Ask the Author: Alydia Rackham
Answered Questions (6)
Alydia Rackham
I'm not sure I've ever really had writer's block. And I think that's because I take one very important preventative measure: I outline. All the way to the end. Now, I don't go into excessive detail, but I do know what's going to happen in each chapter. So I just move through, point by point, as each event is accomplished. If I didn't have an outline and was just making it up as I went, I have no doubt I would be blocked often and my stories would be untidy. However, writer's block must not be confused with The Wall. Now, The Wall arrives during every novel about 3/4 of the way through, and it's equivalent to what happens to a marathon runner. And essentially--though you think to yourself that your story is boring, that it's lost its momentum, that something has gone wrong--it merely means that you are tired. The best thing to do is take a sort break, perhaps read something, go on a few long walks, and then forge ahead and finish. Early on, with the first couple novels, a new writer is inclined to think that there's a terrible flaw in the tale, but really, just rest is needed, and the realization that this happens every time, regardless of the story.
Alydia Rackham
I just read a quote about this! It's by Anais Nin: "We write to taste life twice." I think that's true. Also, the best thing about being a writer is being able to truly BE there, in the moment, when something emotional or incredible is happening, or when a character is just beginning to live, and speak on his own. I can't really describe it, but it's an entirely unique experience.
Alydia Rackham
Keep writing, and get your work out there however you can. Don't get stuck thinking that you have to be accepted by an agent or a major publishing house for your work to be read--that isn't how the world works anymore. Explore, be creative, be stubborn, and never give up.
Alydia Rackham
At the moment, my novel "Scales: A Fresh Telling of Beauty and the Beast" is being published serially on Patreon. People are enjoying it so far, and I am having a fun time reading their reactions as they happen chapter-by-chapter. It's a delightful story to write--the classic fairy tale is turned on its head, there are two old, magical women, and a surprising villain.
Alydia Rackham
Lately, it helps me a great deal if I know that readers are excitedly waiting for a story. Beyond that, I am eager to join in an adventure myself, and escape to someplace faraway, with interesting characters.
Alydia Rackham
Beauty and the Beast has always been my favorite fairy tale, but I have grown to love it so much more since I had the pleasure of playing Belle in a stage production of Disney’s version. I was fascinated by both of the main characters, the depth of the dynamic between them, and the concept of one person being able to see into another person—past the physical, past prejudices, past society’s perceptions—into a terribly guarded and wounded heart.
And the young man who played the Beast actually planted the seed of this very tale. One afternoon, after the production was finished, he jokingly (but wishfully) said to me “All right, let’s do the show again—but this time, you play the Beast.” My imagination caught on that idea. What would it be like if the “Beauty” was actually a young man, and the “Beast” was a princess, trapped by a wicked curse? From this inspiration, this story took root, budded and bloomed. He also allowed me the use of a certain, special name. And for those reasons, the new novel "Scales: A Fresh Telling of Beauty and the Beast" is dedicated to him.
And the young man who played the Beast actually planted the seed of this very tale. One afternoon, after the production was finished, he jokingly (but wishfully) said to me “All right, let’s do the show again—but this time, you play the Beast.” My imagination caught on that idea. What would it be like if the “Beauty” was actually a young man, and the “Beast” was a princess, trapped by a wicked curse? From this inspiration, this story took root, budded and bloomed. He also allowed me the use of a certain, special name. And for those reasons, the new novel "Scales: A Fresh Telling of Beauty and the Beast" is dedicated to him.
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