I Haven’t Slept in Three Months!
It’s hard to believe not even two months ago my first novel Seven-Sided Spy was released.
Now, I’m back again and happy to say my novella Take Your Medicine released today and is now available on all eformats.
This project had a funny way of coming to term. About a month after signing on with Nine Star Press there was an open submission for a little anthology called Once Upon a Rainbow. It was a collection of queer fairytale re-tellings. I had an inkling of an idea about an Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland re-telling in which the Queen of Hearts was a cardiothoracic surgeon. I set out to write a lovely contribution to an even lovelier anthology.
My editor -who’s the best- accepted the piece within an hour of me sending it. He was super excited. So I signed a contract…and then sat it on the back-burner. I had spies to work on after all.
Then, something awesome happened. As the publication timeframe for Once Upon a Rainbow approached, my editor reached out to me again. He asked if I was interested in having the piece published not in the anthology, but on its own as a novella.
I’d been so wrapped up in cold wars and editing it hadn’t even occurred to me that this was a possibility. I responded with a resounding YES!!!
Thus began this crazy journey. While I was promoting Seven-Sided Spy, I was hard at work editing Take Your Medicine. It was single-handedly one of the hardest things I’ve ever done, but it really pushed me to be a better writer and marketer. I am so happy with how the final product turned out.
Here’s a little bit about the project:
Alice “Al” Liddell is from Echola, Alabama. She leads the life of a normal teen until the day she’s diagnosed with vasovagal syncope – a fainting disorder which causes her to lose consciousness whenever she feels emotions too strongly.
Her mother, the “Queen of Hearts,” is the best cardiothoracic surgeon this side of the Mason-Dixon Line and a bit of a local hero. Yet, even with all her skill she is unable to cure her daughter of her ailment, leading Al into the world of backwater witchcraft.
Along the way she meets a wacky cast of characters and learns to accept her new normal.
Take Your Medicine is a southern gothic retelling of Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland.
You can buy Take Your Medicine over at Nine Star Press and Amazon!
I’m so excited to share this story with the world and also spread awareness about vasovagal syncope. I do not personally suffer from the disorder, but I did want to spotlight an illness that is common, yet not talked about nearly enough. If you read it, I hope you enjoy it.
Things are going to get quiet for a while. I am so exhausted and ready to get back to sleeping 8 hours a night. To keep up to date on what I’m doing in the mean time check out the events page. You’ll find all the posts I’ve done, as well as where I’ll be in the next couple months.
Until next time!
Hannah
Hannah Carmack 