Broken (31 page)
Authors: Erica Stevens
This is not the type of story I like to write. I may not write fairy tales but I love a happy ending. I enjoy a love conquers all novel best but when I started this novel I knew there was no possibility of that ever happening. There never could have been a happy ending for Atticus. Though I can say that while writing this story, I very much wished I could change the rest of The Captive Series in order to give Atticus the love I think he deserves.
So why did I write this story even though it ripped out my heart, and more times than not I wanted to get up, walk away, and never look at it again? Because once it got inside my head, it wouldn't let me go.
I can remember exactly where I was when the idea for this story hit me. I was driving to my dad's in New York and had just gotten off the Mass Pike. I was heading toward I-84 through Connecticut. Anyone who has ever driven this road knows how long this stretch of highway can be, not to mention just how awful and miserable traffic can be between these two highways.
I was in the middle of this stretch of in-between when it hit me what had made Atticus the way he was. What had made him so twisted and broken. This story was so vivid in my mind that I immediately knew Genny's name, something that a lot of times I will batter back and forth with for a few chapters and sometimes even a whole book. She was so vivid in my mind that she wrote herself. By the time I drove the next two and a half hours, I had the whole story plotted out in my head.
When I started this book, I knew how it was going to end, what would happen between them, and I told myself not to get too attached. That wasn't to be though; I don't think I could ever not get attached. I fell in love with Genny. I've never cried as hard for a character as I did when she died. I even grew to love Atticus, a character I'd never had an ounce of sympathy for before. I put this story aside multiple times because of how hard it was for me to write it but Atticus wouldn't let go.
This isn't the kind of story I enjoy telling but as hard as it was on me, I am so glad that I did tell it. Atticus needed and deserved his turn. That doesn't mean I ever want to write another book like this, but who knows one day another doomed character might grab hold of me and not let go too. That's the best part about writing, the not knowing, and the strange characters who demand to be heard.
Even though this book could never have been a happy one, I hope you enjoyed it and came to love or at least understand Atticus more. In my mind, he and Genny have been reunited and they have found the happiness they deserve.
Also, it will be revealed what became of Camille in future books.
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My name is not really Erica Stevens, it is a pen name that I chose in memory of two amazing friends lost too soon, I do however live in Mass with my wonderful husband and our puppy Loki. I have a large and crazy family that I fit in well with. I am thankful every day for the love and laughter they have brought to my life. I have always loved to write and am an avid reader.
