Cover (…and character) Reveal | The Black Rose Collection

I’m so thrilled to share with you the cover to The Black Rose Collection, the New Adult Christian fantasy anthology I’m a part of! I’m also doing the “What’s Their Name?” writer’s tag (revealing some more about my heroine), so grab a bowl of popcorn and enjoy! ✨

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About The Black Rose Collection

When a couple’s daughter is born with a deadly birthmark, can they escape in time? Or will they lose their daughter to evil? False accusations and threats force an innocent man to flee and fight for his life—but his path to freedom is threatened by memory loss. And when two friends become unexpected enemies, can loyalty overcome duty?

In this collection of seven Christian fantasy romance novellas, characters will learn the value of faith and trust as danger grows and justice is threatened.

From authors Madisyn Carlin, Kristina Hall, Vanessa Hall, K.R. Mattson, M.L. Milligan, Kaytlin Phillips, and Saraina Whitney comes The Black Rose Collection, a New Adult Christian fantasy anthology.

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“What’s Their Name?” tag (heroine edition)

Before I reveal the gorgeous cover, I’m going to share a bit about the heroine of my story in the collection, using the “What’s Their Name?” writer’s tag created by Miley Simmonds!

(Thank you, Joelle Stone, for tagging me! *winks*)

I’m going to go ahead and leave an open nomination for this tag, so if you’re reading this, consider yourself tagged!

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the rules

1. Don’t take other people’s words or ideas

2. Make sure the story is kid-friendly

3. Don’t be mean or bully others with your post

4. Fill out the questions as the characters were at the beginning of the book

5. You can tag up to seven bloggers

6. Make sure to email faithandwriting@gmail.com when you complete the tag

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The Questions

1. What’s their name?

Ravenna de Vivon.

This was one of the cases where I spent a long time scouring baby name sites and looking up meanings and debating what fit the character best. 😂

Ravenna doesn’t have a special meaning, per se, but it’s the name of an Italian city, which fit because Nocveran (her kingdom) is inspired by Italy. And then de Vivon just sounds so elegant and regal. Loosely translated from Italian, it means something along the lines of alive, which is kinda of an irony considering the plot of the story. But I’ll leave you to find out about that. XD (Originally, her last name was Dawes. Don’t ask why. I have no idea.)

2. What’s their role? (Sidekick, Main Character, Villain, etc)

Ravenna is the heroine of said story! Though I will say, there are moments where she almost crosses over into antihero territory.

Almost.

*seals lips*

3. Do they love anyone?

Her father, King Galvar, and brother, Regan.

In terms of romance, though, I think she’s a bit disillusioned and doesn’t fancy any potential prospects. Upon the opening of the story, that is.

4. Do they have any relatives?

Honestly, I don’t know. Ravenna’s a pretty private person, so there are still some things I don’t know about her, haha!

I would imagine she does, but…I am not currently looking to increase my novella’s word count. (That is the understatement of the decade.) I just can’t add a whole new subplot about any uncles or aunts or cousins she may have.

That might come in the sequel or potential expanded version, though. *winks*

5. Inspiration for character?

I wanted to try something new and write about a heroine who was very private, cold, and suspicious of everyone. A heroine who was calculating and almost ruthless, even.

*pats Ravenna’s shoulder* I’m sorry that’s what inspired you, honey. You don’t deserve that.

As I dove deeper into her character, though, I discovered that she, of course, has a very soft side; her cold exterior hides a lot of fear and pain.

Yes, I like traumatized characters. Don’t judge me.

6. Backstory?

I’ll let you discover this for yourself in the novella. 😏

7. Dream? Fears?

Well, her deepest fear is that no one can be trusted, not even herself. Her current dream is to live in a world where she can control everything so she could always be completely safe.

8. Friends?

She doesn’t have many true friends, but she is surprisingly close with her lady-in-waiting, Anah. Anah is ten years older than her and almost plays the role of the older sister Ravenna never had.

9. What is the story’s name?

Let me get back to you on that.

10. Blurb of the story?

I want to rework the blurb so it’s a little less spoilery, so here’s a rough tagline to tide you over.

A princess chooses ice over tears. An assassin calls himself a hero. Two kingdoms hang in the balance.

Whaddya think of that?

(Really, let me know. I’m genuinely curious XD)

11. What are their habits?

Ummmm, constantly biting back sarcastic rejoinders. Analyzing people to gauge how honest they’re being. Does that count?

12. Random fact about them?

Well, I’m sure you were curious what a typical outfit looks like for Princess Ravenna de Vivon, right?

She often wears high-collared silk dresses (silver, indigo, wine, or other dark/royal colors) embellished with subtle patterns of the moon and/or stars, or other such ethereal patterns. When it’s cold, she wears a rich merino wool cloak, her near-black hair in an updo or chignon.

13. Personality?

I think she’s an INTJ. (Or possibly an ISTJ.) She’s private and quiet, tends to keep her opinions to herself, knows how to manipulate people, and has a rather sarcastic sense of humor. She’s often lost in her head, and needs a lot of time to recharge after being in social settings. In fact, she’d rather not be in social settings in the first place. She’s very loyalty-oriented and values stability and security.

I also wrote in her character profile that she is the farthest possible thing from spontaneous. 😜 So when does she does something on impulse, everyone is shocked.

She has a kind of mysterious, elegant vibe.

14. Hobbies?

She absolutely adores horseback riding, and that comes into play a lot in the story. I know now a lot more about horses, thanks to all the research I’ve had to do. 🤣 (Though I’m still by no means an expert!)

15. Inspiration for the story?

The prompt for the Black Rose Collection: Receiving a black rose is a death sentence. That’s what inspired my story.

Haha, but other than that, here’s a random list of my other inspirations!

• Italy
• Ireland
• dark medieval fantasy vibes
• Madisyn Carlin’s fantasy novels
• The Hero’s Lot by Patrick Carr
• Prince Caspian (the movie)
• Karen Witemeyer’s historical romance novellas (I swear, this author is the QUEEN of novellas 😍)
• Pinterest. ‘Nuff said.
• this post by Grace A. Johnson: enemies-to-lovers: how to do it right

16. Anything else?

A song that captures some of Ravenna’s internal conflict is “Born Without a Heart” by Faouzia. There was a point recently where I got a bit stuck, trying to understand her character and motivations, then listened to this song, which unlocked everything for me. So yay.

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And now, the moment you’ve been waiting for. The cover of The Black Rose Collection, designed by Mountain Peak Edit and Design.

You didn’t forget you were waiting for it, right?

BEHOLD!

If you’re excited about this project and want to help us spread the word on release day, please sign up for the launch team! We appreciate your help so much!

And for those of you who would love to read an ARC of the collection (basically, a free e-copy in exchange for a review), we have limited spots available. So sign up while you can! 😉

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Do you have recommendations of well-researched stories about horses? How would you improve my current tagline? How do you choose titles for stories? Have you ever written a hate-to-love romance? Are you excited for The Black Rose Collection?