A Spinner of Tales

The Writer's Prompt Author Interviews 2022

Will this winter never end? I’ve lost count on how many false Springs we’ve had here in southern Ontario this year. I don’t know about you, but I am sorely in need of a change of scenery. A sunny - sand between my toes - calm waves splashing type scenery. If you are like me and can’t wait for summer to start, let’s pretend we just stepped off a plane in sunny California, and this week’s author is there to greet us. Let’s meet her, and learn more about how she processes creativity.

Claire Davon has written on and off for most of her life, starting with fan fiction when she was very young. She writes across a wide range of genres and does not consider any of them off-limits. Her novels can be found in the paranormal romance and contemporary romance sections, while her short stories run the gamut. If a story calls to her, she will write it. She currently lives in Los Angeles and spends her free time writing novels and short stories, as well as doing animal rescue and enjoying the sunshine.

Thank you, Claire, for joining me on this wild adventure around the world. I am looking forward to sharing your story with my readers. Let’s begin with the interview, shall we.

What inspired you to become a writer?

I think I’ve always been a writer. My first clear memory of when I understood how much I enjoyed spinning tales was in junior high when a few friends and I wrote stories together. This continued through high school and college – a group of us would come up with characters, either movie/TV personalities or our own characters. Each of us would write our characters, with all of them interacting according to our unique points of view.

I love that you and your friends wrote stories together; that’s so cool. How long have you been writing professionally?

The corollary to the above is that while I’ve been writing since I was a pre-teen, I also had several years as an adult where I stopped writing. I let fear and some (perceived) failures stop me, got discouraged and pushed writing aside. About nine years ago, I broke the paralysis and returned to what I love most – spinning tales!

I understand being discouraged and allowing failures to stall creativity. I am glad to see you overcame that.

What type of writer are you? For example, do you plan out your storyline and have a bio for each character, or do you let the creativity flow and see where it leads you?

I am the very definition of a pantser. Often, I have no idea where the story will take me next, or I have the beginning (and whatever I’d written to that point) and an ending, but the middle is a giant mush that I fill in as I go. It usually means that my first drafts are riddled with repetitive words, but the story is there. That’s what has worked for me since I returned to what I love almost a decade ago.