Showcase #2

New Writer's Hotline: Showcase and my understanding of your book

Book Title: The Five Cursed Witches: Volume 1 – Zoe, the Witch of Innocence

Genre: Fantasy-romance

Summary: 

All Zoe wishes for is to one day be able to run barefoot through grass, but she knows it's a dream that will never come true. Ever since she was born, she's been unable to touch anything living without it instantly dying. It's a curse that she would do anything to get rid of but that her coven considers their best weapon. They have been asking her from time to time to kill potential threats to the coven since she was fourteen and it has become time for it again. The target this time is a witch hunter that has been killing witches from the coven. It's a task, that albeit dangerous, seems easy enough to Zoe. That is until she looks into the eyes of the witch hunter's son and realises that he is her mate.

Mature: smut, suicidal thoughts, (magical) torture/violence/abuse, death

Language(s): English

Showcase Question:

1. What prompted you to write this story?

"I actually started writing on this story the summer of 2021. I had during that spring found different places containing various werewolf-stories and consumed a lot of it. The whole concept of mates and how that was portrayed really stuck with me and I wanted to write my own thing exploring that. However, witches and witchcraft felt much more my thing than werewolves (I grew up having "Charmed" as my favorite TV-series, among other witchy stuff). So, then it came down to starting the story it felt much more natural to make it about witches rather than werewolves."

2. What struggles do you face when writing?

"The fact that I never really plan my stories XD The original ending of this book was honestly just so lame and extremely anti-climactic. And two of the characters were basically the same character, just with different names... So a lot needed to be changed from the first draft. But it's always just been my way of doing it. I admire those that can plan, when I've tried, I tend to then just feel bored when I start writing."

3.What is something you consider unique about your book?

"In my writing, mental illness, psychological trauma, and generally hard to deal with emotions and situations tends to always show up one way or another. And this book is no exception. But the fact that it's set in a world with magic has allowed me to explore certain things in a very different way."

4. Do you plan for this book to be a standalone, series or you don't know yet (plz list the reason on why you don't know yet)?

"Series! Quite obvious since this is volume 1. As much as I don't plan, that was something that was decided already from the start. The plan is 6 volumes. For the first 5, they'll focus on a different set of characters and will be written so that you could read just one of them and then no other, though there will be certain things you'll be left wondering about then. For the 6th and last one, the characters from the previous will all come together. Actually dreading writing that one a little because there will be a lot of things to tie together. But it'll also be amazingly fun writing it!"

5. What is your favorite quote from the novel (please add permission for me to use the quote "Yes you have my permission" is good)?

"Do you know what true suffering is? Fear, self-hatred, guilt. That destroys a person, while what you are doing will only kill me." 

My understanding of your book:

 I am currently reading "The Five Cursed Witches: Volume 1 - Zoe, the Witch of Innocence" by High_Priestess_Elena, and I am thoroughly enjoying the story so far. The suspense that is being built up is refreshing and intriguing, causing me to read chapter after chapter with eagerness. I am eagerly looking forward to discovering what the future holds for Zoe, especially as more of her past is slowly revealed. I am also quite concerned about the antagonist and the events surrounding the main character. Despite the chapters being brief, the execution is excellent and keeps me engaged throughout.