Sign in or 
| Version | User | Scope of changes |
|---|---|---|
| Mar 1 2007, 9:58 PM EST (current) | julianahutchings | 892 words added, 2 photos added, 1 photo deleted |
| Feb 4 2007, 8:31 PM EST | julianahutchings | 1 photo added |
Changes
Key: Additions Deletions
Love of horses, childhood game spur novel
By KIM HOEY, Special to The News Journal
Wilmington news Journal
Seventeen-year-old Juliana Hutchings, of Landenberg, Pa., will soon have a novel, "A Horse to Remember," published by Raven Press. (Buy photo) The News Journal/MATTHEW JONAS
It was the kind of responsibility, determination and willpower that resulted in this high school junior having a book published this spring. The book, "A Horse to Remember" published by Raven Publishing Inc., is expected on the shelves this month or next. Hutchings wrote the book when she was 14 and by all accounts did everything by herself. As her mother said, this is not a parent-generated book or publishing.
Hutchings wrote the book over the course of three months when she was in eighth grade, writing every afternoon after school. She researched agents, editors and publishers online, eventually both hiring and firing an agent and submitting her book to publishers on her own. She was accepted by two publishers and chose Raven Publishing because of the style and type of books it publishes -- five a year, many with a horse theme, and all with uplifting storylines.
Her presentation was as notable as her writing, according to her publisher.
"I was very impressed with Juliana's professionalism for as young as she was -- is," said Janet Muirhead-Hill, founder and publisher of Raven Press. "She's a girl with a lot of promise and potential." More than the professionalism, Muirhead-Hill said the story itself is very good. The editor at the publishing house absolutely loved it and cried at its ending -- something this editor rarely does, said Muirhead-Hill.
The story is of a 13-year-old girl named Hilary who, after a lifetime in the city, moves to the country in Tennessee and starts working with horses. There she meets Satan, a wild mustang stallion who belongs to the son of the stable's owner. Satan seems as lonely and out-of-place in his new surroundings as the young girl is in hers. When the son fails to tame Satan, his mother threatens to sell the horse. Hilary resolves to tame him. The book is based on a game she and her sister played with toy horses when they were children, said Hutchings. It's the story of an underdog, said Hutchings, a junior at Avon Grove High School in West Grove, Pa. It is complete fiction.
The horse part, though, is truly based in fact. Hutchings is a horse trainer, competitive rider and instructor. She doesn't have much in common with the heroine of her story, but she can relate the message in it.
The lesson of the book is of persistence and determination, she said.
Hutchings knows about persistence and determination. After writing the book, it sat for a year because she wasn't sure what to do with it. Her family and friends all thought it was good enough to be published but didn't know how to go about it. It took hours of research for Hutchings to get where she is.
"The parents didn't do it," said Kate Hutchings, Juliana's mother. "When she puts her mind to something she is very persistent. She's a pretty amazing girl." A creative writing major in college, Kate Hutchings said she could not take credit for her daughter's talent. It was her daughter's drive and tenacity as much as anything else that got the first book written and published. The editors at Raven would send back pieces of the book with notes about possible changes, and Juliana would spend her evenings rewriting and resubmitting changes over a period of several months.
"It's been like a big school project," said Kate Hutchings.
At the request of the publisher, Juliana is working on a second novel, also a horse story. She said the writing's not going as smoothly as the first book, but she's enjoying the process. As for her current book, she said "I just want people to read it. I've already had three people call to reserve copies."
No agreements have yet been made with bookstores to carry Hutchings' work, but Muirhead-Hill said she expects it to be carried in independent bookstores and some chains. For details, go to www.ravenpublishing.net.
EXCERPT FROM "A HORSE TO REMEMBER" Suddenly, Satan skidded to a halt and wheeled his muscular body around. He stampeded back to the far end of the paddock, Hilary hanging on.
It was just like the dreams she had experienced.
Thoughts whirled through her brain with a mixture of pictures and sounds. Could those dreams have forecast Hilary's future? Would Satan jump the fence? Would she fall? The terrifying thoughts vanished when she realized the horse had stopped. He backed up a few steps and raised his head high in the air. Hilary followed the startled horse's gaze and gasped, horrified at what she saw.
It was just like the dreams she had experienced.
Thoughts whirled through her brain with a mixture of pictures and sounds. Could those dreams have forecast Hilary's future? Would Satan jump the fence? Would she fall? The terrifying thoughts vanished when she realized the horse had stopped. He backed up a few steps and raised his head high in the air. Hilary followed the startled horse's gaze and gasped, horrified at what she saw.
PROFILE Juliana Hutchings
HOMETOWN: Landenberg, Pa.
AGE: 17, junior at Avon Grove High School, West Grove, Pa.
FAMILY: Father, William; mother Kate; older sister, Isabelle, who illustrated the book.
HOBBIES: Cross country running; writing; horse training; riding; caring.
IN THE NEWS: Writer of a novel, "A Horse to Remember"
HOMETOWN: Landenberg, Pa.
AGE: 17, junior at Avon Grove High School, West Grove, Pa.
FAMILY: Father, William; mother Kate; older sister, Isabelle, who illustrated the book.
HOBBIES: Cross country running; writing; horse training; riding; caring.
IN THE NEWS: Writer of a novel, "A Horse to Remember"
An article published in The Philadelphia Inquirer. Written by Will Hobson
Suddenly, Satan skidded to a halt and wheeled his muscular body around. He stampeded back to the far end of the paddock, Hilary hanging on. It was just like the dreams she had experienced. Thoughts whirled through her brain with a mixture of pictures and sounds. Could those dreams have forecast Hilary's future? Would Satan jump the fence? Would she fall? The terrifying thoughts vanished when she realized the horse had stopped. He backed up a few steps and raised his head high in the air. Hilary followed the startled horse's gaze and gasped, horrified at what she saw.
- From A Horse to Remember
"Satan" here is a mustang horse, not a demon, and this heart-pacing excerpt is from the soon-to-be-released young adult novel A Horse to Remember by Juliana Hutchings, a 17-year-old junior at Avon Grove High School. Hutchings wrote the bulk of the novel three years ago, when she was 14. Janet Hill, president of Raven Publishing Inc., a small, Montana publisher that is printing and distributing the book, had nothing but good things to say about working with the teenager.
"Juliana is the first really young writer that I've worked with, and it's been delightful. She's very intelligent and open to suggestions, but she's also able to hold her own," Hill said.
Hutchings, who lives on a farm with her family in Landenberg, took some time out of her busy schedule to talk about her life as a student/author/horse enthusiast.
Question: Tell us about A Horse to Remember. Where did your ideas for the novel come from?
A:It's based off a game my sister and I played when we were younger, with dolls and toy horses. It's about a girl who tames a mustang, and no one thought she could because she knows nothing about horses. I wrote it in about three months, during the winter of my eighth-grade year.
Q: Take us through the process of getting A Horse to Remember into the hands of a publisher.
A: It sat for a year, because we really didn't know any editors, or what to do with it. It was even more difficult to get a literary agent. I finally found one that seemed good, I sent them the manuscript; they liked it and accepted it. They had it for about four months, but didn't do anything with it, so I decided that I'd had enough with them, and started looking elsewhere.
I looked at self-publishing, but I didn't want to go that way; I wanted a real publisher. A lot of companies wouldn't read it because it was unsolicited. Finally, two publishers accepted it to read, and both said that they'd like to publish it. In December of 2005 I picked Raven.
Q: What is your experience with horses and riding?
A: I compete right now, and I've ridden all of my life. We live on a farm with 15 horses, and I personally ride four horses. We breed them, so I work a lot with the babies.
Q: Any other interests?
A: I ran cross-country as a freshman. I liked it, but due to horses I couldn't keep running. I like to draw and paint, mostly just horses.
Q: Ever write about something not horse-related?
A: Maybe not horses, but I will probably always write about animals of some kind. I think you should write about your passions, what you know best.
Q: Do you want to be a writer when you get done school?
A: Definitely, I want to hopefully go to a good writing college, and major in English. I'd still like to keep writing, possibly part-time. I'm also interested in graphic designing. I might want to write for a horse magazine, or maybe even do some editing of design for one.
A Horse to Remember will be in local bookstores later this spring. For more information, visit www.ravenpublishing.net.
Will Hobson
PENNSYLVANIA
Avon Grove
Junior Juliana Hutchings is a horse trainer, competitive rider, instructor and soon-to-be published author. A resident of Landenberg, Pa., Juli wrote her first novel, “A Horse to Remember,” when she was a freshman. Raven Publishing will publish it this spring. Her sister, Isabelle, a 2006 Avon Grove graduate, is the book’s illustrator.
The 172-page book is aimed at for readers ages 8-16.
Lauren McCloskey
Wild Wind Art:
Raven Publishing, Inc.~ (one book, a novel, Absaroka, by Joan Bochmann, deals with the plight of a wild horse herd in southern Montana. An upcoming novel, A Horse to Remember, by Juliana Hutchings, features a mustang.) Our children's books are about horses and the bond of love between the wild spirits of a girl and a horse.
By Carla Lucas of the Chester County Press:
PENNSYLVANIA
Avon Grove
Junior Juliana Hutchings is a horse trainer, competitive rider, instructor and soon-to-be published author. A resident of Landenberg, Pa., Juli wrote her first novel, “A Horse to Remember,” when she was a freshman. Raven Publishing will publish it this spring. Her sister, Isabelle, a 2006 Avon Grove graduate, is the book’s illustrator.
The 172-page book is aimed at for readers ages 8-16.
Lauren McCloskey
Wild Wind Art:
Raven Publishing, Inc.~ (one book, a novel, Absaroka, by Joan Bochmann, deals with the plight of a wild horse herd in southern Montana. An upcoming novel, A Horse to Remember, by Juliana Hutchings, features a mustang.) Our children's books are about horses and the bond of love between the wild spirits of a girl and a horse.
By Carla Lucas of the Chester County Press:
