Fantasy novel features themes of forgiveness and overcoming challenges
A local author has published her first book, which is to be part of a trilogy, all while raising her three children.
“After everyone goes to bed, that’s my writing time,” said Trinity Cunningham.
Blood Bound, the first book in the Guardians of the Weldafire Stone series, is an epic fantasy adventure novel and was released Nov. 2.
“It’s about a curse that wipes magic from the land, and these twin brothers’ blood is entwined with that magic, but they’re unaware. They mistakenly reawaken the magic and break the curse, but only partially,” Cunningham said. “The brothers find themselves caught up in a war that hadn’t ever truly been resolved, and with the change felt by all, the attention of the country’s tyrant ruler turns to the brothers and magic, the very thing he seeks to rid the land of once and for all.”
A dream she had as a kid inspired the story.
“It’s evolved and transformed from what it was to what it is now,” she said. “It’s come a long way.”
Cunningham, who is from Selkirk and today lives in Matlock, wrote a draft of the three books in the trilogy in 2020 then focused on refining Blood Bound.
“I’ve always loved just the made-up worlds and the creatures and all — not something we’d ever see in our world. But funnily enough, I wanted to write a sci-fi, and it turned out to be a fantasy.”
Early readers have commented on the detail Cunningham includes and the strong plot of the story, she said. In addition to being immersed in a fantasy world, readers will take away themes of overcoming challenges and forgiveness.
“I was always a fearful person,” Cunningham said. “I have this character [in Blood Bound] who’s quite fearful but overcoming his fears and being able to do things because it means protecting his family, and it’s something that drives him,” she said. “Forgiveness is another theme that is in the story — past hurts and being able to move on with our lives beyond things that we were wronged in.”
Cunningham has taken storytelling and screenplay writing courses and has written screenplays as a hobby, but this was her first time writing a novel. She said she learned a lot along the way as she worked with her editor.
She felt encouraged to start this project after her mom published a children’s book in 2020. After hearing about the publishing process, Cunningham thought it was something she’d like to do too.
“I sat down at my computer and started typing,” Cunningham said. “I had no idea where it was going go, but it took me down this path, and here I am.”
When she started writing, she thought the first chapter was going to be the prologue to her original book idea, but as she continued, it turned out to be the story of the twin brothers.
“The character that I originally thought I was going to write [about] is the second book’s story,” she said. “It was exciting and fun and just an adventure. I felt like I was taking that adventure with my characters.”
She hopes to have the second book of the trilogy out in 2025.
Cunningham will be selling her books at the Christmas craft and vendor market at the Gimli Recreation Centre on Dec. 2 and the Mrs. Claus Approved Market at West St. Paul Access Centre on Dec. 16. In addition to major retailers such as Amazon and Indigo, Blood Bound is available at Wishme in Selkirk and HP Tergesen and Sons in Gimli. A list of where to find the book is on Cunningham’s website (trinitycunningham.ca). She also posts updates on Facebook (@TrinityCun) and Instagram (@trinncun).
