This week's somewhat-willing (okay fine, very willing) participant: magicolebooks! Her Wattys 2015 entry 'It Ends With Shadow' is a urban-fantasy/paranormal book centering around werewolves, angels, Hunters, the Garden of Eden and so much more! If that mashup of so many awesome elements doesn't draw your attention, then I don't know what will. No wait, I do know -- this interview!

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'It Ends With Shadow' incorporates nearly every single paranormal element in mainstream culture today (e.g. werewolves, angels, demons etc.). How did you get the idea to mash up all these elements together?

Mostly because those are all the elements of urban/high fantasy that I love -- angels/demons, werewolves, shapeshifters, monster hunters. I've been fascinated by the concepts of werewolves and monster hunters for a long time, and when the angels-and-demons craze hit YA a few years ago, I'm not ashamed to say that I fell in love with them, too. So I kind of mashed it all up and put it all into one book. I'm please with the results so far.

There is a multitude of badass heroines in the story, including Boston, Astrid and Gabriel, just to name a few. What inspired you to write about such powerful women? And how do you maintain the balance so that they seem like good role models, yet are totally relatable at the same time?

I'm going to quote Joss Whedon here, when he was asked the same question.

"Q: Why do you write strong female characters?

A: Because you're still asking me that question."

~ Joss Whedon

Funnily enough, the way I make sure (read: attempt to make sure) that the characters are relatable is by...not trying. I write them as people first, role models second, meaning that I don't worry about how they are perceived. I think it's because I'm not trying so hard for them to be loved is the reason why they are so beloved among my readers.

An important theme in the story is the love of family. All the mains have some sort of support system to fall back on when things get nasty (and they can get really nasty). Do you have any real life familial relationships which inspired the familial bonds in 'It Ends With Shadow'? And do you think that family is an important element in every story? If so, why?

I don't have any specific real-life family relationships which inspired the bonds in Shadow, but I do have an amazing older sister, who I truly don't know what I would do without.

I do agree that family is an important part of every story, and I'm often mildly irritated when it's glossed over and flung aside for the sake of romantic love. If you're lucky enough to have family in your life, you know that -- ideally -- they'll always be there for you, and I think that's an important thing to have in books.

Of course, family relationships aren't always good, and it's also necessary to show that part of it. Not everything is puppies and candy (which is sad, because puppies and candy are my favorite things).

(Author Interjection: Boston and Phoenix's mother, Maia, is a bitch -- pun totally intended.)

'It Ends With Shadow' is obviously a story in epic proportions, spanning over multiple point-of-views and realms, with heavy reference to biblical mythologies. What inspired you to use biblical mythologies as part of the fantasy elements in the story?

Basically, I thought that angels are interesting, which they are. I also thought that the lore about them is interesting, but preachy. Angel mythology usually involves angels punishing humans, and I didn't much like that. So I cut and adjusted a lot of the mythology about angels, made them more human and less divine -- cut out a god entirely -- and slid those biblical events into their history, more or less.

But angels in general, powerful, winged, celestial beings? They're so cool, just on principle! I really wanted to include them, just in a less shaking-wrathful-finger-at-humanity way.

Does anything of what I said make sense?

(Author Interjection no. 2: Yes, yes it does.)

In 'It Ends With Shadow', there have been a few implications of characters from the LGBT community. Obviously, gender issues aren't going to go away anytime soon. So, what made you incorporate this issue into your story? And do you think that modern authors should not be afraid to address it in their books?

I feel very passionately about LGBTQA+ rights (hurray America -- gay marriage is legal in all fifty states!), and that the characters of the LGBT community don't get enough ink. So yes, two of my mains -- Danger, who is bisexual, and Gabriel, who is lesbian, although her sexuality hasn't come into the book yet -- are of the LGBT community.

Of angels.

(I thought that having gay/bisexual angels would piss off the bigots to a hilarious level, and I was not wrong.)

Modern authors should not be afraid to address the issue in their books. At all. LGBTQA+ is unfortunately still controversial -- though I'm pretty sure that we'll all be embarrassed that it was even an issue in twenty years -- and a lot of writers shy away from controversy, but that doesn't mean it's not important to write about.

Your story is written in a TV series-isque style, with every single chapter making up what would be a single episode. What inspired you to write in this way? And any TV series which have influenced your writing?

I get most of my influence from television, and the story that I have wouldn't fit into the 'one novel' format, so I set it up as a TV season with about fifteen episodes planned out. It's more of a utility thing. If I stopped at a point where a 'novel' would be considered done, Shadow's first season would only be a little more than halfway done. 

Agh, I've gotten most of my inspiration from TV shows. Very heavily from Supernatural and Game of Thrones, HBO's Rome, a bit of BBC Sherlock, American Horror Story -- specifically Coven -- and Asylum. And Wolf's Rain, the most obscure anime in the history of the known universe.

Last but not least, any tips for your fellow Wattys 2015 contenders? Or any words of encouragement?

Relax, and let your story speak for itself.

Gurl, you got dis.

(My words of encouragement, since I don't have any tips -- this is my first year doing the Wattys. I don't know what works yet.)

(Author interjection no. 3: I think that the words of encouragements are already tips in itself.)

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Thank you so much, magicolebooks for entertaining me with this interview! 'It Ends With Shadow' is definitely a tough-as-nails, gritty and dark piece, as the interview shows. This story is certainly not for the faint of heart, nor is it for wimps. So, what are you waiting for now? Click on the external link below to check out the book and prove that you're not a wimp!