Just copying my fb author post. Most of you dont know me. If you’ve followed my wattpad links, you know the first three chapters of Getting Thin is free there. But, more than likely, you don’t know me from Stephanie. So I’m going to explain something here that my fb fans pretty much already know.

Getting Thin is not about being skinny. Nor is it truly about a fat girl getting thin. OMG, did I just use the f word??? Yes. Yes I did. And I am going to paraphrase my own book here. Be fat. Be thin. Be purple polka dotted. Just love yourself. Happiness is not, never will be, and never has been about appearance. That is superficial and it is subjective. Everyone is beautiful to someone, even if they haven’t found each other yet.

Also, and this really should be obvious, I don’t agree with Eva’s actions. I understand them, but I don’t condone them.

With the sequel releasing on May 23, I thought this would be a good time to revisit Eva’s debut, Getting Thin: A Ghost Story

This was my first book on Kindle and I look back at it fondly. It wasn’t perfect and the sequel is, in my opinion, so much better. Anyway, I’ve managed to give myself quite a few nightmares 😂 However, that does not mean Getting Thin has lost its standing as a ghost story I’m proud of having written.

It was meant to be a slow burn horror, with a constant flow between present tense and past. And, written in first person, Eva herself was always, even in the original short story, as overly romantic, full of poetic tendencies, and dramatic as any sensitive teenage girl trying to discover who she really is. The fact that Eva’s true nature contained several serial killer tendencies shouldn’t (And didn’t, in my mind) take away from the fact that she’s a kid just figuring out what she’s capable of.

I never intended Eva to be an anti-hero when I first saw her in my head. This was back before Dexter ever came out. I was just starting to poke at the idea that the constant stream of conscience writing I had doing for years could actually be tamed and bent to my will. Eva was meant to be an overweight girl searching for herself in a world of bullies, crushes, and twinkies. Roxy was meant to be the friend that taught her how to love herself, Twinkies and all. However. I was not a full page in before Eva declared herself as a vicious predator. Like all the best characters, she got up and started walking around, telling me her story instead of the other way around. Imagine my surprise to find she was holding the bloody remains of a shattered, wooden bat.

I went against my initial instinct to scrap the story; anti heroes are difficult at the best of times and Eva, while very attractive, was a bit frightening. Her story caught me, though. Roxy wasn’t supposed to die, but she was murdered and not in a very pleasant manner, so I let Eva carry on because I wanted to know what had gone so terribly wrong.

The original short story had no ghost, although Eva was most definitely haunted by her best friend’s death. It was very fast, very violent, and, despite my initial reticence, I put it up for an online writing group to critique. It met with a very warm welcome. Despite her deep and frightening flaws, Eva was loved. Maybe because her changes were not an attempt to be loved, but because she was willing to risk everything to right a horrible injustice.

Writing the book, I decided to add the ghost of Roxy. I was never, and still am not, certain if the ghost actually existed, or if Eva made her up in desperation to alieve her lonliness. It is entirely possible she was a mix of Eva’s imagination and poltergeist activity (often caused by a teenage girl with repressed, violent emotions, not a ghost at all). It was never meant to be the sort of horror that had clean edges and perfect lines. Instead, I wanted it to be soft. Almost like a classic, gothic tale meeting a more modern world without losing its strange, unnerving atmosphere. I like to think that, even without a professional editor, my poor cousin roped into helping me, barely aware of what I was doing, I still succeeded fairly well.

I do know that, unless I’m getting really soft in my old age, this second book – which was unplanned when the first was written – is way more frightening. Maybe because the ghost, like Roxy in Getting Thin, could easily be a figment of Eva’s imagination, yet still manages to be violently aggressive toward her (and that’s putting it lightly). Or maybe it’s because, this time, Eva is facing something just as powerfully mad as herself and she does not have the advantage. Either way, I’ve had a few moments where my own imagination has spooked me hard core.

Bone Deep is a further exploration of the original main character. Just as this book was never planned, this is a story about what happens when you think you know yourself, then discover hidden depths. Forget everything you think you know about Eva; she’s been keeping secrets, even from herself.

If you would like to check out the first book, please find the link below. Getting Thin :A Ghost Story is just 0.99 cents. If you happen to be a kindle unlimited subscriber, it is available through the lending program 😉