Debut Author Guest Post: Isabelle Knight on Her Journey to Publication as a Teen and Enchantria: Guardian’s Heir Giveaway

 Happy Monday Everyone! Today I’m excited to have Isabelle Knight here to share about the last book in her debut middle-grade fantasy, Enchantria: The Last Hope. I really enjoy middle grade fantasy, and Isabel’s sounds like an action-packed story that I’m excited to read. 

Here’s a blurb from Goodreads: 

A spellbinding, middle-grade fantasy from debut author, Isabelle Knight. Perfect for fans of Gail Carson Levine and Deva Fagan, as well as readers of Wilderlore and the Starfell series.

In a land of magic, secrets, and stars, one girl must fulfill a prophecy and save them all.

Elena Ramirez’s mother vanished eleven years ago, leaving behind only a golden key that unlocks… absolutely nothing. Or so she thought. On her sixteenth birthday, Elena discovers the key holds a magical secret, and she’s pulled in through a portal into the kingdom of Enchantria.

But not all is as it seems. As an ancient prophecy unfolds, Elena is forced to become on of the guardians of the land and she and her friends will have to embark on a perilous quest to seek the Tribe – an ancient group of people who may not even exist. And if she fails Enchantria will fall to its greatest enemy – a sorceress of shadows and ravens who has waited centuries for her chance to rule.

Magic, mystery, and destiny collide in this thrilling middle grade adventure about courage, friendship, and belonging. 

Now here’s Isabelle! 

If you told me one year ago that I’d be writing this guest post, that I’d actually be able to call myself a published teen author, I’d laugh you right out of the room. My debut middle-grade fantasy, Enchantria: Guardian’s Heir, came out last summer, and now, the final book in the series, Enchantria: The Last Hope is soon going to be released into the world. And to be honest? All of this still feels like a dream – impossible, surreal, amazing, but also impossible. 

I started writing when I was ten years old. It was the summer of 2023 in June, I was a huge fan of the Warriors series by Erin Hunter, and yet I was bored. My family didn’t go on summer vacations or anything, and most of what I could do was just staring up at the ceiling, wondering what in the world was I supposed to do this summer. 

And then I had the wild idea to write a book. I really didn’t have much hope for this book. After all, I’d never finished a single story ever. I never got past Chapter Two, and I always, always lost interest in the story after that. 

But this idea wouldn’t leave me alone. It was the kind of idea that was just nagging at me, begging to be written. It was an idea I’d had for quite some time, an idea I tried to write out several times before, but had always failed to do. But hey, it was a very boring summer vacation and I was desperate for something to do. And even today, I still remember the day I dragged myself to my computer, looked at my dad, who was sitting across from me, and said, “I’m going to write a book.” 

And so, sometime during November 2023, I finished the first draft of Enchantria: Guardian’s Heir. 

It was surreal. 

I screamed. 

And it wasn’t easy at all – I cannot tell you how many times I had writer’s block and put off the project for weeks thinking, “Maybe I don’t want to be a writer after all…” 

But I finished. I powered through the messy middle and reached The End. 

And even then there was still work to do. Honestly, even then I didn’t really take writing seriously. I always just thought I’d write this one series to see how it goes and that would be it. 

But then in February of 2024, my dad bought be a craft book on writing – Writing Magic by Gail Carson Levine. And I think it was really that craft book that convinced me to keep going. Because the way Gail Carson Levine spoke about writing… She made it sound so fun. Full of freedom and endless possiblities. I could do anything in writing. I could create whatever worlds I wanted and whatever characters I wished. 

So I finally decided to drag myself to the computer to start revising book one in the series (while also working on the first draft of book two as well, and I learned that it’s ever so difficult to juggle two projects at once!). And then later in the summer, I completed all the revisions. Developmental revisions, line edits, copy edits, etc. 

And it was then that I really realized that this book was done. That this book was ready to be published and to go out into the world. I’d studied just about every craft book on writing ever, watched practically ever AuthorTube channel I could possibly find, and devoured whatever information on writing and publishing there was. 

And so on August 28, 2024, Enchantria: Guardian’s Heir was officially published. (Now do note that I’m an indie author, and the process is different if you’re traditional publishing with an agent, editor, and publishing house). 

Book two followed on October 5, 2024 and then book three on December 23, 2024. 

And now I’m here. Sitting at my writing setup, writing this guest post. Book four is coming July 20, 2025. And then the series will be completed. It will be out there. In the hands of readers. And it feels like a dream. 

That’s not to say my journey ends here. Because there’s a lot of stuff that’s happened. Through all this, I’ve struggled so much with the crippling self-doubt that I can’t do this, that I can’t make it in the publishing industry as an indie author. That I’m not enough, both as a writer and as an indie author. I’ve struggled with internet trolls and all the people who’ve told me, “You need to follow these rules to write.” 

But if there’s anything that I’ve learned through all this is that this journey takes time. It takes patience. It takes determination. It takes sheer stubbornness, to drag yourself out of bed to write, even when that inner critic is screaming at me that I can’t write anything good. Sheer stubbornness to keep writing just because this is what I’ve been doing for close to two years now and I did NOT go through all those sleepless nights, listening to my characters chatter on in my head, scribbling down messy ideas in a tiny notebook just to give up. Through writing I’ve discovered so much about myself – my hopes, my dreams, my fears, and more.

 

Because the moment when you get to actually be able to hold your own book in your hands for the first time ever and to see your words on the page and to know that readers are finding and loving your book really makes it so worth it.

 

Thanks for sharing all your advice, Isabel! You can find Isabel at: 

To stay updated on all things writing and book related, you can find me on my blog: https://springfallschronicle.com/ 

Or my YouTube channel: https://www.youtube.com/@isabelleknightbooks 

Giveaway Details 

Isabelle is generously offering an ebook of Enchantria: Guardian’s Heir, the first book in the series for a giveaway. To enter, all you need to do is be a follower of my blog (via the follower gadget, email, or bloglovin’ on the right sidebar) and leave a comment by August 16th. If I do not have your email (I can no longer get it from your Google Profile), you must leave it in the comments to enter the contest. Please be sure I have your email address. 

If you mention this contest on Twitter, Facebook, or other social media sites and/or follow me on Twitter or Bluesky or follow Isabelle on her social media sites, mention this in the comments, and I'll give you an extra entry for each. You must be 13 years old or older to enter. This ebook giveaway is International. 

Marvelous Middle Grade Monday is hosted by Greg Pattridge. You can find the participating blogs on his blog. 

Upcoming Interviews, Guest Posts, and Blog Hops 

Wednesday, August 6th I have an interview with author Lillie Vale and a giveaway of her YA Hit Me With Your Best Charm 

Monday, August 11th I have an agent spotlight interview with Krista Van Dolzer and a query critique giveaway 

Saturday, August 16th I’m participating in the Old School Giveaway Hop 

Monday, August 18th I have an interview with debut author Ryan James Black and a giveaway of his MG The Dark Times of Nimble Nottingham 

Wednesday, August 20th I have an agent spotlight interview with Shelly Romero and a query critique giveaway 

Monday, August 25th I have an interview with author James Ponti and a giveaway of his MG Hurricane Heist 

I hope to see you on Wednesday!