So, What’s It About?
“What’s it about?”
It’s the first thing I’m asked when I say I wrote a book. You’d think I’d have a great answer by now. (I probably should) It’s such a deceptively simple question but so hard to provide a satisfying answer. If you can’t relate, think of your favorite book and try pitching it in a few short sentences- especially if it’s sci-fi or fantasy. Tricky, right? A general summary falls flat. I want you to really get a sense of the vibe, the style, the flavor!
So let’s start with some comparisons, see if we can’t paint a proper picture.
When writing Spellbound, my biggest inspirations were dreamy anime from the early aughts- specifically Inuyasha and Howl’s Moving Castle. I wanted that sweet teenage will-they/won’t-they romance, feisty female leads, beautiful magical worlds, and devious might-be-boyfriends. I wanted it to be bright and whimsical with characters that felt plucked from a romp in a D&D campaign and action and intrigue that was fun and fast-paced. For literary examples, I wanted the interactions to feel like something out of a Holly Black novel (The Cruel Prince) and the adventure to remind readers of Sanderson’s Tress of the Emerald Sea.
(you’ll have to be the judge on whether I achieved that- but know it was my aim!)
Now let’s set the scene:
Our lead is a girl named Ari. She lives in a tiny island town of the coast of Cemre, a wild land of the swords and sorcery variety. We’re talking kings and castles, schools for sorcery, fantastical non-human races, and plenty of opportunity for adventure. But Ari gets to see none of that- she’s stuck minding her mother’s sleepy little tea shop, and she’s deathly afraid she’s going to be stuck there forever. What she really wants it to strike out on her own and learn the art of Alchemy, to travel the lands of Cemre seeking rare plants and making clever concoctions. One fateful night, she gets her chance. She’s invited to run away with a band of traveling fortune tellers in their enchanted carriage. So she does! Hijinks, of course, ensue. She’s mistaken for a sorceress, wrongfully imprisoned by a band of rebels, strikes a bargain with a witch, and ends up bound to a disgraced magician. Now she’s knee deep in a desperate ploy to try and stop a renegade wizard set on overthrowing the throne. The only solution: work together with the bound wizard, a mischievous boy named Wren who is not in any way interested in playing hero.
I hope I’ve painted a proper picture! If I haven’t, here’s some rad character art I commissioned from one of my favorite artists, Seckra. (please check them out on Insta, I love their character design)
Meet Ari & Wren!
Can’t wait for you guys to read it, probably in late Spring or early Summer! Hopefully I find out the official release date shortly. I’ll keep ya posted!
If you made it this far, thanks a ton for sticking with! See you soon.
Our journey begins…
Happy New Year!
I’ve been putting off starting a blog/newsletter for a while since, though I claim to be a writer, I find these things awfully hard to write.
DISCLAIMER, do not judge my actual books on this writing- I beg you. I promise my real writing is much more organized. This is just my brain dump space- a place to tell you about anything new regarding upcoming novels or projects in the works and to just rant & rave. A place to get to know me as an author, if that’s in any way important to you. No offense taken if it’s not!
That said, lets get down to it.
Incoming Brain Dump:
2026 looms with all it’s threat and promise. It goes without saying that I wish you all the best. But more specifically, I wish you the one thing I’m trying to manifest for myself this year: MOMENTUM.
All my shortcomings, writer-wise, stem from stillness. If I can just keep moving, I think I could get a lot done this year. That means when I hit a wall, it’s time to pivot! No sitting down and pouting about it. Pick a different direction and keep moving. Writers block? Switch to a different WIP. (I have like 3 right now) Still blocked? Read! Watch a movie! Chasing inspiration is just as important as actually creating- something I often forget.
And my to-read and to-watch lists are getting loooooong. Unwieldly, even.
I won’t prattle on too long. This was more or less just a public promise of maintaining some sort of online presence. Something I hear authors ought to do. Suppose if I want to call myself an author, I better start acting like one. Right? Right.
2026 is the year of my first published release. It doesn’t feel real. I don’t know when it will start to feel real short of holding the damn thing in my hand and even then I may take some convincing.
I cannot wait to introduce you to The Spellbound Alchemist, my young adult fantasy releasing this spring. But I’ll save that for its own update.
Thanks for joining me- I’ll try my best not to be a bore.
- Sarah