Author Interview: A Chat With P.C Cast

As a fan of P.C Cast’s House of Night series, I was delighted to be given the opportunity to collaborate with Pan Macmillan Australia and AusYABloggers to interview the lovely author and review her series Tales of a New World. The latest instalment, Wind Rider, has just been released in Australia on the 30th of October and while I’ve yet to catch up to this series and review them all, I’m super happy to be bringing you guys to an exclusive interview with P.C!

Goodreads Blurb for Wind Rider:

The third novel in the compelling ‘Tales of a New World’ series by New York Times bestselling author P. C. Cast.

Mari, Nik, and their newly formed Pack are being hunted. Thaddeus and the God of Death will stop at nothing until they are obliterated from the earth. But Mari and Nik have one goal: to reach the plains of the Wind Riders in order to band together to stop Thaddeus from destroying all that Mari and Nik hold dear.

But will the mysterious Wind Riders accept the Pack, or will Mari and Nik and their people be rejected by the mighty Riders and be forced to flee for their lives? And what happens when a rogue Lead Stallion gets too close to the Pack, rejecting all Wind Riders and turning to a stranger for companionship instead?

A CHAT WITH P.C. CAST

1. Hi P.C. Cast! Congratulations on another young adult series, unfortunately, coming to an end. How does it feel to finish off The Tales of a New World Series? Does the experience feel bittersweet to leave one world and start another?

The series isn’t over! There will be at least one more book.

The publisher, Pan Macmillan Australia, is also excited to confirm that there will at least one more book in the Tales of the New World series!

2. Did you know and plan out how the whole series would end at the start or did you slowly develop it?

I get an opening scene and a closing scene, and then I muddle my way through the middle of the proposal or outline knowing that no matter what I write then, it’ll change drastically by the time I get there when I actually start writing. So, even though I plot and outline my work is still very character driven.

3. For readers who haven’t read Moon Chosen yet, there are multiple point of views that we read from throughout this series. Which character’s point of view was your favourite to write from?

That changes in each book. In Moon Chosen Mari’s pov was my favourite to write. As I moved through Sun Warrior I still loved Mari, but I also very much enjoyed the evolution that was happening with Dead Eye and Dove. Antreas and Bast came into their own in Sun Warrior, and delving into the Lynx culture was cool. In Wind Rider River’s pov is my favourite in the entire book. I adore her. And her horse is my horse. (Yes, Anjo is my mare!)

4. Do you have a writing routine? Like a specific spot, snacks and other things you use when you’re writing?

Yep! I write at night. I start about 8:00 p.m. and usually write for 4-6 hours straight – until I’m approaching the end of a manuscript. Then I can’t stay away from the world and I write for long marathon stretches of 12+ hours. It’s exhausting and one of the coolest things in the world. Literally.

I always write on a tread-desk (yes, I walk and write – it’s a lot easier than it sounds), and I like to have pot of tea warming beside me. I have a home office and it’s a space filled with positivity, research books, crystals, candles, fantastic art, big whiteboards covered with notes, six dogs and a Maine coon.

5. Your world building is very complex and intricate. Do you have any tips for aspiring writers hoping to write YA Fantasy?

Thank you! I love world-building, and I believe that love is key to sound world building. I enjoy creating ecosystems that actually work. I adore extrapolating about mutations. What if humans could absorb chlorophyll like plants? What if we bonded on a genetic level with animals? I research and brainstorm – and call my dad. He taught biology, zoology, botany, and a bunch of other sciences for 40+ years and he loves to brainstorm what-ifs with me. So, my advice is to do what you love, and if you love to world build do your research.

6. What are the main differences in your writing process have you found, when you’re writing alone rather than with your daughter?

I love writing with Kristin! Let me be clear, though, about what we actually co-author. I write all of the House of Night books and Kristin is my front-line editor for that series. We have a new series releasing in February called The Dysasters, and that is a series we are actually co-authoring. It is a lot different than writing on my own. How we decide who writes what happens after we divide up the characters. Then when one of my characters is the focus of the chapter, that’s my chapter to write. Same thing with Kristin when one of her characters is the lead in the scene/chapter. So, that means Kristin and I have to work from an in-depth, chapter-by-chapter outline – which is hard as hell for me and I often “go rogue” (what Kristin calls it) and totally off the outline. But Kristin and I have worked together for a long time – thirteen years – so she trusts me. Just like I trust her to tell me if I’ve gone TOO rogue.

7. As readers, we know that books generally always include a little piece of the author or at least an author’s personal experience that inspired certain aspects. How much of yourself would you say you’ve written in this series? Is there a particular character who is very similar to you?

Well, the entire series was inspired by my relationship with my personal protection canine, Badger, and several of my other dogs are in it (waving at Cammyman), as well as my horse(s). My Maine coon, Xena Warrior Princess Cast, inspired the creation of Bast, the Lynx Companion featured in the series. So, while there are glimpses of me woven into several of the characters, my pets are really the stars!

8. What’s up next for you?

Right now I’m working on FORGOTTEN, book three in the House of Night Other World Series, as well as book two of The Dysasters, the new YA superhero multiverse Kristin and I, have co-authored. I’m also in the beginning stages of brainstorming my next YA series. I’m trying to choose between a plot that harkens back to my Celtic roots or something more contemporary…which do you guys prefer?

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I think that we can all agree that either a Celtic based book or a contemporary sound amazing! Personally, I love the sound of a Celtic based fantasy book but let’s see what P.C chooses in the end! I’m loving all the author interviews I’m able to do and it was amazing to be able to interview P.C.

Have you read any books from the Tales of the New World series? What did you think?

Until next time,

xx Tracy

Thank you to Pan Macmillan Australia and AusYABloggers for letting me have this awesome opportuntity! I’m so excited to read and review this wonderful series, in anticipation now for the next release which I assume will come out sometime in 2019. Thank you to P.C. Cast for also letting me interview her, it was great!