Garrett Curbow
Author Interview - Garrett Curbow
Author of Whispers of Ink and Starlight
In a small Georgia town, Nelle’s life has been carefully scripted by her creator and captor, the reclusive author Wallace Quill. Born from ink and imagination, every breath she takes is dictated by his pen. But on a star-studded Fourth of July night, she meets James―a young man with dreams as vivid as the fireworks above them―and suddenly, the unwritten becomes possible.
As Nelle and James fall deeply in love, they embark on a breathtaking journey across Europe, each new experience a defiant stroke against the words that bind her. But freedom has a price. With every mile they travel, the ink in Nelle’s veins threatens to rewrite their story. In a world where every moment could be her last, Nelle and James must fight to write their own happily ever after―before the final page turns.
Author Interview - Garrett Curbow
Author I draw inspiration from:
There are so many authors whose writing I feel inspired by. While working on Whispers of Ink and Starlight, I read and loved The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue by V.E. Schwab (and more recently Bury Our Bones in the Midnight Soil). I envy Sally Rooney's insight and attention to character detail (Conversations with Friends, Normal People). Coco Mellors's writing style is absolutely delicious. I really enjoyed her debut, Cleopatra and Frankenstein, but my favorite is her sophomore novel, Blue Sisters.
Author Interview - Garrett Curbow | Author I Draw Inspiration From
Favorite place to read a book:
I'm going to cheat and give a double answer. I love reading in my bed. It is, without a doubt, the most comfortable place to read. My nightstand is right beside me and can hold as many drinks as I want (usually a two-drink minimum, but sometimes I end up with water, two types of tea, a Coke, etc.), and my cats are nearby. Being in my bed with a book is, honestly, my happiest place.
However, there is something undeniably magical about reading outside. Whether it be on a park bench or at a café's sidewalk table, tuning out the background noise of life helps me focus. Crickets, birds, wind, cars, people chattering. Those sounds are more relaxing to me, and conduce a better reading environment, than complete silence. I don't mind getting distracted every now and then and watching the world around me. Going back and forth between the page and the real world makes reading feel even more like a portal to another dimension.
Book character I’d like to be stuck in an elevator with:
I wouldn't mind being stuck in an elevator with Ilya Rozanov from Heated Rivalry by Rachel Reid. He would be annoyed by the inconvenience at first, but when panic subsided and boredom hit, I would listen to him talk about hockey in his Russian accent. Eventually, if no one came to rescue us, I imagine he would use his hockey stick to pry open the elevator doors.
Author Interview - Garrett Curbow | Book Character I’d Like to be Stuck in an Elevator With
The moment I knew I wanted to become an author:
I was six and I loved every medium of storytelling--films, television shows, but books most of all. My favorites at the time were The Chronicles of Narnia by C.S. Lewis and the Boxcar Children by Gertrude Chandler Warner. After I learned how to write using my basic six-year-old vocabulary, I was putting down stories.
By the time I was 8, I knew I wanted to be an author. I wrote a thirty page fantasy story and confidently sent my name and my mom's contact information off to a vanity press. Later that week, she got a call and handed the phone to me. The kind man on the other line, after realizing that he was speaking to a child, advised me to keep writing and that he had no doubt, one day, I would be published.
I'm grateful for his encouragement, but even without it, I don't think anything would have stopped me from trying.
Hardback, paperback, ebook or audiobook:
Hardbacks: Wonderful for collecting, as they are the prettiest and most difficult to damage. However, hardbacks are physically uncomfortable to read. The sharp edges, the stiff spine, the dust jacket that either slides around or has to be removed. I love them, I want them, but they're not my favorite.
Paperbacks: Top ten inventions of all time. Floppy, soft, delicate. They come in all shapes and sizes (trade paperback, mass market paperback). They're portable. The only downside to paperbacks is that they are easily damaged. Over the years, I had to learn to relax with my books. It is OKAY if a spine gets bent. If pages are dog-eared. If a drop of water hits my page. I taught myself to love the little imperfections that paperbacks accrue--they are proof that a book was read and loved.
ebooks: I LOVE Ebooks. I don't want people to see what I'm reading? Ebook. I've finished book one and need the next immediately? Ebook. I get easily distracted by fidgeting with physical books while I'm reading them, so I tend to read faster on my phone or Kindle. I also love knowing exactly what percentage I'm at in a book. The only downside to ebooks, in my opinion, is not having the physical book. I am a collector, at the end of the day, and I want to have something to add to my shelf when I'm finished with it.
Audiobooks: I've been a lifelong cheerleader for audiobooks, but I rarely listen to them. When I'm cleaning, washing dishes, or driving, I usually choose music over a book. That being said, a few years ago I was a delivery driver, and I would listen to audiobooks constantly. I reread all of the Harry Potter books, along with the Hunger Games Trilogy, and Octavia Butler's Parable of the Sower all with audiobooks, and those were some of the best reading experiences I've ever had.
The last book I read:
The last book I read was Alexis M. Smith's debut novel, Glaciers. It's a tiny book that I picked up from a used book sale. The entire story takes place during one relatively mundane day in the narrator's life, and it was excellent. The simplicity of the main character's inner monologue was relatable and insightful. Some of my favorite books take everyday moments and clarify them with language. After I finish a book, I want to see the world in a unique way, and this book did that for me. Glaciers allowed me to examine my own life through the lens of Smith's writing.
Author Interview - Garrett Curbow | The Last Book I Read
Pen & paper or computer:
When I started writing as a kid, I solely used pen & paper. When I'm handwriting, my brain slows down. Words are less jumbled, but they're far from perfect. I tend to leave out my narrator's inner thoughts when I'm handwriting, focusing instead on action and dialogue.
I was eleven when I got my first laptop and started typing my stories. When the words are flowing, I love computers because I can write quickly and painlessly. I am also a sucker for self-editing as I draft, so the majority of the writing I do now is on a computer. When I hit a wall, though, I revert back to pen & paper. I have had countless cases of writer's block with my current untitled novel, so my journal is full of random scenes and chapters that I needed to handwrite in order to unclog the mental toilet, so to speak.
Book character I think I’d be best friends with:
I think I would be best friends with Amren from the A Court of Thorns and Roses series by Sarah J Maas. Amren is closed off to strangers and full of secrets, which I'm attracted to as someone who is the opposite. She has impeccable style, is highly intelligent, and is one of the funniest characters in the series. We would sit around in her apartment, drinking tea or wine, and analyze all of the people in our lives. Amren doesn't like many people, so I'm optimistically assuming that she would want to be friends with me. I am quiet and observant, though, with a bit of a flair once I'm comfortable around people, and I think she would feel drawn to those qualities.
Author Interview - Garrett Curbow | Book Character I’d be Best Friends With
If I weren’t an author, I’d be a:
If I weren't an author, I would probably be a psychologist. One of my favorite pastimes is studying people. I love dissecting their childhoods, how their brains function, patterns in their behavior, and how those things work together to influence the decisions they make. Of all the creatures on Earth, I find humans to be the most complex and fascinating. For me, writing is a type of psychological excavation, where I also get to play with ink magic and dragons and unrealistic romances.
I went through a phase in middle school where I was obsessed with filmmaking. I would write scripts, storyboard them, and direct short films with my cousins. As another avenue of creative storytelling, this isn't that surprising, but I did love it. To this day, I adore filmmaking and acting as art forms, and eventually I want to play around in that world again.
Favorite decade in fashion history:
By far, my favorite decade in fashion is the 1970s, bleeding into the early 1980s. The sweaters? The denim? The baggy pants? Most of my fashion inspiration comes from this time period. I love muted colors in clothing (throw the neutrals out). I want maroon! Forest green! Pale pink! Modern fashion has, sadly, been stripped of individuality.
Place I’d most like to travel:
If someone told me, right now, that I could get on a plane for free and travel to wherever I wanted, I would go to New York City. Have I been to New York before? Yes, a few times. But that doesn't matter to me. When I visit New York, I feel revived for months afterward. The city truly resurrects me. I love the subway. The tiny, cramped, candlelit restaurants. The vibrancy of Central Park. There are still entire boroughs and neighborhoods of New York City that I have yet to explore.
In Whispers of Ink and Starlight, James's obsession with New York is heavily inspired by my own. He feels inexplicably at home there, surrounded by artists and pigeons and taxis and rats.
My signature drink:
My alcoholic signature drink is a mojito. Non-alcoholic is definitely an iced matcha latte with cinnamon. I drink at least one iced matcha a day, and it's a necessity when I'm writing.
Favorite artist:
Taylor Swift! Her lyricism, storytelling, and melodies are legitimately some of the best in the music industry today. One facet of her career that I find personally inspiring is how versatile she is as an artist. Whether you're a filmmaker, an actor, a musician, or an author, the world likes to put you in a genre box. Emily Henry writes romantic comedies. Sally Rooney does literary fiction. Sarah J Maas puts out fae-focused romantasy. But I love reading and writing in all genres, and I intend to pursue many different avenues of storytelling. Artists like Taylor Swift and R.F. Kuang, who make the genre-defying art they want to make, give me hope for my own career.
Number one on my bucket list:
For years, the top item on my bucket list has been getting a book published. It's hard for me to accept that as reality, and until it sinks in, I think that will still be number one. Maybe my next bucket list #1 will be getting two books published. In all honesty, I want to go back to school one day and get the credentials I need to be a creative writing professor. Teaching the art of writing and helping writers to uncover their talents is one of my lifelong passions.
Find more from the author:
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/garrettcurbow
TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@garrettcurbow?is_from_webapp=1&sender_device=pc
Youtube: https://youtube.com/@garrettcurbow?si=ZbWc6wTkoeDlMDg5
About Garrett Curbow:
Garrett Curbow
Garrett Curbow is the author of the Daughter of Light trilogy, which was short-listed for the Publishers Weekly Selfies Award. He lives in Savannah, Georgia. For more information, visit www.garrettcurbow.com.
