Interviews

July 2020 - Interview with SoulFarAway

Hello beautiful people of Wattpad, and welcome to our July interview! My name is Rob, and today we have SoulFarAway , the author of the amazing novella, A Middle-Aged Writer's Daydream.

Rob: Hello, Fabiana, and welcome to the AdultFiction profile! First of all, can you tell us a little about yourself, about who you are? (What you're comfortable sharing, of course)

Fabiana: I am Brazilian, 35 years old, married and mother of a 9 years old boy. I've always been an avid reader but only recently I managed to dedicate myself to "methodically" writing — if I can say that. I'not a methodical person, maybe a little obsessive/compulsive, but never methodical. I like arts and music. Sometimes I draw something linked to my writings and I love to write listening to music, so I put a lot of soundtrack in my chapters.

Rob: That's really nice! And where did your love for books and writing come from?

Fabiana: My love for reading books came when I was 6. I was that kind of lonely child, who spends days reading or watching TV (laughs). The first book I read was about fairies. I don't remember the book itself, but it was the start for me to travel to my imagination with Fantasy stories. I read a lot of Neil Gaiman and Terry Pratchett then. When I turned to my teen years, I felt the urge to write about all those disturbing feelings I felt, so I started to write a diary, like therapy, but it was just a way to withdraw the feelings. I didn't get attached to those writings, I threw it all away a decade ago. The will to properly write a story is recent, and "A Middle-Aged Writer's Daydream" is the first story I finished. Writing was always a struggle for me, it doesn't come easy.

Rob: I understand. You wouldn't say, considering how natural your works look! What would you say was the hardest part about writing 'A Middle-Aged Writer's Daydream'?

Fabiana: "A Middle-Aged Writer's Daydream" was written for ONC so I guess the lack of time to write it was the worst thing. And the best thing too, 'cause I finished it, and entered an unthinkable rhythm that I still keep. It was a pleasure to write, despite the grammar issues. Writing in English was an even bigger challenge because I self-taught myself and my grammar still sucks, but I had a lot of help.

Rob: What inspires you to write?

Fabiana: I don't know. I have noticed that some themes are repeated in my stories. The main character always evolves and seeks to solve a personal problem, to overcome something. I think they end up helping me to redeem myself from my own problems. Yes, I think I write to redeem myself (laughs)

Rob: I see what you mean! Have you ever published, either traditionally or via self-publishing? If not, ever thought about doing so?

Fabiana: I never published anything, but being here at Wattpad switched something inside my brain. I discovered my talent and I want to improve writing skills and maybe finish a serious novel I started this year (in Portuguese) and find some editor to read it.

Rob: Best of luck to you for that! Can you tell us what's next for you? What are you working on now?

Fabiana: I'm currently writing three novels here at Wattpad, in Portuguese. One of them is already being translated to English. My goal is to have all books finished until the end of this year and, next year, I intend to have all books bilingual.

Rob: That's an amazing prospect! Thank you so much for taking the time for this interview.

And thank you all for joining us! You can read my review of Fabiana's story, A Middle-Aged Writer's Daydream in our Book of the Month!