We chat with author Ann Sei Lin about Between Ghosts and Gods, which is an evocative and fast-paced feat of world-building—infused with Chinese mythology, macabre humor, and an enemies-to-lovers romance.
Hi, Ann! Can you tell our readers a bit about yourself?
Hello! My name’s Ann and I enjoy origami, reading (of course!) and video games. I also spent a summer of university working as a bookbinder, which involved sewing together pages, cutting into expensive leather, and quite literally hammering books into shape. It was a fun and educational time!
When did you first discover your love for writing and stories?
From a young age, I’ve always loved stories. My dad is blind and had a lot of audio books sent to him from one the RNIB (a charity for the blind and partially sighted). One of my first memories is sitting close to the shared wall between our bedrooms so that I could listen to those books. I was instantly enchanted and I’ve wanted to be an author ever since.
Quick lightning round! Tell us:
- The first book you ever remember reading: The Animals of Farthing Wood
- The one that made you want to become an author: His Dark Materials
- The one that you can’t stop thinking about: A Face Like Glass
Your latest novel, Between Ghosts and Gods, is out now! If you could only describe it in five words, what would they be?
Fantastical, mysterious, full of heart.
What can readers expect?
A spooky but heartfelt adventure featuring a ghost girl, a human boy, and one very snarky cat as they find themselves caught up in a conspiracy that will rock both heaven and hell. A dizzying world in which danger lurks around every corner and everyone and everything wants to kill you. A subtle, slow-burn romance between a girl who yearns to live again and a boy who uses bravado to mask his fear of abandonment.
Where did the inspiration for Between Ghosts and Gods come from?
A lot of inspiration came from folklore and myths that I grew up with. I find underworlds in general fascinating, and I love all sorts of myths and legends associated with the underworld. When I was a child, I watched a TV adaptation of Journey to the West and loved it. The characters met all sorts of weird and wonderful demons that in some way I think inspired the demons of Between Ghosts and Gods.
Were there any moments or characters you really enjoyed writing or exploring?
I really loved writing all of Ruo’s interactions. Ruo is a living curse in the form of a cat and they act like both the embodiment of pure human resentment and a petulant house cat. My favourite Ruo scene is when Kasu and Arun have to break into a gambling parlour. The pair are sneaking around, trying to be quiet, when they enter a sort of storeroom full of bottles. In typical cat behaviour, Ruo jumps onto a shelf and starts nudging one of the bottles towards the edge. Kasu is like: ‘no, don’t you dare!’ and Ruo simply looks her in the eye and nudges the bottle forward even more!
Did you face any challenges whilst writing? How did you overcome them?
A big challenge was writing Arun’s POV. Originally, the entire book was written from Kasu’s eyes, but my publisher suggested that we needed to get into Arun’s head a bit more. (And they were right!) Writing Arun’s thoughts was a bit of a challenge. As a prince born with a silver spoon in his mouth, we’re nothing alike, but getting into the heads of different people and understanding how they tick is great fun.
What’s next for you?
My debut adult novel, Eternity In Three Acts, is out next year. It’s an adult fantasy featuring unravelling time, an epic journey, and the tragic love between a religious sacrifice and the man who is supposed to guide him to his death.
Of course, I would love to write more stories in the Between Ghosts and Gods universe. Perhaps a story set in the heavens this time.
Lastly, what books are you looking forward to picking up? Any you’ve read so far this year that you’ve enjoyed?
I recently finished and thoroughly enjoyed When The Blue Moon Wakes by Liana Kim Skrzypczak, which is the first in an epic trilogy. I could hardly put it down!
I’m also currently reading Jihyun Yun’s Good Creature, in which the protagonist ends up wed to a possibly vengeful ghost groom. It’s creepy, gripping, with an impeccable sense of looming dread.
