I was able to interview novice author Meg de Grant about some of her inspirations and thoughts on her writing. Ms. Grant will be publishing her book "Motville" sometime this year, along with "Glasgow" in early 2018. Since we were unable to meet in-person, I emailed her my list of questions, and she was nice enough to give me her time!

1. What is your inspiration for writing?

I’m not sure if I can pinpoint an exact inspiration for my writing. My drive for my writing, however, comes from having all of these stories swirling around inside my head and having an overwhelming need to get them down on paper. Writing helps me to relax and not having that opportunity can feel very stressful.

2. Are you working on anything new at the moment?

I’m currently working on a new series, called "Calypso." It’s very different than anything I’ve written, but I do think it’s my favorite so far. Book one will be released sometime in 2018. I also have a book on writing coming out at the end of the year that I’ve co-written with fellow author, Elizabeth Lynwood.

3. How many works have you published?

I’ve published five under a different name. I’m trying out new genres, though, and trying to keep everything separate.

4. Where do you get the courage to put yourself out there?

I feel that if I’m spending every moment of my days writing and working on stories, then it’s an awful waste of time and energy to keep it all to myself.

5. Do you ever doubt yourself?

Always. Every author does. I always doubt whether or not people will be interested in my stories and whether or not the plots are even interesting. I feel very confident in my character-creating and dialogue abilities, but I always second guess my plots an the events that I choose to include in them.

6. They say writing reveals more about the author. Do you agree?

I do. You can tell a lot about an author through the themes that pop up in their works. You can also tell a lot about an author through the things that are missing in their books — for instance, paternal figures are frequently absent in my novels because I was raised by a single mother.

7. How do you deal with criticism?

It’s a healthy part of growing as a writer, but you also have to remember there’s no pleasing everybody. Somebody is going to hate what you write, no matter how good it is.

8. What drives you to continue?

The love of writing.

9. Do you write for yourself or others?

Both. You cannot find success as an author if you only write for one.

10. What is the ideal work environment (like food, music, weather, etc.)?

8 a.m. on a rainy, fall day with a cup of coffee and morning light streaming in through the window. This is my dream job.

11. What is the best things to come out of your work?

Meeting the people I’ve met and having the opportunity to work for myself, anywhere in the world.

12. What is something you learned from your experiences?

Similar to the above, there’s no pleasing everybody. Wear your rejections and your hate mail as badges of honor. If someone sends you nasty notes about your work, then they felt strongly enough about it to spend that energy and, hell, they probably finished it, too.

13. What is something you never expected to learn?

That as much as I love working for myself, I love the opportunity to socialize with colleagues, which is something that’s absent from my work environment right now. I’m an introvert but apparently a very social one.

14. What social media can people find you on?

I’m on tumblr, and I do have a twitter, but I very rarely use it.

Read the first chapter of "Motville," and see why she will be the next big author!