It’s kind of become a tradition that I interview the contributors to my anthologies and share those interviews on my blog. It’s also kind of become a tradition that it takes me a very long time to get them all posted. I plan to continue the first tradition but I’m hoping to avoid the second. Just to be different.
We’re continuing the Chimeric contributor interviews with a familiar name on my blog–Alexandra Seidel. Alexa and I have worked together in tons of different capacities for several years now. It started when I accepted one of her poems for Niteblade, then she was a slush reader, then Niteblade’s poetry editor… She’s also contributed to every single one of the Alphabet Anthologies so far 🙂
What letter were you assigned?
A
Did you struggle with the letter you were given?
Not at all. The story started forming in my head right away.
What was your favourite idea for the ‘word’ to use in your title that you didn’t use?
Mmh, my title is actually exactly as I wanted it to be!
What kind of chimera is your story about?
The one with two heads. It’s pretty close to the Greek creature, but also it’s something else entirely.
What, other than the letter you were assigned, helped inspire your story?
My story is actually set in a world that I’ve explored before (in The Marriage of Ocean and Dust, which appeared in Postscripts to Darkness) so that was part of the inspiration. I don’t want to give away too much, but one of Poe’s stories also helped inspire me.
Lion, goat or snake–which are you more like?
Well, I really want to say lioness, and some people would agree. But I do have some snake-like qualities as well. I’m not much like a goat, at least the last time I checked I wasn’t growing horns.
If you were going to be magically transformed into a chimera composed of three different creatures, what would you want them to be?
Let me think; I’d want to be one third dragon, one third tiger, and one third crane.
What if it wasn’t limited to creatures? What three things would you want to be composed of?
That one’s easy: one third wormhole, one third Mimir’s Well, and one third a witch’s cauldron.
Unrealizable dreams have been called chimeras. Taking the ‘unrealizable’ part out of the equation, what is one of your fondest dreams/goals?
Oh, I’d just want to have more time to write things, it’s as simple as that.
Can you share a short excerpt from your story?
When her daughter left to become an alchemist, the mother did not understand. Had her youngest child not always loved the harp, played songs as if the ghost of muses lived inside her hands? But the girl said she wanted nothing more to do with string, and ever since that moment, her harp would not speak another sound.
Alexandra Seidel is a writer, poet, and editor. Her writing has appeared in Strange Horizons, Lackington’s, Stone Telling, and elsewhere. If you are so inclined you can follow Alexa on Twitter (@Alexa_Seidel) or read her blog: www.tigerinthematchstickbox.blogspot.com.
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