After a lot of quiet time, I’ve been tagged in a prompt!

I’m glad, too, as it will hopefully start the long process of my climb out of hibernation. I know I’ve been quiet, and if you’re still around—thank you! Hopefully this will add some insight, and kickstart my need to write, edit, and do all sorts of other things you can read about in my other blog (link soon).

If there’s one thing that writing this post taught me, it’s that I’ve become too disconnected from writing, the writing world, and this story.

Thank you to Rachel for tagging me! Go have a turn around her blog as well.

1: What is the working title of one of your current stories?

Riverbank is the biggest, longest thing I’ve ever tried to write. It’s my current work in progress, as I don’t count short stories. It will hopefully be the first, and not the last, book I will ever write.

2: Where did the idea come from for the story?

I’ve always been an odd person. A little meticulous, a little worried, a little bit of an over-active imagination. I used to have trouble falling asleep because I would imagine the house was on fire or that a murderer was climbing into my second-story window. I was as young as 10 when this happened.

So, it shouldn’t come as a surprise that the idea of this story originated from one late night. I was in college (so maybe five years ago) and couldn’t sleep, and as I listened to the trains go by and thought of “home,” I imagined a girl standing in the middle of the street. Suddenly, she caught fire.

The story snowballed for four years to become what it is now.

3: What genre does “Riverbank” fall under?

I would call it Young Adult Dystopian, but I’m hesitant to use “YA.” Not just because of the stigma—I don’t get it, I’ve read bad novels for adults and great novels for young adults—but because I’m not sure if it fits.

The protagonist is in her early twenties, so a little outside of the YA genre, but ultimately, YA fits. It also may fall more into YA Fantasy, depending on your views.

4: Which actors would you choose to play your characters in a movie rendition?

Oh no. I don’t think like that. I don’t even know the names of most actors. Can I tell you what colors I think of when I think of the book?

5: What is the one-sentence synopsis of your story?

In a world where the elementals’ control of the weather and the earth makes survival impossible, Keira learns the sacrifices of war and what it is to be human in an elemental world.

I’m going to have to work on this!

6: Will your story be self-published or represented by an agency?

Honestly, I haven’t thought that far through. Of course—I’ve thought about it. But I think writing it before deciding would be OK. I would do anything from searching for an agent, publishing it myself, going through a smaller publishing house, or going to my friends over at RHX to see if they would pick it up.

7: How long has the editing taken you?

Let’s write the darned thing first! I got 40k in a month, then slowed to a crawl….

8: What other stories would you compare “Riverbank” to within your genre?

Honestly, The Hunger Games would be a big one because of the oppressive nature of the government. I would also liken it to some degree to Tamora Pierce’s middle grade novels, especially because of the nature of the magic.

9: Who or What inspired you to write this story?

I would say the Earth did. It may sound hokey, but especially when we have 70-degree days in February, and snowstorms on the brink of Spring, I get an itch in my fingers to write. I think there’s a huge climate shift happening in our world, and whether it’s because of our own mistakes or because that is the way the circle goes is an argument I am not taking part of with this work. This is just a way to cope with the change.

I suppose you could also say it’s a story about learning that a moral compass doesn’t always point to true North. I think of this in our constant battles to stay ourselves and stay moral, even if it means staying apart from expectation.

10: What else about your story might pique the reader’s interest?

There isn’t much romance, so if that’s your cup of tea—look elsewhere! It is, however, a close look at where the line between good and evil belongs. It has some beautiful magic in it, all stemming from nature. And it has a lot of weather!

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Now it’s my turn to tag! Ty, you’re it!