Author Spotlight: Amanda Muratoff

It’s a December Author Spotlight Flood! Clearing out my backlog and getting these authors into the spotlight.

• an author/artist/narrator who loves cheesecake, video games, and beaches

Readers, thanks for checking out another Author Spotlight Interview. Let’s give a good, hearty welcome to this week’s guest!

Amanda has been writing stories for as long as she can remember—and perhaps a little before that, too. Art has always been a staple in her life – from creative writing to painting, first published at age ten. She is an award-winning, published artist, though she left her career in VFX to return to her passion for writing. The memories of late-night writing binges, glued to the computer screen at 1AM, brought her back to the fantasy worlds she created.

From Langley, British Columbia, Amanda lives with her husband, son, and parents in a scenic rural area. When she’s not writing, she enjoys traveling, horseback riding, spending time with her family, and creating art in her workshop.

Amanda, thanks for agreeing to be here today. Most author spotlight 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?

Hands down, I’d choose the black pegasus from Clash of the Titans. And it would be epic.

What a great choice!

What do you write? And how did you get started?

I write romantic high fantasy with my friend and coauthor Kayla Hansen. We got started twenty years ago with these stories, though we only started writing them in book format in 2019. Kayla and I met on Neopets as preteens, and it evolved from there.

I’m now having Neopet flashbacks… I think I still have a little pet out there, dying. That said, I’m so excited that you’ve taken something you’ve been doing with your friend and started creating books!

What do you like to read?

Anything with elements of romance in it. As long as it’s well written, I enjoy anything that has a love story in it.

I do love a good romance.

Name one commonly accepted piece of writing advice that doesn’t work for you

Set the mood!

Hmm. Well, I’ve heard a lot of writers say that they “set their space” or mood or whatever. They dim the lights, or sit at the window… Play their favourite writing music, or have their chosen snacks. This has not been my reality as a writer.

From the start, I had a baby. Baby grew into a toddler. Even as I type this, he’s drawing on my foot. I write/work whenever/wherever I can, and it never includes my favourite music (or anything else).

I get what you’re saying. But, I have to admit, I occasionally do better with a little bit of “ritual”. Even if “setting the mood” just looks like “making sure I have a full cup of water when I sit down.”

Name one commonly accepted piece of writing advice they can pry out of your cold, dead hands

Show, don’t tell.

Telling drives me UP THE WALL. I don’t want to read about the character’s vices. I want to see them screw up a well-thought-out plan. Another rule I will never give up is not using excessive speech modifiers. Like, we know she said it, that’s what the “” means.

I get that! As long as it doesn’t mess with the pacing, showing is usually best.

---

Shameless Self-Promotion time!

Pantracia Chronicles (10 books)

Embrace of the Shade: Book 1

Amarie’s legendary magic could incinerate her enemies, but it’s her sword she trusts.

While running from the men who killed her family, she learns of an ancient text locked within the Great Library that might be the final key to understanding her curse. During the daring theft, a stranger inserts himself into her scheme. Kin’s roguish good looks and boundless charm threaten to distract her, but she has no intention of landing in the city jail.

Kin’s life, riddled with shadows and death, is as dark as his soul.

He embraces his power, given by a wicked master, but when he meets Amarie… She shatters the walls he’s built, piercing his solitude with vibrant light. But if she learns he hunts the power cursing her family, he will lose her forever.

Trusting him could risk her heart and her life, but it might be the only way to destroy the world’s most sinister evil. Unless Kin’s master finds her first…

Check out Amanda Muratoff across the web!

Website | Facebook | FB Group | Instagram | TikTok | Goodreads | Amazon