Ask Annabelle - Zombie Dana Edition (Patreon)

If you haven't had a chance to read the last chapter yet, stop reading this and go read it now. Then come back.

Skinnii whipped this up just for fun earlier this month. Zombie Dana and Tick-Tock ready for their big adventure. Skinnii has known for quite some time now that I was planning on giving Dana her own storyline. He's like a vault of secrets.

Anyway, I've had a couple of questions about Dana that I thought would be fun to answer here.

Q1. Why make Dana a lesbian?

A1. In truth, Dana wasn't originally going to be gay. However, the moment Beth won that long ago poll, I knew I was going to make her into a zombie. 

I also knew that I was going to make this zombie girl travel across the country in a way that Mike can't. The number one complaint I get is that people want to see Mike explore the house without people bothering him (namely the Society). This makes me laugh because I have apparently created a group of baddies that are causing real world stress for readers, but I also listen closely. I needed a character that could have their own story.

However, I needed to create that motivation for her to do so. When I started Book Two, I needed a reason for Dana to be willing to travel away from the house. If she had been sexually attracted to Mike, this would have made her reasoning for leaving very weak.

Dana's sexuality also offered me the chance to make her more interesting as a character. There are plenty of heterosexual and bisexual women in the Radley House already, and I wanted to create someone who fell outside of the "Everyone bones Mike" formula to expand my roster and stretch my abilities as a writer.

Q2. Did you deliberately write Alex so that the reader wouldn't know she was a woman?

A2. Yes. I wanted that to be a reveal for the reader. I kind of wanted to capture the relationship between Alex and Dana without holding up the neon "lesbians here!" sign. For anyone who has ever lost someone, I definitely wanted to capture that fragmented way of thinking about the one you lost.

Years ago, I lost a family member. When I would dream about them, I could never look directly at them in the dream because I would wake up crying.

Q3. So a lesbian zombie, a sentient motorcycle, and a succubus walk into a bar...

A3. I always knew that Dana and Tick-Tock would leave together, but Lily's involvement surprised me. She actually has quite the backstory, and I realized that she would end up empathizing with Dana. 

To be fair, Lily was only partially planned to begin with. She was going to try to eat Mike's soul in his sleep, and Mike was going to defeat her and become her master. But when I wrote the end of the chapter, I realized that Mike wouldn't keep her and she suddenly became this free agent who comes and goes. Her path to redemption will take her away from Mike for a bit, and she will become more heavily involved in Book Four.

That, and a succubus with low morals and a lesbian zombie hyped up on magic semen makes for an interesting Friday night. 

Q4. Why start a separate story?

A4. I wanted to tell a story outside the house that was about the house. The other complaint I got from readers with Book Two was that they felt like there were too many paths to follow at once. Of course, I am getting ready to settle that by writing a separate work altogether.

Of course, HFHM will always be the main storyline I pursue on this page. Dana's story will be worked on when I need to take a break, and you won't see any of it until at least 2019.

That's it from me! I will give you all a book update in the near future, and stay tuned for a Book Three poll for 3+ Patrons. Hope you all have a fabulous week!