Welcome Back, Booklovers! You know I love chatting with authors on here. And I got to chat with Janelle McCurdy, a debut author who wrote the new middle grade fantasy series The Umbra Tales. And if you're a gamer make sure to check out her game reviews too!
I read that you started writing and querying at 16 years old. What inspired you to start your journey as an author so young? And was your family fully supportive of your decision?
I've always wanted to be an author, and nothing really inspired me to start early, I just knew at 16 I definitely wanted to be an author, so I just started working towards it. I worked part time, alongside going to school so I could afford to go to writers workshops and other events that would help me with my writing craft. It also helped me understand the process of becoming an author and what I needed to do to get there.
Thankfully, my family fully supported my career choice, which meant everything to me. My mum has been my rock throughout the whole process and I wouldn't have gotten to where I am today without her support. She’s been there throughout the ups and downs of this journey.
What inspired you to start writing The Umbra Tales series?
Two things actually inspired my Umbra Tales series.
The first and biggest one was through gaming, and the second came from my fascination with stars and the universe. I wanted to incorporate the things I loved together in one amazing book series, and so The Lightcasters was born and the trilogy began.
How do you keep all the facts straight about the world you’ve built in this series?
I have this thing called a Book Journal/Map, which is a huge document that has every single detail about my book world. It's like a digital scrapbook and makes it ten times easier for my editors and I to stay on top of things. I'd definitely be lost without it.
Have you gotten to see the reaction of Black British readers to your book?
Yes, and it's been amazing. I've gotten the chance to go to a few events so far and honestly it's been so much fun and so many children seem to enjoy my book. It really means a lot, especially when I hear so many children want to become authors too. I'm so excited for the new generation of Black British authors.
Is there a song that you think describes Mia?
Yes! "Barricades" by Hiroyuki Sawano, but Samuel Kim's "EPIC version". It's a song from Attack on Titan and captures the mood of Mia throughout my book. I've actually written a few scenes to this song too!
You describe yourself as a fully-fledged gamer. What are your favorite games?
Some of my favourite games are Tekken, Resident Evil 7, Black Ops 2, Outlast, A Plague Tale: Innocence, Yakuza: Like a Dragon, Tomb Raider: Legend, and of course all the Pokemon games.
Has your love of video games inspired your writing?
Definitely, especially for The Lightcasters. I wanted to write a book that could capture the essence and magic of gaming. I want my readers to love my characters like they would a character they play in a game. I want them to be invested in the journey and the adventure at the same time. A few games actually helped spark my original idea for The Lightcasters, such as Final Fantasy, Resident Evil 7, Tomb Raider and Pokémon.
Is there any IP you dream of writing for?
Yep! I'd LOVE to write for Tekken, Tomb Raider, Final Fantasy, Attack on Titan, Resident Evil (Especially about 7 and 8), Cyberpunk (Especially Edgerunners) and Doctor Who.
If you could travel anywhere in the world to host a book event where would you have it held?
100% Japan. It's my favourite country, I love the culture, the food and the language. It would be a dream to host a book event there.
Are you working on anything new you’re able to/want to shout out?
I'm currently working on Book 2 of the Umbra Tales series, which I'm really excited about!
I also write game reviews on my website too at Janellemccurdy.com!
Thank you so much for having me!
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