The Big Idea: Athena Giles

Sometimes, you have to take inspiration from wherever you are. In author Athena Giles’s case, most of that inspiration came from their time in New Zealand and New Hampshire. Follow along in their Big Idea to see how the sea contributed to the creation of their new novel, Waves Take Your Bones.

My Favorite Bit: Athena Giles talks about WAVES TAKE YOUR BONES

“She cursed like a sailor.” As I was writing Waves Take Your Bones, I knew I couldn’t have a novel about a seafaring society without including some colorful cursing. Besides, who wouldn’t start swearing a bit when confronted by zombies?

The problem was, I was writing a young adult novel. When I was deepest into my drafting process, I was a teaching assistant working with 6th graders. I wanted to write something that my students could read and be appropriate to feature on their classroom’s bookshelves or in a school library.

Author Interview with Space Wizard Science Fantasy

“Waves Take Your Bones” – The first in a trilogy! Tallis and Finn, simple farmers, find their quiet village overrun by shriekers, a horde of undead revenants. After a devastating attack and heartbreaking losses, they must flee the only land they’ve known for the capital of the kingdom of Okaesa. Along the way, Tallis and Finn are separated from the other refugees, with their only escape across the Nightmare Bridge, a thing of horrific legends, which leaves them both scarred from the experience.