Helen Fray (she/her) is an author of Fantasy Romance books with fated, yet fatal, love stories and life-or-death, secret society situations. She lives in Manchester, England, with her children and unpredictable, fluff-ball cat. She likes to put her English degree to good use, writing novels whilst relying on her editor to fix her commas. Transcendent, the first book in “The Transcendent Series”, features her favourite characters, Sarah and Nate, and the fantastical, body-jumping, psychic world of jeopardy that they live in.
Hi Helen, thanks for chatting. Your debut novel, the thoroughly enjoyable new adult fantasy romance Transcendent, came out last week, joining that class of book titles that sounds like the word is made up when it, in fact, very much isn’t. Can you give us a brief plot synopsis and give us an idea of what kind of readers would like it?
Hi Ed! Thanks for calling it “thoroughly enjoyable”, that’s cool! Part of me believed for a moment or two that I’d made that word up, but you’re right, I absolutely didn’t. And I’m not at all sure that I’m good at briefly summarising the plot, but I shall try…
So, Sarah has turned 18, and she’s going off to Uni, like some 18-year-olds do. I did, and it cost me a lot of money. I’m hoping my daughter does not. Anyway, Sarah has this rather inconvenient habit of body jumping back into past lives. At this point she has no clue why it happens, she can’t stop it, and it’s causing her some kind of major existential crisis. As if being a teenager wasn’t enough. She goes to uni, she meets a guy, she meets a girl in a shop (woman really, but “girl” fit this sentence better), she finds out there’s others like her, and she gets brutally attacked in a nightclub. All in the same week. Running away to Oxford to get a magic tattoo in a secret society ceremony doesn’t seem so weird after that. Before too long, she’s entangled in a kidnapping, a going-into-hiding with someone she’s pretending not to like, a triangle of mistrust with two very attractive brothers who hate each other, and murder. Her psychic abilities should mean she knows who the bad guy is, but does she?
This isn’t brief is it? Ah well, I tried.
I think you’ll like this if you like intrigue, character explorations, jeopardy, feuding brothers, and a bit of complicated romance in your life. There’s definitely a bit of Vampire Diaries about it, without Ian Somerhalder, or the vampires.
The idea of someone who can jump between past lives is always an interesting fantasy trope; what made you want to explore it and what significance does it have in this book?
I have always been fascinated by history and legacy and the stories that came before us. In Sarah’s case, her story has crossed lifetimes. Not only can she have a front row seat to the stories of the past, but she’s living out a story that she does not yet understand. The weight of the past is a concept that intrigues me. Not only can Sarah go there, but the past can communicate with her in some ways, and she finds it impossible to separate it from who she is, though she totally tries to.
Your MMC Nate is a fascinating character, at first coming across as a more silent Mr Darcy type, or perhaps Mr Rochester without the toxicity, but soon, without venturing into spoiler territory, it becomes clear he’s been hurt in the past and may have self-esteem issues. How would you describe him, and how do his issues affect the story?
I find it so interesting to hear opinions on Nate. He’s a very complex character, and I don’t want to give away any spoilers, but the audience goes on a journey of sorts trying to understand him. There is a lot more to come, too, in book two. I have found it fascinating how readers relate to Nate, because it makes him so much more than a “hot love interest” – although he’s certainly hot – and I love that for him. Me and my book-loving friends have this term for damaged love interests – “puppy characters”: they are adorable and you fall in love with them, but they sometimes bite and growl at people a lot. That’s Nate. But when you get to know him, you might understand why he bites a bit.
Your FMC Sarah feels opposite to Nate in some ways in that she is immediately empathetic and kind and engaging, yet suffers perhaps from the over-confidence of youth and a need to try and fix everything. To what extent is she a flawed character do you think, and do you think of her and Nate as opposites attracting?
Sarah is as flawed as Nate, maybe more so, but she cannot see it. Whereas Nate believes himself to be problematic, Sarah believes herself to be good. And they both have their journeys to go on. Sarah definitely suffers from the overconfidence of youth, and a tendency to only view the world from her own lens. There are situations in life that she does not yet understand or relate to, and this can make her blind, despite her psychic abilities. To Nate, she is shining, and good, and unobtainable to him. But I hope that the audience has a more balanced view, and sees them both as they really are – flawed. But are they essentially good people? Time will tell. Nate has a darkness about him. Whereas Sarah has yet to gain her wings in that respect.
Aside from the central romance, this is a book that features a secret society, betrayals, murder, twists and more. It’s an interesting balance. What influences did you have for this book, either fiction or other media?
Well, I could talk about this all day. Just like life, stories have to have a touch of darkness for me to really enjoy them. The human psyche is a fascinating thing, and what’s a story without an exploration of it? I like my villains to be four dimensional, complicated, and redeemable, because then the lack of redemption hits. And I like my “heroes” to be flawed and maybe not fully deserving, because then their victories hit, too. There is good and bad in all people, and “evil” is often complex, because there are reasons behind their evil-doing – not “excuses” because some things are inexcusable, but reasons.
Consequently, I love stories that have that mix of attraction – the good guys draw you in, but so do the bad guys. Both can break your heart. And both can be deserving of it. I’ve mentioned The Vampire Diaries already, but I also love the Sookie Stackhouse books by Charlaine Harris (True Blood to non-super-fans like me), the Fallen series by Lauren Kate, Holly Black’s The Cruel Prince trilogy and, yeah, Jane Eyre, I guess (you likened Nate to Mr Rochester earlier).
New adult is an interesting genre, and I confess I’m not always sure what it means, though I am easily confused to be fair. What do you consider new adult to be, and how does it differ from young adult, other than (if anything) the age of the protagonists?
The age of the protagonists is a major categorisation: Sarah is 18/19 in the first book, and Nate is 21. Young Adult tends to be younger: 16 / 17 for example. But as a fully grown adult myself, I find it hard to believe that a 16-year-old could have this major love story and save the world lol. Maybe I’m just too old, now. But you do kind of have to suspend your disbelief – and your grossed-out-ness – to think that it’s okay for 104-year-old Edward Cullen to fall in love with the 17-year-old Bella Swan. New Adult, for me, just bridges that gap between Young Adult themes and coming-of-age-ness with protagonists who are actually, legally, adults. So it’s okay that they’re falling in love, enjoying their sexuality, and saving the world. Cos they’re adults. It takes the problematic-ness out of it for me. Not that I care much, I loved Twilight, haha.
This book, to use the romance spice scale which has permanently confused conversations about hot food, is on the lower spice end, or slow-burn, if you like. Is that a conscious decision you made, and how do you think it changes the story?
It’s not exactly a slow burn – as Sarah falls for Nate instantly – but there is no graphic, on page, sex scenes. Sorry to my fellow Fairy and Vampire Smut lovers, but it just wasn’t the theme of this series. There’s sexual tension – and plenty of it – and yearning, and lusting, and all that good stuff. But no throbbing members. No body parts the size of tree trunks. And no 18+ rating. I have a 14-year-old, and her and her friends (the ones that have already read it) love the book. I’m okay with them reading it, and that was a decision I made. It’s New Adult that’s suitable for a Young Adult audience, who are just beginning to understand love and sexuality. It’s a 12+, like every good Marvel movie. Except for Deadpool. Those movies are awesome. But my 14-year-old has to wait to watch them lol, unlike this book.
Other than the powers Sarah has in this book, what one psychic power would you choose to have yourself? And yes, I said psychic not super, thus limiting this question severely in a semi-evil capacity.
Who says I don’t have psychic abilities? I truly believe that no matter the psychic sense of a person, no one can predict the future. You can only read people. Their emotions, their hopes and their dreams. Even the things that drive them, that they themselves are not aware of. You can thus accurately assess where they’re at, where they’ve been, and where they want to go, but you cannot read the future. It’s not happened yet, so there’s no energy in the world to read. I successfully skirted your question there, didn’t I? My non-existent media training would be proud.
What made you decide to choose the indie publishing route, and how have you found it so far, both good and bad?
Ooh this is a loaded question. I’m an anxious person, and I sadly suffered a major bereavement mid-way through finishing this book. Consequently, querying and subbing wasn’t for me. I was very lucky, and during the writing of this book series I had industry editor interest in where it was going. But it did not align with my headspace at the time. So I ghosted them (not my finest moment I guess, but everything happens for a reason). Later down the line, the industry feedback I got on the book was “love the book, but could you write it more commercially” and “I love the concept, but New Adult isn’t a real thing” and this just confused me. And saddened me for a bit. I have been involved in script writing and editing in the past – mostly for TV but for the odd film – and it’s such a collaborative process, your voice and ideas can often get lost. I wanted to have more control over a novel, and I realised that to do that, I would have to eliminate a publisher’s influence.
I guess you could call me a maverick for the sake of it (and some friends have lol) but I’m happy. I got to choose the people I collaborated with. I had the best and most talented beta readers, whose abilities astound me, honestly. I had the best editor – Laura Kohler from LK Copyediting, who really got what I was going for with this book. And an incredibly talented cover designer – Neve Beecham – who I had worked with previously, on a few different projects. This was her first book cover, and I’m so grateful to her for agreeing to take it on. She smashed it, as I knew she would.
What one piece of advice would you give to a debut indie author looking to follow in your footsteps?
It’s a lot of work. Many hours taken up that could be spent writing. Or doing work you get paid for. But I’m stubborn, and once I decide to take on a challenge, I see it through. It’s just a different challenge to the querying trenches, which I watched so many friends go through – and I just couldn’t face, myself. So I guess I would say “pick your battle”. Querying and aiming for top-5 isn’t for the fainthearted, but neither is indie publishing. Both require strength, persistence, resilience, and hours of unpaid work. Be sure which very difficult path you want to go down!
As I previously stated, I’m stubborn and a bit of a maverick personality, so I haven’t done this the typical or expected way. I’ve done it the best I can, whilst also navigating a divorce and a bereavement, and somehow retaining my love of story and books. So it’s hard to advise anyone. But if I’d changed the book, I’d have been sad. So, I suppose my advice would be to keep what you love. However you manage to do that. And build a strong team of people around you, because they are going to be what gets you through.
Marketing I genuinely have no idea on, so best ask someone else for that one! That’s never been my department and I’m still figuring out how I’m going to navigate it. The most important thing for me was the product. So actually, that’s my advice. Pick the best team, use other people’s strengths and skills – everyone needs a really good editor, no one should be publishing without one – and focus on creating the best book / product you can. You don’t need a top publisher to do this, ask around and you will find supremely talented freelancers. In today’s world, you’d be very very lucky to find a publisher who will market for you. If you decide to go down that route, make sure you know what they are offering for their share of the royalties.
Finally, what can we expect next from you book-wise? A sequel to Transcendent?
Yep. I always planned for this to be a trilogy. The second book is called Deviant, I’m writing it at the moment. It’s darker, and explains more about the story that preceded Sarah’s. The two brothers. In that respect, it concludes this story. Book 3 is a sequel / prequel in one. It goes even further back and tells the story of Annette and William. It will make sense when people eventually read it lol. I plan on bringing the books out quite close together, as there’s nothing worse than waiting for the next book. In my mind, that will be Transcendent done. But we shall see. I’ll decide when I get there. Much like I do with life, haha.
You can find all Helen’s links, including to buy Transcendent and her socials, here
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