Midnight Circus | CLN Interview Shop (CLOSED)

Marcafwrites

Hello, I'm Indigo and I'll be interviewing you on behalf of the Crazy Late Nighters Community. Before we begin, may I have your name/pen name and the pronouns you go by?

Mar Café, she/her

Sounds great! I understand your second-placing work Carpe Noctem has 21 parts to it, meaning you must be relatively close to finishing if you haven't already. What would you say inspired the concept of the plot?

It's been finished for over a year - it actually won a huge international contest last summer!

I wanted to create a historical fiction novel that actually read, stylistically, like a novel written in the 1890's. I would say the biggest inspiration for the plot was the question "What constitutes humanity?" Is there one clear cut, moral answer? Or are we dealing with countless shades of grey?

That sounds extremely interesting, and what a unique twist; in all historical-fiction novels that I have encountered, not once have I seen an author style their writing not only to portray a historical era, but to also read as if it had been written in a specific historical era. Historical fiction is most commonly associated with the paranormal genre, as with your novel Carpe Noctem. What is your favourite aspect of the paranormal genre?

I think my favourite aspect of paranormal is exploring the idea that it is usually HUMANS who are the least humane. Sometimes creatures of the night are the most in tune with what makes concepts such as freedom, peace, and love so worthwhile. I enjoy this role reversal.

That's a really interesting view and one that makes you wonder... who are the real villains? I'm sure your readers - myself included - haven't thought of this before, and your unique but compelling perspective seems to be one of the main reasons for your captivating work. Did real-life experiences help motivate or inspire features of your novel?

I'm autistic, so I always feel like I'm completely different from everyone who surrounds me. I'm that person who always feels completely alone in a crowd. In that respect, I do think my personal experiences have influenced my protagonist, Lucy, but as far as everything else goes (the plot, the love story, etcetera), it's all fiction - it has nothing to do with me as a person. My life has been extremely bland and is not novel worthy.

I'm autistic, too! I completely understand what you mean - we have a tendency to put a fresh spin on thoughts or situations, so this can make a huge difference while writing. The readers will be drawn in by our unique ideas, while we often feel alone or isolated in our thoughts. Lucy seems to reflect some of these qualities, and, as a reader, I enjoyed being able to relate and connect with her and the other characters. Which of your characters in Carpe Noctem do you think you can relate to most?

I think it's safe to say that I can relate to Lucy best. Of all the characters in Carpe Noctem, she is the most like me. She likes to get things done on her own because of her own intellect. She prizes knowledge and wisdom above all else, and although she doesn't have a great number of friends, those that she becomes close to she is fiercely loyal to.

I think there is a piece of me in every single one of the characters in the book, but most of the time it's something very specific and very subtle. I do see a lot of myself in Dr. Reed, as well.

I found I could relate well to Lucy, too. Speaking of which, if your novel were to be made into a movie, what actors would you like to play your characters?

Teresa Palmer as Lucy Penn
Michiel Huisman as Dr. Reed
Ben Barnes as Virgil
Thandie Newton as Evelyne Ives
Jaime Bell as Dr. Rosencrantz
lan McShane as Victor Wilhern
James McAvoy as Arthur Wilhern
Gary Oldman as Jaques Stoker.