Fresh FIction Box Not To Miss
Mary Lindsey | The Influence of Place
Author Guest / November 25, 2017

The earthy, gritty, dangerous atmosphere for HAVEN was inspired, in large part, by where it takes place. Once I’d decided it should be set in the Texas Hill Country due to the large amount of German immigrants who settled there in the 1800’s (the magic is steeped in German witch and shifter lore), I visited the area for a while. One of my excursions was to The Enchanted Rock State Natural Area. Not only did my visit add some dimension to the characters, it added texture to the story—prickly, spikey texture. What struck me on my visit to Enchanted Rock was that the terrain seemed out to get me. Everything had sharp edges or thorns which influenced several scenes, including the one below, in which Rain remembers Freddie had no shoes the last time he’d seen her, which wouldn’t be remarkable unless you were walking through this: Excerpt from HAVEN God. She wanted to talk again. He wasn’t sure he could form words, much less walk after she touched him like that. He climbed the fence, trying to get his shit together before he answered. “Well, Gerald acted weird.” “He always does.” She moved up the trail as if she…