Clare C. Marshall has super powers. Not only is she Canadian like us, but she’s also written a crisp, fresh, and enjoyable young adult fantasy. I think you’ll enjoy it, but first Clare needs to tell you where her story came from…
Clare: The Violet Fox began as a faery tale in my head, and evolved to be so much more.
I began writing the story when I was in elementary school. Run, the first word, scribbled in large awkward letters on looseleaf that I kept in a blue binder, stuffed to the brim with story fragments. The first word of the book remains the same today.
Back then it wasn’t called The Violet Fox. It was simply known as “Freetor”, a combination of “Freedom” and “Fighter.” It’s also the name of the group of people in the story who are forced to live underground. Kiera, the protagonist, fights for her people’s right to live on the surface. One day, she’s tasked with an important mission: disguise herself as a princess and infiltrate the castle and retrieve a stolen magical tome. The story was crystal clear before me, just begging to be written.
I probably wrote about five chapters, double spaced, in this blue binder before it was transferred to a blue duotang. It was a special story. One that had to be expanded and loved.
I left it alone.
A few years later, I was re-watching the Mask of Zorro and was hit by a burst of inspiration for the first chapter. I had digitized my childlike scrawl a while before this to ensure I’d always have a digital copy, so I opened the document, and began writing. Most of the first chapter poured out of me. Kiera wanted out. This was when I came up with the idea that Kiera would have a superhero-like name, and thus, the Violet Fox was born.
But as I grew up, I got too busy for Kiera and her important mission. I went through university, and then my post-grad program, and I never wrote another word. Kiera wouldn’t leave me alone, though.
I published my first book, Within, in 2011. It’s nothing like The Violet Fox: the story is set in Halifax, Nova Scotia, and has more of a contemporary vibe than a fantasy one. Young people are hungry for fantasy. Kiera banged on the walls of my mind again, screaming to be let out. Finally, I relented.
A year later, the book was sent away to the printer, and will be available online and in select bookstores.
Kiera is finally free.
The Violet Fox: Faery Ink Press | Amazon
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