Hello, disciples!

This month, we have picked "Ode of the Immortal Soul" by xxsoteria for our monthly interview. If you'd like to read this story, we encourage you to check it out.

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Logline:

A group of demigods is sent to another country for a mission with no idea that it can only be solved by a god.

Blurb:

Mythos is built to protect the children of the gods but what if one of them is killed by a fellow demigod?

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Chen Li Sha's name is synonymous with 'murderer' after the incident a week ago. Her partner died from her own hands but who will believe she doesn't remember anything? Blood has drenched both their bodies in their room with all evidence pointing to her.

Hailed as one of the strongest demigods in all of Mythos branches around the world, she has never cared for anything except for fighting. It has been her personal quest to kill every monster in sight yet to do the thing she likes the most, she must clear the stain on her name. However, there is only one way to do so - volunteer for a mission in the Philippines.

But on the very first day of her job, the person, who is supposed to be dead, appeared right before her eyes; alive and hell-bent on killing her. 

About the Author:

Hello, please call me Tory, I am a fantasy writer from the Philippine's City of Love, Iloilo, who has a penchant for anything cute and vintage. I began my wattpad journey when I was in grade school and has been a decade-long member of the community since then.

At present, I'm a full-time architect who has too many fixations in life and indulges in many hobbies with a wide range of interest while having a short attention span. Despite that, writing has been one of the few of the many hobbies that remained. I always love the challenge of world-building and plotting twists and turns that someone will anticipate. My belief is always writing what I can't read while aspiring to create a story for everyone to explore and hopefully enjoy by striving for the best I can do.  

Interview:

1. What is your writing process? Do you outline everything or write as things come to mind? Why?

I am a planner so I really do outline everything but I'm not a stickler if I think a better scene or idea will work better. Usually, I list out all spontaneous ideas I have then if I'm running out of ideas I go along with them. I prefer planning things in vague bullet phrases just so I can be more flexible when it comes to writing it and not be stuck in a box.

2. What are some things that influenced your story?

Definitely the Chinese culture I grew up in for this particular one. My interest in Chinese myth started when I transferred school where we celebrate the Mooncake Festival every year. I have been wanting to write this type of story but my ideas are too vague so when my writer friends decided to have a collab series, that's the pus I was waiting for to finally write one. 

3. Tell us about the main character of one of your stories. What inspired their creation?

There are only a few demigods known in the Chinese Pantheon but there are countless stories about immortals. I wanted to explore the idea of a child of a god and an immortal thus my main character, Chen Li Sha. I tried to find a loophole I could twist to create her existence while still staying true to her divine origin. For me, her bloodline is one of the most complex to solidify and made it theoretically possible I have written so far.

4. What were some challenges you experienced while writing the story?

I entered this story for nanowrimo and I just wrote whatever to complete it however, I am currently editing it and it has been a ride. I badly want to overhaul everything from the scratch but for now, I'm taking a rest while I try to rekindle my inspiration to edit this. 

5. What message do you hope to convey to your readers with your story?

For this one, one of the conflicts is the monsters that stems from the harm done by people to mother nature. I wanted to highlight this as much as I can and show awareness of how our actions to our environment causes disasters to our own selves as well. 

6. If you had the choice to transmigrate into another time or place, where would you like to go?

Definitely not any of my stories lol. I know how angsty I can get when writing about it and I just want to have a chill life. I really want the childcare/rofan genre of manhwa so that'll be nice.

7. If there was something you could learn (i.e., a specific spell, martial arts, etc.) like the main character in your book, what would it be?

Chen Li Sha's dual gun-skills because that will be so cool in real life. 

8. Would you rather go through a lifetime of never finding love or be willing to go through several lifetimes of hardships just to save your love? Why?

I feel like when it comes to love, it is a wonderful emotion that everyone deserves to receive. However, I don't think I can be the type to sacrifice everything for it. I am assuming this question is romantic love and I admire people who are willing to do everything for it but if it requires the heartbreak of people who have loved me just to have a romantic interest and suffer hardships that can be plainly avoided by not finding love at all, I'd rather not have it. I always try to prioritize people who gave me affection without asking for return than chase something unsure at the expense of people who actually treasure my presence. 

9. What is your favorite creature from Asian or Pacific Islander mythology or folklore? Why?

Many comes to mind but one that particularly stand out is the Four Auspicious Beasts. As the name suggests, there are four of them: the azure dragon, vermillion bird, white tiger, and black tortoise. They appear in several Asian myths but for this one, I will be referring to the Chinese version. I can't pick one since they always come in groups. Each of them symbolizes the cardinal directions, colors, and seasons which is something that took my interest right away because of how distinct and organized they are. I feel like they are my staples as it influence many of my stories. I just love that they make my ideas burst because it's so easy to imagine a story with them featuring in it. 

10. What is your favorite Asian or Pacific Islander myth? Why?

Journey to the West is my childhood. Anything that mentions anything about Sun Wu Kong, I was sold. I just love how heavenly-defying his character is, literally, since he did challenge the gods to become the strongest. His powers are amazing too and gets me hyped up but the lessons on it are some things that are worth pondering. If there is one story I wish I can read for the first time again, this will be it. Despite being a classic, it is such a fun and easy read where I found myself rereading it many times and didn't get bored. 

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Thank you xxsoteria for giving us the opportunity to interview you and chat more about your book!

We'll see you all in the next interview.