I walked in slowly and looked around quickly before whispering to the air. "Hi, Patricia here, and I'm taking over Aaron's blog to bring you some of my friends from the Sisterhood ... the Sisterhood of the Traveling Blog that is. For the next four weeks, every Wednesday, I'll be introducing you to one of my author friends, and you can visit the other blogs of the Sisterhood to keep up with all nine of us. Today, I'm introducing Johanna Rae, who is going to talk about inspirations for the setting of her book, The Mercenary. In a little bit, I'll be posting an interview with her as well. I hope you enjoy it!" I looked around again ... "He could really use a woman's touch around here ..."
Locational
Inspirations of a Kiwi Writer
Johanna Rae
Most people are inspired by things that they
see. Something as simple as the joy on a child’s face as they swing at the
playground, or the deep gut wrenching sorrow of an elderly person alone and
abandoned on a park bench on a cold winter’s day. Others are inspired by the
other senses; the feel of smooth silk beneath their fingertips may inspire an
indulgent night of heated passion with a naughty lover. The sound of music can tug at our hearts,
bringing forth a flood of nostalgia and long forgotten memories. Even smells
can have a powerful effect. For example, the spicy scent of a stranger’s
cologne could bring forth the promise of an unrequited love years since past.
Wonderful breakfast smells of bacon, egg and mushroom could take you back to a
moment in your childhood - family bonding over the breakfast table at
Grandmother’s house.
Speaking from my
own perspective, any inspiration comes from the five senses. Any time my
memories are recaptured in a second setting or when I see something that speaks
to my heart, I feel inspired. I am both an artist and a writer so I am not
always inspired to record in words, sometimes I feel the need to get out the
sketchpad or the acrylics.
I have had many
stories come to mind from a singular tiny moment but today I will speak about
some of my earliest inspirations for my novel The Mercenary. I grew up in and
around a small beach community in the Bay of Plenty, New Zealand. This is a
region lush with natural wonders and picturesque beauty. On my doorstep I had
beautiful beaches, mountains, lakes and a huge expanse of native forest. I was
fortunate enough to have parents who took full advantage of that, exposing us
to as much as they were able.
I was sitting at
the river mouth of the Whakatane Heads one day, looking out at the fresh water
crashing against the ferocity of the incoming tide and my mind started to
wander. I began to wonder how many other
families would count this spot as a piece of their childhood. I gazed up to the
rugged cliffs above, wild native flora and fauna atop their pohutukawa clad
sides. I began to imagine back in time when the Maori tribes lived up there,
and the forest was their home. My
imagination kicked into over drive as the past collided with the present, and
my love for the paranormal started creeping in.
I began to wonder
what it would be like if there were a multitude of residents in this small
community who held a secret as big as having a second form. How easy would that
be to hide from the human population? Would they require their own laws in
order to co-exist?
After this day I
began to see inspiration everywhere. Not just in the township of Whakatane, but
in other areas of the beautiful Bay of Plenty. Parts of Rotorua’s geothermal
wonderland and forestry, and parts of the coastal city of Tauranga also served
to inspire. I would get hit with entire scene possibilities from a single
vantage point. I knew I had to write something that was based in this area, but
I decided to go one step further.
I couldn’t choose
which part of the Bay of Plenty I wished to use, there were so many viable
options, so many wonderful features I wanted to include. So I decided bring
them all together within the fictional community of Redcliffe. Some of the
geography of Redcliffe is reminiscent of Whakatane, with its river harbour and
tall cliffs looming over it. In December, those cliffs turn red as all the
pohutukawa trees burst into bloom, dubbing them New Zealand’s Christmas tree. I
decided to make that my focus. I pulled in a number of other geographical
features from neighboring communities and towns and invented a few of my own.
Though I have called upon actual places in a huge capacity, Redcliffe is still
essentially a unique place.
I’ve found that
the locations of many of my stories are derived this way. I either create the
location entirely from scratch in my own mind or I combine conceptual ideas
from places I love. I very rarely base anything on a real city/town, even if
real places are mentioned throughout the story. I like to think that gives it a
fantastical and faraway touch, allowing the reader to feel as if they are going
somewhere new and exciting but I will let you draw your own conclusion on that.
If you would like to check out my Author page on Facebook you
can find it with the following link:
An amazon link if you wish to purchase The Mercenary:
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So you can make sure to catch them the entire Sisterhood on their various blogs and pages, here are where you will find all the posts during their month-long tour:
Amy Kessler
Amy Kessler
Ashley Nemer
Patricia Laffoon
(right here!!!)
Johanna Rae
L. S. Broomfield
Sherrie Henry
Stacy Moran
Torie James
Tracey Steinbach
Interesting - not being an author,just someone who loves to read, I am always fascinated by how authors of fiction come up with their locals and ideas. BTW, I love kiwis!
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