Meet one of our Knight Authors: Carolyn Glasshoff ’11MA ’21PhD

Tell us a little about yourself!

I teach technical writing here at UCF and write academic papers, but my personal writing passion is fantasy and science fiction. I love writing urban fantasy. Thinking about what could be hidden in plain sight is always fun, especially in Orlando where the fantastic could always be explained away as part of the theme park world. I love being in the woods (when the weather cooperates), going to the beach in the winter, stargazing, visiting theme parks, finding fun activities at the library, and traveling whenever and wherever I can

When did you first realize you wanted to be a writer?

As soon as I learned to write, I’ve been writing stories. Some of them were short stories, some were epics that I worked on for years as I got ideas. I never really decided to be a writer – it’s just who I am.

What’s your writing process? What inspires your writing?

I’ll start with a small idea or a single character then start world building with characters, locations, conventions for how the world works. Once I have some idea of the world of the story, I write individual scenes that seem like they’d fit the characters. After that I begin figuring out the overall plot and piecing things together. It’s the writing equivalent of quilting.

I get my inspiration from all over. Observations in my daily life, “what if” questions, people

watching, and (as corny as this always sounds) from snippets of dreams I remember.

What was a class or club at UCF that helped you grow as a writer?

It wasn’t an official club, but during my graduate studies, some of us had a writers’ working group. We’d meet and each say our goals for the next hour or so out loud, then all work quietly together for a while. After whatever time we’d decided on, we’d stop working and check in to see what everyone had gotten done. It helped me learn what I can realistically do within the time I have and prioritize writing tasks. It also helped me learn that I usually work

best around other people who are doing their own thing, so I started writing in public places more often rather than alone in my room.

Who are some of your favorite authors or books?

Philip Pullman’s His Dark Materials universe is the one I go back to over and over (his final book was just released!). I also love Timothy Zahn’s Star Wars novels, Susan Cooper’s The Dark is Rising series, Orson Scott Card novels, and most stories that involve supernatural elements like vampires, werewolves, or magic.

Anything else?! What are you currently working on right now?

I’m working on the sequel to Children of the Hunt. It’s nearly done! I have one or maybe two chapters to finish up before I go into editing and finding beta readers.