BELLMORE, NY — A Bellmore woman has penned her first novel, a thriller called “Harvest Cruise.”
For Rebecca Benison, the book grew out of a short story contest she entered. While she didn’t win, Benison felt “the story had more to it.”
So she finessed her 900 words into 330 pages and her book was born. But the process took Benison several years, including finding her publisher— Chicken House Press of Canada.
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“It was the type of thing, I felt, I wanted to do it, but it was intimidating to actually get started,” Benison told Patch.
“Harvest Cruise” brings elements of author Heather Graham with a spark of female angst and the dark humor that Helen Fielding is known for. In the book, a singles cruise turns into something expected and as the synopsis says, “awkward flirting and adventure, quickly becomes a fight for survival.”
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The short story (which had a different title) was in the supernatural horror genre, while her expanded version was a more realistic thriller that “more people could relate to.”
Although this is Benison’s first foray as an author, she is a content marketer by day, where her writing is used for blogs, case studies and social media posts. She was able to take a daily respite from the more mundane writings: “I mostly wrote it during my lunch break at work. I felt like it was almost energizing.”
“Harvest Cruise” was written as a standalone novel, but “there is room for a continuation, so there is potential for additional books,” she said. “Writing is definitely my career choice, professionally and personally.”
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It is available now on Amazon and other online retailers.
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