Author Interview with Nikki Flynn

LQ: Tell me a little bit about yourself.

NF: “Trying to define yourself is like trying to bite your own teeth” — Alan Watts

And with that in mind:

I have 2 bachelor degrees (1 in philosophy, 1 in psychology) and a master’s degree (applied criminology).

I work on writing both novels and scripts for audio fiction at the moment and I handle most of the post-production processes for episodes.

Otherwise, I am a big reader and gamer (video games, Dungeons and Dragons, Magic: the Gathering), I am a foodie who likes to cook and bake.

I am a big mythology nerd with a love of learning anything and everything regardless of the myth’s origin. I love watching anime, going to anime conventions and cosplaying.

I like to support projects and creators who are trying to follow their passions and pursuing dreams however I can; I do this because I believe the creative fields need to be more cooperative and friendly than cut-throat and a zero-sum cutting each other down atmosphere.

I have been writing since I was a young child when I started writing better character motivations and story endings than the one I was not satisfied with watching or reading. I wrote sporadically as a teenager and then began working on my original works seriously in my late teens and into my early twenties.

I am into writing and storytelling enough that I read TV Tropes a lot and use that to evaluate and reflect on my writing. I also talk in tropes about my and others’ writing styles. This is something I encourage in others who would like a more critical eye about writing that is not necessarily judgmental — and beware if you take this advice it is a rabbit hole and you wiki walk with ease. (But, if you are interested in doing it, pick a book, a movie, or anything you LOVE and search for it on tvtropes.org, then read about those tropes listed under the work and characters and how they’re used. Do that enough and you get a good idea about your approach to writing!)

LQ: What does your writing process look like?

NF: For scripts, I type out the plot of the script at the top of the document. After that, I write out the flow of events as different scene summaries.

Following that I work as I am inspired to work, jumping around if I am more inspired to write a particular part of the story at any given time.

When I am writing something with one of my co-authors, we often play tag in which we break up what we write about and then “tag” the other in a message to let them know we are done writing and that they can pick up there.

After the script events are filled in it gets proofread then handed to the cast.

For novels, I start with an idea and I type it at the top of a document. I then outline as many related events as I can think of in order that would lead up to the ending of the idea. With that, I jump around a lot and focus on writing particular characters or events. I also stray from this outline if I think there is a better way to break something down or if a chapter us running for too long.

When I start writing I do what I call the bare-bones writing which is when I write the main events, main dialogue, and character actions throughout. When this is finished I hand it off to my alpha/test readers. While they are reading I go through and read what I wrote again and decide where I think there could stand to be more detail of things such as cultures in the world, character descriptions, what the rooms look like, etc. I go through and start adding those details on draft 2, then after I get the notes from my test readers I add details where they suggested.

I then go through and make any changes needed to help the flow and pacing before I give it to the test group again. If any other details are needed or if there are unanswered questions, plot holes, etc. that need addressing, I go back and change things as needed there. Following that, I make any last-minute polishing adjustments and send it out to my test readers and then work on publishing it.

LQ: What was your favorite book to write so far?

NF: I have a few that have stood out as some of my favorites. The Gifting Spirit– an Anthologies of Ullord book- was the first one my co-author and I published on Amazon. We worked for weeks on it and the final product is a cute, feel-good story that we have gotten consistent feedback about has made it stand out from the others.

Entwined Essences: Chasing Fantasies is the first book I wrote that was separate from my co-author Edwin Dantes. It was based on a plot idea I had in a passing thought and then I wrote the entire thing in about 2 weeks. I had less feedback during the process and it was the first book trailer I made using my being a casting director to make a script and pair it up with the book and that made the whole experience memorable for me.

The third favorite is The Sign of the Basilisk: The Gift of Fear– another anthology of Ullord book- that was written, proofread, and released in less than 24 hours. It is a true anthology centered around Barbas, Ullord’s god of fears as a common theme throughout. The fact that this one also expands on various stories we have already written stands out to me and it was a lot of fun to write with a theme in mind.

LQ: Who is your favorite character to write about?

NF: My favorite characters to write about are often deep, complex and dark. Nikan Zahnt from the book Entwined Essences: Chasing Fantasies (and the audio fiction series that is in production: Chronicles of Fhaerythe) does come to mind quickly.

He is a schemer, a complex thinker, and a charismatic leader who is not opposed to underhanded tactics. He has an inflated ego and sense of self-wroth but shows compassion, selflessness, and regard for things he believes should be preserved and protected. It also helps that his voice actor, Kiernan Flitton portrays Nikan perfectly–just as I had imagined him in my mind. Writing knowing that the performer will further breathe life into something you imagined up is always an amazing feeling.

The gods from Anthologies of Ullord are difficult to top (in the series) for similar reasons. Our gods’ voice actors are dedicated performers who enjoy their roles. Add that to the gods being amoral entities that like entertainment from mortals and you have an entertaining cocktail for any episode featuring them.

The ones I find it hard not to enjoy the dual performance and writing of are: Pramod (portrayed by: Vincent Fallow), Barbas (portrayed by Simon D. Aelsi), Priti (portrayed by Dawn Ruzena), Enkea (portrayed by Christian O’Boyle) & Mara (portrayed by Melle Teich) all immediately come to mind.

All of their episodes are wonderful in part because of the aforementioned actors and because with the gods there are almost no rules in play for what we can write about aside from keeping them in line with their characterization.

LQ: Who are your favorite authors? Have any of them influenced your work?

NF: I have a lot of favorite authors as an avid reader. Stephen King, Dean Koontz, Nora Roberts, Ray Bradbury, Emily Bronte & Edgar Allan Poe have all influenced me in some way with the writing.

Stephen King with making it feel okay to torment the characters to show the reader what they’re made of, Nora Roberts with relationship development, Ray Bradbury with world-building and showing customs of a world within the confines of even a short story, Bronte made me feel like happy endings are only needed if they fit the narrative and the character while Dean Koontz gave me a love of “connected all along” and Poe gave me the love for the general dark stories.

LQ: How are you doing during the current pandemic?

NF: My life has really not changed during the bat flu pandemic. I work from home and I do not often go to large gatherings nor grocery shop every day. Really, the biggest change is intentionally doing everything to keep myself and others safe–instead of accidentally having that lifestyle. However, enough of my voice actors and one co-author work in mandatory fields including either grocery stores or the medical field. Because of that we have slowed production so they can focus on staying safe and healthy.

LQ: What are you currently working on?

NF: I have several audio fiction scripts in the air–they’re being written at a slower pace than usual since my co-author for most of them is still working. These include Anthologies of Ullord scripts with Edwin Dantes as well as The Shard’s Child scripts with Deidra Lynne Page — both of whom cannot dedicate all of their free time during the pandemic to writing.

Holiday specials for later in the year are being written and a few episodes for recording are being made for next year’s releases; these are mostly Anthologies of Ullord, but our other IPs are still being added to and created in our medium of audio fiction. There may be more than one Christmasy special with one from The Shard’s Child episode being a short comedy.

I am also working on one book that is centered on witches and warlocks in a world filled with tension, magic, psychics, monsters, and constant wars. I have not titled it at this point.

There are also scripts that are unrelated to any of our previously established works, both of which go darker than our usual stories have at this point. This one also involves witches but is a fantasy historical fiction rooted in the Salem Witch Trials (and it also lacks a name at the moment).

The second Entwined Essences book is being written, too, and is entirely planned out and outlined.

Lastly, I am working on my first visual novel. I have a script and am slowly, in the background, working on the various aspects that go into creating one. I have a composer I will be working with closer to the project’s completion and I have begun the flat, basic character design for when hiring artists needs to be done. I intend to write up a rough casting call for voice work as well. This is slow-moving as this is new territory for me and I prioritize our writing and audio fiction works over it for consistency and the sake of our cast — and because I am doing most of the work myself without a team.

Anything else you would like to share?

On social media I am very open to helping other creatives and showing support. I want to see creative communities flourish and for people to:

· Partake in events (like the #TwitterBedtimeStory)

· Buy indie creators’ books (and other creations)

· Leave reviews on their book/podcast/album etc.

· Like and retweet their project announcements

· Like and retweet crowd funding announcements

· Subscribe to them on Youtube

Or any other ways that we can show solidarity and support, not on that list. Chain messages about cute animals should not be the only things we see! We need to make this the norm so the community is inclusive and is not all about the number of followers with no interaction from others with whom we have so much in common. Keep this message going!