An Interview with Sheila Nielson - author of Forbidden Sea

“Some books are to be tasted, others to be swallowed, and some few to be chewed and digested: that is, some books are to be read only in parts, others to be read, but not curiously, and some few to be read wholly, and with diligence and attention.”   - Sir Francis Bacon

The “Forbidden Sea” written by Sheila A. Nielson is one of the books that is to be chewed and digested; read wholly and with diligence and attention.

The book introduces us to Adrianne, a young girl whose childhood is robbed when a tragic accident steals her father. The brave young girl deals with troubles far above her age and works very hard to support her mother, sister and aunt. Her already difficult life turns upside down when she encounters a mermaid. Now, her dreams are full of the mermaid’s singing as she attempts to lure Adrianne into the sea. The superstitious folk of the island where Adrianne lives turn on her and shun her family.

The book combines the elements of drama, fantasy and romance to tell the tale of this courageous young girl who now has a way to escape the hard life she leads – an underwater paradise with an elusive Sea Prince. However, a sense of responsibility for the ones who love and depend on her hits Adrianne as she makes a choice.

The story is an inspiring one - teaching us about loyalty, love and hardship. Today, we talk to the creator of the amazing story – Ms. Sheila Nielson about her inspirations, her reading habits and more importantly, encouragement for young writers to follow her footsteps.

Q. I feel a lot can be told about a person from their reading habits. Looking back, which of the books you read as a kid do you feel shaped you as a writer today?

The book that probably shaped me the most as an author was L. M. Montgomery's Emily of New Moon series.  I love Anne of Green Gables as well, but it was really Emily I loved most. Emily wanted to be a writer. She had a lot of people tell her she couldn't do it. But she did it anyway. I read the Emily books over and over again. Something in them spoke to me. I loved her indomitable spirit. The passion she felt for nature was so much like my own. She was mischievous and stubborn at times--but deep down she had a good heart. I remember trying to tell my grandmother about why I loved Emily of New Moon so much. After a while, my grandmother asked if I would be willing to read the first chapter to her. We ended up reading the whole series together. That was the timeless magic of Emily. My grandmother and I were generations apart--but grandmother ended up loving the books ever bit as much as I did. Those are the kinds of books I want to write. Something everyone, young and old, would love to read.

 Q. The book, Forbidden Sea, is full of beautiful imagery. One of my favorite descriptions is the ‘luminous grandeur of the Sea Queen’s palace’. Is this something you have always imagined palaces to be like or did the picture just come to you while writing the book?

One of the things I did while writing Forbidden Sea, was I created a musical soundtrack, that I would listen to as I wrote--especially when I was writing the underwater scenes. The music helped me float out of my own world into that of the merfolk. It helped me fall deeper into their kingdom, and see it inside my mind. During the scene where I wrote about the whale--I listened to recordings of whale songs. I also watched a lot of documentaries about scuba diving. This helped me to see what living underwater would look like. I also went swimming a lot during the period I was writing the story. I would try different things (like making noise underwater), just to see what it felt like in my ears. All these things helped me write those final scenes so that they felt more real.

Q. There is much talk about the upcoming sequel to Forbidden Sea. When do we get to read it and is it Adri-based?

I am independently publishing the sequel--so when it comes out will depend on how long it takes me to get everything done. Since I have a full time job as a children's librarian already--I have to sneak all that work into the small amount of free time that I have left each day. But I am working hard every day to get it done as soon as possible.  I am hoping for a release sometime this summer--but that might be a little too optimistic. We will have to see. Adri will be in the story, but she will not be the main character this time around. She will be important to the plot though--and we will get to see what happened to her after the events of Forbidden Sea. One thing we will get to do is finally meet the Sea Prince and learn much more about him.

Q. I feel Adri is a symbol of hope and courage to stand up to all the Cora Lynn Dunsts of the world. Is there a story behind how this character came to being-real life incidents, people, etc.? What was the inspiration behind this amazing character?

I wanted Adrianne to be an amazing person who had no idea how truly amazing she was. I thought about the people who had made a difference in my own life. I had one friend in particular who lifted all those whose lives came in contact with her. I always wished I could be more like her. The kind of person who makes a difference in this world. The kind of person who never realizes their own power and strength. It was this friend that inspired Adrianne's character and gave her a soul.

Q. Circling back to your reading habits, do you have a list of books that you plan of reading in the future (a book-bucket list, if you will)? (I am sure our readers would be excited to learn what kind of books feature in an author’s list).

I've been really enjoying the new Lockwood and Co. series by Jonathan Stroud. I am dying to read the next book which isn't out yet. I'm also really excited to read the next book in The Queen's Thief Series by Megan Whalen Turner. Other books I want to read are: Echo by Pam Munoz Ryan, Listen, Slowly by Thanhha Lai, and whatever book R.J. Palacio decides to write next.

Q. Also, if you were to recommend one book (apart from Forbidden Sea) that one must read in one’s lifetime, what would it be?

Emily of New Moon by L. M. Montgomery. (Of course.)

Q. Forbidden Sea (in my opinion) is one of those books that make one want to pen down one’s thoughts. So, in conclusion, could you give some words of encouragement and advice to all the budding young authors out there trying to follow their dreams?

Read lots of books. The best way to learn how to write is to see how other authors do it. Especially authors that do it well. But most of all--don't let anyone tell you that you can't write. So many people told me that breaking into publishing now is nearly impossible. That it was a waste of my time. Don't you believe it. Don't you quit. If you are going to write--write for yourself and the pure joy of creation. The rest is just icing on the cake.