Pen Name: Siggy Chambers
Pronouns: she/they
Book Series/Latest Book Published: The Binding of Bloom Mountain

Introduce your current favorite character – who are they and why do you prefer them above all others at the moment?

My favorite character for the last year has been Jett Valla. He is one of the two main characters of my forthcoming sci-fi horror book, Metropolis Down. He is the Head of Security for the QSR Neo-Tokyo, the ship that is the main setting for the book. He’s pretty, dangerous, emotional, and goes through a lot in the book.

I guess I prefer him for two reasons: he fits into my favorite character archetype (the small, angry, dangerous one) and his mental health issues mimic mine. He and I are both autistic, have adhd, and major depressive disorder.   

Who is harder to write – an interesting hero or an interesting villain?

I think an interesting Hero is a harder character to write. There are a lot of ways to make an interesting villain (backstory, choices, corruption, revenge, etc.). I think the variety of backstories and character arcs is smaller with heroes, at least in many books. You get the religious ones, the ones out to avenge their family/lover/child, the ones who just want adventure.    

You’re trapped in an elevator with your main character. What are you discussing?

Eddie Stone (the second mc of Metropolis Down) is most even-tempered of my main characters. I think it could get to the conversation stage, but he would keep asking me “why?” Beyond that, I think we would talk about video games. He always plays games in the AUs that I write for him and Jett.   

What is the most challenging aspect of writing for you? How do you conquer it?  

I think the most challenging aspect is finishing a story. You go through so many emotions while writing that can make it easy to put down and then move on to a new idea. Staying focused and finishing and seeing the worth in writing is hard for me.

I don’t know that I conquer it, but I have a lot of friends who are very sweet and hype me up when I am down. I wouldn’t be here without them.   

If you could write a cross-over with another book/series, what would it be and why? (Or, if cross-overs don’t interest you, why?)

I have several cross-over ideas with my closest writing friends and out books, but most of those are not published yet.

I would love to see Jett in the same room as Dorian from Gabriel Hargrave’s The Orchid & the Lion, Eddie with Castor from Olive J Kelley’s Junker Seven, and Celeste (from The Binding of Bloom Mountain) with Calysto from Juniper Lake Fitzgerald’s The Modern Mythos Anomaly. Jett and Dorian would either get on really well or fight like cats. Eddie and Castor would be able to just body-double as long as necessary. Celeste and Calysto are both absolute disasters and I think they’d get drunk and just complain about stuff together.   

In your opinion, what is the purpose of storytelling?

This is a bit philosophical for me. *insert thinking emoji*

Storytelling is about sharing experiences through a medium that doesn’t put the reader in danger. It’s a way to learn to cope with trauma, or life changes, or joys that doesn’t necessarily physically impact the reader.  

Ok, last but not least… Tell us a bit about what made you want to become a writer and why you write what you write.

I’ve written ever since I was a kid. Reading and writing were comforts to me and easier ways of expressing myself when I was too little to understand that I wasn’t going to communicate normally. And then as I grew up I found that I had so many stories in my brain, I just kept writing.

I write to continue expressing myself, and for exploring myself and the world around me. I also write because I want to help other people like me (depressed, autistic, adhder, etc) see themselves in media, and not have it be a stereotypical portrayal.    

Here's where to find Siggy:
Website: www.siggychambers.com
Instagram: @vesperdoom

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I am very happy to report that my plans did not get derailed last week, as they have been for much of this past year, and I was able to carve some time out for my books.

Bonus: it looks like I’ll be able to do the same this week, too!
 
I am in the final, final read-through phase. Hollow Cry has been formatted and is (mostly) ready for its debut next month. It’s been a long time since I sat with this work and it seems that I’m catching more typos and small mistakes than I did with earlier books. 
 
(Long-time Serrulata Squad members know I feel I rushed both Gathering of the Four and Test of the Four out the door. Hopefully, that won’t happen ever again; I’m still working on learning to be patient with myself.) 
 
I think it also helps that this is the shortest book I’ve ever put out. (It comes in at a little more than 37,000 words.) Do I plan to write shorter books in the future? Perhaps! This part of the story was supposed to be included in Test of the Four, but one of my amazing beta readers suggested I try and work on it as a stand-alone. Book Three is still going to be a chonker—there’s no getting around that—but my brain is also tossing around the idea of another romance, and I’m increasingly liking the idea of creating quicker reads, so we’ll see. 
 
But I don’t want to get ahead of myself. My goal is to completely finish Hollow Cry this week. And then the work on Book Three really begins. 
 
It’s really fantastic to relish in that final read-through feeling. I’m very excited for this one! I think y’all will love it!

​Well, hello there! I’m back!
 
This summer has been a whirlwind, and I’m hoping that August will be much quieter. My writing goals this month involve, well, getting back to getting the words down.
 
Way, way back at the beginning of the year, I attempted to start the third book in my Serrulata Saga. Life kept getting in the way, however, and now months have passed and I’ve only written half a chapter. I just wasn’t in a place mentally where I could concentrate on my characters enough to get any meaningful words to go. I would start. Then stop. Then start again. Then I just gave up. I had to sort other things first if I wanted to get back in author mode. 
 
This isn’t the first time this has happened. I once stopped writing for seven whole years before committing to getting Gathering of the Four to a place where an editor would be able to give me meaningful advice. I was a different person then in a different place in time, and now I have much more of a community and sense of purpose regarding my writing to take that long of a break, but I will admit I was nervous as the weeks went by. Writing has become part of my identity, and I was scared that I was losing part of myself again. 
 
Luckily I don’t think that is the case anymore. I have carved out time to get things going again. Oh, and I’ve reserved a slot with one of my editors. Money is a motivator for me, what can I say? Now that I feel like I have an actual deadline, my confidence is much higher. 
 
This month is going to be all about balance for me. My home is in order, I have started a new exercise regimen, and my calendar isn’t overwhelming me for the first time in a very long time. I am excited to see where I’ll be as summer comes to a close.  
 
Thanks for sticking with me, y’all!