Today I am so excited to present to you Christine Smith's link up Know the Novel Part one!! Know the Novel is a three-post series, one each month from October through December where you get in inside look at my NaNo (National Novel Writing Month) Novel! Without further a due let’s dive in!
*Disclaimer I clamed no rights to the images in the collages or the songs please go look at them yourself*
1. What first sparked the idea for this novel?
My original idea came from my love of fairy tales. I was thinking about the story of Alice in Wonderland when I had a thought. What if I told her story from the perspective of the queen from each suit of card?
My heart fell in love with the idea and my mind took the brainstorming process to the next level and soon I had a five-book series brainstormed with possibly more to come.
And today I am presenting to you Queen of Spades, the first book in the Wonderland War series, a retelling of Alice in Wonderland. A series where people are brought together, where a girl heals, a villain is forgiven, and a daughter reconnects with her father.
2. Share a blurb (or just an overall summary)!
I am not that good at summaries but here we go!
The Day her life ended was the day her future began.
Raven’s life has been filled with death. For as long as she can remember she was being trained to take hope out of the world, break families, and cause the tides to turn. Now at 17 she is being forced to compete in The Crowning Tournament, where a new royal couple are chosen. Knowing the tournament is a fight for not just the crown but for her life, will she somehow survive to become someone she has no desire to be?
The first book in the Wonderland War series tells of a broken girl who is being forced to do unspeakable things. A girl who wants to heal but doesn’t know how. Will she fix her shattered soul or die trying?
3. Where does the story take place? What are some of your favorite aspects of the setting?
Queen of Spades takes place in a fantasy world, called Ebora. In the world of Ebora Wonderland is a midsize island in the upper left of the map. Zooming in on Wonderland there are five regions, one for each queen the fifth for outcasts. In the story the region that Queen of Spades is located is called Shadowvail, it is a damp, hot, place.
My favorite part of the setting is the Mushrooms, with it being so damp Shadowvail is a big producer of medicines, and other things that they make out of mushrooms. Some mushrooms are a bit more ridiculous looking with purple tops and yellow stems while others are plainer.
4. Tell us about your protagonist(s).
As of now Queen of Spades has one Point of view but that is subject to change, here is a little peek at each of my main characters…
Raven
// Strong willed // Broken // Assassin // Pretty face, Dark soul // Not the best dancer // Scared of feeling // Protective // I always do well // Sneaky // I am not going to be your champion // Pushing herself too hard // Alert // Say you hate me // You know I’ll fight // Slow to love // Never trusting // Loyal //
Carson
// Cocky // Leader // A knife? Are you flirting with me? // Mama’s boy // I will be your champion // Smart // Fighter // He fell first // They call him mad // I like to have powerful enemies; it makes me feel important // Lucky // No hero // Purple eyes // Trust issues // It’ll be okay //
5. Who (or what) is the antagonist?
The main antagonist is Raven’s mind, she can’t forgive herself for what she has done which causes her to go into mad fits of training and fighting to turn numb. In short it is Raven being scared to feel.
A smaller antagonist is the council which has been ruling for the last few years until the next crowning tournament. They have been over-taxing the people among other things.
6. What excites you the most about this novel?
The plot, I am in love with the plot of this story. It is the most complex and detailed book I have ever written which makes it a tad bit scary. But the way I have my characters work through the story has them grow and change like nothing else I have ever written.
7. Is this going to be a series? standalone? something else?
This is the first book in a five-book series titled The Wonderland War. Here is a little series blurb for you:
Once there was a girl, she had everything but what she wanted most.
Once there was a girl, she had nothing but fear and crime.
Once there was a girl, who had been lied to but was determined to trust again.
Once there was a girl, who had the perfect life on the outside till you looked just a little bit deeper.
Once there was a girl, that was twisted with grief and hate some called her the villain.
8. Are you plotting? pantsing? plansting?
I am plansting! I have never fully plotted a book before (mostly because I am just too excited) but what I am doing with Queen of Spades is plotting one chapter before I write it, then writing that chapter. It is about the most plotting I have ever done.
9. Name a few unique elements in this story.
I think the most unique element is my world building, how I connect everything to something else. How (almost) everything has a reason.
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!).
Here is a little aesthetic board I made:
And here is my playlist (this might get added to and changed around)
In conclusion thank you so much @Christine Smith for hosting this link up!! it was a lot of fun and I can't wait for the next one!!
Lets Chat!
Are you doing NaNo? if so what are five key words? What was your favorite part of the post? did you find it interesting?? would you read this book?
Rock On,
K. Florence
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