An Interview with Virginia McClain, author of “Blades Edge”

Virginia McClain is the author of Blades Edge and Rain on a Summer Afternoon. She loves hiking and outdoor activities. Before moving to Winnipeg with her husband and dog, she had lived (and survived an earthquake) in Japan. Her experiences from the amazing places she has been has led to inspiration for her writing.

Blades Edge is her new novel. “The Kisōshi, elite warriors with elemental powers, have served as the rulers and protectors of the people of Gensokai for more than a thousand years. Though it is believed throughout Gensokai that there is no such thing as a female Kisōshi, the Rōjū ruling council goes to great lengths to ensure that no one dares ask why.

Even as young girls, Mishi and Taka know that they risk severe punishment – or worse – if anyone were to discover their powers. This shared secret forms a deep bond between them until, taken from their orphanage home and separated, the two girls must learn to survive in a world where their very existence is a crime. Yet when the girls learn the dark secret of the Rōjū council, they discover that much more than their own survival is at stake.”

Hope you enjoy our exciting interview with Virginia McClain!

The Fountain: Thank you for taking this interview with me! I first just wanted to ask what inspired you to become a writer?

Virginia McClain: I’ve always had stories bouncing around in my head. I started reading very young, and my mother always read to me before that. I’ve always had a vivid imagination. As soon as I learned to write I started putting stories on paper. It wasn’t until I was about 13 though, that I had an English teacher who complimented my creative writing and told me she thought I had knack for it. She asked me if I’d ever considered becoming I writer. I hadn’t until she asked, but as soon as she asked I thought, “Yes. That’s what I want to do with my life. I want to make up stories and write them down.”

Fountain: Something I always like to ask, who are your favorite authors and what are some of your favorite books?

McClain: Well, it changes from day to day, but we’ll go with the following top three for right now:

Graceling by Kristin Cashore: Even though I didn’t read this until well after I’d written my first three novels it has greatly shaped how I think about writing and how I feel about YA literature, consequently it has played a large part in forming my revisions of those first three books. Reading Graceling was like finally finding the protagonist I had been searching for my entire childhood. I wish the book had existed when I was younger. It made me want to write books that could be that powerful. I don’t think I’ve done that yet, but it’s given me a wonderful goal and made me more thoughtful as a writer.

The Dark Elf Trilogy by RA Salvatore: There are a lot of books in the Dark Elf series, and I love most of them, but I’m specifically referring to Homeland, Exile, and Sojourn in this case. These books are such a splendid blend of action, fantasy, and moral dilemmas. Also, I read them in my teens and thus they were quite formative for my writing.The

Discworld Series by Terry Pratchett: I didn’t start reading these books until I was in college, but they have had a substantial impact on my writing. While not the most overt influence on my writing (though more obvious in some of my other books – including the book I hope to release later this year) Sir Pratchett’s glorious satire and so very human characters have had a substantial impact on how I write and how I think.

Fountain: You are an independent published author, how has that been? And do you have any advice for young writers out there who are thinking about doing the same thing?

McClain: It has advantages and disadvantages. Mostly, I love it. I love the freedom it gives me, the control over my own work, and the feeling of accomplishment. I hire people to do the bits that I can’t do well: cover art and design, editing, and most recently, marketing and promotion. That last one is something I tried to do on my own for a while, and it’s certainly possible for an author to do it alone, but it can be a bit overwhelming and I was finding it took away from time I should have been spending writing and revising my next book. I’ve only this week hired someone else to help me with it, and it’s already made a huge difference in my productivity. And it’s the marketing/promotional side of things that tends to be the biggest “downside” to independent publishing. It’s the part that I (and many other authors) find most difficult and least rewarding (in the short term).

My advice to anyone who wants to get into independent publishing is simple: before you publish, hire a professional editor. There are a lot of people publishing out there who are skipping this step and it’s making independent authors as a group look unprofessional. On an individual level, it will prevent your book from selling well. There’s a reason that traditionally published books go through many rounds of editing before they go to print; the author alone cannot catch all of their own mistakes, and a second, third and fourth set of eyes is completely necessary in order to make a book look professional. It’s always worth it. If you don’t have the funds (as I didn’t) run a crowdfunding campaign and raise them. Editing (and I mean professional editing, not just having your best friend/significant other/mom read it) is vital to a book’s survival.

Fountain: Now before, you wrote a collection of short stories called Rain on a Summers Afternoon. What made you want to change to the fantasy/sci-fi novel that Blades Edge is?

McClain: Actually, I write in a few genres normally. Rain on a Summer’s Afternoon is an eclectic collection of short stories that cover many genres, including fantasy, but also including, action/adventure and suspense. In the meantime, Blade’s Edge is fantasy-action/adventure, and the next book I’ll be releasing is urban fantasy-satire. I’m not a huge fan of sticking to one genre only, or even worrying about what genre a book is in. I write the stories that are meaningful to me, and they often find themselves stepping outside of genre norms. That’s ok with me.

Fountain: Your novel, Blades Edge, definitely has Japanese roots and you previously told me that you spent time in Japan. How did this influence your writing? Did you draw from your experiences at all?

McClain: As it happens, the idea started because, as I was living in Japan and spending a lot of time hiking to secluded mountain shrines and temples, I started to wonder what it would be like if all of the shinto spirits were actually real and able to influence the world. Then I started to wonder what magic would be like if it were based on certain zen meditation practices. Ultimately, the book became something very different than a simple answer to those questions, but it was how the initial spark for the story started. In addition, I stole a lot of inspiration from the Japanese landscape, and from feudal Japan. Of course Gensokai (the world in which Blade’s Edge takes place) is completely fictitious, but it’s inspired by Japan and feudal Japanese samurai culture. Living in Japan, having access to a lot of Japanese history even in the small and remote city I was living in, and having that cultural experience to draw from certainly helped me detail the imaginary world I created in my head.

Fountain: What are you currently working on? You said you have one you plan to release a novel in 2015. How is it coming along?

McClain: Gwendamned is the novel that I plan to release this year. It’s the urban fantasy – religious satire book I was referring to earlier. Here’s what I have for a short description so far: Simon Norwin is a preacher who hates his job. When Simon finds himself falling for a bartender named Gwen with a mysterious past and an unwelcome admirer, he finds himself quickly drawn into a world that both confounds and thrills him. But as the secrets of this world come to light, Simon realizes he may have gotten in way over his head. Will his feelings for Gwen save him or damn him? Is there a difference? It’s about 75% through its (hopefully) final revision. I’m also working on two new projects, though I’m going to have to settle on one of them and focus on it instead of jumping between the two soon. I like to have a new first draft to work on because it keeps me feeling motivated. First drafts are pure imagination. Rewrites are puzzle solving. They’re both fun, but they’re different kinds of fun and I find myself happiest when I have a little bit of both in my life.

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