Fictional Setting – The Experience to Make It Up guest post by Kai Strand
Today we have an awesome guest post by the lovely Kai Strand! She's here to chat with us all about creating a fictional setting. Be sure to say hello!
Cara Cassidy always envisioned love as Thor, slamming his hammer into the earth, and the vibration resonating within her for a lifetime. She never expected love would be a thousand tiny actions from a normal boy. When international intrigue hits small-town America, more than the car chases will get your blood pumping.
Though the adventure in Finding Thor takes place in my
very real hometown of Bend, Oregon, I needed the main love interest, Nik Rock, to be from somewhere mysterious and exotic. I needed there to be royalty. I needed to make it up!
Just out of high school, I worked for a swanky hotel in Southern California near the Orange County airport. We had a lot of interesting guests, but one of the most memorable was the King of Tonga and his daughter, the princess. They had the entire seventh floor of the hotel rented out. Heavily guarded. I was the night manager, and they were well settled by the time I got to work at 11:00 pm, so I didn’t get a peek at them. However, the next morning before the end of my shift at 7:00 am, several California Highway Patrol officers showed up on their motorcycles, sporting bright blue bow ties, to escort the king and the princess to church.
Security called down to the front desk when the royals left their rooms. I waited and waited…and waited for them to come through the lobby. The anticipation of seeing royalty was enough for me to hang out long after my shift finished. At last several guards preceded the royals into the lobby. They looked just like secret service agents with black suits and earpieces. When the king and princess at last appeared, I admit, I was completely disappointed. They weren’t glamorous or beautiful. Though their clothes were cool. My illusions were completely shattered.
Fast-forward many years to when I needed a mysterious and exotic kingdom for my exceedingly handsome Nik Rock to hail from. I couldn’t get Tonga out of my mind; a Polynesian setting, striking dark skinned people, exotic native attire, and royalty. Yep, that was exactly what I needed to base my fictional island of Renlavia on. With a little research of commerce and history, I was able to fabricate a very believable fictional setting. One I’d love to visit, by the way. But I’d settle for a vacation on the white sandy beaches of Tonga instead.
More about Finding Thor:
Tragedy has left Cara Cassidy broken and the only thing keeping her from giving in completely is her guilt. Until Nik Rock.
Nik stirs up feelings in degrees she has never experienced, and causes her to do things that most assuredly give him the wrong impression – like kiss him before their first date. Somehow, he breaks down the walls around her emotions until she has no choice but to forgive herself and feel again.
But a mysterious, troubled past follows Nik, and Cara may prove to be his weakest link.
When a royal princess shows up looking for Nik, and an international gang arrives looking for missing jewels, Cara lands in mortal danger. Will she be able to save herself? What will happen to her newly repaired psyche if she loses Nik?
Romance, mystery, and high stakes – just another day in high school.
Amazon| Barnes & Noble| Whiskey Creek Press| All Romance| BookStrand| Goodreads
About the author:
When her children were young and the electricity winked out, Kai Strand gathered her family around the fireplace and they told stories, one sentence at a time. Her boys were rather fond of the ending, “And then everybody died. The end.” Now an award winning children’s author, Kai crafts fiction for kids and teens to provide an escape hatch from their reality. With a selection of novels for young adult and middle grade readers and a short story blog, Lightning Quick Reads, Kai entertains children of all ages, and their adults. Learn more about Kai and her books on her website, www.kaistrand.com.
Mailing List| Facebook| Twitter| Instagram|
Cara Cassidy always envisioned love as Thor, slamming his hammer into the earth, and the vibration resonating within her for a lifetime. She never expected love would be a thousand tiny actions from a normal boy. When international intrigue hits small-town America, more than the car chases will get your blood pumping.
Though the adventure in Finding Thor takes place in my
very real hometown of Bend, Oregon, I needed the main love interest, Nik Rock, to be from somewhere mysterious and exotic. I needed there to be royalty. I needed to make it up!
Just out of high school, I worked for a swanky hotel in Southern California near the Orange County airport. We had a lot of interesting guests, but one of the most memorable was the King of Tonga and his daughter, the princess. They had the entire seventh floor of the hotel rented out. Heavily guarded. I was the night manager, and they were well settled by the time I got to work at 11:00 pm, so I didn’t get a peek at them. However, the next morning before the end of my shift at 7:00 am, several California Highway Patrol officers showed up on their motorcycles, sporting bright blue bow ties, to escort the king and the princess to church.
Security called down to the front desk when the royals left their rooms. I waited and waited…and waited for them to come through the lobby. The anticipation of seeing royalty was enough for me to hang out long after my shift finished. At last several guards preceded the royals into the lobby. They looked just like secret service agents with black suits and earpieces. When the king and princess at last appeared, I admit, I was completely disappointed. They weren’t glamorous or beautiful. Though their clothes were cool. My illusions were completely shattered.
Fast-forward many years to when I needed a mysterious and exotic kingdom for my exceedingly handsome Nik Rock to hail from. I couldn’t get Tonga out of my mind; a Polynesian setting, striking dark skinned people, exotic native attire, and royalty. Yep, that was exactly what I needed to base my fictional island of Renlavia on. With a little research of commerce and history, I was able to fabricate a very believable fictional setting. One I’d love to visit, by the way. But I’d settle for a vacation on the white sandy beaches of Tonga instead.
More about Finding Thor:
Tragedy has left Cara Cassidy broken and the only thing keeping her from giving in completely is her guilt. Until Nik Rock.
Nik stirs up feelings in degrees she has never experienced, and causes her to do things that most assuredly give him the wrong impression – like kiss him before their first date. Somehow, he breaks down the walls around her emotions until she has no choice but to forgive herself and feel again.
But a mysterious, troubled past follows Nik, and Cara may prove to be his weakest link.
When a royal princess shows up looking for Nik, and an international gang arrives looking for missing jewels, Cara lands in mortal danger. Will she be able to save herself? What will happen to her newly repaired psyche if she loses Nik?
Romance, mystery, and high stakes – just another day in high school.
Amazon| Barnes & Noble| Whiskey Creek Press| All Romance| BookStrand| Goodreads
About the author:
When her children were young and the electricity winked out, Kai Strand gathered her family around the fireplace and they told stories, one sentence at a time. Her boys were rather fond of the ending, “And then everybody died. The end.” Now an award winning children’s author, Kai crafts fiction for kids and teens to provide an escape hatch from their reality. With a selection of novels for young adult and middle grade readers and a short story blog, Lightning Quick Reads, Kai entertains children of all ages, and their adults. Learn more about Kai and her books on her website, www.kaistrand.com.Mailing List| Facebook| Twitter| Instagram|
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