Interview with Kelly Aten, author of THE LAST SCION OF RA

 

I am beyond thrilled to be hosting another author interview!! This time with K. Aten, a name you might be familiar with if you've spent any amount of time browsing lesbian fiction books. She is an award-winning author of several novels. She recently released The Last Scion of Ra, a science fiction book that also marks her 14th published book.

Join Kelly and I as we discuss how The Last Scion of Ra came to be, how she does world-building, and what books she'd recommend to other people! Make sure to check the end of the post for all the links to follow Kelly as she continues her writing journey as well as find out where you can purchase her books.      

⚜ ⚜ ⚜ ⚜ ⚜ ⚜

How did you first get started with writing?

I've written poetry my entire life. Writing fiction was an accident. I got sick of reading a free bad book a day from Amazon and my (now) wife jokingly said I should just write one myself. So I found a Xena post FIN fanfic I'd started years before and finished it. It was 66,000 words. After that I finished a story I'd started, then wrote another from scratch, and another. It snowballed from there.

That is honestly an amazing way to get started writing fiction. Literally the "write what you want to read" approach.
You have a book that just came out, The Last Scion of Ra. Can you share a bit about how this book came to be? Where you got the idea for it and such?

Last November I set out to complete my 3rd Mystery of the Makers novel for NaNoWriMo22. I conceived of a brand new Supercorp fanfic in the last few days of October. The idea wouldn't leave my head so I shuttered the previous plan and started The Last Scion of El. It was such an original, non-canon story idea that I wrote it so it would fold nicely into my Children of the Stars world. The book that was just published December 1st, 2022 is called The Last Scion of Ra.

Ooh, I love hearing about NaNoWriMo stories. I'll admit that I was wondering if it had started off as fanfic.
This question specifically came about because of The Last Scion of Ra, but I'm sure it applies to your other books as well. How do you come up with the names of the places in your books? Whether for planets or just for the shops that are mentioned.

Multiple sources really. I use a lot of bastardized Latin roots for places, names, etc. I make up a lot of stuff. For Scion, I made a list of two letter names and went through all to see what sounded best and wasn't too much like something else.

That is so cool!
I saw that a few of your books have won awards. Do you remember the feeling you had when you first learned that one of your books was nominated for, and won, an award?

The first award I ever won for my fiction was actually a Golden Crown Literary Society Goldie award. It was exhilarating and unreal. I think I floated for the rest of the night. I've also won 3 Lesfic Bard awards, which are triple blind. Every award I win provokes the same level of awe and inspiration. Things like awards, positive reviews, and messages help fill my writer bucket when negative reviews or writer's block empties it out.

I love that! I'm glad you have those things to help fill your writer bucket.
I've noticed that you've written books across a few different genres. You have a romantic comedy book, historical fantasy books, and science fiction books for example. I know you primarily write speculative fiction, but I think this question still works. Is it hard for you to write in a multitude of genres? Do you struggle with switching from writing fantasy to writing a romantic comedy?

I honestly struggle with NOT writing multiple genres or tropes into the same novel. My brain gravitates toward throwing everything in to see what will stick and I really like to mix it up, to write stories that entertain me. If others are entertained as well, that's a bonus.

That makes sense. It's nice that you can do that without it being a struggle!
You have several science fiction and fantasy books. So my question is, how much worldbuilding usually goes into your books? Do you do a deep dive into the world around the characters of these books with plenty of notes, make it up as you go and hope for no contradictions, or something in the middle?

World building really depends on the story itself. For instance, if it's small and tight, really personal, it doesn't have to require a lot of world building even if it's in a completely foreign place. Or, the book could be set in modern times of a familiar city and require massive amounts of world building. The thing that some don't realize is that world building isn't just about a world. It's about the people, laws, culture, flora, fauna, and society as a whole.
The Last Scion of Ra didn't require much world building at all, despite the fact that it's set 16 years in the future and is full of aliens and mutant hybrids. The book built on a society and premise that already existed from a previous book of mine, Children of the Stars. It had all the perks of a series book (because the world work was done) with none of the drawbacks because it was a unique novel and story that wasn't a continuation of anything else.

Solid! I love how you worded it as having the perks with none of the drawbacks. I definitely see how that can be appealing in a book.
I've unfortunately not read any of your books yet. Do you have a specific book that you'd recommend for people who have never read one of your books before?

This may sound like a lot of work, but it's honestly what I do when I'm interested in an author that's new to me. I go to Goodreads and find a reader/reviewer that aligns well with the books I like IN the genre you're looking for. Do you mesh well with them on Sci-fi? If so, did they like my books?
Okay, second option:

• Remember Me, Synthetica is a gateway book that folks like whether they’re into hard scifi or don’t read scifi at all. It’s my current favorite and it’s not a mystery. It's the story of one woman's path of self-discovery. (Lesfic Bard Award winner)
• I love Elemental Attraction because it’s my only high fantasy and it STILL makes me laugh. If you like funny, fantasy, fauxmance, read this. (Lesfic Bard Award winner, Goldie runner up)
• Waking the Dreamer is my 2nd favorite. A dystopian fic set 100 years in the future with disturbingly real science. Based on reviews, the twist will either make you hate the book or love it more. This one won a goldie.
• Most people tell me the Arrow of Artemis series is their favorite. Ancient Greek Amazons in 30 BCE. Early books are not my most polished, but they hold a special place in my heart.
• The Mystery of the Makers series is Indiana Jones/Lara Croft type adventure mixed with a royal romance, psionic powers, mythical beasts, steampunk aesthetic, and a divine mystery. I’m currently writing the 3rd and final book of the series.
• The Last Scion of Ra is my newest, best written, and longest book. At 500 pages, it’s not for the faint of heart. I love the idea of found family, romance, and a fish out of water, as well as showing the lengths someone would go for the person they love. It’s a definite read if you’re a fan of the #supercorp ship.

Well, based off those descriptions: I'm gonna need to get my hands on Elemental Attraction at some point! All your books sound good, but I love a book that can make me laugh.
Has your dog ever gotten in the way of your writing before?

Of course not! Jill is the goodest girl. She mostly sleeps on her bed in the corner, after I wrap her in a warmed blanket and give her a pillow. No, she's not spoiled. Why do you ask?

When you're not writing, what else do you enjoy doing?

Reading fanfic. Playing games with my wife. Everything from easy to hard board-based games, dice games, cooperative and competitive. I also like making homemade soups and implementing household improvement ideas.

Do you have any auto-read/auto-buy authors? Authors where you don't even need to read the summary of the book to know that you're going to read the book.

Melissa Good. She hooked me years ago with Tropical Storm and not only do I buy all her books, she's NOT a specific author. Her Dar and Kerry series are contemporary romance but I love them. I have a few that I buy a lot of their stuff but Missy is the only definite for everything.

I've never read one of her books before! I keep meaning to read Tropical Storm though, I've heard great things about it!
Are there any authors that you feel are underappreciated or under-noticed that you'd like to talk about?

Rae Magdon, Geonn Cannon, and Jenn Gott.
Rae because she writes diverse, kickass characters and heavy sci-fi stories, but she’ll also turn out a sweet and sexy shifter/vamp erotica series. Fun fact, we won Goldie awards in sci-fi the same year!
Geonn because I’ve always modeled myself after him. I was told you can only write one genre, or you have to have multiple pen names. I love so many of Geonn’s books and though, well if he can do it, so can I. So I write whatever I want, and publish all under the same name.
And Jenn because she writes superhero books that are closest (to me) to a comic aesthetic. She writes in a way that I can see the action and it instills a lot of nostalgia from when I collected comics.

I've read so many of Rae's fanfictions but I've not read any of her books yet! Need to make a point to do that. Also, two new authors for my list! I love finding new authors to follow.
What are some of your favorite books? Lesbian fiction or otherwise.

You did NOT give me a limit so I'll consult my spreadsheet & break it down. (not in order)

Sapphic Contemporary Romance:

• Tropical Storm (Dar & Kerry series) - Melissa Good
• Starting from Scratch - Georgia Beers
• Madam President (& First Lady) - Blayne Cooper
• Fated Love - Radclyffe
• Romancing the Zone - Kenna White
• Making a Comeback - Julie Blair
• All that Lies Within - Lynn Ames
• The Rise and Fall of Radiation Canary - Geonn Cannon
• In Development - Rachel Spangler
• And Playing the Role of Herself - KE Lane

Sapphic Speculative Fiction:

• The Growing - Susanne M Beck & Okasha Skat'si
• Protector of the Realm: Supreme Constellations 1 - Gun Brooke
• Broke Wings - L-J Baker
• Compass Rose - Anna Burke
• Lucky 7 - Rae D. Magdon
• Without a Front 1 & 2 - Fletcher DeLancey
• The Private Life of Jane Maxwell (Hopefuls Book 1) - Jenn Gott
• The Virtuous Feats of the Indomitable Miss Trafalgar and the Erudite Lady Boone - Geonn Cannon
• Fur and Fangs (Volumes 1-10) - Rae D. Magdon
• The Cybernetic Tea Shop - Meredith Katz

Non-Sapphic Fiction:

• The Girl from the Emeraline Island - Robert S. Blum
• The Deed of Paksenarrion trilogy - Elizabeth Moon
• Friday - Robert Heinlein
• A Dirty Job - Christopher Moore
• Song of the Lioness trilogy - Tamora Pierce
• Protector of the Small quartet - Tamora Pierce
• Anita Blake Vampire Hunter series - Laurell K Hamilton
• Last Herald-Mage trilogy - Mercedes Lackey
• The Magician's Assistant - Ann Patchett
• The Ship Who Sang - Anne McCaffrey

I have no regrets on not giving you a limit! These are amazing lists and I look forward to adding these books to my TBR and eventually getting around to read them. Some of the Sapphic Contemporary Romances I've already read, but a lot of the other ones are new to me.

⚜ ⚜ ⚜ ⚜ ⚜ ⚜

You can find Kelly Aten on her LinkTree where all of her socials are listend. You can also visit her on her website, her Archive of our Own account (because I'm personally geeking out over knowing an author's fanfic site), and on Instagram.

You can buy her books through Flashpoint Publication's website and Bella Books. You can also purchase her books through the standard sellers such as Bookshop (my affiliate link), Barnes & Noble, Kobo, and Amazon.

Disclaimer: I am a bookshop.org affiliate and may earn a commision on books bought using the link on my page.