Hello fellow nerds! I am so excited to get to tell you about my next interview! It’s with Kelly Coon, author of Gravemaidens and its sequel Warmaidens! This story is all about Kammani, a 17-year-old healer who is escaped death in her previous home and along with the survivors, is trying to build a new home for herself, her siblings, and her love. Unfortunately, it seems that the kingdom of Alu isn’t yet done trying to kill her, and she must make her way back in order to save the people closest to her and prevent an all out war. You are not going to want to miss this! Add it to your TBR ASAP!
Kelly, could you please tell us a bit about yourself and about Warmaidens?
Sure! And thanks for having me! I’m Kelly: YA author, editor for a company called Blue Ocean Brain, former high school English teacher, essayist, and mom to three rowdy boys.
In Warmaidens, 17yo Kammani and crew have found themselves a safe haven in the city-state of Manzazu where Kammani has become a respected healer and built a life with her friends, her sister and brother, and Dagan, who’s asked for her hand.
But when an assassin from Alu murders a healer he thinks is Kammani, they know that their safe haven isn’t so safe anymore.
Hungry for revenge, Manzazu’s queen wants to strike back at Alu with her fiercest weapons—her scorpion warrior maidens—but Kammani knows that war harms more than it heals. To save the innocents and any chance of a future with Dagan, Kammani must take down Alu’s ruler before their lives burn up in the flames of war.
In what ways did your writing process change between writing Gravemaidens and Warmaidens?
It was soooo much different! When I wrote Gravemaidens, I could take all the time in the world I needed. I could write and rewrite and toss out ten thousand words because I didn’t need anyone’s approval on anything.
But with Warmaidens, I was lucky enough to have a contract. I’d been paid to write a book about which I had only conceived a couple of paragraphs. So, the pressure was on. Not only did I have a deadline, I wanted to write something that would be better than Gravemaidens and amp up the pressure for Kammani and her friends in all the best possible ways.
While writing Warmaidens was there a character that you felt particularly close to?
Iltani stayed with me throughout the entire story. I commiserated with her fate, but knew that to show the unfairness to women in this world, I needed to show how dire it could be. In our world, women face societal misogyny, no matter the power we have. We’re often discredited, underpaid, overlooked, dragged through the mud, or placed on a pedestal, and I knew I could reflect some of that with Iltani’s story. Though her situation is much worse than what I might personally face, it’s not half of what some women go through in our world today.
I feel like the tone for Warmaidens is definitely more intense, with a lot of fear and woven through. Which scene did you find the most difficult to tackle while writing?
There is a scene that’s pretty quiet, where Kammani meets up with Iltani after she’s been captured. Though it wasn’t one of the battle scenes, it was still difficult for me to write, knowing that one of them was free and the other was not. I felt viscerally sickened by Kammani being forced to leave because my whole heart was screaming to save her! I couldn’t do it at that point in the story, but holy hell, I wanted to.
As a writer, you connect with your characters and they become almost real to you, so it’s bizarre to watch them suffer, knowing that you have the power to change it. (Writing books is weird haha.)
I loved reading Dagan and Kammani so much *heart eyes*, but the sibling relationship between Kammani and her sister had so much growth! Were there any scenes between the sisters that you absolutely needed to make sure stayed in the book?
I wanted Nanaea to have a more active role in the story, so it was pivotal to me that she be in on the spying in Alu. I wanted her to use her skills to help, not just be the pretty face she was forced to be by the palace in Gravemaidens. For Kammani, Nanaea’s stitchery showed her how incredibly talented she was, too. She wasn’t just a little sister whom she could discredit; she was growing up and could self-sustain, just like Kammani could.
That was vital.
Your cover is STUNNING!! Who was the artist behind your book covers?
Isn’t it!???? I fell in love! Sammy Yuen, who designed the Gravemaidens cover, designed this one, too. When I first heard they were thinking plum instead of red (which was what I was pushing for), I wasn’t sure if it would work. But when they showed me both, I flipped out over this gorgeous, plum shade with hints of pink. Clearly, he and the Delacorte Press design team knew what they’re doing.
This year has been absolutely bonkers, but what is something you’re looking forward to once Warmaidens publishes?
Oh my gosh. I am so, so excited about having this story out in the world. It’s been a long time coming, since I sold both of these in 2017 (WHAT?). It will be nice to invest myself 100% in my next books! Plus, since it comes out on December 15, we can yeet this year into the sun sixteen days later. Haha Definitely looking forward to THAT.
What’s next after Warmaidens? Could we get a hint?
Squee! Of course! I can’t say toooooo much, but we’ve got some YA contemporary action happening next. I jumped genres for a second, but will absolutely be heading back to fantasy afterward. I have a swamp fantasy involving some magical fishhooks, a Cupid character, and gator wrestling that must be written. It MUST.
What has been something you’ve loved doing this year to help you stay grounded when things have gotten stressful?
I’ve always been an audiobook fan. Always. But this year, I was having so much pandemic stress, that I took audio books to the next level. I purchased an adult coloring book and some fancy markers, and decided to listen to stories while coloring. (Check out The Henna Artist if you haven’t. Gahhh, so good.)
Doing this whole listening/coloring thing has been amazing for my mental health. My husband and kids know that when my headphones are on and the coloring book is out, to leave me in peace. I’m resetting my circuits so I can be a productive, happy person for them.
It’s worked wonders!
Are you doing any online events for the Warmaidens launch? Pre-order incentives? How can we support your amazing new book?!
Yes and yes!
Preorder Incentives: I’m giving away a ton of goodies for every preorder or library request (while supplies last):
Preorders receive:
- A Maiden’s Tonic mocktail card
- A WARMAIDENS bookmark
- A scorpion laptop sticker
- A signed bookplate
- A 5 x 7 quote print of your choice. (You’ll choose when uploading your proof of purchase.)
Library requests receive the mocktail card and a bookmark.
You can find out how to get those here: bit.ly/WMGoodies
Warmaidens Events
I’m launching Warmaidens into the world on Tuesday, December 15 at 7:00 PM EST. You can register for this free virtual event here: bit.ly/WarmaidensLaunch
YA author Sorboni Banerjee and I will have some giveaways and an interview with both my agent and my editor.
I’m also chatting with YA authors Namina Forna and Kate Williams this month, too! You can find all of my events here.
