Author Interview: Nicki Chapelway

Thank you for joining me for the fourth installment of Authoring Arrowheads’s 2020 Author Interview series. For April, I’ll be interviewing young adult fantasy and retelling author, Nicki Chapelway.

On the last Wednesday of each month in 2020, I will be hosting an author for an interview! These authors will range from indie friends I’ve made online to authors in my local area. Be sure to subscribe to never miss an interview!

Meet Nicki Chapelway!

Nicki has been writing since she was eleven years old. She published her first book A Week of Werewolves, Faeries, and Fancy Dresses at the age of fifteen, one year after she finished writing it. She enjoys reading, writing, swimming when she can, and fan-girling (in other words: obsessing over other peoples’ stories almost as much as her own). She also enjoys watching TV, her favorite movies and TV shows include: Doctor Who, Avengers, Star Wars, Lord of the Rings, The Hobbit, and Pirates of the Caribbean. Nicki currently resides in Ohio with her family of eight and two dogs, Rylie and Zoey. She is now working on the next books in the My Time in Amar series- when she’s not distracted by other stories (both hers and others’).

Interview with Nicki Chapelway, author of Winter Cursed.

Q1: When did you first realize you love writing?

Oh… that’s a toughy because like, I went through several years of my life entertaining the thought of writing and always thinking that I wanted to write, but I believed that I couldn’t write. I don’t know what at first specifically inspired me to want to be a writer considering I didn’t have any ideas for any novels (that was the problem, I wanted to write but I had nothing to write). I just thought that writing was neat. And I thought that all the way back before I knew how to spell. I didn’t actually get my first idea for a novel until I was 11 and it was all downhill from there.

Q2: What inspired you to write your most recent novel?

In a hyphenated word? X-Files. But I must admit that the blame doesn’t rest solely on that show’s shoulders. The blame must also be doled out to other shows that I enjoy such as Agent Carter and Fringe. Also some urban legends and creepy stories I read on Pinterest about monsters in cornfields and the sorts.

Q3: What writing project(s) are you currently working on?

Ah see, that’s a bit of a loaded question because I may or may not be hopping genres. And I’ve been rather vague on all of that since I don’t want to make any official announcements till I have a more solid game plan. But what I will share about BARN (my nickname for my project) is… 1) it is basically the complete opposite genre wise than anything else I have ever written, for one it is a horror comedy and not a fantasy. 2) it has four main characters who again are like nothing I have ever written before, I don’t actually have morally gray characters in this book, isn’t that just wild? 3) I love this story so much and can’t wait to share more later on down the road.

Q4: Which authors (inside or outside your genre) have inspired your writing?

Let’s see, I would say that the main source of inspiration I have for in my usual genre (fantasy) would be J.R.R. Tolkien, I’ve read some books on his world building techniques and I would be lying if I didn’t admit that I straight up stole that for my own books MWAHAHAHA, and also Mary Weber just because I really liked some of the elements she includes in her books and her cliffhangers were hugely inspiring in making me want to recreate those gut wrenching feelings XD XD Outside of my usual genre I would say that Janette Rallison has really inspired me with her comedic voice and ability to write in basically every genre, and Ally Carter has inspired me especially when it comes to how I write my characters and the roles they play in the story.

Q5: What are your go-to writing snacks?

Pretzels and orange juice. That’s actually just my nightly snack that I got into the bad habit of having EVERY. SINGLE. NIGHT. But when I write at night instead of watching a show that’s what I snack on. Sometimes I will drink some coffee when I’m writing in the morning and sometimes I will have some grapes or chocolate on my trip to the kitchen to stretch my legs. But other than those many exceptions, I don’t eat when writing.

Q6: What is your favorite part about indie (self) publishing? What is your least favorite part?

Definitely my favorite part of being an indie author is having the freedom and liberty to do what I want with my books. I get to set the deadlines, I get to add that side character that I love more than anything, in a sense I’m my own boss and accountable to me (and my fans I love you guys— whoo!) when it comes to creating this book rather than some publishing company. The downside is that literally everything for creating this book falls on my shoulders. And that can be a lot of work sometimes.

Q7: What advice would you like to share with first-time writers?

Hmm… I guess it would be: Don’t write what is popular or what is in for the sake of being a successful author. Write the story on your heart. Combine those genres, and mix those elements that you want to shake up. The world already has a Hunger Games and a Twilight. What it doesn’t have is your book. Yet.

That’s excellent advice, Nicki!

Thank you for stopping by, Nicki!

Connect with Author Nicki Chapelway at:

Check out her newest release,
A Winter Grim and Lonely!

Mirror… Mirror….
Ismena is the queen of Alain and considered by all to be the fairest maiden in the land. She happily looks forward to the day when she will marry the love of her life and unite two of the three kingdoms that make up Illesya. That all changes when King Stephan, her fiance, falls in love with an ice nymph considered more fair than she.

In My Hand…
Scorned by the man she once loved, Ismena is driven by her need for vengeance. She makes a dangerous bargain with King Morren the dark lord who sits on the throne of the third kingdom Mooraven. With his help, she will bring Stephan down. She does not care who she has to double cross in the process, nor how many enemies she will have to make. But her plan for revenge crumbles around her when she finds that she cannot kill a young princess with Stephan’s eyes.

Who is the Fairest…
An eternal winter, a chance at a happy life, and a beautiful stepdaughter. The fate of three kingdoms will be decided.

In the Land?
This is the tale of how an ordinary girl became the wicked queen.