All about the author of the A Dreamer’s Misfortune series

Who is C. A. Farran 

Farran grew up by the sea on a steady intake of fairytales, renaissance faires, and mythology. She’s always felt a profound connection to horror and dark fantasy, and spent her childhood searching the woods for monsters and magic.

Now, she spends her days photographing nature in Maine with her husband and wildling daughter, writing dark fantasy, reading, and chasing said wildling through the forest.

What is Songs of the Wicked about?

Fear is not my master. I will never submit.

A grave threat looms over the mortal world. The veil that separates the realms has weakened over time, and monsters—Undesirables—claw their way out of the Netherworld to torment the living. What once dwelled in whispered stories now stalks the shadows. The only guard against chaos is balance.

Reapers are duty bound to uphold that balance, tasked with guiding mortal souls to the afterlife. Lark secretly dreams of shedding her immortal chains and forging her own path. She’s captivated by the humans and envies their freedom, their passion, their anguish. Her master, Thanar, god of death, forbids this fascination and demands her utmost loyalty.

When Lark encounters a mortal whose fire and suffering awakens something in her, she denies fate and saves him, refusing to guide him to his death.

To escape Thanar’s wrath, Lark makes a deal with the witch-queen of the Netherworld and is remade as human—trading her power for mortality. She flees through the veil and enters the land of the living, unaware she isn’t the only one freed from the clutches of the Netherworld.

Interview

What inspires your writing?

I’m inspired by music, by films, by video games. Anything that sets my brain on fire and triggers my daydreaming.

What drew you to writing?

The love of stories drew me to writing. As children, we create these fantastical worlds through play, acting out lives we’ve never experienced or even going through the motions of our own experiences to better understand them. As I grew up, I found the same feeling in getting lost in books. It was the natural progression of things to want to write some of my own stories and daydreams down. 

How did you choose which character to centre the story around?

I love what Brandon Sanderson says about identifying your main character. If it feels like they’re mostly an observer, they’re a side character. I center my stories around the characters whose self-belief will be challenged. The character whose flaws will hinder their goals. The character whose decisions will forward the plot, whether in triumph or in disaster.

What was your process for writing your book?

It all starts with my own mental hook. With Songs of the Wicked, it was my having read a multitude of fairytale retellings and realizing I had yet to discover one for The Little Mermaid. I knew I wanted to explore a reimagining of this fairytale but with something new and unexpected. 

Then comes my inspiration. Almost always in the form of a song. The right song hits, and it opens the whole story right up for me. With Songs of the Wicked, the song “O’ Death” by Jen Titus made me realize my little mermaid character was a reaper guiding souls to the afterlife. Once I have my hook and my inspiration, chaos descends. I’ve since embraced the art of plotting, but my earliest works were very much a chasing the muse situation. 

What is your approach to world and character-building? 

World building is something I establish in the dreaming phase when it’s all images and emotions without much context. I layer in more and more details in self edits, but my first drafts have alot of notes reminding me to expand on concepts and ideas. My approach to character building is to establish my character’s goals, what they want above all else, what obstacles stand in the way of their goals, and what flaws/perceptions formed from their backstory influence their decision making and reactions to obstacles. I leave myself room to improvise, even when plotting, so my characters have room to respond and influence the plot as it progresses. 

Did you have a favourite moment in the book to write? 

My favorite moment to write in Songs of the Wicked was the first real kiss. It was the culmination of so much groundwork laying and foundation building to really make the enemies to lovers believable. 

Which of the characters do you relate to the most and why?

 I relate to Lark on a very personal level because her inner journey was inspired by my own. She begins as a reaper who can’t feel human emotions beyond a glimpse of surface level and when she’s remade as human again, it’s this torrential flood of emotion and sensation that’s overwhelming. This was inspired by my own mental struggles where for years I managed to numb the pain but I numbed everything. When I finally broke down those mental walls, it was terrifying because it was too much all at once. It made me feel weak and afraid and out of control, but I realized what strength it requires to let yourself feel. That’s what I hope readers take away from Lark’s journey because that’s the place it came from for me. 

Has writing and publishing a book changed the way you see yourself?

It’s made me braver. It’s made me show up in my own life so unapologetically myself, because once you put your words out there in the world, you’re exposed in a way. There’s no hiding, and there’s a freedom to that. 

Are there any books or authors that inspired you to become a writer?

 I was heavily inspired by the Lunar Chronicles and Marissa Meyer’s approach to reimagining familiar and beloved fairytales. It set my brain on fire imagining all the different paths these old stories could take in pursuit of something new and fresh. 

What advice would you give to a writer working on their first book, and what advice were you given?

My biggest piece of advice is write for the joy of it. Write the story you’re dying to read. Write it with the passion of fanfiction writing, this desperation to see a scene play out, or a world in action. Don’t worry about readers until you have that story out of your head and on paper. For me, worrying about anyone else’s opinion other than my own locks me up in the drafting phase. Write the book you want to read, edit it with an audience in mind later. Advice I was given that really helped was not to worry about how many words in a writing session you get on paper. Maybe you only get 100 words down. Maybe you get 1500. Just sit and spend a little time with your manuscript each day or night or whatever schedule you keep. You’ll form a habit and it will get easier from there. 

What’s your favourite writing snack or drink?

Kombucha and kitkats 

Do you play music while you write — and, if so, what’s your favourite music? 

It depends on what book I’m writing. My bard romance, it was a lot of tavern music. With Songs of the Wicked, I listened to a lot of Loreena McKennitt, Eurielle, and Karliene.

Who has been the biggest supporter of your writing?

I have two biggest supporters of my writing. My husband, Lance, who has me read each scene I write out loud to him. He’s always been so supportive and my biggest fan. The other is my very first critique partner. My writing soulmate, Friel. She was the first writer in the community to get to know me. She was the first person besides Lance to read my work, and she gave me so much courage to push forward with the process. Lance and Friel are my best friends and I wouldn’t have come this far without them.