The Strangest Woman follows a woman who struggles to keep her secrets hidden when confronted with new emotional connections. What was the inspiration for the setup to this riveting story?

The inspiration for Kyana’s character, from which the rest of the story flowed, was a daydream I often had as a child. Kids daydream about being princesses in flowing ball gowns, mermaids able to breath under water, queens with power and influence, etc.

Me? Of course, I fantasized about being all those things. But I also dreamed of being a knight. A knight with shining armor, the right hand to a great leader, the epitome of courage and loyalty. A knight and something else… but that would be a spoiler. So, people will just have to read and see if they can guess what else I daydreamed.

Kyana is an intriguing and well developed character. What were some driving ideas behind her character development?

The driving force behind Kyana’s character comes from her battered soul. And anger. Lots of anger.

She has been through so much and has had so much ripped from her hands and heart. She started erecting walls around herself, creating space between her and everything and everyone, to defend herself or others… well, I’ll leave that for you to decide.

She no longer trusts in happiness. She no longer trusts in anything. So, she hides, despite the fact her own human nature craves connection and screams for affection. She has chosen safety over happiness. Solitude over connection. Caution over possibility. Or at least… she had.

I enjoyed the depth of the world you’ve created. What were some sources that informed your world’s creation?

Well, a great deal of the world developed around the concept I had for Kyana, and the way that magic works in my universe. I wanted magic, but not abundant magic for everyone’s availability. Certain sections of my world do not allow the “practice” so I needed to limit the source (or else it would be essentially impossible to implement laws against its use – or at least impossible to enforce such laws). So, I decided that it could only be found in dragons. Then I had to limit that source further for the sake of where I wanted to take the story and Kyana’s character. So, I had them all killed, three hundred years before our story starts. But I still needed there to be a reason for such laws to be in place. So, the magic still resides in dragon bones that still exist in the world but are generally under the lock and key of the kingdoms… but not all of course. No, that would be too easy. The rest of the world either developed to explain the reasons for that concept, flowed from that concept, or randomly fell into my mind while daydreaming.

What is the next book that you are working on and when will it be available?

I am working on two books at the moment. The first is a paranormal novel which I am currently seeing if anyone would like to publish, and I am also working on the second book in the Past and Passed By series. Not quite sure when either of them will be available.

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