An Interview with Ellen McGinty
Tell us about yourself!
Hi, I’m Ellen McGinty, a YA fantasy author of brave hearts in a broken world. I live in Japan with my husband, three boys, and a hypoallergenic cat. I’m also a lightning strike survivor, a pastor’s wife, homeschool mom, freelance editor, kimono hobbyist, and general otaku by American standards. But beyond labels, I am a lover of story—the ones we tell and the ones we live.
What does NobleBright fantasy mean to you? Why is it important?
I absolutely love the idea of NobleBright fantasy. When I first saw it as a hashtag, I thought, that’s what I write! To me, it’s the idea that fantasy, while wild, dark, and magical, has a thread of hope that drives it—a light—and that’s the cornerstone of the stories I tell. It means that at its heart, the story is about hope and will uplift the reader.
How did you start writing?
I started writing in elementary school. When other kids sold lemonade on the street corner, I was selling homemade graphic novels stappled together. I didn’t make very much. The same is true today, but the stories are much better now, haha! I gave up writing in high school and college and then began again after my son was born. I hesitantly brought a few pages to a SCBWI meeting critique and a group of seasoned authors took me under their week and insisted I write a book! So I did.
What are some of your favorite books/authors? Why?
If we are talking classics then Charles Dickens, George MacDonald, and Emily Brontë. The first for character study, the second because I can’t read his books without my entire outlook shifting, and the third because I’ve probably read Jane Eyre more times than I can remember.
More contemporary authors, I enjoy Jun Hur, Erin Phillips, Naomi Novik, Mary Pearson, Ayako Miura, Constance Lopez, Victoria McCombs, and Elizabeth Lim.
Please tell us about your world and your characters.
The world of Saints & Monsters is a fantasy reimagining of the Meiji Restoration with sea dragon hearts that can bestow gifts or curses on men. This time period in Japan was a rapid fusion of east and west, political shifts, and industrialization. I added historical notes at the end of the book because I want Japan to be seen for more than the stereotypes so often thrown around in literature.
I wrote it in 1st person point-of-view for Meera, our protagonist with a fantasy autoimmune disease based loosely off my own. Her struggle to believe she is worthy is one I think many people face, this author included. The other two POVs, Soran and Casmir, are in 3rd person to set them apart. This was a stylistic choice I made very deliberately because Casmir in 1st person would’ve given away things, and I like the suspense this style offers. Jun Hur also used it in A Crane Among Wolves, which released after Saints, and that was really fun to see!
Do you have any works in progress? Tell us about them!
Yes! This world will have four books total. All can be read as standalones, but technically, I’m going to release them as two duologies. The Dragon Heart duology contains Saints & Monsters and Dukes & Dragons (releasing 2026).
The Wayfinder Duology starts with The Last Wayfinder, a Les Miserables meets Demon Slayer fantasy with a romantic subplot about a girl born in prison trying to save her sister from a soul-thieving curse and a monster hunter bound by the law to stop her. This upper YA fantasy has found family, deadly forests, and fierce hope.
🖤 You can follow the pre-launch on Kickstarter now! It’s my first ever Kickstarter and I’m excited to bring readers along for the journey! Be the first to know when the book launches on Kickstarter: https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/605566058/the-last-wayfinder-ya-fantasy-special-edition-hardcover
Where can we find you online?
Website: www.ellenmcginty.com
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/ellenmcginty_author/
BookBub: https://www.bookbub.com/profile/ellen-mcginty
An Interview with Tara Grayce
Tell us about yourself!
Hello, I’m Tara Grayce. I write clean fantasy romance and action-packed romantic fantasy, including the Elven Alliance series, War of the Alliance series, Court of Midsummer Mayhem series, and several standalones.
How did you start writing?
I started drawing picture books with my crayons when I was 2 years old. Cute stories about talking horses and magic geese and then…the horses get attacked by a tiger and there is red crayon blood everywhere. Yep, I was definitely destined to be a fantasy author.
When I was six years old, my family visited Mansfield, MO where Laura Ingalls Wilder wrote the Little House books. I took one look at her desk and decided that I was going to be a published author someday.
What literary pilgrimages have you gone on?
Beyond the visit to Mansfield, my family took various vacations and eventually visited every Little House site.
While that’s the only adventure I’d specifically call a literary pilgrimage, I have travelled a lot and all that travel has inspired my writing. I’ve visited 48 of the 50 states, and last year I travelled to Europe for the first time. That trip to Europe inspired my recent standalone Ties of Bargains with the hero’s kingdom based on the Netherlands.
Did you ever consider writing under a pseudonym?
I didn’t think I would write under a pen name growing up, but now that I’m publishing, Tara Grayce actually is a pen name. And I love it! I find that I can be more genuine and confident online when using a pen name than I could be under my real name. The slight barrier is freeing. At this point, Tara Grayce feels just as much my name as my birth name is. If you’re hesitating about using a pen name, I, personally, would recommend it!
Do you have any works in progress? Tell us about them!
Currently, I’m working on books 3,4, & 5 of the War of the Alliance series, and I hope to rapid release them this fall (August-October, 2025). This series is a sequel to Elven Alliance and features Farrendel and Essie’s oldest son Fieran on his adventures as he fights a WWI-esque war and gathers a motley crew along the way. It is filled with lots of heart, humor, action, magical steampunk elements, and, of course, elves!
Do you want each book to stand on its own, or are you trying to build a body of work with connections between each book?
I’m currently building a body of work with connections between each book. Mostly because I tend to write rather expansively. After all, Elven Alliance was supposed to be a trilogy, and it ended up a 9-book series.
Right now, I have two main worlds. The first is my Elven Alliance world with the Elven Alliance and War of the Alliance series. There is another planned sequel series also in the works, along with a few other nascent ideas lingering in the wings. So far, all of the books in these two series have been continuing stories rather than standalones.
My other main story world is my Fae Realm world, featuring the Court of Midsummer Mayhem series. The standalones Bluebeard and the Outlaw, Mountain of Dragons and Sacrifice, and Ties of Bargains are also set in this world. The Court of Midsummer Mayhem series itself is made up of interconnected standalones. So if you prefer standalones instead of long series with continuing characters/plotlines, then this storyworld and series would be for you.
What’s the most difficult thing about writing characters from the opposite sex?
Ha, ha. So…I grew up the only girl with three younger brothers. While I certainly had female friends, we weren’t the girliest of groups, and I’m a not-very-emotional personality type. So I generally have an easier time writing guy characters than I do my female characters, especially if that female character is on the more feminine or emotional side of things.
What comes first, the plot or characters?
I usually get my ideas for the plot first. For example, the idea for Mountain of Dragons and Sacrifice came from the idea: what if the monster didn’t WANT to have a maiden sacrificed to him? The rest of the plot and then the characters came from there.
But sometimes my ideas came as full scenes that include both plot and character. Much of War of the Alliance came from ideas I had while writing the last couple of Elven Alliance books. I knew Farrendel and Essie’s son would have a rather wild personality, and he was the type who would become a WWI-style flying ace. The rest of the plot and characters developed from there.
How much ‘world building’ takes place before you start writing?
I tend to world build as I write, only developing the world as it becomes important. That often means that the world development spirals outward with the first book in the series being the least developed and the final books being more expansive when it comes to the world.
I’m working at doing more world building ahead of time and/or being more mindful of the wider world in the beginning. Right now with both the Elven Alliance world and Fae Realm world being so well developed already, I have a lot of world building already done and to continue building upon, which has been nice.
Where can we find you online?
You can find me on my website https://taragrayce.com/, on Instagram https://www.instagram.com/taragrayceauthor/, and on Facebook https://www.facebook.com/taragrayceauthor.
