Cinderella of the Day: Stephanie Ricker (Five Glass Slippers Blog Tour)

You and your charming dance partner have glided to a stop by the orchestra. And suddenly, they start playing another tune you recognize. The young man turns to you, your hand still in his, and asks, "Will you sing?" He must have noticed the way your face lit up in recognition, and how you've begun humming along. Shyness descends and then dissipates like rain on warm, stony ground. Tonight is a night to embrace life, to shine. So you step closer to the orchestra and start to sing...

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And the Five Glass Slippers blog tour continues! (The home page/entrance hall can be found HERE.) We're celebrating the release of this special Cinderella-themed anthology (published by Rooglewood Press) by featuring each of the collection's five authors as "Cinderella of the Day." You'll find out which dress they're wearing to the ball, what dance song they've requested, and you'll hear about their very own Cinderella moment - in addition to discovering some fabulous fun facts via the interviews on participating blogs.

Today's "Cinderella of the Day" is Stephanie Ricker, author of "A Cinder's Tale"! 

Stephanie Ricker is a writer, editor, and tree-climber. She adores the cold and the snow but lives in North Carolina anyway, where she enjoys archery, hiking, canoeing, and exploring with friends.

Stephanie’s fiction has been published in Bull-Spec, a magazine of speculative fiction, and in four consecutive editions of The Lyricist, Campbell University’s annual literary magazine. She was the editor of the 2009 edition of The Lyricist, which won first place in the American Scholastic Press Association Contest. Stephanie’s non-fiction has been published in an assortment of medical magazines and newsletters, and her senior thesis on Tolkien was published in the 2009 issue of Explorations: The Journal of Undergraduate Research and Creative Activity for the State of North Carolina.

You can find out more about Stephanie and her writing on her blog: www.QuoththeGirl.wordpress.com.

"A Cinder's Tale" by Stephanie Ricker 

 It’s a dangerous life, yet Elsa wouldn’t trade this opportunity to work at Tremaine Station, mining cendrillon from the seething surface of planet Aschen. Nevertheless, when a famous deep space explorer and his handsome son dock their starcraft at the space station, Elsa finds herself dreaming of far galaxies beyond Aschen's blistering heat. There is no time for dreaming, however, when danger threatens the space station, and Elsa and her fellow miners are tested to the limits of their courage.

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Amber: Today's star of the ball is Stephanie, and we're happy to welcome her! Do show us that sparkle you're wearing... 
 
Stephanie: I’m not one for fluffy ball gowns, but I would happily wear this star-dress:

Pleated Chiffon Gown with Beading

Source: Fashion Jot

Amber: OK, that is just plain awesome. I could picture your heroine, Elsa, wearing something like this - perhaps with additional space gear!

Which song are you hoping the orchestra plays tonight?

Stephanie:  I love swing dancing, so I must choose “Sing Sing Sing” by Benny Goodman.



Amber: Yay! Swing dancing! I'm not an expert at it by any means, but I, too, love what little I know. :) So fun!

Can you share your Cinderella moment with us before hopping onto the dance floor?

Stephanie: My Cinderella moment happened about five years ago. I graduated from college during the recession, and job offers were mighty scarce. I took a job in Florida, which I thought was ebook editing (turned out not to be) and which I thought would be decently paying (turned out not to be). I had left all of my friends and family in North Carolina, and I didn’t know a soul in the entire state. I was so broke that I would scour parking lots for change, use the coins to buy an hour’s worth of metered parking at the beach, and gather coconuts on the beach to take home and eat. I was miserable. After four and a half months, I finally caved and moved back to North Carolina, even though I didn’t have a job lined up on the other end. On the day after I moved back, I interviewed for an actual editing job that paid actual money…and I got it! Overnight I went from a job I loathed, existing mainly on rice and coconuts and desperately missing everyone I cared about, to a job that used my degree, was close to loved ones, and provided a paycheck that seemed positively luxurious by comparison. It was a huge blessing from God, and I’m so grateful to be where I am!

Amber: Oh, wow, Stephanie. That is a true Cinderella story if ever there was one! I'm so sorry for the suffering of those four and a half long months, but that's awesome the way God blessed you when you returned home. :)

Want to learn more about Stephanie? She's starring on several blogs today, and you won't want to miss all the fun features:

• Books, Cats, and Whimsy + Review
• Home of the Shabby Elf
• Rina's Reading
• The Lore-Mistress
• The Wonderings of One Person
• The Writer's Window
• Tialla's Tellings
• Vonnie's Reading Corner
• Writings, Ramblings, and Reflections

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Do you want a chance to be Cinderella of the ball, as well? All this week (through Friday) you have a chance to enter the tour-wide giveaway! One lucky winner will receive a paperback copy of Five Glass Slippers, several Cinderella-themed items (including a bookmark crafted by Belle on a Budget, a journal, and a DVD copy of the Disney movie), as well as special gifts handpicked by a few of the collection’s authors (a glass slipper cookie cutter with recipe, freeze-dried astronaut ice cream, and an Apple Tree Inn cup and saucer). This giveaway is open to residents of the U.S. and Canada only.

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