Stephanie Fox, a second year media studies undergraduate, has penned a second novel due to be released on 28 January 2011.
Her novel, ‘Project Kate’, will be published by HandE Publishers Ltd. and comes a year after the publication of her first novel, ‘Playtime’.
Fox wrote ‘Project Kate’ towards the end of 2009 and the beginning of 2010 during her first year at the University of Sussex.
The novel focuses on Ryan and his decision to control Kate, a girl with whom he begins a romantic relationship.
Her first novel, ‘Playtime’ began from an idea in a poem Stephanie wrote for her GCSE coursework. She began writing a series of poems which then led to the novel.
She says that she “just wrote the novel for fun”, aged 16, and it was her father who actually found the publisher’s address and sent her text in early 2009.The two books come under the genres of crime and thriller. When asked how it feels being a published author and seeing her books on sale, Fox has said that she felt “It was so strange to be a published author with books on sale. I did not write it to publish it, but seeing others enjoy my work is great. It’s really exciting!”
She has added that the books are targeted at those in their late teens, even those in their twenties and early thirties. Her inspiration is everyday life and news stories that she feels she has a “connection with”.
Fox stated that it was “easy to balance” university work and writing. “It is more like a hobby”, she added.
“I wrote the first book by hand but I wrote the second book on the computer. It was difficult to bond with housemates in the first year as I found that I did not go out so much last year.”
In fact, Stephanie said that screenwriters are interested in ‘Playtime’ and a producer has expressed interest in the novel to be adapted for the stage. These are to be confirmed and nothing has been officially agreed.
Her publishers, HandE added that “Stephanie is a very creative individual, who is a true story teller and a pleasure to work with. People that meet her for the first time wouldn’t necessarily match her quaint personality and appearance with her chosen genre, however she has a unique, rare talent of bringing fiction to life and shows the potential of become one of the UK’s top crime writers.”
“The proof is in her writing, and from drafting ‘Playtime’, which is also set for the stage, at just sixteen, to her latest novel ‘Project Kate’ at eighteen, Stephanie, more than certainly has a solid future ahead of her.”
The latest novel Stephanie claims is “more mature than the first book. It is deeper than the first one, especially with regards to the focus on psychological processes.”
Stephanie is currently working on her third book though she says that it is only in the rough stages of planning.
Both books are available on all online book stores including WHSmith and Amazon and readers interested can order copies to be delivered to their local bookshop.
