Tag: SJ Carson

More Than the Usual Parental Brainwashing with SJ Carson

One of the perks of being in an inclusive writers group like Sin City Writers, is the chance to see so much good work while it is still nascent, then celebrate when it comes into the world. Such is the case with SJ Carson’s new novel, Aveline. I’ve read bits and pieces of it for a long time, and now it’s out in the world October 9th.

Okay, lady. Who are you and why do we care?

Originally from Long Island, New York, I have been a writer since the age of five. I began writing illustrated storybooks, making covers out of the cardboard backs of legal pads. In junior high, I started keeping a diary in which I wrote short stories and vignettes based on my life. Then, in high school, I started writing poetry. In English class, I read the work of the Romantic poets and thought, naively, “I can do that!” I spent the next fifteen years or so honing my craft as a poet. I went to Boston University to earn my MFA in poetry and taught English briefly at the College of Southern Nevada.

Around the age of thirty, I decided to focus on fiction and become a novelist. I started probably ten or fifteen different manuscripts, just trying to teach myself the craft of fiction. I am excited that my first novel, Aveline, will be coming out on October 9, 2024!

I read your first book of poetry, which is something I rarely do, and enjoyed it. I’m excited to see the book out in the world. What’s Aveline about?

It’s about a thirteen-year-old girl named Aveline Fleur, the granddaughter of her country’s Leader, and the daughter of its Lightminister (i.e., chief propagandist). Aveline grows up believing that she lives in the most prosperous, most peaceful country in the world. In reality, its dictatorial government suppresses dissidents by brainwashing them using powerful new drugs. When Aveline discovers what’s really going on, and that her best friend’s mom has been disappeared by the government, she has to leave her comfortable, safe world behind and take action. Her journey is a coming-of-age story as much as it is a struggle to protect the people she loves. When we first meet Aveline, she is a timid girl, but by the end she has blossomed into a confident young woman.

It has a very Divergent kind of feel to it. Where did the story come from?

Back in 2012, I began writing a short story about a young woman named Allyn and her troubled relationship with her daughter Aveline. Both were members of their country’s ruling family. Allyn was not a very good role model for Aveline since she was hungry for power at all costs. Allyn even manipulated her boyfriend, a lower-class man, for political gain. However, I didn’t get beyond a few pages when I ran out of steam. I wasn’t sure at the time where the story was going or what my goal was in telling it.

I let the idea stew for about seven years while I worked on other projects. Then, in early 2019, I started working on it again and developing the plot. How would Aveline react if she learned that her mother, a powerful governmental figure, was up to something wicked that affected the entire society? How would their relationship change? Would it even survive? With these questions in mind, I began the manuscript that would eventually become Aveline. I worked on it for five years, on and off, before it was accepted for publication by The Wild Rose Press.

What are the authors who helped form you? I’m going to assume it’s an eclectic list.

The first author I fell in love with was Sylvia Plath. My twelfth-grade English teacher gave me a copy of The Bell Jar, and I devoured it, along with Plath’s Collected Poems. Never had I read prose or poetry that resonated so deeply with my personal experiences as a teenage girl. I still read Plath to this day and find something new in her work every time.

Currently, I also really enjoy Janet Fitch (her best-known work is White Oleander), Robert Jordan (The Wheel of Time series), Frank Herbert (Dune), and Philip Pullman (His Dark Materials series). Each author is very different, but each has taught me about the craft of storytelling, character development, and world-building.

How can we find out more about the wonder that is you?

You can connect with me at my author website, www.sjcarson.com, and on social media as follows:

If you hate starting series that aren’t complete, consider the Johnny Lycan: Werewolf PI series. The grand finale, Johnny Lycan & the Last Witchfinder is available now on Amazon and from Black Rose Writing. All three books are now available on Audible.

“I’ve been a fan of this series since the beginning, and while I’m slightly devastated that this is the end of it, I LOVED The Last Witchfinder.” S G Tasz