The Next Big Thing

I rarely do blog memes, but this one looked like fun. I was supposed to get 5 other bloggers to blog with their answers to these questions for next week, but all the writer friends I contacted were either too busy, had already done it, or chose to ignore me. Ha!

Thank you, Kim McMahill, for passing this meme on to me. I had fun answering the questions.

What is your working title of your book?


Mirror Reader

Where did the idea come from for the book?

Believe it or not, it came to me in a dream. I'd dreamt that I was sitting on a bed in a hotel room watching a murder replay on the surface of a mirror. I knew it must be a reflection of a past event because I was alone in the room. So it gave me the idea for a character with the ability to read the past in mirrors. She works as a consultant for the police department, but that's just her occupation. In my book, her role and her story reach far beyond that. She used to live in the world on the opposite side of the mirror. In fact, she's a descendant of the real Alice in Wonderland.

I wrote a short story based on my dream that was published in an anthology a few months ago. The anthology is called Love and Darker Passions. But I wanted to develop it more using some of the same themes, but with a completely different premise.




What genre does your book fall under?


Contemporary fantasy with strong romantic elements.

Which actors would you choose to play your characters in a movie rendition?


Alice would be played by Shannyn Sossamon, and the hero, Keoki, would be played by Jason Mamoa.

What is the one-sentence synopsis of your book?


Alice Dodgson's psychic ability to read the past in mirrors comes in handy while attempting to rescue her kidnapped niece, who's lost in the world on the opposite side of the looking glass.

Will your book be self-published or represented by an agency?


My book is represented by Elizabeth Winick Rubenstein of the McIntosh & Otis Literary Agency. I'd rather not self-publish, but who knows what the future holds.

What other books would you compare this story to within your genre?


That's a tough one. My story is a contemporary pastiche of the original Alice in Wonderland with some unusual twists, as well as similarities to a variety of well-known characters from the classic story. It's Alice in Wonderland for grown-ups. The closest comparison I can think of might be fairytale retellings.

Who or what inspired you to write this book?


I was inspired by the dream I mentioned, but my editor at Harlequin Luna was very supportive of my idea when I first talked to her about it. The book isn't under contract, at least not yet, but I'm keeping my fingers crossed.

What else about your book might pique the reader’s interest?

I think readers would enjoy reading about the "real" Alice from a new and original perspective. It's a classic tale we all grew up with, so I'm perpetuating the Alice adventures through an adult contemporary character related to the original.

Mirror Reader is a finalist in the Reveal Your Inner Vixen Contest sponsored by the Maryland Chapter of RWA. I don't know when the winners will be announced, but I'm hopeful. Wish me well!