Selkirk born author continues trilogy with second book Hope Unites
Hope Unites is the second book in the Hope Trilogy written by Selkirk-born author Ryan Souter and has recently been released. The debut novel in the series, Hope Rises, was released in Feb. of 2022 and this latest novel came out last month just in time to get on residents’ winter reading lists.
“This book, basically, is part of a trilogy, but I’m hoping that when people read it, it can stand on its own two feet. In a way, it’s a standalone story. It’s easy to bring across. In this book, the wall that divided the city has come down, and now two sides have to share space and get along, and that opened up a whole other host of problems,” Souter explained.
Without giving too much away about the first book. The main character in Hope Unites is still Hope Mulder a woman in her early twenties who is a very independent person.
This book takes place in 2071 and there is now a crime element to the plot.
“She ends up having to get a partner and pursue that avenue, and track down this person who’s to stirring things up,” explained Souter.
The Hope Trilogy is a series that combines action and adventure, thriller and mystery elements in the fictitious dystopian future of 2070 where the earth has been turned upside-down by natural disasters combined with government collapses which make this universe very different from our own.
Souter wants to reassure readers that though the main character in this book is 22 years old, there are many characters of various ages and so it’s not just a book that young adults would enjoy.
Writing this book was a new experience for Souter. Though he’s written a couple of books in addition to Hope Rises and Hope Unites, this is his first sequel.
“I found it to be a really big challenge, actually, when I first started outlining it and putting it together. There were a couple of months where I was just really struggling to put the pieces together again because I wanted to have it feel fresh but also you can’t neglect the first book. You can’t just completely go off-kilter and change all the characters and completely take the storyline however you want to go. It still has to connect,” he explained.
After some intense back and forth with his editor and some elements of the story ending up on the cutting room floor, Hope Unites came to be.
Souter, though now an established author with four novels under his belt, didn’t start his writing journey writing long-form work.
“I started with making movies and writing screenplays. Writing scripts and novels is a completely different beast, just with formatting. But what I did notice is it’s still the art of storytelling and creating worlds and characters and making it all fit together and streamlining it. What I found interesting about going from screenplays to novels is screenplays have such a tight three-act structure with how they flow. I brought that forth to the idea of writing novels, too. What I found with screenplays is you can’t afford to waste any time. It’s just you have to get through it and find that pacing. I treat the novel writing in the same way,” said Souter.
For people in our community who want to write their own stories but haven’t yet gotten to the same point that Souter has in their journey, he says that writing a novel is about perseverance.
“Novels are such a long game. There’s no real quick and easy way around it. I find you just have to get that butt in the chair and keep going. Anybody who’s starting it, I just say, don’t get down on yourself, because it’s easy to just want to quit. There’s no doubt about that. There are days that it really clicks and there are days where you go, ‘Wow, I didn’t really produce anything.’ and then there are days where you produce stuff, and you go back and you go, ‘Wow, I don’t like any of this.’ What I would tell people who are aspiring writers who want to go down this road is, don’t be too hard on yourself,” said Souter.
If you would like to learn more about what happens next in the Hope Trilogy, you’re in luck. Souter’s novels are available locally at The Cozy Fox. They are also available online in hardcover and paperback from Amazon in addition to the ebook format.
Souter encourages you to pick up a copy of Hope Unites this winter season and if you would like to keep up with all of Souter’s writing adventures check him out online at www.ryansouter.ca where he has a newsletter that residents can sign up for to stay in the know.
