SCARBOROUGH, North Yorkshire, U.K. — Close your eyes and immerse yourself in a story of love, separation and uncertainty, experiencing the magic of theater — without ever leaving your home.
“Hannah: The Soldier Diaries” is an innovative musical audiobook by author Steve Wallis that features narration and vocals by Zoe Wright and a foreword by Ross Kemp. This original musical audiobook, similar in presentation to Jeff Wayne’s “War of the Worlds,” contains 11 narrated chapters with each chapter being complimented by its own song, as well as a special bonus track specifically written for the show by the U.K.’s premier wartime act, the D-Day Darlings.
When the gorgeous Hannah meets Lance Corporal Jack Webb in summer 2012 she is quickly smitten. However, Hannah has to decide quickly whether to embark on a whirlwind affair or walk away, as the couple only has four weeks together before Jack has to return to the army to fight in the Afghan War. Hannah follows her heart and spends the most amazing four weeks of her life with Jack before he has to leave. Then, over two months later, Jack is missing, and Hannah — who is three months’ pregnant — is beside herself with worry. Out of nowhere, a face she knows only too well appears at her door. Are all Hannah’s worries over? Or is this the beginning of the end for Hannah and Jack?
“A triumph … A funny, moving, pop tune-filled, uplifting experience that is also a timely reminder of how fragile peace is and how what is happening miles away can be brought to our doorstep.”
— Yorkshire Evening Post
Stills from recording the audiobook
Listen to a sample of narration from the audiobook
Listen to a sample song from the audiobook
“Hannah: The Soldier Diaries”
Steve Wallis | Fiction / Musical / Contemporary
Audiobook | $6.95
Steve Wallis is a professional theater writer, producer and audiobook author. He has just produced to critical acclaim the musical stage version of “Hannah: The Soldier Diaries” in both his and “Hannah’s” hometown of Scarborough, United Kingdom, where he lives with his wife and two dogs. Wallis previously worked for the National Health Service but much prefers to be in the recording studio or sitting at his laptop writing the follow up audiobook to “Hannah: The Soldier Diaries,” which is due for completion later this year.
Stay in touch with him at hannahthesoldierdiaries.co.uk.
Follow Steve Wallis on social media:
Facebook and Twitter @hannahthesoldierdiaries
In an interview, Steve Wallis can discuss:
- His innovative decision to write an audiobook in the form of a stage musical
- Creating a book while also writing music and producing the two together
- How his grandparents’ tales from WWII motivated him to write the book
- The book’s more contemporary setting in Scarborough, North Yorkshire
- How the themes of love, loss and passion can resonate with a wide audience
- Involvement from the D-Day Darlings — the biggest-selling female group to come out of “Britain’s Got Talent”
- Upcoming plans for the second part of the series as well as the stage musical
- His collaboration with performer Zoe Wright, who plays the title role of Hannah
An interview with Steve Wallis
1. Where did the inspiration to write the audiobook come from?
The original inspiration for the story came from my grandparents who both lived through the second World War. I remember my grandmothers telling me what it was like waiting for her husband’s (my grandfather’s) letters to arrive and how she just had to “live her own life” the best she could — never really knowing if he would ever come home. Although “Hannah” is set many years later, in 2012, the themes are still very much the same as they were back in the 1940s.
For a good few years, I wanted to write a collection of songs for an album that followed a narrative — a story from beginning to end — rather than just write a bunch of songs that have no relationship to each other. “Hannah” and my grandparents gave me the opportunity to do just that.
2. Why did you decide to write the audiobook in the style of a stage musical?
I have tried to offer and create something a little different, so it’s not a straightforward album or full-length audiobook or a recording of a stage musical. It’s a narration plus songs in a musical theater style. I have always enjoyed stage musicals and produced a good few over the years and felt that this was a format I really enjoyed producing and writing. Writing in this style gives the listener a chance to imagine being in the theater without actually going to the theater. And it offers songs that tell a story with added narration to provide more depth to the story and characters, which a collection of songs I feel on their own would struggle to achieve.
3. What are some of the benefits in writing the book this way? Are there any drawbacks?
I think if a listener wants a story with songs and doesn’t have time to either read a book or listen to a full-length audiobook, it fills a needs gap. This audiobook also offers the listener the ability to enjoy the songs over and over again without buying the actual album.
The songs tell the story in their own way. This format is relatively unique, which could be a positive as it offers something relatively new — but as it is relatively new, that could also be its weakness.
4. Zoe Wright plays the title role of Hannah; how did the two of you meet and what’s it been like to work with her?
I saw Wright in a production at my local theater in Scarborough and was blown away by her talent. I contacted her agent and asked if we could meet up. Fortunately, Wright agreed and we went to the recording studio together and played through the songs and she loved them.
We subsequently spent a good few months recording all the songs and the narration and we loved every minute. She is a dream to work with, highly professional in every way. And the folks who have heard the audiobook so far love her North Yorkshire accent; they love how its so real and down to earth.
5. Can you tell us a bit about the bonus track, specifically written for the show, by the D-Day Darlings — the biggest-selling female group to come out of “Britain’s Got Talent”?
When I first heard the D-Days sing on “Britain’s Got Talent,” I absolutely loved them and wanted them to make a guest appearance in “Hannah.” I contacted their management team and they very kindly agreed to join the project. So, I wrote a song especially for them to sing in the stage musical version of “Hannah” called “Where Are You?”
The song is a little different to the other songs in the stage musical as it is deliberately nostalgic and reminiscent of Vera Lynn’s “We’ll Meet Again.” The track does not appear in the audiobook but is available to download as a bonus track on the “Hannah” website. The purchase is price of choice, meaning you can choose whatever price you want to pay — from $0 on up.
6. What kind of audience do you think the book will resonate the most with?
Listeners who like to listen to (mostly) modern music. Listeners who like music to tell a story. Listeners who don’t have time to either read a novel or listen to an audiobook that is hours long. A wide range of listener groups of all ages as the story is a love story at its core. Listeners who like to invest in characters and the story as this is book one of two (so far).
7. What can you tell us about the second part in the series, due to release in December 2024?
“Hannah: The Soldier Diaries (Part 2) will be released in December 2024. The second audiobook is a continuation story picking up where the first book ends. The story follows the relationship Hannah has with her boyfriend’s brother. The book contains 11 brand new songs each designed to compliment and move the narrative forward as before. This second book will complete the initial Hannah story, but there is definitely more to come …
8. What’s next for the stage musical?
The musical will take to the stage once more in summer 2025. Plans are being made to enable “Hannah” to be the summer show in Scarborough, which means it will run two or three times a week for a two-month period, which we are incredibly excited about. Beyond that, we are putting together plans for a 2025 tour around thenorth of the UK with a follow up tour in 2026 with the aim of hitting the West End in London shortly afterward.
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A former award-winning journalist with national exposure, Marissa now oversees the day-to-day operation of the Books Forward author branding and book marketing firm, along with our indie publishing support sister company Books Fluent.
Born and bred in Louisiana, currently living in New Orleans, she has lived and developed a strong base for our company and authors in Chicago and Nashville. Her journalism work has appeared in USA Today, National Geographic and other major publications. She is now interviewed by media on best practices for book marketing.
