Today we are very excited to share an interview with Author Melody Horrill (A Cat Called Q and the Magic Globe)!
Meet the Author: Melody Horrill
Melody Horrill is an award-winning Australian environmental journalist, freelance media manager, speaker, and author of three books. She is well known in South Australia for raising awareness about dolphins and marine conservation. She is co-chair of the Jane Goodall Institute’s Cetacean Committee and Ambassador for Kangaroo Island Dolphin Watch. She lives in Melbourne with her rescue cat, Q, and her partner Grant. She is a passionate animal and nature love.
Her memoir, ‘The Dolphin Who Saved Me’ endorsed by Dr Jane Goodall DBE was published internationally. It focuses on her extraordinary friendship with a wild, injured dolphin which helped her heal from a childhood wracked by domestic violence. Her debut young adult fantasy ‘A Cat Called Q and the Magic Globe’ also focuses on the theme of connecting with nature and animals. It also explores the power of discovering and believing in inner magic, even during challenging times. Her third book, a non-fiction titled ‘Sheltered’ explores the power of love between people and their adopted animals, and how animals have changed and enriched people’s lives. It will be published in September 2024. Melody loves nothing more than spending time on and in the water, cooking, and hanging out with Q.
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About the Book: A Cat Called Q and the Magic Globe
A Cat Called Q and the Magic Globe is a whimsical and at times, funny tale that features strong environmental themes. The story follows a ten-year-old girl called Sheri, who after finding a magical snow globe in a charity shop embarks on an adventure to save an enchanted world. Along with her best friend and Q, a majestic mischievous, sandwich-loving cat, she embarks on a treacherous adventure to save the land and its animals. Sheri is forced to draw on her inner courage as she faces a vain, evil, avocado-obsessed overlord and his ratty sidekick. ‘A Cat Called Q and the Magic Globe’ highlights the importance of believing in ourselves, being brave, caring for the natural world, and embracing our connection to it.
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~Author Chat~
YABC: What gave you the inspiration to write this book?
I have always loved animals and the natural world and wanted to write a book that would inspire young people to find the magic in nature and connect with it. As a child, I grew up in a household wracked by domestic violence and I know how hard it can be to be brave and face your fears, so exploring that theme was important to me. The main character of my book is a young girl called Sheri who also must find her inner strength to fight for what she believes in. Her journey reflects many aspects of my own. When I was little, I escaped into books and loved snow globes. I often wondered what it would be like to enter into the world within the globe. I dreamed up the idea of writing a story about a girl who visits a magical world filled with fantastical animals via an enchanted portal – a snow globe. Almost half a century later I finally wrote the book! I decided to include an ebony feline hero called ‘Quasar’ (Q for short), based on my rescue cat and much-loved writing companion. I know that black cats are the last to be adopted from shelters because some people consider them to be bad luck, so I felt that writing about a brave, funny, smart black cat would help with their public image! I included many other animal characters and themes of protecting nature and biodiversity – issues that are very close to my heart.
YABC: Who is your favorite character in the book?
Quasar of the Cosmos (aka Q) – the sandwich-obsessed magical black cat who joins Sheri on her adventure. I based his character on my rescue cat, Q who is my ‘moggy muse’ and writing companion. I loved bringing ‘Q’ to life on the page. The ‘real’ Q is constantly hungry, mischievous, playful, and at times, a little grumpy! I made sure I incorporated all of Q’s quirks into the character of ‘Quasar of the Cosmos’. However, unlike the real Q, ‘Quasar’ can travel to far-flung lands, universes, and dimensions. He even pops off to another galaxy in search of the perfect egg and ketchup sandwich. In the book, he is instrumental in helping Sheri restore a land ravaged by a vain, fashion-loving, avocado-eating evil sorcerer. Along the way, the two of them meet a wonderful range of weird and wonderful animals who also help in the quest. My favorite fantasy animal is Affi, a gentle, slow-moving creature with a magnificent purple shell whose family has been decimated by trophy hunters.
YABC: Which came first, the title or the novel?
The book came first. Initially, it had a different title which in the end, just didn’t fit with the book. I played with the wording and felt that ‘A Cat Called Q and the Magic Globe’ had a nice rhythm to it.
YABC: What scene in the book are you most proud of, and why?
Without providing too many ‘spoilers’, I love the chapter where Sheri finally manages to face her fears and confront the evil sorcerer. She draws on her love and compassion for nature and all living beings, to overthrow him. She harnesses her memories and personal connection with the natural world to unleash the magic that lies within her heart.
YABC: Thinking way back to the beginning, what’s the most important thing you’ve learned as a writer from then to now?
I learned to trust myself and use my inner critic to my advantage. My biggest challenge when writing my first book – my memoir titled ‘The Dolphin Who Saved Me’ was learning to control the persistent inner critic that questioned my ability. It nagged at me and, at times, almost stopped me from continuing. Then one day, while agonizing over a particularly challenging paragraph while trying to ignore my inner critic, I felt an overwhelming surge of resolve. I realized I could not allow my insecurities and fear to stop me from achieving my goal. I decided at that moment, to harness my inner critic and try and use it to improve my writing. Each time it declared my writing inadequate, I took a breath and became even more motivated to push through, work harder, review, and polish my work. I believe this made me a better, more conscientious writer. I also learned that overwriting doesn’t equate to good writing. When words didn’t flow freely or I just wasn’t in the mood to write, I found myself compensating by overwriting. I added flowery flourishes in futile attempts to bring more life and color to the sentence. But sometimes, in the process I added too much – the prose became too complicated, unnecessarily long, clunky, and laborious. It’s easy to fall into the trap of thinking that adding more adjectives, metaphors, or extravagant embellishments will help the prose come to life, but I’ve found that often makes the manuscript more clunky and cumbersome to read. I’ve also learned to trust my instincts. Although my friends, family, and colleagues have suggested ideas and provided both positive and negative feedback, if it doesn’t resonate with me, then I choose not to take it on board. At the end of the day, I believe the author must be true to their voice no matter what.
YABC: What do you like most about the cover of the book?
My long-time friend and artist, Angelique Smelt created the artwork for the cover and the chapter opener illustrations. After writing the first draft I asked if she would use her significant talent to create a cover picture. I gave her a copy of the draft and told her that I would love an illustration of Quasar, Sheri, and the globe but it was completely up to her how she chose to represent them. Her hand-painted image blew me away. It was perfect – colorful, whimsical, and enchanting. It represented the book beautifully. She then drew another character, a rat called Acri who graces the back page of the book. I feel that her artwork brings the narrative to life and I am eternally grateful to her for embarking on this journey with me. I am sure she will illustrate many more books.
YABC: What’s up next for you?
My second non-fiction titled ‘Sheltered’ will be released in September. That book showcases real-life, heart-felt stories between rescue animals and the people who love them. It explores the power of love between people and their adopted animals, and how those individual animals have changed and enriched people’s lives whether they be dogs, cats, ferrets, horses, rabbits, or donkeys. I wrote this book because so many animal charities are struggling right now and I hoped it would encourage more people to support these charities and consider adopting a rescue animal.
YABC: What is the main message or lesson you would like your reader to remember from this book?
There is always hope, even in the most challenging of times. Each of us can be brave enough to make a positive difference if we choose to. Love unites us, can heal everything, and make us stronger. We are all connected on this planet, we are all part of the wonderful, complex matrix of life and we have a responsibility to care for it.
YABC: Is there an organization or cause that is close to your heart?
I support all organizations and programs that work to educate us and encourage positive actions for animals and the environment – like the Jane Goodall Institute’s ‘Roots and Shoots’ program. However, I have a special love for the ocean and dolphins and have spent much of my adult life advocating for them. It’s that love of dolphins that prompted me to write my memoir ‘The Dolphin Who Saved Me’ which was published internationally last year. It is a story about how a solitary, wild, injured dolphin called Jock helped me heal from the scars left by my violent childhood. The story outlines how Jock became my greatest life coach and helped me to trust, find forgiveness, bravery and focus on the possibilities of life rather than my sad past. Dr Jane Goodall endorsed the book and from that, I became involved with the Jane Goodall Institute’s Cetacean Committee. The committee supports the creation of ocean sanctuaries for former captive dolphins so they may live out their lives in a more natural environment. I am strongly against keeping dolphins and whales in tanks and forcing them to perform. They are intelligent, highly complex mammals that swim vast distances in the wild – they deserve freedom. I am also the Ambassador for the Kangaroo Island/Victor Harbor Dolphin Watch, based in Southern Australia. This small, community organization works hard to protect the wonderful dolphin populations off the coast and the waters in which they live.
YABC: What advice do you have for new writers?
Just start writing! When I decided to pen my memoir, I didn’t know where to start. I knew I had to incorporate two different timelines and had no idea how to do that. Stressing about the structure and what parts of my life to include was overwhelming. It took me days before I felt confident to even write a word. I reached out to my former colleague who had kindly offered to help. He told me to “just start writing, write anything, but just start.” So, I did. I began pouring out my memories in no particular order. As people, places, and experiences came flooding back, I began to write quickly and I found my rhythm. I kept little notepads around the house and in my car so I could jot things down as I remembered them. These notes became an invaluable source of content – you never know when a thought may occur to you, so I suggest always being ready to record it! The structure of the book began to take shape naturally and I continued more methodically. So, if you’re embarking on your first book, don’t worry about what goes where and if it makes sense chronologically – just start writing and the rest will fall into place.
Title: ‘A Cat Called Q and the Magic Globe’
Author: Melody Horrill
Illustrator: Angelique Smelt
Release Date: July 15, 2024
Publisher: 12 Willows Press
Genre: YA Fantasy
Age Range: 8-13
