Meet the Author: AS Miyasaki

AS Miyasaki writes Young Adult science fiction and is currently working on Book 2 of the Farodun Down series. You can find her at ASMiyasaki.com or @ASMiyasaki on social media. 

Tell us about your book.
Moon, Have Mercy is the coming-of-age story of Farodun Down, an adolescent human boy growing up on the unequivocally worst of the Gynthan moons, Ilex. It begins when Farodun wakes, dumped in a dangerous sinkhole and left for dead. He wants revenge against the ones that put him there, but first, he’ll have to survive the pit. That alone is something that seems unlikely at best, until he’s rescued by a stranger whose motivations are as opaque as their armor. Is this newcomer going to help him in his quest for revenge, or has his situation only taken a turn for the worse? He may dream of payback, but is it what he needs?
 
What made you decide to write a novel?
I started writing this series as a way to keep myself occupied will I was naptrapped with my kids. Often, my left arm would be stuck so I couldn’t do much besides noodle around on my phone. I wound up typing the first half of what’s now probably the fifth book in this series into google docs with my thumb. My original desire was to make a detailed, expansive, and coherent universe, that I could then move a much smaller story through, without having to worry about retconning or continuity issues.
 
What is the most challenging aspect of being an author for you?
I tend to have specific scenes I want to see, right from the inception of the story. But, sometimes getting to that spot means abandoning them. It’s just sort of sad to let them go. Besides that, and specific to Moon, Have Mercy, keeping track of the lore became a pretty big task. I wound up editing and organizing my notes for it into a 40,000 word glossary!
 
What is something you've learned along the way that might have changed how you wrote your first book?
I should’ve outlined the actual story in greater detail. And on physically moveable objects— like Post-its or something.
 
What do you need to set the mood for writing?
I do pretty well with settling in to write as long as I’m by myself. Quiet and at the computer, or maybe with some lo-fi playing, is great, but I also write a lot on the stationary bike. I don’t usually want snacks, because constantly wiping my hands so I don’t make my keyboard or my phone sticky is too disruptive, but I’ll take a drink any time— coffee, tea, water, scotch— as long as it isn’t a sticky drink. But if anyone else is around, my attention is too much on them to do anything particularly sensible, writing-wise.
 
How do you get past writer’s block or being stuck?
Well, my training is in music composition, but I’ve always thought this applies well here, too. If you get well and truly stuck at a blank page, just put anything there. It doesn’t have to be complete sentences or even coherent thoughts. Just destroy the blankness. It helped me more than once in grad school— might be worth a try.
 
What are you working on right now?
Currently, I’m working on three writing projects. The next Farodun Down book, a surreal dramedy, and a short dystopian sci-fi story about a fictionalized version of our recently-added-to-the-family cat, Harvey.