Get ready to learn more about the book Tasting Much Sweeter Than Wine in this discussion with sapphic author Daisy Fairchild.
Join us for an exclusive peek behind the scenes as we quiz Daisy Fairchild about Tasting Much Sweeter Than Wine, writing, reading, and more.
This book is part of the Forced Proximity category in the 2024 IHS Reading Challenge.
Why did you write Tasting Much Sweeter Than Wine?
I wrote this story for inclusion in Space Fruit Press’s Shackin’ Up anthology, which was all about sexy strangers thrown into small spaces by that devil, Circumstance! I’ve always loved stories where there’s a tight focus, and the result feels inevitable, but you can still have fun along the way! Add in Yule and the longest night, which are one of my favorite holidays, and I just knew there was something cooking in that small cabin in the woods, yanno?
Who is your favorite character in the book?
Wren is definitely my favorite, though please do pour one out for poor Korbin, who had to suffer through his best friend having the hots for his mom throughout high school! I don’t think that Wren is similar to me beyond the fact that we both like the woods a lot – she’s extremely focused and kind of oblivious, and maybe a little hapless. To her credit, she knows not to look a gift horse in the mouth, though! She’s probably better at seizing that… let’s call it “opportunity” than I would be – I’d be overthinking the whole time!
What part of Tasting Much Sweeter Than Wine was the most fun to write?
Writing poor Wren’s consternation when Zorah answers the door was great fun! It’s the combination of expecting some overgrown troll of a woodsman and then being confronted with the quite literal woman of your dreams in a state of dishabille, combined with her knowledge that she is actually in a somewhat untenable situation. She can’t really just say “oops, sorry to interrupt, I’ll move along” – she has to deal with the situation in front of her as best that her little gay self can!
What is your favorite line from your book?
Gay, Wren thinks nonsensically, I am so f***ing gay.
What is your writing process like? Plotter or pantser?
I’m probably somewhere in between? A gardener, I think I’ve heard it called, where you plant some specific ideas, but you’re not quite sure what’s going to come up where, and sometimes a squirrel has buried an acorn in the middle of your garden plot, and then you have to decide whether you want an oak tree right there or not, and if you do, well, you have to figure out if the other things planted around it can handle that much shade, and… Anyway, I think that works pretty well for me, overall, but I can be a bit dense when it comes to things like foreshadowing and the lovely subtle underpinnings of stories that really good writers do so well, and that’s something I’d like to work at with the help of better structuring and outlining.
Where do you usually write, and what do you need in your writing space to help you stay focused?
I have a lovely little upstairs office that looks out over some hills and fields and woods, which is perfect for trying to write stories about sweeping romance and secret magic! In order to stay focused… well, I haven’t figured that out yet! I have ADHD, so it’s more about directing the flow of my attention than trying to nail my fingers to the keyboard. Music (instrumental or choral) helps. No one else being around helps. A good cup of tea helps. But it’s an imperfect art!
If you could spend a day with another popular author, whom would you choose?
If I could spend a day with another author, it would be Sara Douglass, who unfortunately is no longer with us. She’s a magnificent writer of Big and Weird and Exciting stories, and I’d have loved to get to pick her brain about world-building, in particular. I’d love to write more interconnected stories, and she did a wonderful job of writing books that referenced a shared world, while changing characters and plots and scope. She was also an excellent story-teller who didn’t shy away from having unlikable characters, which I find really fun! An unlikable protagonist isn’t for every reader, but I think it really adds dimension to a story if you do it well!
What is the most valuable piece of advice you’ve been given about writing, and by whom?
I know that Neil Gaiman is someone that many of us are suddenly re-evaluating (to put it politely), but I saw a quote from him years ago that said, in effect, “When someone tells you something isn’t working in your story, 90% of the time, they’re right. When they tell you how to fix it, 90% of the time, they’re wrong.” I just found it really helpful in freeing myself from the idea that constructive criticism, even from folks whose work I love and respect, is always correct. That made a big difference for me in learning how to work through stories – I can ask people whether a story is landing, or whether certain parts are doing what I want them to do, and I can even ask for ideas or suggestions, but if someone gives me a step-by-step of what they think I should do instead, that’s probably not going to be as helpful!
What author in your genre do you most admire, and why?
Anne McCaffrey was my first real introduction to modern sci-fi/fantasy, and while a lot of her work is now pretty clearly a product of her time, I still have endless respect for what she created, and I still enjoy it! She built so many worlds and told so many stories, and created so many great female protagonists, and I think that had a huge impact on the stories I imagined and eventually told. She also wrote a TON of stuff, and started comparatively late in life, which is very inspiring!
Have you ever fallen in love with one of your characters?
Oh, I’m definitely a little bit in love with the Empress in What The Empress Wants! I mean, how could I not be? She’s beautiful, confident, and sharp as a blade! Her Most Royal Excellency Alludos can step on me, fr fr.
What books did you grow up reading?
I read a LOT of fairy tales as a kid, and I definitely think that paved my road straight into SFF! I had some of the most beautifully illustrated children’s books — lots of Hilary Knight and Mercer Mayer and Peter Spier and Trina Schartt Hyman and the Dillons, etc. I think this really made me even more into a visually-oriented writer, and meant that I really loved telling stories where what they would look like mattered, if that makes sense!
Do you only read books in one genre or do you genre hop?
I primarily read sci-fi and fantasy, with some history mixed in. When I was a kid, I read some light murder mystery stuff, The Cat Who series etc, but it never really grabbed me the way the more fantastical genres did. I think I just really like the wideness of possible stories and settings and characters that is available in SFF? Your characters can be anyone, anywhere, anywhen, but the stories still have to be compelling! It’s a great challenge as a writer, and a great experience as a reader.
