Ask the Author: Mallory McCartney
Answered Questions (8)
Mallory McCartney
Hey Bex! :)
Some of the best advice I have received and would pass on to new or aspiring writers is- write the story you would want to read or see in the world, and writing is a marathon not a sprint.
Some of the best advice I have received and would pass on to new or aspiring writers is- write the story you would want to read or see in the world, and writing is a marathon not a sprint.
Mallory McCartney
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Mallory McCartney
Caitlyn, thank you so much! :) So, for the world building in Black Dawn, I started off with filling in notebooks with what I knew for sure. The first setting I pictured in Black Dawn was an undercover Rebellion site, that back in the day was also a government facility as a school for people with "abilities." From there I drew a map for myself, and blocked off different parts of the story line and from there the world grew into different kingdoms and borders in Kiero. In book one a lot of the setting takes place in the Academy (Rebellion site) and the Adair's Kingdom ( the Mad King.) This series is fun for me to write, it's in third person and each chapter rotates through my main characters so especially in book two I explore different cultures and places further in the world as each character's storyline develops :) I hope this answers your question!!
Mallory McCartney
I will apply this to both Black Dawn and Defiant. Black Dawn started when I was fourteen, and the original manuscript I wrote for my cousin's sixteenth birthday. Being my best friend, she was the first person to ever hear the ideas behind the book, and we would literally talk for hours about the world. For a long time I didn't revisit the story, but almost ten years later I was talking to my husband about it, and we pulled it out and I starting rewriting the story the next day. Two years later here we are, Black Dawn being brought to life. This story I hold super close to my heart, the idea behind this book born from years of endless dreaming with my two favorite people, Jess Kovacs and Matt McCartney, of other worlds, magic, some Irish mythology mixed in.
Defiant was more recently, last summer I was out walking our dachshunds Link and Lola on a balmy night with my husband. It was a weird night, with fog patches throughout the city, and created the most eerie atmosphere. Matt and I got talking about ghosts and supernatural happenings, and what we thought about the subject. In the middle of our conversation I got one name stuck in my mind and this was: Callaway Lark.
Defiant was born in that second, I couldn't get the story out of my head. The story I'm very excited to share with everyone, it involves Callaway Lark a psychic in a world where supernatural happenings and practices aren't accepted, or believed in. Without spoiling to much, I will leave it at that for right now :)
Defiant was more recently, last summer I was out walking our dachshunds Link and Lola on a balmy night with my husband. It was a weird night, with fog patches throughout the city, and created the most eerie atmosphere. Matt and I got talking about ghosts and supernatural happenings, and what we thought about the subject. In the middle of our conversation I got one name stuck in my mind and this was: Callaway Lark.
Defiant was born in that second, I couldn't get the story out of my head. The story I'm very excited to share with everyone, it involves Callaway Lark a psychic in a world where supernatural happenings and practices aren't accepted, or believed in. Without spoiling to much, I will leave it at that for right now :)
Mallory McCartney
Coffee, music and long walks but not necessarily in that order :) I find a lot of the time music helps me convey the overall emotion of a scene, or what a character is feeling. I'm passionate about music to begin with, so it definitely helps me get into the writing mood! My husband knows that when the headphones are on I'm not in this world ;) I have lists and notebooks filling my room with playlists for each book I have written so far. The amazing thing about writing is that as your characters grow and sometimes surprise you and dictate where the story goes, so at the end of the day I feel like I'm along for the ride as well, which is quite exhilarating.
Mallory McCartney
I'm currently working on a separate series from Black Dawn, and it is a YA Fantasy as well, with some paranormal themes. Queen to Ashes, the second book in the Black Dawn series is done, but you will all have to wait until early 2018 for that release ;) The first book in this new series is called Defiant, and you can expect it to be released later on in 2017.
Mallory McCartney
Aspiring writers, never give up!!! If you feel in your gut and in your heart your story needs to be put to page, then do it, and don't ever let anyone tell you differently. Surround yourself with your support group of family and friends and follow your dreams.
Mallory McCartney
The best thing about being a writer to me is being able to learn and grow along the way with your characters, and with the awesome book community! All writers start because they are passionate about their story, and as the story develops so does the author, each stage from the first draft, to going through the publishing stages, to the final product is watching your dream have life breathed into it. This for me, as I'm sure for many authors, is the most satisfying and elating experience.
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