Hannah's Pony Twist (Dream Pony Riders) by Susan Count
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About Hannah's Pony Twist
Hannah's Pony Twist (Dream Pony Riders)
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Will what the pony needs break Hannah’s heart?
Freckles can’t be convinced to trot sometimes, and even though that’s fine with Hannah, she suspects something must be wrong with the pony. The barn manager thinks it’s time to retire him, so the vet is called and tests are run.
But Hannah enjoys being with Freckles even if they only walk down the trails. She ignores the facts. When all her efforts to help him fail, she tries desperately to write a happy ending to her pony story.
Will she have to put on her big girl breeches and let Freckles take his own trail, or is she the real problem?
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June: Welcome to 'Reading, Writing
& Stitch-Metic', Susan. Congratulations on the recent release of your
middle-grade novel, 'Hannah's Pony Twist'!
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June: Please tell us how you created your setting and developed the characters for this book.
Susan: The setting for Hannah’s Pony Twist is the fictional Dream Pony Stables. This barn is the hub of all the stories in the series. Each character and their pony has their own book, then they go forward to play a role in the subsequent books. The riding friends are close knit and supportive. The tension and conflict in each story comes as the characters struggle to overcome what keeps them from their heart’s desire.
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June: Since this book involves horses, I was wondering when you began riding horses? What led you to write a book about the Hannah and Freckles? Is the story inspired by real events?
Susan: I always loved horses and read every horse book available to me as a girl. At fifteen, I would save every dime from my babysitting jobs to rent a horse for a trail ride. Then at seventeen, I became a working student at Meyer Remount Farm in Leavenworth, Ks. where I learned to properly ride and jump. I bought my first horse when I was twenty-one. Today, I am partial to smooth gaited horses and am owned by a Rocky Mountain Horse.
Hannah’s story flowed from the previous book as Grace is her best friend. All the horse events are loosely based on real life struggles. For instance in this book, I highlight a product that I used on my bunny when a bobcat grabbed her and punctured her skull. From there, I’ve used it many times on various equine injuries.
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June: Who is your favorite character in the story? Why is this person or animal your favorite?
Susan: I adore Freckles and loved writing a couple scenes in his voice. He is a character and knows his mission in life is to take care of his girl.
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June: What or who inspired you to become an author?
Susan: Composing was always my gift, but I wrote my first novel in 2013. It was inspired by my granddaughter, Selah, at three years old, leading our precious paint horse around the pasture with just a rope around his neck. Now I have eleven novels for children ages 8–14.
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June: When you write a book, do you outline the entire story, or do you have a different way of organizing your plot, characters, etc.? Do you always know the ending of your story before you begin putting things down on paper, or into your computer?
Susan: Once I figure out who my character is and what she wants more than anything, I make post-it-notes for plot points. Every writing session, I read some of what I wrote previously and, with my sights set on the goal (the ending), craft one obstacle after another.
While I love the initial composing of
story, my super power is editing story. Making sure the character has a clear
goal and that the obstacles are real and relatable.
I will write and rewrite the first
chapter so many times I know it by heart. And still, sometimes, it will turn
out not to be the actually first chapter. My goal is to introduce the character
so that the reader relates to her immediately. It’s important to me that when
the incident happens that sets her whole world upside down, the reader already
cares about the character and what terrible thing just happened to her.
Most all my writing is done on an Apple computer that my son gifted me. He felt like I was trying to create with archaic tools, and because he is generous like that.
Susan: Thank you kindly.
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About Susan Count
Susan Count writes for the joy and entertainment of young readers. She is an Amazon best-selling, award-winning author of the Dream Horse Adventures Series, Dream Pony Riders Series, and Texas Boys Adventures.
She prefers to create stories in a quiet zone. Out her window, her mind wanders through the forest and keeps her in a grateful, contented state of being. Susan writes at a fabulous antique desk that has secret compartments filled with memories, mysteries, and story ideas. As a member of the Society of Children's Book Writers and Illustrators, American Christian Fiction Writers and Alliance for Independent Authors, she takes studying the craft of writing seriously.
Susan confesses to being overly fond of brownies, and horseback riding on forest trails. She is a lifelong equestrian and is owned by a Rocky Mountain Horse.
You are invited to saddle up and ride along. www. susancount.com E-mail a comment: susancountauthor@yahoo.com Hearing from readers is a great delight and encourages me to keep writing. Please like Susan Count at https://www.facebook.com/susancount where I post only horse-related videos. I’m also on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/susancountauthor/ And Pinterest: https://www.pinterest.com/susancount/
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My daughter will enjoy this story, and so will I.
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