Author Interview - Emma Whitehall
- Northodox Press
- Aug 26
- 4 min read
1) Can you give us a brief introduction to the world of Clockwork Magpies and Gilded Gear?
Our main character is Ida; a sardonic, put-upon maid by day, and an infamous sneak thief by night. She lives in the Steampunk city of Loxport, up in the glorious and industry-filled North of England – with her silly, spoiled mistress Lucinda Belmonte, a lovesick maid named Edith, a showboating and irritatingly charming jeweller by the name of Clem…and her mistress’ paramour, the blustering, obnoxious Lord Devon Casterbury.
When a dangerous new power source comes to the city, Ida gets embroiled in a power struggle that threatens her new friendships, her sanity, and maybe even her freedom.
2) When you wrote Clockwork Magpies, did you already have a sequel in mind?
Not so much a particular sequel as a need to continue the Magpies’ stories. I’ve been writing these characters in one form or another for twelve years, so I know them as well as I know some members of my own family! I just love putting Ida and her friends in different situations, seeing how they react to each other and what mischief they get up to next.
Something that really cemented the idea of writing a sequel is introducing my readers to A_09 – otherwise known as Albert. Albert is a very special young man – though not one of flesh and blood – and he was the very first inhabitant of Loxport all those years ago. Once I worked out how he fits into Ida’s story, I was so excited to put them in a room together!
3) Do you feel as though readers will be surprised by the direction of the plot in Gilded Gear?
It’s the middle book of a trilogy, so things do get a little darker – as all good stories must before the final act! Our cast also grows a lot, and Ida’s ideas about friendship and love will be tested to the limit.
To avoid giving too much away, I spoke at a wonderful Queer book club in Newcastle a few months ago, and everyone there was telling me how much they love Clem, how funny and sassy he is and how they really, REALLY hope nothing bad happens to him in Gilded Gear… 😉
4) What was the inspiration behind the steampunk setting?
When I originally came up with the idea of Loxport, I was reading a lot of Steampunk fiction…and nearly all of it was set in London. As much as I loved the imagination and the fun in those stories, I quickly grew tired of the constant assumption that I knew this one city very well and got all the in-jokes and cultural touchstones. I wanted Fantasy fiction, especially Steampunk fiction, that used the dialect I know and referenced the places I love. For example, in Gilded Gear we visit a new setting in the Songbird Theatre, which is very closely based on the Theatre Royal in Newcastle City centre!
5) Are there any titles you would compare your work to?
I’ve always said Six of Crows by Leigh Bardugo was a big inspiration on the world of Clockwork Magpies and Gilded Gear, but there’s also a wonderful YA Fantasy novel called Rebel Skies by Ann Sei Lin which captures the Found Family (but doing crimes) vibes too! There’s also Spare and Found Parts by Sarah Marie Griffin, which is a beautifully written Steampunk-y novel about finding love in unexpected places.
I’ve never shared this before, but a BIG comparison for the Ida Finn series is a text-based browser game called Fallen London. I was obsessed with that game when I was in my twenties, and Ida basically walked out of it fully formed and demanded I pay attention to her.
6) Do you have any further novels planned?
I’m currently working on the final Ida Finn book. It’s an emotional one; Ida, Clem and Edith have been such a huge part of my author’s journey, and I want to give them the send-off they deserve. But I know I’ll sob my heart out on the day I put that final full stop on their story!
7) What is one piece of advice you would give to an aspiring author?
Play. Writing needs to be play before it is anything else – for years and years, Clockwork Magpies was something I worked on for fun at my monthly writing group. That’s how I got to know Ida and her friends so well; just by messing around with them for an hour or two at a time, putting them in new scenes and seeing what they’d do.
It’s actually come full circle with Ida’s final book. Right now I’m just enjoying writing those emotional scenes and those final ridiculous adventures and worrying about stitching them together later – mostly because I’m not ready to let them go yet! If there’s no joy in the experience of writing, in my opinion, there’s no point in doing it.
Gilded Gear by Emma Whitehall is available for pre-order on the links below. Also available is Clockwork Magpies, as is Emma's other novel, Heretical:
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