Once Upon a Retelling: A Blade So Black by L. L. McKinney

Welcome to Once Upon a Retelling! I'm a huge fan of retellings, and I'm really interested in hearing about authors' own love of the original stories, and what inspired them to retell those stories. And so Once Upon a Retelling was born, a feature in which I interview authors about their versions of well-loved tales.

I am so excited to have L.L. McKinney stopping by the blog today as part of the blog tour for her debut novel! She's here to discuss her Alice in Wonderland retelling, A Blade so Black.

Can you tell us a little about A Blade So Black? What kind of a retelling of of Alice in Wonderland is it?

A Blade So Black essentially answers the question “What if Buffy fell down the rabbit hole instead of Alice?” I like to call it a reimagining, though I guess that’s not as official a genre as retelling just yet. It’s more inspired by the original classing than trying to emulate the beats in new ways. What I was hoping to do was take the tale and put a completely different spin on it, such as if it actually existed, how did it come to be? What is its connection to our world? What would it look like and how would it function in the present day. Those kinds of things lead to this story.

Continue reading Once Upon a Retelling: A Blade So Black by L. L. McKinney

Once Upon a Bookcase: The Navigator's Touch by Julia Ember

Welcome to Once Upon a Retelling! I'm a huge fan of retellings, and I'm really interested in hearing about authors' own love of the original stories, and what inspired them to retell those stories. And so Once Upon a Retelling was born, a feature in which I interview authors about their versions of well-loved tales.

Today, I'm really pleased to have Julia Ember stop by the blog to talk about her Peter Pan retelling, The Navigator's Touch!

Can you tell us a little about The Navigator’s Touch? What kind of a retelling of Peter Pan is it?

I guess you could call it an “alternative villain origin story!” Following on from the events of The Seafarer’s Kiss, The Navigator’s Touch tells the story of Ragna, a Viking shieldmaiden who has lost her hand to a devious enemy, and is putting together a mercenary crew. At the beginning, Ragna is young and inexperienced, still reeling from the loss her family, but as the story goes on, she really grows into her own as a commander. The duology also draws inspiration from an Anglo-Saxon poem called The Seafarer, which tells the story of a sailor lost at sea. In the first book, I wanted to meld the story of The Little Mermaid together with that elegy to create something new. The second book is also a composite of fairy-tale and poem, this time with Peter Pan. There are original adaptations of the poem in The Navigator’s Touch that I loved working on!

Continue reading Once Upon a Bookcase: The Navigator's Touch by Julia Ember