1

It's been brewing for a while. I wanted a story that touched on the process of grief over the loss of a loved one, but I also wanted to write something set in space. When The Open Novella Contest (ONC) arrived with a perfect prompt that fit, I had to do it.

2

It's the same questions that I have with all my stories. When to drop the hint? How to braid it all together? When do the characters finally get together? But mostly it's where is this going and how do I get there? I only have a very loose idea of this story, so each chapter I really have to think of how my characters are feeling, what their goals are, and how that drives the plot forward.

3

I love (LOVE!) writing the hate-attraction between Anna and Knox. Enemies to lovers is a trope I can never get enough of, but it's also a ton of fun to write.

4

I haven't had a ton of readers that are outside the group of ONC writers, but so far, everyone seems to like it. It touches on a theme that people have either gone through or will go through, so I think that commonality cuts right to an emotional connection between the reader and Anna.

At this point, I am planning on it being a stand-alone, but I always seem to wind up writing something bigger. So who really knows. :)

I'd love for them to walk away entertained, but I'd also love that if a reader happens to be grieving that they don't feel so alone or that they know someone understands what it is like.

7

Nothing good comes from letting your eyes drift. It's really easy to make those comparisons, but the more time you spend watching everyone else is time you're not doing the work yourself.

The biggest one is that Anna has lost both her parents, but otherwise, there are probably elements. There's a bit of me in all the characters, but Anna's got a lot more guts than I do and for good reason. She's really got her back up against a wall early on in the story.

9

I think the enemies to lovers trope would bring in the readers who love that as much as I do. But I also love presenting Anna with such a bad choice early on in the story. It really forces her to consider what in the heck she is willing to do.

10

Not so much future projects as I have current projects. I'm revising Never Go Home offline as well as drafting a fantasy work, Through the Wall.