Liz Shipton
Author Interview - Liz Shipton
Author of Mother & Slaughter
The Handmaid's Tale meets Kill Bill...but make it a fantasy book.
A hundred-and-fifty years ago, the women of Draconia were stripped of their magic. Since then, every girl who comes of age in the kingdom has been given a choice: have kids or become a gladiator.
Eleanor Skinner chose gladiator, and at 35, she's now the oldest undefeated gladiator in the history of Draconia. She's wealthy, she's notorious, and overall, she's pretty happy being a child-free lady-killer, thank you very much.
Then a one-night stand leaves her knocked up.
Eleanor would literally rather be decapitated in the arena than have to raise a child. Unfortunately, she gets no say in the matter. So when she hears about a witch who lives outside the kingdom and might still have her power, Eleanor and her best friend Rosalind embark on a quest to find her and end the pregnancy with magic.
But the journey takes an unexpected turn, bringing Eleanor face-to-face with old flames, new friends, and secrets about Draconia that would make any self-respecting feminist want to stand up, pick up a sword, and use it to slaughter the patriarchy.
This is a found family tale of female friendship, trans rights, immigration, and putting a sword up the president's butt. It uses humor to engage with sensitive topics, and directly satirizes the US administration under Donald Trump. The enemies-to-lovers romantic subplot is secondary to the plot and politics, but the banter is second to none. Perfect for fans of Margaret Atwood, Terry Pratchett and Quentin Tarantino.
Author Interview - Liz Shipton
Author I draw inspiration from:
I'm always drawing inspiration, first and foremost, from Douglas Adams. Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy is an enduring favorite. I also frequently look to Ursula K. Le Guin, particularly The Left Hand of Darkness, and The Ones Who Walk Away from Omelas. Much of the description of my characters' journey on foot was inspired by Charles Frazier's Cold Mountain, which has some incredibly beautiful imagery of the male main character trekking/camping/sleeping rough as he makes his way across the Blue Ridge Mountains. The way he writes about food in that book makes you badly want to cook pork scraps over a campfire and drink water from a creek. I think the way I write dialogue has probably been influenced by female-headed TV shows like Veep, Thirty Rock, and Parks and Rec. Last, but not least, I'm always endeavoring to write like Cormac McCarthy (and always failing miserably.)
Author Interview - Liz Shipton | Author I Draw Inspiration From
Favorite place to read a book:
In bed. I read on my phone (I know, blasphemy, but cut me some slack - I live on a boat and we don't have space for physical books!) I love having that to look forward to at the end of the day: curling up under the blanket and reading until I fall asleep.
Book character I’d like to be stuck in an elevator with:
This is probably weird, but I think it would be fun to be stuck with Juniper Song from RF Kuang's Yellowface (or maybe what I actually want is just to be stuck in the elevator with RF Kuang.) I have lots of opinions on the publishing industry, and would love to talk those through with someone who has more experience and knowledge than I do - mostly just to see if they agree.
Author Interview - Liz Shipton | Book Character I’d Like to be Stuck in an Elevator With
The moment I knew I wanted to become an author:
I don't think there was a single moment. I think it was something I always kept in the back of my mind as "a thing that would be cool to do one day", as I'm sure many people do. In 2021, my partner and I moved onto a sailboat full time, and since then have sailed from California to our current location in the Caribbean. Part of my reason for wanting to do this was because I knew it would give me the space and time to write. I started writing when we left (a dystopian series based on our sailing adventures) and just fell in love with the process. Over the course of the last 4 1/2 years I've discovered there's nothing else I want to do with my time (and, to be completely honest, nothing else I'm all that good at.)
Hardback, paperback, ebook or audiobook:
I love an ebook. Easy to carry around, fit on my phone, the phone is small and easy to hold. It's a win-win-win for me. I also love an audiobook, especially when the narrator really nails it (my favorite audiobook of all time is Notes From a Small Island, read by Kerry Shale. He does an incredible job with the accents.) Paperback is great, and makes me feel super smart while I'm reading, especially if I happen to be doing so in public. While I don't own any special edition hardcovers, I definitely see the appeal of getting one of your favorite books in a really beautiful format like this.
The last book I read:
I'm currently reading On Writing, by Stephen King. Some of what he says resonates with me, but some of it does not. For example, I'm a HUGE plotter. That's usually where the bulk of my planning goes when I'm starting a new book. Stephen King thinks this is wrong, and that you should start with a "what if" scenario and go from there. I've never done that and to be honest, it doesn't seem like enough detail for me to get started. I need a three act, 15 beat structure, and then 30 bullet-pointed chapters. The plot will usually change enormously once I get to the actual writing, so I always leave space for "pantsing" and know that it will inevitably happen - but having at least an idea of where something might be going makes it easier to start.
Author Interview - Liz Shipton | The Last Book I Read
Pen & paper or computer:
Computer. I'm a former software engineer so my typing is pretty quick. I can't imagine trying to keep up with my thoughts using a pen & paper. Although, I actually wrote most of my first book on my phone, on night watches between the hours of 2AM and 6AM while we were sailing down the California coast and into Baja.
Book character I think I’d be best friends with:
I would love to be friends with Peter Pan. Or maybe I'd just love to be Peter Pan? It's unclear, lol. But that character really captured my imagination as a kid, and hanging out in Neverland with the Lost Boys and pirates while simultaneously being able to fly to London whenever I want sounds right about my speed. Let's face it - I live on a sailboat in the Caribbean with my partner and a dog, so I'm practically halfway there already.
Author Interview - Liz Shipton | Book Character I’d be Best Friends With
If I weren’t an author, I’d be a:
Veterinarian or musician.
Place I’d most like to travel:
I'd love to go to Japan one day - that's on our bucket list of sailing destinations. It'll require a Pacific crossing to get there, so it's not something we'll do right away, but it's something my partner and I would both like to do. It seems like a very different culture to what I grew up with in the States, and different to what I've experienced in Central America and the Caribbean. I also love Japanese food and as a former theatre kid, would love to see Kabuki.
My signature drink:
Soda water, lime and bitters
Favorite artist:
David Bowie pops into my head. I'm not sure why. I love his music, but I think it's also his style, his embracing of androgyny, and the fact that he cemented himself so thoroughly in the zeitgeist and almost defined an era. He went through so many iterations of his identity, both musically and visually, and even up until his death was releasing music that was considered groundbreaking. That type of celebrity doesn't really seem to exist anymore (for better or worse) and I sometimes feel that entertainers these days get railroaded more than they used to. This feels particularly true in publishing, where authors tend to stick to their lanes, releasing the same type of book, in the same genre, year after year. It's hard for me to imagine an author having a similar career to someone like Bowie, who was so experimental. Partly, this is the market - it costs more for a reader to take a chance on a new book than it does for a listener to take a chance on a new song (you can hear a new song for free, while a book will cost you anywhere from $5-$25) but I think partly it's just the changing times. Media has fragmented, but it has also crystallized, and it feels difficult to jump between genres or experiment once you've established an audience these days.
Number one on my bucket list:
Train an Australian kelpie. I've been working with my reactive dog for about 8 years, and it's been one of the most rewarding experiences of my life. Seeing her grow from a fear-aggressive bite-risk to a lovable mutt who just wants scritches has bene fascinating. I know way too much about dog behavior and body language now, haha. I'd absolutely love to train a working dog to do real work and experience that bond. (And yes, our dog does live on the sailboat with us!)
Find more from the author:
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About Liz Shipton:
Liz Shipton
Liz Shipton is a speculative fiction author, best known for their spicy urban fantasy Dot Slash Magic, which received a starred review from Publisher's Weekly, and for their viral comedy videos. Liz lives on a sailboat in the Caribbean with their partner and dog.
