News article:
Love of horses, childhood game spur novel
On a recent windy, freezing afternoon Juliana Hutchings was outside riding her horses as always. Many dedicated horse people would have taken a break on such a cold day, but Hutchings set a training schedule, and she adhered to it.
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.
... ...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...
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."
