Interviewing Kit Mallory

Hello!!

This weekend I was lucky enough to read the conclusion to the Blackout duology this series that comprises Blackout and Sparks tells a fantastic tale of overcoming the odds. I was very lucky that the author Kit Mallory was able to talk to me about the books and much much more.

How do you book tempt the Blackout Duology?

In a rather-too-close-for-comfort near-future UK divided by a wall, two Northern fugitives – a furious queer hacker and a thief with OCD who’s far too nice for his own good – steal an encrypted drive from the totalitarian government and end up, rather reluctantly, on the run together. Shenanigans ensue. In book two, they discover that while starting the fight is one thing, finishing it is a whole different story.

And with Sparks what were you trying to achieve with the finale?

When I started writing Sparks, it dawned on me that the question of how on earth you end a fight like the one the gang started in Blackout is a much, much bigger one than how you start it. In terms of the wider arc, I wanted to find a way of really bringing that home (I confess I felt pretty daunted myself when it sunk in, so I really wanted to give a sense of how overwhelming and scary a task the characters were facing, whilst simultaneously trying to hold onto a glimmer of hope and the possibility of something better. Similarly, with the main characters’ personal journeys, I wanted to get across the idea that overcoming the kind of trauma they’ve all experienced is an enormous task – but not a hopeless or impossible one.

I was really impressed with the way the core characters all had to face their personal traumas in this story – what drew you to that choice?

Thank you! I’ve always written in a very character-driven way – when I start a new project, it’s always the characters who appear first, and then the plot evolves from that. I’ve been practising as a mental health professional my whole adult life, and within my practice I have a special interest in complex trauma.

I suppose the characters’ journeys in Sparks are the natural end product of both the fact that it seemed quite clear to me that if somebody goes through everything Skyler, Mack and Angel do, of course that’s going to have a long-term effect on them, coupled with the fact that I’m fortunate enough to have the knowledge and understanding from my professional background of what that actually looks like. It’s not just about what they’ve been through, it’s also that their circumstances and the world they’re in mean none of them have the opportunity to really process or heal from any of it. And that will naturally really shape their thinking and behaviour and the way in which they each interact with the world around them. It seemed to me that having chosen to put these characters in this setting and have them go through those experiences, it would have been disingenuous to not pay proper attention to the psychological effects of that. Personally I think the human brain and how we adapt and react to our experiences is one of the most fascinating topics there is. I also think that in our society there is still a lot of misunderstanding and misconception about the ways in which trauma affects people. There is still a lot of shame and silence around for many trauma survivors, and stories and the sharing of human experience are a powerful antidote to that.

And how does it feel to know your series is complete?

Honestly, I feel very mixed about it. I’m very proud of the duology, and as I came to the end of drafting Sparks I had a very strong sense that this was the right place to leave them. In many ways it’s a really lovely feeling to have seen their journey through to the end. At the same time, it feels quite bittersweet because I’ve been working on these books for a long time and I’m very attached to all of the main characters! I’m going to miss them a lot. There’s also a slightly daunting sense of “what next?” Suddenly all the headspace that was being taken up by the duology is free, and now I have to decide what my next project’s going to be… which is a very freeing and exciting feeling, and at the same time a little overwhelming!

What are the joys and downsides of being a self-published author?

I think the main joy is having that complete creative control. I was able to write exactly the books I wanted to write, in the way I wanted to write them, and I’m really glad about that. When I made the decision to self-publish Blackout, it was because I’d realised that I’d written something I was proud of and thought was worthwhile, and I was able to take complete ownership of that decision to get it out into the world. I know that many people have very strong feelings one way or another about whether trad or indie publishing is the “right” way to go, and I’m not really one of those people – I think that there are pros and cons to both, and all writers need to make that decision for themselves. However, I do think it’s important to recognise that while the trad publishing industry has come a long way in recent years in terms of diversity, it’s still not a meritocracy, and still has a long way to go. I think it’s an amazingly empowering thing that authors, especially marginalised authors, can choose to get their work out into the world without having to first win the approval of a largely homogenous group.

Self-publishing is definitely not the easy option, though! The flip side of having total control is doing everything yourself – including the bits you’re not so good at! I find the marketing side of self-publishing very difficult, like many writers. And I think earning the trust of readers when they only have your word for it that your work is worth investing their time and money in is a tricky task. It requires a lot of patience and persistence – but then, there are many ways in which I think trad and indie publishing overlap, and that is certainly one of them!

Any others you think particular self-published authors we should be reading?

F.D. Lee (who – full disclosure – is a good friend of mine) is an absolutely phenomenal self-published SFF author. Not only does she write amazing, diverse, feminist, body-positive sci-fi and fantasy novels – her world-building and the depth and complexity of the topics she tackles is hugely impressive, and she has this incredible way of mixing incredibly dark, heart-breaking material with moments of genuine hilarity with a very light touch. Yes, I am a giant fangirl, and I assure you with very good reason.

Diversity in publishing is a topic that suggests we still have a long way to go – why do you think it is important?

Oof. So many reasons! I think that, while part of the reason humans are drawn towards fiction is to widen our world outside of our own experience, another key factor is that we’re look to see if we can find ourselves reflected in the stories of others. This is how we know that we’re not alone, basically; that we have shared experiences in common with other humans. They are part of what connects us to each other and help us to feel seen and understood. And that’s particularly important, I think, when you’re part of a marginalised group and perhaps your life hasn’t given you the chance to cross paths with many – if any – other people from that community.

If we think about shame as a social emotion – the sense that ‘I am wrong/bad’ and the associated fear that we’ll be rejected from our social group – much of that comes from feeling disconnected from those around us, that we won’t be seen or understood by others. Not seeing yourself reflected in the world around you can really fuel that. Even if your circumstances aren’t actively hostile, feeling invisible is still incredibly othering and alienating.

Specifically with regard to the queer community, it’s absolutely wonderful and amazing to see publishing becoming more inclusive and actively embracing of diversity – but actually, we’re still only a few years out from a time where none of those amazing books would have found a home in trad publishing, not because they’re not incredible, but because they centre queer characters. Now representation is definitely getting better for some groups – but there are still plenty of people – for example trans people, BIPOC LGBTQ+ people, those with any number of intersecting marginalised identities – who rarely get to see their lives and their identities represented in mainstream media. I think we still have a way to go before diversity stops being viewed as a kind of check-box exercise and starts being fully embraced as something genuinely enriching for everyone.

If there was one book (not your own) that you love to recommend to other people what would it be?

Ohhh, that’s another difficult one! Probably my top go-to, other than F.D. Lee whom I’ve already mentioned, is Kirsty Logan. Her debut novel The Gracekeepers is this gorgeously lyrical, emotive queer story set in a future where most of the Earth has been covered by the sea. And there are mermaids; what more could you want? I’ve also just finished reading The Falling In Love Montage by Ciara Smyth which came out in June – it’s the sweet, snarky YA lesbian romcom of my dreams, basically, and also deals very sensitively and thoughtfully with some interesting topics I’ve not really seen tackled in YA before, such as a parent with early-onset dementia. I’m desperate for someone to make it into a film, like, yesterday.