When I heard about Pique Week I knew I wanted to be involved. Amulet has a great season including some of most-anticipated Fall 2016 releases. Iron Cast is a historical fantasy set in 1919 Boston where certain people have a blood condition–known has hemopathy–where they can create illusions with art. This fast-paced mystery is a completely evocative and thrilling read and one of my favorite reads this month. I’m thrilled to have Destiny answering some of my questions for Pique Week!
Miss Print (MP): Can you tell me a bit about your path as a writer? How did you get to this point?
Destiny Soria (DS): I’ve been writing ever since I was seven or eight years old. In middle school and high school, I started writing Ella Enchanted fan fiction. Gradually, I worked up the courage to write original stories. I finished a few novels over the years (all of them terrible), but finally the year after I graduated college, I finished a draft of a novel that I was truly proud of. I queried the old fashioned way and after a few months signed with my lovely agent, Taylor. That first manuscript was on submission for a long time, and finally I had to reconcile myself with the fact that it probably wasn’t going to sell. While trying to distract myself from that disappointment, I participated in National Novel Writing Month and hit the 50k goal. That was the first draft of Iron Cast.
MP: What was the inspiration for Iron Cast?
DS: My inspiration came from a variety of different sources. I loved the idea of a magic system based in creativity, and I was obsessed with vintage mugshots of grifters and mobsters from the 1920s. And more than anything, I wanted to write a book about two best friends who meant everything to each other.
MP: In Iron Cast Ada can use her violin (or her voice) as songsmith to make people feel whatever emotions she projects and Corinne can create wordsmith illusions by reciting from poetry or other texts. They are just two types of hemopaths. If you lived in the world of Iron Cast would you want to be a hemopath? If so, what kind?
DS: They have their share of troubles, but who could say no to the mystery and glamor of being a hemopath? I already have an overabundance of poems rattling around in my brain, so I think I’d make a pretty good wordsmith. I’d probably just use my talent to convince people I had a pet dinosaur or something though.
MP: Were any locations in Iron Cast inspired by actual places? What kind of research went into bringing your version of 1919 Boston to life in your novel?
DS: Actually, yes! The Mythic Theatre plays a semi-important role in the novel, and it’s based on an old theatre in my hometown of Birmingham, AL called the Lyric. The theatre was sitting vacant for a long time, and I was always strangely enchanted by its derelict presence. They actually just refurbished and reopened it, which is amazing. As for other research, to be honest, I spent a lot of time just stalking through google maps, trying to make sure I had the location of big landmarks right (I had never been to Boston when I wrote it). I also found a detailed map of Boston from 1917 that was invaluable to me.
MP: Can you tell me anything about your next project? (Any chance of a full Mirror House novel down the line?)
DS: I’m working on a YA fantasy right now. I can’t offer any details at the moment, but hopefully soon!
MP: Do you have any advice to offer aspiring authors?
DS: Trust your critique partners implicitly. But trust yourself more.
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Thanks again to Nicole Brinkley at Pique Beyond for setting this up and thanks to Destiny Soria for answering my questions.
You can see more about Destiny and her books on her website.
You can also check out my review of Iron Cast.
Abrams Books’ launched a new YA website called Pique Beyond! Pique is all about going beyond the book. Not only do they highlight exclusive excerpts and quotes from new and upcoming books, but they peel back the cover and show us the behind-the-scenes stuff: how books are made, what the authors were thinking, and how it all comes together. This week, they’re highlighting all of their newest titles, and let me tell you, they look amazing. Visit the site today at piquebeyond.com or follow them on Twitter and Instagram at @piquebeyond!
Miss Print 
I absolutely loved Iron Cast, and this interview is fantastic! Especially the part about making people believe you have a pet dinosaur. I think if I were a wordsmith, I would do the same, rather than conning people out of money hahahha.