Rise For Me...The Inspiration Behind The Words
Updated: Jan 17, 2021
On February 1, 2021, Rise for Me releases to readers everywhere. There are two points of inspiration for the book. First, I want to talk a bit about one of the reasons I chose to give my heroine the infirmity she was afflicted with, and how self-conscious things like this can make a person.
My mother was born with a half-dollar-sized, pink, hairy birthmark in the center of her forehead. Her parents couldn't afford to have it removed, so to hide it, she wore bangs and used cosmetics. It wasn't until she was in her mid-thirties, that a cosmetic surgeon finally removed the birthmark. It left a scar, but she was much happier and actually started wearing her hair different.
In today's society beauty is everywhere. Magazine covers, movies, social media, and every commercial caters to the idea that we are born perfect or should strive to be perfect. What bothers me is most of what we see has been heavily photoshopped. Humans come in every shape imaginable, and many of us are born with what the world considers defects.
I watched my mother hide from the world, buy numerous beauty products to try to cover or fade her birthmark, but nothing worked. The cost of her surgery was out-of-pocket because it was considered cosmetic. Think of what something like that would cost nowadays? The expense was worth it for her, but it was a shame she was so self-conscious because of what people thought, said, or the stares.
I'm not saying we shouldn't try to appear our best, but I am saying there are things we are born with that are not a defect. Those things make us unique. In the book, Rise for Me, I gave the heroine a hairy birthmark under her eye. A vampire heals her, but in the end she realizes it wasn't as important as she once thought. If you're a person with something the world considers abnormal on your body, don't hide it. I know we live in a world where everything appears perfect, but remember it's mostly an illusion.
Rise for Me releases February 1st, but I wanted to give readers the reason why I wrote the story the way I did. I think many authors pull something from their life to use in the stories they create, and I'm no exception. As a young girl, I didn't truly understand what my mother experienced, but as a grown woman I do. As an aging, disabled woman, I empathize even more. I wear drop-foot braces in order to walk because of nerve damage from Guillain-Barre Syndrome. The stares used to bother me and I have felt insecure more than once, but that doesn't happen much anymore. Maybe I just don't pay attention or have developed thicker skin, or maybe I realized my disability makes me unique.
Beauty is in the eye of the beholder, but it's what's on the inside that matters. I've heard it all my life, but it's true. Remember that!
The second reason behind Rise for Me comes from answering another author's writing prompt. The question he posted on social media went something like this: Create a fictional story about where we met.
That is temptation incarnate for a writer. I was playing around when I answered the prompt and created a short, one paragraph story about how and where we met. I wrote, "We met at the carnival. You were the creepy clown who snuck up behind me. I was so mad, I threw my corndog at you and got mustard in your hair. We wrestled into the duck-pond booth, tore it all to pieces, both got wet, but ended up laughing. We are friends again. Everything is good."
Haha...not the best writing, but that little paragraph sparked my imagination. The story went in a different direction, but had I not answered the writing prompt, I don't know that I would've come up with the idea for Rise for Me, so many thanks to my friend and fellow author, Alistair Cross. He's a horror writer if any of you love to be scared! You can find him @Alistair Cross.
If you're interested in what I'm saying, what this books stands for, grab your copy of Rise for Me today @ Rise for Me | Universal Book Links Help You Find Books at Your Favorite Store! (books2read.com)
ABOUT THE BOOK: Vampire and warlock, Roman Lee, spent centuries alone as ringmaster of the carnival. After befriending and healing a scarred, young woman, Roman realizes Mariah is his mate. He waits for her, but when she departs from his life, his torture knows no bounds. Now he's risen, unforgiving and angry, forced from his grave by the one woman who captured his heart, but will another secret and the call of his mate change everything?
The steady call of Roman's blood and the promise of peace brings Mariah Stone home to the carnival and the vampire she left behind. He ignores her until she forces him from the grave with her blood. His anger crushes her already broken spirit, but she is determined to win Roman's forgiveness and free him from their bond. Denied passion leads them down a path of magic and desire, while a devastating secret threatens eternal love.
Thanks for stopping by! I hope you enjoyed the article and will read the book! You're welcome to sign up for my newsletter @ https://www.kristalharris.com. Happy reading!