What inspired you to create the siblings and their very tragic but intriguing backstory? Claire and Connor may be alike in looks, but as siblings, they are very much different. Oh, so many ways! Peter and Claire have grown so much and Neverland really brings out a new side of them, and a deeper aspect of the story as a whole. How was writing Shadow different from writing Dust?

Juggling all the backstory and character threads set up in Dust, and crafting a final installment to the series that pulled everything together and did the source material justice. What was the biggest challenge when writing Shadow? The Heirs of Neverland duology is inspired and based off of JM Barrie’s Peter Pan, but is a sequel to that book set in contemporary London – and Shadow takes place mostly on Neverland, and digs more deeply into the Peter Pan mythos and aspects of childhood trauma and loss that are hinted at, but never fully dealt with, in the original novel. Now tell us a little bit about your Heirs of Neverland duology, particularly your newest release, Now I live in Southern California, teaching teens how to use their voices to craft soul-stories and soaking in all the sunshine I can.

I fell in love with fantasy stories as the daughter of missionaries, growing up running barefoot through the jungles of Papua New Guinea and reading as many whimsical tales about characters finding themselves in unique worlds as I could. I’m a young adult author and coach who was first published as a teen. We chat with author Kara Swanson about her latest novel and last book of her Heirs of Neverland duology Shadow, book recommendations, and more! Hi Kara! Thank you so much for taking the time to answer questions for The Nerd Daily! Tell us a little bit about yourself. Kara Swanson, the award-winning author of The Girl Who Could See, has written a bold and passionate sequel to her Peter Pan retelling/sequel Dust, a darker, captivating tale perfect for fans of Straight on Til Morning and Lost in the Never Woods.

Dust by Kara Swanson