“I write to give myself strength. I write to be the characters that I am not. I write to explore all the things I’m afraid of.” ~Joss Whedon
I really relate to the above quote by one of my heroes, Joss Whedon. (Buffy, Angel, Marvel’s The Avengers) People write for all sorts of reasons, but one of the reasons I write is to give meaning to my internal experiences. You may be asking how teenagers saving the world from demons could reflect the inner workings of my mind, but it’s not as far fetched as it seems. We all have our demons, be they addictions, bad habits, or just general self-destructive behavior. (I’ve been guilty of all three a time or two!)
With The Gateway Trilogy, it’s my intention to offer an alternate way of looking at and dealing with these demons. One that transcends just the idea of, “Kill, destroy, eradicate.” Some of you have already picked up on this–I can tell by your reviews and your emails/tweets to me. If you haven’t, that’s totally OK! My intention is also to tell a compelling story so that even if you don’t have an interest in Gateway’s deeper meaning, you can still enjoy the ride. (I watched–and loved!–The Matrix twice before I really started to understand the powerful theme of that action-packed movie.)
As I finish up Tether, Book 3 in the trilogy, I just wanted to take a moment to thank you personally for taking the time to read, review, and stay in touch. Your feedback keeps me going and helps me work on one of my most insidious demons–procrastination/resistance. It’s been especially strong as I’ve recovered from a nasty bout of bronchitis. Thankfully I’m on the mend, and excited to bring you the final installment of The Gateway Trilogy.
In the meantime, if you you’re interested in learning some of the inspiration for Gateway, including mythological influences for characters like Ember and Callie, check out this YouTube video I made for Penn High School–one of the largest in Indiana.Two senior classes used Gateway as a way to give modern context to mythology. As well, I was privileged to give several talks there on the life of a writer and self-publishing. One of the students wrote about it here.
Until Next Time,
Christina