Watchers of the Veil

Abstract

Watchers of the Veil is a young-adult, parallel-world, urban-fantasy novel set in Oregon state. When seventeen-year-old Olivia Callivan’s father dies unexpectedly, she and her mother, Joana, are forced to move in with Olivia’s grandmother in the remote mountain town of Silver Lake. Olivia learns that there’s more to this boring little backwater than she expected as she uncovers a world of living spirits, malevolent Corruptions, and a group known as the Watchers who keep the town safe. She also learns that her family has a long history here, a history that has been kept from her for her entire life. As Olivia uncovers the reasons for this secrecy, she comes to find out that just because her father is dead, it doesn’t mean that he is necessarily gone.

Writing Watchers involved reconciling craft issues that often overlapped, such as world building and characterization. Specifically, the novel attempts to address the challenges that arise when blending the real world and the fantastic. In attempting to create a diverse cast of characters, it is the goal of the novel to write individuals who respond appropriately given their racial and familial histories while simultaneously being depicting them in a manner that is both respectful and free of stereotypes.