I've always been obsessed with stories about fae, whether they were ones told in books or poems or ballads etc. I'd had the idea for Roses Red for a long time, but nothing solid ever came of it. For a while, all I knew was that I eventually wanted to write a book that showcased their darker nature. Trust is the most important thing to me, personally. I've always felt that way, and because of that I've always been fascinated with characters who manage to get under my skin despite my knowing they can't be trusted. Figuring out how I was going to put something like this down on paper, not being sure whether or not I was overthinking it and the character actually could be trusted, was difficult. And then I met Mavek Midnight. Tithe is a book about trust, and how we lie, even to ourselves, in order to keep our world the way we want it to be. Even if that isn't reality. None of these characters are perfect, they all have their own goals, and dreams, and flaws.
Everything sort of just fell into place after Mavek was conjured up, but that doesn't mean I didn't still gather inspiration from outside sources.
Two major influencers for my Roses Red series are the Ballad of Tam Lin and Goblin Market. If you don't know about these, or just haven't read them, I'm providing some fun links I found! Please keep in mind, reading these may or may not give spoilers to Tithe, the first book in my series! ;)
Tam Lin is an old ballad from Scotland, which tells the story of a brave girl who must save a man from being sacrificed by the fae. Goblin Market is all about two sisters who get lured into a faerie market. Stuff goes down, to say the least.
In my book, Arden Archer is a Heartless, a human who is cursed and is willing to do anything to get rid of said curse. As such, she's agreed to be a candidate for the Tithe, a sacrifice that takes place once every seven years among the Unseelie. At one point, she has to visit the Goblin Market for...reasons. When I pitched this book, I described it best as a loose retelling of Tam Lin.
Roses Red is filled with all sorts of different faeries, from many different cultures. I'm excited for you all to finally get the chance to meet them, and hope that you'll check back here on Friday for another incentive reveal! Remember, incentive's will be shown here first!
Here is a link to interesting info on Tam Lin:
And here is a link for the Goblin Market:
https://www.poetryfoundation.org/poems/44996/goblin-market
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