LEGACY : From Fan Fiction to Novel

Dylan Evans, one of many Hunters, trained by the Academy to fight vampires, returns home after some time away following traumatic events. However, time didn’t heal much, that it be in her relationship with her mother, or with her AR Mrs. Cooper (Academy Representative), her friends as well and even less with her boyfriend Jordan. What’s more, she has to face the presence of another Hunter, Santana, sent to town during her absence. The clashing personality of both Hunters, as well as Dylan’s bitterness, makes it difficult for her to pick up the pieces of her life. Comes in to play Angelina Kane, a mysterious and fragile young girl with a troubled past. A strange yet immediate change in the group dynamic occurs, with some dreadful results.

As some of you may know, I started writing seriously when I discovered the wonderful world of fan fiction in 2001. The first couple of years I read more than I wrote but it quickly changed and I wrote 70 fan fics over the course of 6 years, most of them between 2003 and 2006 under the pen name TidalWave.

Legacy was born in 2007. The idea behind it somehow came up the year before though, as I started writing my biggest--and most epic--fanfiction ever. It was called “Chaos Doesn’t Bleed” and counted about 1500 pages and 153 parts. Chaos revolved around an OC (Original Character), from there popped up the crazy idea that I could take the story out of the Buffyverse and into my own universe. After countless re-writing, Legacy was born.

I’m not going to deny the Buffyverse atmosphere of Legacy because it would be wrong, and mostly because I love this universe. Buffy is the show that started it all. It’s the reason why we have Vampire Diaries, True Blood, Twilight and so many more doing so well on TV and movies. But Legacy is not Buffy. For more reasons than I can't enumerate here.

Why it’s taken me so long to publish it? Well, between re-reading and re-writing and attempts at getting it professionally edited, it’s taken that much time for me to finally decide to publish it on Smashwords. See, I first figured I’d get it self-published at Outskirt Press but ended up self-publishing another novel that way, (When the River Flows out of its Bed, written in 2005). Truth is, I would never be able to afford the cost to have a novel of that length professionally edited, and it is also a lot to ask to my usual betas to do for free.

If you miss the Buffyverse or if you simply like vampire stories, urban fantasy stories, witchcraft and all, you should have a great read.

I have put a lot of work, time, effort and of course, love and passion into writing Legacy. Hopefully you will enjoy reading it as much as I enjoyed writing it. Don’t hesitate to leave me some feedbacks.

Update: January 18th 2022. Legacy had a major makeover in fall 2021, early 2022. Legacy is also back on KU.

Legacy is composed of four parts entitled “Starting Over”, “Growing Up”, “All Good Things” and “Come to an End”.

The story takes place in 2009 in Lusa City, a fictional town on the Gulf coast of Texas, between Galveston and Corpus Christy. Themes such as racism or homosexuality are sometimes underlying, but the story really is about the characters and their interaction with one another. Although a lot of characters come in to play, the story mostly revolves around 3 main characters: Dylan Evans, 17. Santana Rajah, 19 and Angelina Kane, 16. The story follows them over the course of 2 years and a half.
The rest of the main ‘cast’ is composed of Andrea Morgan, 17. Nathan Walker, 18. Joanne Redfield, 19. Jenson ‘Cal’ Callahan, 19. Mrs. Kendall Cooper, 55. And Caroline Evans, 42.
Other characters that appear through the story are: Jordan Warner, 22. Andrew Stewart, 17. Samantha Stewart, 18. Simon Bowell, 21. Hassan, 19. Aiden Wells, 20. Miguel Sanchez…

I’ve had a lot of fun putting actual faces to what I had in mind. Those are, with more or less accuracy (age and hair cut/colors), the people I see in my head when I think about those characters.