I can’t remember exactly which idea started my writing of The Fire Trials, but I do recall a few of the original ideas. Let’s start with the main one: my dream.
Why I had this dream
I have vivid, colorful, intricate dreams all the time. At this point in time, we were staying in our RV in a place that was abundant with ticks. And by abundant, I mean if you stepped outside in the grass, you were going to get at least one tick. I was traumatized by them.
The dream...
Enter my dream. In this dream, ticks had taken over the world. The ticks carried a deadly virus, and if one bit you, you were dead. They were red, tiny, and looked like little crab-aliens (don’t ask me what those are). As a result of this infestation, everyone left alive had built a tick-proof city, where they lived in safety and health.
Rules of the city
Every year or so, the city sent out a bunch of their teenagers to go and fight the ticks. The only way to kill these ticks was by setting them on fire. Thus, the teenagers were equipped with torches and clothes that ticks couldn’t bite through.
I don’t remember much of what actually happened, but there is one scene that sticks in my mind.
I was one of the teenagers chosen to fight the ticks. I was with three or four other people, and we were searching for ticks in an abandoned house that had a pool in its backyard. My friend (one of the teenagers) somehow got bitten by a tick. She died before we could bring her back to the city. I remember feeling heartbroken, and this feeling (like usual) lasted past when I woke up. Since emotional dreams usually stick with me, I decided I wanted to use this one as an idea for a book.
Pictures and flashes of inspiration
I remember watching an animated video for a song, and the scene I saw made me come up with a new scene. That scene inspired the entire theme of my book series. Strangely enough, I didn’t even end up using the scene.
Now, you may be wondering what this “theme” I’m talking about is. Picture this: the world, creation, and people. If you think about it, a lot of people only believe what they can physically see. This world is what they see, so that is what they believe. However, there’s the spiritual, and although you can’t physically see it, there’s a whole lot of evidence pointing straight to this invisible realm. Most people either can’t or choose not to see the evidence.
A lot of people’s reasons for not acknowledging the spiritual is because of what it would mean for their lives. Besides that, it is increasingly difficult to see the invisible when you fill yourself up with the world and all its distractions. Money, fame, fun—why chose a “boring” life over all this? The premise/theme of my trilogy is based on this, and to say more would probably spoil the story
The Hunger Games
No, I was not inspired by the Hunger Games. People tell me the plot sounds like it (teens killing teens part), but in reality, the idea developed from my dream.
The concept was to have something where people were being tested, and if they passed the test, they were rewarded. My original idea was a jousting tournament. However, I also had a very specific criteria for the test.
– The test had to be the goal of all the teens’ lives. This was supposed to be what they spent all their time preparing for, and it had to be something people were excited about.
– The test was supposed to have a reward that everyone wanted and envied (analogy for this world). However, when the MC’s figured things out, they had to realize nothing about what they were doing really mattered in the long run.
Overall, the test had to appear inviting and exciting. However, it had to be treacherous and unappealing in reality. Add extremity, gore, danger, and violence to the jousting idea, and you’ve got tons of kids trying to kill each other.
Piecing it together
My dream created the concept of the world, as well as some of the plot. Meanwhile, the scene that turned into the theme of the entire series crafted most of the plot. Mash everything together, and you’ve got The Fire Trials.
I hope you guys enjoyed this post. If you have any questions or suggestions, feel free to contact me. I will be releasing updates on my WIPS in the future, so stay tuned by subscribing to my email list at the bottom of this page. Happy reading, everyone!
