Hey everyone!

This week I decided now was as good a time as any to introduce you to my current WIP: Window Lake. I first had the idea for the trilogy over 4 years ago, and have been working hard on it ever since. And by worked hard, I mean I brainstormed and developed the characters and rewrote the first draft several times (and spent a lot of time on Pinterest), all to finally finish the first draft of the first book late last year. So yeah, I haven’t made too much progress, at least not as much as I would’ve liked, but hopefully it’ll be smoother sailing now that the first draft is finished. 

What is Window Lake? 

 Window Lake is a fantasy trilogy that involves two generations, old and new friendships, family history, a forgotten war, and light vs darkness. It sounds cliche when I describe it, but it’s become one of my favourite stories that I’ve worked on. The main reason for that has been the characters and their relationships. It’s so much fun to explore them and the different dynamics each of them have, especially when it comes to the antagonist.

How did Window Lake come about?

 Like I said earlier, I came up with Window Lake about 4 years ago. I was on a road trip with my family and was trying to come up with a new idea for a story. I’d been reading advice on how to create new story ideas, and one tip had been to ask yourself “what if so-and-so existed” or “what if so-and-so happened”. I was writing down different ideas in my notebook, when I suddenly came up with an idea that actually sounded interesting. What if there was a lake that, instead of reflecting anything on the outside world, showed the image of a city on the surface. And if you entered the lake, it would take you to that city. Since the surface of the lake was more of a window than a mirror like it usually is, I decided to call it “Window Lake”. 

 It’s definitely changed a lot during the past few years, which explains why it took me so long to finish one draft. The original idea was much more focused on the lake than my recent drafts have been. But I got too attached to the title so I haven’t changed it lol. 

The story of Window Lake:

 If there’s one thing I can’t do, it’s writing a good blurb. So y’all get this mess unless a miracle happens and I think of a better one:  

 Julia Woodstorm’s mother has never been too open about her past. So when a letter arrives from an old friend requesting her help, Julia decides to go in her mother’s place to finally find out what she’s been hiding. 

 Her search leads her to discover Window Lake, the hiding place of a mysterious city and a group called the Krysial. They claim their mission is to stop a force known as the darkness from restarting a forgotten war and destroying the world. Julia finds herself joining their efforts along with two other youth— an apprentice named Shak and Aza, who practically holds the fate of the world in her hands. But as Julia uncovers more of the past with her new friends, she can’t help but wonder if there really was a good reason her mother tried to keep this away from her. 

 … yeah, not my best work. We’re just gonna move on. 

The characters of Window Lake

 Now we come to my favourite part. This is the main reason I’ve continued this story and why it’s one of my favourites. These are definitely my favourite group of characters out of any story I’ve worked on. Here’s a short description of the main trio:

 Julia Woodstorm (ESTP): the main POV character and the reason this story exists, Julia spent most of her life at home with her mother, but always dreamed of doing something more. She is determined, brave, and has the tendency to be reckless. She’s always looking for adventure, has a bit of a hero complex, and though she may be stubborn she cares deeply for her friends. 

 Shak (ISFP): another one of the main three and Estral’s apprentice, Shak has been trained by his mentor to someday be prepared for the outside world. He is a peacemaker and probably the most functional member of the trio. He’s kind, selfless, and loves to learn. He always tries to make sure everyone is happy but ends up ignoring his own feelings because of this. 

 Aza (INFP): the last of the three and also under the care of Estral, Aza has the power to control light and has a key role in saving the world. Unfortunately, that has also made her a target for the enemy, which has lead her to be extremely sheltered all her life for her protection. She’s sweet, curious, and loves to have fun. She can be absentminded and naive but she’s a dreamer and loves her friends. 

 Then there are a few other characters that are worth mentioning, such as: Julia’s protective and secretive mom Mary; Estral, the stern leader of the Krysial who has no idea what a functional sleep schedule is; Estral’s older sister Trista, the queen of Velamyr; and the antagonist, Patrin, who is totally not my favourite character for a number of reasons.

 I adore every single one of these characters. It’s so much fun to explore the dynamics of the main trio and the members of the Krysial. I could rant about them forever but that would spoil the story and take way too long to write, so I’ll leave it here for now. But there will be posts about them in the future, so I have an excuse to rant about them more. 

Oh, and of course I can’t forget to mention the true villain of the trilogy: the creatively named “darkness”.

Honestly I kinda find it funny that I spent so long working on this story but still haven’t found a better name for the darkness. I think I’ve gotten too used to it to change it unfortunately, but that’s been its name for the last four years and I don’t see it changing anytime soon.

So that’s Window Lake! You can find a couple more fun extras in the WIP section of the blog, such as the Pinterest board and Spotify playlist (which I definitely didn’t spend a lot of time on). I’ll post more about the trilogy as I keep writing it, and y’all might get some sneak peaks sometime… we’ll see!

In the meantime, thanks for reading! – Em