I’ve never been worried, mostly because I view books and film as two entirely separate animals and manage my expectations accordingly. Did that worry you at all? Did it bother you to give up some control over how Kelsea was perceived before the first book was even published? However, because of the publicity of the movie production deal, many readers equated Kelsea with Emma Watson before they’d even read the book. Obviously, Kelsea is a character that has lived with you for a long time – you know who she is, inside and out, and part of your task as an author is to convey that person to the reader. Kelsea is definitely her own person, not my mouthpiece, but her social ideals are mine, and so she’s often a helpful outlet.

I’m pretty introverted, so my only way to act on these issues with a wider audience is through writing and character. The powerlessness I feel as an individual is debilitating. It helps me work out my anger, certainly. Does writing about these issues in Kelsea’s world help you process what’s happening in our own? I love the way that, though Tearling is a fantasy, you actively engage with many of today’s most pressing social issues, such as women’s equality, sexual violence, gay rights, self-harm, and others. I’ve always thought of authors as distinct entities from the books they create in my own fantasy kingdom, I would remain unknown while the books became internationally recognized. It’s wonderful to be able to write full-time, to be able to sit down and work whenever I have an idea. My writing process hasn’t really changed. Has your writing process changed now that you are able to write full-time? How does it feel to go from an unknown writer to an internationally recognized one? The signing of your book deal was big publishing news. The long wait for the sequel to The Queen of the Tearling is almost over – The Invasion of the Tearling will be released next Tuesday, June 9! To tide you over for these last few harrowing days, we’ve got an exclusive interview with author Erika Johansen where she discusses Kelsea, the Tearling, and of course, which Hogwarts House she aligns herself with.

The queen of the tearling movie