When I was a junior in highschool, I was in a very morbid place.
I thought that there was no light at the end of my tunnel.
And then… Zombieland came out.
And the leading lady, played by Emma Stone, was willing to do anything she had to in order to keep her sister and herself safe.
I can’t recall a movie with more badass women. Most of the women in the mainstream media at the time were helpless, unless they were Wonder Woman or Xena the Warrior Princess (two more of my faves).
Being stuck in an abusive relationship with no foreseeable way out is entirely like living through a zombie apocalypse. You have to fend for yourself and fight for your life, every single day.
So, when I saw Zombieland for the first time, I was hooked.
I wanted my own main character who was bad ass enough to weather such a gruesome storm, who was also a woman.
Actually, at first glance, Finding New Haven was technically entirely inspired by Zombieland.
In fact, in the original draft I’d written, Harley Monroe gets into a fight with one of her friends (who got left out of the final story very early on lol) because Harley was “too inspired” by the zombie movie they’d just seen.
But, in reality, Finding New Haven wasn’t solely inspired by Zombieland, even though the movie is in the heart and soul of the first book in the Finding New Haven series.
Finding New Haven was also inspired by my abusive relationship at the time, my toxic childhood, and the fact that I have been able to move past all that to live my best life.
Beyond any childhood inspiration I took from a movie dear to my heart, the Finding New Haven series is truly about being able to move past “all that” to live the best life possible.
Because if I can do it, anyone can.
E.
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