COVER REVEAL: ALMOST MAGIC by Kathleen Bullock

Today, we’d like to introduce you to ALMOST MAGIC by Kathleen Bullock.

Book Blurb:

Ever since she turned twelve, Apple Bramblewood’s life has been plagued by visits from weird creatures. It seems she is a rare Attractor, a Wizard whose sole talent is solving the clamorous demands of very odd beings, usually in the most unorthodox, haphazard, and klutzy ways. Apple doesn’t want to be an Attractor; her most passionate goal is to attend the ordinary middle school with ordinary kids where her perfect older sister, Cornelia, is allowed to go. Her parents have no doubts about Cornelia’s magical prowess, but Apple seems destined to be home-schooled forever.

Author Bio:

In addition to Almost Magic, Kathleen Bullock is the author of Far Corners (Time Travel/ Historic) and The End of Dominion (MG/YA Fantasy). She is the author-illustrator of ten picture books for children (Simon & Schuster and other publishers), a winner of the ABA Before Columbus Award for Illustration, and a first place winner in the 2011 Surrey International Writing Contest. She works as a free-lance author/illustrator for Guardian Angel Books and magazine and for Incentive Publications (now owned by World Book, Inc.) illustrating over one hundred educational books and programs. Kathleen lives with her boisterous, extended family in beautiful Southern Oregon.

Title: Almost Magic

Author: Kathleen Bullock

Publisher: Spencer Hill Press Midgrade (www.spencerhillmiddlegrade.com)

ISBN 978-1-939392-11-4 Paperback

ISBN 978-1-939392-12-1 Ebook

Release Date: May 2015

Formats: Paper, e-book

If you’d like to request an ARC, please use the reviewer form on our website.

http://spencerhillmiddlegrade.com/for-reviewers/.

Self-awareness and character building

Do you get the feeling that you know your characters a bit too well? Know her past with accuracy. Understand her feelings intuitively. Vouch for her actions 100%?

Are you sure your character is not you?

When I started working on my current WIP a few years ago a lot of my MC was me. She was timid, shy, lost, passive-aggressive and had mommy issues. My critique group gave me pointers about character development and ideas on how to build character consistency. I took notes. A very wise writer told me how it was difficult for me to see the character inconsistencies since so much of me was wrapped in my MC. Dutifully, I wrote that sentence down, too.

You see, I had no idea that a big part of me was my MC! It took me several months to realize that. And when I did, it struck me as doubly strange that someone I knew as well as myself came out so inconsistent on the page.

We all write a bit of ourselves in each of our characters. Memories, personal ticks, family occasions are all fair game. But I had done something more. I had drawn a caricature of myself and conveniently called it my main character. What I needed to do was take myself out of my MC with precision and build a character that was more truthful to my story, not necessarily one that came to me more easily.

Of course, before doing this I had to research the phenomena. What good writer wouldn’t! When I read up on it, author interviews touched on this topic. Most authors either embrace the concept that the central character is semi-autobiographical version of themselves or completely disassociate themselves from their MCs. It was a recurring theme, which made me feel less alone dealing with the issue while at the same time forced me to confront the amount of work needed to be done to build a character who was true to my story.

So, 1), I journal-ed more from my character’s point of view. I gave her scenarios to see how she would react. I’d get up in the morning and make notes about the weather from her POV; I’d spend a few minutes at the end of the day summing it up from POV.

On other days, I’d write my own journal to build my own self-awareness. To see what my reactions were like. To understand my own POV. To look at my writing style to see how it was different from my MC’s.

2) Then, I asked myself what was the problem my MC was trying to solve. What was the reason for her journey? While this was easy to answer, I had to look hard and deep inside myself to see if this was something I was struggling with as well. Whether my MC and I were looking to solve the same thing or had different issues just being aware of the similarities/differences was enough to build a more truthful character.  

A lot of my character inconsistencies came about because I needed to be more aware of myself and understand myself better. When this happened, I got better insight into my MC and what her journey was.

Self-awareness is key when writing a story and building a character. We tend to focus so much on the MC, our plot and our story that we tend to forget about the person who is actually creating the world. A bit of self-awareness goes a long way.

What do you think? How have you created your characters? How much of you is in your characters? 

COVER REVEAL: Darby Karchut's GIDEON'S SPEAR

GIDEON'S SPEAR

The sequel to FINN FINNEGAN

By Darby Karchut

 

Gideon’s Spear

(The Adventures of Finn MacCullen #2)

 

For Finn MacCullen, it’s time to Irish up.

 

With a shout, Finn held the spear aloft. “Come along, ye manky beasties,” he yelled, throwing every bit of Gideon-ness he could into his voice. “I’ve a wee point to share with ye!” Gripping the end of the shaft in both hands, he swung it around and around over his head, creating a whistling sound. “Faugh a ballagh!”

“The Spear!” Goblin voices screeched in panic. “The Spear of the Tuatha De Danaan!”

“Yeah, you got that right!” Finn yelled back.

When a power-crazed sorceress and the neighborhood pack of beast-like goblins team up and threaten both his master and his friends, thirteen-year-old Finn (not Finnegan) MacCullen does the only thing an apprentice monster hunter can do: he takes the fight to the enemy.

And woe to the foe he meets along the way.

 

Praise

for

Finn Finnegan

(Book One of The Adventures of Finn MacCullen)

 

“Overall, a great choice for adventure-loving readers who prefer their battle scenes with a hefty dose of ancient weaponry, ground-fighting skills, and just a touch of magic." --School Library Journal

 

"If Lloyd Alexander had written The Ranger's Apprentice, the result might have been something like Finn Finnegan. Fantastic!" --Mike Mullin, author of Ashfall and Ashen Winter

 

 

"Finn Finnegan brings classic adventure into a modern day setting for a great read.”

--Dee Garretson, author of Wildfire Run and Wolf Storm

 

Title: Gideon's Spear (The sequel to Finn Finnegan)

Author: Darby Karchut

Publisher: Spencer Hill Press

ISBN:  978-1-937053-94-9

Release Date: 2/4/2014

Formats: Paper, e-book

Goodreads TBR: http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/18046728-gideon-s-spear

 

If you'd like to request an ARC, please use the reviewer form on our website. ARCs will ship in January 2014.

Authors and the Books that Take You Places!

Cynthia Willis is the author of the Middle Grade novel, Buck Fever, published by Feiwel and Friends. Welcome Cynthia! We here at TheWritersbytheshore blog believe in BIC (butt in chair), but we also think that writing (and life) should take us and our readers to fun destinations. So here we go...

Tell us a little about your book. Will we need our passports?

In Buck Fever, Joey MacTagert’s dad wants his son to carry on the family tradition of hunting and use this special skill in tracking animals to hunt down the elusive big buck that roams the local woods. But Joey hates the idea of killing animals. He is more interested in art and hockey, two activities that his dad barely acknowledges. Yes, Joey knows how to track down Old Buck and has even gained the deer’s trust, but he’s kept this secret. However, when Joey and his older sister find themselves in the middle of tensions that they don’t understand, Joey tries to conquer his buck fever to keep the peace in his family and make his dad proud. Since this story takes place in Pennsylvania, no passport is needed here, either.

Wow! Sounds great. So, if I was going to have dinner with your main character, what exotic locale would we be dining at?

If you were to have dinner with Joey, from Buck Fever, you would probably be eating beef jerky and jelly beans, or pizza. Unfortunately, things are a bit unorganized and out of balance in Joey’s home, which explains how he gets tangled in so much trouble.

Who is the character you would vote as "Most likely not to make it through customs" and why?

Sam Hector, the villain in Buck Fever, would probably end up arrested if he tried to get through customs. In addition to his aggressive and argumentative personality, he is usually carrying pocket knives and other items considered dangerous.

 

If your main character was stranded on a desert island, what would be an essential travel item for them to take along?

Cub would need fresh water. They are both survivors and accustomed to outdoor living, but fresh water is tough to come by on a desert island. And as an author who adores her main characters, I’d be worried sick if either of them ended up stranded without fresh drinking water.

 

What advice would you offer to other writers embarking on their own writing adventure?

Pack lots of books to read along the way, don’t let the delays and the travel snags keep you from your destination, and enjoy the ride.

Thanks, Cynthia and Bon Voyage!

Toni De Palma

http://www.tonidepalma.com/

The Fearless Ones

  

I've wanted to blog for the past three years and every time I started the 'what ifs' got me. Followed by a bout of the 'crazies.' So whenever the idea lit up in my head I doused it with a super-efficient water hose.

Yup, I was afraid. Yup, I was a scaredy cat. Yup, I let my fear talk me out of writing in the public domain for years. I would see friends, acquaintances, classmates and workmates set up blogs, create conversations and post away. The fearless ones. That's what I called them.

A few years ago, I started working on my current story. My WIP's MC, Priscilla Mayfair, is a determined twelve year old who is facing all kinds of trouble. In my first draft, she surmounted every obstacle, figured out every clue and solved the causes of her problems. She was my ideal heroine. By the second draft I'd made her a little less perfect. She couldn't solve the mystery on her own and needed help from her friends.  Still, as I worked with my critique group on rewrites I could feel there was something missing. Even when Priscilla was facing a dark dead end she wasn’t afraid. I needed her to reach inside her as much as she was reaching outside herself to become who she was and solve the clues of the mystery.

So I weaved in the threads to make Priscilla three dimensional. Now, Priscilla was not only overcoming obstacles, she was also working her way through her fears and fighting her own uncertainties. Acknowledging and accepting her fears had made Priscilla a richer and more real character. She’d become one of the fearless.

My MC had taught me something about the world. (Isn’t it usually the other way round?) Being brave isn’t about not being afraid. It’s about being afraid and doing it any way. It’s about being a scaredy cat and fighting your way out of fear paralysis and doing what you want to do. So this time round when my friends suggested a blog I said yes! Yup, I was still afraid but this time I wasn't going to allow fear to stop me from doing what I wanted.

Hello world of writers! I’m so happy to be blogging with the fearless writers at the shore Toni, Kimmy and Heather and look forward to good conversations and making friends