The Sun Will Guide Us,’ An Excerpt

By Kilhah St. Fort & Amber Loveless

This is an excerpt from our Cinderella-inspired YA fantasy novel. In this scene, the two protagonists meet for the first time but they each have different motivations for their meeting. 

“You don’t look so common to me,” Chynna stepped closer. “Are you from one of the main families or one of the branches? Though, it’s probably a branch since I’m sure I would have noticed you before.

“Maybe I wasn’t common before, but I am now. My father died several years ago. I doubt you’d remember him. He used to be on one of the king’s councils.” Veera waited for Chynna to get the implication—that her father had displeased the king—and link that to the reason for his death. She inched closer to the ledger book. It looked like it hadn’t been touched in years—surely long enough for her father’s name to be inside.

“Oh…” Chynna pulled at her collar awkwardly. She ran a few possible responses in her head. Saying sorry seemed like a bad call. It was years ago after all. What would a sorry do? 

Veera started to feel a little bad. Chynna looked amazing in the tux and it was her Get-Engaged-to-a-Total-Stranger Ball day. She didn’t seem like a bad person herself. Maybe Veera should give her a break.

“You look good in silver,” Chynna blurted out. Veera took a step back and raised her eyebrows. “I mean, it goes well with your hair. Red and silver, fire and steel. Like you’re a warrior goddess or something.”

“Did you take a class in flirting?” Veera asked, ignoring the little flip in her stomach that came from a princess in a kick-ass tuxedo telling her she looked like a goddess. She had to stay on task. She put her hand up before Chynna could answer. “And the real question: did you pass?”

“My tutor says I could work on my attention span, but I think she’s biased. Her favorite topic is bartering laws.”

Veera pulled a face. “I’m so sorry.” She’d moved close enough to put her hand on the ledger. She tried to pull it open with grace and nonchalance, but she was apparently the first person to open it since time began because instead it lurched open with a cracked leather belch and a flurry of dust.

Process

This idea came to us during a world building workshop that took place last year. From there, we spent the summer developing and outlining the story. We co-wrote this scene by alternating who wrote which paragraph.

“I was struggling to cope with the overwhelming racial violence in the media and a truckload of uncertainties about my senior year during the pandemic. Then I attended a Salon on Poetry and I started to come alive. The environment of positivity, warmth, and encouragement helped transfer all my negative emotions into rich lines of metaphors and imagery. Girls Write Now was there for me.”

– Kilhah St. Fort, Mentee

With the support of Girls Write Now, Kilhah felt confident enough to apply for—and win!—the prestigious Jeannette K Watson Fellowship. This fully funded opportunity allows her to intern at any organization in the world.

Kilhah, like thousands of other young writers at Girls Write Now, will be using her voice to shape culture and inspire change, while also creating a path to wellness for herself and her community.