Back by Sunrise

Age Level: 8 and up Grade Level: 3 and up. Winner of the 2015 Children's Book Award, BooksChoice4U Brooke never imagined she would become a bird… until it happened. With the help of a magical necklace, she finds herself with little red wings, soaring over the city. She finds laughter and joy in the form of a new mouse friend, and danger from pigeons and a mean raven. When her necklace is stolen, will she decide to stay as a bird forever? Will she fight back to be part of her family again? What would returning mean in regards to her new friends? Fans of the Wings of Fire, Guardians of Ga'hoole, and Christopher Paolini books will love this prequel spin-off series from the BRINGER OF LIGHT trilogy. It is the first book in The Eternal Light saga. Are your characters entirely fictitious or have you borrowed from real world people you know? The characters are very much fictitious, but with loose ties to the Marine and his daughter that I mentioned for the story’s inspiration. We all know how important it is for writers to read. Are there any particular authors that have influenced how you write and, if so, how have they influenced you? Of course! I loved reading The Hobbit and the *Narnia *books as a child, so of course J.R.R. Tolkien and C.S. Lewis, and more recently there is naturally J.K. Rowling and Harry Potter, but also on the less directly related side Brandon Sanderson (Mistborn) and George R.R. Martin (*Game of Thrones). *They are both fantasy authors that definitely have their craft down. In fact, I started writing fiction with a YA fantasy after reading Martin’s books and being frustrated that I couldn’t’ find anything else that grasped my attention like his books did. Do you have a target reader? The target audience for Back by Sunrise is kids from 7-12, thought I certainly approached it as Pixar would, writing it with the adult in mind. I have heard from multiple adults that they enjoyed reading it, as well as a younger audience. One reader told me she used to be a hospice worker and that she thought my book would be perfect for the people she used to help. I certainly hope my book can help people dealing with grief, and of course anyone who loves a fun story of magic and animals.