When an assassin kills Princess Jiara’s older sister Scilla, her vengeful ghost is doomed to walk their city of glittering canals, tormenting loved ones until the murderer is brought to justice.
We chat with author Laura Rueckert about her debut novel, A Dragonbird In The Fern, along with writing, book recommendations, and so much more!
Hi, Laura! Can you tell our readers a bit about yourself?
Hi! Sure, I’m an American who moved to Germany for love, and I’ve now lived here longer than in the US! I’m passionate about LGBTQ+ rights, and I love traveling, my family, and my fuzzy black rescue dog. Oh, and chocolate. So much chocolate.
When did you first discover your love for writing?
I’ve been writing in my head my entire life. Any time I didn’t like the way a book or movie ended, any time I had to wait a week until my favorite TV show would continue, I concocted a version in my head. Eventually, I started writing them down. But as for trying to get published, I started about ten years ago.
Quick lightning round! Tell us the first book you ever remember reading, the one that made you want to become an author, and one that you can’t stop thinking about!
- First book: My mom says I carried a Mother Goose Tales book wherever I went when I was tiny, but the first book I really remember is—wait for it—How Babies Are Made!
- Made me want to be an author: I’ve always been a total bookworm, so I can’t remember. But the one that made me feel like I could become an author was Twilight.
- Can’t stop thinking about: Can I choose 10? No? Then Legendborn by Tracy Deonn.
Your debut novel, A Dragonbird in the Fern, is out August 3rd 2021! If you could only describe it in five words, what would they be?
Yes—it’s so soon now! Summing it up in five words is not easy, but here goes: royalty – murder -language – haunting – betrayal
What can readers expect?
A Dragonbird in the Fern is a YA Fantasy about a dyslexic princess named Jiara whose older sister Scilla is assassinated. Jiara takes her sister’s place as the bride to the young king of a faraway country, hoping she can catch Scilla’s murderer before her vengeful ghost kills their family. But that makes Jiara the assassin’s next target. Be ready for women and girls who rule countries, act as knife and javelin-wielding bodyguards, and are political strategists—and also men who care about what women think and don’t stand in their way.
Where did the inspiration for A Dragonbird in the Fern come from?
There were two main inspirations. First, while touring a German castle, I heard about a woman who lived there hundreds of years ago. She was foreign-born, in a political marriage, and didn’t speak German when she arrived. The castle was in the countryside (aka the middle of nowhere), and I wondered what her life was like.
The second inspiration was when my children were diagnosed with dyslexia, and I worked with them and their therapist to support them. We live in Germany, and some non-experts suggested I stop speaking English to them to let them concentrate on only one language. I really didn’t want to stop speaking my native language with them, but I researched to see if I should. I found that plenty of dyslexic people are multilingual. And that’s how Jiara came to have dyslexia.
Can you tell us about any challenges you faced while writing and how you were able to overcome them?
When I first started writing, everyone praised my voice but said I had major plot problems. So I read Story Engineering, Story Genius and Save the Cat Writes a Novel. Now I use beat sheets. Plotting and story structure can still be a challenge that I have to work on in revisions, but it’s definitely better. I’d highly recommend any of those books if you need help on plot.
Were there any favourite moments or characters you really enjoyed writing or exploring?
There were so many, I couldn’t list them all here, so here are two examples. First, getting into Scilla’s head. She’s a ghost and is confused and cut off from reality. She has some moments where she’s lucid but is then overcome with all-consuming anger. Second, I also really had fun writing Jiara’s and Raffar’s first conversation.
What was the road to becoming a published author like for you?
It was long… I wrote many manuscripts, queried some of them, received hundreds of rejections, got an agent, parted ways with that agent, and submitted my manuscript to my publisher myself. I was so thrilled when Flux wanted to publish it! Take it from me, persistence pays off when it comes to trying to break into publishing! But it doesn’t save you from getting more rejections. I’m still getting them now. It’s just part of the industry.
What’s the best and the worst writing advice you have received?
The best advice is to work with critique partners. You learn so much from their feedback, but also from analyzing their work and putting into words what can be improved. Not only that, you gain writing friends! And if it doesn’t work out with one CP, try another. Sometimes you have to work to find the right match.
The worst advice was that if you have an idea for a book series, the entire series must be written before you query. This is absolutely not necessary, and if the first book doesn’t sell, it could take up a lot of time you could have spent writing something new.
What’s next for you?
I’m currently working on a speculative alternate history set in 1980s West Germany (so much retro fun!), drafting a new YA fantasy, and trying not to get sidetracked by a very nebulous idea for another YA fantasy with absolutely no plot yet.
Lastly, do you have any book recommendations for our readers?
*rubs hands together*
- YA contemporary: Between Perfect and Real by Ray Stoeve
- Rom-Com with sci-fi fan elements: Shipped by Meredith Tate
- YA Fantasy: Blazewrath Games by Amparo Ortiz, Cast in Firelight by Dana Swift, and Sisters of the Snake by Sasha Nanua & Sarena Nanua.
- YA sci-fi: Rise of the Red Hand by Olivia Chadha, Crownchasers by Rebecca Coffindaffer, and The Sound of Stars by Alechia Dow.
Okay, I’ll stop now, but hit me up on Twitter if you need more recs! Seriously!
You can find Laura on Twitter, Instagram, and TikTok, as well as at her website.
These were great questions! Thank you so much for having me here!