Introduction: Who Am I (And, More Importantly, Who Is My Cat?)

Welcome to the documentation of my journey into author-hood! My debut novel, "Animus," is a culmination of years of writing creatively as a hobby, escaping real life for brief moments, tears, long nights, and massive amounts of cat and dog fur (I mean, really, you can't write without a furbaby fighting for claim of your lap). Until the book is in your hands, I am happy to share my experience behind the scenes with you, my potential readers! This journey is as much yours as it is mine.

Who are you?

Simple - I'm Willow Grace, a cat and dog mom with an unwavering love and passion for writing. Writing has been my constant companion, a source of solace and joy, for as long as I can remember. I finally took the leap to become serious about my writing as I entered my early twenties. My love for reading sci-fi and fantasy works has deeply influenced my writing - that's all I write! And of course, I have a very small obsession with my animals. I am, indeed, that fur mom who posts pictures of my dogs in outfits and requires my cats to allow me to squish their fuzzy little faces the very second I walk through the door. So, expect some fluffy escapades as you follow my journey!

How did Animus come to be?

I wrote the very first draft of this manuscript between the ages of thirteen and fourteen. Back then, it was roughly 83,000 words (and, I'll admit, extra cheesy). The plot was a bunch of scenes I wrote just for fun, so it wasn't a cohesive story. Fast-forward and, one day, feeling wildly frustrated with the fact that no one warned me adulting was exceedingly stressful, I re-discovered the manuscript I had written as a child. Honestly, there was true potential between the musings of a young kiddo. So, I plopped myself down, escaped the insanity of being an adult, and began to focus on what I could create with a much more mature approach to storytelling. This began a new routine in my house - mom sits down, and four animals jockey for position on her lap or feet. Any animal that doesn't make it sulks away to my husband since his lap is an acceptable alternative if he's at his computer. Unless the animal is Daisy the cat - I'm the spare human to her. I'll be sharing more about my writing process, the challenges I faced, and the role my furry friends play in it in future posts, so stay tuned!

What inspired the story of Animus?

This will probably be a much longer post later. For now, I'll give you the short-and-sweet version: trauma. I may write sci-fi and fantasy, but I'm still no stranger to the pain of reality. I felt that, in my experience as a reader, there aren't always realistic depictions of trauma and grief within the sci-fi/fantasy genre, even though there are a lot of scenes in which traumatic events occur. We have morally grey characters (because who doesn't love the secondary character tempting the main to the "dark side"?), but how much do we see or truly delve into what made them that way? What about their vulnerability? I wanted to create a storyline filled with characters born from trauma. I wanted to create characters with which readers can genuinely empathize and find understanding. So, although Animus takes place in another universe (uh, yeah, there's a multi-verse!), the struggles of each character are things that can hit pretty close to home.

Do you have more projects in the works?

Of course! Animus is the first installment of the Creonex trilogy, so the story will continue! I've got ideas for other stand-alone novels... although those are probably years from being on the shelves. For now, though, I want to be able to connect to potential readers and build a small community of people who, hopefully, can follow me as an author! My true goal is to be able to spread important themes and messages through my work, such as grief, the strength of determination, and the intricacies of love. I want to be able to reach those who need a voice, those who need a little help here and there, whether that's through simply having a world in my books to escape to or finding solace in the fact that they can connect to a specific character who knows their pain. I'm here to uplift and support those around me (readers and writers alike!) and, of course, say hi to all of their pets whenever I get the chance!

Most importantly, WHO ARE YOUR ANIMALS??

We've got Tofu, the one-brain-celled orange cat; Ellie, the border collie mix; Sushi, the corgi; and Daisy, the Queen of the House.