The Interview
Welcome to my blog, Krista! I'm so ecstatic to have you in my blog! Please tell us a bit about yourself. Thanks, Hilda! I’m married with four awesome daughters. There’s also a neurotic cat in the picture who compulsively steals the family’s socks. I’m also a critical care nurse, but my passion is writing. I love collecting seashells, reading, and watching movies, but I’d rather write than just about anything. Like the cat, it’s a compulsion for me and the reason I’ve dubbed myself “one sick cookie.”
Where and how did you get the muse to write The Lure of Shapinsay?
I was first exposed to selkies with the release of the movie The Secret of Roan Inish back in 1994. Then again with the children’s picture book The Seal Prince. For those who aren’t familiar with selkies, they’re beautiful seal men and women from the coasts of Scotland and Ireland. The men are notorious for magically luring women to their deaths beneath the sea.
In the story, Kait falls in love to a selkie man to the point that she’s willing to sacrifice anything to be with him. Would you follow her act if you were her?
You must understand that Kait was under the influence of the “Lure” and incapable of acting rationally. So yes, if I encountered a beautiful selkie man, I’d lose my head too. Hopefully I’d live to tell the tale, but if not I’d have a glorious death.
In The Lure of Shapinsay, the characters are speaking in Irish slang (well, I think they speak in Irish slang. I’m sorry if I’m wrong! :) ). How did you learn about the old slang?
The dialect is actually an old mixture of Scottish and Norse—the real dialect of the Scottish Orkney islands. I wanted my story to have an authentic feel so I researched Orcaidian stories actually told in the old dialect.
What do you think would be the best theme song for The Lure of Shapinsay?
I love Brandon Flower’s “Crossfire”. It tells of a relationship caught between heaven and hell. This is Kait and Eamon’s relationship. There’s a sweetness at being together, but the odds of a land/sea relationship working are pretty slim. It’s agonizing at the same time.
Brandon Flower - "Crossfire"
Watching your dress as you turn down the lights
I forget all about the storm outside
Dark clouds roll their way over town
Heartache and pain came a-pouring down like hail, sleet and rain, yeah
They're handing it out
And we're caught up in the crossfire of Heaven and Hell
And we're searching for shelter
Lay your body down
Imagination-escape
round!
If you were a Greek Goddess, who do you think you would be? I’d be Daphne so the beautiful Apollo would only have eyes for me.
If you could have a relationship with paranormal creature (like vampire, werewolf, or selkie men!), what creature would you most likely to have relationship with?
Selkies of course! All three creatures have the potential to kill you, so if I’m going to die, I want to have a smile on my face.
You constantly had dreams about a guy you have no idea whom, and then one day you suddenly bumped into him. What do you think he would say to you?
“You’re going to think this is crazy, but I just saw a portrait of a woman from the 18th century and you look exactly like her!”
Which one do you prefer: instant love or instant hate?
I adore love stories, so it would have to be instant love. I’m a romantic at heart.
Thank you for answering the question amazingly, Krista! Not that I expected less from you! ;) I think it's very interesting that Krista chooses Daphne - we all know that it's a sad love story! To add sprinkles of awesomeness to this interview, here is the book trailer for The Lure of Shapinsay! :)
