All About THE FORGOTTEN GIRL
The Kobe Bryant and R.L. Stine Approved, Award winning Middle Grade Novel written by Yours Truly!
In honor of Black History Month and the Month of Love, I want to take some time to spotlight my own writings, which deal with both Black History and Romance, for Middle Grade and Young Adult readers. Today, we will focus on my debut novel, the one so dear to my heart for many reasons that you’ll read below: the NAACP Image Award Nominated, Kobe Bryant and R.L. Stine approved, 2020 ALSC Notable Children's Book, THE FORGOTTEN GIRL.
It’s also been adapted for a play!
THE FORGOTTEN GIRL is a Middle Grade Horror Story which follows two preteens - Iris, and her best friend Daniel. They sneak out of their houses one winter night, find themselves in an abandoned and segregated graveyard and awaken the ghost that lives there. Together, they find out who the ghost is and what she wants.
Sounds spooky, right? I’ll tell you something I make sure to tell students whenever I do school visits - I AM EASILY FRIGHTENED. I’m talking, if a movie preview comes on that looks like it’ll be even remotely spooky, I’m jumping up and changing the channel. Seriously! I haven’t watched a scary movie since I wrote THE GIRL IN THE LAKE and I couldn’t sleep for days after that.
So, why did I write THE FORGOTTEN GIRL?
It’s based off of a cemetery in my hometown called Randolph Cemetery. Whenever my Grandma would take my family to visit my Uncle and Great-Aunt who are buried there, she would tell us that this cemetery was only for Black people that had passed away, and White people who had passed away were buried in the cemetery across the way. I was puzzled at first. Sure, I knew about segregation, but I guess I never realized that cemeteries were also segregated. I also realized that Randolph Cemetery, at the time, was unkempt compared to the pristine looking cemetery across the way.
It had me researching segregated graveyards, most of which were abandoned or built over. And if I was going to write this story about them, it obviously needed to be scary.
But I also wanted it to be approachable for the kids who, like me, wanted to read a great story but didn’t want to feel disturbed in the process. For the kids who, also like me, read Goosebumps, and felt proud when they had the guts to finish reading something scary. As you can imagine, it was such an honor when R.L. Stine blurbed THE FORGOTTEN GIRL with this message!
“This ghost story gave me chill after chill. It will haunt you.” — R.L. Stine, author of Goosebumps.
I also always weave themes of hope, love, and bridging the gap between generations in my stories. So, while my MG Horror stories may have spooky moments, they are sure to also have twinkles of light.
Recently, THE FORGOTTEN GIRL was adapted for a play by Idris Goodwin! You can read a review here and another one below. Although I wasn’t able to see this one in person yet (trust me, I want to!) the fact that these talented adults and children were able to bring my words to life is such an amazing blessing!
Touring THE FORGOTTEN GIRL was so fun. I was also pregnant in the entirety of my book tour, so while I was tired and slightly nauseous, I was doing what I love, which is talking to readers of all ages about books - mine in particular! :) By this point, I’d been working on THE FORGOTTEN GIRL for years! I was so excited to celebrate my debut novel with my friends, family, and readers.
And yes, Kobe Bryant did read THE FORGOTTEN GIRL, per his words in Parade Magazine, when asked what other books he enjoyed in the genre he was writing in. He said
“I always like a story where the writer isn’t talking down to their audience or shying away from hard topics, and Brown excels at that. She wove real history throughout the story in a way that makes it engaging and interesting for a younger audience.” - Kobe Bryant in Parade Magazine
Isn’t that amazing? For someone who had such a commitment to greatness, to say I excelled when writing THE FORGOTTEN GIRL, is truly such a blessing.
I’ve written about THE FORGOTTEN GIRL in various articles that I’ve linked below. During school visits, I talk extensively about my process in writing it and how I was able to create a spooky atmosphere as someone who is generally frightened by them, haha.
The Power of Story: Scary Stories For the Rest of Us
And here are some articles written about THE FORGOTTEN GIRL!
My Official Cover Reveal and Interview
THE FORGOTTEN GIRL: A Visit with India Hill Brown
Podcast: Scholastic Reads: Spooky Stories for Halloween
And here’s the tour vlog I created about my very first book tour :)
Thank you for reading! If you’ve read THE FORGOTTEN GIRL, THE GIRL IN THE LAKE, RHYTHM & MUSE, or even just this newsletter, I’d love to hear from you! Feel free to send me a message here or at my email address, Hello at indiahillbrown dot com :) Happy reading, and I’ll talk to you again soon! Make sure you subscribe so you don’t miss any newsletters!