Hello, fellow disciples! We've been searching far and wide for individuals who have cultivated for a long time. This month, we bring to you an interview with __syyh__, the author of My Name is Not Nian, which won the Favorite Main Character of The Immortals' Conquest 2022.

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Tell us a bit about yourself!

Hi! I'm 水月雨花 (shuî yuè yû huā) and I just love reading and writing. :D

What is your writing process? Do you outline everything or write as things come to mind? Why?

Well, first of all, I love to daydream and make stories in my head whenever I'm free. So, there would be dozens of stories in my head every single time I start daydreaming. But what makes me want to put a story on paper/record would be that ONE scene that makes me go "Wait, I have to write that down somewhere." and that whole scene would be written in a sitting. And suddenly, I'm spending the entire afternoon outlining the main plots.

However, I'm still figuring out the percentage of the storyline that should be established prior to me properly sitting down and writing the story. Because, to be entirely honest, I was winging it most of the time when I was writing The Night Emperor since my outline wasn't sufficient enough to provide a sturdy enough structure for me to flow effortlessly from one scene to another. Which is why the story is not as structured as I'd like it to be and why I'm always having a hard time continuing the story after each chapter. But there's also beauty in winging it, because it gave me space to explore the what ifs. What if this happened to me? How would I react? What would follow? Which is fun in its own way. The only thing is that it makes me stressed when I suddenly have writer's block haha

So when I was writing My Name is Not Nian, my latest short story, I structured it by chapter, and added 2 to 3 lines of dialogue to each chapter to set the scene which helped me roll the ball out quickly. With that, I could easily wrote at least 1K words in an hour. A huge difference when compared to barely squeezing out 300-500 words with the same amount of time when I was writing The Night Emperor.

Of course, some writers might feel that having an outline is too rigid, but you are the creator of your story so you can move things around however you see fit. What I would advise is to review the chapters at 5-chapter or 10-chapter intervals to see where your story is flowing and to see if it needs to flow through your pre-planned outline or it's calling you to switch things up and just act accordingly.

What are some things that influenced your story?

The beauty in the descriptions of scenes, nature, and emotions in a lot of Mandarin novels that I read that I couldn't find in English novels, Asian culture, Asian architecture, Asian history, the Chinese appreciation of nature.

Tell us about the main character of one of your stories. What inspired their creation?

Ye An from The Night Emperor was inspired by Mulan. She is the only Disney princess for me since I was five and I don't even consider her a princess because she's a god-damned warrior and five-year-old me worshipped her.Peiyang Niang Niang/Nian from My Name Is Not Nian is inspired by all of the mothers who would do anything to be able to protect her child.

What were some challenges you experienced while writing the story?

Mostly just writer's block as mentioned earlier. Oh, and don't set your chapter count so high. Especially if you're just starting out. I started by writing essays so I don't know where I found the confidence to tell myself that I'm going to write a 100-chapter novel. It's been almost 3 years and I'm not even close to finishing the story. Learn from my mistake, don't be so ambitious hahaha

What message do you hope your story will tell your readers?

That you're not alone, that there's someone like you, that even if you can't find someone like you in real life, you can find them in the pages of my stories.

If you woke up in a time or place that was very different from reality, what would you do?

Take it in, enjoy every moment of it, and write notes for my next novel!

If there was something you could learn (i.e., some spell, some martial arts, etc.) like the main character in your book, what would it be?

Sword-fighting, archery, and horse-riding.

Would you rather go through a lifetime of never finding love or be willing to go through several lifetimes of hardships just to save your love? Why?

I'd choose to never find love in a lifetime if it means I'll find it the next. Going through several lifetimes of hardships to save my love is too heartbreaking. It's good plot and great for character development but nah, don't think my heart is strong enough. I'm happy to just go through that sort of heartbreak through fiction.

What is your favorite creature from Asian mythology or folklore? Why?

Qilin (And no, it's not the one from Fantastic Beasts. Nothing against that ADORABLE creature but that's not a Qilin. Just search "Qilin in Asian mythology".)Because it's basically a good omen for a good era since it marks the birth of a leader who's benevolent.

What is your favorite Asian myth? Why?

The love story between Niu Lang and Zhi Nü because it's just heartbreaking. People should just leave couples who are in love alone if they're not hurting each other or others. Stop meddling and breaking couples off!

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Thanks for sharing your thoughts with us, __syyh__! We wish you the best of luck in your writing endeavors.

Until the next chapter, fellow disciples!