Before we get started, I want to let you know that ROAD TO DESTINY KISSED BY ICE is available for preorder! You can read the first chapter today and order the e-book on Amazon or Books2Read.
Today’s Spotlight interview is Author Talli L. Morgan!
Please enjoy the interview!:
Let’s get to know you!
Who are you and what meal would you gladly eat forever?
Talli: I’m Talli, an indie author of queer fantasy novels. I come from a huge Italian-American family, so I have to say my favorite food is chicken parmesan. I GLADLY would eat it every day for the rest of my life!
If you could tell your younger writing self anything, what would it be?
Talli: Kill your darlings. Really, I wish I’d heard that phrase earlier –– and understood what it meant. Sometimes a part of a story that you love simply isn’t working, and it’s not the end of the world if you have to cut it. Also, don’t be afraid to start over from scratch when the plot isn’t cooperating.
What would you say is the best thing about you?
Talli: My creativity, I think. I mean, that’s my favorite thing about myself, and I don’t know who I’d be without it, so it’s definitely a defining personality trait.
Favorite movie and why?
Talli: Okay, this is hard. But if I had to pick an all-time favorite, probably The Lion King. It was my absolute favorite movie as a kid, and I still love it to death. It’s nostalgic, but it’s also simply a gorgeous work of art. I watch it whenever I need a cheer-up.
Let’s get to know your book?
Tell us a little about your book and inspiration for it?
Talli: THE ORACLE STONE is a high-fantasy quest narrative about three mages chasing after a magic artifact that could grant them anything they want, but spark a magical catastrophe in the process. It’s been with me for so long that I don’t really remember the original inspiration, but at this point it’s a culmination of everything I love about the fantasy genre: magic, whimsy, wonder, and adventure.
What message would you like readers to get from your book?
Talli: I think at its core, it’s a book about identity. About finding and connecting with who you are, who you’ve always been, and who you’re meant to be. If my readers can connect with the characters on any level and gain something from that, then I’ve done something right.
Which character was the easiest to write? Who was the most challenging?
Talli: Jekku has always been the easiest for me to write, and to this day he is the one out of all my characters that I know best. He leaps off the page and overshares everything, so it’s really easy to know how he’ll react to anything I throw at him.
I would say Lilya and Taja are tied for most challenging. Lilya is a closed book, and it took me several rewrites of this book to nail down what she wants and how far she’ll go to get it. And Taja, despite being part of this book since the very beginning, has changed so much that I struggled to get ahold of who he is in this version of the book. Then, once I figured out his role, he also didn’t want to tell me anything about his history or what he wanted. Super helpful, guys.
Random
Favorite snack?
Talli: Hmm, tough one. I think I gotta go with Doritos. I’m never not in the mood for Doritos.
Favorite Color?
Talli: Mint green!
Book you’re currently reading?
Talli: There’s three of them, actually: Black Sun by Rebecca Roanhorse, Blackout edited by Dhonielle Clayton, and The Titan’s Curse by Rick Riordan.
How can people find you?
Talli: The best place to find everything about me and my book is my website (tallimorgan.com), but you can also find me on socials:
Twitter: @TLM_writes
Instagram: @TLM.books
Check out Talli’s books!
The Oracle Stone: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B08PDM57SJ
Tiffany C. Carlton 