Note to my dear readers: This was supposed to come out well before today. I had been working on this post for an entire week in between school and work and still somehow it never got published. So please excuse the future tense as we move in....

Greetings from the cave! 

Guys! The FallFicFrenzy is set to begin on Saturday!! 

And I am not ready for it. 

(Are we surprised?)

As I have mentioned previously, I'm alternating between two projects this challenge. You all know what the first one is (except maybe a few newcomers, which I will direct to my recent posts) but the second one is one that I haven't talked about in nearly two years. And so, it merits another introduction here on the blog. 

And what better way to do that than with Christine's Know the Novel Linkup??

And considering I haven't done one of these since 2020(?!), I say, it's high time! 

And so, let us commence with the festivities! 

1. What first sparked the idea for this novel?

The first spark for this novel was the Rooglewood Five Poisoned Apples contest in 2017, which was for an anthology of Snow White retellings based off the original Grimm version. Many of my blogging friends at the time were entering into this contest and I wanted to join in the fun. And maybe try to build the author platform a little. 

2. Share a blurb (or just an overall summary)!

This is a perfect opportunity to update the blurb that I have been using for years, lol

Queen Heulwin's death could not have happened at a worse time. 

Just shy of her majority, an angry Princess Eirwen is forced to watch as her father contracts another marriage in order to quell a rebellious people anxious for a male heir. However, the marriage falls apart in the most scandalous of fashions, and the Lady Ceinwen seeks revenge...by the form of blood. 

When a hunting trip turns deadly, Eirwen is forced to flee into a decaying orchard. With the help of a neighboring prince and a cadre of rogues, Eirwen seeks to take back her kingdom. But will the hidden seeds of her anger be advantageous for her cause or will it cause disaster for the kingdom of Glywysing? 

Still not my best blurb ever. 

3. Where does the story take place? What are some of your favorite aspects of the setting?

It takes place in Wales, which is a little unusual for a Snow White retelling. 

Unfortunately, I didn't document online why exactly I chose Wales as a setting. Which is an egregious offense for a novel-writing historian (of all people) to do. Most likely, it's hidden in one of the myriad of notebooks that's currently hiding under my bed. 

However, as I was doing a little bit of digging, I remembered something about...Welsh apples. And so I dug a little further and discovered that apples do get mentioned in Welsh legends, and were a valuable commodity. If I had to guess, I probably went looking into countries with a lot of apple production, and Wales happened to be one of them. Being that it was a semi-familiar culture but *just* different enough, I decided to go for it. 

My favorite aspects of the setting have more to do with the Welsh culture more than the physical setting. Wales is quite pretty though. 

4. Tell us about your protagonist(s).

Princess Eirwen is the oldest child of King Aneirin and the late Queen Heulwen, and she is just about to reach the age of majority. She has really long dark hair, dark eyes and a rather slender 5'5" figure. She may have a stern shell, but she does have a warm heart for those she loves. She is an avid hunter, but she is also a very talented needlewoman. 

5. Who (or what) is the antagonist?

Ceinwen is a suitor of King Aneirin, and the illegitimate half-sister of the Lady Lilliwen, another suitor of King Aneirin. Ceinwen is much younger than Aneirin, which infuriates Eirwen. She has straw-blond hair and is tall and willowy (about 5'8").

6. What excites you the most about this novel?

I think coming back to it has excited me a lot. There were a lot of good things in the snippets that I once wrote and I'm ready to incorporate a plot to this story. 

7. Is this going to be a series? standalone? something else?

This will be a stand-alone work. Unlike most of my other stories, this plot has no continuation - it really is a "happy" ever after. And yes, the "happy" is in quotes for a reason. 

8. Are you plotting? pantsing? plansting?

Plantsing, as usual. I have a working plot summary which I can then write off of. Which really needs to be updated, lol. 

9. Name a few unique elements in this story.

- Wales 

- Illegitimate siblings (which is...an interesting dynamic to deal with in a medieval setting) 

- a motherly step-mother figure

- Anger as a theme rather than just a character fault

10. Share some fun “extras” of the story (a song or full playlist, some aesthetics, a collage, a Pinterest board, a map you’ve made, a special theme you’re going to incorporate, ANYTHING you want to share!).

I've been sharing my avatars throughout the post, but I have a few more extras here. 

I have a shiny new Pinterest board that I can share: 

And then I have a Spotify playlist (fair warning, there is a lot of Welsh music in here): 

And that concludes the post! I'm very excited to start writing this story on Saturday, and for you to see it as it occurs on Wattpad rather than being in the background. 

And now, I would like to know....what stories are you working on this fall? 

Scribbingly yours, 

Catherine