BooksChatter: ℚ♫ Flying Blind: The Flykeeper Chronicles [2]

Today we have the pleasure of meeting up with author Caroline A. Gill to talk about Flying Blind (20 May 2016, St Helena Press, 260 pages), a Young Adult Paranormal Dystopian novel, book two of The Flykeeper Chronicles series.

Praise for Flying Blind, taken from reviews left on Goodreads:

"If you want a book that shatters all illusions about flies, this is it."

"Iolani pulls people to the safety of her farm home through the flies' vortex..."

"I want to shout from the rooftops what happens next but I really don't want to ruin the book.. Again, this book shows the magic between a young girl and house flies, I said this after the first book but, I seriously can not believe how much I loved a book about flies! The creative, descriptive, incredible writing really makes me believe in everything this book tells. Once again I became so enthralled with this book, I didn't put it down."

Author Q&A | Synopsis | Teaser | The Series | About the Author | Giveaway & Tour Stops

A very warm welcome to Caroline Gill; thank you for joining us on BooksChatter.

To kick us off, Caroline has shared with us her music playlist for Flying Blind - enjoy!

What was the inspiration for Flying Blind?

"As a child, I loved sitting in the windowsill, looking out on the busy street. Inevitably, there were flies also buzzing there, eager to escape, seeking an exit to the wild freedom outside. And I sometimes felt as trapped as they were.

There is something magical in their determination, darting in and out, around our heads, under our arms, intent on our food. I realized early on that they must have a hidden magic to explain all the wild places they emerged from, bursting out of closed rooms, locked doors, and shuttered windows. They always found a way to survive. I think we all need a bit of that."

How much of yourself is reflected in this book, and how?

"Iolani is definitely a portion of my own childhood. She is stubborn and loyal in a way the most innocent of children are. My parents divorced when I was little. And as a result of that, I did swear off all my favorite foods: if only God would bring my father back. But God had greater plans... I put that real detail into Iolani's struggle with her father's disappearance in war."

The first thing that draws me to a book is its cover. Can you tell us about your cover for Flying Blind - why you chose that concept and who the artist is.

"Part of the story of Flying Away, the first book in the series is Iolani's discovery of the magic of houseflies. The other factor is the use of memory stealing technology to drain away part or all of a person's mind. The light from that sinister tech is an eerie lime green. So I wanted that color on the cover. A housefly has vermilion eyes and iridescent blue green wings and body. Red and green are complementary colors.

With Flying Blind, Lani is older and surprised by her enemies as the only home she has is attacked. She failed to plan for that moment and is left to pick up the pieces.

I drew the cover myself using layers of sweeping orange, red and the glow of green. I drew the figure and the flies using a Wacom tablet and Adobe photoshop."

Why should we read Flying Blind and The Flykeeper Chronicles? What sets it apart from the rest?

"Magic is found in the most ordinary of things, if you are willing to look. This is a young adult series: the main heroine is fourteen years old when the green lights invade her farm in book one. By book two, Flying Blind, Iolani is sixteen and must rise to become the answer to the stealing that threatens everything she knows.

Who knew flies had Magic? And who would have supposed that the friendship and loyalty of one girl to the tiny insects could save our nation? When the whole world teeters on the brink of annihilation, the simplest of bugs and the heart of one person changes everything.

There are no fairies here, no angels, no pirates... there is Magic. And that is enough."

Can you tell us something quirky about Flying Blind, its story and characters?

"Malcolm St. John was named after Malcolm Reynolds of Firefly/Serenity fame, because Nathan Fillion is the answer to almost every question.

And St. John is a nod to St. John Smith sand volleyball hero of the west coast. Because: sand + man + sun + volleyball = stunning. Right?"

Who would you recommend Flying Blind to and what should readers be aware of (any warnings or disclaimers)?

"There are definitely elements of horror in the attacks of the memory stealers and the devastating attacks used against Lani and those she holds dear. That for me makes it a 14+ YA book. I see the Flykeeper Chronicles as being the same audience as Harry Potter, years 5-7. Clean read in terms of cursing, sex or vivid violence."

If you could / wished to turn Flying Blind and the The Flykeeper Chronicles series into a movie, who would be your dream team?

"Emma Watson would definitely be a choice for an older Iolani. Crystal Reed has many features I feel fit a younger Lani.

I have always pictured Malcolm as looking like Nat Zang from Z Nation, or a young Colton Haynes or Tyler Hoechlin from Teen Wolf.

Russell Hodgkinson from Z Nation reminds me a bit of Cheesie.

Directors? The Wachowskis or Guillermo Del Toro because of Pan's Labyrinth."

The Wachowskis (with honorary member Keanu Reeves!)

What do you like to write and read about? Do you stick to a particular genre or do you like to explore different ones?

"I write mostly about impossible dreams: the ones that come true if you fight hard enough for them. And the simple fact that there are no coincidences. Not really. Not ever.

Fantasy fiction has the strongest pull on me, but I see sci-fi as just the same, only that a machine explains the magic... It's all still stories of the challenges of the unknown and how humanity rises above the known limits to find something new."

What is your writing process?

"I write free flow to find the characters, generally only one chapter per individual. And then I plot out the ending that I see, and the fixed points between, normally one or two sentences. And then I reassess as I write at the midway point.

Sometimes, things stay on track. But most often, one character or another has hijacked a part of the story and must be roped back into the plot."

What is in store next?

"Flying Away is a stand alone first book. But then things changed. Flying Blind ends on a bit of a cliffhanger as the second and third books were meta-plotted together. Lani makes progress towards discovering her enemies, and finding unlooked for loyalties, but her world is definitely savage as Flying Blind ends... Still, Lani discovers a part of herself that will kill to stop the evil. A part she never knew existed: stone-cold choices form her into the warrior she needs to be for Flying Free, the final book."

And as a final quirky thing, to get to know you a little bit better... do you have a pet or something that is special to you that you could share with us?

"Sargent Wipeout is one of our two Leopard Tortoises from the grasslands of Africa. We don't know if Wipeout is male or female... it takes them 5 years to mature. The two tortoises, Wipeout and Crash Nebula eat salad and speed around the backyard... with allergies in the house, they are our cats."