Let's get to know her better...
Tell me about your Five Enchanted Roses story.
Wither is based closely on the original fairy tale. However, I took great liberties with the setting and characters to make it my own telling. For example, Beauty isn't the Merchant's youngest, most beautiful daughter. There isn't an Enchantress in my story either; although, I suppose there is a character who is responsible for the Beast's circumstances. There are also other differences which I can't share yet. You will have to wait until the release! In this telling, I also chose to tell the story as much from the Beast's perspective as Beauty's. Once I got into it, his story really captured my heart. I love Bet, too, but Corwin is my favorite character.
What was your inspiration for your story?
The story world was inspired by After, a story I wrote for the Five Glass Slippers competition the year before. I realized I had stumbled across an amazing story world that had many stories to tell. While Wither is technically a part of a series, it is a solid stand alone story. My Marmie also inspired a particular aspect of the story...but I can't tell you what aspect exactly. How long have you been writing?
I began writing when I was in elementary school. I wrote infamously long, meandering fantasy and science fiction novels that I will never attempt to publish. I began writing seriously in college when I had two short stories published in a student publication.
Have you written any other stories/novels?
I have several short stories published and am currently working on two novellas that will published as Ebooks later this year. Yes, After is one of them! It is technically the prequel to Wither and will be Book One in The Neverway Chronicles. The other story I will be publishing is another Beauty and the Beast novella called When Ravens Fall. It will be available in the autumn, with After following a couple of months later.
Can we find any of your other works for purchase online?
Not yet...but very soon!
What is your process when you begin writing a story?
I usually start with a plot idea and then sit down with a notepad and brainstorm in circles for days and days. It is not uncommon to fill up an entire journal in the brainstorming stage. My husband makes an amazing sounding board. He has been actively involved in all of my recent stories. After I have the ideas fleshed out, I try to work out an outline. I am not much of an outline person. The end result is never like my outline, but I am trying to teach myself to plan ahead better so that I do not have as much rewriting to do.
What other writers/books inspire you?
J.R.R Tolkien, Jane Austen and Louisa May Alcott were my favorite authors when I was growing up. I also enjoy Charles Dickens, Diana Wynne Jones, Lloyd Alexander...and Louis L'Amour. I will admit I have a fondness for westerns. Marmie read L'Amour to us when we were kids, and I've never outgrown it.
What advice would you give to other new writers?
Keep writing. The story you wrote today may not be right for this publisher or magazine . . . but something you write tomorrow could be! Don't be afraid or ashamed of rejections. Keep your chin up and keep writing.
What's next for you? Anything else you're working on for the future?
I am planning to write several stories in The Neverway Chronicles and perhaps a sequel for When Ravens Fall. I also have a dystopian story I have been kicking around for a few years, but it is on the back burner for right now. I hope to get back to it one of these days, but I have hundreds of story ideas tucked away in my journals. Who knows which ones I will end up actually writing.
Where can we find you online?
My blog is http://savannahjaysworkshop.blogspot.com
I also have a Facebook Author Page and you can also find me on Pinterest and Goodreads.
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