Dancing Valley follows a grieving woman seeking solace in nature who gets lost and winds up in a mystical valley where magical beings she once thought imaginary are not only real but deeply connected to her. What was the inspiration for the setup of your story?

I have a friend who dances through life to music only she can hear. There’s something a bit mystical about her. I expanded on that magic by creating Anita, a woman who can talk to elves and faires, but who has been convinced the little people exist only in her mind.

I find the world you created in this novel brimming with possibilities. Where did the inspiration for the setting come from and how did it change as you were writing?

As Anita evolved, I realized she would have fit into Goldfield Forest, a book I’d recently published. I hadn’t intended to write a series,but Anita’s character demanded it. She led me to Dancing Valley which became Book Two in the Unmistakably Mystical series. 

Your characters go on a deeply emotional and transformative journey in your novel. Is this intentional or incidental to the story you want to tell?

It is intentional. My stories are always character-driven. I want the readers to relate to them. In Dancing Valley, loyalty, adventure, strength and a touch of romance combine to allow the characters to confront the challenges that ultimately show good prevailing over evil.

Will there be a follow-up novel to this story? If so, what aspects of the story will the next book cover?

Yes. Heritage Mountain, set in the Adirondack Mountains, is book three in the series. My intention is to have it ready for publication by the end of the year. Like the first two books, some characters will carry over, but it is also a standalone, filled with adventure and magical realism.

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