Recap of Rules
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d) Read any of the author's books
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Today's author of the day is the ever-talented C.C Humphreys. C.C Humphreys is an author, an actor and a Swordsman. To his credit he has over ten books penned under his name. We are excited to have him here giving away a signed copy of his book Vendetta, the sequel to our featured book of the day,The Fetch (The Runestone Saga)
.
In the attic, in an old sea chest, secreted away, are a mysterious journal and a set of runes: 24 stones that will change Sky's life forever.When Sky and his cousin Kristin Find their Norwegian grandfather's runes, Sky feels like the wait is over, like he can now release the breath he wasn't even aware he'd been holding. But when he lays out the stone in a runecast they find in Sigurd's Journal, he is catapulted into a world filled with more possibilities and more danger than he ever imagined.
Interview with C.C Humphreys
Hello Chris,
Thanks for joining us,
So with a lot of writers in your family, what role does reading play in your life?
It’s very important. My books require a lot of research so I always have my nose in some non-fiction
book. I still prefer books to the internet, though I do use that as well. There’s something about a book
though, the depth of discussion, the small fact that turns into a plot point. I also love to read for
pleasure, and read across all the genres.
Do you ever read Young Adult books? If so who is your favorite YA author?
I do. My favourites are often older authors like Rosemary Sutcliff. I read to my son still – he’s eleven –
before bed, which I love. Been enjoying Anthony Horowitz lately.
If you could escape into any book, what book would it be?
Other than one of my own? My theory of writing is to write the book I most want to read so… I suppose
I’d most like to escape into a big adventure, lots of swashbuckling i.e. swordplay and dramatic duels.
Maybe ‘The Three Musketeers’.
What has been the best part of your writing career?
There are so many highs. One is definitely being able to travel for my research. I love to go if I can and I
have had amazing trips. One was to Romania to research my book about the real Dracula, ‘Vlad, The Last
Confession’. Another was to Istanbul for my siege novel, ‘A Place Called Armageddon’.
You have had such success with your adult titles, why did you start to write YA books?
I remember being a teenager and loving reading, the more adventurous – and dark! – the better. So I
wanted to get back into that state of mind. There are also some tales that just work better for teens –
the Runestone Saga is definitely that. Writing for the teenager I was – and still am!
Tell us about The Fetch and what makes it standout from other books in its genre?
I don’t know about standout, there are so many great books out there. But I don’t know many time
travel novels where the book changes when the hero goes back. Its usually: ‘Oh, here I am in 1066’.
Sky, in The Fetch, travels down his own family’s timeline to hear ‘the secrets that whisper in his
blood’. He enters the life of a Viking ancestor and the novel becomes a Viking novel for five
chapters. ‘Bjorn’ takes over. We know Sky’s in there experiencing all the rough stuff. But he
processes it later as himself. Later on, his cousin Kristin does the same.
Its also about my obsession with runes – Norse magical symbols. During the three books, Sky and
Kristin work their way through every rune – there are 24 – to reach their goal. Each symbol changes
their journey. Its fun as a writer to write your passions!
What motivated or inspired you to write The Fetch? Where did the idea come from?
My agent in London actually dropped the hint that she thought I’d write good YA. I then began
thinking of my own family, especially my grandfather who I didn’t really know but who I was meant
to be quite like. Which is not necessarily good as he was quite… spooky! His ‘double’ or
‘doppelganger’ - the other you we all have inside – could ‘go out’ i.e. travel beyond his body. I
wondered what would happen if someone learned to control that and did it for evil. Then there were
the runes, of course! I’d become a rune reader years before but hadn’t for some time. A chance to get
back to them.
Who is your favorite character in the series? Why?
I love all my characters. If I had to pick I’d probably say Tza, the wild shepherdess in Book Two,
‘Vendetta’. I wanted Sky to experience going into an ancestor who was female. Tza lives in 16th century
Corsica and is tough as leather, wields a slingshot, fights the slave traders and is a werewolf. It
was… cool!
What advice would you give to an aspiring writer?
Accept that it is a process – a journey, not a destination. Too many people give up because their first
draft is not as good as their fave author’s printed book! The first draft is not about good, its about
getting the story out. Keep going, check your critic at the door, and write write write!
Thank you so much for participating.
You are most welcome!
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