When you take passion and mix it with a bit of spice here and there, you get an author in the making.
Emily Murdoch is a lover of regency and romances, and her writing creates worlds from medieval to western, and regency. She’s an author who uses her skills to write historical romances that leave you spiralling into the stories you read. Emily has created multiple worlds for readers to enjoy and to briefly forget real life – something she can definitely relate to. While studying for an MA in Medieval Studies, this author might have had a few urges to write her stories during lectures…
“There’s no coincidence that my first three books were set in the medieval era!”
The temptation to write in class didn’t deter Emily from enjoying her Masters.
“What I loved about studying my MA in Medieval Studies was the variety and depth of knowledge I could gain while I was there. The course at the University of York allowed you to be multidisciplinary: I studied modules in literature, Latin, palaeography (the study of manuscripts), history of art, politics…it was incredible grounding.”
Writing is a long process, and Emily has been on her journey for many years already. One would think primary school is when children have some understanding of the world around them, but her journey starts even earlier.
“There’s a story my family tells of me ‘making’ books when I was at nursery, and scribbling down ‘words’ for people to read!”
Emily grew up around books, in a household filled with curiosity and knowledge. Her parents were and are her biggest role models, encouraging her to follow her dreams. The support never ended, with her boyfriend at the time also pushing her to pursue her dreams.
“I definitely wouldn’t be the person I am today without their encouragement to follow my dream.”
With support, love and encouragement, Emily sailed through the hardship called university.
“When I was finishing up my undergraduate degree in History and English, I had a few months between finishing my last exams and graduating. With the encouragement of my boyfriend (now husband!), I started writing my first historical romance, not expecting it to go anywhere. And here I am!”
Emily’s journey has come with considerable success, but also some important lessons.
“When I finished my first novel, I wanted to submit it to a particular publisher who accepted an unsolicited (ie, without an agent) manuscript. But I got impatient and ended up signing a contract for that book with another publisher. I was impatient and sacrificed my preferred publisher for speed. That was a mistake!
I ended up having seven books published with that publisher, and I learnt a huge amount, but I also knew I wanted a better experience. I wrote for a few others and then decided to launch a Kickstarter to raise funds for a self-published series. This was uncommon back in 2017! But I didn’t have the cash lying around to pay for the covers, editing, and formatting that I needed, so I raised over £1500 to do so.
That really changed everything for me.
I had to learn so much more about the publishing world: working with other creatives, commissioning covers, running ads, and setting up my own website… It was a real learning curve, but I’m so glad that I did it.
From 2020, I started publishing with Dragonblade Publishing, which was a real dream come true for me. I have over 30 books out with them now (!) with a new series launching in 2023. My wonderful editor there, Violetta Rand, has really challenged me to up my game when it comes to the writing craft, and I’ve learned a lot from the founder of the house, Kathryn Le Veque. Both women are successful authors in their own rights, and it’s a joy to work with them.
Most recently, in November 2022, I signed with Kate Walsh at United Agents to write historical non-fiction. I hope to have some exciting news to announce soon!”
I asked Emily what wise words she might have for any aspiring authors who want to follow in her footsteps. She had a very considered answer.
“Think carefully about what you want. Make loads of money? Win awards? Hit bestseller lists? These are three very different goals, and they’ll take you down very different creative routes. That’s not to say that any one of them is better than the others, but it’s going to be twice the amount of effort to achieve two of them.
Ask questions! There are no stupid questions, so when you have the opportunity to ask questions, please do ask them. I offer summer digital internships with Arts Emergency and hope to do so again this year.
And remember, there’s always another chance to improve the manuscript. Even if you hate what you’ve written today, you can edit it tomorrow.”
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