A Little Something About Scarlett:
She goes by her pen name Scarlett, and her debut novel, Fairest, is a retelling of Snow White. She is a massive fan of the classic Grimm fairy tales. As a young Canadian writer, Scarlett always looked to weave a mystical and magical web of intrigue her stories. Scarlett enjoys kickboxing, jogging, and visiting eighteenth-century Gothic scenes to appease her muse's darker side when she is not writing. You can discover her linguistic adventures by following her on Instagram and Inkitt.
Questions and Answers:
1.What made you want to be an author?
For forever, I’ve always adored stitching words together. To write was a way to transcend speech, a medium of expression where there is time to find the perfect words. This is difficult when words are spoken aloud at the moment. But writing? It gave me the time to articulate my point clearly. As a perfectionist, I was hooked by this and decided becoming
an author was my future.
2.Typically, what was the timeframe it took you to write your books?
Generally, the timeframe it took me to complete Fairest and Deviant was around six to eight months, depending on how rigorous my academic schedule was at the time.
3.Are you a planner or pantser?
Although I create plans intended for future reference, I'm also impulsive and tend to go where the creativity wind blows, so to speak. So I’m a combination of both, depending on my mood and level of inspiration at a given moment.
4.What would you say is your unique writing style?
My poetic touch adds a unique depth to my writing style, where I focus on fleshing out the POV of a character to ensure readers can experience my protagonists’ thoughts and emotions alongside them. Also, I love mixing atmospheric details with thrilling twists.
5. Whether it be traditional, self, or storybook apps. How did you find the publishing process?
Personally, I traveled the self-publishing route. Though I found the process initially overwhelming, with the help of professionals, including my editor and cover designer, I navigated the path of publishing with genuine support. If things seem difficult for a while, I recommend taking a step back to clearly assess the situation before persevering forward.
6. How much of your process includes doing research into your subject matter or plot?
Depending on the genre of my book and the amount of knowledge I possess on the related subject matter, I would incorporate a certain
amount of research into my plot. For instance, Fairest is set in tsarist Russia, so I delved notably deep into history textbooks to fully understand the culture of that time—taking inspiration from the legendary Romanov dynasty.
7. How old were you when you first discovered your passion for writing?
As I’ve mentioned earlier, I’ve known I enjoy writing for quite some time, so I can say I first discovered my passion for writing early on in my childhood, at age seven or six.
8.When you’re not writing, what do you enjoy doing with your time?
When I’m not writing, I enjoy a variety of hobbies, including kickboxing, shopping, traveling, and reading.
9. Is your family supportive?
Unfortunately no, my family is not supportive of my writing, especially my parents. However, I’ve come to terms with this and found support through my friends and readers. I'm so fortunate to have this network of support, and I've really come to embrace the importance of the 'blood of the covenant'—if you catch my meaning.
10. What was one of the most surprising things you learned about yourself in creating your books (characters, location, plot)?
I know this question is most likely meant to inspire a poetic response describing a path of self-discovery. Still, honestly, the most surprising thing I’ve learned about myself in creating my books is how terribly commas hate me. I’m either missing a comma or have invited too many into a sentence; it's inevitable. That’s why I’m dedicated to my premium friendship with Grammarly, you see.
11. What is your favorite component of the genre you write?
Because I write in the wicked realm of dark fantasy, my favorite component of this genre is the escapism and surrealism it allows. It’s so addictive to be able to shrug off the veil of reality and create a fantasy world of whimsy and seduction. It invigorates me with a sense of independence: to do whatever I please with ink and letters even while still being a teen.
12. What advice would you give to help others become writers?
My advice to help others go through the rabbit hole of becoming writers (pardon my Alice in Wonderland reference, but I'm working on a new novel inspired by this masterpiece now) is to embrace their talent. Express yourself. Tuck away your periods for exclamation marks, embellish your characters with clues of yourself, deepen your plot with the shade of reality. Once you do this, there is a world of possibilities that you can create.
13. Do you hear from your readers much? What kinds of things do they say?
Yes, I’m fortunate enough to hear from my readers often through their Inkitt and Goodreads reviews and comments. They’re all fantastic and say such lovely things: all confection and nice with the spice of some much-appreciated constructive criticism.
14. Do you like to create books for your target audience?
Yes, I do. Next question, if you please?
15. What pulls you in about a book? Do you read a book based on the cover or the summary?
I will admit that a gorgeous cover will draw me to consider a book while a plain one will steer me away. As an artist myself, the font of a book’s cover title and the quality of the overall design all matter to me because I consider a cover to be a visual representation that should embody and foreshadow a book’s plot and main character. A cover and a book are too bound together for me to mentally separate, no matter how beautiful the prose is inside. In fact, I’ve found some of my favorite books that I’d initially read based on the covers alone, including Rose Blood by A.G. Howard and Nightshade.
16. How do you handle writer's block and what do you tell other aspiring authors who may be fighting or fearful about hitting that wall?
When battling the dreaded curse of writer’s block, I seek inspiration from elsewhere. Usually, nature and fashion are my muses, both helping to re-ignite and re-awaken my creativity. The advice I give other aspiring authors fighting to shatter the wall of writer’s block is no different—find a muse. Be it a person, a stranger, a place, a painter, any source of inspiration that can eliminate performance anxiety while enhancing the quality of your art is parfait.
Final Note:
I stumbled upon this fantastic writer on Inkitt and I instantly fell in love with her writing abilities. She writes full novels in such a poetic pentameter way - it's more like reading an opera or a lyrical prose than a novel. I so appreciate her unique writing style - I cannot wait to own a copy of Fairest. You would be hard pressed not to find her work somewhere.