May 2018: Debut Novel Inspiration
~ Cecily Wolfe ~

CTR asked:
QUESTION: What inspired you to write your debut novel?

Cecily Wolfe said:
My debut novel was inspired by a series of short stories I wrote over several years about a girl named Lucy, growing up in a small town and being raised by a very strict grandmother. One Sunday at church I saw a blonde teenage girl, restless and scratching at her legs during the service, sitting next to an older lady who I assumed to be her grandmother, poking and whispering to her with a frown on her face. Lucy came to me then, and I wasn’t sure where I was going with her, but after several short stories, I moved on to the story of her daughter, Locklyn, and used the short stories as flashbacks in A Harvest of Stars. I’m writing the sequel to A Harvest of Stars, Starlight, now, which wasn’t planned but is happening in response to readers who wanted to know more. After considering it briefly, I began daydreaming and the story unfolded, becoming more complicated as I’ve gone on with it. Most of my stories come to me through characters first, who knock around in my head and share bits and pieces of their stories. I wait, and daydream, and the rest comes out on paper. I started writing A Harvest of Stars with a certain plot in mind, but I knew I wouldn’t be sure of what was going to happen until it did. I was surprised several times at the twists in the story, and the relationship complications between Lock’s family and the townspeople became apparent only as I wrote. All of these come into play with the short stories, and of course, the sequel. When I see teenagers being corrected in church, I always think of Lucy, who is my favorite of all my characters I’ve ever written. The church aspect is visible in Locklyn’s best friend and boyfriend, Isaiah, who is my favorite of the prophets in the Bible, wise beyond his years but still aware of his vulnerability. He is loyal to Locklyn from the day they meet in kindergarten, throughout the story and into Starlight, and I love him for it.

– Website – https://www.cecilywolfe.com/
– Twitter – @ceciwolfe

A Harvest of Stars

[Contemporary Romance]

Locklyn Gaines isn’t her mother, but the residents of her small southeastern Kentucky town don’t care. Her mother’s secrets are Lock’s shame, and every time her drunk stepfather uses her as a punching bag, Lock wonders how much her dying mother knows about what goes on in the crumbling old house her mother’s family has lived in for generations. Isaiah Parker hardly remembers life before the first day of kindergarten, before he became obsessed with the serious, dark-haired girl in sunglasses who lives just beyond the field behind his house and rides the school bus with him every day. Protecting Lock had been a fantasy for the child he was, but Isaiah and Lock are nearly finished with high school, and Isaiah knows that now is the time for him to save her. Her stepfather has other plans, however, and one night may be all they have to do whatever it takes to escape and start over again, together.

Available in Ebook:

– Kindle – https://www.amazon.com/Harvest-Stars-Cecily-Wolfe-ebook/dp/B01G0UEYWS/
– Nook – https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/a-harvest-of-stars-cecily-wolfe/1123867146?ean=2940153044071
– Kobo – https://www.kobo.com/ebook/a-harvest-of-stars
– iBooks – https://geo.itunes.apple.com/book/a-harvest-of-stars/id1119283505
– Chapters – https://www.chapters.indigo.ca/en-ca/books/a-harvest-of-stars/9781311639875-item.html
– Smashwords – https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/638759

More Authors Dish about their debut novel inspiration.

– Read the authors of Day One: https://coffeethoughts.coffeetimeromance.com/ad2018-may-debut-day1/
– Read the authors of Day Two: https://coffeethoughts.coffeetimeromance.com/ad2018-may-debut-day2/