Sapphire magazine Stephanie OHanlon

y writing is involuntary - like the beating of my heart,` says author Stephanie O`Hanlon, as she quotes a line from a movie that pretty
much sums up how she feels about her work. ``That`s my mentality of it. If I can`t write, I`m pretty sure I would stop breathing.``
Stephanie is a Tottenham resident and recently debued her first published novel.
Titled Out of my Grave, it is a story set in England in the latter part of the 18th century just prior to the start of the French Revolution.
It is part romance, drawing from the setting and mindset of the time, and part Gothic tale when the novel`s main character meets a mystery man named Vincent, who has deeper secrets.
A prolific writer, Stephanie started writing in prose form after she attended the Toronto Film School and realized that writing scripts didn`t
give her the same satisfaction that she found from pouring her creative thoughts onto paper and adding the descriptive phrases of story telling.
Although she wrote short stories while in high school, and was encouraged in her work by a teacher, writing a full novel was a whole new undertaking and actually started another novel prior to Out of my Grave.
``I won awards in grade 12 for memoirs and short stories,`` she says, but a full length piece didn`t come until after she finished film school.
``I started writing my very first novel, and it turned from a short story into 50 pages, and then I wondered if I could turn it into an actual novel.``
That piece, titled Von Dravyn, was put on hold when she started working on her new book, but she has since gone back and completed the full version.

``This one took me six months,`` she said of the time she took to write Out of my Grave. ``My first one took me about six months, but then for two years i`ve been doing re-writes.``
She has also written a third novel and travelled to New Orleans to do research.
When it comes to writing, Stephanie pours everything she had into it, and works on it on a full time basis.

She recently had a book signing at the Tottenham Mall, and many local people were surprised they have a published author living in town. Her book created quite a bit of interest from people who stopped by.
He next project will be having her new novel published and released hopefully in the spring or summer of 2011.
Set in New Orleans in the 1770`s it is titled Swan Song for a Raven.
On top of that Stephanie is still writing and already has her fourth novel in the works.

`` I wrote 30,000 words in one day once. Thats roughly around fifty pages.`` she says of what happens when she is inspired. ``I was really on a roll. But I do get blocked sometimes, and then I`ll just watch movies and read books and try to get my mind stimulated.``
After completing Out of my Grave, she shopped around for an agent, but frustrated by the effort of the literary world, she decided to self publish - a route that she is happy with and has worked out well for her.

``My fourth novel, which I`m doing right now is set in the 18th century, it`s more like Dangerous Laisions,`` she says, ``I have like 30 outlines for other novels. Once I`m doing one story I get another idea for those characters to continue.``
She already has an idea for a pre-quel to Out of my Grave, but is hoping Swan Song for a Raven will be well recieved. ``I feel it is my strongest work yet,`` she says.
``I just love writing so much. I can`t do anything else, writing is just what I`ve got to do. I want everybody to read it and appreciate is a much as I do.``
She is enthusiastic about her work and literature in general, ``I think everybody should just pick up a book and read. Reading is so important, that`s how you learn, that`s how I learned how to write, by reading other books. I think its important for everyone.``
Out of my Grave is now part of the collection of the New Tecumseth Public Library in both the Tottenham and Alliston branches.
To learn more about Stephanie and what she will be doing in the future, you can check out her website at www.stephanieohanlon.com