Ednah Walters Interview Published on: 26, Sep 2017
Tell us a little bit about your life growing up and how you first got into writing. Were your parents supportive of your writing career?
I was born and spent my early childhood in Nairobi, Kenya (my country) before my father decided to open a clinic in a small town not far from my village after he quit his job at the national hospital in Nairobi. English is the official language in Kenya. That means all text books from kindergarten to college are in English and it is mandatory to speak English at school. My mother pushed early reading, and since I was the second last born and I had seven siblings, I got to read books they brought home from school (most Kenyans go to boarding school at age 13). By 13, I had read most romance books in our library (mainly Agatha Christie, Silhouette and Harlequin romances-we get most fiction books from England). By high school, I was reading my older brothers’ books too-Mario Puzo, Robert Ludlum, Robin Cook, Tom Clancy, to name a few. By the time they made movies based on these books, like Bourne, I’d read most of them. No, my parents didn’t know I’d become a writer. My father wanted me to be a doctor like him. I was always into sciences even though I was an avid reader. I did my O-levels (national exams determining which high schools you can attend) and went to a high school that focused on sciences. After A-levels (exams for high schoolers like ACT/SAT), I majored in chemistry, not biology/pre-med. After my undergrad, I came to the US to get my doctorate in organic chemistry with hopes of working for a petroleum company and transferring to the branch in Kenya (Exxon/Esso or Shell). Instead, I fell in love, finished my PhD, got married, and had my first born. While staying at home and going a little crazy (I don’t know how stay-at-home mothers do it), I started to write. First, I retold fairy tales but incidents before the stories we know—Cinderella before the Prince, Goldilocks Before the Three Bears, Rapunzel Before the Witch… And read them to my children. Then I moved on to what I loved to read—romance and here we are.
What is the worst day job/part-time job you ever held?I worked at a hardware store, where people would rent-to-own machines. I spent days helping them fill out forms. I lasted less than a month.
What kind of role does writing play in your life? Does writing relax you or put you in an energetic mood?I wirte full time, and honestly, writing is like reading or watching a movie. I see my characters doing things and hear dialogues, and I watch the words appear on my screen as I type. Just like the story unfold when I read or watch a movie, it does when I write. So, writing can be relaxing and energizing. It can also put me in a pissy mood because it depends on what my characters are going through or when I try to force them in a direction they don’t want to go.
Which of your characters was the most complex or difficult to write and why?Goddess Hel in Eirik’s trilogy. She is complex and I had to take her from being this vengeful, powerful, and “evil” female deity most people have read about and hated in comics and books, and slowly turn her into a loving mother who deeply cares for the good souls under her care, a loving wife with a loving husband, and a deity who instils loyalty in her soul reapers, yet still make her cold and calculating, unpredictable and powerful when it comes to her other duties. I always root for the underdog, and she is an underdog. She had a crappy childhood and a crappy mother, yet she triumphed and became a ruler of a realm. Like Elsa, the cold doesn’t bother her. Since I have a seed world in Kindle Worlds, I always find it funny when authors writing in my world (Runes Universe) want to portray Hel as evil and her reapers as evil. I either tell them to read Eirik’s trilogy first or just remind them that Hel is complex and her reapers love her. It doesn’t make them evil. She is a product of her upbringing and she has a prophesy to fulfil. Yes, she will fight the Asgardian gods and side with the fire giants and help destroy the world, but she is also a loving mother and wife. She protects the souls of those who’ve died of old age and illness, yet she trains souls of the criminals to fight alongside her in Ragnarok. I loved writing her character.
How many alternate endings do you normally consider when writing a book before finally deciding on one?Rarely do I have an alternative ending. I often have alternative beginnings though, LOL. I worry about not grabbing readers’ attention, the crucial moment in my characters’ lives, or giving too much info.
What was your favourite part about writing the Phantom Islanders series? Who was your inspiration for Lexi and the captain?Favorite part? Reading on mythologies out there and medieval lives. I loved discovering how a lot of mythological creatures are universal, which made having diverse characters easy. Honestly, I can’t say anyone inspired me to write Lexi or Storm. I just had this vision of a feisty girl who could have been from any race and this larger-than-life man who falls for her, yet wants her to thrive in his world.
If you were in Lexi's position, what would you have done differently?I would have stopped trying to escape and just told Storm to find my brother and bring him to the islands. I mean, her life wasn’t a bed of roses, and the only person she really loved and cared about was her brother (and her best friend).
Do you normally plan on writing a series ahead of time? Or is it something that you realize you have to do only after you start writing?With Phantom Islanders, I planned on writing a series. With Runes, I didn’t, until I was halfway through book 1. Then I realized I had more stories to tell. I had to know if Eirik and Cora were more than they seemed. And the more I read on Norse Mythology and witchcraft the more I realized how I could expand the series and bring in people from other cultures and ancient civilizations. And so the Runes universe expanded.
Who are some of your favourite novelists and how have they affected your writing?Like I said, I read a lot from a young age. My first books were historical romance: Agatha Christie, Janet Daily’s Shatter the Sky was my first contemporary romance book and I went on to read every book she wrote. Then I moved on Jude Deveraux, Judith McNaught, Catherine Coulter, Amanda Quick, Johanna Lindsey, all historical romances. On contemporary side, I love Nora Roberts’ work, Laura Blakely, Kayla Perrin, Deidre Savoy, Eboni Snoe, Brenda Jackson (my all-time favorite African-American romance author), and with on Paranormal, I love JR Ward, Nalini Singh, and Sherrilyn Kenyon. YA is a more recent genre and my favorite authors tend to be indie authors, who also happen to be my friends. Melissa Haag, Karen Lynch, Quinn Loftis, Raye Wagner, JL Weil, Stacey Marie Brown, Nikki Jefford, SJ West, Mary Ting, Jaymin Eve, Leia Stone, ST Bende… and that’s just the tip of the indie YA authors.
What inspired you to write the "Fated: A Mystic Academy" novella? Is writing a novella easier or harder than writing a normal book?Syn inspired me to write Fated and I plan to write a full length book. Syn is a Echo’s side kick throughout Runes series, yet I knew he was ancient Nubian/Egyptian. It was until I started writing his story and did research into his background that I realized I wanted more. Writing a novella is HARD. I originally wrote Fated for my Runes Universe, but decided not to include it because I want authors writing in my world to have access to Fated characters and Mystic Academy Series. Fated Souls (Syn and Lena’s story) will continue in 2018 as I move from Runes to Mystic Academy.
Have any of your children ever expressed any interest in writing? Do they read your books?My kids love to read and my youngest is a gifted writer. She wrote a book when she was nine and I’m still having it illustrated. The illustration is taking forever, but it will be released in 2018. She has amazing imagination and has started various books, but not completed any, except that first book. She’s 13 and is into writing fantasy. No, my kids don’t like to read my books. They prefer contemporary YA books. I promised my 15-year-old I’d write a contemporary YA series for her. She’s claimed I’d mess it up because I don’t understand her and therefore cannot do it justice. I invited her to edit chapter by chapter and contribute. We’ll see how it goes.
What are some of your hobbies?I love to travel and visit other countries. I do it with my family, but as they get older I plan to do it with my husband or my author friends at book signing and retreats.
What kind of research did you have to do for your Runes series? Why Norse mythology? And in what ways did you try and make this book different from other paranormal books in the market?I read a lot on origins of runes and on Norse mythology. Why Norse? I didn’t want to jump on Greek mythology bandwagon, which is popular and people knew about. And I didn’t want to do vampires and werewolves, which is/was popular. I remember listening to a professor from Germany give a lecture on his research findings when I was a first-year grad student and what he said stuck with me: you can either be the first or be the best to stand out. There are amazing authors out there, so being the best is an attainable goal. But any author could be the first if they are not following the trend. So I decided to be one of the first authors to focus on Norse-mythology, which was not very popular at the time and is still lagging begind Greek and Egyptian. And now, with Phantom Islanders, I’ve moved to Irish/Scottish/Celtic/Yoruban/Asia/SouthPacificIslanders mythologies.
Who designs your book covers?Cora Bignardi of Cora Designs. She is amazingly talented artist.
What do you think about book marketing and promotions on social media? Has AllAuthor been a positive experience so far and would you recommend it to your author friends?I hate marketing and promotion, but as an indie, I cannot ignore it. Yes, I love what AllAuthors does and I’m already talking to my author friends about it. Actually, my bestie, Melissa Haag, just signed up, LOL.
