AUTHOR INTERVIEW: Cindy Cipriano

1. When/why did you decide to become a writer?

I've carried the idea for The Sidhe Series in my head since I was a small child, but I only decided to become a writer eight years ago. 

2. What authors inspired you when you were younger? What books do you enjoy reading today?

When I was younger I was inspired by C.S. Lewis. I also read Margaret Atwood, Gary Paulson, Ronald Dahl, Lois Lowry, Stephen King, and Kurt Vonnegut. Today I read  mixture of genres of unpublished manuscripts through my two writers groups. In published works, I read Suzanne Collins, Veronica Roth, Rick Riordan, Ally Condie, Becca Fitzpatrick, and any middle grades fiction or YA my friends recommend.

3. What was the inspiration behind your novel The Choice and its predecessor, The Circle?

The Choice is the second book in the Sidhe Series. The Circle was inspired by a daydream while I was, er, in time out. I wondered what I would find if I were to lift away a tile in the floor. I imagined an old man working by candlelight, hunched over an old desk. This image stayed with me and the old man came to life as the main character's grandfather, Uilleam.

4. What's next for these characters (without giving away spoilers)?

The setting for The Choice is a middle school. Most of the characters are in seventh grade. What lies ahead for them is life at the top of the chain as eighth graders. Relationships will be stretched and some will break.

5. Why did you decide to write a book about Sidhe, a very ancient Irish mythological creature?

When I first imagined Uilleam years ago (I think I was eight years old), logic told me he'd have to be a faery to fit through a floor tile. When I decided to write about faeries, I knew I wanted to focus on Irish fae. As I researched faeries for the series, I discovered other types of faeries. I included clans in my stories. For example, the main clans in the story include Irish, Scottish, Italian, African, Jewish, and American.

6. Were any of the characters personalities or emotions taken from real life?

No. All of the characters are my creations.

7. What other genres would you like to try your hand at?

I also write young adult novels. My first one, Amaberis, is the story of 17 year old Leath Elliott. Leath is a 17 year old shooting enthusiast who is sick of dating boys from Woodvine, NC. She sets her sights on James Turner, an emancipated transfer student with a questionable past.

8. If you could trade places with any of your characters, who would it be and why?

I don't know that I'd want to trade places with any of the characters in my stories. However, I would very much like to meet Rebeccah (Kischef Clan), and Donnelly (Hobayeth Clan). They have interesting back stories.

9. What kind of research went into creating these books?

I was a tomboy growing up and knew nothing about faeries when I decided to write the series. I bought lots of reference books on faeries and visited many websites. I also studied the meaning of different types of first and surnames of many different cultures, aiming to give my characters meaningful names.

10. Would you like to see The Choice or The Circle as a film? If yes, who do you want to see play your characters?

I would love to see the Sidhe Series books become films. As for characters, I think that would depend upon when the movie was made.

11. Where do you see yourself and your career in the next ten years?

I'd love to say I'd be a mid-list writer. Who knows? I'll keep at it, though.

12. What would you be doing if you weren't writing?

Writing ;)

13. Can you tell KSR what you're working on next?

I have a couple of projects. One is a picture book, as yet untitled.

14. What authors, dead or alive, would you like to collaborate with?

I'd love to collaborate with fellow writer, Lynn Chandler Willis. Hey Lynn - how about a YA Mystery?

15. Thank you for participating in the interview. Can you please leave the readers with three things that may surprise them about you?

1. The Circle won the Moonbeam Childrens Book Silver Award. I think people are always surprised when a small press book wins an award.
2. I'd love a miniature giraffe. I mean, who wouldn't?

3. I absolutely adore the moon.

Find Ms. Cipriano online via:

Official site (has all contact links)