CYOAI is an interview series with authors, where I send them 10 random questions, and ask them to answer whichever they feel inspired to tackle. The questions are generally about the author's opinions and personal experiences, but are meant to be light-hearted and a window into a person's creative nature.
This month's interview features Lyndsay Faye, author of Dust and Shadow and Gods of Gotham! A big thank you to Lyndsay for humouring me in answering my questions! Let's see what Lyndsay's answers were!
What's your first book-related memory?
Hmmm. I don't have one. I was never not reading, really. My parents were obsessed with great storytelling and read to me all the time, and I started reading very early, before I can quite remember it--I was extremely lucky to have a pair of book lovers for parents. That and FYI, I have a memory like a steel sieve. I do know that before I could read, I'd correct my mom when she tried to skip paragraphs in bedtime stories. I was an obnoxious little animal.
What's one word or turn of phrase that you've felt compelled to work into your writing?
There's a lot of a language called "flash patter" in the Timothy Wilde novels, and in the new one, Seven for a Secret, I absolutely could not stop myself from including an interlude about what the word "O.K." actually means (it's an acronym). Tim and Val Wilde, who patter flash, comprehend its meaning and their friend Mr. Piest has to ask what on earth O.K. signifies (the word was coined as a joke in 1838).
What book by another author do you wish you had written?
I wish I had written plenty of books I didn't write, believe me. Some are classics, some are modern. Let's make it easy on me and say The Big Sleep by Raymond Chandler.
Where do you find inspiration for your writing?
Honestly? Everywhere. My feelings and struggles. Historical feelings and struggles. The struggles of my family and friends. The struggles of characters I love. I find inspiration in...struggles, I have just discovered. Emotional, physical, economic, racial, intellectual. Thank you for enlightening me.
Do you reread books? If so, which ones?
I've read the Sherlock Holmes mysteries a thousand times, and I'll keep reading them until I'm dead. When I was younger and had the time, I did the same with The Lord of the Rings trilogy, but now I have to read new things constantly, which is a joy, so my Tolkien re-reads have fallen largely by the wayside.
If you weren't a writer, what would you do as a profession?
I'd probably still be a waitress trying to be an actress. I was even successful at times.
What's your opinion on Shakespeare?
There are subtle little Shakespeare breadcrumbs all throughout my books. For instance, at one point in The Gods of Gotham, someone calls out in the darkness asking whether it's Timothy Wilde and Tim says, "Something like him," which echoes Horatio (one of my favorite characters) at the beginning of Hamlet. I learned from Shakespeare that characters with wild, operatic emotions can stand the test of time if their feelings are genuine. I suppose that likely answers your question, doesn't it?
Use the word 'slurry' in a sentence.
The snow tumbled to the streets of New York City
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