Fans of The Princess Bride will be ecstatic to meet debut author Melissa Rakestraw in today's interview! Read on to find out about Melissa's upcoming sapphic fantasy, Child of Draco, and why she was inspired to write it.
Note: 25% of the proceeds from this series will go to The Trevor Project, a cause that is very important to Melissa and many queer communities!
Hi, Melissa! First of all, could you introduce yourself?
My name is Melissa Rakestraw, and I am the author of Child of Draco, book one in The Celestial Duet series.
I was born and raised in rural Northern California and I now raise my children in the Sierra Nevada mountains not far from where I grew up. I work full-time and I have four children, so writing is a slow process squeezed into the rare moments of solitude I find late at night and early in the morning. When I am not writing or working, I enjoy hiking through our beautiful mountain paths, reading, listening to/watching true crime, and going on little adventures to places I have never been. My favorite thing to do is to drive and just stop and explore wherever I land.
When/how did you first discover that you wanted to be a writer?
I have always considered myself a writer. From the time I could write, I have been writing stories. From a daily journal in second grade where I told insane stories about my weekends on Mars, to short stories with my friends during sleepovers, to hundreds of unfinished stories scrawled across random journals, I have always had stories to tell. It wasn’t until COVID hit and I was given time to slow down and be home that I realized that these stories are more than just things that I dream up and leave behind. I finished my first draft of Child of Draco, then known as ‘Slay’, in 2020 and I have been working on it slowly ever since, never really thinking I would publish it. And now here I am, four years after I wrote my novel and ready to put it out into the world!
Tell us more about Child of Draco, and what inspired you to write it.
Before I had the story I had Nora. I knew from the moment she entered my mind I had to build a world for her to exist within. She started out as a daydream that I would dip into while doing dishes or folding laundry, and slowly the story sculpted around her.
Shunned by her family, Nora DuPont has spent her life searching for happiness within the shadowed corners of her mother’s grand estate. The arrival of a princess from a far-off land on the eve of a hastily planned wedding to Prince Adrian seemed exciting enough for Nora and the rest of the DuPont estate; until the dragon attacked. Descending upon the wedding in a haze of fire and death, the dragon abducted the princess and Nora seized her chance to disappear into the flames and escape her life of servitude.
Almost immediately, Prince Adrian challenged the people of his realm to save the princess and return her to him in exchange for land, title, and riches beyond their wildest dreams. With help from friends along the way and a mysterious power that seems to be growing within her, Nora sets off on the Prince’s challenge to save the princess from the dragon's keep.
But Nora quickly finds that rescuing the princess is only the beginning. When ancient beings awaken and forces of prophecy begin to set in motion, Nora must decide between the life she wanted, a world that never wanted her, and a love she never believed possible.
I think a lot of people would be surprised to hear I was heavily influenced by Shrek, which was playing a lot in the background while I was home with my children in the early days of COVID. If you read it, you might not pick up on the Shrek-fluence, but it’s there if you pay attention!
Your story is set in a fictional world featuring dragons and magic (two of our favourite things!). What was the process behind building this strong fantasy setting and were there any challenges? Is this place inspired by any other fantasy worlds or stories?
It will surprise no one that I am influenced by Tolkien, the king of rich fantasy settings. I do not claim to be today’s Tolkien by any means, but I did my best to emulate some version of his rich storytelling, immersive world-building, and dense lore into my story. I have an entire notebook on belief systems and lore for this world, and I will likely never use any of it! But having the world so fully fleshed out helped me during the writing process.
The biggest challenge for me was to say “I need to stop creating these deep religious sects and start writing”. It’s SO easy to get bogged down in the details, and I found myself cutting out chapters of unnecessary details when I went back and edited my book. Creating an immersive world wasn’t the challenge, it was leaving that world so I could write that I struggled with!
Can you tell us a little bit about your characters? Which, if any, did you identify with most and why?
Nora is the character I relate to the most. She has a deep desire for something more than what has been assigned to her, which I think everyone can relate to. She is unsure, afraid, and kind but doesn’t always do the right thing, she’s sarcastic and funny, and she is motivated at her core by a fear of losing those she loves. Beyond her personality, she also struggles with panic attacks which is something that I deal with as well. It was very healing to write a character who accomplishes so much and also has panic attacks; that they don’t define her or prevent her from accomplishing her dreams.
Finn is a friend Nora finds along the way, and he is just kind of the jack of all trades. He very much fills the “mentor” role for Nora, teaching her how to survive and defend herself. I see myself in his sense of humor, which can be a little off-putting and dark but for the most part, gets the laugh. My favorite part of writing Finn is having a male character who is not romantic to the main character and is purely just a good friend. He is complicated, loves deeply, and shows his emotions, which was also something very important to me when writing a male character in my book. He also begins to slowly take the back seat as Nora becomes stronger, gladly giving her space for the largeness within her which I really enjoyed exploring. I became VERY attached to Finn!
Princess Gabriella, or Briella as we quickly get to know her, is a fiery redhead with a spirit I admire and wish I had myself. She is strong, capable, and passionate, and she strives to honor her people. She is a born leader, and although she is the one in need of rescuing at first she very quickly becomes a force to be reckoned with. It was fun for me to write a ‘damsel in distress’ who is also a total badass.
The book features lots of queer representation, as well as mental illness, being an outcast, and difficult family dynamics. Why was it important to you to include these aspects?
I grew up in rural Northern California and my exposure to the world came largely through books, so it was important to me writing this novel that I find ways to keep that going.
My guiding principles when I began writing this book were that my queer characters will not be oppressed due to their sexuality and that my characters are at their most powerful when they are authentically themselves. Nora becomes more powerful as she begins to accept herself, and you meet a trans woman who is one of the most powerful characters in my book because she followed the signals from her body and accepted the woman she is. I wanted this book to be a window for young people in small, rural communities like the one I grew up in where they find total acceptance of who they are.
These ideals led me into places of self-examination and although I am very lucky to have a mom who accepts me fully for who I am, I have been on the receiving side of hate especially in my community when I was much younger. I have felt the sting of not being accepted by my community, of having family hurt me and not understand me, and largely I have had to grow and ‘accept the apology I will never receive’ and move on from people that will never change. These lessons shaped who I am, and I wanted this story to convey that to a younger audience.
Did you find any challenges while writing this book and/or preparing for publication? How did you overcome them, if at all?
My greatest struggle with writing has been resisting changing my book entirely. Every revision I find myself saying “but what if I…” and then I spiral into a world of possibilities that keep me from finishing my book. At one point I decided to change the POV entirely, at another point I decided to rewrite the entire thing and have the villain be the love interest. This book has seen so many versions until I finally told myself to stop, finish what I started, and get it out to the world.
In regards to publishing, my biggest struggle is just learning the world of self-publishing. I feel there is still so much for me to learn, and much of it I wont know until I finally have my book out there for others to read. The upfront costs of self publishing have also been a struggle, something I’m sure all self-published authors relate to!
How do you ensure that your passion for storytelling stays alive with so many other demands on your plate?
When I feel burnt out or like I am losing the spark, I read the books I used to read when I was younger and looking for myself in stories, and I watch the movies that made me feel safe when the world didn’t feel safe. Tamora Pierce’s Protector of the Small quartet was my refuge, and has helped me to finish my book when I feel overwhelmed. I hate to keep bringing up Shrek, but it’s truly the movie I watch when I need to feel inspired. I promise this book is not Shrek!
We wouldn't complain if it was!
We’d love to know what you have planned for the rest of the series! Can we get any hints?
This book ends with a cliff-hanger in the epilogue that has left my beta readers flabbergasted, and I am excited to explore that more in the second book. You can expect the theme of complicated family dynamics to be at the heart of book two, with opportunities for redemption and ultimate betrayal. You’ll have to wait for book two to find out which way that pendulum swings!
Have any shows, movies, books, or games influenced your own work at all?
So SHREK. Ok now that Shrek is out of the way, Princess Bride and Lord of the Rings were definitely movies that influence me. The Tricksters Duet by Tamora Pierce is a heavy influencer for all my writing, this book included, and the wonderful movie Ever After is another great influence on my writing. Child of Draco feels to me like high stakes Princess Bride with dragons and lesbians!
If you could give any advice to authors in a similar position to you, what would it be?
My advice to other authors is to not give up! If you don’t have the funds, work on edits while you save up. If you are feeling creatively empty, go back to the root of your passion to refill your cup. Just stay in it, your story must be told!
Our podcast focuses on media we’re currently loving. Are there any books, shows, movies, or games you’re enjoying at the moment? Any recommendations for our audience? Bonus points if it includes sapphics!
I am obsessed with cozy farming sims like Fae Farm, I highly recommend it for mindless joy. I am currently re-reading the Beka Cooper series by Tamora Pierce, and listening to Pride & Prejudice & Pittsburgh which is a great mindless sapphic read and it just hits you right in the ‘I need a Jane Austen hit but I don’t need to dive too deep into Austen right now’, which is a very specific kind of mood to be in.
Find out more about Melissa
Website: https://www.seemelissawrite.com/
Melissa Rakestraw is a very creative writer and storyteller. I Love how she writes and wish her all the best!!