I love to explore imaginative fantasy with characters who have lots of heart and need it, cause they go through some hairy hot spots before triumphing over their challenges. My latest WIP–my gift from the pandemic and political times we live in–has just finished it’s (hopefully) last round of pre-submission edits, and my agent will take it on submission in 2022. Here’s a little about it:

Robinhood’s daughter faces a terrible choice—give up her family’s legacy, or kill the dragonling she’s hiding from the sheriff. In this modern fantasy MG, eleven-year-old Rowen lives in a secret valley just outside Yellowstone, where her father was the hero of a cultish magic society. As a people they’ve kept themselves apart from the outside world and modern life, staying fanatically true to their calling to watch for the dragon’s return, and kill it. Despite the harsh guardianship of her uncle, the sheriff, Rowen is poised to be named the valley’s newest young protector and dragon slayer. But then everything turns upside down when a tiny dragonet climbs from its chrysalis and tumbles straight into her hands. With one look into its eyes Rowen finds herself falling instantly and hopelessly in love. As her uncle goes on a rampage to find whomever is hiding the dragon, Rowen’s world is rocked as one sacred truth after another unravels around her. Surrounded by literal nightmares, she must decide what it is she believes, and how far she’s willing to go to protect the new truths she’s discovering.

I’ve also begun working as a narrative designer, and am working on developing my own games! Expect to see updates on my blog as I make my first adventure games available, and eventually role out a game I’m designing that will help kids with their dreaded spelling lists and give a boost to those who–like me–struggle with their words scrambling up. Spoiler: there will be a dragon!
In my games I’ll be exploring a variety of worlds I’ve created over the years, including a companion MG to When the Dragon Comes. It’s a little on the long side, but will someday sit nicely beside the dragon cult and Robinhood story. Here’s what the Raven family will contribute:

In Chapter 1 of DEMON GATE, Nick and Liz Raven discover their dad’s close-held secret, and the reason they’ve moved around so much–and it’s way cooler than Nick’s suspicion that he’s a spy. In fact, he’s a rogue magician. Unfortunately, they’re introduced to his world when their mom offers herself–and their birthday cake–as a demon sacrifice, and their dad is hauled away by the governing magicians who think he’s to blame. The twins go to stay on the quirky farm where their dad grew up, where they delve deeper into their magical heritage. They also learn that their new school is run by magicians and will include magic training. However, it’s also quite clear that in this world, the Raven family are the bad guys. Some of their classmates even say the twins are demon cursed, since their Aunt died the night they were born and the family magic stems from a powerful forbidden gate…with a demon on the other side. The twins want to save their parents, but as Liz seeks to master her unique talents with the help of the magicians who imprisoned their dad, and Nick goes his own way, exploring the dangerous magic that is their heritage, they find themselves pulling in opposite directions. As Halloween approaches, sinister plots begin to unfold, and it appears the twins have been playing right into their enemy’s hands. Nick and Liz must find a way to use their newly-forged magic skills and work together in order to save their family and the world–unless they’re too late.

An upper MG urban fantasy, it’s my belief that Demon Gate will appeal to readers who love the whimsy and magical wonder of Fablehaven, while craving the dark family heritage of Artemis Fowl.

Meanwhile, I have a more ambitious game I’m currently working on in Unreal that uses my Fairyland’s Witness Protection world. A rich and deep world that goes well beyond the Fairy Godmother’s witness protection island, I hope to make more games set in this world as my skills and time allow. Here’s the 30 second pitch for the fairytale MG that started it all:

ONCE UPON A WITNESS is a middle grade of 30,000 words.  This fairytale mashup is DEALING WITH DRAGONS meets SHREK, in which an enterprising princess is determined to keep her brother’s secret from the world–even if it means defying their regent and running away to the Kingdom of Nightmarrow. She hopes that within the shadowed forest she’ll discover a way to keep herself and her brother from being sent to IMP School on the Island of Witness Protection, but it’s entirely possible she’ll find quite the opposite of what she’s looking for.

In addition to novels and games, I hope to one day publish a MG graphic novel. The best candidate for that someday project, NinChicks, was submitted in novel form to the SCBWI Carolinas fiction contest (in novel form) in the summer of 2013 and won third place!

You can see me in the back row, third in from the left, wearing black and standing beside my fellow award winner Jen McConnel. The story is of a fluffy silkie chicken named Jackson who lives in a steampunk barnyard with his fellow warrior chickens. After failing to join the elite ninja chickens he’s always wanted to fight with he stupidly puts himself in danger, and while held captive by a scheming coyote, he uncovers a dastardly plot that puts all his friends and family in danger. In order to save everyone Jackson will have to prove himself once and for all–and do it with the help of his fellow misfits.

I am additionally a multiple times over honorable mention for the Writers of the Future Contest, as well as a semi-finalist.

And finally, here’s a list of some of my shorter publications:

Nonfiction Articles:

“Backyard Chickens: What your children can learn from them” in the Spring 2013 issue of Practical Homeschooling Magazine.

“Fighting Back,” feature article in Living Without Magazine, Winter 2006.

Published Short Stories:

“The Immortal Horse” in Every Day Fiction, August 2010.  Never seek to create perfection if you’re working from flawed logic.  Perfection will have no mercy.

Below are the short stories published under the name Suanne Warr.  I have since resolved my dispute with that tyrannical Z, and added it back into my name.

“A Star’s Seduction” in Every Day Fiction, November 2008.  The trouble with making a bid for power is you might having a winning hand.

“The Centauri Affair” in Every Day Fiction, March 2008.  A guy, a car, and no room for a salesman.

“Riding the Dream Dragon” in From the Asylum, January 2008.  Forget rodeos and rollercoasters–try riding a Dream Dragon.

“Watcher in the Dark” in Ruins Extraterrestrial, an anthology.  Now available from Amazon and in B&N bookstores.  Take a guy who can focus his chi to move outside his body, mix in some pirates, spaceships, and an angry guardian of the ruins, and you’ve got Watcher.

“Storm’s Rising” in Every Day Fiction, November 2007.  This story can also be found int EDF’s Best of 2008 anthology.   A young apprentice with plenty of angst and an affinity for water.

“Bovine Aspirations” in Bewildering Stories, October 2007.  Never underestimate a cow with ambition.

“Sweet Revenge” in Every Day Fiction, September 2007.  This story began life as a crafting piece, and ended life as a laugh.  Read it when you’re feeling spiteful.

“Ghost Spider” in AlienSkin Magazine, Aug/Sep 2007.  Phobia, every writers best friend. 😉

“Animal Expressions” in Jupiter World Press (now closed), May 2006.  My first sale, this was a collection of short and snappy pieces which have since given birth to larger stories.