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YA AUTHOR INTERVIEW: An Interview with Helen Scheuerer - Australian YA Fantasy Author.

13/7/2018

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Welcome to Episode 4 of this blog series:


YA Authors in Conversation!



I am so pleased to be hosting #LoveOzYA fantasy indie author Helen Scheuerer today.

If you haven't got your hands on her excellent debut novel, Heart of Mist, it's truly worth a look. It was one of my top reads of 2017! The next novel in The Oremere Chronicles trilogy, Reign of Mist, is due out on the 13th of September 2018.

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I had the opportunity to ask Helen some questions about her work, so read on for our interview:


Helen Scheuerer Interview:
Questions asked by Poppy Nwosu.

When I read your YA fantasy, Heart of Mist, my absolute favourite aspect of your story was the heroine herself. I found Bleak to be a very interesting and complex character. I was also startled by what a mess she is, this girl is self-medicating with alcohol to suppress a powerful ability, and she finds no easy cure for her addiction either. Your book literally opens with Bleak suffering a major hangover, passed out in her own vomit on the street.
 
And yet..... I also found Bleak utterly likable and immediately I was rooting for her to succeed.
 
  • QUESTION: I wondered if you struggled with that fine line of wanting a character with very rough edges, but still wanting her to be likable, or did you not mind if readers found Bleak unlikeable?

HELEN SCHEUERER:
I didn’t set out to make Bleak likeable or unlikeable, she just developed naturally. I don’t mind at all if readers find her unlikeable, I often do! But hopefully she changes over time and reveals some redeeming qualities too...



  • QUESTION: Do you think it’s important for a protagonist to be likeable in YA novels?

​HELEN SCHEUERER:
The importance of likeable characters, particularly female characters, has actually been a recent topic of conversation in the YA community, about how everyone expects female characters to be likeable and accommodating…
 
It’s a great topic to explore, and I’m happy to say that Bleak certainly isn’t those things! She’s definitely got rough edges as you say, and makes some selfish choices. I think it’s important that we see flawed characters in YA novels - I want characters who make mistakes, who question their morals, who struggle with their imperfections. Whether these characters are likeable or not, is up to the reader, and the importance lies with them!



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  • QUESTION: Heart of Mist is set in a very rich and vast fantasy world, which I felt was expansive enough to make the reader feel like it existed for a long time before your story begins, having its own mythology and history. Is this something you set out to do, or did the world building occur naturally as you wrote the story?

​​HELEN SCHEUERER:
Thank you! I’m glad that’s the impression you got! For me, worldbuilding occurs layer by layer as I write, rewrite and edit the novel.
 
As I go through the drafting process, I work with what’s occurred naturally and develop it more and more from there.
 
The Upper Realm in Heart of Mist definitely has its own history and mythology, and we’ll get to know more of this in the books to come :)
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  • ​QUESTION: I am fascinated by the process of writing a second book within a series. Did you have any difficulty in continuing your plot across multiple novels, or in choosing how much information to repeat or recap at the start of book 2?

​HELEN SCHEUERER:
Thanks for such a great question! To be honest, writing a second book within a series was very new to me. The Oremere Chronicles is the first series I’ve gotten to such a developed point, so I definitely faced new challenges with it.
 
I had a lot of difficulty. There were certainly times where I felt I had backed myself into a corner in terms of a plot point or a character. Much of writing Book II, Reign of Mist, felt like I was constantly problem solving.



  • QUESTION: Have you read anything particular that has made you think differently about fiction or directly influenced your own writing journey?

​HELEN SCHEUERER:
​Hmmm… That’s a hard one. I suppose for the longest time, I was told I couldn’t make a living from being an author, that writing would always be hobby… When I saw one of my first royalty reports after the release Heart of Mist, it was the first time that I truly understood how wrong everyone was, that I could do this for a living.
 
That realisation allowed me to quit my part time job and start writing full-time, so it was pretty influential I’d say!
 
From there, I’ve read lots of indie author blogs and follow a number of indie author stories, these always keep me inspired, and have definitely changed the way I think about fiction writing and publishing.



  • QUESTION: Book II in The Oremere Chronicles, Reign of Mist, will be released September 2018, and obviously Book III will follow in 2019. Once this series is finalised, do you know what will come next for you?

​​HELEN SCHEUERER:
At the risk of sounding like a super planner, YES! I have a publication schedule that has me releasing books up until at least 2021 at this stage.
 
It’s both reassuring and terrifying at the same time! Lots of secret projects on the horizon!




Thanks so much for your time Helen, it was wonderful to have you on my blog!

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Helen Scheuerer is a YA fantasy author from Sydney, Australia. Heart of Mist is the first book in her high fantasy trilogy, The Oremere Chronicles. It explores themes of identity, belonging, loyalty, addiction, loss, and responsibility. 

​Connect with Helen Scheuerer:

  • ​Buy Heart of Mist -> https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07556VD4Y/
  • Add Heart of Mist on Goodreads -> https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/36128982-heart-of-mist
  • Add Reign of Mist on Goodreads -> https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/39216289-reign-of-mist
  • Website: http://helenscheuerer.com/
  • Heart of Mist Prequels: https://bit.ly/2GLxVdf
  • Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/helenscheuererauthor/
  • Twitter: https://twitter.com/HelenScheuerer
  • Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/helenscheuerer/
Helen is also the Founding Editor of Writer's Edit, a really wonderful resource for emerging writers. I can definitely recommend this site to anybody wanting to learn more about the craft of writing, editing, marketing, author platforms etc. I have found this site so helpful time and time again during my own writing journey. 
  • ​Writer's Edit: https://writersedit.com/

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​CHECK OUT PAST YA AUTHOR EPISODES:
  • ​Episode 3: Allayne Webster - READ
  • Episode 2: Penni Russon - READ
  • Episode 1: Karen Gregory - READ
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