Return to Earth Spotlight: Kristin Durfee
The Alvarium Experiment Presents Return to Earth
Today, I'm spotlighting author Kristin Durfee.
Interview with Kristin Durfee
Kristin
reads and writes in multiple genres and is a member of the Alvarium
Experiment,
the consortium of award-winning writers reinventing the way readers experience
short fiction. Her short story, “Project Bright Star” is available on
Kindle. Follow link to experience her take on the Return to Earth project.
Q:
What is the Alvarium Experiment and how did you become involved with their second
project, Return
To Earth?
KD:
The Alverium Experiment, referring to a bee hive, was developed last year
by a number of award-winning authors who wanted to join together to publish an
anthology. As a member of the Florida Writer’s Association, I became aware of
the project through one of the authors, a fellow writing group member Ken
Pelham, and was thrilled when so many of the stories from last year won awards
at the FWA Royal Literary Palm award ceremony in 2015. When I heard they were
doing a second installment, my brain started buzzing (no pun intended) on how I
could worm my way in. Months later, much to my surprise and excitement, Ken heard
me read a piece at a writer’s meeting. He approached me after and asked if I
wanted to be a part of the next anthology. I tried to play it cool, but inside
I was freaking out! I was so happy to be asked and gladly accepted.
Q:
What was the inspiration for your Return
To Earth
story, “Project Bright Star”?
KD:
When I first heard the prompt, I fell in love with the idea! I’d never
written science fiction before—I stick mostly to fantasy—so I was a bit worried
that I wouldn’t be able to come up with something. I sat down and decided to
jot a few ideas down. I am a HUGE X-Files fan, so I think the idea of
government conspiracies automatically was a good fit for me. I started to mull
over how people could be returning to Earth, and if there was possibly a secret
the country may be hiding that would be exposed by their arrival. PBS was born.
I knew I wanted to follow both sides of the story, both a person on Earth and
one returning. Lizbeth and Gladys were natural fits. They are similar in
personality even though they grew up hundreds of millions of miles apart. I
also liked the thought of a group growing up in a series of bubbles, both
physical and mental, and what that would do to the formation of their selves
and ideas.
My story was originally much longer, so I had to
pair it down quite a bit to hit the 10k range, but I may expand it one day into
a full-length novel. The characters have been bugging me, so you never know.
Q:
So it sounds like the idea came pretty easily to you after all. Was the writing
just as easy?
KD:
As with all writing, it had its moments! Though I did try, much more than
I do with some of my other writing, to let my characters meander into the story
a bit. My biggest challenge was then reining them back in! The story wanted to
be bigger than I had time for. There were a few side plots and stories that had
to be cut. I also had to do a bunch of research, something I am mostly able to
avoid as a fantasy writer. It was much harder since I couldn’t just make
everything up! That’s one of the interesting things about science fiction, sure
it is fiction, but it has to feel
like it could be real. My goal was to bring that to my story. I hope I leave
the reader wondering…does she know something we don’t?
Q:
What does your next year as a writer look like?
KD: Crazy! But I am so blessed
and wouldn’t have it any other way. Two Worlds, the second book in my YA
Fantasy trilogy, Four Corners, just came out. It follows four years after the
last book left off. I am working on the final installment, One Earth, and am
hoping to have it to my publisher by the end of October for a late-2017 release.
I also am part of another anthology called Thrill of the Hunt 2. My story,
Revenge from Within, is about a vigilante killer in Seattle. It was my first
time writing a thriller as well, so I have certainly flexed my creative muscles
this year!
Q: How can readers find out more about your work?
KD: I try to dabble in as much
social media as I can, to varying levels of success. But you can find me on my
website www.kristindurfee.com on twitter @KristinDurfee, on facebook, and wattpad. I love to hear from readers, so please feel free to reach
out! I’d also love if you’d consider writing a review on any work of mine that
you’ve read. I am running a rafflecopter giveaway for a FREE Kindle Fire and
writing a review gets you two entries! There’s a bunch of other ways to enter,
too, head over to my facebook page to click the link to enter.
Thanks
so much for taking the time to hear more about me and my writing, wherever in
space this finds you, I hope it finds you well!
About the Author
Kristin Durfee’s debut novel, Four
Corners, was published by Black Opal Books in 2015. Book Two in the
Trilogy, Two Worlds, is available now through all major retailers.
Kristin
grew up outside of Philadelphia where an initial struggle with reading
blossomed into a love and passion for the written word. She currently resides
outside of Orlando, FL, and when not enjoying the theme parks or Florida sun,
she spends most of her time with her husband and their quirky dogs.
She is a member of the Florida Writers Association.
She is a member of the Florida Writers Association.
About Return to Earth
Return to Earth is the second project of the Alvarium Experiment, a consortium of accomplished and award-winning authors.
The stories do not need to be read in any particular order; each story is an entry point into the overall story.
Return to Earth stories & authors are:
"AOB" by Bria Burton. Aona, an Alien-Operated Bot (AOB), suffers a malfunction that could jeopardize her mission on Earth and could lead to the extinction of an entire species from another planet.
"The Paradoxical Man" by Bard Constantine. Albert Rosen is one of five explorers who vanished on a deep-sea expedition into the Bermuda Triangle. He returns to Earth centuries later, transported across space and time through a mysterious wormhole. However, Earth is not the home he remembers. Humankind has been evacuated, and the survivors lie in hibernation aboard the Locus, an orbiting space station. Rosen is forced to match wits with Deis, an artificial intelligence determined to keep humanity in stasis until he is convinced they are fit to return.
"Children Of The Stars" by Charles A. Cornell. In Japan, an American medical researcher discovers the deadly secret behind an eighty-year-old woman's ageless appearance and incredible fertility, and her connection to the bizarre disappearance of the freighter the Ourang Medan in 1948.
"Recovery"by Veronica Helen Hart. When a virus threatens the lives of everyone on board a transfer station for intergalactic travel, it's up to Dr. Candace Bertram to retrieve the only known vaccine from Earth. The risky, untested method of transport could mean catastrophic mission failure, and grave danger for Dr. Bertram.
"Coming Home" by John Hope. Finally achieving his dream of being an astronaut on the Jupiter missions, Jasper's mind is elsewhere, on the recent loss of his stepfather, Bud. But Jasper's space mission is interrupted when he is sucked into a wormhole that transports him to a different time, 30 years in the past. And now, doctors don't believe where he's from. Fortunately, his loving nurse at his side comforts him and a love builds. That is, until he realizes that his nurse's son is Jasper as a young boy.
"Someday Loyal" by Elle Andrews Patt. Alien invaders are lobbing fireballs at Peoria, but Grandmama is holding tea. When the military arrives in search of Mrs. Suniol, Alice is drawn into the mystery of Lake Snow, a missing husband, and securing the key to an entire civilization's survival.
"Social Experiment" by Tracie Roberts. For the past two years Dr. Olivia Tate had led a satisfying life with her alien spouse, Kya Dumont. As a scientist and cancer survivor, Liv is on a mission to discover a cure for the deadly disease. But something equally deadly has put Kya’s people, the Oo’mahn, in danger of extinction. With an order to evacuate Earth, Kya struggles between helping her people and remaining with the woman she loves, especially now that Liv has also fallen ill. Now Kya’s ship is approaching and the couple must not only find a cure for Liv and the Oo’mahn, but also devise a plan to remain together despite the objection of the aliens.
"Gaia Returning" by C.L. Roman. Pirates steal things. It's what they do... When Captain Irina Demyanov’s first mate disobeys orders and steals the crown jewels of a vengeful alien race, she knows she’s out of options. Desperate to escape, Irina takes her chances on a dangerous vortex leap and lands near an unnamed, yet strangely familiar planet. The gamble may have paid off, but between hostile inhabitants and inevitable discovery by their pursuers, the pirates’ chances of survival appear slim. Can the human remnant find refuge, or will their enemies put a permanent end to the human race?
For additional info about the stories and authors, visit the website: www.alvariumexperiment.wixsite.com/returntoearth
Facebook Fan Page: The Alvarium Experiment
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