I was lucky to get an interview with Em McDermott, the author of The Woods, one of this year’s #SPFBO9 entries.

Please, tell us a bit about yourself…
I write dark fantasy with dark romance elements. I live in upstate New York, where there are more trees than people. To get away from the few people there are, I built a cabin in the woods where I write surrounded by ferns and fairies. I am the mother of a thunder of backyard chicken-dragons, and I share my home with my wonderful polyamorous family—two loving partners and a metamour. Growing up in the fantasy worlds of my favorite novels put a permanent filter over my eyes and I’m always looking for the next exceptional adventure, both in real life and between the pages of the books I write. My hobbies include planning trips to the ocean, saying “You guys, stop, that fire is already big enough,” and accumulating bookcases.

Why should I buy your SPFBO9 entry?
In the original fairy tale version of Little Red Riding Hood, Red is a good girl who gets lured off the path by an evil wolf who wants to consume her. I loved turning these themes on their heads as I wrote The Woods. In my version, Gran is an axe-wielding badass, the Huntsmen are really just in the way, and Red has a curiosity about the wolves that turns into something more...

What got you into writing? And how long have you been doing it?
In elementary school, they asked us what we wanted to be when we grew up. It says “writer” below the picture in my yearbook that year. To be honest, I never seriously considered being anything else. That said, I bought into the whole ‘writers have angst’ thing, and I wrote for a long time without pursuing publishing. It’s only the last few years that I dove into the wonderful world of indies.

Have you participated in the SPFBO before and where did you hear about the competition?
This is my first year! I can’t remember where I first heard about SPFBO, but I remember that I immediately knew I wanted to enter. I read the winning books and added finalists to my TBR, and I’m excited to finally get to be a part of it myself.

Why did you choose to write fantasy?
Epic, women-driven fantasy was my first love. I cut my teeth on the Dragonriders of Pern, on Sara Douglass’ Axis trilogy, on Jaqueline Carey’s Kushiel series, and on Juliet Marillier’s beautiful folklore-based fantasies. In college, I studied ancient literature and mythology, finding the by-then-familiar hero’s journey in Beowulf and The Iliad. I dove into assignments comparing fairy tales from across the world. The beats and tropes of fantasy are curled up deep in my subconscious. I write and fantasy comes out. It was never a choice.

It also comes naturally to me to be a character writer. It’s people that fascinate me, and the fantasies that take hold of me and won’t let go are always ones that put a strong character and her journey at the center of the tale. When the familiar themes of fairy tales and ancient myths meet modern characters and new twists, that’s when things sizzle.

An evolution I’ve seen in my writing is a shift from noblebright to grimdark. In recent years, a lush darkness has leached into the worlds I create; I’ve leaned into the visceral and the violent.

Which other author has had the biggest influence on your writing?
There are so many. As a child, Roald Dahl’s imagination and rebellious characters inspired me. I wanted to be an Animorph. It would not be an overstatement to say that Anne McCaffrey saved my life and changed me forever. I’ve always felt that I was raised by these authors. They took a little girl’s hand and led her through portals made of words. The worlds they imagined were full of brave heroes and happy endings. Sometimes when I sit at my desk and look at the worn covers of the old books I keep on it, I know I’m really just trying to do for someone else what they did for me.

If you were to win the SPFBO, what impact do you think this would have on your writing career?
Getting eyes on my books is still a mountain I’m climbing, and winning SPFBO would be like having a lift appear right beside me. That said, SPFBO is great for visibility even for those who don’t win, so I’m grateful to be a part of it no matter how it shakes out. I expect that the most valuable gain I’ll experience from the competition is the friendships and personal connections formed with other authors, readers, and bloggers. The community I’ve become a part of just by entering is rich and thriving and amazing.

What challenges did you face during the writing or publishing process, and how did you overcome them?
I published my first novel about four years ago, and I naively thought that I would just put it out there and people would buy it. That was not, as it turned out, realistic. In publishing my second novel, The Woods, I knew I had to do things differently. I spent months prior to launch devouring books and lectures on indie publishing and marketing. I did the research to be sure my cover was going to appeal to my audience, I wrote the blurb and then rewrote it about fifty times, I muttered curses at keywords, I joined reader groups and author groups and accumulated a massive amount of knowledge to help myself level up as a professional. And I’m still learning.

Do you have any tips or an author app, tool, or resource that you can really recommend we try?
I write out of order and without an outline; I couldn’t keep track of my manuscripts without Scrivener. For other chaotic pantsers out there like me, I highly recommend it.

I also recommend the 20Booksto50k Facebook group for any author who wants to indie publish like a serious professional. They hold a yearly conference full of talks by industry professionals, and they’re available for free on YouTube. I’ve spent hundreds of hours watching them; I can honestly say I’d still be staring at zeroes on my KDP Dashboard and crying without the knowledge they offered me.

And now it's time to yank out your Palantir! Let’s talk about the future. What new projects are you working on?
My current WIP is as epic as it gets, with a sizzling dark romance sitting at the heart of a high political fantasy featuring dragons, magic, and monarchies threatened by the end of the world. The Prince's Raven is the first in a planned trilogy set in a lush, fleshed-out world full of imperfect characters. It’s perfect for fans of A Song of Ice and Fire and Kushiel’s Dart. In every chapter I write, I ask myself: How can I make my reader never want to leave this world? I cannot wait to get this one out there!

I also have a couple of short stories in anthologies that are releasing this summer. Dragonesque is an anthology featuring stories told entirely from the dragon’s point of view, while Merciless Mermaids tells the tales of dark mermaids and sea creatures who rise out of the depths. My own contribution is mythologically inspired, of course.

Apps that are based on artificial intelligence (AI), such as ChatGTP and Midjourney, along with apps aimed specifically at authors, have caused quite a stir. Do you expect these new technologies will make your life as a self-published author easier or harder, and do you expect that they’ll mean you’ll earn more or less?
I try (try!) not to think much on things I can’t control, and the evolution of AI is one of those things. It does seem there’s an ethical decision for each of us to make in regards to our own personal use of AI in our art and writing, and it’s one I’m still thinking on. As for the effect on my own career, one of my favorite things about indie publishing is the quick ability we indies have to pivot as market forces change. In fact, I think we exist because market forces opened up opportunities to get our stories out there without going through traditional publishers. So I have faith that we human creators will adapt to whatever future AI brings. (And hopefully that future doesn’t involve Morpheus.)

Do you have any dreams you’d like to share?
Yikes, if I tell you them all, you’ll think I’m greedy. I’m a big believer in dreams, in setting concrete goals, and in knowing what you stand for and what you want. My biggest priority is my family and I have dreams of the home we’re going to build together and the adventures we’ll share. I have a lot of goals for my career and milestones I’d like to achieve as an author.

On a grander scale, I mentioned earlier that the Dragonriders of Pern series saved my life when I was going through a hard time as a teen. Because of that, I’ve always known that I could make a difference by writing a story that does that for someone else. To that end, I seek to write the best book someone has ever read in their life. I seek to represent my values in my books—to portray diverse characters, queerness, polyamory and kinky dynamics in ways that aren’t stigmatizing. In the end, if one person feels like they have a friend because of a character in one of my books, I’ll call all the work a success.

Anything else you would like to say before we close?
Just a big thank you for offering me this interview.

Don’t mention it!

That was some interesting answers. I wish you the very best in the SPFBO. I hope a lot of readers discover your writing. Thanks for doing the interview.