Q&A with Amanda Connolly

Photo by Rob Lloyd Photography

 

 

 

Amanda Connolly is the author of the new young adult novel The Lure of Wolves and Whispers. She is a dual citizen of Canada and Ireland. 

 

Q: What inspired you to write The Lure of Wolves and Whispers, and how did you create your character Maeve?

 

A: I first sat down to write The Lure of Wolves and Whispers in January 2024 after what was truly the hardest year of my life. I was at my absolute lowest, struggling after six straight months of back-to-back bereavements, freak injuries, and burnout. I literally hadn’t written a word of fiction in almost a year, and had written five failed manuscripts before this one that never went anywhere.

 

But I had this spark of a high-concept idea that hadn’t left me alone for years, and I decided to give writing one more shot – but to write a book that was first and foremost just for me, and full of all the things I love most in fantasy. Enemies to lovers; a dark, gritty world; a heroine who is every bit as morally grey and dangerous as any “shadow daddy,” and a romance you could root for against all odds.

 

Maeve’s voice came roaring out of me, and I wrote the book in a lightning-quick two and a half months.

 

Q: How did you create the world in which the novel takes place?

 

A: The world of Eireann and Dyfflin is inspired by my love for dark fantasy and dystopia – I am always drawn to fantasy that has a really gritty edge to it, and I knew from the start that I wanted to weave that into this world.

 

The mythology and lore and history draws heavy inspiration from Irish legends, and I used the Viking Age of Ireland as a sort of thematic anchor time period in how I visualize the styles and grit of the world.

 

A lot of the sectarian politics of the world came from Irish history, but the annexation theme really developed during the editing process after I sold the book which happened to coincide with the trade war and threats to annex Canada that were launched by the U.S. administration.

 

Sidenote: Canada will never be the 51st state.

 

Q: The author Shalini Abeysekara said of the book, “A relentless ride through a land sundered by poison and rebellion, Connolly’s The Lure of Wolves and Whispers is as raw, compelling, and as unflinching in the face of horror as its protagonist.” What do you think of that description?

 

A: I’m a huge fan of Shalini’s The Monster of Mine, so I was thrilled to see such generous words from a fellow Canadian dark fantasy author.

 

It’s been my goal from the first draft to have The Lure of Wolves and Whispers feel darker and grittier than a lot of other fantasy, both because that is what I am drawn to in stories and also because it fits with my own attempts to grapple with what is happening to our world right now.

 

There is a dark, vicious streak of something new running right through the heart of this story, and it’s a story I could never have written this way if it wasn’t for the raw fury and rage and stubborn hope I’ve fought to hold onto at the state of our world.

 

I’m so grateful that Shalini connected with that element of the story: we should never close our eyes to abuses of power or darkness, but confront them head on wherever we must.

 

Q: Did you know how the novel would end before you started writing it, or did you make many changes along the way?

 

A: I did – there were obviously a lot of changes to the story itself through edits, but the final five-ish chapters have stayed largely unchanged in their substance since my first draft. They’ve been improved and polished and deepened, but the core outcome in them never wavered, as devastating as it is. 

 

Q: What are you working on now?

 

A: I’m currently working on edits for Book 2 in this trilogy – I’m in the deepest phase of structural edits right now, and I have my outline for Book 3 so that I can reflect changes from the Book 2 edits into that plan before I start writing Book 3, hopefully late this summer/fall.

 

In between all that, I’m also awaiting notes from my agent on a finished draft of a new project and drafting a separate for-fun project. 

 

Q: Anything else we should know?

 

A: You can find me on Instagram @amandaconn, and I love to hear from readers!

 

--Interview with Deborah Kalb