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AUTHOR BIO:
I go by the pen name Kara Carreira. I'm a final year university student and a writer of romantic and diverse fantasy as well as historical fantasy, which earned me a Watty in Historical Fiction in 2021. I'm a Wattpad Creator and Paid Stories author, and my works can also be found on YONDER, the next-generation reading app from the Wattpad family. When I'm not writing, you can find me devouring Greek myth retellings, indulging in sitcoms when I should be studying, or daydreaming about the sea.
Hi, Kara! We're delighted to have you with us today! Let's start. What are your biggest inspirations?
The books I read growing up inspired me to be a writer. I used to read pretty much every genre, and soon, I wasn't content merely reading. I wanted to create my own stories. How about a mystery about a missing pencil case at my school? How about a ghost haunting the cemetery down the road? I've always loved mixing genres and ideas and incorporating elements from my life into the stories that I write.
In terms of literature, what inspires me the most these days is diverse and ancient mythologies as well as classic fairytales and stories. I honestly can't get enough of them! Often, coming across a new legend or folktale gets a new story taking shape in my head. This is why I have way more story ideas than what I can realistically write, but I can't stay away from them.
Many of my works are influenced by the classics and diverse mythology. THE WHISPERS OF PETALS is a Himalayan-inspired fantasy story. My first Wattpad novel, THE GAZELLE, is a Mesopotamian-inspired Rapunzel retelling. My Watty-winning novel IN FAIR VERONA was inspired by "Romeo and Juliet".
If you could be any character from your story, who would it be and why?
I think I would like to be Esmera. She has known a lot of hardship, but she has great potential that she has yet to realise, and I'm honestly really excited for her journey! Also, who wouldn't want to discover they're a noblewoman and heir to a powerful weapon as well as betrothed to the prince of a beautiful, magical kingdom in the Himalayas?
Tell us something cool about your story's world, magic system or theme.
It was tough to come up with an original magic system for THE WHISPERS OF PETALS. It felt like everything had already been done, so I decided to base my magic on the five senses, which is a system I've never come across in fiction before.
Every magical ability featured in THE WHISPERS OF PETALS is either visual, auditory, olfactory, gustatory or touch-based. Most families' powers cluster around the same sense. For example, Esmera's family has mostly auditory abilities, Tauram's mostly visual and Belaren's mostly touch. I'm also trying to have each familiar's power involved with the same sense as the sorcerer they're bonded to. It's really an adventure coming up with magical abilities for my characters given all the rules I've made for myself around it!
What challenges did you face when writing your story?
My biggest challenge with writing this story was finding the time to do it! I'm nearing the end of my studies, so my academics takes a lot of my time. In addition to that, I'm a perfectionistic, slow writer. THE WHISPERS OF PETALS was my ONC 2022 project, so I've been working on it for a year now. That's the longest I've ever taken to write a story, and I'm only about halfway now!
Something else I struggled with was overwriting. I got so lost in my descriptions and in all the spontaneous spice that seemed to arise as the story progressed that every chapter I write seems to become two or three by the time I polish it up to post! I hope to do a better job of staying within word limits and keeping to deadlines with my ONC project this year.
What's your favorite music?
Right now, I'm loving Lana Del Rey's "Summertime Sadness". I can't stop using it on my TikToks and Instagram reels, and I can never resist singing along to it on car rides!
Lastly, what advice would you give to your fellow writers?
It's ONC season, so I feel it's only right to share one of the biggest things that helped me grow as a writer and on Wattpad.
Write a lot and try different genres.
I think exploring new genres and types of stories (like flash fiction, short stories, novellas and novels) through Wattpad contests during my time on the platform really enhanced my writing. It's tempting to stay in your comfort zone, but with writing, like with all things, you can't learn and grow if you don't challenge yourself. I mostly write fantasy, so I was really intimidated by the thought of choosing one of the historical fiction prompts for the ONC in 2021, but that story taught me a lot about writing, won me a Watty, and opened so many doors for me since!
Take the plunge! Be daring with your writing. That's the surest way to unleash your full potential. You may just discover that you have an aptitude for a genre you never thought you'd ever write!
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Thank you for joining us, Kara! Congratulations yet again and wishing you all the best!
