365 Interviews

Interview 91: Sam_McGregor

1. Can you tell me something about yourself?

Arrg, open ended question! Here's a random fact about my life: when I was at school, the careers counsellor made us fill out a form that was supposed to help us pick out a job. It said 'I see myself as a ________ in a _________.' I wrote 'I see myself as a velociraptor in a death-fortress.'

2. What inspired you to write?

I've always loved words and language, and I used to retreat into my own fantasy worlds a lot as a kid. I think those two tendencies have probably been the main things that drove me to write (also to get distracted and bump into stuff a lot). I suspect a lot of Wattpad writers have the same kind of drive. We're all chasing that feeling that comes when all the disparate ideas in your head suddenly come together and start spilling onto the page.

3. One of main character commits a crime.  Describe how and why.

Regan, the main character of Darkness Girl, murders a lot of people...like...a lot more than I expected when I started writing. I think the only way she's able to get away with so many murders is the fact that the world she's in is fairly dark. I'm not sure how she'd get away with it if she was suddenly transported into our world. I feel like she'd probably be snapped up by some shadowy government agency.

4. If you could have any one of your characters become a real person, who would it be and what would you do?

A lot of the characters in Darkness Girl are outright evil, so I think for the good of everyone I probably wouldn't want to see them suddenly appearing in our world. If I had to make one of them real, I'd probably choose the caring medic of the group, Sarafina. She's a down-to-earth girl who just wants to see everyone get along. She has a lot on her mind caring for everyone around her though, so I'd probably take her to do something relaxing, like take her out to some kind of fancy tea-party with gold-rimmed china cups and little cakes on silver trays.

5. Is writing a hobby or career to you?

At the moment it's a hobby, but one day I'd hope for it to be a career. That said, as much as I wish I could put on a dressing gown and call it 'my work clothes', I think you need to do more than just write to be a good writer. The best writers are usually the ones who've had lots of different life experiences.

6. Do you want your stories to be published one day?

A THOUSAND TIMES YES! *ahem* I mean, I would love for my stories to be published one day. That would be unaccountably awesome.

7. What do you do when you aren't writing?

Between writing, working and attempting to keep up with all the stories I like on Wattpad, there never feels like enough time in the day. I recently started a podcast about writing called Unwritten Rules with Jack Heath, the author of Crossover and Ink Inc. Jack and I usually spend our time together talking about books and writing, so one day we decided to switch on a microphone and see what happened. I'm finding it a lot of fun, since I've never done anything like it before.

8. What is your main goal with writing books?

I want to tell stories about characters that are flawed in some way. I find flawless characters kind of boring, whereas a flawed character can constantly keep you guessing as to whether they're going to overcome their internal demons, or succumb to them. I think that's why I have such a soft spot for the main character of Darkness Girl; she has enough internal demons to fill an entire level of hell.

9. What books have most influenced your life most?

There are currently three books on my list of 'perfect books': The Spy Who Came in From the Cold by John Le Carre, Amsterdam by Ian McEwan and The Killer in the Rain by Raymond Chandler. They're completely different styles and genres, but they all have fantastic plots and use language in a way that show the authors' amazing skills as writers. I think all of them have influenced my writing style to some extent, which is one of the reasons I think it's important for writers to read as much and as widely as possible.