R B Watkinson

Tell us about yourself and how many books you have written.
R B Watkinson was born in 1960 in the Netherlands of Dutch parents. She now lives on a smallholding in the wilds of west Devon, England. She is married, has raised three children, and wrangles a menagerie of animals. She held down many jobs over the years, some interesting, some not. The best job as far as she was concerned was working as an editorial secretary for a few well-tamed authors. Her favourite ‘work’, however, is writing.

After gaining a Diploma in Creative Writing at Oxford University in 2011, she gained the confidence to embark on a writing career. In March 2015, she signed a three book deal with Claret Press, London (www.claretpress.com) for the epic fantasy trilogy – The Wefan Weaves.

What is the name of your latest book and what inspired it?
The Cracked Amulet is my debut novel. It is the first of the trilogy: The Wefan Weaves. Reading about ley lines and Neolithic sites gave me the seed of an idea. I live between Bodmin Moor and Dartmoor, so I have opportunities galore to investigate many standing stones sites and the re-imagine the myths behind them and the Earth lines on which they stand. I imagined a girl who could see these lines of energy, and so began a story.

Do you have any unusual writing habits?
I write anywhere and everywhere on my laptop in notebooks – but I don’t think that’s terribly unusual. If nothing stops me from writing, like someone saying: Isn’t it dinner time?, then I will write for hours non-stop only to emerge back into reality, blinking my eyes to see its 3 or 4 in the morning. Or I’ll wake at 5 in the morning with ideas demanding attention and have to sneak downstairs for more writing. I imagine other writers might very well do that too.

What authors, or books have influenced you?
How long a list can I write? From Tolkien to Pratchett, from Hemmingway to Stephen King. Many different styles of prose and all genres have had some influence on my writing. I’m a great believer in reading widely – though my favoured genre is Fantasy – epic and dark, such as George R R Martin, Mark Lawrence, Patrick Rothfuss, J V Jones, and many, many more.

What are you working on now?
Book two of the Wefan Weaves trilogy. It’s called: The Fractured Monolith. In this I explore the idea of standing stones being portals that can open into a place between filled with the same energy as ley lines on Earth. The Wefan energy that is the source of magic in the world of Dumnon.

What is your best method or website when it comes to promoting your books?
Both Twitter and Facebook have served me well, but I am very new at this. My book only came out a week ago. Now I’m looking at book-lover websites, like Awedome Gang, book-blogger sites, and so on.

Do you have any advice for new authors?
Practice your writing every opportunity you get and read a lot. Don’t give up when submitting to agents or publishers. If you go the self-publishing route it pays to get an editor to check your manuscript.

What is the best advice you have ever heard?
Get the story down before you start editing.

What are you reading now?
Neil Gaiman’s Fragile Things, an excellent anthology. Before that I read his Neverwhere, which was amazing.

What’s next for you as a writer?
Being able to really concentrate on The Fractured Monolith, Book 2 of the Wefan Weaves trilogy because Book 1, The Cracked Amulet is off and selling well with any more need for promotion.

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?
Only 3 or 4, that’s awfully mean. J V Jones’ The Barbed Coil, George R R Martin’s The Winds of Winter (yes I know it’s not published yet, but still), Steven Erikson’s Reaper’s Gale, Guy Gavriel Kay’s Tigana and…oh damn.

Author Websites and Profiles
R B Watkinson Website
R B Watkinson Amazon Profile

R B Watkinson’s Social Media Links
Goodreads Profile
Facebook Profile
Twitter Account