The Pen and Parchment

Excerpts From My Life

2012-03-02T11:34:00.007-08:00

Hello friends,

This post is sort of a mix of an update and a mix of something else - I'm not exactly sure what. :P

On the "Update" side, I have some exciting news. ^_^ If you've been reading my posts, and you've read through the comments on the post "Updates on my life... and no, I'm not dead yet", then you might have noticed that I've mentioned I was in the middle of an experimental project in which I prepare several of my short stories for publications through Amazon, B&N, and Smashwords.

Well, step one in said experiment is now complete... which means, in essence, that the first of a set of my short stories is now available on Amazon for Kindle. ^_^ The first object of the experiment is to test my text formatting and type setting skills when it comes to digital publication, so that I'm 100% prepared for Magpie Eclectic Press' first title. Well, according to my kindle, I have a good handle on the type setting and formatting for amazon. Now I just have to prepare the book for Smashwords and B&N.

The second (and currently less important) object (which I will explain about in a moment), is to test my online marketing skills. The book just went live a little over 12 hours ago, and the story is only 4k long. It's also one of my older pieces, but it's one that I still really like and I've been "tweaking" it. :D

Here is the cover and the blurb:

(Note about the cover: My name is really dim on purpose, because I didn't want the extra words to take away from the picture's effect. However, if you find this troublesome, please let me know. :D)

ZI Mara is an elite soldier in the F.A.H (that's Faeries Among Humans for those of you without fae blood). When an enraged male ghoul escapes the faerie realms and begins on a rampage for Chicago, Mara and her friend, Officer Lee Moker, are the only ones who can stop the monster and save the humans from disaster. However, the ghoul has already taken a large bite out of Mara's shoulder and its venom is slowly rendering her immobile. The only hope for the people of Chicago rests in Mara's hands... and that hope could cost her her life.

(A disclaimer for those of you who are a bit more sensitive, the word "heck" is used several times throughout the story.)

The book is now available for $0.99 on Kindle. ^_^ It was not released under Magpie Eclectic Press, as it is more of an experimental personal project.

As the story is only 4k, and hasn't been previously advertised before release (which would be standard procedure with a novel), I don't expect the story to really "take off", but I still hope it does well. I don't write short stories very often, and this is definitely one of my better pieces. Hopefully it will help me gain a few new readers and maybe even a couple of fans... which, of course, would be nice and encouraging. :)

Here's the Amazon link:

"Blue Moon" by Nichole White

In other news, school is going well and so is the progress on Magpie's new site. :D It's not live yet, but it's coming. In the mean time I've been working on a new writing post called "The Delicate Art of Torture", which is about conflict and torturing your characters... *evil look*

I've also been working on more jewelry... really fun pieces which are all twisty and beaded. :) I've created an FB page for them, and I'm working to set up an etsy shop. Here's the FB page if any of you are interested:

Handmade wire wrapped jewelry

And in between that, music theory homework, and life in general, I've also found some time to squeeze writing in through the cracks of my crazy, wonderful life. I have a few more book reviews due to be up within a couple of weeks, and I'm really, REALLY hoping that this will be the last "update" post in a while (meaning that instead, I will be posting more book reviews, writing posts, and perhaps even hosting a contest in the near future... ^_^)

In the mean time, how about a giveaway... The prize is either a PDF or Kindle Formated author review copy of my short story "Blue Moon" (which is exactly the same as the published version, only you will be getting it for free. :D)

To join, you must"
1) follow this blog (1 pnt)

2) Post a comment (1)

To earn more points, you can:

1) Post to FB (1)

2) Tweet about it (1)

3) blog about it (something thoughtful if possible) and post the link in the comments (2)

4) get a friend to follow the P&P (and for this to count, your friend must post a comment saying who it was that referred them) (3)

I wonder who will win this contest. :D I've never hosted one like this before, so it should be interesting... good luck to you all!

Ross Lawhead's "The Realms Thereunder"

2012-02-20T14:57:00.000-08:00

Hello and welcome to the blog tour for Ross Lawhead's book "The Realm's Thereunder". Ross Lawhead is the son of well known British Speculative Fiction writer, Steven Lawhead, and let's make no mistake, he has definitely decided to follow in the footsteps of his literary father. To date, He has collaborated with his father on a trilogy of speculative fiction, written and illustrated a graphic novel, and published two volumes of “awful” poetry in a series called “The Colour Papers.” He lives in Oxford, England and "The Realms Thereunder" is his first full-length novel.

Ok, I have to be extremely honest here: I am not very familiar with many of Steven Lawhead's books, and I know that's awful since I love speculative fiction -- especially Arthurian fiction -- and time travel and British literature intrigue me. I actually have quite a few of Mr. Lawhead's books at home, but haven't gotten around to reading them yet, as sad as that is. In the past I have read Mr. Lawhead's book "The Skin Map" and reviewed it here on the P&P, and I also received a copy of the second book in that series titled "The House of Bones", which I am planning to review hopefully soon. (I was supposed to review it a while ago, but I'm still picking my way through it; I find it -- eh -- dense, as in the book is rather thick, and it's content really needs to be thought over thoroughly. Dense books always take me longer to get through. :P) I like what I've read of Mr. Lawhead's books, even if I find the works a bit "scattered". Perhaps that's just me though. It's hard to tell sometimes. *shrug*

When I saw that Mr. Lawhead's son had written and published a novel, taking after his father, I was very intrigued. I decided that I should definitely try the book out and see if I liked it, and I figured I probably would, especially after having read the blurb for the book. Here it is:

Ancient legend tells of an army of knights that will remain sleeping until the last days.

The knights are waking up.

A homeless man is stalked by a pale, wraithlike creature with a mouthful of needle-sharp teeth. Maimed animals and a host of suicides cluster around a mountain in Scotland. And deep beneath the cobbled streets of Oxford, a malicious hoard besieges a hidden city.

Freya Reynolds is a university student with a touch of OCD and an obsession with myth and folklore. Daniel Tully is living rough on the streets of Oxford, waging a secret war against an enemy only he can identify. Years ago, they found themselves in a world few know is real. They have since gone their separate ways and tried to put that adventure behind them.

But the mythical world is now bleeding into our reality-a dark spiritual evil that is manifesting itself in forgotten corners of the British Isles. Alex Simpson is a Scottish police officer who specializes in hunting mythical creatures. Together, they must confront the past, the present, and points beyond to defeat the ultimate threat to humanity.

Nothing they've seen so far prepares them for what awaits . . . in The Realms Thereunder.

Now come on, you have to admit that this sounds like a cool story, am I right? ^_^ So I was very happy when I had the chance to get the book from the CSFF blog tour and read through it. Currently I'm almost 80% through the book, and still reading. This review is on what I have read of the book so far and what I think of it to date. It may be that I have to update this review after I get the book completely finished, but we'll just have to see. :)

My thoughts:

Ross Lawhead definitely takes after his father, no question. He is a good writer, and his prose are well placed, and engaging. He certainly has many good ideas and knows how to put interesting details into his stories that help flesh out characters, places and scenes. And I do like his style of writing... it has a definite "British" air about it, and I often find myself reading it aloud with an accent. *smirk*

However (and I think this is unfortunate), I find this work to be as scattered as I find his father's works to be, to date.

I don't say that to seem mean or rude, and like I said, it could just be me. I'm not sure. But let me try to explain what I mean. Up to this point in the story, the book has worked to juggle four different story lines: one for Daniel at this point in time, one for Freya at this point in time, one for Alex at this point in time, and one for Fraya and Daniel when they were children. Each story line is different -- unique to say the very least -- and thoroughly engaging. HOWEVER, at this moment I find it difficult to see how the four different story lines relate to each other. At 80% through the book, I have yet to see the story lines mesh so that the characters can meet and work together to defeat this ancient evil that threatens the world, as is stated will happen in the second to last paragraph of the blurb. Right now, Daniel is currently in another world altogether; Freya is completely spacing out, and coming to every few years or so (maybe... it's difficult to tell what's going on there); Alex was almost killed by a dragon in the modern world; and back in time, Freya and Daniel are searching for an evil heart of some sort.

Now, the author has 20% of the book left to convince me that these storylines will all eventually work together and the story will align. I'm definitely going to keep reading. But at this moment this doesn't feel like one good story; it feels like four good stories, that may have similarities involved, but that really don't have much in common. I'll just have to wait and see what happens closer to the end of the book -- reserve my final judgment until I get the whole picture. Perhaps I will end up changing my thoughts and will have to come back and change my opinions in this review. I don't know.

On another note, I have two copies of this book in reality - a paperback copy that was given to me for the blog tour, and then after I bought my new kindle I went ahead and got an e-book version as well. I've been switching on and off between the two versions of the book, and while I have so far had no real troubles with the physical copy, I've found several formatting issues with the digital copy. These aren't grammatical errors that I'm talking about; these are more like cut offs in the middle of a sentence while the rest of the sentence starts a new paragraph, or paragraphs doing much the same thing. It's rather annoying. :P And to be quite honest, for a book that came out through Thomas Nelson, I expected a better job. I don't know if others have noticed the same problems or not, but it's definitely something that troubles me. I wish it were different.

I honestly must say that I HATE to give negative reviews of any sort. And I especially hate to give negative reviews to good writers, because the truth of the matter is that Ross Lawhead is ABSOLUTELY a good writer. I've kept reading, after all, and I'm going to continue reading to the end. Truth to tell, it's a catchy story, even if it makes no sense to me at the moment. But that's just it: it makes no sense to me at the moment. I may keep reading, and I may even like what I'm reading (which I do), but I can't pretend I know what's going on, even so far into the book. It's confusing right now, scattered all over the place, and the plot lines just don't match up. Hopefully things will improve by the time I reach the end.

Don't let my review deter you from checking out this book for yourself though. For more reviews on this book and other Christian Speculative titles, please visit a few of the links below. I'm sure that others' opinions will differ. :)

Also, you can find more about Ross and his book at: http://www.rosslawhead.com/blog/

and:

http://www.amazon.com/Realms-Thereunder-Ancient-Earth/dp/1595549099/

Gillian Adams
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CSFF Blog Tour
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Writing Days -- An Excerpt from "Song of the Daystar"

2012-02-16T11:20:00.000-08:00

It has been a very LONG time since I've posted a writing excerpt. :) I thought it would be fun to start doing that again, especially since work on SOTD has started to pick up once more.

As many of you already know, I'm working on a new rewrite for SOTD... I started after I got the reply from the publisher who was looking at my manuscript. They thought I had a good story concept, but they thought that I didn't do it justice. It took me a couple months of setting SOTD aside before I realized that they were right and I decided to start fresh... same characters, improved concept, story, and writing.

That was about a year ago, and since then I've been in a long stall... only three new chapters were turned out in a whole year, and everything's been on hold since. My love of writing never digressed, but suddenly it became so much easier to put it off, and put it off, until I really had no more good excuses... just the fact that I didn't want to do it right then.

(This will lead up to a new post on Procrastination, I'm thinking... perhaps I'll be able to get that up in a day or two. ^_^)

But last weekend I decided it was time to stop stalling. I went back and read over the three chapters I had rewritten previously, and decided that the first chapter started a little too late into the story. So I started writing a new first chapter... one that really does start at the beginning where it should, instead of jumping right into the action where everything has to be laid out and explained in back story and the like. This chapter is much truer to what I envisioned the beginning of the story to look and sound like, and already it's made it easier for me to plan out the next few moves. (That was one problem I had with the other rewrite... I got to a point where I felt like I couldn't move forward because there was still too much to go back and explain. :P)

I was able to write 1,513 words for the new first chapter on Sunday, and now I'm going to share them with you. :) Note that this excerpt ends in a rather odd place, since I truly have not had time to work on the piece until today. I'm hoping to get more done on it this afternoon after I finish the 8 measure composition due tomorrow morning for my Music Theory class, and finish the errands that my mom has me running for.

Until then, though, here's what I have up to this point:

Chapter 1

The Boy with a Secret

The stable was cold and steeped in darkness when Curron stepped in and drew the door shut behind him. Soft nickers drifted out to him from the stalls, followed by several welcoming snorts. Shivering from his early morning walk, Curron latched the door with his free hand and reached out to grab the old lantern from its post. The cold metal handle bit into the palm of his skin sending tingles up his arms, and for the hundredth time Curron wished he could afford a set of gloves. He tipped his candle to the lantern’s wick and warm light flooded the walkway before him. Several long muzzles poked into the aisle and dark eyes glistened at him from the cubicles lining either side of the path.

Holding the lantern out in front, Curron made his way to the back wall where the feed was barreled. The horses shifted to follow his progress, snorting quiet greetings and stretching their noses over stall doors for him to fondle as he passed. A few reached out and yanked his clothing with their teeth, asking after the wrinkled apples hidden in his pockets.

Curron winced each time he heard the fibers of his shirt pop. The mornings were growing colder as the autumn months progressed. Sooner or later he’d have to ask Téagh for another set of clothes if he didn’t want to catch frostbite or worse in the winter months, and it was inevitable that Téagh would be annoyed. Téagh was annoyed at most things. Only two winters had passed since the last time the old stable master had bartered a boy’s shirt and leggings off a servant for Curron’s sake. The clothes had been too big for Curron then, at only twelve, but now the pants were up to his shins and the shirt stretched taught over his back. He was afraid that someday soon the shirt might rip open, leaving him in nothing but his trousers and his skin. Then how would he manage through winter?

At the back of the barn, he hung the lantern on the nail protruding above the grain bins, picked up the pitchfork leaning against the wall, and turned back to his charges. Cold and dark as it was, it was still worth rising before dawn each day to spend time alone in the stables. It was the one place he was free to be entirely himself, the one place he could escape his nightmares. Horses always listened and were never judgmental; they didn’t care if you were a prince or a pauper, so long as they were treated with kindness and respect. Which was good since Curron was far from princely.

“Alright then,” he said to no one in particular. “Who’s hungry?” Grabbing up a fistful of oats from the nearest barrel, he approached the first stall and held his arm out to the occupant. “How about you, Nathahl?” he crooned. “Is your belly sticking to your ribs yet?”

Large dark eyes winked out at Curron from the shadows of the stall. Several moments later the eyes drew nearer and a warm, velvety nose found its way into his palm to lip timidly at the grains.

Calm flooded Curron’s senses at the familiar touch, easing the worry that still lingered from his bad dreams. Setting the pitchfork against the stall door, he reached up, threaded his fingers through Nathahl’s dark mane, and sighed. The horse’s warmth seeped into his cold hands and up through his shivering arms. His muscles relaxed as the heat spread to his shoulders and rolled through his back. To Curron, there was nothing so consoling as the feel and smell of horse. His charges were like family.

It was humans who were strange, even if he must count himself among them.

Curron closed his eyes and leaned forward, pressing his head against the small white star on the bridge of Nathahl’s nose, allowing his emotions to uncoil. The Black knew of his dreams, of course; it wasn’t something Curron could hide from him. The nightmares had been growing steadily worse, and Nathahl sensed them as deeply as Curron did. He often woke hours before dawn now, panting and sweating through his bedclothes though the hearth’s fire had long since retreated into the coals and the room was cold and still. Several months before, in a rare moment of visible concern, Téagh had insisted Curron visit the Fort Infirmary, but none of the Healers’ treatments improved the dreams or eased his sleep. Commander Olan had berated him for valuable time lost.

Curron breathed in deep and let his mind brushed against Nathahl’s consciousness, light and airy as the tips of feathers. The thoughts and feelings of the other horses crowded forward, eager to comfort him, eager to grab his attention, but he didn’t immerse himself. Not this time. He touched each of their minds and gave them all one order.

Be still. You will get your turns in a bit.

Their wild blood pressed against the boundaries of his command, but he shielded his thoughts from them. They were wild, yes, but he was strong… thanks to Nathahl’s guidance. If Commander Olan ever discovered his secret, it might be the death of him, but the Black had taught him well. Nathahl humbly shook his neck as Curron let his thanks touch the Black’s mind. He nipped the cuff of Curron’s sleeve and nickered softly in his ear.

Curron had no idea how long he’d been standing like that – an hour, maybe, or a few minutes – when a draft of cold air broke his concentration. Nathahl snorted uneasily, stamping a hoof to the ground. Curron opened his eyes and the Black jerked its head away. The horse grunted at something over Curron’s shoulder and pranced back into the shadows of its stall.

SCREEEE!!!

The sound erupted from nowhere and echoed through the rafters, rending the silence in two and sending the rest of the horses into frenzy. Curron spun around, stretching out his mind to quiet them. He caught snatches of their thoughts and his muscles tensed.

Stranger! they warned. Predator. Bloodlust.

Unnatural.

Curron’s eyes skimmed the shadows for danger as he moved down the line, placing his hand on each horse’s muzzle to calm it. He’d never seen them so uneasy before; not in their own stalls, not while he was near. Their minds resisted him until finally he had to force his way in between the cracks of their fears and compel comforting thoughts to take the place of terror. It was no easy task. By the time he reached the end of the stalls, his chest hurt and he felt like he hadn’t slept in a week.

He turned back toward the lantern and the pitchfork he’d left leaning against Nathahl’s stall. It seemed so far away now, but if he finished his work quickly, maybe he’d still have an hour or two to rest before Téagh was up and yelling for him. He took a step forward, sagged against a support beam, and yelped as a large rust-colored bird swooped down over his shoulder, missing him by inches. It lifted into the rafters and stared down at him with golden predatory eyes as if unsure what it wanted to do with him.

“Now that’s some trick you’ve got there,” a deep, rich voice commented from somewhere behind him.

Curron spun, searching the shadows for the source of the voice. His eyes roved over the cubicles one by one, but found nothing. The lantern’s light, once offering warmth and comfort, now splayed across the floor in a pitiful pool of insipid gold reflecting like flames in the eyes of the raptor perched aloft.

“The horses,” the voice explained, “They respond to you like none I’ve seen. ‘Tis a rare talent, that. A pity it’s wasted in such a place as this. But then again, Olan never was one to recognize ability.”

A dark figure pealed itself away from one shadowed corner and stepped forward. It had a slight frame draped in the dark billows of a traveler’s cloak with the hood pulled up to hide most of its features. Only the lower part of its face was completely visible, dark ginger stubble shadowing its chin and upper lip. A twinkle of eyes glimmered out at Curron from the darkness beneath the hood, assessing him, judging him…

Curron glanced up as the hawk warbled a few curious notes and tilted its head at him. It followed his movements closely, shuffling back and forth on its post, its talons scratching along the beams.

The stranger tipped his head back to follow Curron’s gaze. “Ah,” he said. “That’s just Aigneis. You needn’t fear her, if that’s what you’re so anxious about. She’ll fight like the guardians of Grimwryld themselves if I ask her, and she’s got a call to chill the blood, but she won’t attack without incentive.” He lifted an arm and the hawk screeched again, spreading its wings and drifting down to alight on its master’s shoulder.

Updates on my life… And no, I’m not Dead Yet

2012-02-15T11:36:00.000-08:00

It has been a long time since I’ve posted something meaningful on this blog, and I truly am sorry for that. I honestly can’t say why that would be, either. It’s not that I don’t have lots of interesting things to talk about, because I do… I suppose. And it’s not necessarily that I don’t have time for it either, because I suppose I have that as well.

Perhaps it’s just sheer procrastination. I’m not sure anymore. I’m busy, as always, but that is really no excuse. I’ve just plain been avoiding it, I guess. On a side note, I’m in some pretty desperate need of a solid job, and though I’ve been applying all over and have had several interviews, I’ve yet to be hired. It’s rather discouraging, to be truthful, but people keep telling me that perhaps it’s because I just haven’t found the right job yet, and that God knows which one I need. I keep praying about it. Hopefully something will come up soon.

But speaking of interesting jobs and what not, there’s been no end to creative release for my overly active mind. Over the holidays I made a TON of new jewelry. I also lost my camera, which is why there have been no pictures of them, but I found it the other day so hopefully I’ll be able to post new pictures soon. I honestly don’t know what I find so fascinating and fun about twisting wire and adding beads, but I find it soothing… something for my hands to do without my mind having to process a whole lot of information, guess. It’s comforting.

On the other hand, I’ve also picked up a few new commission jobs; some exciting ones at that. :) I know that some of you out there are writing friends and followers of Jake Buller over at his blog “Teenage Writer”. And if you follow Jake, then you’re probably aware of his novella “The War Horn” which has been in progress for a while now, and has been discussed on his blog several times. Jake is quite the talented writer, I must say, and I was excited when he let me read through part of his first draft for TWH. But I was totally honored when he came to me a few weeks ago and asked if I would do his cover art for him. Jake currently lives in Liberia, having just moved there with his family from Kansas. He is planning to publish TWH for kindle through Amazon, and the proceedings from the book will help fund his way back to the States for a writing conference that he really wants to attend. Right now he’s waiting for feedback from his ARC’s, but the book should be available to purchase sometime near the end of February. Here’s a look at his cover art, in case you are interested. If what I’ve read and what he described for me was anything to go by, the book should definitely be worth looking into.

But that’s not the only exciting piece I’ve started work on. I know that many of you are followers of Jill Williamson and her “Blood of King’s” trilogy Published through Marcher Lord Press. Her newest book “Replication” just hit shelves in January, and I wrote a review for it here on the P&P. It was quite a page turner, I’ll tell you! Now, Marcher Lord is preparing to release yet another of her books in the fall, and GUESS WHO’S WORKING ON THE MAP FOR IT!!! ^_^

I seriously cannot tell you how excited I am. :D

Jill Williamson is one of my most favorite, if not THE most favorite Speculative Christian Author on my list today. Her “Blood of Kings” trilogy is really phenomenal, as is her new book “Replication”, and I’m sure that her latest book will be just as awesome. On the flip side of the coin, Marcher Lord Press is the premier indie publisher of Christian Speculative fiction in the world. They’ve published some truly spectacular material, and picked up some big names in the last few years with Sharon Hink’s “Restorer” books, and Kathy Tiers’ “Firebird” trilogy. And they continue to grow. It’s just a little mind boggling for me to think that if all goes well, one of my maps might actually be in an MLP book… and not just any MLP book, but the book of my favorite Christian author to date (besides Tolkien and Lewis, of course.) It’s a little frightening and a whole lot of tingly.

I gotta tell you, God is amazing. ^_^

And speaking of God and books, I finally, FINALLY moved forward with Magpie Eclectic Press. We are now open to submissions. :D However, I’ve decided that the company’s official launch date won’t be until we actually release a book for market. Because, after all, we definitely want people to see what we can offer them. ^_^

Still, for now, Magpie is up and running and we are on our way. And at the moment, I’m just trying to get the word out about the open submissions. I have several online interviews lined up to talk about what the company is about, how we differ from other houses, why we are different from self publishing and vanity presses, etc… The types of questions that authors want to know the answers to before looking at a publisher, as well as the types of questions all curious authors want to ask about the publishing business itself.

I must be honest, it’s daunting to look at some of the questions being asked. I believe I’m ready for them – I honestly and truly do – but this is still a big first step for me. Do I have the answers to all of them, and if I do, are they the right ones? I won’t lie, I’ve already wondered if I might have opened the company too soon, or if I should have opened it at all. Can I truly handle this, or was it never meant to be?

Well, I believe it was certainly meant to be. I believe that the idea for it was planted and watered by God, and I believe that I have the passion and knowledge to carry it forward. But I’ve disillusioned myself. I said from the beginning that I couldn’t do it alone, and I stick by that instinct; I’m hiring out for help. No way could I complete everything by myself and do it well… God has placed many talented people in this world and in my path, and I’m so grateful for his provision.

But do I actually have the answers to the questions that people are going ask me in these interviews? Am I really ready for this? Will the authors see and understand from my answers that I will really WORK for their books… that I truly want to, and will pour my heart into it? Will they understand that my passion goes beyond these words into the actions and the steps that I will take for them… or will they just see a girl pretending to be something as if this were all just a dream? Will they read what I have to say and take me and this company seriously?

I guess that’s what I’m really worried about.

But I’ve done my research and thought long and hard on everything that this huge endeavor is going to take. I’ve hosted and read interviews on the subjects involved, read articles, watched and listened to news casts, read books, searched blogs, studied publishing companies, their methods, and their markets, written papers and articles on the subject, blogged about it… I’m even studying to be an English Major simply because I know that I’m supposed to be working in the publishing industry, and I might decide to take on a publishing major afterward. I’m not even going to try to pretend like I know everything now, but I know a lot and I’ve answered questions like these before. Like I’ve said, this is a large first step for me, but I know I have God on my side, and my passion is for words. I desperately want to help other writers bring their words and stories into the world so that readers can enjoy them too. I want Magpie Eclectic to be trusted as a source of good, strong Christian Speculative fiction all over the U.S. and hopefully beyond. I mean, truly, it’s all about the stories and coming together as a writing/publishing family, based on Christian morals and standards.

So yes… I think I’m ready. God willing, I’m ready. Prayers are welcomed, as I work to get Magpie securely anchored on its feet. But you can’t take a step forward without standing first, and that’s why I’ve opened Magpie for submissions. That’s why I knew it was time.

(And sorry if this all sounds like a bunch of rambling thrown out to form some sort of pep talk. If you don’t understand what I’m going on about, no worries. I simply think best when I’m typing freely, and I do THAT best when I’m blogging. ;D)

If, by any chance, you are interested in submitting to Magpie Eclectic Press, you can visit our temporary Website at www.wix.com/nichole_white/magpie-eclectic-press. Please ignore any missing apostrophes or the like that you may stumble across… I haven’t figured out exactly WHY the site is refusing to leave them in, even after I go back through and insert them all again. I know it looks very unprofessional without them, and its driving me insane! But I am working with someone to prepare a more professional and polished website for the company… one that will have no problem leaving punctuation in its proper place. Aside from that, however, this site does have our terms laid out for any who wish to submit something to us. If you are interested, go ahead and take a look. :)

And now… well, I think I’m going to go ahead and end this blog post for now, and I might go ahead and write another one for another time. Perhaps one that doesn’t feel quite so jointed together. Maybe even one on the writing process. It’s been a while since I’ve done one of those, and I’ve started to have more success with SOTD again as well, so perhaps it’s time for me to dig through my notes and actually write something about writing again. :D We’ll see.

In the mean time, what are your thoughts on traditional publishing verses self publishing? What do you think of Indie Presses like Marcher Lord Press, Splashdown Books, and Port Yonder Press? What are your thoughts on Indie Authors who go it alone? Are you for them? Against them? Why or why not? Do you prefer E-books or physical books, and what are your thoughts on the way the publishing market of today is turning out?

Let me know what you’re thinking. I love to hear all the interesting things everybody has to say. ^_^

Goodbye for now, and happy writing!

Nichole

Oh, The Truths about Fantasy Writers!!!! ^_^

2012-02-11T13:31:00.000-08:00

I posted this video once before, but I really don't think that did it justice. If you are a fantasy writer, or you know a fantasy writer, then this video is definitely for you.

And a couple of facts about the video, for those of you who don't know about Andrew Peterson. Andrew is one of my favorite musician/songwriters of all times. ^_^ His lyrics are just SO thought provoking! It's absolutely amazing. And he's also an amazing fantasy writer, as well as an illustrator. His latest book, "The Monster in the Hollows", was released by Rabbit Room Press, which is a press that he created and runs. I've written reviews on all of his books, and I will post the links for them at a slightly later time.

Seriously though, if you are a fantasy writer, reader, or if you know a person who likes fantasy, this video is ABSOLUTELY for you, and it's HILARIOUS! :D

Pursuing Creativity in 2012 – My New Year’s resolution

2012-01-30T11:29:00.000-08:00

Well friends, it is 2012 – the year that I am claiming as “The Year of Creativity”. My prayer is that it will also be “The Year of Productivity”, and you will find that I have a very good reason for wanting this. But I will get to that later.

For right now, let’s discuss “creativity”. In the dictionary, creativity is defined as the ability to use the imagination to develop new and original ideas or things, especially in an artistic context; it is, in essence, the quality of being creative. As writers, we are constantly creating… even when it appears to others that we are doing nothing at all. This is because, to those who are creative at heart, our minds simply cannot STOP creating.

It’s true! How many of you writers out there have decided you were going to read a book simply for the pleasure of it, and catch yourself comparing character traits and notarizing world building techniques by the middle of the third or fourth chapter? How about those of you who glance out the window simply to see the landscape and find yourself contemplating the purpose of your characters’ journeys, or perhaps you start worrying over landmarks for your map, or you see a bird or a bug of some kind and get an awesome new idea for a unique creature? Maybe you turn on the television to watch the news and begin to ponder the political standing of your characters, the government of their cities, or the religions of their world. Do you ever sit in a church service taking notes for allegorical themes and hidden messages to incorporate into your story from your pastor’s sermon?

I have done all of those things and let me tell you – sometimes I get seriously exhausted from the fact that my mind quite simply refuses to SHUT UP. I don’t MEAN to think about those things at those times… I simply can’t help it. I have no control over the matter… it just happens.

But for the last couple years I’ve been seriously struggling with getting these thoughts onto paper – or perhaps better worded, into the computer. I LOVE to write, but of all the activities that I find myself doing, writing is the one creative outlet it seems that I neglect. It used to be that I would sneak away any chance I got to sit down and flesh out a scene for my book… but for the longest time now, I’ve had no will – no inspiration – to do such things.

Hopefully for no longer.

My “sabbatical” from writing has lasted almost two years now against my will. It has been a struggle to get the words out right, and then I grow weary of trying… so I stop, saying that I will pick it up again when I am more up to the challenge. But I have come to realize that this will never happen unless I make myself up for it, and I berate myself for stopping at all. Without pushing forward, of course I will always be stunted by that one obstacle that stands in my way; without persevering, of course I will be overcome by a problem that might have otherwise been easy to solve.

So this is my year of creativity. This is the year that I take back the inspiration and perseverance that was always mine before.

And with that in mind, this is also the year that I claim as “The Year of Productivity”. Not only am I going to work to get SOTD out of this rut that it’s been stuck in for so long, but I have some other exciting news as well… ^_^

MAGPIE ECLECTIC PRESS is almost ready to start accepting submissions! :D

(You may have noted the name change… and there’s good reason for it that I won’t go into right now. ;D)

That’s right, people! Though I may have been neglecting my writing life, I have not neglected my research. It has been six months to the day that I posted that Blog Post about wanted to start a publishing company. But as I mentioned in that post, the idea has been simmering in my heart for several years, and I had been researching the subject long before I decided to share about it for the first time. I thought back in August that to get the company set up correctly would take several years – and I don’t think I was wrong, but I also don’t think I was looking at the full picture. Because, you see, I had already done lots of research beforehand, and since August, I’ve done even more.

The other day I was able to get the site together and ready to launch. I found a few typos afterward that needed to be corrected, but they are due to the fact that I typed up most of what is said on the site in a Word Document, and for some reason the site builder that I’m using doesn’t accept “smart quotes” and “smart apostrophes”… therefore leaving many of my contractions without an apostrophe at all. :P I was able to get those corrected. There are a few other details I’m still working to get cleared up before I can start accepting submissions, but I’m confident that Magpie Eclectic will open its doors sometime within the next few months.

Of course, this is an extremely exciting time for me. As many of you know (simply because I’ve said it before… over and over again…) I’ve never tried anything like this before. But I’m not backing down… not even a little. I’ve been studying this industry since I was 17, and ok, that means it’s only been almost 8 years (much less that some people out there), but that’s still a whole 8 years dedicated to learning the business of writing and publishing. Plus I’m earning a degree in English, was previously a writing tutor, and have done editing jobs on the side… not to mention the fact that I did once teach a creative writing class for young adults. I’ve even had a few things published (well… mostly in the college literary journal, but still), and was afterward made a part of the same literary journal’s production team.

I know this makes me sound like I’m bragging, but I’m not trying to. Really. Actually, if anything, I’m telling this to you simply to help convince myself that I can handle this. Or at least I hope I can. <_<

So keep your eyes open for more news on the opening of Magpie Eclectic Press. If you are interested in visiting the site, here’s the link, but we aren’t open for submissions just yet: http://www.wix.com/nichole_white/magpie-eclectic-press

And on that same note, I hope that some of you will also claim this year as THE year for creativity and productivity. I totally believe it is. By God’s grace I will be able to move forward, no longer stuck in 2011… this is 2012!

Nichole White

Fun in Music

2012-01-09T18:37:00.000-08:00

Hello,

As some of you know, I am a college student working towards a double major in English and Music. Last year was my first semester in Music Theory (even though I've been at my college doing gen-eds for three years now... :P). I was so excited! I had a lot of fun last year learning as much as I could about music and how it all works together. I also started piano lessons. But the best part of all was learning how to write music.

Now, I've been a musician for years... I sing, and write songs, play the guitar, and I could still plunk out songs on the piano, even though I couldn't read or write music. But now, I'm starting to understand how music works together and it's PHENOMENAL! I love it so much!

I spent a lot of time in the piano practice rooms last year, composing small pieces and writing down the music. One of the pieces that I wrote I was actually able to play for my piano final, which was super exciting! Afterward, I decided I wanted to be able to listen to it, so I found a software that let me play around with synthesized sounds to create music. Following the sheet music I had, I put the notes in and played around with them a bit, adding some here and there. This is how it turned out and I hope you like it! The song is titled "Waves" because the music made me think of the ocean. It's a little repetative, but I hope in this next semester to be able to add bits and pieces to it to make it more... eh... interesting. :)

“Replication” by Jill Williamson – a Review

2012-01-08T11:04:00.000-08:00

Hello friends,

It has been a while since I’ve had the time or a sufficient connection to the internet with which to post something more meaningful. I hope you all had a good holiday! Mine has been quite full to say the very least, and while I know that college starts again on the 17th, I’d swear that classes got out for Christmas only a week ago… Oh well. No matter how short the vacation was, it was still time off, and I’m thankful for it. Just know that when school starts again, I’ll be able to blog more often: it definitely helps when you have a reliable connection to the web. But, the time off has helped me get back some of my personal priorities too, like writing (I’ve made some new leeway in SOTD, but I’ll talk more of that at a later time) and like… sleep. In fact, sleep has become so much a priority that sometimes my parents become aggravated; they ask how a person can spend so much time with their eyes closed, and I tell them it’s to make up for a whole semester of trying desperately to stay awake 24/7. Lol! College takes its toll, my friends. Especially when you fill your class schedule with as much as you can manage. I really need to fix that… :P

But enough chit-chat!

Today I’m writing a review for Jill Williamson’s newest book just recently released through Zondervan, titled “Replication”. I can’t tell you how excited I was to receive an invitation for an ARC. Jill is one of the most respected authors on my long and still growing list of favorite authors, and one of the most anticipated. I haven’t posted a review on her “Blood of Kings” trilogy yet, but I will be posting one sometime this year (when I finish the third book. ;D). Besides that however, who wouldn’t be intrigued by the premise? A main character named Martyr? A farm solely dedicated to cloning humans? What’s not to like? :D

Here’s the blurb so you can read it for yourself:

Martyr – also known as Jason 3:3 – is one of hundreds of clones kept in a remote facility called Jason Farms. Told that he has been created to save humanity, Martyr has just one wish before he is scheduled to “expire” in less than a month. To see sky.

Abby Goyer may have just moved to Alaska, but she has a feeling something strange is going on at the farm where her father works. But even this smart, confident girl could never have imagined what lies beneath a simple barn. Or what would happen when a mysterious boy shows up at her door asking about the stars.

As the reality of the Jason Experiment comes to light, Martyr is caught between two futures – the one for which he was produced, and the one Abby believes God created him to have. Time is running out, and Martyr must decide if a life with Abby is work leaving everything he’s ever known.

Now about the author:

Jill Williamson is a novelist, dreamer, and believer. She grew up in Alaska and loved to read books. In 2010 her first novel, “By Darkness Hid” won the Christy Award. She loves to work with teens, and she gives writing workshops at libraries, schools, camps, and churches. Currently she lives in Oregon with her husband and two children. And of course you can find out more about her, her writing projects, and her books at www.jillwilliamson.com.

Also, a word in edgewise, Jill is simply a really awesome person to hang around. I don’t know her very well, but I was able to meet her once in person and it was such an honor. If first impressions are anything to go by, Jill made a good one. She was kind, fun-loving, and she smiled a lot. And come on! What’s not to love about setting out to meet one of your favorite authors for the first time, and having her greet you wearing a medieval Lord of the Rings style dress. ;)

My thoughts about the book: WARNING: Spoilers ahead.

Replication was not quite what I anticipated… it was much better! When I first started looking into the book, I wasn’t sure what to expect from it. How would the clones be portrayed? Why had they never seen sky? Just what exactly did Abby’s father do? I wondered at first if the book wouldn’t have similar qualities to the movie i-robot (which is, by the way, one of my favorite futuristic films.) My mind predicted clichés in Science Fiction, and I pondered the possibilities.

I shouldn’t have worried… my mind couldn’t have been more wrong.

Replication is all about finding God’s purpose for our life and living out that purpose to the fullest. And what is that purpose exactly? Why, it’s living for Him, of course!

The main character, Martyr, is quite simple upon first glance, but we soon find out that he’s much more complicated than his “creators” ever thought likely. They knew he was smart, but they didn’t expect his ability to mentally think over problems to work so well, nor did they think his endless questioning would actually render useful answers.

Martyr’s one wish to see the sky before he expires is what first compels him to disobey the rules. Now for him, this is hard as he doesn’t like to lie – at all – which is an intriguing quality in Martyr’s character that brought into retrospect several interesting thoughts about the consequences of lying. Martyr is also very naïve, an aspect that has him asking curious (and sometimes almost embarrassing) questions throughout the course of the book. This aspect also has him regret simple sins that most of us in today’s world would overlook entirely or justify. That fact in itself was an eye-opener, but it was written into the book in such a way that it wasn’t overwhelming.

Having lived his whole life without ever seeing the outside world, Martyr’s first glimpse of some things in our world – like the sky, the sun, a moose, a car – all were slightly choppy and vague, pieced together with what little he already knew of the world. This was a most satisfying element in Martyr’s character, and one that isn’t exactly easy to pull off, but Jill managed to do it with grace and believability. It’s like a writer asking themselves, “How would I describe something of this nature to a blind person? Or a person who has never seen it before and has no notion of what it is?” The trouble is always in keeping elements that you yourself find obvious knowledge out of the description, and comparing the experience to things that the character would already know.

Here’s an example from the book so that you can see what I mean. It depicts the first time Martyr get’s a good glimpse at the sky:

The sky stretched overhead like a very high, blue ceiling – a lighter color of blue than the picture of Myrtle Beach, but darker than Rolo’s eyes. The sun hung up in the sky, as well, somehow staying there without falling to the ground. It did not have a smiling face or long beams stretching out on all sides like the pictures Dr. Max had drawn. It was a pale, round ball of brightness. It hurt his eyes to start at the sun, so he studied the clouds instead. They were fluffy and white like the snow. (he had already seen snow at this point.)

I thought Jill managed this part of Martyr’s character very well. It was almost like I was seeing these things for the first time too, as I was reading the book. Notice that the sky was like a ceiling, something Martyr had seen before, and the sun was not like the smiley faced drawing he had been shown in the past. These descriptions kept the experience alive and fresh in my mind to the very end of the book.

Of course, the questions Jill posed in this book were good ones: Are clones actually “people”? If they were “created” (so to speak) by man, then did they actually have a purpose beyond the one given to them by man?

In the book, the character of Abby Goyer certainly believed so. Abby is a Christian, though her father is not. She is the one who befriends Martyr in the outside world. Martyr, curious about anything and everything, asks Abby some simple questions about her faith and God which then turn into more complicated ones. Why does she “pray” over her food? Who is she talking to? And so forth and so on. The most interesting thing about these questions was that they truly played on Abby’s knowledge of her faith. How was she going to explain these simple acts that she had taken for granted all of her life to a person who had never, ever heard of such a thing before? And the hardest part was that Martyr’s questions grew larger and more complicated, until she didn’t have answers for them at all.

This part of the story really got me thinking about how well I know my own faith. I’m a Christian, but just how well do I actually know what that means and entails? Or do I just go through the motions half the time, like Abby did on occasion, doing simple things just because it goes along with my faith? And what exactly is my faith? What does it mean, and why do I believe as I do? These questions should all be simple… I’ve faced them before, as most Christians have at one time or another. But the book started me thinking about them again. And, one of the best parts of the book, in my opinion, was watching Martyr come into his faith. He would do things that seemed so simple and sweet… and sometimes things that even Abby couldn’t understand.

(BIG SPOILER ALERT!)

Like when he gave one of his kidneys to the doctor who had cloned him and was going to kill him for both kidneys. Abby asked why he would do such a thing, and clearly thought that he didn’t have to and really shouldn’t have. After all, Dr. Kane, who was dying slowly of Lupus, had been planning the whole time to kill Martyr for no other reason than he wanted his kidneys. Dr. Kane’s justification was that Martyr was a clone, clearly not a real human, and therefore the act was not really murder at all. But as the story progresses there was no doubt in my mind (as I’m sure there will not be in yours) that Martyr and all of the other clones were most definitely human and that Dr. Kane’s actions would have been murder, whether he thought so or not.

Martyr’s answer to Abby’s question opened Abby’s eyes to a completely new meaning and depth of the faith that she called her own. He said simply, “Because Jesus would have done it.”

Abby’s reply was that Jesus didn’t have the option of giving away his kidney, especially to a criminal man like Dr. Kane.

But then Martyr quoted from the book of Luke: Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, bless those who curse you, pray for those who mistreat you. And then he tells Abby, “I have done so for Dr. Kane. That was my purpose for him.”

(End spoiler)

Wow. I mean really, WOW. That depth, that understanding of God’s true purpose for us… it’s all written right there in the Bible, but how many of us actually think of that verse’s meaning to the extent that Martyr did? How many of us take God’s word and truth that far?

This book was an eye opener. Not only was it compelling science fiction that kept me turning pages long into the night, but it held truths and perceptions that I had either not thought of before, or that I had let my understanding of them go rusty. This was a book well worth reading.

The one trouble I had with the book (and mind you, it is a very small trouble), was how Martyr killed Dr. Elliot. I know it was a sort of pre-considered self defense, and that both Dr. Elliot and Martyr had a mutual dislike of one another… and I know that Dr. Elliot was just plain cruel, partially for the sake of being cruel… but I saw no remorse in Martyr afterward, and for a boy who would give an evil scientist one of his kidneys because that’s what God would have wanted, this seemed partially uncharacteristic.

However, that was just one small scene. Hardly more than a few paragraphs really. Let it not dissuade you from picking up this most excellent book.

I give this book 4 ½ stars out of 5. It was an epic read, and quite memorable for me. That in itself is something to say, as I have read many books, but only a few hold places on my “memorable” list. ;) This is one of them. It’s fresh, funny in all the right places, serious when it needs to be, and fast paced all through. It’s not like any science fiction book I’ve ever read before, and I’ve read enough to tell. I highly recommend this one.

Good luck, Jill, with your other writing endeavors. I know I look forward to reading future books by you. God bless.

And God bless all of you reading this! Go pick up this book: it is definitely worth it. ^_^

Until next time, my friends, HAPPY WRITING! And reading.

Nichole White

Oh the Holidays!!! Crazy life and the Hobbit Movie Trailer. ^_^

2011-12-21T10:43:00.000-08:00

Hello friends. :)

Well, it's official! School is out, and I have passed all of my classes! ;D And I had a job interview this morning which went rather well. Hopefully I also get that job.

In the meantime, I've been CRAZY busy. Which is a really good thing. I've been able to pick up work on the commissions that had to be set aside during finals time, and I've been making more jewelry too. I've also been able to finish reading some of the books that I've received to read and review and haven't had a chance to finish. So now that I've gotten back into reading, expect reviews on some pretty neat books!

I feel kind of bad for not being able to post a lot on the P&P though... Don't worry folks, I have some more meaningful posts coming up. I promise! This little blog needs some TLC and it will get it. ^_^

Right now, I'm still freaking out over the trailer that I saw this morning for the Hobbit. Yes, LOTR fans, the official movie trailer is out, and it totally rocks!!! *dreamy sigh* Do we really have to wait a WHOLE YEAR to watch the actual movie? That's going to be... painful.

I'll post more meaningful stuff later!!! Expect a review on Jill Williamson's newest book, "Replication", and a review on Wayne Thomas Batson's "Sword in the stars". Also, I'll be posting news soon on the new constellation contest Mr. Batson is hosting for his newest book in The Dark Sea Annals, "The Errant King". All coming up soon!!!

Updates and sparkly JEWELRY!!!! :D (Updated)

2011-12-09T08:46:00.000-08:00

(Updates: The pendant and chain "The Birth of New Life" and the silver and blue earrings "Icicles" have been spoken for. Thank you! ^_^)

Hello friends!

What do you know! I made it on before the end of the month this time. lol!

Well, I told you I would post more to let you know what's been going on in my life. It's been kind of hectic, but in a winding down, School's-almost-over, pleasant sort of way.

Unfortunately I was forced to quit my part time job about a month ago because of a clashing schedule and not enough pay to make it truly worth it. It was a rather sad day, because I really, really liked that job... I was a writing consultant at my college. But, with that said, since I pulled the plug on it, my grades have picked up a little bit in my other classes. Now I'm looking for something to keep the bills paid over the holidays and next semester... putting in my application as often as possible, and picking up art commissions in between to help with gas and insurance. (I'll be posting pictures of the commissions soon. The latest is coming along very nicely... almost finished. ^_^) It's not a lot, but I'm SO grateful that people like my art enough to have me do artwork for them. :) I never dreamed I would get the chance before.

ANYWAY...

On the note of picking up the odd job here and there, I've started making jewelry.... again... <_< That is to say, I've made it before when I was younger, but back then it was only made for me, and it wasn't as good-looking or as complicated as it is now. :) Now, I make the jewelry under the "company" name "Personalities" (which was my mothers idea. ;) In fact, my mom and my sisters and I craft under that title now. ^_^) I started making the Jewelry for a craft fair here in central IL, and I got a lot of large compliments over it. So... I decided to offer it here on the P&P. I told you yesterday that I would put prices up with the pictures, if you are interested in buying any of the pieces. If you decide to buy a piece, thank you very much! The money will help keep me in a car over the holidays. ^_^ And I apologize in advance for the slightly blurry pictures. :P I was having trouble with the camera.

(note: Consider all pieces completely hand crafted from scratch unless otherwise noted. Pieces marked NA are not for sale. Please note, though, that some of the pieces can be replicated upon request, as I wrote down the patterns as I was creating them. All jewelry currently available was made entirely from scratch. Shipping and handling is not included in the prices listed below. Please consider about $3.00 for shipping and handling as you make your selection to cover packaging and shipping. I am currently accepting checks until the Paypal account for "Personalities" is set up. Packages will be shipped after payment is received. Thank you!)

(Pair of Earrings)

Title: Ring Around the Sun
Price: currently NA (pending)

(pendant and chain)

Title: The birth of New Life

~~Price: $16~~ SOLD

(note: The chain is not hand crafted)

(Hand crafted chain)

Title: Frills and Lace
(more can be made upon request)

Price: $12

(pair of earrings)

Title: Christmas Cheer

(more can be made upon request)

Price: $10

(Necklace)

Title: Spring's Revelry

Price: $20

2 bracelets (1 child - 1 adult)

Title: Summer's Ice

(more can be made upon request)

Child's bracelet price: $5

Adult's bracelet price: $6

(Ring)

Title: Burning the Yule Log

Price: Currently NA (pending)

(pair of earrings)

Title: Icicles

(more can be made upon request)

~~Price: $10~~ SOLD

(pendant and chain)

Title: The music of Christmas

Price: NA

(note: The chain is not hand crafted)

(necklace)

Title: Christmas Lace

Price: NA

(ring)

Title: Unity Ever Green

Price: $10

And that's it for now. I hope you like the pictures!!! There will be more to come soon. And, if you are interested in buying any of the pieces, just let me know in a comment. First come first serve. I'll be setting up a paypall account soon so that things can be taken care of quicker and with less hassle.

In other news, Wayne Thomas Batson is hosting another contest to promote his latest book, "The Errant King". More word on that in a later post... Perhaps I'll get it up later this afternoon. For now, it's back to classes and finals! :P See you all later!!! ^_^

CSFF Blog Tour: Corus the Champion (and rambling updates)

2011-12-07T14:32:00.000-08:00

Hello Bloggy Friends!!! :D

It has honestly been way too long. I never meant to disappear for all of November, but that's exactly what happened, isn't it? Now I have so much I want to talk about! I went to a weapon's seminar thing that a friend of mine put on for our writer's group... he's what one might call an "expert" hobby-ist when it comes to medieval weapons. We worked on sword maneuvers and had mock sparing matches so that all of the fantasy writers in our group could get a taste of what their characters had to endure. Then we were able to pick a "weapon" (made with pvc pipe, Styrofoam, and duck-tape) from his stash of practice pieces, and he taught us all about our choice. My choice was the Glaive, which is similar to a spear crossed with an axe. It's a pole arm and can be used much like a quarter staff, or like a spear... and I've discovered that I like the feel of that weapon in my own hands even better than the grip of a sword. Don't get me wrong! Swords are awesome, and it was so cool to finally be able to wield one (even if it was fake), but the Glaive just feels right somehow. When I square up, it's like I already know what to do, and my moves feel smoother -- less jerky and hesitant than I am with a sword. :)

I've also been making a lot of neat jewelry lately. I took pictures yesterday, and as soon as I can figure out how to work my sister's camera to get the pictures from her SD card to my computer, I'll post them on the P&P. I plan to start offering the pieces that I'm making for sale, in case anyone is interested. Just in time for the Christmas season too... *wink, wink* I'm excited about it because I keep having people stop to ask me where I got my pendant or my earrings, and it's fun to tell people that I made them myself. ^_^ So, if you like what you see when I start posting pictures, let me know. I'll offer prices with the pictures. And perhaps it will make you feel better to know that with every piece of jewelry you buy, you help keep a poor College Student in a car over the holidays. lol! :D

But more on all that later. Right now I have a review to write. ^_^

Corus the Champion: Synopsis

With Nemesia's defeat, the Barlows have helped turn the tide in the Hidden Lands. An even greater evil stirs
in the north with a fierce new army bent on destruction. As the twins, Gabe and Garret, discover their own special powers, a thin thread of hope emerges: long ago, a fabled king was rescued from death on our world and hidden on Karac Tor. Who is he?

Each brother has their part to play. Hadyn must travel north to warn the land rulers, which leaves Ewan with a bitter choice. Will he sacrifice what is most precious to discover whether Corus lives? Even more important, if Corus is alive, can he wake the Sleeping King of legend... before it's too late?

My thoughts:

So far, I'm really enjoying this book. I say "so far" because I haven't quite finished yet. In fact, I'm not quite at the middle of it yet either, which is rather unusual for me, if I do say so myself. Usually I finish a book within maybe a week... perhaps two... of when I receive it, but this semester has been so crazy, I just haven't had much extra time in between classes, studying, working on commissions, and trying to find another job.

Anyway...

I've been looking into this series since I first heard of the first book, "The book of Names". The cover intrigued me to no end, and once I found out what it was about... boys traveling to another, parallel world... and learned about the connection these books include between pure fantasy and the stories of King Arthur, I knew that I would be reading them someday.

Unfortunately for me, "Corus the Champion" is the second book in the series... not the first. So of course, seeing as I haven't read the first book yet, I'm having a little trouble picking up on the back story. Not to say that this book isn't good on it's own. In fact, far from it! I could tell from the very first chapter that I would like reading this one. D. Barkley Briggs has quite the way with words. I love how he weaves in details and descriptions without being over flowery. When I read the words, I truly am transported into Mr. Brigg's world. And somehow, it feels very real to me... even with all of the elements of fantasy.

Somehow the writing... or perhaps it is the type of world... reminds me of Jeffery Overstreet's Auralia series. It's hard to explain why this is, because I find their styles to be quite different. And yet... I can't help but feel as if the two worlds were almost connected. Strange, I know... and probably very off course, as these are two separate authors we are talking about. But still.

What do I think of the characters? Well... at this moment I think I'm slightly in "reader's love" with the strange and mysterious Prince of Vineland. And I'm rather intrigued by Ewan's ability with music. The margins in my copy of the book are currently being filled with notes about the things that I like, or a particular use of style that is intriguing, or the writer's twist on a phrase... or a description. I don't usually mark up my books like this, but like I mentioned before, I keep finding myself inspired while I'm reading this.

On that note, I really, REALLY, wish I had read the first book first. I think the stories might stand well on their own, but I still feel like I'm missing something. I would like to know how the Barlows got to the Hidden Land, and learn more about this "Nemesia" that's mentioned in the book's blurb. Perhaps that's only my thoughts, though.

So far, I give this book a 5 out of 5 stars. When I actually get to the end of it, I would like to do an annalysis of the story as a whole. As of this moment though, I am thoroughly enjoying just taking my time with it. I keep having to stop, you see, and write a few notes down for SOTD. ;D

If you would like to know more about the book, though, you are more than welcomed to check out the other posts about it. A list of CSFF participants is posted below. Happy reading! :)

Gillian Adams
Noah Arsenault
Beckie Burnham
Morgan L. Busse
CSFF Blog Tour
Carol Bruce Collett
Theresa Dunlap
April Erwin
Victor Gentile
Nikole Hahn
Ryan Heart
Bruce Hennigan
Christopher Hopper
Jason Joyner
Julie
Carol Keen
Krystine Kercher
Marzabeth
Shannon McDermott
Rebecca LuElla Miller
Eve Nielsen
Sarah Sawyer
Kathleen Smith
Donna Swanson
Rachel Starr Thomson
Steve Trower
Fred Warren
Phyllis Wheeler
Nichole White
Rachel Wyant

THE BIG SEVEN-ZERO!!!! and gory murder... but no blood... how does that work? ;)

2011-11-03T12:56:00.000-07:00

You read that right people!!! The P&P has officially reached 70 followers!!! *does a little happy jig*

And as I promised, it's time to set up a giveaway in celebration. :) I think what I'm going to do is set up a poll, and see what YOU GUYS would like to see given away as the prize. Your options are at this moment:

1) a book (haven't decided which one yet... that decision will come later, if you guys decide you would like a book giveaway rather than anything else. ;D)
2) 1 black and white pencil drawing (finished) of one of your characters or favorite book characters...
3) an author page set up on the P&P for 1 month, and congratulations and links given over at SOTD's facebook page as advertisement.

There's a possible fourth prize, but I haven't decided on it yet. It would be one song composed by Jonathan Miaco. However, I have neither purchased this song yet, nor decided on which song exactly to choose (or whether to let you guys choose), nor have I talked to the composer. So we will have to wait and see on that one. ;)

Now... what does this have to do with gory murder without blood? How is that even accomplished?!?!

It's quite simple really. ^_^ I'm going to set up the poll a little later today, but in the meantime, you, my faithful followers, are charged to KILL THIS THREAD!!! No blood involved. No knives. But death... yes, death! lol!

That's right, people. Last person to post a comment on this thread for 24 consecutive hours is the winner of the prize that the P&P followers will choose by poll. Choose wisely, my friends... you may end up the receiver of whatever prize is chosen! :)

This very game has been done on several other blogs before. The one I remember the most was on author Wayne Thomas Batson's blog, "Enter the Door Within" and it lasted almost a year before Mr. Batson had to close the thread himself. lol! I doubt my version of the game will last nearly as long, but you never know. ;D

Comment away!!!

Nanowrimo 2011 and Publishing News

2011-11-02T15:20:00.000-07:00

Well, it's that time of year again! Nanowrimo 2011 officially started yesterday at 12:00am, and I'm stoked. :)

Am I working on something for Nano? Why yes... yes I am. But it's not anything new. Not yet. I know the rules of Nano technically say that I'm not allowed to work on older pieces, but they are just going to have to make an exception for me. Because my plan is not to start a completely new story -- it is to MOVE FORWARD on SOTD.

That's right people. This is my Nanowrimo resolution! The rewrite of SOTD will FINALLY move forward again. No more going back and going over the chapters that I've already worked through: I've perfected them enough! Now it's time to move on. Chapter 4 is calling (and yes, that's right; I'm still stuck on "perfecting" the first three rewritten chapters. But I give up. They are good enough now; I have to move on!) I may not get the rewrite of the book completely done, but I will MOVE FORWARD. And right now, that's the most important part.

So, the idea is that I will try to post the moving word count at least once a week, and perhaps post excerpts. Maybe. I just may go back over some of the newer parts and edit as I go, but that's just part of my writing process. If I don't go back and reread some of what I had before, for some reason I just can't move forward. So who knows. :D

In other news, I've been doing more and more research into the publishing business and the ins and outs of starting a small press. I'm hoping to get some interviews done within the next couple of months. Last night I read an article that was absolutely horrifying, about a small press that completely imploded. Believe me when I say, it was quite the scary deal.

Besides that, however, I've found a miniature library of advice given via the interwebz for people interested in starting small presses. I'm through as much of it as I can retain, and trying to put together a marketing strategy that will best benefit the authors of the company. I'm also considering changing the name. I LOVE the name "Magpie Publications" or "Magpie Eclectic Press", but just recently I discovered that there's quite a bit of folklore surrounding the magpie, and a lot of it isn't exactly positive... though it's not necessarily negative either. So I might be considering a new name for this venture I'm preparing to undertake. We'll have to wait and see.

Well, that's all the news I have for right now. I perhaps I'll have something more to post about tomorrow. I know this is a really short post, but I haven't had a whole lot of time lately. I hope to get up more soon.

Bye for now! :D

Nichole

Guest Post by Janice Hardy

2011-10-30T12:06:00.000-07:00

Hello Bloggy Friends!! ^_^

I know it's been a while since I posted last. It's been a while since I've had any extra time! But at long last I'm here to post again. And today is special, because today marks the P&P's first Guest Post! :)

My guest today is Janice Hardy, author of "The Healing Wars" trilogy. You can read my review of her first book, "The Shifter" here: http://theravenquill.blogspot.com/2011/04/my-day-feels-untitled.html

Janice also runs a blog that is very informative as far as the writing process goes. I often find her posts very inspiring.

So without further delay, I give you Janice Hardy!! :D

Going Both Ways: Outlines for Plot, Pantser for Character

I realized something recently. I’m an outliner all the way when it comes to crafting the plots in my stories. But for my character arcs, I’m a total pantser. I always know where my characters are going, but rarely how they’ll get there.

To me, this is the best of both worlds, especially since I write science fiction and fantasy, which tends to be fairly plot-focused. I can devote as much time as I need prepping my story framework, then turn my characters loose and see what happens. Not only does it allow me to spend more time developing those characters as I write, it keeps the story fresh for me. I never know how things are going to unfold.

Sometimes this does get me into trouble, but that’s half the fun. In my recent teen fantasy, Darkfall, I knew my heroine Nya had to somehow become the leader of a rebellion. The problem? It just didn’t seem plausible for a 15-year-old-girl to find herself in such a position of power and authority. Being part of a rebellion, sure, but leading it? How could I make that plausible?

The plot needed this, so I took a hard look at Nya and tried to figure out what she would do in this situation. The answer was pretty easy—I told her what to do and turned her loose. She’d figure out how to get there.

For three books, Nya has always done what she felt was right to protect those she loves. She’s also quick to jump into trouble, and has one or two hot-button issues that steal all reason right out of her head. So…

Nya’s loved ones in trouble + hot-button issue = Nya acting without thinking.

If she had to end up leading a rebellion, she just had to find herself in a situation that made her act without thinking to save those she loves. I had to put the pressure on her and see how long it took her to crack and try to take over. Because she would do that eventually. That’s just who she is. She’s learned to rely on no one but herself.

Naturally, I finagled a little with the meaning of “leader” to fit the story better and still fulfill my plot vision. Nya as a general in an army didn’t work, but she could very easily be the driving force behind a rebellion, or be the inspiration for one. And considering how much Nya hates to be the center of attention, putting her in the spotlight made for a lot of writing fun for me.

If you’re an outlining panster, (or think you might be) here are some tips on crafting a story with the best of both worlds:

1. Outliner: Pick a few goals for your characters that set the direction you want the story to go in. That’ll give you a framework in which to write.

Pantser: Think about the motives or emotional states of your characters and why they might go after those goals. How a character feels about something will determine how they approach a problem or how they might go about getting what they want.

2. Outliner: Look for the big turning points in the story. Where do your characters need to be when those moments happen? Where do they need to be going forward after that?

Pantser: Look at where your character has come from, who they are at that point in the story, and who they might become in the near future? How might their past affect how they act? What past fears might be affected (or affect) what’s to come in the plot?

3. Outliner: What are the major surprises in the story? The big reveals or secrets? When are they revealed?

Pantser: How blindsided might your characters be? Do they spot the hints or do they miss them? How do they react to the surprises that surprise you? Is there anything in their past that can shake things up even further?

For the pantser half, most of these things you probably won’t know until you get there, but they’re fun things to think about as you write or after you’ve gotten that first rough draft down on paper. And one last extra outliner/panster tip:

4. Keep asking yourself how your character feels about what’s going on. Where are they at emotionally and mental when they start a scene? Where are they during the scene? Where do they end up at the end of the scene, and how does that affect their choices moving on? You might be following the plot, but it’ll help you develop rich characters to go with that plot.

If you like a little structure to keep you on track, but relish the discovery of an unfolding story, a combo outline/pantser style might be for you.

What’s your style? Why does that style appeal to you? Is there anything about it you’d like to change?

Janice Hardy always wondered about the darker side of healing. For her fantasy trilogy THE HEALING WARS, she tapped into her own dark side to create a world where healing was dangerous, and those with the best intentions often made the worst choices. Her books include THE SHIFTER, BLUE FIRE, and DARKFALL from Balzer+Bray/Harper Collins. You can visit her online at www.janicehardy.com or chat with her about writing on her blog, The Other Side of the Story. blog.janicehardy.com.

About Darkfall

War has come.

Nya’s the one who brought it. And the people love her for it.

With Baseer in shambles and Geveg now an impenetrable military stronghold, Nya and the Underground have fled to a safer location—without Tali. Nya is guilt-ridden over leaving her sister behind and vows to find her, but with the rebellion in full swing and refugees flooding the Three Territories, she fears she never will.

The Duke, desperate to reclaim the throne as his own, has rallied his powerful army. And they are on the move, destroying anyone who gets in the way.

To save her sister, her family, and her people, Nya needs to stay ahead of the Duke’s army and find a way to build one of her own. Past hurts must be healed, past wrongs must be righted, and Nya must decide: Is she merely a pawn in the rebellion, a symbol of hope—or is she ready to be a hero?

The Importance of Branding

2011-10-16T13:22:00.000-07:00

Hello blogging friends.

In my last post I mentioned that I was reading some interesting articles and that I hoped to be able to post on a few of them soon. Well, it would seem that I’ve come to a point of inspiration. Not that it’s a point that hasn’t been covered well before by other writers, but I want to write about this particular point now because of the fact that for independent companies as well as aspiring authors and artists by themselves, this is a most important subject.

It is the subject of branding.

Look around you. Check out your favorite websites or blogs online. Look into your most well-known local businesses. Everywhere you turn you will see an example of branding. Every entrepreneurial spirit, every college kid out trying to make a name for themselves, and every person looking for a job in this economy is actually trying to sell themselves off of some type of brand… their own.

Their names. Their records. Their accomplishments.

They put these into a bundle of information that they present to the public. And it would seem that the more the public sees the good in that information and the more people look into that person’s or company’s accomplishments and decide to buy from them or follow them, the better known their “branding” becomes.

Think of it this way: consider your favorite brand of clothing, or your favorite type of cereal, or even your favorite publishing company. Now ask yourselves the question, why is it your favorite? Chances are that for the reason you buy that particular product from that particular company, other people are buying the same product for the same reasons from the same company.

Branding. The company is making its mark. People notice them because of their products. They are getting seen, they are getting attention, and they are growing a reputation as they sell their products.

That’s why I think that one of the hardest parts of starting a new company is creating and marketing a brand for your company. Whether you are starting out as an independent author, as many people have (consider Joe Konrath or Rachael Starr Thompson) or you are creating a brand spankin’ new company (Like Marcher Lord Press, Flaming Pen Press, and the Spearhead Guild), good branding becomes the life blood of your establishment. Good branding comes with/from a good reputation, which means people looking at your product, which means people buying your product. On the other hand branding that comes with/from a bad reputation means people passing over a product and the company ultimately drowning.

You’ll notice I mention reputation a lot. It’s true that reputation and branding walk hand in hand in this world of business. People trust brands because of good reputations, and likewise, they shun brands because of bad ones. If you wanted to get technical, you could say that reputation is everything… it’s even more important than branding is, which is true to a degree. However, one has to think of how they present their reputation to the public, and that’s where branding comes in.

Let’s look up the definition of branding, shall we? The very definition of branding is:

1) commerce product or manufacturer: a name, usually a trademark, of a product or manufacturer, or the product identified by this name

2. recognizable type of something: a distinctive type of something.

So there you go. A lot is said within the definition of a word. A brand is ultimately a product or company that is identified (for good or ill) by its name.

Now, as far as building a brand that people trust… that’s the hard part. That’s the trouble that most companies have when they first get started. And that’s where most companies either succeed at the beginning of their journey and thrive, or fail, struggle, and possibly drown in the end.

Consider Marcher Lord Press, now a company whose list is large and still growing, and whose books have won awards in the past. By the time Jeff Gerke decided to take on his project, he already had some experience in the market. His brand was there as his name and his reputation as an editor was already solid. All he had to do was get the word out and his company thrived. Now, I’m sure that’s not exactly what he felt would happen at the time of opening. I’m sure he had his doubts, and I’m sure MLP might have struggled right up front. But main point to consider is the fact that MLP is no longer struggling like they might have been at the beginning. They’ve gone from being an idea, to being a small company, to growing into the premier Indie Christian Speculative Fiction company out there.

Why? How has this happened?

It all came about through persistence, growing a good reputation, and marketing a solid and trust worthy brand.

Now we have Spearhead coming out: a collaborative project put together by Christian Authors whom many Christian readers already know, trust, and love. Spearhead plans to bring its own brand into the mix by combining author brands that have been made and have thrived over the years. The Guild will draw in readers through the four separate brands of their founders’ names, and in return, readers will be introduced to Spearhead as its own brand or publisher.

Branding is everything.

But, you say, these are all examples taken from people who have already been in the publishing business for several years at the very least. How does this apply to authors who have not been published, or who have not worked in the publishing industry before? How does this apply to those High-schoolers and college students just starting into their careers who want to make a name for themselves? How does it all come together?

Well, first of all, I’m not going to say that giving Magpie Publications a good reputation and brand won’t take work. It will. Whether you want to be published traditionally, self publish, start your own company, or be hired on by an established company as an intern or editor, it’s always going to take work and lots of it. It will take research. It will take time. It will take persistence when the going gets tough, because I can assure you, the going WILL get tough… there will be times when you think that your dream will never find wings and will sit in a desk drawer and gather dust for the rest of your life. I guarantee there will be moments when you want to quit… but you can’t. Not if you want to see your dream actually fly. It’s going to take studying and interviews and passion. Oh, but it will be well worth it in the end!!! If you are determined not to see your dream fall and fail, then you will find ways to make it thrive.

You want an example?

The first one that comes to mind is Flaming Pen Press. As I understand it, Scott Appleton had been a writer for several years and had some of his short stories published in online magazines. He’d been working on the Song of the Dragon series for several years as well, and had tried to sub it to several different publishers, all of which answered his query with rejections. He kept seeking advice, he kept working to improve, and he kept trying. At long last he decided that it was time to take his book public, and he created Flaming Pen Press… a small company on which to establish a big dream. With persistence and drive, he managed to sell over 3,000 copies of his book in one year, and the first book in his series, “Swords of the Six”, was picked up and published through AMG publishers. Now AMG has contracted him for the rest of his series. And as far as Flaming Pen Press goes, it went on to sell over 3,000 copies of 19 year old Jacob Parker’s award winning book, “Kestrel’s Midnight Song” since its release date in September of 2010. Now it’s taking on another young author’s project, “Out of Darkness Rising” by Gillian Adams, and I have no doubt that it will continue to succeed with this book as well as with others.

Other examples of note within the Christian Fiction field are Port Yonder Press and Splashdown Books. As this post is getting rather long, I won’t go into a whole lot of detail about them here and now, but those presses and brands have similar stories… starting out small and unknown, slowly growing into a brand recognized by a few, and their recognition is spreading. Hopefully in future days I will be able to do blog posts on these as well as other small companies as my research progresses.

Why am I talking about brands today?

Well, with the work and research I’m doing for Magpie Publications, I started to realize the influence that branding has on people and how it affects the market. Good branding could make the company into a success, while bad branding could plunge the company to its death. However, because I am a relative “unknown”, and because my foundation is not based on past work records in the industry but instead is based on a dream, ambitions, some passion, and the college degree and career choice that I’m currently still working towards, what Magpie really needs at its starting point is a solid (if small) foundation to launch from. With God’s help, I plan to give this company everything I have. I absolutely plan to pour myself into it, and I know that, with help, it will be a success. And if it’s going to succeed, it’s going to need a good brand name and a good preceding reputation that moves it forward.

My good friend and writing buddy, Adele Treskillard and I were talking about how this might be accomplished in a community sort of fashion. Since nothing is set in stone as of yet, I won’t go into detail about our ideas at this moment. When things become more clear and solid, then I might write an informative post on the matter. For right now, continue to keep this idea in your prayers. It won’t drown, by God’s grace. He doesn’t just put an idea or thought on someone’s heart to have it fall apart entirely. I’m just so grateful to Him that He has given me the opportunity to meet and get to know so many young writers out there whose ambitions and dreams parallel my own. Honestly, it’s a pleasure and an honor to know you all, even it’s only online. Without your support in this idea, it might never have gone beyond the dream stage to the stage of ambition. It might never have become a goal. I thank you all! Thank you so much! ^_^

(Stay tuned for a Guest Post by Janice Hardy to be up within the next week. :D)

The Dual Aspects of an Euntrepreneurial Spirit... God Help Me!!!

2011-10-11T09:34:00.000-07:00

Hello my dear bloggy friends. I’m sorry that it’s taken me so very long to post anything new.

Many of you dropped in for the post I did in August that highlighted the idea I’ve been harboring over several years of launching a new independent Christian Press for Speculative Fiction. (If you haven’t read it yet, you can read it here: http://theravenquill.blogspot.com/2011/08/which-way-should-we-turn-ushering-in.html ) In that article I gave my reasons and passions for taking on such a project and how I would strive to make it grow.

Since then, I’ve started researching the process of starting a company, and looking into possible avenues of printing. I’ve been looking for and comparing marketing strategies and the ins and outs of print distribution vs. digital distribution. I’ve been narrowing down my options for a mission statement and have been considering values and principles on which to build this company’s morals. I’ve been considering the cost and preparation time involved with publishing a quality product, marketing it, and actually selling it. I’ve also been talking to friends of mine who are or have studied certain aspects of the publishing world, who are in the publishing world already, and who are working towards careers that could parallel with book publication. And in between all of that, I’m planning out how I will take a business class (hopefully next semester) to help me better understand the business and financial needs of such a company.

This is a dream, yes… but it’s one dream that (along with eventually having SOTD and Eldrei published) I plan to see into its reality (by God’s grace).

The scariest part of all? I have NEVER done anything like this before. :P My experience level in this area is basically zilch, and besides that I’m still pretty young. Twenty-three is not that impressive a number when it comes to age, and it seems that the older you are, the more experience you have. All I have right now is my dream, my research, a bit of passion, and a dash of drive/motivation. Is that enough? I have no idea.

Truthfully, people, I’m terrified. What does this mean, to take on such a large responsibility and see it into fruitarian? I’m only one person… one small dreamer in a vast sea of dreamers. I try desperately not to look at the impossible, but it seems to be staring me right in the face. How can I do this? How can I even try? It seems almost unattainable, yet I feel completely, utterly drawn and bound to the idea; I can’t fight it and I can’t shake it. Eventually something will need to be done.

I guess I’m writing this blog post as a sort of therapy. In truth, I feel like I’m trying to boost my own courage… trying to tell myself that “hey, it’s ok; you know you can do this with God’s help,” when half the time my mind is telling my mouth that those words are bold-faced lies. How can I really do this? It’s so BIG! I’m so small. Can I really pull it off?

Well, not right now and not by myself. “As iron sharpens iron(…)” so the Bible says, and the story of David and Goliath comes to mind. The publishing world is often times cruel and harsh… like a gigantic evil Philistine that wants to rip the heads off of unsuspecting writers. :P I haven’t been around too awful long, but I’ve seen a few small publishers come and go, many dashed to pieces by financial troubles. I don’t plan for Magpie Publications to be one of those… this venture must last and must grow; it’s not just a onetime thing that some upstart girl decides to tackle on her own just because she can. However, the publishing world is now changing: expanding. It’s not as cruel as it used to be, but it’s still a tough little nut to crack. It’s still a rock that stands in the doorway and breaks many young, noble writers who deserve better. I don’t know how one company can make that much of a difference, but there’s no hurt in trying. The more opportunities there are out there for writer’s who deserve them, the better chances those writers’ stories will have of finding a home.

But you see, that’s one of the reasons why I can’t start Magpie Publications right now, and why I can’t handle it alone. Strong businesses last; strong strategies endure; strong missions bring aid. The idea needs time to mature, to grow legs and learn to stand… It’s sort of like giving birth, only in a backwards sort of fashion (in the metaphorical sense, of course). Instead of the baby being born and then learning to stand, I sort of want to make sure that my baby will be able to stand before I give birth to it. Make sense?

The biggest part of the whole idea is that I know that this is not just my dream. I don’t even want it to be ‘just my dream’. Magpie Publications is not an endeavor I’m willing to undergo only for myself; if it were, I’m sure it would never get off the ground. There are so many people out there who have similar ambitions, who strive for parallel goals. I even know some people like this, but I also know that there is strength in numbers. I don’t want to be a single parent!!! I will need help… I will need support and I will need a team. Only then, when there is a group of us working together, can Magpie Publications actually be made into a success. Only then can one dream see the birth of its reality.

So, in keeping with this post’s title, what exactly are the duel aspects of an entrepreneurial spirit? Quite easily enough, “dread” and “drive”. I know lots of people who think I’m crazy for wanting to do this. (Come on writers, how many people do you know who think the same thing about your status as an aspiring author? It’s not such a new thing. ;D) There are plenty who think that I’m way too young to even attempt handling something this big, and I don’t doubt them. Right now I know that I am too young… too young to do everything I want to do, and too young to make this company a reality. I’m scared stiff (there’s your ‘dread’, people) but I’m absolutely determined (and there’s your ‘drive’. :P) In a couple of years, I will hopefully be better prepared. By 2013 or 2014 I will have much more research under my belt than I do now along with the tools I need to see this dream take flight. And hopefully I will have the right people alongside me willing to help.

Though nothing is set in stone just yet, I’m thinking to set the company launch date sometime in late 2013 to early 2014. That gives me around two years to prepare. I can’t explain the feeling very well, but there is an urge in me warning that I shouldn’t delay too long or the opportune moment will be missed and the door closed. At the moment, I believe that two years is a good amount of time to wait. I would be almost 25 by then… still rather young, but hopefully old enough that it matters. And I would have more education and experience under my belt while (hopefully) shopping around a few manuscripts as well.

In the meantime, I will try to keep everything updated around here while I’m working to gather a team and learning all I can about the business. I want to do more author interviews, and hopefully start some publisher interviews as well, both of which will be posted on the P&P, of course (starting with a guest post from Janice Hardy, author of “The Healing War” trilogy, which will be posted within the next couple of weeks, followed by an interview with Port Yonder Press.)

And book reviews!!! Lots of book reviews. After all, one must study the industry in order to join it… right? Right?

Ok, I admit, that may just be my way of saying, “I love to read”. *shrugs* The new CSFF blog tour is on Stephan Lawhead’s “The Bone House”, and I’m also reading through several other good books including Ross Lawhead’s “The Realms Thereunder,” Rick Riordine’s “The Son of Neptune”, and Jill Williamson’s “To Darkness Fled”. That’s not even touching the books I’ve read but have yet to report on. ;)

The main point being, this is no longer just an idea that I’m playing around with… now it’s turning into a goal, which is much more tangible and less fleeting. As I learn things, I will post about them. I’m currently reading several interesting articles and surfing through publishing interviews as well. As always, thoughts and advice from readers are welcomed. Never ever think that what you have to say is not valuable; sometimes its comments on blog posts that I learn the most from. I’m always curious about what readers think of the mad ramblings I sometimes post here. I’m sure that half of the time I must sound like a lunatic. Lol!

God Bless,
Nichole

CSFF Blog Tour Day 3: Book Review -- "The Monster in the Hollows" by Andrew Peterson

2011-09-21T19:04:00.000-07:00

Well I did it folks! I actually blogged for all three days during the book tour!!! *does a happy dance* Usually I end up blogging on the first and third days. Sometimes just on the third day. But this time I really did it and made it all the way to the end. ^_^ Perhaps it's because it's about books that I truly am inspired by, not to mention the absolutely epic music that's written and sung by the author... or perhaps it's just the illustrations. *shrugs*

You know, when I first heard about Andrew Peterson the author, I didn't realize that he was also the song writer that I loved to listen to. And when I finally made that connection, then I was astounded by the fact that he was also an artist. This just blew me away.

I'm not trying to blow my own horn or anything, but I know that I can write well and I love Christian fantasy (you can read a sample of my writing on the "read an excerpt" page of my blog); I know that I can sing well and I am fairly adept at playing the guitar (I'm now learning the piano) and I've written quite a few songs of my own (started working on an album but had to stop when the guy who was helping me moved out of town; I'm also an artist (check out the links to my art galleries at the top of the page). I do all of these things (and several others) and I know that I'm good at them because I love them so very very much. I know this sounds like I'm trying to be proud, but honestly I'm not. I'm just stating facts.

But here's another fact for you: there just aren't that many people out there who can do all three of these things at the same time and be good at them... and many of the people who can do all of these things only focus on one of them.

However, I don't want to focus on just one of my favorite pastimes; I want to expound on all of my talents and succeed at the same time... not just at one of them, but at every one of them.

So just for one moment, imagine the thrill I got when I realized that my new favorite author was also a singer/songwriter who played guitar and drew gorgeous illustrations for his own books. Not to mention the fact that he published his last book "The Monster in the Hollows" through Rabbit Room Press which is his own company! Not only were there others like me out there, but those others like me were making money and getting known for what they did, while at the same time (and most importantly) turning out genuine exemplary products in all three areas!!

Do you hear me?! I'm not a freak of nature!!! And I'm not alone!!! ^_^ *does another happy dance.*

So now I'm going to post a review of "The Monster in the Hollows", since I've finally gotten that out of my system. lol!

Janner Igiby has always wanted to sail over the Dark Sea of Darkness... ever since he found that old drawing of his father standing in the prow of a ship, he's wanted to know what it feels like to roll over the waves of the sea. He used to dream about it, looking out over the cliffs of his home on Dragon Day, but it just wasn't quite the same thing as doing it.

Now however he gets his wish... he's on a ship sailing far over the Dark Sea of Darkness... and he can't even get out of bed to see the waves!!!

Of course it's all Tink's fault. If his little brother hadn't decided to go off and grow a tail... not to mention grey fur all over his body and long, vicious canines... Janner wouldn't be in this position. But then again, perhaps Tink's change is partly Janner's fault... after all, if he had been looking out for his little brother like he was supposed to, Tink probably wouldn't have run away and gotten himself in trouble in the first place.

But what does it matter now? What's done is done, and the Igiby family is sailing away from Skree far over to the Green Hollows where Nia's mother came from, hoping to escape Skree and Gnag the nameless' awful namelessness. Not to mention the Fangs of Dang. The Hollows folk are said to be a simple people but harsh fighters, and they've driven off Gnag's armies several times in the past. Surely they will take in Nia, who is of their own kin, and her family.

But the Hollows aren't entirely safe in themselves. There is a dark forest there where many evil creatures are said to reside... monsters, the Hollow's folk call them. To the simple folk of the hollows, Tink's change makes him looks like a monster too. And monsters must be killed.

While Tink works to prove himself to the hollows folk, something else is as at work. Creatures from the forest are coming out and wondering through the hollows. Livestock stalk starts going missing, and strange tracks are left near houses and barns. There is definitely a monster in the Hollows... but who is it really?

My Thoughts:

Ok, let me just pause a moment to catch my breath. *catches breath*

I ABSOLUTELY LOVED THIS BOOK. It's the best one in the entire series, in my opinion. Tink's change challenges not only him but his entire family, as the Hollow's folk are suspicious of him and anyone who would bring such a creature with them. Tink tries to keep his new self in check and prove that he is not the monster everyone believes him to be, while all around him things seem to be falling apart. The dynamics in this book are far more engaging in my opinion than the other two books (although I can't complain too much about the dynamics of any of these books... I can only say that the ones in TMITH are stronger than the other books.)

AND THE ENDING!!!

*gasps again*

I had to catch my breath on that one. It totally caught me by surprise! I absolutely refuse to give out spoilers (and some of the blog tour participants may have notices that I have left out one specific surprise that happens in the first book every single time I write a review... but you see, the surprise is very powerful and important to all three books and I don't want to ruin it's epicness for anyone who hasn't read the series. ^_^) However, let me just say that my heart literally skipped a beat when I read the end (or almost the end) and I jumped up and shouted "YES!!!" in the middle of the second to last chapter (I believe it was). And then I cried in the last chapter. Couldn't help it. If you read the book you will totally understand.

The characters in these books definitely change over the course of the series. It's like you can actually see the kids mature... grow up and become young men and women who understand responsibility and consequences. It's not just that they are kids anymore... they actually have to learn about their world and the important roll that they play in it, and it effects them... deeply. It makes me think that as a father, Andrew almost wrote his books to help his own kids learn valuable lessons for life and about their faith... and in doing that, he's also teaching those lessons to every kid who reads his books.

I admire him for that. I want to write like that. I definitely aspire to accomplish that with everything that I attempt to do.

For those of you who are interested in his music, first of all, you must know that I absolutely ADORE his music. It's just as simple as that. In fact, the first time I listened to his album "Far Country" I was like, "OH MY WORD!!! This guy writes songs like I write. Wow!!" I mean, the subject matter... the genre... the type... it's all there! I love Christian contemporary music, but I'm also a huge fan of folk music with a celtic taste thrown in. And lyrics... lyrics are so, so, SO important to me. If the lyrics are strange or just seem meaningless, I'll usually end up hating the song.

Well, while I didn't notice any real celtic flair to these songs, they are all definitely Christian contemporary with a sort of folk-like twist. They are write up my alley... just what I like to write and sing. A friend of mine calls them "mellow". I'm not sure if that's how I would title them, but I guess the word does fit.

If you are interested in this album, check out this page: https://store.rabbitroom.com/music/the-far-country

AND

(this is important)

READ THROUGH THE PAGE BEFORE YOU BUY THE ALBUM.

While I'm absolutely 100% for supporting this amazing and talented man and artist, I also know that if you read closely you'll notice that you can actually download the album for free if you want to. Andrew even provides a link. But if you are anything like me, once you listen to his music, you'll be back for more. In this way, he's not actually loosing money but gaining money... because the free album is only a sample - a small taste - of the rest of his work.

Now, in other news, I noticed that Andrew recently posted this video on Facebook and it's totally epic!! ^_^ It really reminds me of myself in many ways. Fantasy writers can TOTALLY relate. I was laughing through the entire thing!!

And at long last I'll close out this Review with three new pictures of the man himself. :) If you haven't been able to tell up to this point, I'll be blunt: I am a huge fan of his. But if you check out the other blogs on the CSFF Blog Tour (linked to below), you can find out more about why I admire him so much. ^_^

Goodbye!!! And I hope you enjoyed the tour! Check out Andrew Peterson's website at http://www.andrew-peterson.com HAPPY READING!

Gillian Adams
Red Bissell
Jennifer Bogart
Thomas Clayton Booher
Beckie Burnham
CSFF Blog Tour
D. G. D. Davidson
Cynthia Dyer
Amber French
Nikole Hahn
Ryan Heart
Timothy Hicks
Jason Joyner
Julie
Carol Keen
Shannon McDermott
Rebecca LuElla Miller
Mirriam Neal
* Eve Nielsen
Joan Nienhuis
Donita K. Paul
Sarah Sawyer
Chawna Schroeder
Tammy Shelnut
Kathleen Smith
Donna Swanson
Rachel Starr Thomson
Robert Treskillard
Fred Warren
Phyllis Wheeler
Nicole White
Rachel Wyant

CSFF Blog Tour Day 2: Book Review -- "North! Or Be Eaten" by Andrew Peterson

2011-09-20T20:00:00.000-07:00

Ok, I started reading the Wingfeather Saga with the second book. I know that this is normally not the "accepted" thing to do... you start a series with the first book and work your way up. However, I can't say that it was a bad thing that I started "late" as one might say. In fact, I believe starting with the second book influenced my outlook on the first book for the better.

At the end of the first book in the series, Janner Igiby and his family are forced to leave their beloved town of Glipwood and hide out out in the dangerous forest where their half demented protector, Peet the Sock Man, has made his home. Janner finally has found out the truth about his family -- and his father -- and there is far more to their family history than Janner every thought even possible! Now the fun and games have ended and the adventure truly begins. Gnag the Nameless is still determined to find the Jewels of Anniera, and he has reason to believe that they are being hidden in Glipwood. With the furious Fangs of Dang pouring into the little town in search of the jewels, Janner and his family leave Glipwood behind in a desperate attempt to reach the Ice Praries before Gnag can find them and discover the powerful secret of their family line -- a secret that could do more than help Gnag take over the world... it could help destroy the world as well.

As they travel they are constantly in danger. Pursued by Fangs with every step, Janner and his family must escape the jaws of the dreaded Gargun Rock Roach, evade the knives of Stranders, hide out in hidden tunnels, avoid the terrible teeth (not to mention the awful breath) of Bomnibles, and out run the unbearable beaks of the hideous flesh-eating Snickbuzzards. It's going to take a lot of courage to get them to the ice prairies... all in one piece, that is.

And with Tink thrown into the mix, one can never be too grateful for the words "all in one piece". Who would have thought that little brothers could be so much trouble? Who would have thought that Tink's protection would fall squarely on Janner's shoulders, or that Tink would go off and grow a tale? Literally? And who would have thought that a Quilldiggle could taste so good, or that a Fork Factory could be so dreaded?

Besides that, Grandpa is hiding yet another secret... a secret that he's never even told his daughter Nia... a secret that just might have the whole family in pieces by the end after all.

My Thoughts:

I will never forget the day I first started reading this book. I was sitting in my bedroom, talking to my little sister, and telling her about this book I just borrowed that I was excited about reading. She asked me to read a bit to her. So I flipped open the first cover, admired the hand drawn maps, and then went to read the first chapter...

"Toothy Cows!!"

No, literally... those are the first words.

My sister and I both fell into hysterical laughing. "What did that just say?" She asked me. So I read it again and we both doubled over.

Wow. Now that's one way to draw a reader's attention. Especially if that particular reader hasn't read the first book in the series yet.

It didn't take me long after that to understand the seriousness behind the words "Toothy Cow". I shall never look at a toothy cow the same way again. Don't be fooled by their similar appearance to normal cows... while it would seem the toothy variety taste just as good as the normal variety (ask the stranders, if you don't believe me) they also tend to think that people taste good.

See what I mean? Terrifying creatures. :)

Personally I loved this book as well if not more than I loved the first one. However, starting in the middle of the series was a little difficult, so no... I don't recommend starting with the second book. At first I really didn't understand what was going on (you sort of need to read the first book for that.) After a while I caught on. And once I caught on, the pace just picked up.

Andrew seems to have a way with words and humor that just flows over the page. And when I say humor, I don't mean like the riddle kind, or like knock-knock jokes. He simply slips every day simple humor into the pages and when you catch it, it's like a little jewel of laughter... or perhaps like an inside joke. Guys will especially enjoy the humor, but even girls with a few brothers in the family or a silly father could easily catch on and would get a chuckle or two out of it. It's so worth reading.

I refuse to give away any of the amazing adventure in this book. You simply have to read it for yourself to understand. :) But I will say that the ending left me so on edge that first I gasped, then I went back and reread it three times, and then I started to cry and I couldn't pick up the third book for two days until the amazement had finally worn off enough to leave me literate again. No I'm not joking. I couldn't even think of starting the first book until my awe of Andrew Peterson's way with words and plot twists came back down to a somewhat normal status.

I don't think I need to say it again; you should already know by now that you absolutely HAVE to read this book. If you are Christian and a fantasy lover, then it is practically a required thing. :D (not really... but EXTREMELY recommended.) Again, this book gets a 5 out of 5 stars.

But just wait until you read my review on the third book. *rubs hands together gleefully* That one is by far the best book of the series in my opinion. At least up to this point.

Now, yesterday I mentioned that I would talk more about Andrew's other amazing talents. I told you that he was a recording artist, but I forgot to mention that he was also an illustrator. Illustrations from his own pencil are scattered throughout the book, and (as an artist myself) I just have to say that I love his cartoon animation style. I could totally see movies being made from these illustrations... perhaps in the style of Focus on the Family's Adventures in Oddesy series. You just have to love it when you find someone this talented... I mean, seriously... how much more awesome can this man get?

Oh wait... he's a father and a husband as well? Did I mention that he was born in IL... not too terribly far from my area. Yeah, my esteem just went up another notch. ^_^

Here's some of his artwork which you can also find here... http://wingfeathersaga.com

1) Glipwood Township:

2) A map of Skree:

3) Peet the Sock Man's Castle:

4) A ferocious Fang of Dang:

5) A terrible flesh eating Snickbuzzard:

6) A Bomnible:

7) A Chorkney (from the Ice Praries):

And now I shall leave you once again with a picture of Andrew himself. This time he's playing the guitar. :D Gotta love it!

Gillian Adams
Red Bissell
Jennifer Bogart
Thomas Clayton Booher
Beckie Burnham
CSFF Blog Tour
D. G. D. Davidson
Cynthia Dyer
Amber French
Nikole Hahn
Ryan Heart
Timothy Hicks
Jason Joyner
Julie
Carol Keen
Shannon McDermott
Rebecca LuElla Miller
Mirriam Neal
* Eve Nielsen
Joan Nienhuis
Donita K. Paul
Sarah Sawyer
Chawna Schroeder
Tammy Shelnut
Kathleen Smith
Donna Swanson
Rachel Starr Thomson
Robert Treskillard
Fred Warren
Phyllis Wheeler
Nichole White
Rachel Wyant

CSFF Blog Tour Day 1: Review of Andrew Peterson’s “On the Edge of the Dark Sea of Darkness”

2011-09-19T17:24:00.000-07:00

Wow… *double checks header* I do believe that that is one of the longest titles I’ve ever had on a blog post. O.o

Today is the first day of the September CSFF Blog Tour and we have been reading through Andrew Peterson’s book “The Monster in the Hollows”. That book is the 3^rd book in the Wingfeather saga (originally dubbed “The Wingfeather trilogy”, but that now consists of four books instead of three… thus the change.)

I’ve had the pleasure of reading all three books and of actually getting to meet Mr. Peterson in person (and singing with my church worship band to open his recent concert in IL. ^_^). However, I haven’t posted any reviews on his books yet. And so, I thought I would do something a little different and actually review the whole series during this tour… three days for three books. ^_^ What do you think of that? :)

Janner Igiby is tired of always having to watch over his younger brother and little sister. After all, he's already 12! Practically an adult. He should be able to decide what he wants to do with his own time.

And what he wants is an adventure... the kind he only gets to read about. The kind in the stories told to him by his ex-pirate grandfather about the sea and foreign lands. However, in the town of Glipwood which is run by the furious Fangs of Dang -- large lizard-man things with venomous teeth -- who report back to Gnag the Nameless himself, "adventure" often get's one in trouble.

When Janner tussles with a Fang in order to save his little sister and her dog nugget from a toothy and poisonous death, events turn dangerous. The children get thrown into the jail and are threatened with a trip in the Black Carriage, a nightmare out of fireside tales and children's rhyms about a carriage driver who comes and steals kids from their beds in the night. However, before the children are sent off, their mother Nia comes to rescue them with some secret jewels she had stashed away. She manages to bribe the head fang and get her children out of jail, but now Janner is curious where his mother kept the jewels and how come he never knew about them before.

And then there's Janner's brother, Tink. Tink is always getting into mischief. When he "borrows" a map from the local book store that leads to an old, abandoned house on the edge of Glipwood forest, Tink and Janner decide to go exploring. They know that Glipwood forest itself is said to be dangerous, but the house isn't actually in the forest... But instead of the relatively safe adventure they expected, they get chased by the terrible Horned Hounds and discover a hidden weapons chamber filled with all sorts of dangerous objects forbidden since the great war when Gnag the Nameless took over the land of Skree. What is it doing there? And what did the owner of the bookstore, the fat old Oskar N. Reateep, have to do with it?

Besides that, why does the local psychopath, Peet the Sock Man, seem so intent on protecting the Igiby children? And why is Gnag the Nameless suddenly so set on capturing them?

Janner knows that his Mother and Grandfather are hiding something from him -- a secret that probably has to do with his father who was lost in the Great War -- but what could that secret be? And what about these Jewels of Anniera that Janner keeps hearing about? There was even something about them written on the map that Tink had borrowed. Were those the jewels that his mother had given the fangs? Was that what Gnag really wanted?

My Thoughts:

I actually started reading the series with the second book, but to be quite honest, I think starting that way helped me to appreciate the first book all the more.

On the Edge of the Dark Sea of Darkness pretty much stayed around the small town of Glipwood, which sits right up against the Glipwood forest, up until the very end. Usually I have some trouble with stories that aren't moving about -- it's not so much the stories fault as my attention span's fault. I just want to see things change... I want to see dynamics. (I suppose all readers do.) Well I didn't have those problems with this story. It had enough going on and it asked enough questions that I was curious and content with staying in one place.

My favorite character by far was Peet the Sock Man. He's so crazy, but there's something so likable about him. You just have to pity him, and you wonder constantly about what put him in such a state. And then of course you have little Leeli's dog, Nugget... if you haven't read the book, I won't try to spoil it for you, but let me just say that something happens to Nugget that, in my own opinion, is totally epic. ^_^

Andrew Peterson writes in a very unique style that utilizes the "story teller" style rather than the "Story shower" style. I found it a little distracting at first, but by the end of the first chapter, I'd completely forgotten about my distraction. The rhythm of the writing flows well and keeps the reader engaged. It's not just what happens in the book but the pacing that counts, and in my opinion this book has just the right mixture of pacing and action. In fact, Andrew keeps his own unique style very consistent throughout the entire series... even though I did note improvements from one book to the next. And a reader should take nothing for granted in these books either... even small details may come back throughout later chapters in very big ways.

As far as this book goes, I give it a 5 out of 5. It's absolutely family friendly, and it's the start of what is now one of my favorite Christian Fantasy series.

Just for fun, here's a picture of another version of the cover:

And here's a picture of the author himself. Not only does he look good (I mean, he does look good... his features remind me a bit of Steven Curtis Chapman...) but he seems very kind hearted as well. Also note that Andrew Peterson is a Christian recording artist. Perhaps I'll devolve more on that later. Right now I will tell you that his album "Far Country" is one of my absolute favorites. :) I listen to it all the time as I'm working on homework or commission projects.

I shall now leave you with his smiling face. :D

The Confessions of a One-Time Exhausted Procrastinator

2011-09-12T08:19:00.001-07:00

Hello Bloggies,

My name is Nichole White and last semester I came down with an ailment known as Exhausted Procrastination.

*cue rehabilitation group welcome*

It started out with just missing a few deadlines I'd set for myself. I was tired, I told myself; I could write later. I could always write later. I could finish reading that book later, because I had other things to do that were more important. I could wash a load of laundry later… right now I just wanted to finish resting.

But "later" never seemed to come. Pretty soon it wasn't just my writing that was behind, but my school work as well, and my room was getting messy because I was avoiding the fact that it needed to be cleaned. Then I started arriving late to meetings, school, and even Church sometimes. I made all sorts of excuses. "I live an hour away from just about everything," I told myself (which is actually true...) "It's ok if I'm late once or twice… people will understand my dilemma."

But "once or twice" grew more frequent. Soon I was skipping classes because I was late enough to them that I didn't want to be embarrassed by walking in. It wasn't that I didn't like the classes… in fact, I enjoyed sitting in and listening to the teacher lecture (for the most part). I just didn't want to walk in so very, very late. "Well, it's ok," I thought to myself. "I'm a good student. I don't miss that many classes… not if I can help it. One miss isn't going to kill me."

But my problem worsened. One miss turned into two, and two multiplied to four. I was getting nowhere in my writing life, my room was now a total disaster, and I was starting to fall behind on homework… mostly because I didn't know what homework I was supposed to be working on. My life grew more and more busy as the semester progressed, I kept insisting on adding projects to my agenda, and there was this big monster load of work to be done that loomed over my shoulder.

And like the good procrastinator that I am, I kept putting it off. The final result was the semester ending with me feeling slightly less than satisfied with my grades, a car-load of things that still needed finishing, and my book staring at me with big, sad eyes every time I turned on my computer.

That was me last semester, in the Spring of 2011.

That is what I'm trying to beat off this semester, fall of 2011. So far so good.

Now I admit that last semester I had really bitten off more than I could chew. I had tried to take on 17 credit hours all at once while also singing back up vocal 1 at my church every Sunday, writing my book, looking for a job, etc, etc… My life was soon disheveled and I was exhausted. My exhaustion is what triggered my procrastination, I know. The truth is, I really WAS tired, and I was at the school (which really is an hour's drive away from me) everyday from 8am to about 10pm. Even staying at school so long, there really wasn't enough hours in the day for me to give my homework the proper attention it needed, so half the time I bluffed my way through a few pages of any given subject and then tried to ignore the rest of it. Of course I wasn't satisfied with my grades… I couldn't even keep up with the homework! The school policy is about 3 hrs of homework to every hr of lecture/class time… more sometimes, depending on which subject we're talking about. Three hours is not enough time when you are taking a foreign language and don't already have a decent general knowledge of the language and/or culture. <_< From there, my exhaustion led to an extreme writer's block which took a little over a year to clear up. It was the most horrible, writing free year of my life (not to mention the only one). Pretty soon, I could just barely get myself up in the morning (waking up at 5:45 am every day is really NOT my thing…) and by the end of the semester, I started to cry every time I thought about all I had to do. It's not the kind of thing I would wish on anyone else. I am not super human, and I don't pretend to be.

That said, I wonder what would have happened if I had simply dropped a few of my classes, refocused my life, and had really gotten down to the nitty gritty with my school work. You see, I even procrastinated on dropping classes… I procrastinated so long that by the time I decided to drop classes and save myself, the option was already moot. I think that might be what REALLY killed me last semester.

This semester is a fresh start. I have a new job and I purposely decided to take only 13 credit hours in order to give myself a much needed break… that's still full time at my school, which means I get all of the benefits of a full time student, but it's also about 4 credit hrs less than last semester, plus my homework is fun and relatively easy. My room is clean and will hopefully stay that way, my closet is cleaned out and all laundry washed, work on my book is now moving forward again, plus I've started to take art commissions while still singing back up vocal 1 at my church. I let procrastination and exhaustion team up to beat me once, but I'm determined to sock them back this semester… hard. Right in the paunch. I haven't missed a class yet and don't plan to start any time soon.

The moral of this blog post? Well, I guess there are two morals really.

Don't put off until tomorrow what you can do today

And

Don't bite off more than you can chew

Trust me on this one: when exhaustion and procrastination decide to team up and jump you, they give you quite a pounding. :P

However, this time I've got them by the tails!! :D

More book reviews coming soon! And perhaps some therapeutic rambling. I'm also working on several new commissions, and have recently finished the maps for two of my WIPs that I plan to post about soon.

And I've noticed that I now have 65 followers! Yay!!! ^_^ When I hit 70 I'm thinking about hosting a giveaway, a contest, or some other type of fun, competitive event. So tell your friends about the P&P!! The sooner I hit 70 followers, the sooner you get to find out what amusing and enjoyable mischief I have up my sleeves. ;D

Nichole

Book Review: The Secret of the Indigo Moon by G.P. Taylor

2011-09-06T16:52:00.000-07:00

Hello bloggy friends. ^_^

It's been a while since I actually sat down to do a book review, even though I have quite a few books that I need to review. <_< So I thought that today, while it's still on my mind, would be as good a time as any to actually put my butt in a chair and write this out! I've been avoiding this for a while now. Here I go! I'm actually going to do this now!! *focuses self* ;)

Erik Morissey Ganger, famed explorer and detective (well, in his dreams), and his mischief-making sidekicks, twins Sadie and Saskia Dopple, didn’t go looking for a secret tunnel beneath the school. They never intended to make the acquaintance of a shifty private eye with a nose for trouble. It wasn’t part of the plan to come face to face with an old enemy, one with an agenda of his own that could destroy them all. And unraveling the “secret of indigo moon” was the farthest thing from their minds.

At Isambard Dunstan’s School for Wayward Children, these things just seem to happen.

In The Secret of Indigo Moon, confirmed troublemakers Erik, Sadie, and Saskia plunge headlong into a new and perilous mystery, one that challenges everything they thought they knew about their lives, themselves, and whom it’s safe to trust.

(Sorry, that summary is basically the blurb on the back of the book, but I was having trouble trying to sum up the story on my own. :P)

My thoughts:

Personally, I had a hard time getting into the book. Perhaps this was because the book is actually meant for a younger audience. I don't really know. *shrug* I've heard this book being praised because of it's pictures and the mix of text and a sort of comic-book style. I thought that it would be interesting to try this book out mostly because of the reviews that I'd read from so many different readers. However, I found the pictures and the strange fonts to be EXTREMELY distracting.

Not that they might not be interesting and engaging to someone else!!! I'm not saying that. But I'm one of those readers who picks up a book and immediately starts watching a movie in their head as they go along. The many pictures and the strange fonts scattered throughout the book for apparently no good reason (at least on the parts of the lettering...) kept dragging me out of that movie and making me have to look at something else. Then I'd have to reorient myself in the text again... I just... well, I struggled with it.

Now, as far as the story in itself... well, it wasn't too bad. I could see that the author was trying to pull out a Christian theme (or perhaps a catholic theme?) but I wasn't sure what I thought about how they went about it. There was this lady in the book who showed up it seemed at random, and Saskia thought she was an Angel, but no one seemed to know for sure. Somehow I didn't feel like this attempt to show a connection to the spiritual was somehow... lacking? I don't know... it didn't really feel connected, and it read rather shallow in my eyes. But, like I said, that could just be because the book was meant for a younger reader.

The story line in and of itself seemed to have a pretty good flow and direction to it. Obviously there was a mystery and the children were going to work through it. The problem was that I could guess every thing that was going to happen. At one point in the story there was supposed to be this "secret" villain, and the kids kept thinking that it was someone other than the person it actually was. The problem was, all the clues fit together in my head; I guessed who the secret villain was long before she actually entered the text, and it didn't take a whole lot of thinking to do it.

The kids themselves were interesting to follow... I started getting curious about their back story. Some of the back story was provided and other bits were left out on purpose to keep the reader guessing. I liked that; I think that was pretty well thought out on the author's part, and I might take a peek at future books just to find the answers to the questions I have. But who knows...

The villains were relatively "scary" - or perhaps "creepy" would have been a better word - though I really wanted to learn more about the magician... I can't recall his name right now. I also wanted to learn more about his inventions. What on earth did a speeding carousel have to do with the story? Seriously, how was the dangerous and frightening? I guess it was supposed to add tension, but to me, it made no sense; it just seemed pointless. We didn't even get to see the purpose behind the thing. It never really DID anything... the tension (and my respect) dropped when the kids were saved and nothing actually happened.

At one point in the book, I noticed that the dialogue between the magician and the children sounded an awful lot like it had been adapted from Scooby Doo. "And I would have gotten away with it too, if hadn't been for you meddlesome kids!" :P Sorry... not that impressed.

All in all... I wasn't that impressed with this book at all. I'm not very familiar with the author, and I'm more used to reading straight Middle Grade or YA. However, I'm guessing that this book fits on the younger end of the middle grade pool. It DOES say it's children's fiction, so I'll leave room for myself to er.

Conscious-wise, this book is very clean. There's no really bad or super scary stuff in it, and you could definitely read it to a 6 year old and a 12 year old with confidence. (And just in case anyone was wondering, I chose those ages because they are the ages of my little sisters... ;D) However, I can't say that the 12 year old would be super engaged... perhaps if she was reading it for herself... but I don't think she would be all into the story if I was trying to read it to her.

I know this is probably the first time I've ever written a relatively bad review, but I just have to be honest. Even with it's few redeeming qualities, I just couldn't be impressed... and I really, really tried to be. I give this book a 2-3 stars out of five. I'm sorry, but I just can't give it any more than three, as much as I might wish to. :P

(This book was given to me freely by the Tyndale House blogging program. I was not required to give a good review. I was simply required to voice my own opinions about the book.)

Which Way Should We turn? Ushering in the New Publishing Era…

2011-08-30T13:05:00.001-07:00

As many of you may know, I've been pretty big on the thought of traditional publishing. I'm a fan of the Big 6, let me tell you! And in all honesty, it would be a total dream come true if I had one of my books published through them. It would be a dream come true if I had one of my books published traditionally, period… through an indie press or otherwise!

But as many of you also know, the publishing world is shifting… sort of tilting on its side right now. Getting "published" is not nearly as hard as it once was. Now we have e-readers that (to my chagrin) pretty much eliminate the need for paper books. (Not that they eliminate the want for paper… I will always be a paper lover, myself. There's nothing quite like opening a brand new, physical book to the smell of freshly printed ink on white or cream paper. Mm-mmm!)

Not only do we have the e-readers, but with the dawn of digitalized books, the way of the indie publisher has become much more traveled than it ever was before. The Self-Published are not as far down the reading list as they used to be. Once at the bottom of the proverbial publishing shark tank, now there are authors out there making more money, selling more books, churning out even more reading material a year, and gaining more fans much faster than they would have if they had gone a Big 6 rout. There're people like Amanda Hockings and Joe Konrath that pretty much make their living on just writing books. (Isn't that where we all want to be someday?) Then there's John Locke, an originally self-pubbed author who just signed with Simon & Schuster, and managed to do the seemingly impossible as well: hold on to his e-book rights. These people and many others have dipped their toes into the waters of Indie Authorship, and they've succeeded. Not only that but they've kept their rights: that's something that all authors wish for, but few actually see happen.

And then we have people closer to the Christian Publishing World and the genre's included in Christian Speculative fiction (the genres that interest me. ;D) . We have Jeff Gerke, who started his indie company Marcher Lord Press around the years of 2007 and 2008 in order to fill a niche market that he saw needed filling. Now his company is topping the list of indie publishers interested in Christian speculative fiction, and several MLP books have won awards in the Christian industry… we're talking the Christy, here, people: the highest award to be offered in Christian Fiction! Author, Jill Williamson, has already won two Christies for her Blood of Kings trilogy, and I know that several other books have been nominated in the past, as well as books that have been nominated for other awards. (I know there was another author that won a Christy, or who was at least nominated for one... hmmm...)

We also have Scott Appleton, who started his Indie Company, Flaming Pen Press, in order to publish his book, Swords of the Six, which sold over 3,000 copies in one year and went on to be picked up by AMG – one of the leading traditional publishers of Christian speculative fiction. He now has a contract through AMG for all seven books in his sword of the dragon series. FPP also published Kestrel's Midnight Song, the amazingly engaging fantasy written by 19 year old Jacob Parker. Kestrel's Midnight Song went on to receive a Children's Moonbeam Award and (if I remember correctly) also sold over 3,000 copies since its release last September. Now FPP is getting ready to release a new novella titled Out of Darkness Rising, written by the talented Gillian Adams. (And I mean talented here, people… I've read some of her work already. It's truly inspiring.) The novella is set to be released in the summer of 2012, and I know that it will be a success.

Next we have Port Yonder Press, run by Chila Woychik (I hope I spelled her name correctly) which strives to appeal to the artful, the literary, and the speculative. PYP is getting ready to release a new speculative work titled Dawnsinger, written by Janalyn Voigt. I've been looking into this book for a while, people… I'm totally stoked about reading it when it finally comes out! PYP has also released the book Sylvari: an Anthology of Elves in which one of our fellow teen writers, Christian Miles, is published and in which our very own Mirriam Neal has some of her beautiful illustrations displayed.

And of course we can't forget this new movement by Bestselling Christian Fiction authors Christopher Hopper, Wayne Thomas Batson, and the brothers Christopher and Allen Miller. They've decided to start a Writing/Publishing Guild titled Spearhead, in order to provide quality Christian Fiction for readers of all ages. They've given new meaning to the words "Indie Publishing" since they've set out to be independent together, and I just have to wonder where this movement will go? Already they are releasing books through their Guild… (I believe that one such book is titled "Mech-Mice" written by the Miller Brothers, and Wayne Thomas Batson's newest work "Ghost" is (or else soon will be) available through the guild as well, as will Christopher Hopper's latest book in his White Lion Chronicles.)

Then last but not least, we have Andrew Peterson and Rabbit Room Press. Andrew Peterson is an award winning Christian Songwriter who also writes Christian Middle-grade Fantasy. (I'm a fan of both his songs and his books!! :D) In the past, the first two books of his Wingfeather Saga have been released through Waterbrook Multnomah, a division of Random House. But just recently, Mr. Peterson released the third book in his series through his own company, Rabbit Room Press, and let me tell you… it's just as good if not better than the first two books! (Expect reviews of all three of his current books in September for the CSFF Blog Tour.) Just within the last month I was lucky enough to meet Mr. Peterson in person and ask him about his books. I said that I saw he had published The Monster in the Hollows through his own company, and I wondered why. His reaction was similar to Mr. Batson's blog post about the new Spearhead Guild: he'd published his book through his own company because he thought he could get it out to his readers faster and more efficiently than if he had to wait for another publisher to do the work. Besides that, he'd come to know the business and had sort of created his own brand, what with his song albums and his books taking over Christian America. Why not publish the book himself? (disclaimer: Those were not his exact words, but you get the gist. I can't remember exactly what he said, word for word… but I can lay down what I remembered of the conversation in my own words.)

Could it be made any clearer? The world of publishing is shifting severely. In my mind it's pretty well balanced out 50/50 at the moment between Indie Presses and other larger companies, where it used to be about 90/10… or perhaps an even smaller percentage for those who took on publishing by themselves. And everything is quickly tilting towards indie publishing and ebooks. Even for those who are opposed to the change, there's no stopping the advance. It's happening… all around us. Constantly. And now Borders, my favorite bookstore, is going out of business… mostly because of the rising success of e-books and the seemingly decreasing need for traditional bookstores. Amazon is taking over everything.

With all that in mind, I've started seriously rethinking some of my previously unwavering notions about becoming published. I'm still a firm believer in traditional publishing, paper-back books, the Big 6, and physical bookstores. But now I'm starting to see Independent publishing as a possible option as well. I've considered it before, of course (who hasn't?) but the idea is starting to grow on me more and more. I am just not sure anymore whether I want to pursue publication through traditional means (with a possible agent, and queries, and lots of waiting involved, and so on…) or whether I want to step up to the task, be the entrepreneur that I've always known myself to be, and start an Indie Press of my own.

I just don't know anymore. *shakes head* And it's quite conflicting.

However, I have been weighing the options. I've been asking myself the questions that need to be asked when it comes down to new businesses … How would I do it? What would it be called? Could I handle it? Who would be willing to step out with me? What about marketing? That sort of stuff.

My dad had his own business since before he married my mom. Granted, he was an artist, but then again, writing is a form of art too. And he became known throughout the states! (but don't look for him on the internet… he never was very web-savvy; his business took off simply through word-of-mouth and personal advertisement. We had rough times, but so does every other business. *shrug*)

I keep wondering that if my dad could do it and succeed, then why couldn't I? My mom and several other respected people that I know have always told me that they think I should go indie as well. I know I have the spirit for it, and the drive. I know that I'm the type of person who strives for success and perfection… and I never stop striving for it. (yes, I do know that about myself… it's a complicated knowledge, but it's what has kept me in Jr. College for 3 years and will keep me in Jr. College for another 2 before I transfer… Double major here. *points to self* <_< It's that drive that has also kept me rewriting my books until I feel that they are perfect… which also tends to drive me crazy. But in a good way. Lol! :D) I'm the type of person who can look at the impossible, see possibilities, and then I will try to make those possibilities happen.

So why couldn't I start an Indie Company? Why not? I've always known I'm supposed to work in publishing… I just KNOW it. So why not?

I don't know the answer to that question yet, but I've decided that while I'm considering the options I will look at the problem through two different perspectives. I'm still rewriting SOTD, and I will continue to work on my query and cover letter as well, while also considering publishers and agents for both of my current WIPs as I work to stay up-to-date on the publishing news, markets, and venues. But I've also decided to think out a few things, just in case I do choose to go Indie. I thought I would post some of these thoughts here, and see what you, my readers, think of them. Perhaps you can give me your input to consider; advice and thoughts are always welcomed. I'm not saying it wouldn't be hard work… in fact, I quite expect it to be hard work. And should I plan to explore this option, I will definitely work hard at it. (And, hopefully, I won't be alone in my endeavor either… but I'll present those thoughts in a later post.) I'm just saying that I'm considering it.

First of all, if I went Indie I would want to publish other books, not just mine. I have a passion for creative writing, especially speculative fiction, and especially for the Middle-grade and YA. I know that this passion is real because every time I start to talk about it, something jerks around in my heart and I just want to start crying. My Grandma says that a person's true passion and calling will make them cry, so I know that this calling is real; I know that God has called me to write, and I know that no matter what, I will strive to keep writing and keep spreading His messages and my passions for as long as He allows. I want to be an encouragement to other writers and I want to spread my passion through my words (and I'm starting to think that my passion would touch more people and spread much farther and faster if it wasn't simply limited to only my writings and perhaps a traditional publisher… What if I could help other writers and authors who aspire for the same passions that I have? Wouldn't that be great?! *looks around, then clears throat* ahem…). I want to help other people understand the wonders that are waiting within the pages of a good book; I want to help people use their words to explore the wonders of the amazing, magnificent, breathtaking, ultimate possibilities revealed in God… because with Him, ALL things are possible! Not just some things, but ALL things. And I know that I could do just this by starting a company whose mission shares my passion. I've been thinking and praying about it a lot lately, and while nothing is really set in stone or decided yet, it's just starting to feel like this might be the right road after all.

Second of all, I've been thinking about branding and names. A company name must symbolize everything that the company represents. I think I would mostly be looking to publish speculative fiction (as that is my preferred genre), but I would also be open to looking at other forms of literary works such as poetry and creative essays and short stories for anthologies. I myself like to write poetry, creative essays, and short stories, so why would I try to exclude them?

But what sort of name can capture all of the eclectic marvels that make up the essence of Christian Speculative Fiction… while at the same time including opportunities for those poets and literary writers out there who share similar passions?

That's when I started to really think about the word "eclectic". When I think of "eclectic", for some strange reason a picture of a Magpie comes to mind. Those birds seem extremely eclectic to me; much like crows or ravens, they are always looking for shiny objects that they can take to their nests and keep as treasures and they are curious and not afraid of humans. But unlike crows and ravens, they don't have the symbol of evil hanging over their heads. Some people call them thieves, but if you really think about it, they are treasure-hunters. And as an Indie Press, that's what I would want my company to represent… not in the money sense, but in the essence of passion and words. There is a richness to a well told story that just cannot be denied. I would want to find those stories, polish them up, and let them shine. The only difference would be that instead of hiding the shinies away in my nest, I would want to spread them out to as many people as possible. It's only then that this zeal can be truly shared… when people are touched by the hand of God through the passion of a writer. And so, I've decided that if I ever do step up and take the mantle of an Indie Press (or perhaps I should say "when", as I would now claim that the idea is becoming more and more set in my heart), I would call my company "Magpie Publications", or something along those lines. It is the only brand name I've ever considered that actually feels right.

Third of all, I've been thinking about marketing. I know it would be a difficult obstacle, and perhaps the biggest hurdle that my company would face. Especially since I have not yet taken business or marketing in college. However, I also know that the resources are out there for those who have the drive to seek them out and use them, and I am willing to do the research. I know that I have that drive. It's what has kept me going as a young writer, it's what has made me look past the hardships of college and see the reward at the end, it's what will continue to drive me in life until my aspirations are appeased and I have created new goals, and then it will help me reach those new goals and beyond. It might be hard, but I already know that; nothing in life is made easy… nothing. And I don't give up easily; I know I have what it takes, and the doubts I might have whispering to my mind are not big enough to sate my thirst for truth, nor chain my dedication or God-given zeal. With God all things are possible; I just have to keep remembering that. Perhaps the marketing plan that I present in my query for SOTD can be built upon in order to create the perfect marketing plan for an Indie Company. *shrugs* Who knows? But the possibilities are limitless!

So what do you guys think? I know this was a pretty long post… one of the longest I think I've ever written… but if you've gotten this far and have any ideas on the subject, please let me know about them. I am very open to ideas right now. I'm not actually saying that I'm going to undertake this project soon… it may not happen for several years yet, (though I think it will happen eventually…). It's just been on my mind a lot lately and I thought I would share. What are your thoughts on the turn in publishing, or perhaps the changing market? What would you think about a new company such as the one I have envisioned above becoming a reality? What would you do? Feel free to share in the comments. :D

Nichole

My “First Four Chapters” rule

2011-08-29T10:20:00.001-07:00

Just recently there's something I've been noticing about my writing habits that (for some strange reason) I find extremely fascinating. It is the fact that my stories have (quite unconsciously – or perhaps subconsciously – on my part) started to form a stylistic pattern within the writing. Now, every writer has their own style of writing… or (if you are beginning writer) you will eventually develop your own style of writing with practice. Often times, writers think of "style" as simply word choice and a type of character development... perhaps your style revolves around short, concise prose, or your style is more first person rather than third person. *shrug* However, what I think we often overlook is story structure, which can be especially overlooked by pantsters (including me) who write almost everything straight off the top of their heads and try not to over-think plotline, character-development, and story building in the general sense. Pantsters don't plan story structure… we just take off. It's my belief that a book should be written as if it's being read; otherwise much of the excitement and mystery is taken out. (Outliners will probably argue with me. And don't get me wrong either… I totally respect outlining; I just don't do it well with creative writing.)

What does all this have to do with style though?

Now that's interesting. I'm a pantster talking about story structure and trying to relate it to style. Sound a bit ironic to you?

But the deal is – I've discovered that my subconscious has created a type of patterning story structure for my WIP's even though I write most things straight off the top of my head. I've only just (like within the last two weeks) started to take note of these patterns and they seem to largely accumulate in the first four chapters. So, being the extremely creative person that I am, I've decided to call the patterns my "First Four Chapters" rule.

Quite the original title, if I must say so myself. What, what?! *strikes basil stag-hare pose*

Here's how it works:

(And please note before we go much farther that these observations aren't actual "rules" to write by so much as they are consistent patterns that my writing seems to follow. I refer to them as "rules" because the occurrence has happened over the span of three to four rough drafts and revisions of different stories. Therefore I assume that these are patterns that my writings will continue to follow into the future, even though the act of following them may be subconscious. That is also why I refer to these patterns as "structures" in my stories, and associate them with my writing style. Just sayin'.)

We'll start with the first chapter.

In the first chapter I usually meet my characters where they are in that point of their lives. It's not always convenient for them, or completely normal, but it usually is where their stories start.

For instance, in SOTD, we first meet Curron in a tavern where he was called on as extra help, even though he usually works in the stable – this is also where he first sees Caellahn and overhears an interesting and dangerous conversation. In Eldrei, we meet my MC Tibain when he's having a sparing lesson in the early evening behind his house; as he and his guardian, Dakore, go back to the house, they are informed that some men (who are being rather secretive) have come to talk with Tibain's guardian, Dakore… which hardly ever happens. In The Spinner's Apprentice we find Aura and Ganeff (my rover MC and her supporting character) preparing to sack a merchant cart when a fae lord suddenly appears in front of them.

I continue working on the first chapter by building a setting and creating an Enabling Problem around my character and his (or her) actions, adding some shallow back story to the conflict – nothing too deep right yet; just enough that (hopefully) my characters and their problems start to feel solidified in the readers' minds. (Actually, in two of my stories, this has been accomplished with the main character listening in on a conversation he wasn't really supposed to hear… which is difficult if you eliminate most of the MC's sense of sight. <_<)

At this point in the story, I'm being descriptive, but I'm also trying not to reveal too much… especially about the main character: I don't want to give everything away right off the bat… instead, I want to build up a sort of mystery around them, just giving out enough information at the start that (hopefully) the reader starts to get interested in the character. I will work in more information as the story progresses, revealing more and more about the characters and the plot until finally the story ends with the last chapter. I want to have my MC's personality and back-story unfold with his choices and actions over the course of the story, leaving some mystery and intrigue in the first few chapters so as to encourage the reader to continue to the end of the book.

Of course, most of these goals are subconscious at the time I start writing, and so the actual process of writing the first chapter is not nearly as complicated as this post is making it appear. <_<

However, I have run into trouble in the past with the fact that I want to leave the majority of my MC's history in obscurity while I'm writing the first chapter. This is because (as readers have told me) I seem to describe outward details and the history of supporting characters as seen through my MC's eyes, rather than expounding on my main character and his (or her) plight within the first 3 – 5 pages. Instead, it would seem that I try to show my character's personality through actions and thought throughout the first chapter, rather than subtly included back story right away… or, if I do include back-story in the first chapter, it's revealed mostly through my MC's thoughts, rather than having it given to the reader in order for the reader to picture the character. (Does this make sense? Or is it just repetitive? O.o) According to what I've noted in my own writings as well as a few other books that I've read, this is not necessarily a bad style to follow, but apparently it is a rather complicated one. Unfortunately it also (apparently) means that it's harder for readers to relate to my MC's problems right off the bat. I'm working to remedy this little quandary, and hopefully before long I will have found the perfect balance between back-story and mystery.

I guess the easiest way to say it would be that I "set up" for the story in the first chapter, meeting my characters where they are in that point of their lives, and then I work on from there. Chapter one is also usually "lighter and brighter" than chapter 2 and 3 (as you will see in a minute).

On to the second chapter.

(My explanation of the first one was getting a bit confuzzling. If it confuses you, don't pay too much attention to it… Some of you know how it is when you are a writer… things happen in your story and during the writing process that you aren't exactly sure how they came about, or why, or how to explain them. *head-desk* Yeah… I'm pretty much your average aspiring author. ;D)

Moving on! ^_^

It's in the second chapter that I start to work in more character-background and I really start to give my MC a hard time. Another pattern that I've noticed in my stories is that there always seems to be an enabling problem at the beginning of the story that forces my characters into action. The "Enabling Problem" is a crisis set up at the start of the story that will end up compelling my character to drive the story forward, and that will also eventually force my character to pick up the mantle of Hero or Heroine for the book. (Usually my characters aren't quite there at the beginning of the book… building a hero or heroine from the ground up is not always easy, but it's so worth it. ;D)

While the REAL plight (and plot) of the story might be touched upon within the first chapter, it isn't really expounded upon until a bit later when my MC is (usually forced into) the thick of things. However, the Enabling Problem thickens within the second chapter and really helps to develop my character's personality and motive; it's usually (and subtly) introduced towards the end of the first chapter, and then builds up in the second chapter until something happens. Rather like one of those rubber-band boats I used to make as a kid with note-cards… the tension winds tighter and tighter until it can't wind any farther and either the rubber-band breaks, therefore disabling the boat, or the boat suddenly shoots forward in the water. My goal with the Enabling Problem is to use it in order for make my characters move farther into the story.

Make sense so far?

After all, you'll never really know a person until you've seen how they handle conflict and tension. Or, as my Grandpa would tell me, "If you REALLY want to get to know a guy, steal his wallet." How a person handles
conflict says a whole lot about their character and personality. And, as many writers know, conflict is also the most effective (and fun) way to move a story forward. It's also a great way to reveal certain traits about your characters that otherwise might not have been noted. The closer to the beginning of the story that these traits are revealed, the less likely that they will suddenly appear out of no-where when your character hits tension later in the book.

Believe me, I've read books that do just that. The character seems good, strong, sometimes even level headed… and then, maybe 6, 7… maybe even 9 to 10 chapters in, conflict hits and the character explodes. This just makes me feel like the character wasn't really thought through. By introducing tension at the beginning, you are actually subtly introducing character traits and personality traits to the reader so that they won't be overly surprised later on, and by the end of your book, they will feel satisfied with your character.

Besides, conflict and tension is fun to write and it induces action. No matter what reaction your character has to the problem at hand, it's what they do about the problem that moves the story. Sometimes (perhaps most of the time) my characters act out in the wrong way, thus forcing themselves into a different (maybe even dire) situation that sets up for the third chapter. (Sorry guys, but I do find it intriguing to torture my characters… They hate me for it, I know, but I just can't help it! *cue evil laugh* ;D)

So yeah… basically my second chapter = a serious problem rising up that forces my character into action and helps build up his personality within the story's setting. Usually he/she reacts to the problem in a way that causes more trouble for him/her.

There is also some more back-story worked in throughout (of course… because remember, I'm still trying to get the reader to relate with the character and care about him/her. Eh… I'm still working out the kinks. <_< But if you want an example of back-story done well in the second chapter, check out "The Fellowship of the Ring" by J.R.R. Tolkien.)

Now for the third Chapter:

My third chapter is where the enabling problem gets really serious and bad (think darkest hour, terrifying, you-would-wet-yourself-if-you-were-my-story's-character sort of stuff). Sometimes (actually, a lot of the time it would seem) the end of the second chapter gets much darker and more dangerous in order to prepare the reader for the third chapter. In other words, I (as the writer) buckle down and start writing the Enabling Problem into a rockin' climax. So you might actually say that in reality this step in my writing process happens over the course of two chapters.

However, whether it's my character totally and completely freaking himself out in the dungeon as he awaits his execution and remembers the horrific lynching of his guardian (as is the case with SOTD), or my characters running for their lives through the black of night with hungry (and angry) demon fire-wolves on their trail (Eldrei), or my MC trapped in a tiny box of a wagon in pitch darkness as a Living Nightmare tries to get in at her while her best friend fights the creature for both his and her life (The Spinner's Apprentice), my third chapters always contain the worst, darkest, and/or most dangerous part of the enabling problem. Always. I haven't quite figured out why yet. <_< But the pattern has remained unbroken for three stories, so I'm assuming it's something I do quite subconsciously, and I'm also assuming it's something that will probably continue to happen in further books.

Yet even though I don't understand how I always seem to have my Enabling Problem's climax fall on the third chapter, I do know this: sometimes you have to take your character into the darkest recesses of their minds in order to show readers who they really are. And much like with the second chapter and building the tension, it's best to reveal at least some of these character traits near the beginning of the story. You don't have to make them completely obvious (I don't think I've ever even tried to do that… <_<). You don't even have to have all of them out in the open… in fact, I highly suggest that you leave some reactions and thoughts for the later moments in the story when your character falls into the deepest darkest pit of despair and is being beset upon by his/her own personal demons… After all, the best part of this process is that with a dynamic character, your characters responses can change over the course of the story, or can at least become more developed and in-depth. The responses of people in real life are constantly changing and growing as time passes, so why not have the same thing happen with your characters?

Also, upon reaching the climax of the Enabling Problem, my character usually must make some sort of choice, and that choice will continue to push the story forward (like with the rubber-band boat).

So to sum up – chapter 3 = Enabling Problem's climax which serves two purposes: forcing my character into a dark, tight spot… and forcing them to make a choice which will ultimately lead into the rest of the story and the story's One Prominent Issue. (You know… that one huge problem that you build your whole story around… that one big problem that your character must eventually fix… that one. ;D)

Then, with the third chapter finished, I can start work on the fourth chapter of course.

The forth chapter may start out dark as I ease into it from the third chapter, but it usually lightens up a bit somewhere in the middle, when the Enabling Problem is (momentarily) resolved and the character is forced to move on into the story's much more Prominent Issue. This always happens differently, of course; no two stories are the same, or ever will be. Sometimes the Enabling Problem remains resolved for the entire story and that's the end of it. And sometimes (as is the case with Eldrei) the Enabling Problem is just a smaller piece of the Prominent Issue, and must be brought back later in the story in order for it to be resolved. Whatever the case is, my fourth chapter always works on resolving the Enabling Problem and moving the character forward into their initial role in the story. (You know which one… that role that you have sitting there waiting for your character to pick up… usually he/or she doesn't know about it at first and then certain events happen that force your character to pick up that role and become the hero/heroine [or perhaps villain/villainess] by the end of the book? That role. :D)

So, chapter 4 = resolved Enabling Problem and character moving forward to pick up the mantle of the hero/heroine of the story.

After that, I really have no plan. <_< As a pantster, I allow my story to unfold however it will. And even with these four seeming and subconscious "rules" guiding me through the first four chapters of my book and helping me with character building and setting and initial plotting, I still don't usually know what's going to happen from chapter 1 to chapter 2, or from there on out. Sometimes I write out notes to help me brainstorm ideas, and sometimes I journal my ideas down on paper (I almost never go anywhere without a notebook and a pencil.) Most of the time, however, I just sit down and start to write. If I already have a rough draft of the story, then I use that as a basic guide to help me work through the story's problems and pot-holes, and to continue to build up the story and setting into a believable world. If, however, I'm working on a brand new story… then I just start writing and it's almost like I'm watching a very detailed and complicated movie unfold before my eyes.

I didn't write this post trying to be all that instructive, or to establish any sort of new writing "rules" that should be followed. Rather, I just wanted to document something that I've been noticing in consistence within my own writings. I hope the information can be helpful, but if you are having trouble working through all of it, don't worry!! ^_^ Sometimes my thoughts can be confusing, I know: I have to live with them. ;) So if it seems like I started rambling and you can't work through the mess, just ignore it. I don't mind.

But to those of you who can understand it, I hope it is helpful as you continue studying the processes involved in creative writing.

Happy Writing All!!! *salutes writing friends with an elvish bow*

Nichole

Have You Ever Wondered What My Characters Look Like?

2011-08-19T18:43:00.000-07:00

Seriously, have you?

I'm not a writer who normally goes around looking for pictures of my characters. Like, ever. Actually, I'm more like the person whose afraid to try and draw her characters for fear she won't do them justice, and who doesn't want to look for a picture that similar to them, because she thinks they are just way too unique for that. If I could just snap a picture of my characters right out of my head to show you, I would. Really, I would. That's just how I am.

But the other day, I decided to actually go looking for pictures that made me think of what my characters are supposed to look like. And (surprisingly enough) I actually FOUND SOME. No, really! :) Total surprise to me. I just don't expect that sort of stuff.

So without further ado, here are (most of) the characters of SOTD.

(Disclaimer: None of these pictures are actually mine... they are just pictures that I found on the internet that I'm using for character inspiration, and they belong to their respected owners. That is all.)

Now, let's start with Curron, shall we? I found three pictures for him. :D

So this is what he looks like initially. Just give him slightly longer hair, and WALLA! And, interestingly enough, he's actually clean in this picture. That's right folks... Curron doesn't always look this prim and proper. Comes with working in the Stables a lot. And with being a lower class servant. ^_^

NEXT!

There ya go. That's more like it. At least for the beginning of the book. And I like this picture because I just can't decide on what his face is trying to express. Which is fine with me: it means I can put that face in several different circumstances. lol!

NEXT! ^_^ (I'm having fun doing that.)

This picture is fun because it's what I think Curron might look like grown up. Not bad on the eyes, I'd say. I like 'im. hehe!

Ok, that's all for Curron. Now which character should I show? Hmmm... how's about Olan? I think I only have one picture of him...

Just make him a little bit heavier, and have him scowl at Curron a lot, and there ya go. When Olan smiles, however, he looks pretty much like that. Which is good to know.

Now for Caellahn:

This is probably what he looked like the night he first showed up at Fort Gallant.

And this is a close up. Actually, I picture his hair maybe the slightest bit shorter. And he has blue eyes. But still. Good looking, no?

Here... have another. ^_^

Slightly different model for the last two pics, but you guys get the idea. The mysterious, good-looking ranger type that the author just falls in love with as she's writing about him. Yeah, that's Caellahn. :D I suppose it should be that I love the MC the most. Which I do. But it's just so fun to think up the mystery around Caellahn... because, after all, he is a man of deep mystery. *twinkly fingers*

Now For Allim. You guys haven't met him yet, but he's an awesome character. In SOTD, he and his son are the leaders of the outcast Believers. They are Burri, which is a race I picture to look more Arabic than anything else. They come from the deserts of Southland. Here's a mix of pictures of what I think he (sort of) looks like... just so you guys can get an idea. The top one resembles him the most. (guy from lost... can't remember his name... <_<)

Yep... nothin' says that the burri can't look handsome too. :D Allim is middle aged, but very in shape... thus that last picture.

And now for Allim's son, Drugan. I found the perfect picture for him as well. He's two years younger than Curron, but he looks more mature for his age and is quickly learning leadership from his father. I have two pictures for him. The top one is a slightly older looking version, and the bottom one looks closer to the right age but needs longer hair.

Last but not least, we have King Morven. I'm sure you're all wondering about him.

I couldn't find anyone that looked EXACTLY like him... but I found a few things that I think are close. Here ya go. :)

The guy would be the king, of course. Just give him a goatee... and perhaps some sideburns. IDK... I can't remember what color of eyes I gave him, but I think they were blue... so you'd have to change his eye color as well.

This would be Morven out hunting. And he has longer hair. The Morven in my story has shaggy hair, but it's not actually long. I found a lot of the pictures of the men I looked for had long hair, but I never picture my male characters with actually shoulder length hair. hmmm.... If you cut this guys hair shaggy up to about the bottom of his chin and taper it back around his neck, you might have it. :D

And that's all for now. I'll leave you with one last picture...

GWALCH! No really, that's the characters name. He actually works in the palace, but you wouldn't know it by looking at this guy... however, if you cleaned him up a bit and made his hair whiter... maybe put him in some good clothes, you'd have him. Gwalch really does look like this in my head.

And that's all. Next time I'll have to do pictures of the characters from ELDREI. See ya later. :D

My Journey with "Song of the Daystar"

2011-08-12T20:15:00.000-07:00

Every writer has a different story behind them, a different path that they've taken that has led them to where they are now. I have always loved to read the stories of other authors I admire, and hear how their stories were first born. Most of these tales involve obstacles and doubts and some wild inspiration - all of which encourages me in the end, because I can SO relate.

So this is the story of my current project, "Song of the Daystar", and maybe I'll be lucky and it will inspire someone else.

Song of the Daystar started life at the beginning of 2006 as a rather short and choppy three page writing splurge titled When the Winds Change, and the "first chapter" was called The Secret of Ice, which actually had nothing whatsoever to do with the contents of the so called first chapter. That short and extremely messy splurge was stuffed into a digital folder called, Other Writing Projects, and didn't come out again until the spring of 2007 when I learned about a Christian contest for High School students called "The Tweener-Time Competition". The object of that competition was to write a 25k chapter book, and the winner of the contest got a publishing deal with Bethany House, and a scholarship for Bethany Christian College in Indiana.

At the time, I didn't know what I was going to write: I just knew that I really wanted to enter that competition. So I sifted through my writing files, and suddenly found that little, tiny writing excerpt in my Other Writing Projects folder. I pulled it out and started to type.

No, I didn't have a plot. I had no purpose for the story whatsoever -- well, except for 25,000 words when I finished. I had NO idea what was going to happen or what the point was. I just sat down and wrote.

Oh BOY have I come a long way since then!!

I didn't win the contest (of course) and I'm very glad I didn't. Now, having come as far as I have on my writing journey, I would consider it a disgrace to have such a ramshackle piece of work on the market. *shudders* Seriously, it's the stuff of my nightmares.

Of course, that was all before I started taking writing seriously. Up until then (actually, up until a year after that) I had done little to no research on the creative writing process. In fact, I barely knew about the internet, and I was already 18 and 19!! Not that I cared for the interwebz all that much. Myspace was still popular, and Facebook was just starting to thrive. I wasn't allowed to touch either of them, of course, lest some mass murderer found my information and came to get me :p And, of course, we had a dial up landline service (still do) which never worked correctly and took absolutely FOREVER to load. <_<

With the end of that contest came the end of my interest in the story for a while. I laid it aside and didn't pick it up for another year. I was too busy working on another writing project, and felt like I had finished Song of the Daystar and there was no point in trying to kick a dead horse. But in the winter of 2008 I became tired of working on my other story, and wanted something new for my tired eyes to look through. So I reopened that old "dead horse" document and sat there for hours reading through it.

It was awful. *Shakes head sadly* Really, there was nothing "good" about it. Like I said earlier, it had no point... and it also seemed to be lacking any sort of a middle. Besides that, the end was extremely short and disappointing and the beginning... well, it meandered every which way without motive. My characters were dry and uninteresting, and the settings were all general. In short, it was a disgrace to the writing world, and sadly it was mine... my very own Frankenstein Literary Monster.

But instead of burying the grotesque creature back in the shadows of my dusty digital folder, I decided to try and fix the darned thing. ;) There just had to be a way to save it, for as the saying goes "One man's trash is another man's treasure". Only this time the story was both my trash and my treasure. I knew there had to be something I could pull out of it. So I decided to keep some of the characters and start fresh, only with the newer version of the story I decided to brainstorm first.

Not outline, mind. I had to do paper outlines for my High school work, and had decided to detest them with almost every fiber of my being (It wasn't until later when I started college that I discovered the true value behind outlining). No, this was just brainstorming. I came up with a few more characters and gave them a real purpose. Then I went farther and decided to give the story itself a purpose, since I didn't like the way the first draft had hopped, skipped, and jumped all over the place. I tried to come up with a theme for the book (though it didn't stick in the end and I had to eventually toss it), and I also changed the title.

"It will just be an experiment," I told myself. "It probably won't go anywhere in the publishing world anyway... and it's not like it has to either. But maybe, just maybe, I can use this old thing to improve my writing. And if I can do that, then maybe I really CAN get a publisher to look at me one day."

So I rewrote that story. And rewrote it. And rewrote it. All in all, it went through the rewriting process four times before I finally decided to try to send it out in August of 2010. I still didn't know if it was ready, but I'd felt at the time like I'd given it everything I had... how could I polish it any further? I'd been vigorously studying the writing and publishing world. I'd been reading every "writing how-to" book I could get my hands on. I'd studied the current market. I'd read and reread, and then studiously scoured through the words written by my favorite authors until my eyes were sore and I was exhausted from staying up too late. I loved every minute of it, and truly I knew I was still a baby in the world of creative writing, but I'd felt like I'd taken my little experiment as far as I could take it and it needed to be set free.

So I started querying. And of course I received a lot of rejections. So I started praying to, and I felt like God told me to submit SOTD to a new, independent publisher called Flaming Pen Press. It was so new, in fact, that it was just getting ready to release it's third book, Kestrel's Midnight Song, in September. However, I'd been following the publisher's blog, and researching them, and I'd been following the author of KMS as well... (Jacob Parker was actually the very first follower at the P&P, even before I knew he was another writer. :D) I learned that Mr. Appleton's book, Swords of the Six, had been picked up by AMG, which showed further promise in the company, and I decided to give it a try. I started by emailing Mr. Appleton a few questions about his company and manuscript submissions (I wanted to get it right, after all), and he was kind enough to answer my questions and give me a few tips as well. He even suggested that after I submitted my manuscript, I should start rewriting the book YET AGAIN, because usually publishers will want a revision to strengthen the book before they actually agree to publish it.

Well, at first I wasn't sure where to go with that advice. How could I rewrite it yet again? It was too painful to think about -- in fact, I truly thought it was useless to try for yet another revision. I was burned out on it, you see. But I figured I could at least get some feedback and see what other people thought. I went to the writing forums I'm a member of and starting posting some chapters there. Most of the answers were similar to each other: it was good writing - much better than my first draft - and often times they liked my descriptions and settings; I definitely had something good going, they said. But something was still missing, they told me, and it seemed like they couldn't quite figure out what it was. They encouraged me to keep writing though, told me they had faith in me. They really helped me not to get too discouraged with the book, but they also kept me humble... kept me striving for the best I had, kept me learning to be better.

The problem was that I couldn't figure out what was missing either.

Then another friend of mine asked me if I would like to do a beta-swap, and I agreed. I'd critiqued chapters before on the forums, and I figured it couldn't be much harder than that. And really, it wasn't, but that's not what made my this beta-swap so special. What made it special was the fact that my friend came back to me and told me what she thought was wrong with the story...

"It seems to jump from thought to thought," she said. "I like your character, but I think he needs more... character. More motive and more drive." (she didn't say those words exactly, but it was along those lines...)

And I, of course, being so burnt out on the story as I was, I had to ask her what she meant. We ended up having a long and very refreshing brainstorming session in which I decided to pick up the reigns of the dead horse yet again, and see if I couldn't get it rise up a just a little bit.

Surprisingly, I found that that "dead horse" wasn't dead at all. In fact, it was very much alive... it'd just been stuck for a while, as if it were trapped in some sort of time-warp. With the help of my friend, I'd found what was missing in that story and I was determined to fix it. I also found my inspiration. I started writing again - hard, and it wasn't long before I had two brand new chapters that were at least 50 times better than the old ones. I posted bits of it to the writing forums I am a part of, and (much to my surprise and gratitude) the new chapters were highly praised. At first I really couldn't really believe it, but after a couple months of working hard on the rewrite, I decided to pull out that old manuscript that I had subbed out and see if there was really that much of a difference.

There was. In comparison to my latest rewrite, that old "finished" draft looks about as primitive as my very first RD when I first pulled it out again in 2007.

Not only that, but I now knew what I needed to work on my other WIP, Eldrei, and I started rewriting that manuscript at once (the difference between the RD of that one and the rewrite is so IMMENSE, it's like the manuscript went from being a piece of rock to a shining butterfly overnight, even though it actually took much longer.)

Then I received the reply from the publisher I'd queried. And he liked it! Or rather, he liked the concept that I had in that old draft. He wasn't so sure about the writing though, and told me he was going to send me a revision request and perhaps a critique of the prologue and first chapter.

That's when I realized how much my friend had truly helped me. I told the publisher that I'd already started revising, and asked if he would like to view the first couple of chapters, and he said yes. I sent it to him, and his response was the most encouraging part of SOTD's progress of all; he liked it... very much. :D And he asked me to please resubmit when I finish the rewrite.

So that's what's brought my book, Song of the Daystar, to where it is now. It's been a very long and arduous journey, but it's been worth every step. I love writing more now than I ever did before. And best of all, what started out as a halfhearted experiment - a mere dabble in putting words coherently together - became a project that's very close to my heart. Slightly ironic, isn't it?

Since February, when I received the publisher's reply, Song of the Daystar has grown v.e.r.r.y. s.l.o.w.l.y. But it has grown, and every bit of new writing is gone over and over again to ensure that it is at it's very best. No more second-hand writing... I'm taking this whole thing to the next level. I now have more faith in my story than I've had in it since it's beginning. In fact, I believe it has every bit as much potential as my other WIP, Eldrei has (which is really saying a lot, coming from me. <_< )

So all in all, that's the story behind SOTD. Now you know. It's the proof that "awful" can become "excellent" when hard work, good writing friends, and solid critiques are involved. No one starts out great, but we all tend to think we do. (I don't say that to discourage anyone, but the proof is definitely in the pudding.) I hope my story encourages someone to take their writing to the next level. And then the next. And the next. It will seem like you are "reaching" forever, but if you never settle for "better" and always reach for your best, you will always improve. Then one day you'll look back and realize how far you've come, and you know what? By God's grace you'll still be humble, because you know that with Him on your side and you friends behind you, you can still do better yet.

Some Poems from my Life

2011-08-08T19:25:00.000-07:00

Hello bloggy friends. :) I've been in a rather random mood lately, and the result has been that I've not been updating as much as I would like to, mostly because I feel that a blog post probably should have something meaningful or purposeful in it. But today I've decided to take advantage of this random mood and do something I've been meaning to do for a couple months now, simply because I can: I've decided to post some random poetry that I've written throughout my life. Perhaps I'll make a series of this; who knows. :)

This first one was written when I was 17. This is actually a song. I thought it would make a good walking or traveling song. Perhaps I'll use it one day in my book sometime.)

Throw Me Out and Let Me Go

Throw me out upon the breezes

Let me fly, let me fly

Let me touch the rays of morning in the sky

Let me spread my wings and soar

Up in the sky forever more

Throw me out upon the breeze and let me go

Throw me up upon a horse and

Let me ride, let me ride

Let me take all my adventures in one stride

With a sword girthed at my waist

Let me hold a steady pace

Throw me up upon a horse and let me go

Throw me out unto the river

Let me sail, let me sail

May the breezes always hold a steady gale

To fill the canvas of my craft

And take me down the river’s track

Throw me out unto the river; let me go

Give me one last kiss for parting

Let me leave, let me leave

For if I could not go roaming I would grieve

Adventure’s calling in my wake

And my free heart it’s bound to take

So kiss me once but then I beg you, let me go.

***

This next one was again written when I was 17. It's the story of the Matchstick girl, for those of you who have at least heard of the story. It's rather sad though, but it's still one of my favorites. I seem to have had a thing for poetry at 17. :)

Ode to the Story of the Matchstick Girl

(young matchstick girl):

When winter’s cold surrounds me in the dark of night

And my eyes are closed to all the frosted stars

I feel not winter’s presence nor his frosted breath

For long gone is my mind and though it’s cold, I’m warm

For I see not the icy limbs of frozen trees

Nor ponds of glass, the water powdered with the snow,

But to the golden summers past. My eyes have turned

From fields of figured glass to glades of greening growth

I feel not the unseen hand of winter’s grip

Come stealthily through my clothes and grip my heart

For I am numb from cold, though warm with summers thought

And feel not when the soul and body part

(man walking by):

A lonely figure on the icy streets of town

A young girl rapped in rags with eyes now ever shut

Yet now she looks so happy in that frozen place

A gentle smile now permanently on her face

What thoughts she had in her last hour to make her smile

Now lie with her and never shall be known

They, her last comfort held upon the brink of death

Had etched a smile upon the lips turned blue with cold

Her innocence, now tattered shreds of memory past

Her lonely figure, peaceful but forlorn

She laid untended in the icy streets of town

For no one living knew, and no one mourned.

***

Well what do you know? A poem from when I was 16. :) That's the year I started writing Eldrei. lol! It's fun to look back.

News From the Four Winds

(Sunrise)

I’ve heard the four winds calling

Softly come they to my ears

And I’ve asked them for news

As I stay lonely standing here

What news from you, oh West Wind

As you travel far abroad?

What on your journeys have you learned

While racing sky unshod?

“I have seen the sun go setting

And the silver moon go down;

I’ve watched as all the rivers raced

Beside me on the ground

And I have seen no changes–

Only night and evening’s face.

In past live I beneath a sky

Of time and endless space”

Then will my head turn southward

And the South Wind will I ask!

What news from you, oh South Wind

Do you gather as you pass?

“I fear there’s nothing newer

Than what you before were told

The sky is getting dimmer

And dark shadows yet unfold

No news have I to tell you

O great deeds done in my way…”

Then I shall ask the North Wind

What he’s seen by light of day

Oh North Wind, Mighty North Wind

Tell me what it is you’ve seen.

The south and West have told me naught

With nothing new between.

“Well, I have seen stone fallen

And have watched trees grow old with age

But nothing new have I to tell

Though I be an ancient sage

But if it is the new you seek

Turn east then, my advice is

For she is young, the wind that way

Her news you’ll find suffices”

Oh East Wind, merry East Wind

North Wind says you hold the key

For news is what I’m seeking

And no old will do for me.

I’m searching for a story

What is it you have to tell?

And then I heard the East Wind

And her voice like silver fell.

“Oh I have news for singing

And not old is it, but new

For I have learned from West Wind

That no other kind will do.

So now this news I’ll show you:

It is better in display.

Look to the east, my friend,

And you will see the light of day!”

And so my eyes turned eastward

And no whisper could I find

To describe the lacey patterns

Of this intricate design.

Now stared my eyes in wonder

At the rose and golden hues

And I new that I had finally found

My little piece of news.

***

Another from when I was 16. I liked poems that discribed nature or that told stories about children playing. I was (and still am) especially fond of Robert Louis Stevenson's "A Child's Garden of Verses".

Dance of the Heavens

It is time the sun sets on the kingdom of earth;

See her silently fold down her bed,

Pulling back quilts made of grass laden sod

And then tucking them under her head.

As she pulls in the last golden locks of her hair

And her gown slips back under the hills,

The Moon and his daughters slip into the night

For a ball decked with silvery frills.

They wear gowns made of silver and silver hair bows

And their shoes are of silver as well,

And their father is dressed in his best silver suite

With glass buttons and one crystal bell.

The Moon has a fiddle all shiny and bright

That he plays with a crystal-glass bow

And he saws on the strings ‘til they all start to sing;

Now up high and now purring down low.

The Star Daughters curtsy and then they all twirl

In a dance for the heavens to see,

All their lights bright reflecting in each little pool

Quite completing the fantastic scene.

But just as the dancers’ excitement is full

And the dance gets more wild to behold,

The first wondrous rays of the morning break through

In the east, turning silver to gold

As the sun pulls her covers back off of her face

And shakes out the gold locks of her hair,

Spreading warmth and bright light over hilltops and trees

And renewing the chilled evening’s air.

The Stars start to fade and their dresses go dim

While the Moon hides away in the hills

Leaving all to the sun who is having much fun

Warming each child’s windowsill.

***

Last one for tonight. :) I like this one because I wrote it while I was thinking of the play times that my siblings and I had when we were younger. I was once again 17 when I wrote this one. It seems that since I've grown older, I've not written nearly as many poems. *sigh*

Bed Sheet Sails at Dinner Time

(Boy:)

O mama, mama where’s the sail?

It’s time to chart my route!

But now I found my bed is stripped:

No sheets to sail me out!

(Mother:)

I’m sorry Hun, the sail is gone;

It’d been through muck and mire

So I washed it with the laundry pile

And threw it in the dryer.

(Boy:)

Oh mama, mama where’s my ship?

It must have blown to sea!

The current caught it by the dock

And sailed it without me!

(Mother:)

Umm… Honey, try the kitchen;

I think you’ll find the answer there

For when I was making dinner, well…

I needed bad a chair.

(Boy:)

Oh mama, mama! I need food!

My ship is at the dock.

I need plenty of provisions,

My ship’s larder for to stock.

(Mother:)

Now I can help you there, my dear

When ere you’re surly able

Come sail that chair up to my dock;

Your dinners on the table!

And there you go. That's all for tonight; a small peak into my (slightly) younger years. Hope you enjoyed it. :D

Our Stories Live -- a review of “Story Engineering” written by Larry Brooks

2011-08-04T17:08:00.001-07:00

Recently I've been going through the book Story Engineering by Larry Brooks just to see if I agreed with what he had to say on the writing process. I received a free review copy of the book through Booksneeze.com, and at first I wasn't sure what I would think about it. However, it was a free writing "how-to" book and I am a big fan of writing how-to books. Seriously. If I see a book that's written on the process of writing or publishing that appeals to me, I usually save up to get it. I'm a HUGE fan of the Writers' Digest magazine, and just as HUGE a fan of the Writer's Digest Forums. I have a whole shelf dedicated to nothing but books about the writing process.

What I'm not a real big fan of is the thought that stories are engineered much the same as houses. (I read an article on that somewhere, and while it had a few good points, it just didn't feel quite right to me). You see, I'm one of those dedicated SOTP writers who throw in a little structure on the side just to make the story sparkle more. I follow my heart more than I follow my head (which can be both a good and bad thing). I'm artistic, which means I like to go with the flow of emotions that course through me as I'm writing, rather than write based on an outline… and what little structure I do have for my story is constantly changing.

With that in mind, the biggest problem I had was actually opening the book. I read through the introduction, and I wasn't that impressed. But, to be fair and completely honest, I think that's because I really REALLY didn't want my idea of the creative writing process to change. I HAD structure… just not the structure that I thought the book might refer to. I mean, come on! Its title includes the word "Engineering" which makes me think of building houses and working with giant machinery at CAT. I've never wanted to do that; I certainly don't want to apply something that makes me think of THAT to my story.

But you see, thinking that was my first mistake. I kept reading the book – oh yes, I kept reading – and I discovered that my idea of where the book would take me was WAY off the mark. And I first realized that at the bottom of the first page of chapter 2.

At the bottom of the first page of chapter 2 there is a header in bold print that reads "A Story Viewed as a Living, Breathing Thing", and right after that Mr. Brooks says this:

A story has many moods. It has good days and bad days. It must be nurtured and cared for lest it deteriorate. And it has a personality and an essence that defines how it is perceived. Just like human beings. In fact, comparing a well-told story to a healthy human being becomes and effective analogy to better understand the interdependency of the parts and the delicate balance of chemistry and biomechanics that allow the body – and the story – to move, to thrive, and to grow.

Reading that statement, I suddenly realized that Mr. Brooks' idea of the story is much the same as mine. I totally think of my story as a living, breathing thing. I talk to my characters and, as crazy as this might sound to normal people, they talk back to me. (Yes indeed, I hear voices in my head. ;D) Sometimes I even fight with my characters… and my whole story for that matter. In fact, it can remind me of a little child or a rebellious teenager at times; it decides that it wants to do something and it throws a fit. Sometimes I can reign it in and make it listen to me, trying to convince it that my idea of where it should go is much better for it than where it wants to go. However, sometimes it runs away and then I have to chase it down. It has its own likes and dislikes, and its own ideas of what should happen next, and many times it's all I can do to hold on for dear life and ride out the craziness that follows.

Yes, Mr. Brooks: I agree with you. My story is totally alive. No, no! Don't pet it! It has sharp teeth and it likes to bite… <_<

Reading further, I was introduced to questions that really made me think over some of my writing life, like "What makes me a writer?" and "How do you know when your idea is capital?" and so forth and so on. Writers ask themselves these types of questions anyway, but this book also gives you possible answers and it helps you answer for yourself as well.

One of my favorite parts of the book was where Mr. Brooks talks about Showing and not Telling. He says this:

We must SEE and FEEL him (the character) bettering his weaker self, rather than simply reading the news of it, or having it spring from no logical, discernable source. He can't just wake one day and suddenly GET IT. (This is where some paranormal stories fall flat – the hero learns via a sixth sense or a random realization from something bigger than himself, rather than from the pain and consequence of experience.)

Yes, yes, yes, and YES. So very true. This is something that I've had to work on in the past: every action has a consequence, weather that consequence is good or bad. Things don't just happen because they happen. There is a reason for everything, and there always has been. It's like a chain reaction: something happens that makes something else happen that makes something else happen and so on and so forth. But the thing is that readers don't want to just hear what happened and how it came about… they want to FEEL it, to SEE it, to SMELL it (if possible). They want to be right there LIVING it. It's not always easy to know why something happens in a story and what the consequence is for the action, but as writers we must, MUST make sure that we have reason in everything we write. It CANNOT just be there. It must have purpose.

There was one thing about this book that I ended up not liking, and that was that SOTP writing seemed to be looked down upon for the most part. (Notice I said "seemed to"… I could be wrong, but I don't think I am.) The book centers around working with what is called "The Six Core Competencies" which is explained throughout, and it is very true that each Core Competency talked about is absolutely essential when it comes to good story writing. And yes, even SOTP writers must take such essential elements and apply them to their books at some point in time. However, what made me frown (and here it comes…) was the fact that just "winging it" and "writing intuitively" was not really encouraged, mainly because, as Mr. Brooks states on page 18:

It all seems easy when she (the writer) was reading her favorite novels of her favorite authors. Authors that demonstrate no more linguistic dexterity than she does. This is a writer who is winging it, writing intuitively, and after that first two-hundred pages she faces one of two challenges – she realizes that her story is broken and that she needs to start over, or at least revamp it; or she does not realize the sad state of things and presses on with a story that is already doomed.

This statement leads into Mr. Brooks' reasoning for why the Six Core Competencies are so important and how they can improve writing – all relevant points, I might add. And after all, that's only one statement in the entire book; how can it be that bad?

But did you see that? Did you see what he did right there? Without even a second glance he downplayed SOTP writing at its heart. SOTP writers absolutely "wing it", as he said. We write intuitively because we write with our emotions. We don't build our stories like one would build a house; not quite, anyways. "Angles" and "nails" and "boards" and "dry wall" aren't really the most important elements to us. In fact, SOTP writers are more like painters than they are builders. We have "structure" but it's not the kind of structure used when one outlines every move, or like when one is drawing out blueprints for a building. We like to throw in random colors at times, add a little pazzaz, a little texture… we insert some emotion and include some heart. Sometimes we smear mud in places, or slap on some red paint to draw the reader's eyes.

Perhaps Mr. Brooks was referring to brand new writers who haven't really gotten serious yet and/or who haven't studied any parts of the writing process at all.

Yeah… maybe that's what he was talking about. (Maybe…) And if that's the case then I guess I can understand him; I mean, I used to be one of those writers at the very beginning. (I don't even like to think about it, if you really want to know).

The thing is that I'm not like that anymore and I STILL write SOTP. I still "wing it". I am still willing to jump off a cliff (so to speak) without so much as a bungee cord and dive into the writing process without really knowing what's going to happen next. And the thing is, I DO know about the essentials of writing and I DO work to apply them as I write.

And then what about some of my favorite authors who have written SOTP and have become world renown? What about Tolkien and Louis? What about Bryan Davis, who has said outright that he's an SOTP writer all the way? What about Wayne Thomas Batson? What about hundreds if not thousands of other writers out there who have claimed to write SOTP works and who have been successful at it? All of them "wing it" to some degree. All of them "write intuitively" and at least most of them have been successful

My point is that both builders and painters are artists, but their art and their process of creating that art are so different that they can't be compared to each other by any fair measure. And neither can outlining be compared to SOTP writing like that. Yes, SOTP writers do need some structure in their stories; yes, I absolutely agree that the six core competencies should be included in an SOTP work – the essential elements of writing should be studied by all writers no matter what they write, how they write, how long they've been writing, or who they write for; yes, I think that writers of all kinds should read this book – trust me, it's good for you, even though I don't agree with some of it. But in the end, the process of how someone goes about writing something is totally up to the author of that work and should not be frowned upon simply because it's different than they way some other writers work.

To conclude, Larry Brooks presents good ideas and some rather good comparisons in this writing how-to book. He knows what he's talking about, that's for sure, and he applies it well. His lessons are solid and definitely worth using. Even after my little rant, I just have to give this book a 5 out of 5 stars. No matter how we go about the writing process, our stories end up living – to us, if not to others. What we want to do is have them "live" in the eyes of other people as well, and this book can help us get there. It breaks it all down in small, chewable bites and feeds us the info one small bit at a time. In fact, (and I don't say this lightly) I would pair this book with Jeff Gerke's The Art and Craft of Writing Christian Fiction. Both are essential for a writer's library. I'm absolutely certain that I will continue to study the content of this book long into the future.

However, for those of you out there who write more like I do, take his advice with a small grain of salt. The preference to the actual process of writing is ultimately
up to the author (as I'm sure you all know). No one, no matter who they are, can say that one style is better than another; such statements are only opinion, not fact. It is absolutely possible to apply these elements of writing to the SOTP process; if you are going to change your mind, change it for your own reasons and not just because someone else says you should or doesn't agree with your writing process.

(I received a copy of this book for free from Booksneeze.com. I was not required to give a positive review.)

Nichole

Updates, updates, updates... :D and My Portfolio

2011-07-27T14:41:00.000-07:00

This isn't going to be a very long post, so there's no need to go and get all comfortable unless you want to. Recently I've felt the need to update The Pen and Parchment yet again. So I've been adding pages. I finally got my entire Art Portfolio downloaded to the site (check it out at the top of my blog. :D), and I'm thinking about changing the look once more. I also want to add a poetry page and a page that explains my art commission rates. Just thinks to look for in the future.

It must be a sign of change you know, this sudden need to update things. Update my profile pic on FB, update my blog, update my book... and school's coming up in another month: I'll be a writing consultant and the secretary of the choirs. I'll be meeting Brock Eastman and working more on SOTD while learning Music and Writing theory and singing my head off. And I bet you I'll love every minute of it. :) This next semester promises not to be as difficult as last semester (so far), so I'm actually looking forward to it. And in the meantime, I'm enjoying my time off. Recently I've simply been doing... nothing. *sighs blissfully* Nothing much, anyway.

So that's all for now my friends. Sorry this post is just rambling, but I felt the need to ramble and update.

See ya later!

Nichole

Critiquing or Consulting? Interesting thoughts on what I’m learning about inserting your own opinions

2011-07-26T18:45:00.000-07:00

Well, today I had Writing Consultant training and we were learning about how to approach foreign exchange students who bring in papers but may not know the English Language very well.

Ok, for starters, I can totally sympathize with such students. I had to take German the last two semesters and it near drove me insane! I love the language… I would LOVE to be immersed in it so that I can learn to speak if fluently… but the written grammar is so tricky to my English-wired brain. I just can’t seem to wrap my mind around it.

Anyway, getting back to my point (which actually doesn’t have much to do with the fact that we have foreign exchange students at my school… O.O)

As part of our training, we received some hand-outs that talked us through the approach we should take, and that also explained a few terms to us. One of the terms commonly used in our writing lab is “Facilitative questioning”. It was as I was reading through the hand-out that I got the idea for this blog post concerning personal opinions when trying to help another person improve their writing.

Now, I’m a writer who has rather tough skin. I really LIKE it when people critique my work with a close eye and a hard pen. Mark my stuff up, for goodness sake! Let me know exactly what you are thinking! Don’t “flame” me, but give me an honest and solid critique. I am very, very open to it. I encourage it. I want to know exactly how the readers will respond to my writing, and if I feel that the response is not quite what I want, then I will keep tweaking until it becomes what I’m looking for. I know what I’m going for, and I take suggestions accordingly. I ask for the hard stuff: I can take the punches so GIVE ‘EM TO ME. J

As a creative writer, I often go to critique forums and beta readers to get feedback on my work, and before I post an excerpt of any kind, I try to make sure it is “reader worthy”, meaning that the writing is as far as I can take it by myself. I get the work as tight as I can manage on my own, and then I ask for help, preparing myself for the knocks I’m bound to receive in the end. This is what I expect in a critique, and often times, this is what I dish out.

However, the first thing I learned when I started taking this class is that critiquing is rather different than consulting. Consulting helps a writer improve their general, over all writing abilities and grow as a writer who understand the process, while critiquing helps the writer identify problems that may or may not need to be fixed within the physical body of the text.

When I’m working with one of my personal writing buddies, beta readers, or people who I beta for - online or in person - I often give them a critique that might have a little bit of consulting mixed in there somewhere.

However, at school, I am 100% a writing Consultant. I don’t actually critique anything outright, but I do try to help the writer identify for themselves the problems that I can detect within their writings. As a consultant, I must first identify these problems for myself, and then subtly tell the writer what I feel might be wrong, and then help the writer discover for his or herself how to fix the problems without actually doing any fixing myself.

Many times, I’m told, the people who come into the writing lab are very sensitive about their works and about accepting advice. They don’t want to feel like any of the content came from someone else, even if it was only a suggestion. However, they DO want the consultant to teach them how to do their papers right. Rather counterproductive, don’t you think?

This is where it gets really tough for me. You see, as a creative writer who is on many critique forums, I’m used to going in and just showing other writers what I think might be wrong. All along I know that my suggestions are just glorified educated opinions, but the other writers on the forums – usually experienced writers who have been doing such things for many years – also know this and they accept my suggestions for what they are… simply suggestion that can be taken with a grain of salt. However, as a consultant at my school, I’m not allowed to teach or make outright suggestions or give solid opinions… Instead, I must let the writer come to their own opinions and conclusions about the problems I have identified. I can suggest certain actions, but never actually say outright what I think the writer should do to fix the problem. Basically, I’m supposed to let the writer learn for themselves while very, very gently nudging them in the right direction.

And that brings me right back to Facilitative Questioning.

As a consultant, I am only allowed to ask Facilitative questions which are questions that avoid telling the writer what to do, and instead leads the writer through the process of identifying and revising their paper according to the Higher Order Concerns (or HOCs) such as plot, thesis, organization, detail, research, and characterization that need to be addressed in their writing. (Though some people come in asking for help with “grammar”, the consultants at the writing lab have learned that “grammar” can have multiple meanings to multiple people, so we never actually address any real grammar, such as punctuation, spelling, and sentence structure, until the HOC’s are taken care of. We are not allowed to proofread in the writing lab, as I sometimes do for my online writing friends that I beta for.)

An example of a Facilitative Question might look something like this:

“I noticed that this is a complex assignment… can you show and explain to me where in this paper you have completed an assignment guideline?”

Or

“Why did you choose to organize this paper this way?”

“How have you supported your claim?”

These questions prompt the writer to tell you what they have planned for the paper, and they also give the writer a chance to see and identify some of the HOCs in their paper for themselves. However, these questions can also be frustrating. Because, in all honesty the writer sometimes feels like the consultant isn’t really trying to help them at all, but rather is asking them a bunch of silly questions. Some writers don’t want to be asked these questions… some writers want to be told how to fix the problem, and I’m not allowed to do that. :P

If I were asking Directive Questions, I would be doing exactly that. Directive questions look sort of like this:

“Don’t you think that sentence is vague?”

and

“Did you mean (insert assumption) by that statement?”

Directive questions insert my own opinion into the question so that the reader picks up on what I’m thinking about certain elements of the text. As a creative writing critique partner, such questions can be a good thing and they help the other writer see their writings from a different perspective, but as a consultant I am not allowed to insert my opinion and so I must avoid questions like the ones above.

I am allowed to give Opinions, but only subtly and always referring to myself as a reader and not as anther writer. For instance, “As a reader I felt that perhaps you could be a little more specific when you mention (so and so). What was your purpose of referring to that person?”

Notice how my so called “opinion” is phrased similar to a facilitative question. ;)

Well, that’s all I have for now. I’ll probably come back to the subject at a later date, but I just thought some of you might find this method of giving out writing advice a bit interesting. I, personally, find it both extremely intriguing and extremely frustrating, but perhaps that’s only because I must apply it. J

What are your thoughts on the matter?

Andrew Peterson in the Peoria IL Area

2011-07-22T14:17:00.000-07:00

Well hello again. :) I don't usually double post in a day, but I have some exciting news.

Andrew Peterson, Christian recording artist and author of the Wingfeather Saga (On the Edge of the Dark Sea of Darkness, North! Or Be Eaten, and The Monster in the Hollows) is coming to Central IL this Sunday Evening. So if any of you will be in the Peoria area, the concert will be held at Springfield Road Baptist Church, and it starts at 5:30pm.

But that's not the best part, friends!!

The best part is that my church's worship team is opening the night, AND I WILL BE SINGING WITH THEM!!! ^_^ *dances around in happiness and awe* Yep, I'm totally stoked. First meeting Andrew Peterson this Sunday, and then a book signing by Brock Eastman in August, all within 45 minutes of my house and all within biking distance of my church. :) God is so amazing, I'm just in total awe of how he works!!

Actually, it's really interesting because I started reading "North! Or Be Eaten" about a month ago when a friend lent me her copy of the book. I'd heard of the series, but I couldn't find it in bookstores (for some weird reason) and I'm still a little wary of buying things off the internet. Of course I love the song "Dancing in the Minefields" that plays on my local Christian Radio station, but I honestly didn't know that the author and the recording artist were the same person until two weeks ago. Then I downloaded a CD, and fell in love with it (I've been singing the songs from it all week).

The fact that Mr. Peterson has done and been all of these things is totally inspiring for me for several reasons. One -- I am a christian fantasy writer who wants to touch people with my books, and Two -- I am also a singer/songwriter looking to someday record my art. Music and writing go hand in hand for me: I can't have one without the other, and I can't choose between them. I'm studying for degrees in both Music and English because I can't separate my love for both arts; they've just melded together and refuse to be parted. Some people have told me I should do one or the other, but now I know that I'm truly not alone; there are others out there who have done both and been successful, so why can't I pursuit all three of my "loves" (Music/singing/songwriting, Creative writing/English, and Painting/Drawing) and be successful at all of them? Seriously, why not?

Then I find out that Mr. Peterson is coming to Peoria for a concert, and then the worship leader at my church tells me that he wants me to sing with the church band this Sunday evening to open that self same concert.

I'm telling you, GOD IS SO AMAZING. :) See how He works? See how awesome He is? He knows the desires of our hearts; He wants to tell us how much he loves us... and He does it in ways we never saw coming!

I can't wait until Sunday evening!!!!