Hafsah Faizal's debut novel "We Hunt The Flame" paints a rich new fantasy

Note: Text has been edited and may not match audio exactly.

Heather Scott: Hello. This is Heather Scott, a YA editor here at Audible. I'm an active TBLT list keeper. That means "To Be Listened To" list. And whenever I hear about something interesting or exciting, that list grows. I could probably guarantee you that every single person I know is aware that my most anticipated 2019 title is We Hunt the Flame. So I'm really, really excited today to talk to Hafsah Faizal about her YA debut, her inspirations, and just what it might mean to take your identity into your own hands. Welcome, Hafsah.

Hafsah Faizal: Hi. Thank you so much for having me.

HS: We're so excited. I first started following you on social media because of your work as a graphic designer. I saw that you were designing websites, stationary pins, all sorts of exciting things for novelists, and I was really, really excited when you made the leap to author and were going to add that to your resume. Most of the designers I know, when they make the leap to writing go to picture books. How did you make that massive, massive leap from designing and drawing and creating beautiful things to writing a novel?

HF: I've been a part of the YA community ever since 2010 when I started blogging about books. So I started reading Young Adult fiction, blogging about it, but my blog's look was something I was just never satisfied with. I kept changing it up and editing and changing, and then people noticed. They were like, okay, you keep changing it up. Maybe you can do some design work.

Then a few other bloggers asked me, "Could you design for me?" At first, I was just doing freebies for people. Then I started charging people. Then it started picking up and authors started asking me, "Could you design websites for us?" And that was when my design business, I See Designs, really took off. I started designing websites for authors, and then I was like, I need a creative outlet that's offline.

And that's when I started doing hand lettering and then creating literary-inspired journals and pencils, candles, and basically all these fun goodies that anyone who loves a certain fandom could probably find a goodie for.

I wanted [my book to be] inspired by Ancient Arabia, so that it could feel like home to people who are familiar with the region. And then it could also be an introduction for people who aren't.

And at the same time, since I'm just part of the YA community, I eventually started writing. Though it isn't a picture book, designing really, really influenced my writing for We Hunt the Flame--in particular because I started writing it around the same time that my design business took off. And I really, really think that my world building is usually affected by my design because I'm a very visual person by nature. I have to really visualize the setting and the scenery before I can move forward with it.

HS: Wow. So it sounds like you're able to use your work as a designer to really influence and support your storytelling. That it might even give you a big advantage in what you're doing?

HF: I think so because usually when I'm designing I have a vision in my head and then I want it to reflect on my design work. At the same time, when I'm writing I have a vision in my head and I just have to put it into words. And then, of course, if I'm emailing clients I have to do the same thing. So, I think it all works out.

HS: It sounds like it. So I did both read and listen to We Hunt the Flame, and there were moments when I was just sort of overtaken by your descriptive detail -- things like embroidery on sleeves or the way that the landscape looked. Did you do any sketching to help build those things out?

HF: Sometimes I would sketch. Sometimes I would find imagery, which is what Pinterest is for. And I don't exactly take imagery and then just put it into words. I like to put my own spin on it. So I would look up images and then just sit there and usually jot it down the way I pictured in my head. If it gets really difficult, then I didn't sketch something out. But I'm not a good artist, so...

HS: That is surprising and certainly I don't think anyone would guess that. But I suppose graphic design and being a fine artist are two different skill sets. I don't usually think of them that way because they're not in my own skill sets.

So, many, many authors talk about writing and creating novels for their childhood selves. Were you thinking of your childhood self while you were creating this novel or of a different kind of reader? Maybe someone who's out in the universe now?

I've been a big, big fan of [narrator] Steve West's work on videogames because I'm a big gamer. 

HF: When I started writing it was going to be my last attempt at publication. So everything that I had saved up, I was like, I'm just going to put everything on the page. And if it doesn't work out, then that writing isn't for me.

So when I started writing, I was trying to conform to the YA market, the fantasy market that was currently there, which was basically fantasy that was set in a Eurocentric world. And, that's what I was doing until I reached about a third of the story and I realized this is not what I want. It's not sitting right with me.

So, I actually stopped to sketch the world map because, well, that's another way that my designing came into play. I was sketching the world's map when I noticed that it resembled the world of the Mediterranean quite a bit, that region. So I was like, "Why don't I just move further south and set it in a place more familiar to me? Which is Arabia.

But then I didn't want to touch on current politics. And then I just love fantasy that takes place in older worlds. So I wanted it set in Ancient Arabia. And not even that, exactly; I wanted it inspired by Ancient Arabia, so that it could feel like home to people who are familiar with the region. And then it could also be an introduction for people who aren't.

HS: Oh, that's fantastic. And honestly, that's one of the things that really struck me while I was going through the book. I think in fantasy we're so used to seeing things through a Western lens. So much fantasy just feels like faux medieval Western Europe. And we sort of know what a castle is supposed to look like or what a knight's supposed to look like. And there's kind of shorthand in that. So for me it was interesting with We Hunt the Flame to have to pause a little bit more and really think about what things look like and how the scenery was very different. Having to think about a warrior going through a desert landscape was very, very different for me as a reader [and listener]. Were there specific challenges for you and your editor in creating a world in a way that you weren't going to be able to rely on a shorthand that I think most readers are used to?

HF: I've read a lot of young adult fantasy, and I haven't seen Ancient Arabia portrayed in a familiar way. Mostly, it's either romanticized or demonized - rarely demonized in YA but usually demonized in the media.

I didn't want it to be overly hard to grasp --which, sometimes, it is -- but, at the same time, I wanted it to be authentic. So I get descriptive at times. Like with clothing and language, I tried to define in context so it's not overbearing. Of course, people might have their differing opinions on that. [Laughter]

But my editor trusted me to get it the way I wanted. Her skillset was mostly in rearranging the story. Basically, I stayed with the same spine, and I redid so much of the book. Without her insight, it would have been way different.

I started building up my platform with no one knowing how I looked, that I was veiled and a very, very visible Muslim. 

HS: Ah, interesting. So it sounds like there were maybe some slightly different visions, which, I think, is really how authors and editors work so beautifully together. I also know that for some authors, it can be really exciting to hear the audio book and I did see a tweet from you that said that you were able to listen to some of it.

What was that like, to have these characters and words that you've sort of been able to put aside for a few months, now interpreted in a completely new way? What was that experience like for you?

HF: It was amazing. I actually got emotional just listening to the introduction with the neat soundtrack in the back. I was like, "Wow! This is my book?" I've been a big, big fan of [narrator] Steve West's work on videogames because I'm a big gamer. So when the time came to choose an audiobook narrator, I asked the producer at Macmillan if we could get him, Steve West. So he's like, "Yeah, but I don't know if you listen to audiobooks, but Steve West and Fiona Hardingham do work together really well." So I listened to samples of An Ember in the Ashes and one other book and I was like, "Wow, they are really good. If you could get them, I'd be psyched." And a week later, he was like, "Yeah. They're on onboard." So listening to it after knowing it was going to be amazing, I was just blown away.

HS: That's really incredible that you had input on that. What a way to have your dream come to life. Were you able to listen to any of the production or was it just sort of talking about who your ideal voices would be on it? Were you involved in any of the rest of the process of the audio book?

HF: I didn't hear anything until yesterday when the final came out and Macmillan sent me links. But I did send sound pieces of the pronunciation of some words especially to Steve and then I guess that was forwarded to Fiona.

HS: Terrific. That is very helpful because I know, certainly for myself in reading it, until I started listening to the audio, I jumped back and forth with the pronunciation guide that you have on the website. I was trying to put myself in the right brain and in the right setting and right place with the words, with the character names, with the descriptions of things, with the food, with everything that you created there.

One other thing that I think is interesting with the names is that so many of the characters, there's a translated meaning to their name, and I understand that your name also has what I think is a powerful meaning.

HF: Yes. I love that my name means "lioness" in Arabic -- "young lioness" in Arabic.

When I was writing the book, I really wanted each of the characters' names to reflect who they are or have a bigger input into the story, basically. So Zafira and Nasir, they both mean variations on the word "victorious" and, of course, they're victorious in two different kinds of ways. And then, at end, both of their arcs kind of intertwine. And I liked having that extra facet to it.

But aside from them, basically every character was named after something that relates to their personality or their role in the story. Like Lana, who is Zafira's sister. She's a very kind soul, a healer and her name means "gentle." And Altair is basically this... well, you'll have to read because everybody loves Altair.

HS: I would agree, having read it. Yes.

HF: And the same goes for most of the other characters as well.

HS: That's really incredible. I love that you were able to take that part of your own personality and knowledge and life and sort of infuse it into your characters. And for those in the know, they'll pick up on it. And for others they'll just appreciate the strength and the individuality of those characters and the experiences that they're going through. I think that's really, really remarkable and not necessarily something that I'm used to reading or hearing.

I also want to ask you about one of my favorite sentences in the novel [related to] Zafira, who is our central character. I don't know if you feel the same way even though you wrote it, but I loved her so much! She is our heroine. And I think the core of so much of it.

In one conversation, she's told, "If you can find it in your heart to embrace who you are, the world will be better for it." And to me, I just think that's such a powerful challenge to take your identity into your own hands and to figure out who you are and the impact that you're going to have on the world. And I wondered if that's something that you have taken into your own life or if that was part of the challenge you wanted to give readers and listeners as they go through the book?

HF: So that facet of Zafira, where she's struggling with her identity, where she's okay with herself, but she knows that the world has misconceptions and preconceived judgements about who she is, all because she's a woman.

I didn't realize it at the time, but later on someone asked me, "Are you trying to say that because you are covered up, is that why Zafira's doing the same thing? Is that why she's going free? Is it like a secret plea? And so that scared me, because that wasn't it. But there had to be a reason for it. So when I did some thinking, I realized that when I was writing that particular scene, when Zafira was first introduced onto the page, that was in 2014. I was invited to Book Expo America to speak and they wanted a headshot of me.

I'd started blogging in 2010, and I didn't put up a photograph of myself. I just had this logo of my blog. And I started building up my platform with no one knowing how I looked, that I was veiled and a very, very visible Muslim. So when they asked for my headshot, it was like a life-and-death moment because I knew this was a changing point. Like I was going to show people that this is actually who I am. And from my experience in real-life outdoors and the like, I knew that for some people, their idea of me would really change and they might not like me anymore.

And so that's basically what Zafira goes through. We are both happy and content with who we are. But we know that the world has different views of us. And that if they knew who we really are, they'd probably judge us in certain ways. It didn't matter what we did or who we are, they'd already have some other idea.

HS: So it really is that difference between proving yourself by your actions and your character and the choices you make in your life versus what people may just see on the surface.

HF: Yeah, that's exactly it.

HS: And I have seen across social media, how many readers are so appreciative of the fact that you are so open about your faith, that you wear the veil, and that you made the decision to be very open about that and to empower other young women of all faiths to really just stand up for who they are and for what they believe in. I think that's really remarkable and I have great, great, great admiration for that. And I appreciate the way that you are empowering your readers to take identity into their own hands and really stand up for who they are and what they believe in.

HF: One thing that I wanted when I first started writing -- actually, when I started my design business -- was to show other young Muslims and other young people that we don't have to sacrifice our identities and our religion just to succeed in a world that may be a bit different [from] what you are.

HS: That's fantastic. Fantastic.

So the book has been out in print and an audio for a couple of days as we're having this conversation, and your fans have been very good about having spoiler-free reactions -- but they are bouncing all over the place. People are so psyched for book two, but is there anything that you really hope that people take away from this first installment? By the way, for listeners, this is a duo-logy. There will be two [volumes], so we won't have to wait for volume five, volume six, volume seven going forward. Thank goodness.

HF: Well, I do want to expand in the same world so there'll be more, hopefully.

HS: Those are my favorite kinds of series, where you get a little complete story. And then another complete story and another complete story. All in the same world. Those make me happiest personally.

HF: So I wrote the story just because I wanted a different kind of normal. The messages inside are mostly woven in subconsciously, and seeing them picked up is like seeing different facets of my soul, basically, on display.

So I just want people to enjoy the story and maybe get a different viewpoint on a location that, like I said before, is often demonized in the media or sometimes romanticized in fiction. I just wanted it to feel like home and I hope that's what readers [and listeners] feel like as well.

HS: Well, I can say for myself, it's not my background, it's not my heritage, and in many ways, it did feel like home. I found so many moments of comfort in the relationships, in phrases like "sister of my heart." I have those best friends who are those people for me. So for this reader and listener, you have definitely been successful in that.

I just want to take a moment as we end the conversation to thank Hafsah Faizal for her time today and remind all of our listeners that her debut novel, We Hunt the Flame, is available on Audible now. It is well, well worth diving into this unbelievable fantasy in a setting that you might not expect but will certainly feel like home by the end of the book.

HF: Thank you so much for having me.