Young Adult | Paranormal Romance | Twin Tale | Looking for an Agent
In a world where guardians secretly exist, with the aim to preserve each human’s destiny, Lauren’s reality changes when the guardian assigned for her turns out to be the love of her life.
Love Wasn’t Part of the Mission
Samuel, an ambitious young guardian, one of the immortal beings that maintain harmony in the universe, has been assigned to guard Lauren, a shy 17-year-old human girl from Dublin. Samuel must preserve her destiny in the face of an uprising in the guardian world. As the pair grow closer, Samuels’s mentor realises that Lauren must be the key to the prophecy: a prediction that love between a human and a guardian will bring about the downfall of their totalitarian regime. That is, if Lauren and her twin sister, Alicia, can ever work through the heartache in their past and learn to trust Samuel, and if Samuel can protect Lauren as the regime sets its sights on her.
About the Story
Our manuscript, Grain of Sand, dives into themes of family dynamics, friendship, and first love, with supernatural elements. Our story is also a quiet tribute to life’s small moments. The ones that are so easily lost in our fast-paced world. The setting is inspired by Dublin, Ireland. A city we fell in love with during the years Anna and her husband lived there.
Grain of Sand is a two-part story, where each part features its own protagonist: Samuel (shorter part) and Lauren (longer part). The manuscript is the first in a planned series, but it can easily be adapted to a stand-alone as well.
About Us
We’re Anna and Natalia, debut authors and twin sisters (just like Lauren and Alicia in our story). To the right, you’ll find a photo of us from upper secondary school, taken by our teacher Kenny—enjoy!
We’ve been writing for as long as we can remember. As kids, we split our time between figure skating and making up games with our sister Kasia, parents, pets, and best friends: blending make-believe with writing, painting and filmmaking.
The idea behind Grain of Sand came to us in upper secondary school. Writing the manuscript started as just another project but quickly became something deeply personal. A reflection of our twin bond and the journey into adulthood. Writing together kept us connected as our lives began to move in different directions. Today, we’re both “grown up,” working as engineers, and this story remains our shared secret world.
We’re incredibly proud (and still a little in awe) to have finished our manuscript. Now the only thing missing is a passionate agent, who believes in this story as much as we do. Our biggest dream is to collaborate with the right agent and bring this book into readers’ hands.
Five Rapid-Fire Questions
Where do you get the most inspired?
Anna: At night, lying in bed, letting my thoughts wander.
Natalia: Wandering through the forest, or sharing quiet moments with parents, sisters, or other loved ones.
If you were a guardian, what animal would you want to turn into?
Anna: A parrot. It eats fruit, nuts and seeds, few predators, can fly, and usually lives in beautiful places.
Natalia: A puffin. I could both swim and fly, and I’d be pretty cute too.
Favourite subject in school growing up?
Anna: Art, handcrafts, and natural science.
Natalia: Natural science, art, and handcrafts.
Who’s most likely to write ten intriguing pages in less than one hour?
Anna
Who's most likely to text the other at 2AM with a weird theory or thought?
Natalia
Questions About the Work
What led you to start writing this book?
When we wrote the first draft of Grain of Sand, we combined two of our favourite things: writing and studying (English, in this case). We'd written many stories before, but this one stood out. It was our first true collaboration, our first major project in English, and the first time we tried to capture the unique relationship of being twins.
What’s your unofficial writing soundtrack?
Lately, it’s been “I’m Yours” by Vilhelm Buchaus. But honestly, everything from Chopin and Brahms to The Rolling Stones, and if you look closely, some tracks made their way into the book itself.
What's the best part of co-writing?
To have someone who backs up your crazy ideas and holds you in their arms during setbacks.
Weirdest Google search for the book?
Searches for trying to encrypt the ancient language of Sumerian.
Did any personal experiences inspire the story?
The bond between twin sisters.
What song would play over the movie credits?
“Kindling” by Elbow.
A Few Last Words
A profound thank you to our family for their genuine support and interest, and to our friends, especially Emma and Ellinor, with whom we began writing stories as kids. They were our first readers and most enthusiastic champions. Special thanks to Emma for her thoughtful feedback. We’re grateful to Eline for believing in our dream, and to Patrik, Anna’s husband, for helping us build this website and offering invaluable input on the story.