Sunday, February 17, 2013

Novel Hearts Anthology

"The Twistedly True Nightmare of Ruby Hood"

As an author, I don’t get the opportunity to write a story just for the readers very often. Normally, I write to quiet the voices in my head (I know, sounds like I’m a crazy person…maybe). Often times, the incessant chatter of my characters interrupts my daily thoughts. At night, they creep into my dreams and whisper to me. They bombard me on my walks, in the car, at the grocery store or in the shower. Once my characters are developed, a story plays out in my head, and then I write. But recently, I was approached by my publisher to create a new story based on the characters from my novella, “The Twistedly True Tale of Ruby Hood”.  She explained the story would be featured in an anthology titled “Novel Hearts”. The anthology would include seven other stories based on characters of Write More Publications authors and their books.

Of course, I leapt at the opportunity. First off, I absolutely adore my ‘Ruby Hood’ characters! Secondly, I LOVED the idea of intentionally writing a story for the readers. This was my chance to entice the readers, to get them interested in my characters, to lure them into my version of “Little Red Riding Hood”, with the ultimate goal of purchasing my book when it comes out. Simple enough, right? Not exactly. A huge hurdle shot up instantly. How do I write a story based on a book and characters very few have met without giving anything away? This took some very strategic plotting and planning. Finally, I came up with the idea to write a prequel. This prequel stays true to my young adult fairy tale version, but with a twist on both my original story AND the fairy tale. All the characters are introduced, but they are somewhat…um…different than my true ‘Ruby Hood’ characters. I was able to tie it all up at the end, bringing it full circle, and with a bit of luck, leaving the reader wanting more. How you ask? Well now, I’m not going to give that away here. Hopefully, I’ve piqued your interest enough to check out my prequel, The Twistedly True Nightmare of Ruby Hood”!

Happy Reading!

P.S. The other seven stories in “Novel Hearts” are absolutely wonderful!
http://www.amazon.com/Novel-Hearts-ebook/dp/B00BF828QU/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1361119504&sr=1-1&keywords=Novel+Hearts%3A+A+Valentine%27s+Anthology
http://www.amazon.com/Novel-Hearts-Publications-Valentines-Anthology/dp/0615770916/ref=sr_1_4?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1361119575&sr=1-4&keywords=Write+More+Publications

 

4 comments:

  1. So very true!!! I relate to everything your saying about the characters in my head, and trying hard to introduce them and not give anything away. Great post, and I absolutely adore Ruby Hood!!! Can't wait to read it

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    1. I'm so glad you love Ruby Hood! I do, too! :)
      I'd be happy to send you a copy for an honest review when it comes out! Let me know!

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  2. Hey Stephanie, I love your blog. It's great. I've been nominated for the Lieger Blogger Award, and I've nominated you too! Congrats. Check out this post for more details - http://ellelainey.wordpress.com/2013/02/25/announcement-liebster-award-nomination/

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    1. Wow! So exciting...I guess I should check my blog more often! :) I can't get to this link, though. I tried copying and pasting it into my bar, but the little circle is just spinning and spinning. (Do you love my technical terms?...hahah)

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