Interview With Author Patricia Morais

Patricia has changed her mind about her profession a lot of times. But one thing she always knew she wanted to do was to write stories. She is the author of the World of Shadows series. Her books Sombras and Chamas are only available in Portuguese, but the series companion books Tides and The Banshee Cries have been translated to English.

In 2016, she travelled to China to learn Kung-Fu in a traditional academy, in the middle of the mountains, during which she discovered a deep hatred for running. She recorded her experience studying martial arts full-time into a memoir, Crónicas de Shaolin.

Her favorite hobby is procrastinating with a popcorn bucket and watch supernatural movies (or TV shows) while calling it “research”. Her second hobby is to roam Wikipedia, looking for strange monsters while actually researching.

Get a copy of her YA fantasy novella Tides on Amazon.

FAMILY DRAMA…

FORBIDDEN LOVE…

A SECRET WORLD…

Years before Lilly Ashton was recruited, Ada Hughes had already caught the eye of the demon hunters. But what led Ada, the quiet and sweet girl from Diabolus Venator, to be recruited to fight supernatural creatures?

When children start to go missing in a fishing town, Ada Hughes fears for her two little brothers’ safety. Tide Springs was never really safe for them but she has a plan to escape their toxic family environment.

While battling her own loneliness and ignoring her forbidden love, Ada is faced with one more unexpected twist. Mythological beings and an ancient demon-hunting order will change her life forever.

She is suddenly afflicted with questions… Is this a new reality or just a hallucination? Will she be able to face this new world while being confronted with the secrets of her hometown?

Are you indie or traditionally published? What made you decide to take that route?

Both independently and traditionally published. I was originally traditionally published, but after seeing how little effort publishers put into marketing their authors, the lack of support, and the fact that I had few rights to my own book, I decided to go indie. Now I'm reclaiming the rights to my Portuguese books and self-publishing them.

Tell us a horror story about your author life?

I don't have a specific horror story (I guess I can consider myself lucky haha). But I did have the typical contract dispute with publishers. The one that had the most impact on me was when I was invited to write a book, which I had never considered writing but still accepted, and then when it came time to sign the contract, they only wanted to give me 5% of the royalties. I was surprised because they were the ones who came to me, I didn't ask them anything, and they were unwilling to give fair pay. I became more adamant about being a self-published author after that.

What do you think is the best thing about being an author?

Creating. When I'm creating a character, a world, or a story, I find myself at peace. Then I give them complicated problems and explore my own emotions while guiding them through it. Giving other people problems that are bigger than mine can be quite relaxing. And, obviously, when readers fall in love with a world you've created, it's the best thing in the world. You think to yourself, "That's me, I did that, and now other people love it too."

Who do you think you inspire? If not, who and what do you want to inspire?

I would like to think I inspire other young writers who are starting out. If I don't I certainly hope to inspire them and guide them. I love writing and I love to share that passion.

What keeps you up at night?

My thoughts. Sometimes they are related to the stories in my head, other times my own personal feelings but it's always my thoughts.

What character archetype would you be if you were a character in a book, movie or TV series?

I'm not sure! I would probably be the caretaker or the orphan (everyperson).

If you were a character in a book, movie or TV series, what would be your catchphrase or famous line or popular expression?

"That's hilarious!" said in a sarcastic tone.

What food or drink best describes you?

Salty popcorn with chocolate. A combination of sweet and salty.

If you were cursed to only be able to sing ONE song in karaoke for the rest of your life, what would you like it to be and why?

Probably any S Club 7 song. Don't listen to them on a regular basis anymore but I always feel nostalgic when I do.

What else do you enjoy doing other than reading and writing?

I love watching TV Shows and traveling.

What do you consider as your weakness as a writer, and what have you done to overcome it?

I am not good at descriptions at all! In order to overcome it I have tried to pay more attention to my surroundings, try to sense how I would explain them to others, I have marked my favorite descriptions in other books and keep lists of powerful verbs and nouns to use.

Who are some of your favorite authors?

I love the Harry Potter books. I also love Richelle Mead, Suzanne Collins, Veronica Roth, Phillip Pulman and Stephen King (even though his books have more description than I usually enjoy).

Any book recommendations?

Series of Unfortunate Events and Vampire Academy, those books don't often have the recognition they deserve. I love them.

Anything else you want to tell your fans, our readers, and the writing/reading/blogging community at large?

I have been a published author in Portugal for 8 years now but I only started writing in English and building my English community recently. If you would like to join my ARC team, connect on social media, ask for writing advice, I would love to connect. I love meeting people who have the same passion and love of books and writing.

Get in touch with Patricia through her website, or on Instagram or Facebook.