but I set myself low word count targets (sometimes only 200 words per day) and I track this progress daily. This helps keep me motivated.

I love that! We must all make every word count. x Thank you so much for chatting with me, Stefanie! Here’s just one last question as we part: As a writer, what would you choose as your mascot/avatar/spirit animal?

My spirit animal would be a butterfly (of course!).

Of course! What else could it be? Let’s make sure folks know where to find you and your book.

My website: https://www.sparkswriting.com/     People can sign up to my monthly newsletter and grab themselves a free prequel story (amongst other things). 

Instagram: @sparks_writing

My first book: The Butterflies of Meadow Hill Manor is the story of a young girl, navigating grief. Amy hasn’t spoken or interacted with the world since the day her sister died. What would be the point? Things start to change when she arrives at Meadow Hill Manor, a house owned by her aunt. Here, she discovers an ancient magic that helps her learn that maybe life is worth living. A heartwarming read about life after loss. 

~*~

Now, what’s next? I’ve got a podcast coming up, a little reflection on the power of our senses in storytelling, and of course, another trip to summer camp! This time, though, we’ll stay on Earth, I think. We can just hang out with some friends and, um, try not to let them kill each other too much…

Read on, share on, and write on, my friends!