Nikky Lee
Mar 2, 20223 min
Nicole Knapp is the bestselling author of the Hook & Crown series, a dark and twisted retelling of Peter Pan. When she's not writing, Nicole can be found drinking too much coffee, reading, and building her music collection.
Hi! My name is Nicole Knapp. I'm a coffee addict, bookworm, and music junkie. I'm currently living in Oklahoma, and I write YA Fantasy/Romance, as well as some Horror.
When I first started writing, I was drawn to YA because that's what I like to read. I have noticed though that as I get older, both my reading and my writing styles have changed, so who knows what I'll write next?
I would have to say that Hook & Crown is probably my best known work up to this point.
You've heard of Neverland and its inhabitants... Fairies, pirates, mermaids and a boy who didn't want to grow up. But you can't always believe the stories.
Elena Hart arrives in London, bound for a new boarding school operated by her estranged uncle. A fresh start is exactly what she needs. But when strange things begin happening, things she can't explain, she begins to wonder if she has lost her mind.
Until the night a strange girl appears in her room, claiming to be a fairy from Neverland, come to take her to the fantasy world at the request of its ruler.
Skeptical, Elena refuses. But the following night, a young man with strange green eyes appears, and though she tries to resist his charms, something about him draws her in and Elena is whisked away from the world she knows, to a world she always thought was make believe.
But when she arrives in Neverland, it is nothing like the stories and Elena realizes that she must figure out for herself who the true heroes and villains are.
I always loved the story of Peter Pan, and I have read and seen a lot of different versions of it. But I had my own version of Neverland in my head, so I decided to write it.
I'm a pantser all the way. I never outline anything I write. I sit down with a general idea of the story and where I want it to go and just let the story tell itself. The same goes for my research process, I research as I go and as the story evolves.
The most interesting thing I've researched was when I was writing Hook & Crown, and I had to research nautical terms and the parts of a pirate ship. The strangest thing I've researched was medieval torture devices and how much blood a person can lose before they die.
Everything that I write is personal, because I include pieces of my real life, and the people in it, in my stories. Most of my characters are based on people I know, and even some of the dialogue and scenes are things that have actually happened to me.
I look up to so many authors for so many different reasons. S.J. Maas and Leigh Bardugo are at the top of the list because their worldbuilding is, in my opinion, unmatched. They create these vibrant, detailed worlds and characters with nothing but words and I can only hope I can do a fraction of what they do someday.
My current read is Ninth House by Leigh Bardugo. And before this, I recently finished Crave by Tracy Wolff, The Night Circus, and Kingdom of the Wicked.
You can find my books anywhere books are sold in paperback, ebook and audiobook versions! Amazon, B&N and parliamenthousepress.com, just to name a few!
Liked this interview? Sign up to Nikky's mailing list to get a free story along with monthly updates, articles and interviews delivered straight to your inbox!