Meet Silja Evelyn
Indie Author Spotlight
Welcome to Indie Author Spotlight where I interview talented writers who have valuable insights to share on their writing process, publication, and what it means to be an indie author.
Silja is a multi-genre writer and editor, originally from Finland and currently living in Scotland. She has a Master’s in Publishing and has been working as a freelance editor and beta-reader since the summer of 2022. Her debut novel Pretty Boy was published in 2020. Silja speaks five languages and loves rainy weather, tattoos, coffee, cats, and heavy music.
How did you initially get into fiction writing?
I don’t remember a time when I didn’t want to be a writer, so I guess I could say I was born this way. The very first time I had my stories shared to an audience was at school when a few of the horror stories I wrote in Finnish class were ‘published’ in the school paper. I was around 13-15 at the time, and I am eternally grateful to my Finnish teacher for encouraging me to continue writing. I started my first (English) novel around the same time: a fantasy series that featured pretty much every supernatural creature in existence. Although I still have a few chapters of that saved on my laptop, I don’t intend to ever publish or even finish it. I was originally dead set on becoming a fantasy writer, but after I moved to the UK at 19 years old, I suddenly wanted to write literary fiction instead. That’s when I started my debut novel Pretty Boy. During the past few years, I’ve come to the conclusion that I’m not happy writing any one genre. I want to write them all.
Tell us about your debut novel Pretty Boy.
It’s literary fiction, bit on the darker side, and it’s the first novel I ever wrote from start to finish. I got the idea during an English class from a fairly irrelevant line in the book we were reading. Basically, the main character is facing serious financial issues and ends up making some questionable decisions to overcome them. I’m currently trying to acquire the rights to Pretty Boy back from my publisher. I’ve received some great feedback on the story, but I wish I could give the book an additional round of copyediting and publish a more polished version.
Did you draw inspiration for the characters in this from people you know?
No, all the characters are purely products of my imagination, although I won’t deny that some of them may have been subconsciously influenced by the people I’ve come across in real life. In general, I prefer not to write characters based on real people, but I do have a few very minor characters and interactions in my so far unpublished works that have been inspired by people I know.
You’re also a professional editor. Do you do your own editing or do you hire a separate professional to edit your work?
My debut novel was published by an indie publisher, so they provided me with a developmental editor. I wasn’t an editor myself at that point, and you could tell: the manuscript I queried them with was essentially a first draft. These days I edit my books as much as I possibly can on my own, but I do hope to at least recruit a few beta-readers and a proofreader for the books I plan to self-publish. If the manuscript I’m currently querying gets picked up by a publisher, I would love to work with another editor again.
What’s your writing process? Do you start with characters? Plot ideas? How do you get started on a project?
My books are definitely more character than plot driven, so I always start with characters. I need to have a clear image of the protagonist, their name and appearance, before I can do anything else. Once I have that down, the story almost writes itself in my mind – the struggle is to actually get the words on paper. I start every project by creating a separate document for notes and writing down every idea I have, whether it’s scenes I’d like to include, bits of dialogue, character arcs, or a (very short) description of the plot. I don’t outline my books, but I usually know how the story ends before I’ve written a single word. Once I’ve figured out an opening, I just write without looking back and trust that everything can be fixed in editing. As you might expect, my editing process is far more planned and organised than my writing process.
Tell us about your writing routine. Do you have any creative rituals or a favorite place to write?
I write at my desk with a cup of black coffee or hot chocolate and with music on. I prefer writing at night, but I’m happy to write at any time of the day as long as there’s no one else in the room with me (I make an exception for coffee shops, where having people around me doesn’t bother me). I create a playlist for all my writing projects that I can listen to whenever I need inspiration.
What criticism have you received that has helped you grow as a writer?
Pretty much everything the developmental editor of Pretty Boy told me. She was fantastic. Some of the best advice I got from her was to avoid having too many characters: before adding a new character, consider if their function can be fulfilled by a pre-existing character. My book was also very long for lit fic (129k words), so we had to cut it down a bit. She suggested outlining the main themes, and then cutting out everything that didn’t contribute to the plot, character development, or one of the main themes.
What are some of your writing influences? Favorite books?
I love atmospheric, character driven, weird and dark books. They don’t necessarily have to be all of those things at once, though. Some books I have loved recently and that have inspired my own writing in some way are Boy Parts by Eliza Clark, Bunny by Mona Awad, Pine by Francine Toon, What Moves the Deadby T. Kingfisher, and The Handmaid’s Tale by Margaret Atwood which I’m using as a comp title for the book I’m currently querying.
What’s your approach to marketing? What has worked or not worked for you?
I think the most effective method for me has been word of mouth and connecting with other writers. Talking about my previous publishing experience has garnered the most interest out of all my social media and blog posts, so I’m considering documenting my next publishing journey in some way. I’m also planning to create character art for my books. I don’t know how effective that will be, but I love drawing so it’ll be worth a try either way. One method I know for sure is not effective is trusting a publisher to do the marketing for me, so I’m prepared to do the work whether I’m trad publishing or self-publishing.
What are you working on now?
I am currently querying a standalone novel, Nordic Poison, which is feminist speculative fiction. I’m also working on a four-part cyberpunk series that I intend to self-publish. I’ve written the first drafts to all four parts and am now editing Book 1.
Where can readers find you?
Threads and Instagram as @siljaevelyn, and through my website siljaevelyn.com. I used to write a blog on my website and hope to get back to that soon.
