Friday, October 4, 2013

Guest Post: Melissa Pearl

I have Melissa Pearl, author of Unknown, Book 1 of The Elements Trilogy (I hope you all got your copy for 99 cents from Amazon the other day). I hope you enjoy her post. Please let me know what you thought by leaving a comment below.  Thanks.

Adding A Personal Touch by Melissa Pearl


People often ask me where my writing inspiration comes from. I always respond with two words - all over.

I get inspired by everything - songs, movies, books, concepts, what if questions, convesations, nature. The world around me, and all the people in it, are inspiring. Coming up with stories has never been a challenge for me and, if anything, it's hard to sometimes contain the ideas.

When I was hit with the concept for The Elements Trilogy, I at first rejected it. I didn't write fantasy like that. I wasn't comfortable with the genre. But the story grew so quickly and with such force that knew I wouldn't be able to ignore it. The concept of - a light shining in the darkness and the darkness not being able to overcome it - stayed in my brain and just would not let up. I knew I had to write these books. So I set aside my other projects and dedicated ten months of my life to completing this trilogy.

Although it threw me out of my comfort zone, I had so much fun working with these characters and in this world. One of the best parts for me was being able to add a personal touch. I have been reading so many 



books on different mythologies - Vikings, Hindu, Greek - and I thought it would be fun to throw in aspects of a theology I understood well.

I was raised as a Christian and continue to have a faith of my own today. It was such a treat to bring in ideas and concepts of my faith. I don't like to be preachy at all in my writing. I want to write books that will appeal to all people no matter what their beliefs. So I was a little nervous about including these analogies, but in the end, the story wove together beautifully.

The concepts of light vs. darkness or good vs. evil are universal. They are a strong part of Christian theology as well and I couldn't help drawing parallels. I loved the idea of the characters seeking the God of Light, hoping that he will be able to defeat the darkness once and for all. I don't want to give too much away, but the journey of faith, partcularly for Kyla, is a long and arduous one and it was great writing her struggles, knowing I had experienced similar doubts in my own life. Working on these books was an emotional journey, but one well worth taking.

I can only hope that people will enjoy reading these books as much as I enjoyed writing them. I like the idea that as readers embark on this trilogy they will be taking an epic journey into the unknown and having their eyes opened to a world of magic and mystery that will entertain them and pull on their heart strings just a little :)

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