Writer of the Week #7: Tahira Iqbal

Tahira's short story "The Queen" was included in the anthology Red Velvet and Absinthe

NAME - Tahira Iqbal

AGE - 32

WEBSITE - www.tahiraiqbal.com

LOCATION - United Kingdom

WHEN DID YOU REALISE YOU WANTED TO BE A PUBLISHED AUTHOR? 
I didn’t initially realise I wanted to be published, I just wanted to write. But when I realised that I loved writing and nothing else seemed to make me happy, I started to explore the idea of “getting my work out there”. I spent long years quietly working away before anything “got out there!”.

NAME FIVE AUTHORS AND 5 BOOKS (DO NOT NECESSARILY HAVE TO BE YOUR FAVOURITE)
Interview with a vampire – Anne Rice.
Bitten – Kelley Armstrong.
The Crow – James O’Barr (Okay, technically a graphic novel... But I love it!)
Sean Black - Lock Down
Jurassic Park – Michael Crichton

WHERE DO YOU GET YOUR INSPIRATION FROM?
 Anywhere and everywhere. Something someone says, or something that I see. The night sky, the dawn sky or just sitting in silence and letting something rise within.



WHAT DO YOU THINK IS THE BEST QUALITY A WRITER CAN HAVE? 
Patience. Sometimes you want to write, but you just can’t, it’s not flowing... So be kind and patient with yourself and the writing will return.



ANY LAST WORDS? (FUN FACTS, COMMENTS, SOMETHING YOU’D LIKE TO SHARE WITH THE WORLD ETC) 
If you’re a writer, or want to be a writer, then just write. Even if it’s one word on the back of a napkin or a whole paragraph tapped into an blank text  – keep your creativity alive!



CHALLENGE! WRITE A ONE SENTENCE STORY
Ooh.... I can’t just write one sentence! Writer’s curse... We like to ramble!


Thank you so much, Tahira! If anyone else is interested in being a writer of the week, please read the instructions here.