Authorpreneur Dashboard – Celia Michel Wilson
Origin
Romance
An introvert but caring and determined student - Ellie. A handsome but angry and armed stranger - Nicholas. Two young sisters' lives to fight for. Fourteen circles. Thirteen guardians. Only one way back home. No one can bypass Origin - how much will the journey change you?
Rough-Cut Book Bubbles from Origin
Would you follow him to bed?
In an earlier draft, Ellie agonized over her options; should she follow this handsome, angry stranger to his tent or sleep outside? The draft was distributed to 17-20 years old young women and the feedback was unanimous: "of course I'd go to bed with him, he's super good looking!" I was surprised but really pleased actually. As a writer, it allowed me to push my own constructed boundaries to come up with something meaner, sexier. Readers know best!
Flashback
I will swear to the end of the world that I am not my main character, Ellie. Ellie is reserved, but so caring and focused. She doesn't really know how to cook. Ellie is brave beyond measure, and she will fight for what she believes is right at any cost. She's better than me! [Except for cooking, I am a damn good cook.] Yet Chapter 1 is personal to us both - uncannily familiar. Ellie and I share a view of the world, some growing pains, a need to be free and a genuine love for the children we look after. The family background, medicine, even the bus... I feel like I am sharing an embarassing photo album with the readers. But maybe it is more sincere for it
Point of view
The prologue is one of my favorite parts - punchy, angry, breathless. It catches you from the first word, and hopefully the reader immediately roots for Ellie and her young charge to get to safety. I originally penned something very much like this about 6 years ago, after a very vivid nightmare. I didn't do anything with it, until a new story formed in my head and this became the obvious start. I wrote this scene from all 3 different points of view, and in the end decided to keep Ellie's voice like in the rest of the book. This opening raises enough questions as it is without switching characters after just a few pages!
