Happy Wednesday! I'm excited to share an update on my current WIP, Hunted, which is a retelling of Snow White. Here's the blurb, in case you missed the post where I shared it previously:
What if Snow White accidentally killed the prince? And what if the only witness was a dangerous fae creature who also happened to be the queen's personal spy? When Snow White (whose real name is Diana, by the way) happens to find herself in this very situation, she must make a deal with the fae in order to avoid the consequences–but without losing herself in the process.
At the time of my last update on this story (June 27), I was at 19,373 words. I don't usually stick with a single project for this long, but I joined a writing group back in May and it's really been helping me to stay accountable. So, I'm now at 27,270 words!
I've pulled some of my favorite snippets out of the story so far. I hope you have as much fun reading them as I did selecting them!
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A rush of homesickness filled me like nausea, and I closed my eyes and braced my hand on the stone wall, allowing the spell to pass before opening my eyes.
Fest was standing in front of me.
I jumped back and pressed my hand to my chest. “Lands, Fest! Where did you come from?”
“I’ve been waiting for you for an age,” he said, sounding annoyed, although his face betrayed nothing.
“You literally just appeared right in front of me,” I snapped, fear whetting my tongue. “Also, did we make an appointment to meet?”
“No,” he said, unbothered by my tone.
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I had expected a crisp mouthful of juice, but contrary to the apple’s plump and unblemished exterior, the interior was dry and mealy, with a vaguely sweet taste that reminded me more of persimmons than of apples.
I chewed and swallowed, the moment feeling anticlimactic. Then I opened my eyes.
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I took the mask from her and held it up. I had chosen a dark forest green fabric, with a matching dark green ribbon to fasten it. It had been almost finished; we had begun embroidering a simple design of leaves and vines around the eye holes yesterday, and Cecilia had finished the pattern. She had added silver crescent moons sprinkled across its surface, tangling with the vegetation. It was an odd touch, but I liked it. Slowly, I fitted the mask to my face and tied the green ribbons at the back of my head. It fit perfectly, as though it had been made to hug the exact curves of my face. I turned to Cecilia and smiled.
“Thank you! It’s perfect.”
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“I’m glad you’re here. Not just because you’re someone to talk to besides my mother, although that’s nice too. But I’m afraid I made an awful dunce of myself when we first met, and I want to leave a better impression on you than that. I felt like such a fool, stating the obvious like I did. Of course you have blue eyes. You already know that. So I’ve been racking my brain, thinking, ‘What should I have said to her?’ And I think I’ve finally figured it out: I should have said, ‘Good shot.’”
Which snippet was your favorite? Do you think I'll be able to finish this project before 2025?? (Please say yes, I need some motivation to get this messy first draft out of the way!) Before you go, here's a sketch of a possible cover that I thought of. Imagine this drawn way better in color with a dark green background full of vines and white roses or something.
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