#WritersCoffeeClub 15 March: Are you aware of any fanfiction about your work?
There are a few on AO3. I would love it if there were more. The Final Boss in my quest to feel like a real writer will be when there is fanfic and fanart done by people I don't know.
#WritersCoffeeClub March 15. Are you aware of any fanfiction about your work?
Not fanfiction as _such_, but there _have_ been a few people who have used my translations in their own shows (something I actively encourage by releasing them under a #CreativeCommons Zero license).
Also, I know of at least two people who have used them for #ttrpg purposes.
#WritersCoffeeClub 14: What are new themes you are currently exploring?
New? Really? I'm just gonna pretend that word's not there.
I'm poking at edits for _The Jewel-Strewn Night_, a book I wrote because I really wanted to do a light, fluffy story with romance protagonists who were devoted and supportive of each other.
So, naturally, the book features stuff like emotional trauma, struggles with self-worth, physical disabilities, horrific ableism, and depression.
#WritersCoffeeClub 14 Mar: What new themes are you currently exploring?
I don't write to explore themes. I usually discover a story's theme while I'm revising the early drafts.
In the fantasy trilogy, the themes are war and how you re-establish a lasting peace afterwards. There's also the theme of wanting to find a place to call home.
#WritersCoffeeClub Mar14. What new themes are you currently exploring?
To what degree does it matter that our allies share the same long-term vision as us? Is it ever effective to collaborate with the enemy of my enemy?
#WritersCoffeeClub 14: What are new themes you are currently exploring?
In Space Dragons 2, I am tackling the Cosmic Defenders, who are something like the self-appointed military/police of the galaxy, though ostensibly their job is to fight the void horrors that prey on travellers.
This means I'm exploring, among other things, themes of misuse of power and oppression. Tough things to tackle in a way that still fits the low-conflict criteria for the series, but I hope I'm up to the challenge.
#WritersCoffeeClub 3/14. What new themes are you currently exploring?
The theme I am currently exploring in my translations from German folklore is "animal tales". Not fables, but tales of animals that are behaving in a strange manner or which are outright supernatural.
As an example, here are some accounts of strange chicken:
#WritersCoffeeClub Mar 13: Are you mindful of your readers’ expectations? How so?
Yes. There's a difference between a rug pull or a subversion (which delight me) and a betrayal, or a ham-handed tonal shift that doesn't work. One of the ways I can tell is if my beta readers can predict what happens next. If they either guess correctly, or guess how I would *expect* them to guess, but incorrectly, I'm doing okay.
#WritersCoffeeClub 13: Are you mindful of your readers' expectations? How so?
In general, I write more for myself than for my readers.
In some ways, it matters that I give people the story they are expecting. If I write something that is meant to be cosy and safe and then I fill it with trauma, that's harmful. Sometimes it's fun to play with tropes or invert them, and that's playing with expectations in a way.
The main way I am mindful of readers' expectations is through content warnings.
#WritersCoffeeClub Mar 13. Are you mindful of your readers’ expectations? How so?
My readers expect English-language translations of German folk tales, which is already a pretty rare thing.
But I can't just translate the tales themselves and call it a day (or worse, run the texts through an #LLM translator) - I need to provide _context_, for otherwise these tales won't make a lot of sense to my readers. 19th century #Germany is culturally pretty removed from 21st Germany - let alone from modern international readers, many of whom have never even visited the country. They _need_ some pointers to what is going on in these stories.
#WritersCoffeeClub 12 March: Happy Plant A Flower Day! What role does nature take in your stories?
German local legends are deeply embedded into their environment. As such, they often seek to explain the local environment and its origin - or at least to make it more interesting and/or magical.
Thus, magical plants, rock formations that were caused by the Devil or some sin of humans, and other forms of fantastic natural environments were common.
#WritersCoffeeClub 11: Do writing challenges spur your progress?
Yes! Specifically, I love the sense of community and the "it is now acceptable to neep about writing all day" vibes of doing a challenge with others. I see it as a cooperative endeavor: "we're all in this together and all doing our best".
Setting goals is also motivating for me, but the community challenges are more engaging than when it's just me and my goals every month.
#WritersCoffeeClub 10: How do you handle the physical strain of writing?
I have a very comfortable setup (for me): I sit in a reclining loveseat, with my keyboard in my lap and my head about 3 feet from my two giant monitors. I seldom type more than I'm comfortable with in a day. When I was pushing during the #44DaysWriting challenge, I used dictation to get words without typing, but I find dictation an awkward way to compose and haven't continued it.
@vicorva did several of these this morning, which reminded me that I haven't in a while. So I'll catch up on the interesting ones now.
#WritersCoffeeClub 8: What female author has inspired you the most?
Diana Wynne Jones. Silver Scales was explicitly me going "I want to write a story like DWJ does, but with more emphasis on the romance."
#WritersCoffeeClub March 12: Happy Plant A Flower Day! What role does nature take in your stories?
Onumbrica is a pastoralist fantasy setting with a vaguely animist magic system, plagued by climate change. The secondary characters of my manuscript include a sapient forest, an invasive species of flower, and the Woman in the Moon. Every story I tell here is arguably about relationships between people and nature.
#WritersCoffeeClub 3/12: Happy Plant a Flower Day! What role does nature take in your stories?
So much. This is a story about how we fucked with ecosystems and now they're fucking us back. The natural landscape intrudes into every scene with unpredictable weather systems, invasive species, and harsh, expanding wild spaces.
#WritersCoffeeClub 12: Happy Plant A Flower Day! What role does nature take in your stories?
Nature plays a big role in the setting and feel of my stories. In The Old Goat and the Alien, Cosmorans live in harmony with nature. Their homes are natural and living, a part of the landscape. In stories like Non-Player Character and Space Dragons, exploring the natural world is a huge part of the story.
Even in the Tombtown series, nature (and the lack of it) defines the setting.
#WritersCoffeeClub 11: Do writing challenges spur your progress?
They do! They used to a lot more, though. Writing challenges are how I originally started actually finishing things, though they often led to burnout which wasn't helpful.
These days I have good habits and a writing challenge sometimes leads to me writing a bit more than I would. It's nice to write alongside others.
I've never been particularly competitive, though. Seeing someone else with a higher word count is not motivating.
#WritersCoffeeClub 10: How do you handle the physical strain of writing?
I don't! I am terrible about this. I need a better writing set-up. I have a crappy chair with no back support, the cheapest keyboard I could find, and nothing is at the right height.
This has led to a sore back, neck, and wrists. Thankfully nothing too dire yet but yeah.
I try to take breaks and stretch. I was better about it when my cat made me, though.
#WritersCoffeeClub 8: What female author has inspired you the most?
Probably Tamora Pierce. I read her Tortall books obsessively as a teenager and I definitely feel like you can see the influence of her style in mine.
Her Protector of the Small series is one I return to whenever I'm ill or particularly down, and I feel their influence particularly.
