Well, we're so close to release day for Beneath A Darkening Sky , and I've celebrated this by becoming a member of the Horror Writers' Association ! I also had a set of author photos taken in a local graveyard, complete with an entire flock of sheep watching me as some previous visitor had left the gate open for them. So now, I'm faced with the decision of which story to share with you. We've been through a few for this blog series, and I'm left with three: Guidman Trowie (a tale set in Orkney and inspired by the unique folklore of the islands); Moonsong (a love song from a werewolf to the moon); and Eaves-Drip , which is the story I'm going to talk about in this blog. It's no coincidence that these three stories have been left. Along with Ay Atomics , they're the short and (not-always-very-)sweet ones. Eaves-Drip was written while we were on holiday in Perthshire one autumn, but it goes back to Lincolnshire, where I grew up. Lincolnshire is ful...
I'm sorry I haven't posted a Middle Grade Monday post for a few weeks. The summer holidays have been in full swing and we have been far from idle. At the start of the holiday, I published the sequel to my debut novel. "Taking Wing" came out in July 2019, and it's a great relief to have launched "Doorway to the Sunset" which continues the story.
Not only does it feel great that it's finally out there, but it was super to be back with those characters again. The Feather Down series is a story I tried multiple times to write. Slightly different over the years, of course. Each time, I could never get beyond the first couple of chapters. I don't know what about "Taking Wing" made it stick. Perhaps because, by then, I was older and had more writing experience. Perhaps because I was teaching children who were the same age as my ideal audience. Either way, "Taking Wing" continues to be the book of mine that sells the most.
Freya, the protagonist, is drawn into a tribal system of Anglo-Saxon warlords, who have the ability to change into birds. There is the crow tribe (mainly because I was fed up with crows being depicted as the baddies) and the owl tribe, and some other minor characters mentioned throughout, but the crows and owls have been at war for centuries because the owl king, Raedwald, believes his enemies killed his wife.
He is, of course, mistaken.
If you'd like to find out who really was responsible, then read "Taking Wing" and, if you enjoy the adventurous escapades of the main characters, why not follow it up with "Doorway to the Sunset".
Next year, I'm taking a break from Freya and publishing the prequel which is a standalone story, but with many of the same characters. Consider signing up to our Crowvus monthly newsletter to get updates and offers as the publication date approaches.
Until next week... happy reading!
Comments
Post a Comment