Belle Walker grew up on the west coast of beautiful Vancouver Island where fantastical worlds with romance and otherworldly creatures quickly became her obsession from a young age. With a penchant for heart stopping romance in everything she writes, Belle loves anything magical. When not creating epic worlds, you can find her enjoying the beautiful outdoors with her husband, pair of wildling children, and their two golden retrievers.
In this exclusive interview, Belle Walker talks about everything from ancient powers waiting to rise, to the complex emotional armor of a heroine shaped by survival, to how motherhood has deepened the layers of sacrifice and devotion in her storytelling. And yes, there’s coffee, deleted scenes, and a beloved horse named Atlas.
Your love for fantastical worlds and heart-stopping romance shines in Blood and War. How much did your upbringing on Vancouver Island—surrounded by wild nature and quiet magic—influence the tone or setting of the book? Are there specific locations that inspired the world Demitria and Kellan inhabit?
Yes, definitely! Growing up in such a beautiful place absolutely influenced not only this book, but almost everything else I’ve written to date. Something about the West Coast is just so magical and inspiring! There are a few locations in the upcoming sequels that are absolutely inspired by a few different places close to home.
There’s an implication of a much bigger war brewing—are there ancient forces or histories (we haven’t yet seen) that readers should be on the lookout for?
Oh, 100%
I can’t say too much (because spoilers), but there is absolutely ancient forces and history that we haven’t seen yet that heavily come into play in the next two books.
The moment Kellan makes his split-second choice feels like a major axis of the story—can you talk about what led to that decision narratively and how it reshapes both of their paths?
I knew how their story was going to play out the moment the idea came to me, and this exact moment is a major turning point for him. Kellan has reasons that we haven’t yet seen for being the way he is, and this split second decision needed to be something big for him. To go against the council and everything he’d been raised to be. He’s always followed the council and done whatever they’ve asked of him out of the love and loyalty to his family. Never before had he questioned them or their reasoning until he met Demitria. In that split second, Kellan finally chooses himself over blind loyalty.
Demitria has been in survival mode for a decade—how did that shape the way you wrote her emotional guard and eventual vulnerability with Kellan?
Because she’d been in that survival mode for so long, I knew she needed to have that guard up from the moment she walked on the page. She had to be hardened, but still present. The world in Blood and War is harsh and unforgiving, and her personality reflects that. Queue Kellan, who has seen so much bloodshed and carnage of his own, I think that vulnerability came easier for her. He was battle hardened himself, and had seen (and committed) much of those same horrors, that it was kind of a ‘like calls to like’ moment for them both. Similar, yet different in so many ways, that it created this kind of kinship between them.
As a mom writing a fierce protector like Demitria, were any aspects of her relentless devotion to the one person she has left inspired by your own experiences with motherhood?
Originally, no. I was sixteen when I first came up with the idea for Blood & War, which was long before I had my kids. I always knew I wanted her to be fierce and fearless. Demitria was everything I wanted to be as a young teen that was learning who I was as a person. Confident, sure of herself, and someone that didn’t get walked all over. Coming back to this story fifteen years later, while a lot of those internal feelings had changed, I definitely refined that protective nature by drawing on my experience with motherhood as I really understood that selfless love and innate need to protect my loved ones.
Balancing writing, parenting, and family life is no small feat. Are there themes in Blood and War—such as sacrifice, inner conflict, or transformation—that you feel resonate more deeply with you now than they might have in another season of life?
For sure! Sacrifice is a big one that resonates with me a lot more. Like I’d mentioned earlier, having originally written Blood and War before family life, there was a lot of these themes I just didn’t understand or hadn’t lived yet. Now, absolutely.
If you could co-write a book with any author, past or present, who would it be?
Shelby Mahurin, hands down. The way she writes just absolute magic, the way she thinks about story and her way with words, it all has been a massive inspiration for me, and is something I strive to be as an author. Sarah J Maas would be another one! Both women have a beautiful way with words.
What’s your go-to snack or drink while writing?
I’m a coffee girl through and through, the exact type depends on the mood. It’s a toss up between iced coffee, some sort of espresso drink (I’m a sucker for a good caramel macchiato or peppermint mocha), or just a regular double double. I try not to snack while writing to preserve my keyboard.
Do you have a favorite non-human character from your stories?
Without a doubt, Atlas. Most don’t know, but he is the only character I’ve based on someone in my life. I grew up with horses and they’ve always played a large role in my life. After some big life changes (motherhood), I was forced to rehome my heart horse who I’d owned for nearly seventeen years, and raised from a baby. It left such a huge hole in my heart (I still think about him daily), and I knew I wanted to include him in some way, which is how Atlas truly came to be. Their mannerisms and personalities are the exact same, right down to their looks. It’s my homage to him, and I think Atlas will forever be my favorite non-human character for this reason.
How do you choose which story idea to pursue next?
This is my biggest struggle. Those that know me personally know my notes app in my phone is just absolutely overflowing with ideas, and picking one is probably the bane of my existence. I like to try to plan my next project in advance, usually while wrapping up my current one, but ultimately it’s whatever story I can’t get out of my head. If it keeps me up at night with scene ideas playing in my head, or character conversations, that’s the one I’m sticking with.
What’s one genre you’d love to try writing in, but haven’t yet?
First and foremost, I am a paranormal and romantasy girlie through and through. I have been for as long as I can remember, before the ‘romantasy’ genre was even a thing. Now this is completely out of my wheelhouse, but I’ve had a couple ideas for some darker contemporary romances (think mafia, and recently a little inkling for a rockstar romance). I don’t know if I will ever truly explore this genre, but there are for sure a few characters (the male love interests to be exact) who have been quite…loud in my head. We’ll see if they ever come to light!
Do you have any “deleted scenes” from your books that readers would love?
I have an entire folder of deleted scenes from Blood and War that I know readers would love. Some spicier scenes have made it into the sequel, and I can’t wait for people to read them. However, there were a few subplots that were taken out, for the better, as they no longer worked with the direction I took the story.
If your book were adapted into a video game, what would the gameplay look like?
Without a doubt either The Witcher 3 or BG3
Get Belle Walker’s bestseller, Blood and War, available on Amazon
Forced to choose between loyalty and love…
A fated encounter. A forbidden romance. Together, they can change everything…
For ten years, Demitria Collins has fought the creatures of nightmares to protect the one person she has left. With a rising string of demon attacks on the forefront, she knows it’s only a matter of time until they’re next.
But when a routine patrol goes awry, and Demitria has a fated encounter with the legendary Horsemen known as War, everything she fought for is threatened. Including her life.
Kellan, one of the Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse, has been sent to Earth by the High Council of Eden to restore the balance with his siblings. Dispatched on their newest assignment, he expected the task to be simple. Not for his charge to be human.
When a split-second decision leaves even more blood on his hands, Kellan has questions for the council – ones they won’t answer.
The Horseman should embody everything Demitria hates, but a growing darkness forces them into an uneasy allegiance to uncover a deadly truth. An inexplicable attraction complicates matters even worse, transforming their hostility into something beautiful and fiery that breaks through every belief they’ve ever had.
Both know the consequences of those feelings will be deadly.
But together, they might stand a chance to restore order before the ultimate destruction of a planet that she, and the High Council, hold dear.
Leave a Reply