Tell me about yourself. What inspired you to write?
I’ve always told stories, with varying degrees of success. For instance, there was an old maple tree behind my childhood home, and I decided that the dark pattern on the bark was a woman trapped inside. I told my younger cousin all about the trapped woman, then she proceeded to have nightmares about the mean tree lady, and somehow we both got grounded.
I started writing down my stories in the fifth or sixth grade, and they really coalesced into real stories with a beginning, middle, and end, by the eighth grade. And no, I haven’t told any of them to my cousin.
Describe your desk / writing space.
I have an office/craft room, and that’s where I do all my writing. I redecorated the room last year, and went from a dark, dreary space to turquoise walls and more hanging plants than any one room needs. It’s a tropical paradise in the heart of New England, and I love it.
Do you have a writing routine or do you write when inspired?
Both! I try to write at least 1,000 words per day. That way, I’m always making progress on something. Some days, I get my words in and move on to admin or marketing tasks, but when the writing bug bites I can do a few thousand words in a day.
What was the hardest scene for you to write? Which scene was your favorite to write?
In Elphame’s Queen, then end was the hardest part to write. It had to be a good, satisfying conclusion, and it took me forever to get the proper beat down. My favorite scene was a certain character’s conversation with Persephone while navigating the underworld.
What are you working on next?
My next series, Poison Garden, follows private detective Eliza “Eli” Moore. She’s the scion of family of powerful seers, but she just wants to live a normal life. The problem is, the supernatural world won’t leave her alone. The first book, Oleander, releases in June.
Coffee or tea? Wine or beer?
I drink coffee in the morning, tea after dinner, and sometimes I get wicked crazy and have a lemon seltzer.
What inspired your book/series?
The Winter’s Queen Trilogy is a follow up to the Gallowglass series. At the end of the last series, Anya’s mother, the Cailleach Bheur (Celtic Queen of Winter) is exiled. Now Anya must take on the mantle of Winter’s Queen, and we had to see what would happen during her first year.
Who is your favorite character from your book and would you get along?
My favorite character is Karina, who is an American geologist living in Scotland. Since I have a degree in environmental science and have studied geology, I think we would get along rather well.
If you could live anywhere, in this world or fantasy, where would you live?
Someplace warm, and probably in this world. While I do love my fantasy realms, I also love indoor plumbing and central heat.
How do you come up with the title to your books?
Badly, with much hair pulling and gnashing of teeth. Luckily I have an awesome writers group who are always there to help me, and talk me off the ledge.
What authors or books have influenced your writing?
Where to begin! My first and strongest influence would be Elfquest, a comic series by Wendy and Richard Pini. I’ve also been influenced by Robin McKinley, Patricia Briggs, Ilona Andrews, Neil Gaiman, and Nalini Singh.
What is your favorite meal?
Pizza!
Describe yourself in three words.
I asked my husband for help on this one: creative, thoughtful, determined. I think I’ll keep those three.
About The Author
Jennifer Allis Provost writes books about faeries, orcs and elves. Zombies, too. She grew up in the wilds of Western Massachusetts and had read every book in the local library by age twelve. (It was a small library.) An early love of mythology and folklore led to her epic fantasy series, The Chronicles of Parthalan, and her day job as a cubicle monkey helped shape her urban fantasy, Copper Girl. When she’s not writing about things that go bump in the night (and sometimes during the day) she’s working on her MFA in Creative Nonfiction.
The fate of Elphame hangs in the balance. Anya, the Queen of Winter, is the only one who can save it.
Anya’s problems are stacking up, with each one worse than the last:
The Bodach is missing, Crom Cruach has taken over Elphame, and the Seelie Queen—one of the few who had a chance of defeating Crom—is dead.
Then tragedy strikes again, and Anya’s parents are taken from her, too.
And Chris, her partner in all things, ends up in the underworld. Oops.
Cut off from her most powerful allies, Anya must call upon friends old and new to defeat Crom and restore Elphame to its former glory.