Interview with Charity Mae, Author of The Enthronement

What’s the story behind the story? What inspired you to write The Enthronement?

When I was a child, I loved the Princess and the Pea retelling by Gail Carson Levine and decided I wanted to write my own princess test story, and after reading many books in the genre, I was finally inspired with the first scene of The Enthronement which is Chapter 38.

If you had to pick theme songs for the main characters of The Enthronement, what would they be?

Oh man, this is a hard one because I have playlists for both of my main characters. For the first book though… for Kascia I think I’d pick “Final Masquerade” by Linkin Park, though again I have a WHOLE playlist of songs for her during this first book on Spotify, this one I think captures her overall mood in this book.

As for Gavril… that is even harder, but I’d go with the song that when it plays I think of him in the first book for sure is “She’s My Girl” By Five for Fighting. I’ve not released his playlist yet, but there are a lot of songs for him too I’ll share one day.

What’s your favorite genre to read? Is it the same as your favorite genre to write?

I like dystopian style stories and not so much that they are dystopian so to speak, but I like they have a more serious and dramatic undertones vs light and fluffy. I’m a happy endings fan for sure, but I like those style of stories in fantasy and sci-fi.

I mostly write fairytale retellings that aim for this type of feeling. But I really only write fantasy, whereas I find these days I read a lot more sci-fi for pleasure and fairytale retellings to help me be a better writer.

What books are on your TBR pile right now?

Oh dear, it’s a big one. I want to read the new duology that goes with the Lunar Chronicles. I loved those books. Those books are my jam. Also rereading Michael Vey right now so I can get to the new book. A Thousand Heartbeats by Kira Cass is one I’m meaning to read. I love her way of doing the romance (Though I often miss the darker elements in her works). Also Nancy Campell Allen has come out with a few new Steampunk Proper Romance books I want to catch up on. She’s a good one I like to reference for twisting a fairytale well. I could go on all day, so I’ll just leave it at those.

What scene in your book was your favorite to write?

For The Enthronement… I think it might be a tie between the first scene that came into my mind Chapter 38 and the moment on the bridge in Chapter 36. It’s the raw emotion between the characters I love and the tension of their struggles. I actually will write the scene from each character’s point of view to make it as authentic as possible, and these two really came out great.

Do you have any quirky writing habits? (lucky mugs, cats on laps, etc.)

Scents. I have to have the right scent in the air to get into the mood. I was just getting frustrated the other day the one I associate with The Enthronement ran out and none of my local stores had it. It’s scents for me. And I never seem to get to pick which one for each book either.

For The Enthronement, it’s the cleaning solution I was using when the idea for The Enthronement came into my head, which is an annoying hard smell to replicate.

Do you have a motto, quote, or philosophy you live by?

I don’t know if I could boil down the philosophy or quote I live by. But one thing I’m working hard to learn and be better at is knowing that time to rest and recharge in the end makes you more productive. So the quote I’ve been using lately to teach myself and others is “follow your energy.” When you’re in the mood for one productive project, follow it, and if your energy calls for a break, have the courage to follow it.

I REALLY struggle with this as I am used to forcing myself to get things done I don’t want to do (like homework) and though there are times for that for sure, I need to learn that it’s okay to “follow my energy” too.

If you could choose one thing for readers to remember after reading your book, what would it be?

I don’t know if it’s that I want them to “remember” but I do want them to really think about what it means to be a true princess. What does all of this duty and protocol really mean and why? I think it’s a topic we all may have our own opinion of, but it’s a concept I think worth thinking and debating over, most of all for young girls who are still trying to find their identities.

Charity Mae is the author of the new book The Enthronement

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