We recently connected with Stephanie Brick and have shared our conversation below.

Stephanie, thanks for joining us, excited to have you contributing your stories and insights. Alright – so having the idea is one thing, but going from idea to execution is where countless people drop the ball. Can you talk to us about your journey from idea to execution?

The idea to write a children’s portal-fantasy adventure was only a brief moment in my journey to realize THE SECRET DOORS OF CANNONDALE. First, there were months of uncomfortable, unrelated build-up that led to me sitting on the couch, scanning my living room for inspiration, when I was struck by the ideas of writing a story and diving into a wholly different realm.

The real work came in the many months between that initial inspiration and when I actually started writing the manuscript, and those months can be summarized in one simple word: discipline.

As soon as I’d decided to write a book, my creative mind was buzzing with all kinds of wondrous ideas and elements and descriptions that I felt I just had to incorporate! But I refused to let myself start writing until I had the entire story for Book One clearly and thoroughly outlined. This discipline was a crucial step of the creative process for me: I knew without the structure of an outline, there would be no backbone to hold my pretty words and thoughts upright into the engaging, page-turning story that it ultimately became.

It took months of drafting, refining, and redoing to develop my final outline. Once it was finally complete, it felt so gratifying to dive into the real writing. Having done my diligence upfront, I could now let my creativity flow freely, filling every nook and cranny of my technical outline with fantastical ideas and nuances and fun. Then, over a few years’ time, a lot more work, and the help of a great development team–including beta readers, editors, consultants, and more–I’ve been lucky enough to see my inspiration evolve into the backbone of a book and then a story filled with heart that’s resonated with readers in more ways than I could have imagined.

Awesome – so before we get into the rest of our questions, can you briefly introduce yourself to our readers.

I am a national award-winning debut novelist! My book, THE SECRET DOORS OF CANNONDALE, the first book in THE CANNONDALE CHRONICLES trilogy, was awarded the Gold Medal for Best Children’s Book 2024 (ages 8-12) in the Readers’ Choice Book Awards and has since received multiple national and international honors. The story follows an outcast girl looking to belong who discovers a secret doorway to other worlds.

Growing up, I loved writing: poems, short stories—even a full novella. I considered following writing as a career but (perhaps not where you thought this was going!) decided not to pursue it in college. Instead, I focused on another of my passions: architecture.

As it turns out, writing is a beautifully adaptable and transferrable skills you can apply to any professional field. After I graduated, I loved my job as an architect, but there were plenty of little (or sometimes big!) opportunities for me to enjoy writing on the side, too—as a design expert. This was a great way to apply a less common skillset—that I both had and enjoyed using—to a field I knew quite a bit about. Eventually, I started moonlighting part-time as a professional writer on architecture and design, and for nearly a decade, my articles were regularly published and syndicated by The Washington Post. I went on to publish an academic paper under peer review (a rare accomplishment for a licensed architect), and ultimately my first children’s fantasy novel (perhaps equally rare)!

As a professional writer, I’ve tested the waters with each new endeavor, sometimes diving deeper into the design sector and sometimes stepping fairly far from it. While THE SECRET DOORS OF CANNONDALE is not at all about the design industry, it’s hard to completely remove my identity as an architect from my writing… For instance, as you may have guessed, doors and secret passageways play a pretty big role in the story!

Is there a particular goal or mission driving your creative journey?

From the start, my north star has been to write the adventure my twelve-year-old self always wanted. As a child (who am I kidding: even now, as an adult), I love exploring old houses, spending time in nature, discovering new places. There’s this thrilling sense of curiosity and wonder, and the potential that something maybe a little unexpected—even magical!?—could be waiting, just around the corner or outside of view. My creative journey writing THE SECRET DOORS OF CANNONDALE focused on answering one question: what adventure really was behind that secret door I found as a child?

Is there something you think non-creatives will struggle to understand about your journey as a creative?

I used to think, as a professional, that “creative” work was the same as “fun” work—because for me, creative work is fun. But I’ve heard many people dismiss one as the other. This is based on a popular misconception, one that I think non-creatives may not understand and creatives may equally struggle to identify for themselves.

I had recently started at a new architecture job—one that was supposed to have plenty of creative design opportunities. But this was not the case: instead, the position was almost entirely technical. I learned the hard way that creative work was so much more to me than just the “fun” work—I actually required a creative outlet. Day in and day out, I felt like I was bursting at the seams with this pressure build-up of creative energy that no longer had a place to release in my work as an architect. It did not feel healthy.

For a few reasons, though, it wasn’t practical for me to just leave my new job. So I found another constructive path: redirecting that pent-up energy into a new creative project. A personal passion project. A project that explodes off the page with creativity and has won awards for doing so. Writing THE SECRET DOORS OF CANNONDALE was both my fun work and my creative work, and it taught me the critical lesson that I don’t just want, but I need, that kind of work in my life.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.stephaniebrick.com/secretdoors
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/stephanie.brick.author/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/stephaniebrickauthor/
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dXtk6ocb3Uo
• Other: Newsletter Sign-Up: https://www.stephaniebrick.com/secretdoors#newsletter

Image Credits

Book cover photo, c/o Raritan River Publishing