Hello, happy Friday and also Tortured Poets Department day to all those who are celebrating! Today, I have such a treat of an interview with fellow Swiftie and Amy, Amy Clarkin, to share and I hope you love reading it.
1. Hi fellow Amy, thanks so much for being here today! To start us off, can you describe What Walks These Halls/Who Watches This Place in 5 words?
Spooky, mysterious, secrets, found family (wow 5 words is hard!)
2. Your series are ghost stories, and very good ones, so I was wondering what you love most about writing this genre? (Or subgenre? Forgive me for being clueless lol)
*frantically googles whether ghost stories are a genre or subgenre* I’ve always been drawn to spooky things ever since I was a child, and I think ghosts in particular are so interesting to explore because there’s so many different ways to approach them. I mean there’s everything from Poltergeist to Meg Cabot’s Mediator series to Julie and the Phantoms to The Haunting of Hill House. There’s so much room to play with the stories, to approach them from different angles and use them as a way to delve into a lot of themes. I’m always drawn to writing a more horror perspective though – I think ghosts are a great way to explore the unknown, the things that scare us, and liminal spaces, as well as play with that ‘is this real or am I imagining things?’ aspect that’s often in Gothic fiction.
3. On a similar kind of theme, what are some of your favourite ghost stories, whether from folk tales or pop culture, or perhaps even a real life one you’ve experienced? Do you believe in ghosts for real?
I LOVE when people tell me their own real life encounters. I think there’s too many unexplainable stories to not believe in ghosts at all, but if you asked me to explain how I think they operate I wouldn’t be able to answer. I love how podcasts like Heart Starts Pounding do ghost stories from listeners and folktales too – it’s too hard to pick just one as my favourite, but it’s the stories that are people’s own experiences that I’m drawn to the most.
4. Also on the subject of ghosts, if you were able to host a dinner party with three famous historical figures/celebrities who have passed, who would you choose?
Oooh ok so I think Anne Boleyn, Grainne Mhaol (also known as Grace O’Malley, the Irish Pirate Queen) and Andre Braugher. A possibly chaotic combination but it would be such an interesting evening!
5. As I know you’re a huge taylor swift fan, I was wondering if you could maybe pick a song from her to best describe each of your main characters at PSI?
Oooh I love this question!Ok so in What Walks These Halls it would be:
Raven – Back to December
Éabha – Mirrorball
Archer – All You Had to Do Was Stay
Then in Who Watches This Place:
Fionn – The Outside
Davis – Treacherous
6. The book is so atmospheric, and Hyacinth House is a fantastic setting. What are some settings in books, whether utterly terrifying or entirely different to yours, that you really love?
I am a huge fan of Erin Morgenstern’s books, The Night Circus and The Starless Sea, and they are also some of my favourite settings. The longing I have to visit those places is honestly unparalleled. The Night Circus is a magical circus, and The Starless Sea is an underground library filled with magic and stories and the stunningly evocative way Morgenstern describes them makes you feel like you’re there. You can practically see and hear and smell and feel everything the characters are experiencing. I’ve never been so devastated a place is fictional as I am about these places!
7. You’re very open about the fact you have a chronic condition, and there’s some disability rep in the PSI series too. As a disabled writer who wants to start taking it more seriously this year, do you have any wisdom to pass on about entering the publishing industry/ how to balance writing with being unwell?
I think the key thing (and hardest if you’re anything like me!) is to only compare your productivity levels to yourself. I’m terrible for looking at other writers and going ‘I should be doing more’ but the reality is I’m doing as much as I can. And that isn’t as much as typically healthy writers, and probably never will be. Even among disabled writers we all have different capacities. So focusing on what you can do with where your health is at right now is so important. Also being upfront with publishers/agents etc about your capacities and staying firm about what is realistic for you – being a writer is such a gift but it’s not worth destroying your health over (again, something I’m better at saying than doing, even though my publisher is incredibly supportive and understanding!).
8. Also on the theme of writing, what’s your writing routine like? Do you have any unusual habits or quirks?
I am obsessed with scented candles, so I think having a candle burning while I write is a comfort. I also get very obsessed with one composer per book and listen to them on repeat – I find songs with lyrics can distract me when writing but I don’t want silence, so I listen to composers and video game scores most of the time (though I have playlists with songs with lyrics to get me into the headspace of characters).
I function best in the mornings so I generally have breakfast, make a coffee and sit down at my desk for a few hours of writing. If I’m feeling OK I’ll do a few more hours in the afternoon, or if the brain fog is kicking in I’ll rest, it all depends on how my condition is fluctuating that day. If I’m close to deadline I’ll push myself, but when I’m drafting I try to avoid boom and bust cycles of overdoing it and listen to my body, even when it’s frustrating!
9. Finally, I’d love to hear about what’s coming next from you! Is another sequel on the cards, or something new altogether?
Either way, I absolutely can’t wait to read. I would love to keep writing PSI investigations, so fingers crossed for that! I’m also researching my first adult book, which is a new challenge I’m excited to start.
QUICKFIRE
Your personal favourite Taylor Swift song?
Wait you want me to pick ONE?! Honestly it changes completely based on my mood, but New Year’s Day, Long Live (TV) and Champagne Problems have special places in my heart.
TV character you think you’re most like? The existential crisis I had over this question! I outsourced it because I just couldn’t answer and I’ve been told Willow (especially early seasons Willow) from Buffy which I will 100% accept!
Cause I see them all the time on your insta, favourite candle scent?
In Autumn/Winter, Hecate by Cailleach Candles (It’s spiced apple and bay) and in Spring/Summer its Green Witch by Cailleach Candles (Lemongrass and lime).
Top 3 books of 2023?
Imogen Obviously by Becky Albertelli
Yellowface by R F Kuang
Daughter of Winter and Twilight by Helen Corcoran
Top 3 books you’re excited for in 2024?
Then Things Went Dark by Bea Fitzgerald
Into the Witchwood by Méabh McDonnell
The Undead Complex by Courtney Smyth
Thank you so much for reading! Have you read What Walks These Halls, and are you planning to read Who Watches This Place? What’s your favourite Taylor Swift song? Are you enjoying Tortured Poets Department? I’d love to chat in the comments!
Amy xx
Golden Books Girl 