Sep 28, 20235 min read

Author Interview with Avellina Balestri

Tell us a little about yourself.

I am a native and resident of Maryland with majority Italian-American ancestry. I am a

cradle (and practicing) Catholic, which greatly influences my writing.

So far in my literary career, I have written for over thirty online and print publications, assumed the role of Editor-in-Chief for Fellowship & Fairydust Magazine contributed to several anthologies, and published two books of my own: Saplings of Sherwood, a Robin Hood retelling novel (the first book in a planned series), and Pendragon's Shield, a collection of my poems dealing with religious, historical, and mythological themes.

In addition to continuing the Robin Hood series, my main project at the moment is writing an American Revolution trilogy, All Ye Who Pass By.

I am also working on a screenplay that tells the story of the Battle of Karbala in 7th-century Iraq called River of Milk.

At what point did you decide you wanted to be a writer?

It’s something that came to me organically. I’ve always loved telling stories, and from a

young age, I was eagerly producing home movie plays and puppet shows and scribbling

down stories on pieces of scrap paper and in school notebooks. I started blogging in my

teens, and freelance opportunities eventually emerged from that, at which point I felt

comfortable officially designating myself as a writer by job description. I tried to finish a

novel I started at age twelve, but failed to produce a draft to my satisfaction.

Experimenting with fanfiction helped me hone my skills in the realm of fiction, both in

terms of retelling pre-existing stories and completing multi-part projects. All of this

prepared me to embark upon yet another novel-writing and publication quest, this time

with a successful outcome.

When did the Robin Hood series come onto the radar for you?

I have been a Robin Hood fangirl since I was a small child, growing up with the Disney

cartoon and the 50's series with Richard Greene.

I have always been writing little stories about him, and would regularly act out the legends in the fields and woods surrounding my house.

But I really committed myself to this more ambitious retelling project about 6 years ago. I originally had the idea to take the "daughter of Robin Hood"; trope and

invert it with a "daughter of the Sheriff" story.

It was only meant to be a one-shot stand-alone at first. Soon, however, my goals expanded to creating a retelling series which offered an overview of Robin's story from his youth as a disenfranchised Saxon noble, to his career as the Prince of Thieves, to his ultimate downfall and subsequent restoration. It's been a wild ride so far, but a rewarding one as well.

What would you say makes your Robin Hood story unique among other

retellings?

I try my best to balance historical realism with a genuine appreciation for the legends

and romances. It's not either-or for me, and I don't feel the need to be a myth-busting

crusader or a grimdark GRR Martin imitator.

As I mentioned above, my faith is important to me, and I have been frustrated by the tendency to misrepresent medieval Catholicism in popular media. More particularly, it is often forgotten how richly Catholic the culture of England was during the Middle Ages.

I wanted to depict a living faith that genuinely infuses the characters and affects their decisions. I think my version is also unique simply because it begins so early in the timeline to show us how Robin's upbringing molded him into the folk hero he will become. He is surrounded by injustice, and it is in his nature to strike a blow against it, come what may.

Do you have any characters in the story who have proven to be the most popular,

or most unpopular, with readers?

Roger Cavendish definitely wins the popularity contest. As a member of the family in a

long-term feud with Robin's family, he is that brooding underdog anti-hero that inevitably

draws sympathy from the crowd, even though his behavior is a mixed bag.

His relationship with his wife Rosalinda is a highlight, and their very slow-burn romance has proven to be more popular than Robin and Marian's teenage attraction. The many tragedies he suffers also make him an object of compassion, and it will be interesting to

see how the audience reacts to his character as it develops through the series.

On the other end of the popularity spectrum is Owain, and the running joke among my readers is that "everybody hates Owain." He is a Welsh refugee boy who grows up alongside Robin after his family is massacred after a failed rebellion against the Normans.

Although he is extremely loyal to Robin, he is belligerent, unstable, impulsive, and has a

tendency to give Robin bad advice. Again, it will be interesting to see how readers react

to him as his character develops further in the sequel books.

What is your favorite genre to read? To write?

I mostly read historical and religious non-fiction material and historical fiction. This

reflects in my writing, including fiction and poetry. In terms of fiction genres, both when

reading and writing, I gravitate to historical fiction. I grew up on various historical fiction

series I still feel a great deal of nostalgia for, such as The Young Royals, The Lady

Grace Mysteries, Hoofbeats, and Tales of Rowan Hood. They helped instill in me a love

for the past which has never waned. These days, I mainly read fiction set either in the

Middle Ages (mostly Robin Hood retellings) or set in the 18th century (mostly American

Revolution stories).

The fun part about being a part of writing networks is getting to read

the works of authors who write in the same genre and focus on the same topics as you,

and then discussing their perspectives and experiences with them afterwards.

Are you a plotter or a pantser?

A bit of both, I think. I usually have a general understanding of the story rubrics from the

get-go, but the process becomes like turning a kaleidoscope, where the established

shapes and colors shift. My main trait is writing out of order, and filling in the gaps later.

I follow the star of inspiration to make sure the heart and soul of the story is centered

before leaning into a more technical approach. I will write various scenes from different

sections of the narrative, and then inevitably edit the stuffing out of them as the rest of

the story coalesces.

Once this process is underway, and I have become comfortable

with the voices of the characters and the themes in the plot, I will make outline notes for

myself within the documents themselves. As I fill out the sections based on the notes, I

will delete the notes themselves.

Do you have any advice for fellow writers who want to be published?

Don't be discouraged by the process, even if it feels tedious and discouraging. Prepare

to question your own ability to write and feel burnt out on your project. Expect to read

over a sentence ten times and find ten different things "wrong" with it.

You will inevitably be your own worst critic. Be willing to ask for help from friends to get you through.

No author is an island, and extra pairs of eyes can save you from sinking into over-

scrupulosity. It can also help you evaluate your own story concepts and gauge audience

reaction. in terms of publishing, we now live in an age when *anyone* can become a

published author and build a base through social media networking.

It takes work, but it is entirely doable. If finding a traditional company to publish your work is taking too long, or they are demanding you alter your vision, or they simply scare you off with too many questionable clauses, do your own thing.