Triton Graduate Brianna Trowbridge Authors First Novel
June 17, 2020 at 6:03 p.m.
By Jackie Gorski-
Brianna Trowbridge, of Fort Wayne, will have her young adult fantasy book “Descended” published July 10. The trilogy name will have the same name as its first book.
“It takes place in a world humans and the gods are still living with each other, but the gods are no longer there and the humans think that magic is dead, but it’s not,” Trowbridge, who was raised in Etna Green, said.
The lead protagonist is Amelia, who “battles issues within herself and tries to hide her magic,” she said. Through her adventures, she has to decide if she wants to go back to the way things were “or follow the path that’s laid before her.”
The overarching theme is “just trusting your gut, getting over your fears,” Trowbridge said, noting she is a big advocate of mental health, “just being open about it, too many people hide it down.”
Trowbridge incorporated aspects of mental health issues into her book.
“I made it subtle, but a lot of Amelia’s struggles in the books, her magic surges in the same way a panic attack would, so the way she is taught to kind of control herself is the same way people should be taught to help with panic attacks,” she said. The mental health theme is going to be in all three books. “I’m definitely going to keep that theme going, show her growth towards her accepting that it’s apart of her and just how to master it and be OK with it and not fighting it.”
Trowbridge said mental health issues run in her family, having been diagnosed with some issues herself and she is the first in her family to get help. Seeing the difference between going untreated and getting help “is the world of difference. I fully think it should be normalized, people shouldn’t be ashamed to go see somebody.”
“I’ve been in love with books since I was a kid from ‘Goosebumps’ to a ‘Series of Unfortunate Events’ to the ‘Divergent’ and ‘Hunger Games’ stuff,” Trowbridge. “My personal library has about 600 books and I always have been obsessed and I wanted to write my own story.”
She said she’s met some of her favorite authors in person and she looks up to them, noting in her own books, she wanted to build her own world and to try to get people enthralled with them as she is with some of her favorite authors.
Trowbridge said “Descended” is targeted toward teens, however, anyone up to 35 “would enjoy this book.”
“I’m hoping the younger ones, the 15- or 16-year-olds that read it kind of connects with the feelings she gets. Just how she gets through it, I hope they try to use those processes because I use the main form of - the mostly used form of - getting to work with a panic attack,” she said. She narrowed down the process down into three main groups. She said she hopes people will see that the process works in her book and will wonder if it will work for them.
Trowbridge said getting help for her mental health issues has helped with her writing and has shown her that the things she was ridiculed for in high school were actually normal for people with her issues. She is now able to put the issues she’s dealt with all into words.
The first draft of the second book of the trilogy is currently being made and should be published within the next nine or 10 months.
Trowbridge is self-publishing her book. The publishing house she is using is IngramSpark and they have a warehouse in Fort Wayne.
“I’ve been in control of the marketing, the editing. I have three people on my team. I’ve hired a book editor, a cover artist and a design layouter,” she said. She said she’s been writing this book since July 2018.
She said while self-publishing is a cost, you have more artistic power. Traditional publishing houses have veto power. With self-publishing, she’s hired a team, “taken their advice and it’s worked.”
However, she said people who self-publish need to do research. One of things she suggested was to hire a professional editor as they might catch things the writer does, including inconsistencies and overused phrases.
In the past few months, she has been making sure the finer points are taking care of, including getting the ISBN taken care of, getting the copyright and making sure she has the rights in all the countries she wants to publish in. Trowbridge did say next time, she might hire someone to do that for her.
“Descended” will be available on Amazon, Barnes & Noble, “all the major booksellers.” Trowbridge will also have her book available on her Facebook page, BK Trowbridge Writes, and on her website once it’s up. There will be a few independent bookstores in Fort Wayne that will be carrying it, as well.
Hopefully, Trowbridge said, she’ll be doing some signings in Fort Wayne in August once the COVID-19 pandemic “clears up.”
“It’s set up, but they’re not allowed to tell me a date yet until they get the OK from their corporate offices,” she said. Hyde Brothers Booksellers and Half Price Books is hosting her.
The paperback will be $11.99, and will be $9.99 from her Facebook page and website. The eBook will be $3.99.
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Brianna Trowbridge, of Fort Wayne, will have her young adult fantasy book “Descended” published July 10. The trilogy name will have the same name as its first book.
“It takes place in a world humans and the gods are still living with each other, but the gods are no longer there and the humans think that magic is dead, but it’s not,” Trowbridge, who was raised in Etna Green, said.
The lead protagonist is Amelia, who “battles issues within herself and tries to hide her magic,” she said. Through her adventures, she has to decide if she wants to go back to the way things were “or follow the path that’s laid before her.”
The overarching theme is “just trusting your gut, getting over your fears,” Trowbridge said, noting she is a big advocate of mental health, “just being open about it, too many people hide it down.”
Trowbridge incorporated aspects of mental health issues into her book.
“I made it subtle, but a lot of Amelia’s struggles in the books, her magic surges in the same way a panic attack would, so the way she is taught to kind of control herself is the same way people should be taught to help with panic attacks,” she said. The mental health theme is going to be in all three books. “I’m definitely going to keep that theme going, show her growth towards her accepting that it’s apart of her and just how to master it and be OK with it and not fighting it.”
Trowbridge said mental health issues run in her family, having been diagnosed with some issues herself and she is the first in her family to get help. Seeing the difference between going untreated and getting help “is the world of difference. I fully think it should be normalized, people shouldn’t be ashamed to go see somebody.”
“I’ve been in love with books since I was a kid from ‘Goosebumps’ to a ‘Series of Unfortunate Events’ to the ‘Divergent’ and ‘Hunger Games’ stuff,” Trowbridge. “My personal library has about 600 books and I always have been obsessed and I wanted to write my own story.”
She said she’s met some of her favorite authors in person and she looks up to them, noting in her own books, she wanted to build her own world and to try to get people enthralled with them as she is with some of her favorite authors.
Trowbridge said “Descended” is targeted toward teens, however, anyone up to 35 “would enjoy this book.”
“I’m hoping the younger ones, the 15- or 16-year-olds that read it kind of connects with the feelings she gets. Just how she gets through it, I hope they try to use those processes because I use the main form of - the mostly used form of - getting to work with a panic attack,” she said. She narrowed down the process down into three main groups. She said she hopes people will see that the process works in her book and will wonder if it will work for them.
Trowbridge said getting help for her mental health issues has helped with her writing and has shown her that the things she was ridiculed for in high school were actually normal for people with her issues. She is now able to put the issues she’s dealt with all into words.
The first draft of the second book of the trilogy is currently being made and should be published within the next nine or 10 months.
Trowbridge is self-publishing her book. The publishing house she is using is IngramSpark and they have a warehouse in Fort Wayne.
“I’ve been in control of the marketing, the editing. I have three people on my team. I’ve hired a book editor, a cover artist and a design layouter,” she said. She said she’s been writing this book since July 2018.
She said while self-publishing is a cost, you have more artistic power. Traditional publishing houses have veto power. With self-publishing, she’s hired a team, “taken their advice and it’s worked.”
However, she said people who self-publish need to do research. One of things she suggested was to hire a professional editor as they might catch things the writer does, including inconsistencies and overused phrases.
In the past few months, she has been making sure the finer points are taking care of, including getting the ISBN taken care of, getting the copyright and making sure she has the rights in all the countries she wants to publish in. Trowbridge did say next time, she might hire someone to do that for her.
“Descended” will be available on Amazon, Barnes & Noble, “all the major booksellers.” Trowbridge will also have her book available on her Facebook page, BK Trowbridge Writes, and on her website once it’s up. There will be a few independent bookstores in Fort Wayne that will be carrying it, as well.
Hopefully, Trowbridge said, she’ll be doing some signings in Fort Wayne in August once the COVID-19 pandemic “clears up.”
“It’s set up, but they’re not allowed to tell me a date yet until they get the OK from their corporate offices,” she said. Hyde Brothers Booksellers and Half Price Books is hosting her.
The paperback will be $11.99, and will be $9.99 from her Facebook page and website. The eBook will be $3.99.
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