✨ The Weekly MAsh Season 2 Q&A | Allie Blake

1. Let’s start at the beginning. Who is Allie Blake in your own words?

 Oh my god, I’m the worst at talking about myself! I always used to have my nose in a book (I would get in trouble in high school for reading during class, oops). I guess it’s fair to say I still always have my nose in a book, it’s just nowadays they’re the ones I’m writing as opposed to the ones already written. Growing up I moved around a lot so I’ve always been very independent which led me to study abroad as a college freshman and fed my love of travel, leading me to live abroad now! 

2. You have been a voracious reader your whole life. Do you remember the moment you realized you wanted to write your own stories?

 So I *technically* started my writing career writing a boyband fanfic on Wattpad at 17 (we don’t talk about that though, shh) so I would say that’s when I first started dabbling with telling my own stories in a way. When it comes to writing my own original stories, I can’t pinpoint when the idea first popped up but I remember being on a business trip a couple years ago, sitting in my hotel room in the south of France thinking about this Sleeping Beauty-esque story with Fae, so instead of picking up my current read, I opened my ipad and started scribbling out some notes. And that’s how Spark was born.

3. You currently juggle writing with a corporate job in the entertainment industry that has you traveling half the year. How does that impact your writing life? 

Oh god, it’s hard. I’m not even going to try to lie to you. With what my job entails, it usually means I’m on call even when I’m in my hotel room. When I’m at home I usually try to shut out my surroundings, hide my phones away, and use writing sprints to maintain my focus and immersion into the world, but when I’m traveling, I can’t ignore my phone. So I often get distracted or interrupted. It’s also so hard to find the motivation to write after a 10-12 hour work day.

4. Be honest. Are you a strict schedule writer or a write when inspiration hits kind of author?

 I try to be strict with having set days/times when I should be writing but I’m definitely more of a when inspiration hits kind of person. In the same way that my stories all start as a pantser and then I have to go back and plot things out for second and third drafts. I might have plans to work on a specific scene in one book’s draft but start plotting a completely different book that’s not even on my radar.

5. Your debut fantasy novel Spark of Fate is already out in the world. What was it like releasing your very first book?

 Daunting, exciting, nerve-wracking, exhausting? Haha! There are so many adjectives I could pick from here. It’s crazy to put your entire soul into something like this and then make it publicly available to the entire world and just be like here you go, hope you like it??? I also suffer from the worst imposter syndrome (in my everyday life but also this) that I’m like it’s shit right? But the feedback I’ve received from early readers and since release have all been so positive that it makes me feel a little more comfortable in my skin with it being out in the world.

6. If a reader is picking up Spark of Fate for the first time, what kind of journey should they expect?

 I want the reader to go on that adventure with Liv as she finds herself in faerie and experiences these things that she always thought to be folklore. Maybe a little bit of betrayal and heartbreak along the way, but I promise I’ll put it back together throughout the series!

7. What inspired the world, magic, or central concept behind Spark of Fate?

 So I mentioned this above, but Sleeping Beauty, actually! I’ve always loved Sleeping Beauty growing up, it was one of (and still is) on my list of all-time favorites. What jumped out to me was the idea of this girl who is in danger because of a curse and her parents sent her away for her own protection. But I took it a step farther because what you see depicted in the film is that she’s accepting of this fact and in my mind, I’d be pissed. Not because I didn’t grow up as the princess I was meant to be (but also I meannnnnn…) but mainly because this life and (hopefully) happy family she was supposed to have was robbed from her. So that’s where things sort of took shape. 

8. Fantasy and romance both play a role in your work. What do you love most about blending those genres?

 I just love love! And I enjoy that with fantasy you can create just about anything. You obviously have these rules you have to set out for yourself within your world, but at the end of the day, you can really do just about anything. In fact, I found it was almost harder to go back to my contemporary romance after finishing Spark because what do you mean I can’t just have the characters teleport from one place to the next???

9. What was the most challenging part of writing your debut novel?

 I think it was probably the pressure I put on myself? I’m a perfectionist at heart so I was always messing with it, and refining it. So having to find that point where I had to tell myself “no, it’s done, it’s ready” was difficult to pinpoint!

10. What was the most rewarding part? 

I think being able to see this thing that I created out in the world. To know that I poured my entire soul into this book and I didn’t let it just sit in my files collecting dust.  

⚡ Rapid Fire (No Thinking, Just Vibes)

11. Fantasy or romance if you had to choose only one? 

Ahhhhh romance I think. There are so many sub genres I could branch into from there. 

12. Writing at home or writing while traveling?

 Home! I love my creature comforts. 

13. Music, silence, or ambient noise while writing? 

Music, I absolutely cannot write in silence haha. It also needs to have lyrics, which is an unpopular opinion

14. Plotter, pantser, or somewhere in between? 

Somewhere in between! My fantasies need to be plotted but they always start out pantsed. My contemporaries don’t require the same plotting so I’m free to pants to my hearts content haha

15. One word you hope readers use to describe your books. 

Oh gosh… Couldn’t-put-it-down? (that’s one word, right?? haha)

✨ The Author Journey

16. What moment made you think, “Okay, I can really do this author thing”? 

I’m part of a group of writers who I absolutely adore and I think the moment was when they started reading through the early drafts and told me how much they loved it (even if I thought it was absolute garbage) that was probably when I had the moment of “but wait what if I can do this thing???”

17. What has surprised you the most about publishing your first book? 

How much I have to market it! All I want to do is write and vibe with my stories but the fact I also have to do all this work to make sure people actually see it is exhausting

18. What advice would you give to writers trying to balance a demanding day job with creative goals? 

Make notes and write whenever you can. The notes app on my phone has turned into brain dump central. I have a different note for each book I’m planning to write (and even the new book ideas) where I will dump anything and everything that comes to mind wherever I am. Dialogue, full scenes, songs for the book playlist, literally anything. And when I’m driving and things come to mind, I use the dictation feature on my phone. If I don’t write it down in the moment, it will disappear.

19. You mentioned your next release is a sports romance coming soon. What excites you about switching genres?

 I like that I kind of got that break to step away from Olivia and Bastian’s world and back into reality for a bit before I dive back into their world. It’s given my brain a much needed break from the complex plotting and planning to switch over to something with slightly lower stakes. It’s also based in LA, which is a place I used to live for a while before Covid so it’s fun for me to be able to go back and visit this place that was such a big point in my life through the book. 

20. How does writing romance differ for you compared to writing fantasy?

 I’ll never not write a romance. So even if it’s fantasy, the romance is going to be central to the plot. But I think the difference between a contemporary romance and a fantasy romance is I don’t have to plot things out as heavily. For Spark, I had to have a really clear idea of the entire series arc and then find ways that I could drop in foreshadowing for things that you won’t see until books two and even three. It’s a bigger web to weave than with my sports romance series where I’m just dropping in little easter eggs of future couples here and there.

✨ Just for Fun

21. If your debut book had a theme song, what would it be?

 Is it too cliches to say Lana del Rey’s Once Upon a Dream from Maleficent? I love the dark vibes and it’s very fitting considering how the concept of Spark originated.

22. Which character from Spark of Fate would absolutely thrive in the real world? 

Honestly probably Bastian haha. 

23. Dream casting moment. If Spark of Fate were adapted, who would you love to see in it? 

Okay, but why is this the hardest question???? For Bastian I’d probably have to say Josh Heuston. I think he could fit the overall vibes for Bastian’s character the best. For Liv gosh, maybe Olivia Holt? I think she could pull off that lost, innocent girl vibe that the first half of Spark is but then she could easily shift as Liv grows into herself more and the secrets are uncovered.

24. What is something readers might be surprised to learn about you? 

I’ve always been an artsy person! Not so sure if that’s really that surprising, but I used to be able to draw and paint fairly well and did musical theater for a while growing up as well. So I’ve always had a creative outlet of some sort, even though my job is very much not a creative thing.

25. When readers close one of your books, what do you hope they feel? 

The need for more? I know with Spark at least it’s a cliffhanger ending so I’m hoping when they close the book they’re a liiiiiiiittle bit mad at me and desperate to know what happens next. Otherwise, for my contemporaries where everything’s all tied up in the end, I’d hope they feel satisfied with the ending.