USA Today Bestselling Author Lana Kortchik
Lana Kortchik grew up in two opposite corners of the Soviet Union—a snow-white Siberian town and the golden-domed Ukrainian capital. At the age of sixteen, she moved to Australia with her mother. Lana and her family live on the Central Coast of NSW, where it never snows and is always summer-warm, even in winter. She loves books, martial arts, the ocean and Napoleonic history. Her short stories have appeared in many magazines and anthologies. She is the author of the USA Today bestseller Sisters of War (HarperCollins) and the forthcoming novel The Countess of the Revolution (HarperCollins).
What was the inspiration behind your forthcoming novel The Countess of the Revolution, a tale of two lovers caught on opposite sides of the Russian revolution?
I’ve always been fascinated with the Russian Revolution. Just like the French Revolution before it, it was a time of great upheaval, of the old giving way to the new, of conflict and contradiction. It also has a special meaning for me because of our family history. My great-great-grandfather was sent to one of the labor camps in Siberia from Warsaw by the Tsarist government for revolutionary activities in the nineteenth century. My grandfather, who was born in Russia but spoke fluent Polish, often told me about his grandfather, how he lost everything, what he had to go through and how he started over again in a small town called Minusinsk. As a child, I was deeply touched by these stories of heartbreak and courage, and it was one of the reasons I wanted to explore the revolution and its implications in my book.
When I was researching the period of the Russian Revolution, I came across a brilliant diary written by Matilda Kshesinskaya, a prima-ballerina with the Imperial Ballet and the mistress of Tsar Nicholas II before his marriage, who later married his cousin Grand Duke Andrei Vladimirovich. She lost everything in March 1917 and, just like the characters in my book, moved to Kislovodsk during the revolution. When the Bolshevism reached the Caucasus, she immigrated to France. There was so much pain on the pages of her diary but also so much hope, it had a great influence on me while I was researching and writing my book.
How did you first get interested in writing and what do you feel the medium of book writing affords writers that other forms of writing cannot accomplish?
As long as I remember, I’ve been obsessed with books. As a child, I always had my nose in a book, even when I should have been doing other things, like homework. Alexandre Dumas was my number one favorite, and Jules Verne a close second. Writing (and reading) fiction, as opposed to other forms of writing, has a unique ability to take us on a journey to a different world and allow us to see life through someone else’s eyes. It was always a magical feeling for me, opening a book and finding myself in a time and place as far removed from my day-to-day reality as possible. I suppose I started writing because I wanted to be part of that magic. I wanted to touch the readers’ hearts the way my favorite authors touched mine.
I wrote diaries as a child and at university started writing poems and short stories in Russian. Having grown up in Russia, I didn’t speak much English until we moved to Australia when I was a teenager. At first, I was too nervous to write in English. When I returned to university to complete my history degree, my favorite lecturer told me I had a nice writing style. I decided I had nothing to lose and the next day wrote my first short story in English. That short story was never published but my second one was. It was about a couple in love, caught on different sides of the World War II. A few years later it became my debut novel, Sisters of War.
Lana Kortchik’s The Countess of the Revolution (HarperCollins)
“I need to feel fully immersed in historical details, so that I can take the readers on a journey to the past and make it as believable and authentic as possible.”
What is your creative process like? Any special rituals or practices?
Before I start writing a new book, I spend at least three months researching the time period and reading everything I can get my hands on—diaries, memoirs, newspaper articles, even novels published during that time. The goal for me is not only to understand the period but to have it come to life inside my head. I need to feel fully immersed in historical details, so that I can take the readers on a journey to the past and make it as believable and authentic as possible. This is the part of writing I enjoy the most. For me, reading people’s diaries and learning what life had been like for them is an emotional and fascinating experience.
Once I feel comfortable with my chosen time period, I start plotting my book. My debut novel, Sisters of War, was inspired by an article I read many years ago, about a Soviet actress who survived the occupation thanks to the kindness of a German soldier, who twice a day fed the local children. I thought it was incredible that kindness and love could be found on both sides of the conflict, sometimes where you least expect it. I knew I had to write about it. My second historical novel, Daughters of the Resistance, was inspired by my grandmother’s memories of the war and the partisan battalions. Writing about my grandmother’s experiences during the war was heart-breaking and heart-warming at the same time. My third historical novel, set during the Russian Revolution, was inspired by my grandfather's stories about his grandfather, who was a revolutionary.
Before I sit down to write, I plan my entire novel. Having worked as a computer programmer for fifteen years, I approach writing like I would a complex algorithm at work. Before I write the first word, I need to know the beginning, the end and everything in between (even if it changes later on as I work on it). And only when I'm happy with the plot, the actual writing starts.
What has it been like for you in working with Abby Parson and the team at HarperCollins in readying your novel The Countess of the Revolution for publication?
I had three books published with HarperCollins so far (one of them under a pen name of Lana Newton) and every time it’s been a magical experience. It’s an amazing feeling to see the journey from an idea inside my head to a finished paperback. I had a great time working with my editors, who have an incredible ability to understand my vision for the book and encourage me to build on it and explore it further. Every suggestion I have received from the wonderful team at HarperCollins has been spot on and made my books better. I'm so grateful to everyone I have worked with at HarperCollins for supporting me and bringing the best out of me as a writer. HarperCollins has always been my dream publisher because they publish many of my favorite authors and I’m thrilled to be working with them on my next two books.
“The most important thing for me when reading historical fiction…is seeing people face hardships we couldn’t even imagine and triumph over them. I love stories of bravery, resilience and hope.”
Whereas you’ve written WWII historical novels before, you will be entering a new space in historical fiction in writing The Countess of the Revolution. Do you feel as though there is a big and underserved audience there in this particular sector of historical fiction?
Absolutely! The revolution is such a turbulent time period, with so much drama and conflict, any reader of historical fiction will find it fascinating. I certainly did as I was researching and writing the book. The most important thing for me when reading historical fiction, whether it’s set during the war or the revolution or any other period in history, is seeing people face hardships we couldn’t even imagine and triumph over them. I love stories of bravery, resilience and hope. And the period of the Russian Revolution is definitely full of stories like that.
Did the Russian Revolution have large implications for its time that are still playing out to this very day? What is it that makes this an integral moment in world history and today’s politics and current affairs?
1917 was the year that turned everything upside down, and not just for Russia. The Russian Revolution swept away the old regime, destroyed the power of the church and altered the fabric of society. At the same time, the counterrevolution splintered the world in two, which had great implications for World War II, the Cold War and beyond. The Revolution and the subsequent seventy years of the Communist regime had a tremendous influence over the Russian national identity and every aspect of society. Even now, decades after the collapse of the Soviet Union, the Soviet mindset is very much present in society. I often hear people of the older generation talk longingly about the Soviet era and the way things had been back then. They long for free education and medical care, and for everyone to be equal, not just by law but in terms of income too. When I talk to people I know in Russia, especially those of older generations, I often notice underlying resentment towards the current regime.
2020 was a difficult year for everyone and book publishing was no exception. What was it like in publishing a book that year?
2020 was definitely a roller coaster of emotions for me. On one hand, seeing everything that was going on in the world, worrying about loved ones and not being able to visit our family, especially those overseas, had been incredibly tough. On the other hand, having a book out—a lifelong dream come true—was a magical experience and a ray of sunshine during that difficult year. When my book was first published, the bookstores were closed, but once they reopened, seeing my book on the shelves was everything I’ve ever dreamed it would be. After Sisters of War came out, many readers reached out to me, saying that my book helped them during the pandemic and that it put things in perspective for them as they read about the hardships people faced during the war. Knowing that my novel brightened someone’s day and gave them a moment of joy during this terrible time was an amazing feeling.
Are you reading anything at the moment or from before that has influenced your thinking and writing?
At the moment, I am rereading my favorite book of all time, The Count of Monte Cristo by Alexandre Dumas. Every time I read it, it leaves me speechless. Dumas is a master storyteller, capturing the readers’ imaginations from page one, and the book is a true masterpiece, with its dark themes of revenge and ultimate forgiveness. Reading Dumas is always an inspiration to me as a writer.
Can you tell us what you are thinking of writing next?
For my next book, I am planning to go back to a time period I am truly passionate about—World War II. Like many Russians, I grew up hearing about the war from my grandparents. These stories are in our blood, they are part of our national identity, part of who we are. Writing about the war and researching it is always an emotional experience and I hope these emotions shine through in my writing.
“If writing brings you joy, keep going and don’t pay attention to naysayers.”
Do you have any advice you could share for hopeful writers eager to become published authors?
Don’t get discouraged! The world needs more books. If writing brings you joy, keep going and don’t pay attention to naysayers. There will be so many of those along the way. It took me many years to get my first book published but once it was out there, it was the best feeling in the world.
Can you finish this sentence? I love reading because...
I love reading because, every time I open a book, I travel to a different time and get a chance to experience a life completely different from my own.