Blue Umbrella Official Feb Mar 2019 issue | Page 6

The Trilogy Concludes
By Em ily S.
AOA English teacher Kristen Hogrefe?s
final book in the Rogue Trilogy, The Reactionary,
launched on February 19. In a recent interview, I
was able to talk to her and hear the story behind
the books. consecutive book. That said, reviewing details is
important so readers can easily pick up the next
book.
What is the inspiration and reason
behind writing this series? Be patient. Even if you think your story is
ready for publication right now, give it time to rest
and go practice writing something else. Then,
come back to it with fresh eyes, and be willing to
revise and accept objective, constructive
criticism. The key to good writing is practice,
perseverance, and a healthy dose of humility.
We are always learning and growing in our craft.
How can the student body buy the
series?
I personally enjoyed many of the popular
dystopia stories but found them lacking a
message of hope. My goal in writing this trilogy
was to offer that missing element from a
Christian world view but to stay true to the genre
itself.
Which character did you most enjoy
writing and feel like you could relate to the
most?
Tough question! I truly enjoyed writing
Gath because of his powerfully redemptive
character arc. However, I probably most relate to
my heroine Portia because I gave her a physical
flaw that I understand. Also, I think we all can
relate to her struggle of learning that our identity
is not what happens to us or even what we do,
but rather, our identity must be found in Christ.
Was there a character you honestly
didn?t like while you were writing?
Felix is such a slimy character! I don't like
him, even though I understand what motivates
him to act the way he does.
What was the hardest thing about
writing this series? What was the best or the
easiest?
The hardest part of writing a trilogy is all
the details that I must keep straight, while also
remembering the long-term goal. A trilogy is one
continuous story, but each novel should have its
own plot line and at least some resolution. On
the flip side, a benefit to a series is that I
establish the setting in book one and don't have
to keep reinventing all those details for each
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If you could say anything to young
authors, what would you say?
The complete series is available on
Amazon in both paperback and Kindle format. If
you read these books, please leave a review and
share your thoughts! I always enjoy hearing from
my readers.