Guest Post from Victoria Lamb, Author of Witchstruck

Witchy goings-on for Friday 13th at the Hearthfire today, with Victoria Lamb here to answer a few questions. Her first YA novel, Witchstruck is just out with Corgi this month, and she's touring blogs to celebrate.

How did you go about researching/creating the magick in the novel? Are there any juicy details of Tudor witchcraft you couldn't use that you'd like to share with us?
I've always been very interested in witchcraft, and know a fair amount about modern Wiccan practice in particular, so it wasn't that tricky to research even a Tudor novel on the subject. Witchcraft really hasn't changed that much over the centuries! I don't think I left anything out about witchcraft, though some details about their methods of detecting, torturing and executing witches were too disturbing to use in a YA novel. I have used some though, like the Devil's Mark which my heroine Meg is accused of bearing - this was usually a birthmark they believed was left by the devil, or some other mark (like an extra nipple) where witchfinders claimed the devil had suckled on the witch. Pretty horrible.

You're working on both adult and YA historical series at the moment. What would you say are the most important differences between the two?
The adult historicals have far more history in them! That may sound like an odd thing to say, but my Lucy Morgan novels are far more concerned with political and historical events than my Tudor Witch series is. Witchstruck is essentially a paranormal romance set in Tudor times, rather than a straight historical where the setting is the most important element of the book. Having said that, the violent and dark dystopia of Tudor England is a vital part of Witchstruck and lends the book great intensity. Meg would have had a much easier time of it in Victorian times, for instance!

How much of a plotter are you? Do you outline in detail?
I'm a major planner, yes. I dislike starting a book without knowing more or less what's going into each chapter, and how the story will pan out for everyone. When I first started writing novels, I had a far looser approach, often starting in great excitement only to peter out partway through because I'd lost the thread and had no real idea what was going on. Some people work like that very successfully, but I'm afraid I'm too cautious to do that anymore. I like to know the world of my story as God knows this one, to paraphrase Hollywood script guru Robert McKee.

How do you name your characters?
Well, in a historical novel, many characters are either already named for you or have names limited by what was normal for that age. (I couldn't have called my Tudor heroine Chardonnay or Buffy!) But when I have a choice and nothing leaps instantly to mind, I tend to flick through a baby name book until I find one that's perfect for my character.

You've published poetry (as Jane Holland - Boudicca and Co is great), adult historical and now YA historical-paranormal novels. Do you see yourself expanding further and writing something different again like a children's book or something with a contemporary setting?
Well, yes. I actually have a children's fantasy novel completely written and hidden in a file somewhere, unpublished. But that's maybe something for the future. I'm very restless as a writer, and although I'm excited to be writing Tudor fiction, I already know what I want to write after the series finishes; in my spare moments, I'm developing an idea for a Victorian slipstream thriller. It's all still top secret though, so I can't say much more than that.

What would be your top tip for new writers?
Write what you're most comfortable with, not something you think will 'sell'. The authentic voice of a writer  enjoying him or herself is what publishers really want - even if they don't always know it! And write every day if you possibly can. Writing is like exercising on a freezing winter's day. You have to do it to remind yourself why you like doing it, because when you're not actively writing, it can seem like the hardest thing in the world to start.

Thanks for having me, Beth! 

It's a pleasure, Victoria - thanks for visiting! 

So there you have it: some great info and advice there. Do check out Witchstruck if it appeals to you at all - it's a great read.

Meg Lytton has always known of her dark and powerful gift. Raised a student of the old magick by her Aunt Jane, casting the circle to see visions of the future and concocting spells from herbs and bones has always been as natural to Meg as breathing. But there has never been a more dangerous time to practise the craft, for it is 1554, and the sentence for any woman branded a witch is hanging, or burning at the stake.

Sent to the ruined, isolated palace of Woodstock to serve the disgraced Elizabeth, daughter of Henry VIII and half-sister of Queen Mary, Meg discovers her skills are of interest to the outcast princess, who is desperate to know if she will ever claim the throne. But Meg's existence becomes more dangerous every day, with the constant threat of exposure by the ruthless witchfinder Marcus Dent, and the arrival of a young Spanish priest, Alejandro de Castillo, to whom Meg is irresistibly drawn - despite their very different attitudes to witchcraft.

Thrilling and fast-paced, this is the first unputdownable story in a bewitching new series.