“What happens next?”

That was what my daughter, Caroline, asked me after I finished reading her my (then) new novel, Tigerheart.  A reworking and reinterpretation of Peter Pan, Tigerheart told the story of a young boy named Paul who had a grand adventure.  And Caroline–seven years old at the time–was apparently quite taken by it.  At the end there were allusions to further adventures, and Caroline wanted to know what they were.

“You should do a story about his sister, Mary,” said Caroline without waiting for me to answer the question.

“Okay, well…what would you want to see happen to Mary?” I asked.

And she proceeded to tell me.  She told me all the major story elements she wanted to see.  The mythical country; her conveyance; Purl; Hunter.  All this and more came from Caroline’s boundless imagination, including the core concept:  Mary’s best friend’s imagination runs off and Mary has to go find it for her.

Every night I would read another chapter to Caroline and then get her thoughts for what happened next.  I came up with some of my own notions, but Caroline continued to be a font of ideas.  And over a period of time, Fearless came together.

You don’t have to have read Tigerheart to understand it, although I’d certainly recommend it.  Of all my novels, Tigerheart holds a special place in my heart.  And Fearless is right there with it.

Look for more details about Fearless, coming in print and digital formats later this month.