Featured Interview With Andrew Cairns
Tell us a little about yourself. Where were you raised? Where do you live now?
I am a Scottish guy. I grew up in Dundee, but now live in the suburbs of Paris with my wife and two daughters.
I’ve written one book so far, “The Witch’s List”, and am hard at work on the second one – in what I plan to be a trilogy.
No pets, but there was a huge magpie on my window-sill this morning!
At what age did you realize your fascination with books? When did you start writing?
I keep a daily diary, and write travelogues when I go travelling. I suppose I’ve always been writing bits and pieces. My fascination with books is how they can transport you to another place, another time and make you see things from the viewpoint of different people.
Who are your favorite authors to read? What is your favorite genre to read. Who Inspires you in your writings?
Favorite authors include:
– Paul Auster
– Iain Banks
– Tahir Shah
– Eowyn Ivey
– Kazuo Ishiguro
I dabble in a lot of different genres. Especially enjoy travelogues, adventures, culture-clash, mystery, thriller and horror.
Also get inspired by movies from directors like David Lynch, Martin Scorcese, Roland Joffé…
Tell us a little about your latest book?
Sandy Beech doesn’t believe in witches and the supernatural. However, certain strange events occur which put his scepticism to the test: a burning book, a falling crucifix, a mysterious illness, and a fire in a convent which kills all twelve nuns. On her deathbed, Bernadette, the last surviving nun, warns him to control his lusts and avoid African women. Sandy finds this difficult, since he is attracted to exotic, dark-skinned women and after his hedonistic university exchange year in Paris, marries Rocky from the Ivory Coast. Five years later, childless and with the marriage souring, they decide to visit Rocky’s home country. Sandy is drawn into a world of strange beliefs and practices: he finds out about the Witch’s List – a list of people destined to die, and is attacked by various animals starting with a ferocious dog in Abidjan. He delves further and further into the realm of African witchcraft, but the horrific truth remains obscure… The Witch’s List is the first of a trilogy.
It took me about a year to write and is actually based on some of my experiences and stories which I heard on a visit to The Ivory Coast, and also by my experiences of growing up in Scotland and moving to France where I’ve lived/worked most of my adult life.
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