Hi everyone! I am back once again with another interview. This week, you can read my conversation with Rita A. Rubin, author of Amulet of Wishes.
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Talli: Okay! Hi! I like to start with a little intro just to get the ball rolling, so tell me a bit about you, about your book, and what's your biggest source of inspiration when you write?
Rita: Ok so I'm Rita, I live in Australia and grew up on the farms. I'm also a huge bookworm and can't go a day without reading something. My debut book, Amulet of Wishes is a YA fantasy about a society of people who can turn into dragons, called Guardians. In particular it focuses on a boy named Derek who's on a quest to undo his horrible past. One of my biggest sources of inspiration when I write would have to be music. Music really helps me figure out the sort of tone I want for a particular scene and makes it easier to see the story playing out in my head as if I were watching a movie.
Talli: Ooh yes I'm the same way!! If the vibes aren't right, I can't make the words happen. Do you have a favorite go-to playlist or album when you sit down to write, or does it depend on what you're writing?
Rita: It usually depends on what I'm writing but I do have a playlist that's mostly filled with soundtracks from movies and even videogames like Skyrim.
Talli: V nice!! Honestly videogame soundtracks can be perfect for writing fantasy. And speaking of our mutual genre, what makes you love writing fantasy? Is there a specific piece of media that made you be like, yes! I want to do this!
Rita: I can’t remember what started but I know I’ve just loved fantasy for as long as I can remember. Movies like Narnia and The Spiderwick Chronicles were my favourites when I was a kid. I don’t think there was any way I could’ve written something other than fantasy once I did start writing, I just love it too much.
Talli: Omg yes I loved those too!! Especially Narnia, ugh I watched those movies until I had them memorized <3
So Amulet of Wishes, to me, felt like a love letter to classic fantasy stories bursting with magic and adventure. What first sparked the idea for the book, and how did you decide it'd be a series rather than just one?
Rita: The idea for Amulet of Wishes first came to me when I was going through some things in my own life and I thought how good it would be if I could just make a wish so that none of this ever happened and everything just kind of went from there. I think I always wanted it to be a series because I had so much of the story to tell that I couldn’t possibly have fit into one book. Actually Chronicles of the Guardians was supposed to be 7 books instead of 4.
Talli: Ahh I can see why it's so special to you, then! And I think it's awesome that you got so much plot out of one single idea. SEVEN BOOKS, wow. Listen I'd read all of them xD
When did you decide that you wanted to publish Amulet of Wishes? And what has been the most surprising thing about your self-publishing experience?
Rita: I wanted to publish Amulet of Wishes pretty much as soon as I started working on it. It’s been a dream of mine to publish a book since I was a kid after all. And I think what surprised me the most about self-publishing is just how much interest there is in indie books. I know it’s not on the same level as traditionally published books but when I first went into self-publishing I honestly thought it was only going to be a small, select group of people that would even consider reading my book.
Talli: Omg same!! yeah!! I was so shocked at the community I found when I decided to self-publish. And honestly that's my favorite part about the whole thing, even if it doesn't help my impulsive book-buying habits heheh
So what's on the horizon for you? When can we expect the next installment of Chronicles of the Guardians?
Rita: Well other than writing and releasing the rest of the series, I’m also working on a bunch of short stories, where each one of focused one of the characters from Chronicles of the Guardians, I’m hoping to have the first one out next year. As for the next installment, I’d love to have it published next year too but I don’t know how likely that will be so I’m going to aim for a publication in 2023.
Talli: Ooh fantastic!!! I can't wait to see it all! :D
That's all the questions I've got for ya, but thank you so much for chatting!
Rita: Awesome! I had fun, so thanks for that!
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I read Amulet of Wishes fairly soon after it came out this past April, and I simply loved it! You can find the book here (and read my review here if you like!), follow Rita on Twitter, and check out her website for bonus Chronicles of the Guardians content!
Thank you all for reading! See you next week!
P.S. My book, The Oracle Stone, has its six month birthday on Sunday! Which means there's only a few days left to preorder the special edition 👀
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