Interview with Si Wall about his new fantasy adventure novel entitled Amelia and the Elf a novel for the entire family

Please welcome filmmaker and author Si Wall who is chatting about his first foray into fantasy with his novel for the whole family; Amelia and the Elf. Here's what he said when I asked why he chose to write fantasy –"I’ve written scripts before, but drama, so it was a nice change to write something longer and to forget reality, it opened up a lot of doors that haven’t been there before."

• BN ID: 2940045182133
• Publisher: Si Wall
• Publication date: 7/27/2013
• Sold by: Smashwords
• Format: eBook

Overview:
An Elf living in a tree in your garden could be something to worry about, but Amelia chose to go on adventure to a land she never imagined possible. Prompted by a sudden illness to her father, Amelia goes off in search of magical dust to make him better, undeterred by countless warnings of the dangers ahead.

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Si Hi and welcome to The Reading Frenzy

Thanks for having me here!

Tell us a bit about Amelia and The Elf

It’s about a young girl, who is taken to Bulgaria by her parents, reluctantly of course and finds an Elf living in a tree at the bottom of her garden. She persuades him to return to his own land, where he is an outlaw, to help her get some magic dust, to make her Dad get better.  The trip back to Elfingdorn is nothing like she imagined, or the creature that inhabit it.

Why did you choose to write a fantasy?

I’ve written scripts before, but drama, so it was a nice change to write something longer and to forget reality, it opened up a lot of doors that haven’t been there before.

On the Website for Amelia and The Elf it’s touted as a Fantasy Fiction Novel for all the Family.
Is there a certain median age group that you’re focusing on?

I wrote it for children and young adults, but then again, the Hobbit was written for children too, and that has proven to be a very popular book, and films, with adults too. The test readers were all adults and loved it, which was a nice surprise.

Will this only be a digital printing and when and were will it be available?

It’s digital for now, apart from 100 limited edition copies of a hardback book, but it would be nice to get it into a bookshop in the real world. I’m happy to have it available for download around the world though.

Si you’re a filmmaker both documentary and drama, TV director and storyteller.
Did your writing come after the filmmaking and directing or is it in combination with the other two?

I’ve been making drama features for a few years now and have written scripts for myself as well as others, although a book was a departure from the norm. I don’t think I would have attempted a book if I hadn’t written something before and seen that it worked on an audience. At least with a film, you can sit in the theatre and see the reactions, which I like to do.

The Amelia website also says this is the first in a series of five novels.
Where did the idea for Amelia come from?

I was ill for a short while and made a comment ‘about my ‘elf’, and it sort of grew from there.  I had two months to formulate an idea and I liked Erivon, so kept making notes and when I had the time, I wrote it.  I have a script that is just about finished too, although it’s quite long, epic almost!

How long has the idea been forming?

I first had the idea in early 2011, but had filming commitments until late last year, so the characters were knocking around my head for a bit, but they were welcomed guests.

The novel is illustrated by Lynn Adams.
Why did you choose her for this work?

Lynn is amazing, she obviously had the novel, but in chunks and we swapped a few emails to discuss, but really, she exceeded my expectations on every piece of Art she did.  She certainly has a talent and I couldn’t be happier with the artwork.

Will she be illustrating all the Amelia novel?

Absolutely! I can’t imagine anyone else working on Bok-Boks or Amelia, plus the following books have quite a lot of new characters and species in too, so it needs Lynn.

Could you walk us through a “day in the life” of Si Wall please.

The beauty of that question is that no two days are the same. I could be working on a script, like now, I am about to submit a comedy series to UK Broadcasters, which has been with me for a while, but the first two episodes are written now, so that can be sent off.  I also am rewriting a script for animation, converting a barn into a studio, talking to a writer about a new screenplay and I have a WWII drama that we hope to get funding on any time soon.

Si it says on the website that you used to tell stories with your camera lenses.
Does this mean that your days of filmmaking are over?

Absolutely not!  It’s just another way of telling stories. It could be animation, drama, writing, in fact, anything that tells a story to an audience. I feel more at home behind a camera though it’s a relaxing place for me.

Si will there be any brick and mortar signing events after the release of the novel?

I hope so, we are talking about doing some live events, maybe book signings and limited edition art from Lynn, but we’ll have to see.

Si thank you so much for answering my questions. I can’t wait to see Amelia and Good Luck!

Thank you, and I know Erivon, Amelia and Reddish and Pinky thank you too!

Connect with Si/Amelia – Website – Facebook -  Twitter

Here are some of Lynn's illustrations