Interview with fantasy author A.E. Bennett

Today’s special guest author is A.E. Bennett and we’re chatting about her new fantasy novel, Gathering of the Four: Book One of the Serrulata Saga.

To be entered for a chance to win an autographed hardback copy of the novel, click here. Contest is open until February 27, 2022.

Bio:
A.E. Bennett lives in Washington, D.C. She’s originally from North Carolina.

 

Welcome, A.E. Please tell us about your current release.
“In the Realm, every citizen knows their place.”

Leora of Mae is a young woman orphaned at birth and raised on a remote farm. As a wielder of Xanthcraft, her abilities set her apart from her adoptive family and the other villagers.

Shortly before her twentieth birthday, she learns of her family’s plot to sell her into servitude. Fearing for her life, she flees from the only home she’s ever known—defying societal conventions and breaking the edicts of the Realm.

As she runs, Leora meets Roland Shallowbrook, a traveler on the Thieves’ Road; Lady Aurora Verte, daughter of a powerful member of the gentry; and the White Rider Leopold, a soldier with a secret.

Together, this found family will have to band together to survive.

Set in the distant future during the return of the Hale-Bopp comet, Gathering of the Four is the first book in The Serrulata Saga.

What inspired you to write this book?
I was fascinated by space as a kid. In middle school, I started exploring science fiction and was introduced to authors like Ursula K. LeGuin. In 1997, the Hale-Bopp comet arrived and I was obsessed. After reading a lot about the comet and what life on Earth was like when it last came around, I started thinking about the future. What would the world look like 2,000 or so years from now? So, fifteen-year-old me sat down and wrote the first version of what would become Gathering of the Four.

 

Excerpt from Gathering of the Four:
Two things happened at the beginning of the 330th year of the Realm: a brilliant comet with two tails—one yellow and one blue—appeared in the sky, and the sovereign of the Realm died.

Neither of these events directly affected Leora of Mae, but she couldn’t help but tilt her gaze upward at the mysterious celestial body that was visible even during daylight. She made her way toward the run-down cabin she called home, struggling as she slogged a full bucket of water in both of her chapped hands.

“You stupid, stupid girl! Quit dawdling and get over here!”

She heard the voice before she saw the woman, which was usually the case. It was a voice that grated and was attached to a body that could swing a wooden spoon like a mace.

“You foolish little twit! For the last time—”

Leora approached her adoptive mother, panting and shivering. It was the beginning of Third Month, and snow still dusted the hard ground. Her trousers, cast-offs from the donation bin in the village, were slightly too long for her short legs, and she nearly tripped on the hems. They were saturated from the knee down and clung to her thin, toned legs. She looked up at the woman standing in the doorway of the cottage and grimaced.

“Coming, Liza!” she called.

The woman harrumphed with contempt. She spat into the dirt and sneered. “What took you so long to get water?”

Leora’s shoulder slumped, weighed down by the large bucket she struggled to carry. She kept her gaze on the ground. “I fell coming back the first time.”

“Stupid and careless.” Her adoptive brother, Preston, poked his head out from behind his mother’s skirts and stuck his tongue out at her.

Leora was careful to not betray her desire to reach out and smack the child right across his sour face. She slinked by the pair standing in the doorway, her worn boots clomping on the dirt floor of the cabin as she entered. She minded her steps with the utmost caution, knowing that one of the boy’s favorite pastimes involved sabotaging her work. This, of course, included tripping her when she was carrying the bucket. The cabin was not well heated by any means, but it was warmer than being outdoors, and Leora rubbed her hands on her arms after she set the full bucket down by the stove.

“Wonder where your father is. How long could it take to help a neighbor repair a hole in a roof?” Leora’s adoptive mother spoke to her son, purposefully acting as though Leora wasn’t there. Preston plopped his skinny arms onto the table and hoisted himself into an adult-sized chair that was too big for him. At ten years of age, he was much too large for the tiny chair his father had fashioned for him when he had been a toddler, but he was also still too small for the adult-sized furniture within the cabin.

 

What exciting story are you working on next?
Book Two of this series! I am currently gathering beta reader feedback and will start editing the sequel to Gathering of the Four this spring. If all goes according to plan, it should be ready for a fall release. Readers who want regular updates should sign up for my monthly newsletter.

When did you first consider yourself a writer?
I’ve been creating stories for as long as I’ve been able to hold a writing tool. I’m pretty sure my parents still have drawings I did in kindergarten somewhere in their basement. Writing is something I’ve always enjoyed and I don’t think I’m ever going to stop!

Do you write full-time? If so, what’s your work day like? If not, what do you do other than write and how do you find time to write?
I wish I could write full time; alas, writing for me is just a hobby. I write in bulk, as I like to call it, so I tend to carve out one or two weekend nights to get a few hours in at a time. (I should note this is easier during the winter time when the outdoors doesn’t tempt me. I’m not a fan of the cold.)

What would you say is your interesting writing quirk?
Apparently, I talk to myself a great deal. I don’t often notice I’m doing it, but my husband will say things like, “Are you talking to me, the pets, or yourself?” and I’ll realize I’m off in my own little world again. When I’m writing, especially if it’s an emotional scene, I’ll sometimes act out what my characters are saying to each other while sitting at my desk.

As a child, what did you want to be when you grew up?
In elementary and middle school, I really wanted to be a veterinarian. Once I realized this would involve getting used to blood and other bodily fluids, I focused more on writing and communications. Haha!

Anything additional you want to share with the readers?
If you have a hobby you love, stick with it even if you don’t think you’re good at it. It took me almost two decades to get Gathering of the Four to where it needed to be so I could self-publish it, and I still made a few mistakes along the way. Your art is never going to be perfect, but it’s uniquely yours and that’s what’s most important.

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