Numinous
Genre: Teen Fantasy
Wattpad Book Blurb:
Growing up with a step-mother that could care less if she existed and a father that abandoned her at a young age, Lily Blackmoor mostly took care of herself, and her younger brother Sebastian, on her own. Teased relentlessly through elementary and middle school, she didn't have it much better at school. It wasn’t until her small, tabby cat Blink lured her into a magical hideaway that everything changed.
He wasn’t what he seemed and was on a mission to bring her back to her home world. But the road back is hard and deadly, and there are conditions before they can make the journey. It’s not until she is so close to meeting those conditions that the least likely person shows up making everything more complicated.
In the meantime, her brother Sebastian is having terrible nightmares, that at first he shrugs off, but when it’s clear they are trying to tell him something; he starts to listen. The message: Lily, if not stopped, will leave a wake of destruction over the Earth, and it’s up to him to stop her.
Told from different characters point of view, Numinous is a story of magic, power and adventure, love and fear, trials and suffering, and of faith.
Author Links:
Interview
1. Please tell the readers a bit about yourself.
My name is Emory. I am a 28 (soon to be 29) year old writer in Minnesota. I have a Bachelors degree in Humanities and Social Science and I’m an English literature nerd. So, it goes without saying that I love books, movies, and stories in general. Outside of working full time, I am usually writing or reading. I would love it to be my career, but I’ll keep doing it regardless.
2. What types of books do you write?
I write all kinds of genres, though I usually write fantasy or science fiction. I have been recently experimenting with horror.
3. How many books have you written?
I have completed two novel sized manuscripts, one of which is Numinous, my young adult fantasy book, and the other is a general fiction book directed more for adults. Everything else I have written are short stories, some of which can be found on Wattpad, and the rest on my computer.
4. What movie and/or book are you looking forward to this year?
So many great movies coming out this year, it’s hard to list them all. Off the top of my head, I would say: Noah, Captain America, X-Men, Interstellar (Big Christopher Nolan fan), and the last Hobbit film. I was looking forward to The Winds of Winter by George R.R. Martin, but I think he pushed that back? A lot of the authors I love are dead, and I struggle to keep up with recent work. I need to do better at it, I think.
5. What type of books do you enjoy reading?
I love classical literature. Most of my library at home is filled with books of old, dead writers. I love how they wrote back before the 20th century. Outside of that, I’m very much into science fiction and fantasy books. I like some speculative fiction, or dystopia stuff, but for me 1984 and Brave New World are the gold standard and it is hard to beat those. The only non-fiction books I read are philosophy books, and maybe a history book.
6. If you were stranded on a desert island what 3 things would you want with you?
1. Towers of books.
2. My laptop with some kind of unlimited battery supply.
3. And probably Wilson from the movie Castaway. He seemed like a good friend.
7. Are you considering a sequel?
Yes. I plan on writing the sequel in April, and I hope to have the rough draft done sometime late summer, depending on how much time I can write. I haven’t decided yet, but there will probably be three or four books, and potentially a prequel, if I feel like writing it, and if the desire is there for it to be told.
8. What inspired you to become a writer?
The earliest memory I have of sitting down and trying to write was when I was a freshman in high school and my friend gave me a beat up laptop that he didn’t want anymore. All you could really do on it was write on the word processor. One day after watching an episode of Gundam Wing, I came into my room and started writing a science fiction story about a girl up in a space station that was struggling with the idea of having to be sent out into deep space all by herself. It was horrid writing, but I think Gundam Wing inspired me to try it out myself. What inspired me to keep writing is probably all my favorite authors like Fyodor Dostoyevsky, Philip K. Dick, and C.S. Lewis, and having all of these pesky story ideas pop up in my head demanding to be written down.
Excerpt
The Trine moon hung gently in the starry sky as he walked through the tall, thick brush on the open rolling plains. The blades of grass swayed with the wind as it blowed passed him. The crickets chirped their sweet song, while the fireflies mimicked their celestial kin. The soft, peaceful night did not match his mood. He approached his destination with trepidation. He took his time, but worried his master would grow impatient if he took too long. He stargazed for a moment, trying to find the different constellations. When he was a young cub, he remembered sitting on the Cliffs of the Ancients staring out at the constellations with his grandfather. He showed him all the different constellations, and how to interpret their meanings.
“That one there, little one, is Rhopa the Turtle. His wisdom will never be surpassed. Ask for it and you will receive it. And over there is Quillian the Hare,” he said, pointing to the right. He could never quite see the constellations fully. Some nights it was easier to connect the dots than others. “Quillian is an omen of luck and of haste. There are times when you will want his speed.”
“Are there any others, grandfather?” he asked.
“Oh yes.” He laughed. “There are many constellations. But, some you do not want to see.”
“Grandpa!” he whined. “I’m big now. I’m not afraid. What constellations don’t I want to see?”
His grandfather looked at him with a warm smile, but his eyes glimmered with fire. They frightened him a moment forgetting that it was his grandfather. “Numinous the Owl. You do not want to see that constellation.”
“Why?” he asked, staring into his grandfather's eyes intently.
His grandfather chuckled. “You are full of questions tonight.”
“What does New…nomin…”
“Noo-min-es,” his grandfather pronounced.
“Yes, what does that one mean?”
“Dread. Fear. Judgement,” he said, each one slowly and in a deep bass. “Terrible things. Terrible things that will change who you are, young one. There will be a time you will learn the history of our race and Numinous and when you do, you will not like what you hear.”
Over the years, his grandfather had taught him all the constellations. The Valkyrie and the Dragon was his favorite, and he looked for it eagerly most nights. He had never seen the Numinous constellation until that very night. It hung above him as he walked through the rustling grass. It was as if it peered down upon him, watching his every move. Its starry eyes flickered with condemnation. He wished he could growl at it to go away, but it would remain regardless.
He saw his master’s silhouette on the horizon cloaked in black under a massive tree. Stopping a moment to take a few long, deep breaths, he closed his eyes and calmed his heart. Walking toward the tree, he finally stood in front of his master. His master was not short, but he still towered over him.
