- author, family man, dog-walker, and lookout for those ever-elusive Fae
Readers, let’s give a good, hearty welcome to this week’s guest!
C A Deegan lives in the East Midlands, right in the centre of the UK, and when he’s not writing or working, he’s with the family or walking the dog in the local woodlands with half an eye out for those ever-elusive Fae.
The “Cracklock Saga” series of books came about from reading some pretty awful fairy books to his children over the years. But as he ground his way through these with gritted teeth, he always wondered what would happen if someone didn’t like fairies, what they would do about it, and could anybody stop them? This idea grew, and the Cracklocks were born. And boy, were they scary!
C A, thanks for agreeing to be here today. Most interviews start off with the boring stuff, but I know what readers REALLY want to know.
If you could have any pet (real/fantasy/no-allergies/no worries about feeding it) what would it be?
I already have it. I grew up with dogs, never had less than 5 in the house. But my wife was scared of dogs, so we could never have one. I tried everything, but it was always a “no”. And then the kids came along, and she saw how they were with my folks’ dogs, particularly my youngest. So I enlisted them both in an all-out assault, and she finally consented. I’ve attached a photo of my Benji; I get most of my ideas when I’m out walking him.
Dogs are a classic for a reason! So glad your wife overcame her fear and you found a good puppy for your family.
What do you write? And how did you get started?
I write what I suppose is SFF, and it sits in a spot astride YA and Adult in the market – there’s no profanity in any of the books, but plenty of humour that adults will find entertaining. I have an eclectic group of readers; one eight-year-old (who is a prolific reader) has read both books 1 and 2, asked plenty of really good questions, and left me a glowing review! So it’s teen and adult-friendly, plus okay for more mature readers amongst the 8+ crowd as well.
“The Cracklock Saga” series of books came about from reading some pretty awful fairy books to my daughter over the years – she’s in her teens now and has now (with more than a little relief, I have to say!) left those behind. But I always wondered what would happen if someone didn’t like fairies, what they would do about it, and could anybody stop them? This idea grew, and the Cracklocks were born.
I liked the idea of people who hated the Fae and everything they stood for. And who knew just how wicked those people were? I certainly didn’t until Anastasia and Agatha got their claws into me!
I have two books released at the moment, and the third, Alice and the Mirror Glass is ready to release in February 2022.
I’ve just finished writing Book 4; the polishing, editing, and beta’ing will start on that one in January whilst I jump straight onto Book 5 of the series. That one is all plotted and waiting for me to complete the pantser approach on Book 4 so I can tweak the plotline before I start.
I’m glad it’s accessible to the mature 9-year-old and up crowd!!
What do you like to read?
This is an awesome but tricky question! I like horror; it’s what I was weaned on (Sai King, Koontz, and James Herbert). But recently I’ve got to like crime stories; detective ones. And I love Zompoc –zombie apocalypse. Some of my good friends are authors in that category. And I like fantasy.
And…oh, I’m going on now. Really, I’ll read just about anything; I’m a bit of a bookworm; I read at night to switch off from the day.
I have to admit that my crime reading has been sparse — unless it’s in a fantastic setting. What a great mix.
Name one commonly accepted piece of writing advice that doesn’t work for you.
Don’t edit as you write.
It doesn’t work for everyone, but for me, I always read through what I wrote the previous day and tweak it accordingly. It makes the final editing process so much easier and helps the story develop. Also stops plot holes!!
I’ve been tempted to try it, from time to time. But, I always end up fast-drafting during NaNoWriMo. Then again, this last pass, I did just around a bit, to ret-con earlier stuff as my story evolved.
Name one commonly accepted piece of writing advice that they can pry out of your cold, dead hands.
Edit, edit, edit!!!
Incredibly important! I work with a great team that conducts a full investigative edit of each book. I draft, read through, redraft, a third redraft, and then run Grammarly to check it all. Then my wife reads it, then the editors get it, followed by my beta team. I then perform final edits. You can never have enough eyes looking at your draft I believe. If you can’t afford a professional editor then at least look at other pairs of eyes and some free editing software for your story. There will be errors (typos etc) that slip through; you find those in all books. But try and do everything you can to minimize them; it shows that you’re serious about your craft.
One-hundred percent! I never knew how much writing was editing until I started trying to polish my works.
Shameless Self-Promotion time!
Fae or Foe? (The Cracklock Saga: Book 1)
No one would want to kill a Faery, surely?!
Jack Crackley wouldn’t; teenagers don’t believe in such things. But he is going to learn that his imperfect life isn’t what it should be. Little eyes watch out for him whilst bigger ones seek him for their own ends. Hunted by the crazed family he never knew, Jack is in for a rude awakening of epic proportions.
The Fae are in serious danger. Jack is going to have to get to the bottom of it all before it’s too late. And that’s a tall order when you have no idea who you really are…
A fantasy adventure like no other, where worlds collide and the monsters are not only from make-believe. Things are going to get complicated.
The Lost and The Departed (The Cracklock Saga: Book 2)
There are other places, other realms, and they are wonderful. But not for much longer if the Cracklocks have their way.
Jack’s world has changed beyond all comprehension. He has Faery friends, his dad’s whereabouts are a mystery, and his estranged family wants him in their custody. And then there’s the mysterious tube, the one with the blue eyes that talks in your head.
The Cracklocks need Jack for their wicked plans, and nothing and nobody is going to stand in their way of Faery’s destruction. Nothing except Jack and his friends. And that is going to be more difficult than they would ever believe…
An adventure like no other, where the monsters aren’t just from Fairy Tales. What happened to David Cracklock? And why is the family ageing children prematurely? When fanatics want to exterminate you, the catacombs under Cracklock Manor are certainly no place for a Fae…
Alice and the Mirror Glass (The Cracklock Saga: Book 3)
Space and time. A recipe for disaster…
A plea for help, long-lost family members, and a shadowy organisation hell-bent on stopping a terrible threat they think is the Fae. Jack and his friends are really in trouble this time.
What has Jack’s dad really been up to? It’s got a lot of people pretty angry. And the Cracklocks have got their hands on something they shouldn’t. Something they don’t understand. Something that they should have left well alone. And when Fae glamours don’t work, what can be done to save the day?
Check C A Deegan out across the web!
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