Tori, from CLN, had the honor of interviewing an amazing author, SavvyDunn She is a Wattpad Star and is the author of several books on Wattpad including Highland Wedding, Highland Fling, High Heels, and Pink Glitter, and several others.

What inspired you to first start writing?

I've always loved writing. My writing 'career' began with a poem written when I was seven years old that won me a prize at school. Thankfully for the world, my later poetry efforts were written in the pre-internet days so never saw the light of day... But I love writing because I think words are one of the most powerful tools for creativity we have at our disposal.

I definitely agree with you. Words tend to bring a certain beauty to everything they're applied to!

You've written many books during your time on Wattpad, where do all of these ideas come from?

Inspiration is a funny ol' thing and it comes in diverse ways. The idea for one story, Artists Town, came to me when my husband booked us a B&B in a small village in the north of Scotland. We researched the place and discovered years ago, a man had bought up a lot of businesses and properties there using money he stole from the Metropolitan Police (you couldn't make it up), which got me thinking. With the vampire story I wrote, Beautiful Biters, I tried to come up with some 'fresh' ideas about vampires, such as I bet they really, really miss food. I know I would. Blood's a real dull diet, is it not?!

Oh, yes, I can't imagine ever only drinking one thing for my whole life. It sounds very distasteful.

I'm sure you've dipped your feet in many different genres. Are there any you find yourself drifting back to regularly?

Probably romcoms/light-hearted first person stuff as I think that's probably the 'voice' I do best. I'd love to be able to write crime/thrillers (the real page-turner stuff) but it's not in my skill set.

As someone who wrote a crime novel, I must say it's not as difficult as it seems! I'm sure you'd do great with the right practice.

Are any of your characters inspired by real people? Do you have any special stories behind them?

Did you?! Respect. Most of my characters will have little bits of real people in them--tributes to my family, for example. They might say or do something one of them has done. And in Artists Town, my main character's father was inspired by the real life man who defrauded the Met as mentioned above.

It sounds like you bring in quite a bit of your personal life into your stories. I always find that these stories are the most enjoyable to read!

Do you remember the publication of your first book? Could you share your experience with us if you do?

Not too much that I inadvertently hurt or offend someone, I hope! But sometimes people say something irresistible and you just know you will have to put it in a book... Yes, it wasn't on this platform but somewhere else and it felt like an anti-climax. Having said that, I still get a bit nervous because writing exposes us at our most vulnerable so you're always taking a huge risk putting yourself 'out there'.

Oh, yes I understand. Posting a new story can often be very anxiety inducing.

Have you ever refrained from publishing a new story because of this?

Yes. I wrote a story a few years ago where one of the characters had dementia and I was worried I didn't do the character and the people around her justice so I've never done anything with it. And I also began a story about the injustices that happened to one of my neighbours whose son was killed in a particularly nasty hit and run and realised it was unethical to keep writing it. Sometimes, I write stuff that has adult content and I do have a fairly young adult base I don't want to offend. If they've read my romcoms, I steer clear of the X-rated stuff in that so I don't want them to be shocked if they read something they weren't expecting. I try to label my stories with cinema/TV ratings so people have an idea of what might be in them.

'fairly young adult fanbase on Wattpad' was what I meant...

Oh, yes, it can often be difficult to share stories about difficult topics. Maturity warnings are also incredibly important

Do you usually find fluffy stories to be more engaging, or would that position go to the hard-hitting novels?

Maybe the fluffy ones? Less divisive, I guess... Though if you write something hard-hitting well, it might chime with people's own experiences.

Yeah, I guess both of them have their charms.

Would you say you tend to focus more on your characters or the plot in your books?

I find characters fascinating but nowadays, I think we've been conditioned to expect fast-paced stories that jump from scene to scene really quickly with minimal character development. I was tempted to time some of the scenes in the last series of Stranger Things to prove my point so maybe I need to concentrate more on plot if I want to make it as a writer!

I definitely agree with you! Although, I find characters to be an essential part of any story.

How do you handle literary criticism?

Well, I hope... I use beta readers off this platform. People who write in the same genres and one woman who has read a lot of my stuff so she knows my writing tics. (The timeline always runs away with me.) Constructive criticism is always useful but you need maturity to handle it and be prepared for it to hurt. (Even though the hurt is a bit illogical).

One thing worth adding... no-one has the definitive say on literary criticism so you also need to make decisions on what bits of the criticisms/suggestions you accept. That's not about being arrogant--just that no one book can please everyone.

That is a very good mindset to have as an author. Many people find it difficult to accept such criticisms.

What would you say is your favourite published author?

No one person, I'm afraid... I get the feeling we are more loyal to stories and/or characters than the author him or herself? Which is why fan fiction is so popular because people decide an author hasn't written enough about a character or hasn't taken the character in the direction they imagined, so they want to do it themselves.

That said, I like Marian Keyes and I'm fond of fellow Scot Christopher Brookmyre, who writes crime thrillers.

That does make sense, it really is much easier to get attached to a story than the authors.

Many authors find it much easier to write with some music playing in the background. What are your thoughts on that?

I listen to the radio... BBC Radio 1 in the UK (despite me being way, way out of their target demographic). But I'm quite good at zoning stuff out. I can understand why people might find the radio too distracting.

The radio is definitely an interesting choice!

I'm sure there are many new writers out there, do you have any advice for them?

There is no silver bullet for success but I think there are some things that can help. Plot your stories before you write them. It makes life much easier, I promise. Find good beta readers (and repay the compliment). Post chapters you've run through a thorough spelling and grammar check, as that's courteous to your readers. Watch for repetition of words and finally don't be too 'writerly'; often the best stores are simply written.

That is some wonderful advice! I'm sure many of your readers will find it useful.

We have talked a lot about your writing journey, but I'm sure people would like to get to know you better.

What do you like to do when you are not writing?

Thanks to lockdown in the UK, my options are limited at the moment (!) but I do a lot of walking, cooking and I like a cheeky glass of wine to unwind. I'm a huge cat fan and I have two, Lucy and William. They're a mother/son combo I adopted from our local animal shelter and they are so spoilt it.s not true!

All of those sound very fun! It's always nice to see people support local animal shelters. They deserve much more love!

I'm curious, are Writing Emma and non-writing Emma different from each other in any way?

Good question! The non-writing writer might be your public persona? I spend so much time in my head mulling things over, I often wonder how healthy it is... And that so much of myself is hidden from those around me. But maybe that's ego talking. I'm sure plenty of people who aren't writers also struggle with the differences between what is in their head and what they show the outside world.

That is actually a very fascinating thing to think about. I'm sure many other people feel that way too.While we're on this topic,Could you describe yourself for us in three words?

Absurd. Chaotic. Cat-lover. :)

Some very interesting descriptions!I think it's time to ask the important question.Physical books or ebooks? Why?

Sorry for my late reply, Tori... I was having trouble finding this message on the app. Anyway, cheat answer but I like both. Ebooks for the convenience, physical books for the beauty though I'm not as attached to them as I once was.

I guess both have their charms!I think we should get back to the actual contents of said books. Could you describe your perfect book hero or heroine?

Someone flawed and therefore relatable who learns/changes through the course of the story. The hero's journey, in other words!

Those are often the best kinds of characters!How do you deal with the emotional impact of a book as you are writing the story?

With romcoms, hopefully they make people laugh or smile... However, I have written about loneliness, longing, being an outsider etc., all of which draws on personal experience. I hope I do those feelings justice so they resonate with others.

I understand that! It can often be difficult to portray such feelings in writing.I think it's about time to conclude our interview with one last question.I would just like to know:If you could go back in time and change anything, would you take the opportunity?

Goodness me, wouldn't we all? Obviously, I would go back and sound huge warning bells, begging governments to pay attention to the development of the coronavirus in China and suggesting they might like to prepare... but would they listen?!

Thanks for the interview and all the thought-provoking questions. Best wishes, Emma

Thank you so much for your time! It was a pleasure speaking with you. The Crazy Late Nighters Community thanks you too!