Introduction:

Aimee Slater is a fellow member of SpecFicNZ who has recently returned to the United States. She is also in the process of releasing her self-published novel, Breakable. I am delighted to have her here today to tell you a little about her book and what led her to write the Breakable story.

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Aimee L. Salter, author of Breakable: Why This Story?

On the surface, Breakable is the story of a seventeen-year-old named Stacy who can look in the mirror and talk to her future self.

It’s clear Stacy has a lot to overcome: She’s bullied at school, disapproved of a home, and in love with her best friend, Mark, who doesn’t think of her “that way”. Then, as the story progresses, Stacy discovers that her adult self has lied to her. A lot.

When I started writing Breakable over two years ago, the story was a compulsion for me. I couldn’t let it go. Why did this story demand to be written, when I had so many ideas, some of which were equally commercially viable?

I don’t know. And I’m sure if I did, my answer to that question would be different to every other writer’s. What I do know is that over the course of two years editing, revising, and over-hauling, I had to ask myself again and again why was I writing it? Because at its core, the answer to that question drove every decision I had to make.

For me the goal was very clear: Primarily I wanted young readers to know that I remembered what it was like to be seventeen years old. That I hadn’t forgotten what their world was like. Secondarily, I hoped those readers who suffered similar problems to my characters would know that I understood, and they weren’t alone.

A lofty goal? Probably. Will I achieve it? Maybe not. But I took a shot. And hopefully, even if kids aren’t thinking about it in quite those terms, they are at least aware of not being alone. Even if it’s only because the story resonated for them during those hours they sat behind its pages.

You see, at its heart, Breakable is about a girl’s battle against social isolation, and a general erosion her sense of self-value. A subject dear to my heart because, though Stacy and I are very different, we share a lot in the high school experience.

So whether my book succeeds or fails as a commercial product, as a writer I succeed when someone reads it and doesn’t feel cut-off anymore. And frankly, I get to share my world with someone whom I might never have met had I not written the book. That means I’m not alone for those hours either.

It’s a win-win, really.

Breakable, is available for Kindle, Nook and in paperback (via Amazon.com). You can also add Breakable to your to-read list on Goodreads at http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/18377058-breakable

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About Aimee Salter:

Aimee L. Salter was born in America, but spent much of her young (and not-so-young) life in New Zealand. After picking up a Kiwi husband and son, she’s recently returned to the USA.

She writes novels for teens and the occasional adult who, like herself, are still in touch with their inner-high schooler.

You can find Aimee at www.aimeelsalter.com, on Twitter (www.twitter.com/@AimeeLSalter) and Facebook (www.facebook.com/AimeeLSalter).