Dreams and Dragons: A Twist of Rapunzel Blog Tour: Interview with Kirsten Fichter

Hey'a, everyone! It's a two-post, two-tour week; today we're back with the Twist of Rapunzel double release tour! This tour features Kendra E. Ardnek's Misfortune and Kirsten Fichter's Diamond. And for today, we have an exclusive interview with one of the main characters of Misfortune, the Daughter of Blood and Misfortune. (Yeah, it's a mouthful.) in addition, we'll have another interview with Kirsten Fichter here this coming Tuesday, and you can find my thoughts on Misfortune over on Light and Shadows. So make sure you check out all of those — after the interview.

About . . .

The Book

Once Upon a Twist #3

Diamond leads a quiet life with the woman she calls Mother. There isn’t much to pass the time save for excursions in the forest and one-sided conversations with her pet rabbit, Hobie. Men are cruel beings who care only for themselves and must be avoided at any cost. After all, Diamond’s own father gambled her away once. What other terrible fates might await her if people knew she existed?

Seth Stendahl is an alchemist with a middling proficiency in the Rohesian tongue. After growing up with and surviving six sisters, there shouldn’t be anything too difficult for him to master – except maybe breaking his leg and being locked in the top of a ruined watchtower.

This is Rapunzel with a twist like you’ve never seen it before.

Find it online at: Amazon || Goodreads

Explore the rest of the series: Goodreads

The Author

Kirsten Fichter is a twenty-something Christian writer who loves being the wife to her favorite person ever, mommy to two precious blessings, a piano enthusiast, a dragon buff, a serious bookworm, and an INFP synesthete. Fairytales have always fascinated her, and she has made it her goal to rewrite as many as possible and become known as the “Grimm Dickens” (i.e. mixing Grimm fairytales with a Dickens style). Diamond: A Rapunzel Story is her third published fairytale retelling. You can find out more about her on her blog, A Synesthete Writer.

Find her online at: Blog || Goodreads || Facebook || Twitter || Instagram || Amazon

Interview With Kirsten Fichter

1. Hello, Kirsten! Welcome to the blog! To start out, can you tell us a little about yourself? Who you are, favorite hobbies (other than writing), favorite books (outside your own), coffee or tea?
Hello, and thank you so much for having me! I grew up the second of six homeschooled siblings, but I am now married to my best friend who’s currently working on his PhD in theology; I’ll be a doctor’s wife in a few years! *winks* Most of my time is taken up being mommy to two precious kiddos, a 2-year-old daughter and a 7-month-old son. I love all things dragons, I enjoy playing the piano, and I’ve memorized just about every Disney song out there. I’m a big fan of Kit-Kats, and I take a little coffee with my creamer, thankyouverymuch.

When it comes to books… Charles Dickens and J.R.R. Tolkien are without a doubt my favorite authors; I love big, thick, juicy books that REALLY explore worlds and characters. I love reading and I’m addicted to second-hand books. It’s hard to say “no” in thrift stores when you find amazing stories for $3 or less! Thus, I do not have enough bookshelves to house my collection.

2. Ha! I have that problem too! Now, looking at your book: what originally inspired Diamond, and what additional inspiration did you find in the process of writing the book?
Rapunzel has long been a favorite fairytale of mine, so I always knew I was going to retell it. While I was working on Spindle Dreams (book #2 of my series), a missing child kept popping up in my head, and I knew she was the key to unlocking a villain for both books. And then came the age-old question: WHY? Why was this child missing? Who was she? What would happen if she wasn’t the one in the tower? From there, ideas just catapulted out of control.

My additional inspiration came right at the end of my planning/beginning writing stages – I found political tensions that were not quite resolved from the previous book that needed attention. I was not planning on politics showing up in this book, but the tensions soon became pretty crucial for the plot. And then one of my characters showed up with an interest in alchemy after I’d binged on Disney’s Tangled and the succeeding TV series – and so alchemy became a big part of the book as well.

3. Cool! Rapunzel is one of my faves as well, and I keep thinking that I should check out the Tangled show. Beyond just inspiration, what challenges did you deal with in writing this book, and how did you overcome them?
One of my biggest problems with this book was getting into Diamond’s head and character. I am big on writing dialogue and arguments when it comes to discovering characters, but Diamond doesn’t have a lot of people that she can talk to. Thus, I had to learn who Diamond was by simply watching what she did, rather than listening to her talk. And let me tell you, that was rough. I tried to focus on her thoughts, trying to discover why she did what she did, while at the same time bringing her to life and making her seem real for the readers.

4. That definitely is a major challenge. However, advice is often a way we can get past challenges. What's the most unusual or unique piece of writing advice you've ever received?
My dad always told me, “Don’t fall in love with your own writing.” Even though I enjoy the books and adventures I put together, I always need to remember that a writer is always learning. There is always room to improve. No draft will ever be absolutely perfect, but you can’t let that stop you. Keep looking for ways to better your writing and keep practicing.

5. That really is good advice! Now, for a fun question: if the main characters of your book suddenly came to life in your living room, what would they do, and how would you react?
First off, I’d be super flabbergasted and really not know what to do for a few minutes. Then, I’d probably offer everyone coffee or water or tea. And then sit awkwardly trying to think up things to say to them. That may sound odd, but I’m a true introvert, and if it’s not writing, I struggle with words. *shrugs* I can see most of the characters trying to weasel my plans for their futures out of me, and they would probably not be pleased with my answers – not that I would want to tell them everything, of course.

6. Ha, yeah. That is true. What is your favorite place in which to write? (Physically, I mean, not in the story.)
I struggle with writing around people. I get way too distracted, so I typically retreat to my bedroom for solitude. I’ve done a lot of writing straight from my own bed. Ideally, I’d love to camp out on the porch and write outside, but I get distracted with birds, and the wind, and… pretty much everything. Finding good time to write has become problematic in the last few years since I have two kids, so I’ve learned to use naptime to its fullest potential.

7. I can imagine that would be a challenge. What do you plan to work on next? What can we expect to see from you in the future?
I’d love to have the next few books in this series out within the next few years, and I’m really excited about where these characters are taking me! I’m excited to announce that I’ll be retelling Snow White and Rose Red for the next book, and we’ll be following Diamond’s adventures for a bit longer. I have several other retellings plotted for the series, but I’m not able yet to pin down where each book will fall in my overall timeline. One day, I’m hoping to break into the traditional publishing world with some thick books that will do Tolkien and Dickens proud.

Thank you so much for having me! This interview was a lot of fun!

What do you think of the Daughter of Blood and Misfortune? Are you intrigued? Please tell me in the comments! And don't forget
Thanks for reading!
-Sarah (Leilani Sunblade)