1 Jodi Meadows, author of THE ORPHAN QUEEN, on moving around prologues

We're pleased to have Jodi Meadows join us with her latest novel THE ORPHAN QUEEN, the first book in a duology.

Jodi, please tell us about your inspiration for writing THE ORPHAN QUEEN.

The idea that sparked the entire book is actually a huge spoiler, but I can tell you that it's in the last third of the book. It's a flashback section that begins "I was there when the war began." Fun(?) fact: that used to be a prologue, but I moved it around after some encouragement from my editors. It was the first line that came to me in the story; it still feels like the first line, as much as I love the final first line.

What did this book teach you about writing or about yourself?

One of my biggest challenges when planning out this book and the sequel was figuring out how to juggle several major plotlines. (Rebellion, wraith, vigilante, kingdom... Not to mention Wilhelmina's internal plotlines.) I knew they all had to run concurrently, too, which proved another difficulty, given I had only one character viewpoint. I was really afraid the story would come out lopsided, but by the time I turned in the final draft, I was really proud of how it held up.

What are you working on now?

I'm finishing up the last of the production work on OQ2, as well as edits on the four novellas HarperCollins will be releasing between the two novels. I have another project on the side, but I shouldn't say too much about it yet.

ABOUT THE BOOK

The Orphan Queen by Jodi Meadows
Hardcover
Katherine Tegen Books
Released 3/10/2015

Wilhelmina has a hundred identities.

She is a princess. When the Indigo Kingdom conquered her homeland, Wilhelmina and other orphaned children of nobility were taken to Skyvale, the Indigo Kingdom’s capital. Ten years later, they are the Ospreys, experts at stealth and theft. With them, Wilhelmina means to take back her throne. 

She is a spy. Wil and her best friend, Melanie, infiltrate Skyvale Palace to study their foes. They assume the identities of nobles from a wraith-fallen kingdom, but enemies fill the palace, and Melanie’s behavior grows suspicious. With Osprey missions becoming increasingly dangerous and their leader more unstable, Wil can’t trust anyone.

She is a threat. Wraith is the toxic by-product of magic, and for a century using magic has been forbidden. Still the wraith pours across the continent, reshaping the land and animals into fresh horrors. Soon it will reach the Indigo Kingdom. Wilhelmina’s magic might be the key to stopping the wraith, but if the vigilante Black Knife discovers Wil’s magic, she will vanish like all the others.

Jodi Meadows introduces a vivid new fantasy full of intrigue, romance, dangerous magic, and one girl’s battle to reclaim her place in the world.
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ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Jodi Meadows lives and writes in the Shenandoah Valley, Virginia, with her husband, a Kippy*, and an alarming number of ferrets. She is a confessed book addict, and has wanted to be a writer ever since she decided against becoming an astronaut. She is the author of the INCARNATE Trilogy and the forthcoming ORPHAN QUEEN Duology (HarperCollins/Katherine Tegen). Visit her at www.jodimeadows.com *A Kippy is a cat.