We'd like to thank Fisher Amelie for stopping by and talking about Vain with us as well as her writing.
Do you recall how your interest in writing originated or did you always just know you wanted to be a writer?
I was born to write…I just didn’t realize it until my early twenties. I mean, I wrote almost every day, even as a very little girl but I never considered myself a writer. I would keep journal upon journal upon journal on subjects of nothing, poetry, random stories that struck my imagination and I felt were worthy enough to jot down. I did this for years and years before recognizing that I might actually have a future in it. I tucked all these journals away for a few years, went to school and became a copywriter. I continued to write every day but I wrote things I didn’t care for, for people I didn’t care for. One day I woke up and asked myself what I was doing. I’ve never looked back.
What inspired Vain?
Three years ago, my hubs and I were sitting on the couch like the lazy gits we are, flipping channels and we stumbled across this interview with Sam Childers, the Machine Gun Preacher. Not many know who he is but the impossibly yummy Gerard Butler portrayed him in the film of the same name. The film was…okay. LOL! Anyway, the interview was nothing short of devastating. It exposed Joseph Kony and the Lord's Resistance Army, their deeds and goals and we both walked away from it a little damaged.
Immediately after, we decided to give a little money to the organizations opposed to Kony and it appeased our consciences for a little while but the images of these broken and beaten children would stay in my mind. I knew not a lot of America was aware of who Kony was, not even the infamous "KONY 2012" video really put into words or images of just how terrible Kony is.
So, last year we began sponsoring a little boy and his family in a dangerous part of Uganda. His story would forever brand itself onto my heart and soul. He is the reason I will forever fight for Kony's capture. He is the reason I focus on Uganda. He is the reason I wrote this book.
Which came first for you, the characters or the plot?
Plot. My plots always come first but my characters follow close behind.
Is there anything you found particularly challenging when you were writing Vain?
I wrote this book with absolute zero inhibitions, which I’m ashamed to say I didn’t really do with the first three books. That was the most challenging part of Vain, writing without predetermined expectations. Before, I was easily influenced by what I thought my readers would want. Not that I’m not proud of my previous books. It’s just, I wrote Vain thinking no one would want to read it but I decided I didn’t care. I wrote what I wanted and made no apologies for it. I wrote it knowing I might not make a anything off it and that was also more difficult than I thought it was going to be because writing puts food on my table. It was rather a huge risk. It honestly shocks me that it’s my best seller.
If you could be one of your characters from Vain, who would you chose? Why?
I thought about this answer for awhile. I think I’d want to be Pembrook. He’s so funny and so interesting. There are so many things about him I’d like to discover further about him.
When writing Vain, was there anyone or anything specific that inspired the character Sophie?
No one specifically inspired Soph. She is a combination of every vile person I’ve ever met.
In your opinion what three words best describe Sophie?
Pre-Masego: Lost, unhappy, user.
Post-Masego: Found, Happy, Giver.
Quickies:
Coffee or Tea? Tea.
Milk chocolate or Dark? Milky milky cocoa puff.
Favorite novel and why? Pride & Prejudice by Jane Austen. One reason. Darcy.
(Mine too!)
Hard copy books or e-books? Why? E-books. I’m a techie. I’m a reader. E-books are, like, my kryptonite.
What kind of weather do you write best in? Cold, rainy.
Favorite author and why? Shelly Crane. I dig her writing style. I’ve never read a book she wrote that I didn’t love.
If you could turn one book or series into films, what would you pick and who would you cast as the main characters? Julie Kagawa’s The Iron Fey Series. I’d cast unknown actors in their roles. I like it when the actors who play my favorite characters aren’t tainted.
For more information about Fisher Amelie and her books check out the links below and a huge thank you to Fisher for stopping by!
Author Bio:
Fisher Amelie is the author of The Leaving Series, Callum & Harper and Thomas & January. She began her writing career as a copywriter for an internet marketing company wherein one of their client's said, 'Hey! You're funny. You should write books'. Which in turn she said, 'Hey, get out of here! This is the lady's restroom.' While washing her hands and the embarrassment from her face, she thought they may have had a valid point. So, she took the thousands of hours of writing stories growing up, tucked them into her pocket and began writing and writing and writing.
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