Women's Empowerment Month Collection: Erudessa Gentian

 Erudessa Gentian is multi-talented, adventurous, and supportive to all of her creative friends and colleagues. She was the farthest person I interviewed in Japan. 

Kaylyn Gabbert: I know you are a busy woman who models, acts, writes, and probably does so much more. What creative aspiration did you follow first?

Erudessa Gentian: Honestly, music would have been first. My parents first got me started on the piano at four, then the harp at five or six. And I was singing for as long as I can remember. Then I added other instruments. Then I was doing skits and acting. As I got older, I started getting bigger roles and full blown roles. As for the writing, it was a secret to everyone. It was cathartic for me to write about what I was learning and seeing people go through and turning it into story form. When my family found out I was doing it, they wanted to read it. Wait, songwriting came before my family found out about my creative writing. I was at a festival with my band (can't remember, was in too many bands) JUBALation when I joined a songwriting workshop because it didn't come as easy to me. Songwriting is different creative writing or even poetry. I didn't start modelling until I got to Japan because I was actually shy in front of the camera. I enjoyed photography and videography more than modelling at first. There are a lot of similarities between the stage and the screen. I was definitely more into the techie side for a while. I definitely found a way to make modelling fun with cosplay which is a version of acting. I do a lot of that with my characters from my books. 

KG: What inspired your creative lifestyle?

EG: The whole reason I started writing professionally. So when I was working on my first book Power in Time, which was actually supposed to be a standalones, but you know how editing is. So my mom was the first to read the original draft and tell me I had to do something with it. Family is actually super harsh critics, so I knew she wasn’t just being a supportive parent, but I didn’t think too seriously about it at first. Then my friends said the same thing. And then I got ads from publishers, and writing workshops, etc. Then it was like, "Okay God, I'm sorry. I get the hint" 

KG: Who supports you the most in your life?

EG: My mom and family are supportive, and my family is actually super harsh critics. My biggest support is my husband. My husband and I met shortly after I chose to go after writing professionally. He was one of my first beta readers. He doesn't actually read fiction, but he does read all of my work. As it turns out, he's an amazing editor to the point where I'm a little jealous. 

KG: What was your first book?

EG: Power in Time is my first book. Power in Time is about a twenty-year-old Larkspur is trapped 2,000 years in the future, but that’s not her biggest problem. Bestowed with strange superpowers, she’s adopted by one of the most powerful families known to the four inhabited planets. As heir, she’s responsible for an entire kingdom she didn’t know existed a few days ago. But when tragic surprises emerge from her past, Lark must decide where her loyalties will lie—past, or future?

KG: What inspired it?

EG: It was inspired by a group of friends. We were just hanging around and throwing around story ideas. One person gave some ideas, then someone added to it, then the next and so on and so forth. At the end, I had a superpowered person with a white tiger companion, and I was like, "I need to do something with this." 

To buy Power in Time: https://books2read.com/powerintime?fbclid=IwAR02itTenG8kBNYSzO6zyzLQF87cTwlsSPxJ7RhXykzmsIiGTegck0WfMZQ

To check out more by Erudessa: https://www.erudessagentian.com/?fbclid=IwAR2S0RzG7-5KQfeElAR7Yz_1hZi-8HWa5UUcPPHdNbj444lLWB7zEzHeMAM