Hello, everyone! Today, we have another mythical and amazing author, Emilythenext, whose story achieved 3rd place in the Immortal Living Mortal contest on MythandLegend!

About the Author:  

About 'Hephaestus, the lame one': "Hephaestus lives a regular life among the mortals. He is alone until he meets a weird-looking stranger. This is my short story for the Immortal Living Mortal contest. I hope you enjoy it and have a good time reading it. Cover by my coworker, Carmen."

1. What made you start writing on Wattpad? What has been your favorite moment so far on the orange app?

I used to write just for self-enjoyment, but after a friend recommended me Wattpad, I opened my account and started writing short stories. I've had very good moments while writing and plotting my stories (even though it hasn't even been four months since I started publishing on the platform), but I'll always remember the first subscriber I got! 

2. Which mythology and/or legends influenced your story? Why did you choose those?

I've based my story on the Greek myth about how Hephaestus made an armor for the great warrior Achilles. I've also included references to other myths, like how Hephaestus was thrown off Olympus by her mother, how Tethis took care of him, and how he was engaged with Aphrodite before she left him. I chose to write about these myths because Hephaestus, their main character was actually dropped from Olympus and ended up living on Earth. 

3. Tell us about the main character of one of your stories. What inspired their creation?

I recently uploaded one short story called Psycho hero. The main character is a girl who decided to become a heroine. She became The Warrior and caused a sensation among the journalists because of her gallic traditions. Everything's okay until her boyfriend Tim discovers that she's a psychopath. I made this short story for the contest Meet me at Midnight. While I was thinking about how I could write the story, I remembered some gallic traditions that were a bit creepy. That inspired the main character Anouk and her weird bedroom.

4. What were some challenges you experienced while writing the story?

Since I'm not a native English speaker, I always struggle while writing my stories in English and making sure that I'm using the proper words. You've got no idea of how difficult it is to sound natural in English!

5. Do you have a song playlist for writing? Can you share one with us?

I like listening to opera and classical music while I write. The best playlist that I could suggest would be listening to all of Mozart's symphonies in a row!

6. What is your favorite myth or legend? Why?

My favorite myth is about how the war between the Trojans and the Greeks started. It's so funny how Eris got three goddesses to fight with each other and how they tried to convince Paris to say that they were the most beautiful among the others. 

7. What is your favorite mythical creature? Why?

I really love the phoenix. Makes a beautiful pet and appears in Harry Potter (one of my favorite book saga). It's incredible how it can resurrect from its ashes to get to live in all its power and might.

8. If you could have the same powers as a creature and/or deity from mythology or legends, what would it be? Why?

I'm sure that if I were a creature, I would be a naiad or a mermaid. They are so beautiful and since I enjoy water sports, I wish I could live in the sea and haunt the sailors singing beautiful melodies.

9. What is your advice for other writers who want to use mythology in their stories?

I don't have much to say since I've just started writing, but I would encourage them to write about all the legends and myths they like. We can learn so much from mythology and all its tales because deep in the plot, our ancestors wanted to teach us some useful lessons about life that we should learn for upcoming generations.

That's it for the month, it was fun getting to know about Emilythenext. You can check her stories featured in our reading list as well as her other works.

Until next time!