Welcome to this week’s writer feature! Today’s interview is with K. Scopes, a fifteen year old writer from California, USA. She writes fiction and prose, in the genre fantasy, introspective fiction, and sci-fi with the occasional romance. Her personality type is INFP, and besides writing, she loves drinking milk tea, eating kit kats, and taking long walks. You can follow her on instagram @kscopeswrites, find her wattpad @kscopes and visit her website here. 

What are you currently working on? When/where will it be available to read?

I’m currently working on a fantasy novel titled Kings of Glass! It’s a royal fantasy with mystery and alchemy, and it’s about a teenager named Corvus who has been on a quest to find his lost sister for five long years—except he realizes he isn’t the only one looking for her. A simple search becomes a race against everyone else, and Corvus will have to win battles of wit and strength if he wishes to see his sister again. I’m still in the process of writing the first draft of this novel, so it’ll probably be a few years before anyone can read it, haha! I want to traditionally publish this novel eventually, though. It might be available on my Wattpad (@kscopes) before I accomplish that though!

What inspired you to start writing? What inspires you to keep writing?

I’m not really sure what inspired me to start writing, but I’ve always been in love with storytelling and books from a very young age. I found it so fascinating that authors could make such fantastical worlds and real characters out of virtually nothing. When I started to write my own stories, I found that I had so many ideas that were just begging to be let out—and those ideas are still here today. Honestly, the fact that I have ideas that no one else could have and that maybe, in the future, I could write an actual novel, is enough inspiration to keep me going.

Who is your favorite author? How have they contributed to your writing?

Well, I have quite a few, haha! But one of my favorites has to be Marie Lu. Her stories are just so captivating and I adore her writing style, and she writes in the genres I love too! She’s also Asian, like me, and I find it so inspiring that she was able to find success in storytelling. Because of her, I want to craft my own unique worlds and characters, and I have to admit that some of my writing is very similar to hers because of this! (The concepts, at least, and not the entire thing haha.)

What’s your writing process like?

It depends. Usually I sit down and decide to write sometime in the afternoon or evening, then I just… write. I like doing writing sprints most of the time (short, 15 minute ones) to help me grind out the words and not worry about editing until later. I sometimes listen to music to help me get in the writing mood (the genre depends on my mood). If I don’t have inspiration or motivation to write, I’ll make an outline (even though I don’t stick to it and usually pants) or make playlists/character aesthetics.

How do you make sure your characters are rounded?

Answer questions about them. This is super important—to me, the more real your character seems to you, the more real they will seem on the page. Ask yourself question after question after question about them: you can find questions on the internet, on social media, or even ask your friends to ask you questions. An example would be, “What would you character do if they woke up with three wishes?” I find these so, so important and they honestly help me a lot. Also, there are loads of tips on social media that I find helpful! I will also take the 16 personalities test online and pretend to be one of my characters while answering questions, then write down the info somewhere else.

Describe the first thing you ever wrote

Well… it was pretty cringey, haha! Basically, my dad wanted me to do this story writing competition in 5th grade where you write about a favorite memory of yours. I wrote a narrative story about my friend and I going to the beach, where we had a relatively fun time if you dismiss the fact we found a dead seal, haha. Anyway, that’s when I realized I could write my own stories and be like the people who write the books I love, and here I am!

Can you share a sneak peek/quote from a current project?

Sure! I’ll share these few paragraphs from the first chapter of Kings of Glass.

Then they came—a swift presence behind him that made him whirl around and draw his dagger in alarm. A white cloaked figure had appeared on the cobblestones behind him, almost as if they had jumped down from the twin moons above. Corvus could tell from her physique that she was a woman—she was slightly shorter than him with a solid stance and a jaw set in stone. Her cloak hid her facial features from Corvus, as well as the upper half of her body. She was wearing simple traveling pants and boots. Weapons could be hiding anywhere on her person. 

Corvus scowled, holding out the dagger in front of his body defensively. “The city,” he said. “Why the hell is the city on fire?”

A hint of a smile appeared on the Fox’s face from under her hood. “My dear Corvus,” she replied smoothly. Corvus stiffened at the use of his name. “I have a better question. Where are the people of this city?”

Corvus kept his expression blank. “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

“Oh, but you do.” The Fox took a few steps closer to him, and Corvus threateningly extended his dagger. White shadows seem to flit from behind her. There were more of them, hiding in the shadows, ready to strike at the command of their leader. He was sorely outnumbered. 

“What do you want from me?” Corvus snapped. He caught a glimpse of a white cloak in his peripheral vision, and shifted his stance uncomfortably. 

“Oh.” The Fox’s lips twisted in a frown. “I thought you knew this already. Your reputation precedes you, Corvus. Aren’t you supposed to be the one with the eyes of a raven, with the slyness of a fox, with the intelligence of an owl?” The Fox took in his unruly hair, his clothes and face dirty from the days of travel. “How far you must have fallen.”

Do you get strongly attached to your characters?

YES! Definitely, they are like real people to me. Especially on a project that I’ve been working on for a looong long while, haha! I’ve only been working on Kings of Glass for a few months, but I think I’d already do anything for a few of my characters, haha! Of course, there are some characters that I hate with a passion (like the [mean] ones), but for the most part, I am very attached.

What advice would you give a less experienced writer?

Don’t give up. It’s a tough world out there and you’re going to get a lot of criticism and face many rejections, but you’re better than any of the cynical and snobbish out there. Just keep on writing, and when you don’t feel like it, just wait for it to pass, because it will. Believe in yourself, because if you do, then you can do anything. And I believe in all you not-so experienced writers too. You’ll all do amazing things, trust me. 🙂

Big thanks to K. Scopes for her interview! if you would like to be interviewed for my blog, send me a message on instagram @elizarkent.