Ashes and Miracles follows a sister of the Priest Hamlet order, who is forced to flee with the sacred Ashes of St. Arne to protect them from raiders trying to steal the holy artifact. What was the inspiration for the setup of your story?

Initially, the story was going to be a globe-trotting epic featuring the Wyrmsbane brothers and Alacrity as they tried to reunite the ashes with their rightful home. However, as I was writing I realised that I had taken on a more intimate and low-stakes approach and much preferred that. Not every fantasy tale needs to be Lord of the Rings; sometimes a trip up the fantasy coastline with a friend can be equally as entertaining.

Alacrity has lived a sheltered life and must learn to survive in a world on the run with two strangers. What were some driving ideals behind your character’s development?

Initially, I had it planned that Alacrity would be stuck in a new world and being forced to learn to survive, but then I realised she was a very strong character who held true to her morals and ideals. I wanted to show how even though she was sheltered her idealism could positively impact those around her and be the driving force of others’ growth.

What were some themes that were important for you to explore in this book?

I think very clearly I was driving at an idea of family, faith, and the idea of second chances. Everyone is in a really bad place when the story starts and while not everything is resolved and there are steps to take left, through each other everyone is on the path to improvement.

Is this the first book in the series? If so, when is the next book coming out, and what can your fans expect in the next story?

This is the first book in the series, yes! Originally it started as a collaborative writing project with a friend of mine but we both completed and published our works around the same time. I’m working on a prequel at the moment, focusing back to the first Wyrmsbane and the story of how the dragons were chased from the land, you can expect to see it early next year if all goes well!

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Original source: https://literarytitan.com/2024/08/18/second-chances/