Chase

THE BOOK: CHASE

PUBLISHED IN: 2015

THE AUTHOR:  Sydney Scrogham

THE EDITOR: Joe Coccaro and Courtney Davison

THE PUBLISHER: Koehler Books, through their hybrid Emerging Authors Program – an excellent option for debut authors.

SUMMARY: Lauren is about to lose her horse, Emblem. In an attempt to keep her animal, she pursues an escaped bright-red horse for a ten thousand dollar award. That’s when she disappears into Agalrae, another realm, and faces Chase, a man who thinks like a horse and hasn’t met another person before.

THE BACK STORY: I originally wrote it because I had a suicidal friend ask me, “How do you know that God is real and that He cares?”  Writing Chase was my way of wrestling with that question.  The first draft took 18 days to write.  When I was in high school, I took a creative writing class.  The teacher was an editor, and she submitted Chase for publication.  The small press accepted it, and I started down a long three and a half year road that would end with Chase still unpublished.  Discouraged but determined, I Googled “small presses in Virginia” to launch my search for a new publisher.  That began my relationship with Koehler Books and Chase’s well-anticipated arrival into the world.

WHY THIS TITLE?: Chase is my favorite character in the story.

WHY SOMEONE WOULD WANT TO READ IT: There’s a man who acts like a horse and a young girl who falls in love with him.  The fantasy world, Agalrae, where they meet, is based off of Skyline Drive scenery in Virginia.

REVIEW COMMENTS:

“Chase is full of phrases such as, “An ice storm stirs my belly,” and “my insides liquefied.” It’s creative writing in excellence.”  — andy Tramp, Goodreads reviewer.

“This compelling story is like no other horse book I’ve read before. It combines the horse and fantasy genres, and is beautifully written. It has a fast pace that will keep you turning just one more page. If you’re looking for something new and exciting, you’ll find it in Chase!” –– Horsecrazygirls.com.

“Definitely a page turner and worth the read! If you love fantasy or horses, be sure to check out this book; but even if you don’t, you may just find yourself drawn in by the characters and story of Agalrae.” — Denica McCall, author of Flowers In The Darkness.

AUTHOR PROFILE: I started writing when I was 12.  I wrote a 30-some book “series” based on Beanie Babies who owned a My Little Pony farm, and the world (Agalrae) for my debut novel Chase began there.  I originally wrote Chase when I was about 15 in 18 days. If I’m not writing, I’m at the barn with my horse Snowdy.  It’d be hard to write without inspiring things like my first horse Blue, my favorite TV shows ABC’s Castle and Once Upon A Time, Marvel movies, and emotional soundtracks on YouTube.

Sydney is also the third generation of highly knowledgeable Porsche owners. A blue 911 was the first car she got to drive out on the highway. She was so young at her first Porsche Parade that she can’t remember it, and she was homeschooled so she could travel to races.

AUTHOR COMMENTS: “I want this to enhance peoples’ relationship with God.”

SAMPLE CHAPTER: 

Using the “Look Inside” feature on Amazon – http://www.amazon.com/Chase-Sydney-Scrogham-ebook/dp/B0125P90EO/ref=cm_cr_pr_product_top?ie=UTF8

WHERE TO BUY IT: Amazon and Barnes & noble

PRICE: 14.95 paperback, 5.99 eBook

CONTACT THE AUTHOR: I love the Twitterverse – @sydney_writer or check out my contact page: http://www.sswriter.com/contact-me/.  I’ve also got Pinterest boards for Chase @sszoewriter.