Tamara Price’s The Alchemist’s Daughter invites readers into a world of mystery, magic, and richly drawn characters. Set in the fictional realm of Tellus—rooted in the wild beauty of Wales—the story blends adventure with thoughtful representation. We spoke with Tamara to talk creative process, character building, and the joy of writing stories that offer both escapism and emotional depth.
The world of The Alchemist’s Daughter feels steeped in mystery, transformation, and legacy. What was the very first image or idea that sparked the story for you?
The very first image was a young girl running through a dark wood at night, then stumbling across a mysterious witch casting a spell. That idea developed into quite a memorable first meeting between two of the main characters, Pax and Venefica.
Do you tend to start with plot, character, or world when writing? What does your creative process look like?
I think in very visual terms, so I always imagine characters or locations first. My creative process resembles a crime investigation scene! Imagine post it notes and pictures on walls and endless scribblings of ideas. I’m very character driven, so once I have an idea for a character, I spend time developing their profile, their back story and what drives them. If I know my characters inside out, they help develop the plot as I write. The Alchemist’s Daughter is set in the fictional world of Tellus, which was inspired by the landscape of Wales – one of the most beautiful places in the world in my opinion.
You’re clearing doing something important with representation, but you also make it feel effortless. What advice would you give to writers who want to include diverse characters without falling into tokenism or tropes?
Don’t force it! All of my characters developed in a very natural way during the writing process. Miles, for example, has an artificial limb in the story because he is a warrior who had previously been injured in battle, but it’s just one detail about his character – he is multifaceted and more of his personality and past is revealed as the story progresses. Each character should be more than one thing, rather than just trying to tick a box, and readers pick up when these things are forced.
What was the biggest challenge you faced when writing this book?
Editing! It’s hard to edit your own work once you’ve finished a draft because you know each chapter word for word. I find leaving it for a few months whilst I work on another project, then coming back to it, helps.
What do you hope readers experience or get out of this book?
I hope it gives them some escapism, adventure and fun!
What advice would you give to young or aspiring writers?
Just write! Don’t worry if you think it’s not very good, or that you can’t spell, or that other people won’t like what you’ve written. Ignore all the negativity and just write for the process of creating something new, it can be a very cathartic experience.
If you could pull one of your characters into the real world to have dinner with, who would it be and why?
This is tricky! Watching the main character Pax use her magical powers across the dinner table would be fascinating – she would be able to levitate the salt towards you! Miles, the warrior, would be absolutely hilarious, but if I couldn’t have dinner with all of them, I’d have to choose Venefica. She’s an ancient witch with dark secrets and sharp wit, and just like me, she loves a good meal!
Tamara Price’s The Alchemist’s Daughter will be released on 28th October and you can pre-order the book now from the Cranthorpe Millner Publishers’ website!
