FAQ

Q. How do you pronounce “Faerie”?

A. It is pronounced “FAIR ee”. The word does have an alternate pronunciation, however, which sounds more exotic: “FAY uh ree”. I eventually decided to make the first pronunciation standard for my title because it is easier to say.

Q. Are your fairy tales original, or updated versions of old tales?

A. They are original stories. I have of course used character types and plot devices from traditional tales, but the stories themselves are new. Likewise, my conception of fays as roughly human-sized, intelligent, often beautiful, and dangerous comes from old beliefs and stories, but I have put my own spin on the details.

Q. Where do you get your ideas?

A. Wide reading, especially of other fairy tales, is very helpful, both for seeing the sort of things that work and do not work in stories, and for getting general ideas. Ideas for particular stories usually come to me either from settings I encounter that seem to be asking for a story, or from a combination of particular thoughts and observations that create a scene in my head. I then have to figure out where to go in that setting, or how to get to the moment or scene I have imagined.

Q. Are you writing another book?

A. Yes. I will make an official announcement when it is closer to being finished; for now, all I can say is that it will be another collection of fairy tales.