First off, Defying Gravity isn’t your typical romance. In fact, it has a very big problem. The main characters only catch a glimpse each other before they are captured and divided by a rock wall with just a small crack to hear each other’s voices. Like the ill-fated and wall-divided lovers Pyramus and Thisbe from Roman mythology, I had to discover a way for the characters to fall in love without sight.
Alezandros is a Medusan. Linia is a Persean. They live on two very different planets, since Medusa is a post-apocalyptic planet and Persea is in its prime. Their peoples hate each other. Everything is stacked up against them, so how do they fall in love?
Well, not to give everything away, I focused on the characters, their relationships. I used glimpses of their family, their lives to show how similar they were. To find that common bond between them that could grow into so much more.
When writing romance, I believe it helps to find that connection between the characters. The writer must think about all the aspects in the characters’ lives. Lust can turn into love, but a strong foundation will make the love all that more realistic. Opposites may attract, but I think it’s the similarities, the bonds that deepen the romance and love.
I hope that’s what I managed to portray in Defying Gravity.
A question for writers: How do you build relationships in your works?
Thank you, Misha, for having me on your lovely blog!
Book Description:
Homesick upon the SS Perseid, Linia, a young linguist, thinks she signed up for a mission of peace, but her crew members have another plan: attack the planet Medusa.
Bored with his dying planet, Alezandros, a space cruiser pilot, joins the Medusan Army in his quest for adventure.
When the SS Perseid clashes with the Medusans’ space cruisers, Alezandros and Linia’s lives intertwine. Sucked through a wormhole, they crash upon a post-apocalyptic Earth and are captured by cannibals. In adjacent cells, Alezandros and Linia cast their differences aside for a common bond: escape. But when romantic feelings emerge between them, they might do the unthinkable because for a Medusan and a Persean to fall in love, it would defy gravity.
Book Links:
Surrounded by Books Publishing
Goodreads
Amazon
Author Bio:
Cherie Reich is a writer, freelance editor and library assistant. She enjoys writing horror, fantasy, and mysteries, but she doesn’t let that stop her from trying other genres. Her short stories have appeared in magazines and anthologies, and her e-books include Once Upon a December Nightmare, The Best of Raven and the Writing Desk, and Defying Gravity. She is a member of the Virginia Writers Club and Valley Writers and placed third in
Author Links:
Website
Blog
Google+
I am so anxious to read Defying Gravity, I love how you have described the relationship between Linia and Alezandros. Developing a relationship through a barrier like that must have been quite a challenge, and I am curious to read about it. Great post, Cherie!
ReplyDeleteI like the sound of Cherie's book 'Defying Gravity.' Thanks for the guest post by Cherie. Wishing you lots of luck in your publishing journey.
ReplyDeleteThanks, Misha, for having me!!
ReplyDelete@Julie - Thank you! And it wasn't easy to write the story. I just have to hope I did my job as a writer to make the characters come across. :)
@Rachna Chhabria - Thank you!
I can't say I'm a romance writer. Although, my first novel has glimpses of one and is forbidden by the main character's mom making it even more intriguing.
ReplyDeleteI enjoyed your post and will look up your books.
@shelly - I would say some of my stories have elements of romance, even if they are not strictly romance. Thank you!
ReplyDeleteI love the idea of a love affair beginning in that way..through glimpses and then separation. Sounds like exactly my kind of read.
ReplyDeleteAww! Thank you, Johanna! It was tough to write, but I'm pleased with it.
DeleteI think I may start reading this book this weekend. It sounds like it has just the right amount of agony in a sci-fi-esque background to really hook me.
ReplyDeleteIt's a quick read, Michael. I did try to balance the genres. You'll have to let me know if I managed it. :)
DeleteI bought Defying Gravity one day 1 and read it that afternoon. I couldn't put it down. It's a great story and very well written. As for relationships in my works, I've used some reality and some fantasy=)
ReplyDeleteAww, thanks, Terri! And I think that is what all authors must do. Combine the real with the fantastical in a balance so it all seems plausible. :)
DeleteGreat post! I agree it's about similarities rather than differences that make relationships work. There has to be common ground or else it would be chaos. Some differences are important, especially traits in the characters that help the other grow to be better.
ReplyDeleteThanks, Christine! And I agree that some differences are important. After all, no two characters/people are exactly the same, but both help each other to relate and grow. :)
DeleteI really like the premise of this one. Nice guest post from Cherie.
ReplyDeleteThank you, Susan! :)
DeleteLooks like a great book, Cherie. I like your thoughts on romance and falling in love.
ReplyDeleteCongrats on the new release, Cherie. It sounds like an awesome story.
ReplyDeleteThank you! I'm quite pleased how it turned out. Now if I can make the next two in the series even better... :)
DeleteThis story intrigues me. I like science fiction and to have love in it also is a bonus!
ReplyDeleteAww, thank you, Belle! :)
Deletewhat a supremely difficult love story! i love it!
ReplyDeletegreat advice too, love is more than lust
Thanks, Tara. It was a challenge to write, but I'm always up for a good challenge. ;)
DeleteI enjoy a book that focuses on characters. (Obviously!)
ReplyDeleteMe too, Alex. I love when the plot is exciting too. I try to do both.
DeleteLove the Pyramus and Thisbe connection (although I always snicker remembering how Shakespeare mangled it in A Midsummer Night's Dream). Love your premise, too! I just ordered a sample on my Kindle!
ReplyDelete*laughs* Me too! I actually played Snug the Joiner (the lion) in A Midsummer Night's Dream. Silly me didn't even realize how Pyramus and Thisbe-like it was until I finished the book and several edits on it. Aww, thanks, Dianne! I hope you enjoy the sample, and the book too, if you choose to purchase it. :)
DeleteI don't usually read romance, but your book sounds great.
ReplyDeleteOh wow - love the description for Defying Gravity! Sounds like a good mix of romance with a little FarScape-esque fantasy thrown in. :)
ReplyDeleteAbout making our characters fall for each other...I like to build up trust and friendship by showing their unique vulnerabilities, then just as they feel like something might be there, I throw in a little doubt again. And it just keeps building from there. Good romantic tension comes when the characters, and the readers, know there's a spark, but they also have very legitimate reasons not to act on it right away. :)
Thanks, Nicole! And it sounds like you have a great technique there for the romantic tension. :)
DeleteI'm not usually a huge fan of sci-fi, but I may have to check this one out.
ReplyDeleteThanks for the guest post!
Hi, Kate! Defying Gravity isn't hardcore sci-fi, so I think it has crossover appeal. :)
Delete"Opposites may attract, but I think it’s the similarities, the bonds that deepen the romance and love."
ReplyDeleteI like your point there. A lot of characters seem to be attracted to each other because they clash in some way(s), not because they mirror each other.
Yeah, I've noticed that too in a lot of the romance I read. I wanted to do something a little different. :)
DeleteMisha, Cherie's book sounds quite intriguing. She has put a lot of thought into her characters. Good luck and congratulations!
ReplyDeleteThank you!
DeleteThis book sounds so interesting! What a unique plot with all of the elements of a classic love story. Thank you for sharing!
ReplyDeleteThank you, Julie! :)
DeleteHi Misha, Hi Cherie! I love this story! I love the story of star-crossed lovers falling in love with a rock between them imprisoned by post apocalyptic cannibals! How wonderful! Thanks for a most thought provoking interview - opposites may attract but it's the similarities that draw two souls together! Yay!
ReplyDeleteTake care
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Aww! Thank you!
DeleteAwesome post! I'm looking forward to reading this! :)
ReplyDeleteFAB post! You book sounds great!
ReplyDeleteThank you!
DeleteThis romance sounds something I'd love to read! Thanks for posting about it Misha and spotlighting Cherie!
ReplyDeleteIf this story is half as good as Cherie's flash fiction, there's a treat in store :-)
ReplyDeleteAww! Thank you, Sarah! I kinda hope it is better than my flash fiction. Hehe!
DeleteGreat post Cherie! Your book sounds incredible - am so checking it out! :)
ReplyDeleteThank you, Amy! :)
DeleteOh, I LOVE the premise. Sounds intriguing. :)
ReplyDeleteMisha, I'm back! I've been unable to access most blogs due to new parental control software. I'm not sure if it kept my kids from any bad sites, but it kept me from a lot of good ones. ;)
Thanks, Ciara!
DeleteHow do I build relationships in my works... Good question! Um... Hmm. I believe that characters have to interact in order to fall in love (no such thing as love at first sight!) and the interaction I love the most is dialogue. Yay dialogue! So I guess I use a lot of that.
ReplyDeletexx R
Really the blog makes a sense!
ReplyDelete