We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Brittany Hansen a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.

Brittany, looking forward to hearing all of your stories today. Let’s jump right into how you came up with the idea?

I have been writing since I was a kid. However, the only stories I’d ever finished were short stories for homework assignments, never one of the myriad of novel ideas I’d experimented with. After college, it felt like a “silly dream” that wouldn’t pan out. At the time, I had someone close to me who was encouraging me to focus on ventures I could make money from instead. It wasn’t until I had my daughter that I slowed down and was able to put time back in creative endeavors that I’d let go of. I was down in St George with my infant and in-laws and we’d gone on a walk. The landscape down there is so unique: bright red rock mountains, with green sage and black lava rocks in the foreground. I decided to just do a little writing exercise that night before bed to describe it (in a brand new notebook; I’m a big believer of the power of pretty notebooks waiting to be filled with ideas.)
As I was writing, I had this line come to me that would end up being the first iteration of the opening line of the Abandoned Realm.
“Sarah was drinking coffee; the porcelain warming her hands, as she once again contemplated how to kill Bex.”
What we discover in a few lines is that Sarah is a writer and thinking about killing off one of her characters.
I suddenly had this (slightly terrifying) thought: what if every character I’d ever started writing (and inevitably never finished,) was actually REAL? Not only that, but by discarding their story, I’d banished them to an exile realm.

Brittany, love having you share your insights with us. Before we ask you more questions, maybe you can take a moment to introduce yourself to our readers who might have missed our earlier conversations?

I was an avid fantasy reader as a kid, and I studied creative writing in college. I live near the mountains in Utah with my husband and put two two young kids. The Abandoned Realm is my debut novel about when a writer stops writing her story and subsequently her hero gets ripped from her fictional world and sent to the Abandoned Realm. Then a portal is opened between the realm and the our world, flooding San Francisco with discarded fictional characters during a fantasy convention. Chaos ensues when her own character comes to demand she finish the story. It’s like Thor meets Free Guy and Stranger Than Fiction. It tackles things like self-doubt, the importance of creativity for creativity’s sake, and believing in yourself.

I’m currently working on a duology that’s a gender-bent Robin Hood retelling with magic and enemies-to-lovers that’s coming out sometime in 2024.

I started out querying to get an agent and go the traditional route of publishing in 2022. At that same time, I had gotten back into my love of reading fanfiction. I got so inspired by people sharing stories with no possibility of making money. These are people who are putting out MASSIVE amounts of words, well over full-length novels, all for the love of a story. As if they just needed to get the story out of themselves to share with others, with no expectation, accolades, or profit tied to it.

It struck a chord that’s woven through all of The Abandoned Realm (doing things simply because it feeds your soul) that I decided to go the self-publishing route. Nowadays, with social media, authors have so much more access to their readers and potential readers. The pace of indie publishing is also quicker than traditional publishing, and the creative control was very appealing. It’s a lot of work and a huge learning curve, but for me personally, the benefits are worth it.

We’d love to hear the story of how you built up your social media audience?

I started a “Bookstragram” account on IG while I was still working on revisons for The Abandoned Realm. It was an outlet for me to nerd out, meet people who were interested in the same things, and a space to be creative with low stakes. The Bookstagram community is unlike most spaces I’ve found on social media: very welcoming, positive, inclusive, and minimal drama. I think consistency is an immense piece for any social media. Find something that is fun and organic for you. If you can find something you genuinely enjoy doing, it will be easier to be consistent and to find your people. People want to find connection and community, so just be as real as you can: you don’t need to be perfect, have stunning filters or the special editions of books (obviously translate this to your niche). Show up, engage with people in the comments (keep in positive) share content you enjoy, and don’t be afraid to slide into someone’s DMs and say, hey you like the nerdy stuff I do, let’s be friends.
As a former theater kid, I love cosplay and making reels about books I’m currently obsessed with. For some, that would be your worst nightmare. Some people love taking really pretty pictures of their current reads or making memes for fandoms. Find the community you enjoy, put yourself out there, and add value to the market you are in.

What’s the most rewarding aspect of being a creative in your experience?

When someone tells me they felt seen in my writing. Books have always been a haven for me: escaping into a fantasy world helped me survive tough times and helped me process the world around me. I am constantly learning about myself and making sense of the world through reading. So providing even a small piece of that to someone else is so rewarding for me.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.brittanyhansenauthor.com You can read the first chapter of The Abandoned Realm free on my website!
• Instagram: @abritbookish https://www.instagram.com/abritbookish/
• Facebook: Brittany Hansen Author
• Other: TikTok: @brittanyhansenauthor

Image Credits
headshots and full shot of launch party room by Brooke Janette Photography https://brookejanettephotography.com