The world of Drizzle

© 2025 Arquie. All rights Reserved.

**Spoiler Alert**

Read at your own risk, so if you haven’t had a chance to read Drizzle, here’s the link! 

Ok ok, let’s get to the good stuff… 

The Tea

Remember that one Lego movie The Adventures of Clutch Powers? My brothers and I used to watch it all the time, and I loved Hogar the troll. He was such a goofy character while still having depth. 

Also, notably, I was obsessed with Kathryn Lasky as a young reader. I read all the Guardians of Ga’Hoole and Wolves of the Beyond books, which is probably why animals are a core part of my writing. (I mean, let’s not forget Erin Hunter but that’s a story for another time.) 

Anyways, I wanted to create a story with a formidable, but heartwarming troll with owls…somehow.

The Nitty Gritty

There’s a lot that goes into worldbuilding, and most of the time it’s me staying up late at night running the story through the movie theater in my head. When it came down to it, the main elements I wanted were character agency, a touch of weirdness, and bits of nostalgia. 

For character agency, I structured the plot so Hachi had gone out of her way to become an apprentice, not just plopped into the role. It’s always important for me to give decisions backbone as well. So, that’s where the family story came in. There’s also this element of mischief between Eldranir and Hachi indicating a push pull dynamic, not a flat, boring relationship I usually see with authority figures. 

For weirdness, who keeps a bucket of frogs on hand? Another one of my favorite details is Gullen pinching moss into a miniature moat for the rain. It’s just a little odd, and I love it. 

For the nostalgia, my mom used to can a lot when we were younger, and I enjoyed the long summer days in the kitchen with her. Then in the winter, nothing beat cracking open a fresh jar of yummy peaches. 

Going a Little Deeper 

It’s important to me to make stories interesting, authentic, and satisfying. Here are a few things I keep in mind when crafting. 

Imperfection 

Cate C. Wells writes imperfect characters, and I could not have eaten her books up any faster. Her writing taught me how characters deal with their flaws can be just as interesting as outside circumstances. Now, I put a lot more effort into fleshing out character flaws to add another layer of depth to the story. 

What that means is more than drawing a line down a sheet a paper for strengths and weaknesses. It means I dig into what they want, what they’re insecure about, and how to give them a bittersweet happy ending. Yes, it can be about physical limitations or imperfections, but most of the time I like to also lean into the mental struggles as well. 

Reverse Tropes 

Maybe not quite reverse tropes, but I really like writing the unexpected, especially in a nonromantic way. For example, a lot of mentors are written as wise, older plot devices meant to advise the young heroine.   

I said fuck that, Eldranir is going to be a chaotic queen. But you know what? She’s still a good teacher and she has a life outside of the box mentors are usually put in. 

Sidenote—the inspiration behind an older, cute couple getting butterflies for one another came from Peaky Blinders, of all places. I loved how Polly was so active in the plot, and yet she when she met this gentleman of a painter, they complimented each other so well. As a younger adult, I absolutely love how older people dote on one another. So, I went ahead and wrote it. 

Anyways, back to reverse tropes. In one of my upcoming projects, I’m crafting the plot for a strong female friendship and was struggling to figure out how to get them to connect. I’d taken out a typical close proximity romantic subplot to put in the friendship, and I thought ‘Oooooh, bodyguard trope, but make it fast friends.’ I’m excited to see how it turns out! 

Making it Fun 

When I get out of the weeds of the other details, I really try to write entertaining stories. My next release, Burn the Bridge, was inspired by the numerous videos online about honey badgers. I simply had to write a story with such an epic creature. It’ll be out soon! 

So that’s it? 

I’m a pantser, so I get a few inspo ideas and it’s off to the races. Whimsy and weirdness are staples I like to pull on, as well as action and adventure. Everything else fills in the gaps.

Let me know who your favorite character are, and if there are any specific character inspos you’d like me to share!

Chat soon, 

Arquie