Author Q&A with Nyah Nichol
Nyah Nichol is the author of Faded Glimpses of Time, the sequel to the Uncommon Quest winner Broken Shards of Time. Read on to find out about the book, Nyah's writing process, and more.
1. What inspired you to write Faded Glimpses of Time?
Faded Glimpses of Time is a continuation of Wren and her friends’ adventures following my first book, Broken Shards of Time. After my first book was published, I didn’t start writing my second book for nearly a year. I didn’t even start thinking about a sequel until my publisher mentioned it, and at the time, I had no idea what I would want to happen next. It was definitely a challenge, and I had to do a lot of brainstorming sessions with my family and talk through (and reject) many ideas that came up within that year. Eventually, my mom and I went for a walk, and while we were chatting, something clicked. We thought of an idea that might work, which snowballed into lots of other ideas. By the time I got home, I nearly had an entire storyline to map out.
2. This is the second book in the series. Was there a difference between writing the first and second book in the trilogy?
Broken Shards of Time took me almost a year to write the first draft, but it was easier to start. I started writing it at the age of 13 purely as a hobby. The ideas were a bit scattered, and the timeline of the story was harder to keep track of because it spanned over 30 years, but I knew what I wanted to write about. Entering the book into a writing contest was secondary so I really enjoyed writing without any pressure. For Faded Glimpses of Time, it took a long time to decide how I wanted Wren’s story to play out. Not only that, but I had to use my first book as a reference and make sure that everything I wrote about in the second book would correspond accurately with the events, times, etc. of the first book. But once I had the main plot laid out, the first draft only took a few months. Faded Glimpses of Time focuses on a specific event instead of spanning over decades like Broken Shards of Time. It includes more theories of time and narrows in on one specific adventure referenced in Broken Shards of Time.
3. What, in your opinion, is the strength of this book?
In Broken Shards of Time, readers were able to get to know the complexity of the characters of Wren, Alex, Cass, and Tolli, primarily their backstory. In Faded Glimpses of Time, the main characters don’t know each other but are still pulled together on a harrowing adventure. The storyline still focuses on the bond the characters have with each other but also brings in adventure, temptation, difficult choices, tragedy, and the theme of control. It is fast-pasted and filled with twist and turns.
4. What categories of interest do you think this book fits into for readers?
If readers are intrigued by time travel, crazy sci-fi theories, adventure, and action, they will enjoy reading this book.
5. Did you have any challenges in writing this book?
The day before I submitted Broken Shards of Time to Common Deer Publishing’s writing contest, I changed the ending to include a cliffhanger.
It wasn’t my intention to write a second book at the time, but I always liked books that ended with cliffhangers and thought perhaps the judges would like it too. Little did I know that my novel would go on to win and be published, and my publisher would ask about a sequel! Faded Glimpses of Time took me almost a year to start from when Broken Shards of Time was released, but once I had a burst of ideas, it took me only a short time to write the first draft. One of the challenges I had was to make the sci-fi world I created more realistic, so I reached out to family friends in the military. Living in Cold Lake, which is connected to an air force base, I had my pick of fighter pilots to talk to and they were very helpful and eager to share their knowledge.
6. What are 3 other books that might compare in genre to Faded Glimpses of Time?
Divergent, Maze Runner, and The Time Machine
Faded Glimpses of Time
by Nyah Nichol