- What can we expect from you in the future?
Elodie’s story
is a three book series, then we will have two novellas continuing the story in
the Twoshy as we meet a few new characters, then there will be another three
book series picking up where the novellas leave us off. After that I have a
loos plan for another three books that take place before Elodies time, not
quite a prequel because they finish off a story you first learn about in A
Misplaced Child.
Outside of
Elodie’s world of the Twosy, I have a few other series I want to work on, one
focusing on irish folklore with a strong YA adventure plot, and another series
about generational super powers. Those will probably not be seen for a few
years, but I have plans, and am building the worlds and characters now.
- Do you have any “side stories” about the
characters?
Oh yes. So very
many. It’s hard because the focus of a book needs to be intentionally narrow to
keep things moving, but especially as the series progresses and you get to meet
more of the Misplaced Children, I have backstories and adventures for all of
them, but only a few make it into the final book. I do hope to post short
stories or deleted scene bits on my website in the future.
- Can you tell us a little bit about the
characters in A Misplaced Child?
We have a large
cast of characters in A Misplaced Child, but let's focus on the main children
in the story.
Elodie Harper,
our main character in A Misplaced Child. In this book, Elodie is twelve and
struggling to figure out what is right and what is wrong when living between
two different worlds.
On Earth Elodie
is in junior high, struggling through therapy and dealing with adults who are
convinced she’s lying about traveling to a magical world, and for once, Elodie is
tired of telling the truth.
On Eres Elodie
is princess and heir to the Kingdom of Aluna. She struggles with fitting the
image of a princess and with the looming weight and responsibility of a kingdom
she may someday have to lead.
Next up is
Vanessa: bold, creative, confident and fiercely loyal. Vanessa and Elodie met
on the first day of kindergarten and she was immediately captivated by the
stories Elodie told about having traveled to a magical world and met a knight
in a forest. Other kids may have made fun of Elodie and her stories, but not
Vanessa. She loved the stories, believed every word Elodie told her, and drew a
picture of the knight for Elodie that evening.
As a confidant
free spirit gliding through junior high, Vanessa is a talented artist with a
bright future ahead of herself, but sometimes she can't help the sorrow she
feels knowing that Elodie travels to a world she can never see for herself
apart from the drawings and paintings she makes from Elodie's descriptions.
Callie and
Elodie first met one summer when they were both twelve years old. Callie grew
up on the streets of Tross in the magical world of Elodie's birth. Being an
orphan with no magic, no money, and absolutely no hope for a brighter future
wasn't enough to keep Callie down. She meets life head on looking only for a
way to make those around her smile.
Callie has a
gift for mimicry. She can duplicate a person's expression and manner for
hilarious results. She loves jokes and doing impressions, and while she may not
be much yet, she is determined to never let life get her down.
Lastly Silas of
Tate. Silas is a bright intelligent kid who wants nothing more than to become a
knight and defend Aluna and serve Elodie some day when she's queen. We first
meet Silas as a young page, confident and good natured, top of his class, and
with a mind for strategy and leadership.
Sometimes Silas
struggles with duty. Honor is a heavy weight on his shoulders that takes some
adjusting as he grows older. No matter what he faces, Silas is determined to be
the best he can be so that one day he can serve and defend his kingdom.
- Where did you come up with the names in the
story?
My two favorite
names, Elodie Harper and Silas of Tate I stole from friends naming their
babies. Elodie Harper is the daughter of a friend from highschool, and Silas
Tate is the son of some friends from college. Yes, I asked permission before
using the names, and am sending both kids copies of the books, even though they
are too young to really care right now. While the characters don’t reflect the
real life people, their names lend spirit and life to the characters and I will
be forever grateful.
For a few other
names in the book, like Gediminas or Callie(short for Calendula), I picked
their names carefully, looking for meaning that would fit will with the story.
There are also
a lot of names, like Byron, and Jinis that I used random name generators for,
because at some point creativity runs out and you just gotta make things work.
Oburleck is a fun story though. This was originally a palace holder, just
something random that gave the right feeling for the character when I typed it
out, but didn’t totally plan to keep till it had grown on me, and nothing else
fit after that.
- What did you enjoy most about writing this book?
I love the
banter. Scenes where characters argue or exchange witty barbs. It makes me
happy. Some of my favorites are between Gedas and other people, or between
Silas and Elodie.
Torn
between two worlds, which will she embrace?
Elodie
Harper is heir to the magical kingdom of Aluna. Trapped by an evil
wizard in an illusion; Elodie grows up caught between two worlds, one
of magic, and one of technology.
As
the facade of her mundane life of lies and fake smiles cracks, her
kingdom crumbles in the absence of its ruler. Join Elodie as she
navigates both lives not knowing which to embrace, and which to push
into the back of her mind and forget as a bad dream.
Heather Michelle is
an emerging author of young adult fantasy. She lives in Acworth, GA
with her cat Mister Bingley and a slew of unique roommates.
Growing up, Heather
Michelle spent more time living in her imagination than outside of
it. Small town life sandwiched between the redwood forests and
the Pacific ocean provided a rich scope for the imagination. Before
the age of twelve, Heather Michelle was not a reader, but a chance
encounter with a rented audiobook launched her into the vast world of
the printed word, and she never looked back.
No comments:
Post a Comment