With the Writer Spotlight Series, we create a positive image for young readers to refer to by having conversations with different writers and illustrators. This month we
have been doing Q&As with many writers, to get to know more about them and
their work. Here, we are showcasing all the questions we have asked author Molly X Chang.
Welcome Molly. Tell us about yourself.
Hello! Thanks for having me! I am the #1 International and Sunday Times
bestselling author of YA fantasy debut To Gaze Upon Wicked Gods, where a girl blessed by Death must choose between saving her family or saving her world, which is out now. The sequel, To Kill a Monstrous Prince comes out next year. I am also publishing a second YA series, The Night Blood Prince, which is Helen of
Troy meets Mulan with vampires which publishes in summer next year.
Can you tell us about the inspiration behind To Gaze Upon Wicked Gods? What motivated you to write this book?
Growing up in the UK I never got to read books about people who looked like me, so I have always wanted to tell these stories. To Gaze Upon Wicked Gods is a book very close to my heart, inspired by so many aspects of my own life and one of the key themes is choosing. As I wanted Ruying’s journey to parallel that of an immigrant, leaving everyone she loves behind to give those she loves a better life.
To Gaze Upon Wicked Gods
Available here
Your book seems to blend elements of fantasy and mythology. What specific mythologies or cultural influences did you draw upon when crafting your world and characters?
Yes, I love Chinese mythology and those are the stories that I grew up with and I took a lot of inspirations from stories like Feng Shen Bang, which is about this group of mortals who defeat this evil Emperor. It is a very famous Chinese story and all of the Empires in the book are actually named after those mortals who ascended into godhood for their contributions to the world, and the royals in the book are rumoured to be their descendants. Also, this is teased in To Gaze Upon Wicked Gods and will be explored more in To Kill a Monstrous Prince, but there is this other story called Nüwa bu tian, which also plays a huge role in the two sequels.
Building believable and relatable characters is crucial in fantasy. How did you approach character development in your writing process?
I have always been fascinated by philosophy as a child, and the choices we make in life, and the influences and consequences of these choices. Ruying is definitely an unlikely heroine as she is not brave or righteous in the grand scheme of things, but every decision she makes is for those she loves, and there are a lot of moral consequences of her actions. I have loved watching her grow from a coward to a hero throughout the trilogy.
The cover art for To Gaze Upon Wicked Gods is stunning. How involved were you in the design process, and what were you aiming to convey with the cover?
Yes, the cover designer is Regina Plath and the artist is Sija Hong and they did such a great job! My amazing team at Random House were kind enough to show me the drafts as they were creating the cover and Regina did an amazing job directing the cover!
If you could ask one successful author three questions about their writing process, or books, what would they be? Who would you ask?I would love to have a sit down with one of my personal literary heroes, Sabaa Tahir, and just hear her talk about craft and her journey in publishing as a trailblazer. But if I only have three questions, I would love to ask her whether she is a plotter or a pantser, what she does on the days that the words don’t come easily, and whether she prefers word document or scrivener, haha!
About the author
Born in Harbin, China, Molly X. Chang was raised on folklore told by the grandparents who taught her to take pride in the heritages and cultures that shaped her life, and the harrowing history of the ancestors who'd come before her.