I Wrote A Book & Received The Best Fan-Mail, Better Than I Could Have Imagined Which Made The Hard Work Worthwhile!
I wrote a book about vampires, witches and werewolves. Ok, the latter not so much.
In short, witches placed a curse on all vampires and so they haven’t been able to create new ones. Somehow Emily is turned into a vampire, and in the process her life is upended.
It was an unusual take as I wanted the protagonist to be inclusive so I didn’t describe her looks. She identified as female, had hair and that’s as far I went. A lot of people before I published the book felt that that would be a problem as people are used to having the main character described in detail. I chose to omit their ethnic origins so that Emily could be whoever the reader wanted or needed her to be. Inclusiveness shouldn’t always be an overt action, I wanted a more subtle take. If the reader wanted to imagine her as green skinned with purple spots then so be it. I hoped this wouldn’t be an issue.
I was also concerned that her not prim and proper attitude would also put people off, she can be a little messy for a mid twenty year old. One of my beta readers described my choices as “brave”.
When I received the fan mail I had a little cry of joy and then did a dance of happiness. As an indie author, someone reaching out to you makes such a huge difference. I can’t thank them enough for the happiness they gave me! The relief of knowing someone enjoyed my hard work! If there is an indie author that you like, please do let them know- give them feedback! You will make their day!
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