- When writing Linked, I listened to a lot of Bastille and The Naked and Famous. But what I consider to be “Corin & Benna’s song” is Mercy by Shawn Mendes. The first time I heard it on the radio I instantly knew.
- A friend of mine made up the name Benna for her new baby girl. I loved it and immediately filed it away for use in a story!
- Corin’s name, I stole from a reporter on the news!
- I didn’t plan for Corin to be a tracking device. Originally, it was just the watch, and Benna accidentally Linking with Jesse (showing him the city they were near) was what got them caught. But I realised, well, we’re in the future – surely technology has evolved past a simple tracking watch that can easily be removed.
- In my mind, Garnet Frenchwood looks a lot like Christina Hendricks.
- In Benna’s society, there are no celebrations like Christmas or Thanksgiving. The one thing they do celebrate however, is birthdays. It’s the one day a year where you are allowed to disregard your strict schedule – sleep in, spend more time on leisure if you please! Benna’s birthday is October 12th, and Corin’s birthday is June 27th.
- Corin grew up in Lovethorn in a large, multi-storey house overlooking the ocean. His bedroom has a balcony, and when it’s warm enough he sleeps with the door open so the crashing of the waves can lull him to sleep.
- Corin was a very average student. He preferred to joke around in class making other students chuckle. Teachers found him rather annoying. He’s definitely more of a hands-on type person. He can cook, clean, sew, fish, and build stuff. When he returned to Lovethorn he began an apprenticeship in construction. His math skills improved dramatically.
- Benna was really quiet at school. Academically she excelled, but socially she was paranoid about what other kids thought of her, worrying they would be intimidated by her or scared of her father. No one wanted to come and play at her house in case they said or did something that wasn’t adhering to the rules. As she grew older, no one invited her anywhere because they suspected she would tell when schedules were disobeyed. Jesse was the only exception to this. He found it exciting!
- The idea for Linked came from an article I saw about how some scientists had managed to link the brains of two mice, almost like telepathy. I wondered: what if that could happen with humans?
- I like to write in complete darkness. It’s lucky the keys on my keyboard glow!
- At this point in time, I have no plans for a sequel. Truly, I feel like their story has been told. However, if a great idea pops into my head, I will definitely write it. I miss spending so much time with my characters!
And that’s about it. If there’s anything else you might want to know, or other characters you want to hear more about – just let me know!
YOU ARE READING
Linked
Science FictionFor 17 year old Benna Denman, it's hard enough being the president's daughter. And when she develops a telepathic Link, life gets even worse. Her father isn't impressed with this new evolutionary ability. It means he could lose control over people's...
