R. Ann Humphries

Tell us about yourself and how many books you have written.
I live in Western North Carolina with my two mini weenie dogs, Smith and Wesson. I have a day job at a community college, but I’d much rather be at home reading, writing, watching TV, or playing video games. I’m a proud nerd – I can spew FullMetal Alchemist, Star Trek, Lord of the Rings, Final Fantasy, Harry Potter, Supernatural, or a thousand other quotes at the drop of a hat. I dream of visiting Ireland or Gallifrey, whichever one happens first.

When I’m not obsessed with some scifi/fantasy world, I bake bread (just bread, nothing else), work out, and bounce around a few feminist sites online. And I spend entirely too much time playing Candy Crush.

I’m currently working on my first trilogy, Book One of which has been published by 29 Palms Publishing.

What is the name of your latest book and what inspired it?
My latest (and first!) book is entitled Sedich : The Annals of Lusiartha. The first of a trilogy, it follows Rilan Crendu, a 16 year old slave, as he learns of his destiny to free his land from the tyrannical dictatorship that rules it. Sedich is a young adult fantasy story, on sale now in ebook form on Amazon.

I don’t know if Lusiartha had one specific inspiration, or just a bunch of things coming together at the right time. I’d always enjoyed writing (I used to write stories involving my Beanie Babies when I was little), so writing my own book seemed like a natural extension of reading so many. The first thing I came up with was the world itself – Lusiartha. I loved the idea of living in a world of islands, of traveling everywhere by boat . The landscape, I realized, would shape the economy of Lusiartha, and from there, the story just sort of coalesced. I’ve always had an interest in discrimination, on what it is that makes us split humanity into “us” and “them.” That passion crept into the story too.

Do you have any unusual writing habits?
Well, I don’t know if it’s classified as a habit or not, but I wrote the entire Lusiartha trilogy by hand before typing it up into Word. I’ve got four five-subject notebooks under my bed with the first draft in handwriting.

I also have a habit of talking to my characters. There’s nothing more frustrating than getting to a scene I was really looking forward to, only to realize that my characters won’t let the scene happen as I expected. I guess it’s both a joy and a curse having fully formed characters that can defy even my expectations. Or it could just be a sign of mental instability. 🙂

What authors, or books have influenced you?
There are so, so many. Most recently, the writings of Ursula K. Le Guin have been my passion. She brings such beauty to simplicity, and she writes stories of worlds that are simultaneously like and different from our own. She raises ordinary lives to the extraordinary, and tells her tales with such respect and grace. Everyone should read her books.

Having said that, it’s hard to write a list of every author that’s impacted me. My first reading addiction, as far as I can remember, was KA Applegate’s Animorphs series. As I grew up, I moved onto CS Lewis’s Chronicles of Narnia series, DJ MacHale’s Pendragon series, and, of course, JK Rowling’s Harry Potter series. My favorite book of all time is probably American Gods by Neil Gaiman. Or a Clockwork Orange by Anthony Burgess. Or Ender’s Game by Orson Scott Card. Seriously, having a favorite book is like having a favorite child. Don’t ask me that.

What are you working on now?
Books two and three of The Annals of Lusiartha are in the works now. I’m also working on spreading the word about Sedich, so feel free to help me out!

What is your best method or website when it comes to promoting your books?
You can find me on Twitter and Facebook, mostly. I check these several times every day. I’m on several other sites too (see below), but I’m sort of a social media newbie, so it might take me some time to master all those.

Do you have any advice for new authors?
Write. A lot. Every day. I used to worry about editing and publishing and marketing and all that stuff, but if you actually manage to eek out a coherent story without losing more than a week’s worth of sleep, then all the stuff that comes after it will be cake.

And don’t be too hard on yourself. A bad day of writing is better than a day of no writing.

What is the best advice you have ever heard?
Quit worrying about what other people think. Be much more concerned with what you think, and why.

What are you reading now?
I’m almost done with The Fault in Our Stars by John Green, which I probably should’ve listed up there under my favorite books. It. Is. Amazing.

I’m also reading Rachel Held Evans’ A Year of Biblical Womanhood. I read it with my devotions every night, which is the reason it’s taking me so long to read it. Evans’ sees Christianity with a refreshing eye, and writes very accessibly.

What’s next for you as a writer?
I’ve still got a lot of work to do with everything Lusiartha – marketing Book One, getting Books Two and Three ready for publication. I still write every day, of course, so maybe another book idea will coalesce one day soon.

If you were going to be stranded on a desert island and allowed to take 3 or 4 books with you what books would you bring?
The Fault in Our Stars – I haven’t finished it yet! It HAS to come with me!

Ender’s Game – Being inside Ender’s head is fascinating. He’s so analytical and passionate at the same time.

American Gods – I could re-read this book a thousand times and still see new symbolism and mythological references. Neil Gaiman brilliantly “updated” ancient mythology, which I wouldn’t even think was possible if I hadn’t read this book.

Author Websites and Profiles
R. Ann Humphries Website
R. Ann Humphries Amazon Profile

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