RECREATED is the second book in the Reawakened series, and we’re excited to have Colleen Houck stop by to chat about it.

Colleen, what was your inspiration for writing RECREATED?

I’ve always known that the REAWAKENED series would be three books and in fact, the number three is very important. There are three princes, three pyramids, three villains, three obstacles to the Afterlife, etc. I love working with symbols and so I used that a bit as my inspiration. Each book is also loosely based on a few of the parts of an Egyptian soul. REAWAKENED is the eye book. RECREATED is the heart so you’ll read a lot about hearts and my villainess devours hearts.

What scene was really hard for you to write and why, and is that the one of which you are most proud? Or is there another scene you particularly love?

I think the hardest part to write was the origin story of mankind and how the Egyptian gods came into being. Egyptian mythology is very challenging and trying to weave all the various stories together into one whole was difficult to say the least. At the end of it, though, I came away with something I’m very proud of. My hope is that someone studying Egyptian mythology will read about a character or an event and make the link.


What book or books would most resonate with readers who love your book–or visa versa?

I’m a huge fan of the Grisha series by Leigh Bardugo. The Russian lore mixed with fantasy would be an easy transition for my readers. Other YA authors that write mythology include Bree Despain, Brodi Ashton, Keirsten White, and Tera Lynn Childs.

How long did you work on RECREATED?

From start to finish, I would say about 6 months. That’s my average time to write a book.

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

RECREATED taught me that my talents lie in weaving together seemingly impossible things. In this book I took the idea of an Afterlife and the Netherworld and overlayed some Western mythological concepts to make the story more seamless. I look for similarities in cultures and build them on one another to create something new.

What do you hope readers will take away from RECREATED?

I hope they gain an interest in Egyptian mythology. The time spent studying the various books I’ve collected has been well worth it. I’ve always been fascinated with it but now I feel like I could hold my own when having a conversation about the different gods and goddesses.

How long or hard was your road to publication? How many books did you write before this one, and how many never got published?

So far, I’ve published all the books I’ve written. Being an author is a career change for me. I studied American Sign Language and was an ASL interpreter working full time when I wrote my first three books. I started writing in 2008 after reading the Twilight books and discovering the author was my age. For some reason I never considered writing a career choice though I loved creative writing classes I took in school.

Was there an AHA! moment along your road to publication where something suddenly sank in and you felt you had the key to writing a novel? What was it?

I think the AHA! moment was just finding other women like myself who had done it later in their lives. I am inspired by J. K. Rowling’s story. I love how she just had an idea for a kid who was a magician and didn’t know it and gave writing a try. Her efforts paid off in a big way but, more importantly, she was an inspiration to others.

What’s your writing ritual like? Do you listen to music? Work at home or at a coffee shop or the library, etc?

I work at home. Usually I write four days a week and save one day for appointments and grocery shopping. I can’t listen to music when I write. My preference is to have my dogs nearby. There’s just something about a snoring dog at my feet that makes me feel comfortable.

What advice would you most like to pass along to other writers?

Don’t give up. If you love writing, go for it. It can never be a bad thing. My grandfather wrote cowboy books that he never published but I can hear his voice when I read them. Your writing is your legacy. Even if the only one who reads it is you, it is so valuable.

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Have you had a chance to read RECREATED yet? Have you used ancient mythology to inspire your writing? Do you think of writing as being your legacy? Share your thoughts about the interview in the comments!

Happy reading,

Jocelyn, Shelly, Martina, Anisaa, Sam, Erin, Susan, Michelle, Laura, and Kristin