Natural Disaster
Witches of Willowbrook, #1
by Alena Orrison
Date of Publication: October 19th 2023
Publisher: Spirited Ink Press
Cover Artist: Aspire Book Covers
Genre: Low Fantasy / Witchy Fantasy
Publisher: Spirited Ink Press
ISBN: 979-8-9880131-0-5
ASIN: B0CJGWNPJ5
Number of pages: 313
Word Count: 86,692
Tagline: Will her grief and his betrayal make her Willowbrook's worst natural disaster?
BLURB
When Jessica loses both parents in a car accident, she seeks to honor their legacy of service in Willowbrook. Her parents loved the town and its people, and despite her desire for solitude, Jessica becomes interested in the lives of those around her.
Grief-struck and juggling the garden along with her own business has Jessica stressed. She soon discovers the unpredictable weather reflects her internal turmoil.
Fearful of her powers and worried about the town's reaction, Jessica takes her brother's advice to attend a grief counseling group and begin meditating. She thinks she can restrain her magic if she can control her emotions. A witch from Willowbrook's coven contacts her and offers to teach Jessica how to use her magic. But learning does not come easy. Jessica's power spirals. The more she tries to rein it in, the wilder it becomes.
Then Zane, an attractive reporter from the city, arrives to do an investigative story on Willowbrook's odd weather patterns. Jessica realizes if her secret gets out, everyone she loves could be in danger of a witch hunt. Wanting a change of pace, Zane moves to Willowbrook. Jessica worries he'll be caught in the devastation of her powers.
Can she learn to control her magic before she creates a Natural Disaster? And can she keep Zane from revealing everything?
Excerpt:
I clenched my jaw in frustration. The front door suddenly flew open as a gust of wind whipped down the street. “See? I lose control even when I try to keep it.”
“That’s because you’re trying too hard,” Donna responded.
I shook my head. “No, I am following Sofia’s directions, but I can’t keep it in if I feel an intense emotion. Which is apparently all the time lately. Wait. What are your powers?”
Donna gave a slight smile. “I was wondering when you’d ask. I’m not a witch.”
“What? But Sofia—”
Donna interrupted me. “I know all about the witches and the Circle. My mom was a witch. I do not have any powers, however. None manifested when I turned thirteen or sixteen, and nothing happened when I was in that boating accident. I am mundane. So not only did your parents love you unconditionally until they died, but you’re also a successful business owner and a powerful witch. What am I? I’m just a tax accountant. My parents thought nothing I did was good enough, not even when I was named valedictorian. And I do not have magic.”
“But, Donna, we used to be friends. Best friends. What happened?”
Donna shook her head. “It doesn’t matter now. The bottom line is you’re amazing and everything this town wants, while I’m never good enough for anything. I’m not good enough to have magic, own a business, or even have a long-term relationship, let alone get married. Why are you even talking to me about this? Pity? Is that it?” Donna stood, snatching her jacket from the chair. “I don’t need your pity. I need you to quit acting like you don’t realize how special you are and to… to leave me alone!” Donna yelled the last phrase, then stomped out of the coffee shop.
I stared after her, sitting perfectly still and ignoring the curious glances of the patrons as they quietly murmured to each other. The light from the windows dimmed and black clouds started covering the sky. Hard rain pelted the roof, drowning out the sound of conversations.
The lights flickered, eliciting a few gasps from the customers. I tried to reign in the anger, but deep yoga breaths weren’t helping. The longer I thought about what Donna said, the angrier I became. Thunder exploded directly over the building, and the electricity finally gave in to a mightier power. Several customers went to look out the window, apparently gauging their chances at making it home in the deluge.
Author Info
Alena Orrison is an award-winning author and a freelance writer and editor. She holds a Bachelor’s Degree in English, with an emphasis in Creative Writing. She started writing stories when she was three years old by telling them to her mom, who wrote them down. She has been editing professionally since 2015. Alena has several articles and stories published online and in anthologies.
She currently lives in North Idaho with her husband, four children, two grandchildren, mom, three dogs, five cats, and a varying number of chickens. When she is not spending time with family and friends, gardening, boating, hiking, or at the gym, she is reading and writing. Alena also likes to crochet and spin yarn for some downtime. Some of her favorite authors include Ann McCaffrey, Elizabeth Cunningham, Elizabeth Gilbert, and Erin Morgenstern. You can visit her at alenaorrison.net
The Book Junkie Reads . . . Interview with . . . Alena Orrison . . .
Do you feel that writing is an ingrained process or just something that flows naturally for you?
For me, writing is both ingrained process and natural. I’ve always been a writer. One of my earliest memories is sitting in the bathtub and telling stories to my mom who wrote them down. I wasn’t older than three or four. I remember writing a novel when I was thirteen, even though it probably wasn’t any good by conventional standards. It didn’t matter what else was going on in my life, I was constantly writing. But in order to create and publish a novel, I had to form the habit of writing. Sitting down at the computer on a regular basis and meeting my goals was the only way I accomplished my goal. All of the natural talent in the world couldn’t make that happen.
Do you take your character prep to heart? Do you nurture the growth of each character all the way through to the page? Do you people watch to help with development? Or do you build upon your character during story creation?
All of the above. I usually start with a character page that lists their physical features, role in the story, internal struggles, and external forces. But it goes deeper than that. I will write short stories to flesh out their backstory or personalities and research how different traits can affect one character’s interaction with another. When I was younger, people watching was a game my mom and I played. We would pick someone sitting at a table across the restaurant and make up an entire story about them. If it was more than one person, we would each take a role. I still do that as an adult, but mostly in my head. Snippets of conversations between strangers become full-blown dialogue in my writing. And sometimes a character surprises me while I’m writing. It’s not what I consciously planned, but it works so I go with it. I think it’s the only way to have believable and unique characters.
Can you share your next creative project(s)? If yes, can you give a few details?
The next project is Witches of Willowbrook books 2 and 3. I don’t want to give away any spoilers, but I can say my beta readers were all very excited when I told them my plans for these characters. All of them are in book 1, so you will get to meet them and then see their stories unfold over the next two books. Plus some unanswered questions that weren’t vital to Jessica’s story will be explained.
What are some of your writing/publishing goals for this year?
In the coming year, I plan on publishing Witches of Willowbrook Book 2 and drafting, perhaps publishing, Book 3. I also had a fabulous idea for a prequel. I think I’ll spend quite a bit of time in Willowbrook.
Have you ever felt that there was something inside of you that you couldn't control? If so what? If no what spurs you to reach for the unexperienced?
I almost don’t want to answer this question, yet it fits with the underlying theme of Natural Disaster that I’m compelled to reply. How’s that for something inside of me that I can’t control? In all seriousness, I think everyone has some part of them they can’t control. For me, I hate feeling trapped, and that can take on many forms. My car broke down? I’m trapped. Travel funds are slim so I can’t go anywhere? Trapped. But being on our boat in the middle of the largest lake around makes me feel free. I can’t control the feeling of being trapped, so I end up doing other things like getting a new tattoo or taking a drive in the mountains, which in some strange way makes me feel in control.
If you could have dinner/dinner party with 7 fictional characters, who would they be?
Irene from The Invisible Library by Genevieve Cogman, Maeve from the Maeve Chronicles Series by Elizabeth Cunningham, Eva from The Rose Garden by Susanna Kearsley, Gillian and Sally Owen from Practical Magic (the book or the movie) by Alice Hoffman, Languoreth from The Lost Queen by Signe Pike, and Vicki DeVine from Crowbones by Anne Bishop. Notice my theme of all strong female characters? It wasn’t planned.
Where would you spend one full year, if you could go ANYWhere, money is not a concern? What would you do with this time?
I want to go on that worldwide cruise. I adore the ocean and think cruising is a fabulous way to see a lot of places with little effort. I enjoy experiencing new places and learning about other cultures. After I’m done exploring the ports and getting as much sun as I can, I would be people watching, writing, and reading.
Thank you Alena Orrison for joining and giving a little insight to you and your process. Your work is appreciated.
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