Andie Holdman – Author Q&A

Raised by pirates, Andie believed faeries lived in the snapdragons. She’s loved fantasy stories forever, and left her thirty-year career in natural medicine to research climate change, creating the world-building in her magical eco romantasy series, The Laughter of the Sun.

Beginning with The Mermaid’s Wrath then The Sorrow of Bees, and The Unbearable Melt releasing this summer.

Many places have been home: Bermuda, West Virginia, England, Colorado, and now, a small sliver of Canada, nestled in the Pacific, where she lives with her husband and menagerie of animals.

Years ago, she wrote Love Your Scar, a non-fiction, self-help guide to freeing restrictive tissue. It will seem out of place, another world, another time, compared to her current writing.

Andie can be found at:
Website: andieholman.com
Bluesky: @authorandie.bsky.social
Instagram: @author_andie_holman

The Mermaid’s Wrath

Tell me what inspired you to write your (debut) novel?

I stumbled on an article about the Great Pacific Garbage Patch, and how it’s the size of Texas. Nah. Impossible. I kept digging and the more I read, the more upset I became. I shared my findings and received a lukewarm shrug. People didn’t care. It was far away, didn’t impact them, and they were helpless to control it. I couldn’t stop thinking about it, and wanted to reach people with the information, but how to deliver it without turning people off? I needed an inside view, the perspective of someone living in it. Thus, Jelly the warrior mermaid was born, desperate to tackle plastic pollution.

What came first the characters or the world?

The world. My world-building is based on current climate science, so I research our planet and where it’s struggling, incorporating that into the fantasy stories. I add strange and fun facts about animals in different settings, and all the animals can talk.

How long did it take to write?

I wrote it three times in full, 400 pages each time. The first draft was too steamy, and although my editor at the time liked it, I didn’t feel it was heavy enough on the environment. A new editor ripped draft two to pieces, and I learned a lot about writing, devouring “How to Write” books, how to outline, and the nuances of character tension. He was pleased with draft three, and that’s the current novel. All in? A year? Books 2 & 3 have flowed much faster.

What kind of reactions have you had to your book?

Most people find it refreshing, unusual, and timely. One person called it “eco-romantasy,” the first of its kind, and mostly, it surprises people because it’s based on truth mixed with a magical journey. I’ve had some negative reviews regarding the romantasy. It’s either too steamy or not hot enough. Can’t please them all. I add the romance sub plot to give my characters depth and emotional struggles we all can appreciate.

What’s the favourite reaction you’ve had to your book?

My favorite is when people write to me and tell me how they’ve changed their lives, using less plastic, being more aware of their habits. People have signed up for pollinator courses after reading book two, and that brings me such joy.

What can you tell us about your next book?

Everywhere you turn, there’s a new climate crisis, so I’m writing a series, visiting different areas of the planet. Book Three, The Unbearable Melt, will release in the summer of 2025, and part of our magical crew is in the Arctic, witnessing the receding ice and impact that has on the wildlife, such as orcas being able to hunt the Arctic waters. The ice kept them away before.

Do you take notice of online reviews?

Ha! Yes. I read them all, despite my better judgement. Jilted by one, I turned that person’s name into an evil creature. It’s the little things. Generally speaking, the reviews have been wonderful, and many of them move me to tears. Happy tears for clarification.

Would you ever consider writing outside your current genre?

Oh yes! Before I went into eco-romantasy, I wrote a “how-to” guide for scars called Love Your Scar, based on my years working in a cancer ward, helping people recover after surgery. Besides that, I’ve written several nutritional courses and blogs, and a smaller guide to treating eczema naturally.

The Sorrow of Bees

What did you do before (or still do) you became a writer?

I was a Natural Health practitioner for over thirty years. I use that in my writing, dropping tips and tricks that people can put into practice, such as arnica for bruising, or slippery elm for sore throats. I’ve listened to thousands of personal stories, and have a good grasp on the human experience.

Which author(s) inspire you?

The ones who keep going, who can’t stop writing. When I see someone with an extensive catalogue, I want to do that. I want to be that kind of author. I love books that stay with me, that alter my soul and make me move differently in the world. I can’t pick one, and they change as I grow.

Which genres do you read yourself?

It varies. For decades it was nutrition, and natural health, peppered with fantasy. Now, it’s mostly fantasy, although I’ll dip into different genres like mystery or not-too-horrible horror. If a friend recommends a book, I’ll read it, regardless of the genre.

What is your biggest motivator?

The environment, and especially the animals, the innocents who can’t fight the human destruction. I give them a voice and imagine what their lives are like.

What will always distract you?

Whatever book I’m reading! That or the forest.

How much (if any) say do you have in your book covers?

I work with an incredibly talented artist, Richard Ljoenes. I tell him the vibe I want to create, and I might need to make one or two tweaks, but his work leaves me breathless. I want the books to look mystical, as though they hold secrets, and he always delivers.

Were you a big reader as a child?

Consumate. Voracious. It’s been one of my favorite hobbies throughout life. I had a favorite tree for reading, and I’d climb to the top, often joined by a cat, and spend hours lost in a story.

What were your favourite childhood books?

The Story of Ferdinand by Munro Leaf. He’s a peaceful bull, wanting to sit quietly and smell the flowers, refusing to participate in the bullfights. Charlotte’s Web by E. B. White was another. I memorized part of it to present at a State Fair, accompanied by my stuffed-animal pig. When I was a little older, I fell into The Chronicles of Narnia by C. S. Lewis, and my love for fantasy was born. My brother, three years older, also loved fantasy and magic, so I read books that were likely too old for me.

What books can you not resist buying?

I’m always curious about fantasy bestsellers. Why are they so popular? What did the author get right? Where will they take me? I also love true stories of inspiration, either people or places.

Do you have any rituals when writing?

Coffee! And when I get stuck, I either go for a walk or do squats until the block goes. Or my thighs give out.

How many books are in your own physical TBR pile?

It’s fairly manageable at the moment because I tear through them so fast. I’m on a current kick to support BlueSky authors, and I think I’m at around a dozen still to be read.

What is your current or latest read?

Right now I’m in the middle of Claire Legrand’s The Middlemist Trilogy. So good!

Any plans or projects in the near future you can tell us about?

My crew is going to Australia and New Zealand next. They’ll visit the bleaching of the Great Barrier Reef and explore the science of manuka honey. The seed capsules of the manuka tree open when exposed to heat and smoke, making it one of the first plants to regenerate after fire. I was a volunteer firefighter in Colorado for seven years, so I’ll incorporate that knowledge into the next book. Mostly, I’m excited to research all the dangerous critters that live there.

Any events in the near future?

I’m waiting for paperwork in my current country, and once that comes through, I’ll sign up for local events and book fairs, and knock on all the small booksellers’ doors.

and finally, what inspired you to write the genre you do?

I’ve written ‘science-speak’ for years, aiming to make it approachable. Using climate science in my world-building allows it to become tangible. I weave it into the plot, creating a backdrop that hums along as we’re reading about frisky mermaids and air-quality-expert gargoyles. I add plenty of facts and quirks of the different animals, such as Greenland sharks living to five hundred years, or that narwhals go through menopause. Queen bees suffer for their crowns, and I want people to feel their lives and reflect on the impact we humans have on the animals. I can’t wait to give a platypus a personality. I think I’ll make him a philosopher.