Editor’s Note: Becca J. Campbell is a science fiction author about to release her latest novel, Foreign Identity. She stopped by today as part of the Blogger Book fair, so enjoy! You can also enter to win a copy of her book below.
Are you captivated by mystery and suspense? I am, and that’s why I wrote Foreign Identity. Keep reading to hear about the not-so-typical origins of this novel, and be sure to enter the giveaway at the end of the post.
Story Origins
The idea for the book started with a writing prompt of ten random words.
At the time, I was participating in a writing blog called The Creative Copy Challenge. The purpose of the blog was to regularly provide ten words as a writing prompt, daring writers to come up with a short story or poem using all of the words.
Foreign Identity started with the words given on April 20th, 2010.
I wrote that first post having no idea of a plot or where the story would lead. That made it fun and exciting to write. I love mysteries and puzzles. So as a creative experiment, instead of writing from an outline, I started with a problem and worked to find the solution.
After that initial post, I continued using the CCC writing prompts, adding to the story twice a week. I forced myself to fit the words in—no exceptions. Sometimes those ten words directed the story and other times I molded them to the plot quickly forming in my mind.
I wrote over half of the novel in serial form, one approximately 1000-word scene at a time. When I got to a pretty big cliffhanger, I stopped posting and wrote the rest of the story in private, saving the final reveal for when I would publish the book.
The Thrill of Being a Reader
Readers have commented on the excitement of getting into the mystery of Foreign Identity and attempting to figure out what is going on in the story. As writers, we often don’t get to experience that same thrill of discovery with our own books. We usually have the end in mind before the journey even begins.
When I started writing, that didn’t seem quite fair to me. It’s a shame we can’t read our own work “fresh” without knowing what will happen. After all, the mystery is what makes it fun. That’s why I decided to try starting with a problem rather than a solution. (It’s not my typical writing style, but in this instance it made for an interesting experiment.)
Once I’d decided to start with a problem, I needed to figure out what that problem was. What situation could I throw a couple of characters into? It had to seem unsolvable at first—I wanted a challenge since this was my puzzle to solve. I decided to chain the characters in a nondescript room and strip them of all their memories. And to top that off, to leave them devoid of interaction with their captor and without any clue if they even had a captor.
Perfect. (Insert evil writer laugh.)
After that it was just figuring out how to solve my poor characters’ dilemma. How would they escape? Once they did, what would be waiting for them? Then I came up with a full back story and an elaborate scheme for why they might be in such a situation. But instead of laying it all out there, I used clues that raised more questions than they answered. The television show Lost was a great example of how to focus on questions to get a suspenseful story.
When you read Foreign Identity, you might feel the urge to figure out what’s behind it all, to solve the mystery. I hope you will. So far I’ve succeeded in mystifying most readers. In my mind, that’s a good thing. I love stories that make me think, question, piece things together, and then end up with an unexpected twist. An enjoyable book is one that surprises me.
I’ve done my best to pull all of that together in Foreign Identity. I hope you enjoy it like a thrill ride that takes you to unexpected heights and then brings you back to reality.
More on Foreign Identity
Cold. Confusion. Fear. This is how it all begins.
Waking up without your memory in a cell and bound by chains is terrifying.
Two nameless strangers, a man and a woman, find themselves imprisoned together. With no memories of their own identities, let alone their captor and tormentor, escape is the only option. The pair faces a bizarre labyrinth of rooms and clues that confuse more than they explain. Every discovery only brings more questions.
Who captured them? Why were they taken? What does their captor want from them? What can the riddles mean?
Who are they?
Lacking allies and options, the duo must learn to trust one another. Mazes, puzzles, and even strange, lurking creatures force them to rely on their wits–and each other–for survival. But survival isn’t enough. They need answers.
Will the answers be enough? Will the truth bring them closer together, or drive them forever apart? Will discovering their identities finally bring them home?
About Becca J. Campbell
An avid lover of stories that tiptoe the line between fantasy and reality (even when they plunge off one side or the other), Becca J. Campbell looks for new angles on bridging the gap between the two. She holds a special place in her heart for any story that involves superpowers or time travel. Her passion is defying the limits of her own creativity.
Becca’s journey into writing began as many of her other creative endeavors do – by daring herself to try something new. The question “what if I wrote a novel?” and some hastily scribbled notes on a church handout were the inspirations that jump-started her first book. Since then, she has written half a dozen additional novels and several shorter works.
As the wife of a musician and mother of three young boys, Becca’s life is never dull. Whether it is writing, painting or knitting, she enjoys making stuff that wasn’t there before.
Find Becca Online
Giveaway
Enter here for a chance to win one of three ebook copies of Foreign Identity.
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