Exclusive interview with author of The Poppy War - Rebecca Kuang

The Poppy War was released this autumn by Agave Books Publisher and it instantly became the number one on my all time favourite books list. The Poppy War is a book that stays with you long after you finish it. It sits with you. It talks to you, reminds you of the darkness and rage you have just witnessed while reading. It challenges you to confront the violence and pointlessness of war without rose-tinted glasses. It is really hard to read this book however, it gives something to all the readers, and that makes The Poppy War special.

I received such a great honour that I could do a short interview with the fantastic Rebecca Kuang who will visit Hungary in less than a year. Rebecca who studies now in England was extremly kind and patiently answered my questions which at first didn’t seem so prepared - and gave us very suprising answers.

Dear Rebecca,

Thank you for your precious time and for the opportunity to let me introduce a piece of your wonderful world. I'm a big fan of The Poppy War - it has been a long time since a book last hit my heart and win me to itself at the same time I can't wait to meet you personally in April - the author who is only a couple years than I am, makes something everlasting and masterful at such a young age. 

Let’s start with an easy question. Could you tell me three characteristics that describe you the most?

Sleepy, exhausted, and curious. 

Inside this genre (SFF), who were the writers that had the biggest impact on you and your work?

This is a really hard question to answer because I read so many books and have been inspired by so many different authors. However, if I had to pick authors whose writing has most strongly influenced my own, I would list SFF writers like N.K. Jemisin, Ken Liu, Pierce Brown, and Liu Cixin. They are all very different from each other, but I think you can find elements of each of their works in my own prose. 

Have you always wanted to be a writer? Can you imagine yourself doing this as your full-time job in the future?

I actually never planned on being a professional writer, and I definitely can’t see myself doing this full-time. I would just get too bored. I don’t like living in my own head all day. I like to be stimulated with a lot of different kinds of tasks. I’m currently in graduate school to become a scholar of Chinese language and culture, and I would much rather be a full-time professor than a full-time writer. I think writing is fun, and I think I’m pretty good at it, so I’ll keep writing books as a hobby. But I think that if it ever became my entire life, then all the fun would be sapped out of it.

How does the success of The Poppy War’s debut influence you and your life? 

My life hasn’t changed that much. I still spend all my time reading, writing, and doing schoolwork. I suppose I’m a lot more busy and stressful these days since I have to treat writing as a profession and not just as a fun hobby–I have to meet deadlines, do publicity, and go to author events. It can be quite exhausting, especially because I’m most happy when I can just hole up in my room and read. But I would never complain; I’m very lucky that I get to do this.

Which character is closest to your heart? Do you see yourself in any of them?

All three of the main characters–Rin, Kitay, and Nezha–have pieces of my personality in them. They’re all very dear to me. If I had to pick a favorite, it would be Kitay. He’s probably the best of the lot. Rin and Nezha are both rather awful people, but Kitay is kind, loyal, and sweet. He’s truly too good for this world. 

I’ve heard that The Poppy War will be a trilogy. Will you let go of this world after the third book, or do you plan on “returning” there sometime?

I don’t have any current plans to return to this world after the trilogy is finished. I have too many ideas for other projects that I want to explore–I get bored if I do the same thing for too long. I may be interested in writing a Trifecta prequel novel, but that won’t be until much later in my career.

What inspired you during the writing of your book? (book, music, person, etc.) 

I get inspiration from a lot of different media. I listen to music a lot–I have a playlist for each book, as well as playlists for individual characters.

Do you have any on-going projects with which you would like to surprise the fans?

I do have a big surprise, but I’m not allowed to say anything about it until next year. 

I’ve heard that you moved to England for studying in 2018. Do you have any plans for dedications in Europe outside Great Britain? Hungary will organize the International Book Festival in April again. The Hungarian publishing office (Agave Könyvek) which published your book have already invited foreign writers several times for this event. Would you perhaps say yes to an offer like that?

Definitely! I’m coming to Budapest in April, and I’m very excited because I’ve never been to Hungary before.

And finally: What kind of books do you read recently?

I read a lot–I finish at least two books a week. I also tried to read as widely and diversely as I can, since I think there is a lot to learn from every genre and style of writing. Recently, I’ve particularly enjoyed Ocean Vuong’s On Earth We’re Briefly Gorgeous, Samantha Power’s The Education of an Idealist, Scott Hawkins’ The Library at Mount Chair, Ronan Farrow’s Catch and Kill, and Julia Philips’s Disappearing Earth.

I hope you are also extremely excited to get to know Rebecca like me – especially after this interview because it shows us the fact that she is an exhausted, curious bookworm just like everybody in the Worm Community.

The header NOT belongs to me, I just wrote the title of the picture on it. Special thanks to Réka Kovács for the great help!