The Sisters Blog Tour

Book Infatuation

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Cremona            

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deal sharing aunt

All Booked Out

Living in a Bookworld

The Sisters Synopsis:

Gabrielle, the Angel of Karma, isn’t happy about a lot of things that have happened since she came to Earth to learn more about humans. She’s especially not happy that the Book of Barabbadon has fallen into her enemy’s hands, that demons are becoming significantly more powerful, and because of the dark changes in Lucas since the attack on him. And her anger is beginning to show.

Her superior and her brethren—even Lucas—thought she was handling everything pretty well until they learn she wants to go after a human trafficker so she can see him face karma. It’s something she does only when compelled to do so because of a human’s particularly good, or, in this case, heinous acts. But their concerns aren’t from her desire to be more involved with her duties, or even because of the human she wants to see reap what he’s sown with her own eyes. It’s because of whom she wants to use to carry out what she has in mind—a trio of demons called the Sisters. They possess troubling powers, thought to still be strengthening, and were locked away by Gabrielle many years ago. Gabrielle, and those who care for her, know the Sisters are more than a little dangerous even for the Angel of Karma—they also know the Sisters will be looking for vengeance of their own.

Teal Haviland Bio:

Teal Haviland lives in Tennessee with her daughter and her four-legged friends. She enjoys photography, travel, reading, music, cooking, daydreaming, writing (of course), and above all spending time with her family and friends.

Teal grew up with a love for anything fantastical or outrageous. After years of dreaming of worlds where fairies, angels, demons, and shape shifters (to name a few) exist, she finally decided to begin writing her stories down. Inception, book one in her series The Reaping Chronicles, is her first published novel.

Links:

Goodreads author page ~ http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/6548857.Teal_Haviland

Goodreads The Reaping Chronicles ~ Inception page ~http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/16067691-inception

Facebook author page ~ https://www.facebook.com/authortealhaviland

Facebook The Reaping Chronicles page ~ https://www.facebook.com/thereapingchronicles

Twitter ~ https://twitter.com/tealhaviland

Author website ~ http://www.tealhaviland.com/

Fairytales Can Come True: with a lot of help and hard work!

 My daughter got married last week. It was a joyous occasion with family and friends. I'm still catching up on my sleep, resting my back, and putting away wedding stuff while basking in the happiness of it all, and I wanted to share a few pictures with you.

I was amazed at how many people helped us out with decorating, invitations, food, setting, photography, cleaning up, etc. We couldn't have done it all without them. I was a basket case by the end and couldn't make a decision if my life depended on it, but it was wonderful to see it all come together. So many people said how lovely it was. My daughter wanted a woodland fairytale wedding and said it was all she'd dreamed of, so the hard work paid off in the end!

For the last several months, planning the wedding has taken up most of my spare time, but I've been revising a little in between. Tonight I meet with my critique group to find out how my revisions went on the first hundred pages of my WIP (A modern day Beauty and the Beast tale). Hopefully it's much improved and all my hard work on the revisions and all the help and critiques will pay off as well!

Improving Character, Plot, and Setting

I'm excited about how the rewrites on my WIP are going. I've been able to work through some of the major issues of my manuscript which included:

Character: I figured out what my main character's motivation was and made it clearer. I've made my character more proactive. Instead of accidentally stumbling upon clues, she goes looking for them. Her actions not only bring her closer to her goal, but also cause more problems and opposition from others along the way.






Plot: I've fixed some of the pacing problems by cutting less important scenes down and expanding more important ones with greater detail, dialog, introspection, action, and conflict. I've given each scene one or more specific purposes: character development, plot advancement, setting the scene, building suspense, etc. . .


Setting: I chose a specific location for my story and did research on the area to make the setting more authentic, realistic, and detailed. I incorporated local legends into the story, and I'm using actual businesses: restaurants, stores, etc. in my scenes. Since at times I find narrowing things down to be limiting and not conducive to my plot, I've left the wilderness area in my story vague so I can have more freedom with the setting.

What are some things you've done to improve character, plot/pacing, and setting in your novels?

Rekindling the Writing Spark

I haven't blogged for a month. Sorry to all three of you who regularly read my blogposts! I was in a slump after coming close to publishing a novel (as in doing rewrites for an editor, sending the story back in, and never hearing back) and took a break from writing for a few months. I've still been reading and doing research and thinking about it, but I lost some of my enthusiasm after 11 years of regular writing with several bites from editors but no acceptances.

I researched agents, had my WIP critiqued with fresh readers who pointed out the major problems (and, oh boy, were they some major problems! Like character and plot and pacing), have been going through a workbook on plotting and re-plotting my story, and now I'm rewriting and breathing new life into my novel and am excited about writing again.

Here's a recap of the things that rekindled my writing spark:

Leaving my novels alone for a month or so: I set it aside. Refused to look at it or do any editing or revisions.

Researching: I researched agents and aspects of my novel, such as the setting, more in depth.

Plotting: I wrote down the major plot points and problems my character faces in the novel, figured out what her main objective was, and what the core or thesis of my novel was. I also wrote a one sentence pitch summing up the gist of my novel.

Doing character sketches: I answered questions about each character such as motivations, hobbies, interests, where they were from, profession, fears, personality quirks, weaknesses, accomplishments, prize possessions, etc. I made a time line of major events for each character throughout the novel. Since I'm very visual I made a collage of pictures representing my main character's personality, which helped me see her more clearly. I made a family tree for each of my characters and wrote about their family dynamics. And I wrote dialogue for two of my characters having a heated discussion. This helped me get to know my characters better.

What have you done when you've needed a kickstart for your writing and gotten you going again?

Guest post by Cas Peace: What's in a Theme

I'm excited to share this guest post by Cas Peace, author of King's Envoy and King's Champion, on themes in novels. Enjoy!

WHAT’S IN A THEME?

It wasn’t until long after I had finished writing my triple-trilogy Artesans of Albia fantasy series that I realized there were several themes running throughout the novels. I didn’t set out to deliberately explore these topics – they appeared naturally as part of each character’s life. I guess there are themes in every fiction novel, otherwise there would be no plot, but I confess that mine snuck up on me.

Having realized this, and then taken a good look at my writing with the aim of spotting them, it became clear that the main subjects were personal development, humility, and the potential consequences of personal power.

At the start of Book One, King’s Envoy, Taran Elijah is a despondent and desperate man, struggling with a deep, yet unfulfilled desire to learn the control of his power. Taran’s yearning has been frustrated by the death of his mentor (who also happened to be his father), and the fact that the Artesan power is in serious decline in the realm of Albia.

The concept of “what lengths might a person go to in order to achieve their potential” had been on my mind for many years, planted by a seemingly-insignificant scene from a 70s children’s TV show. Little did I realize then that it would be the catalyst that kick-started my entire Artesan series. Only now was I discovering just how fundamental to the series this question had become.

Although Taran is not the central character, the story follows him through several stages of his life. By the end of Book Three, King’s Artesan, he has made significant progress. In many ways he alters beyond all comprehension, yet in one major factor his nature remains unchanged. I didn’t plan this, and it fascinates me. With no conscious help from me, Taran took control of his destiny and his nature developed at its own pace.

He is also not the only character to have his mettle exposed and tested to the extreme. Humility in power is another strong premise running throughout the series, and two other characters demonstrate completely different sides to this fundamental topic. As I don’t want to give too much away, you’ll just have to read the books to find out who they are and what effect this conflict has on the plot!

Give away: http://www.rafflecopter.com/rafl/display/e2f8dd3

Author website: http://www.caspeace.com/

Amazon Author Profile: http://www.amazon.com/Cas-Peace/e/B0098KMASI

Book Links:

Artesans of Albia, Book One, King’s Envoy: http://www.amazon.com/Kings-Envoy-Artesans-Cas-Peace/dp/1936850133/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1376639999&sr=1-1&keywords=kings+envoy+cas+peace

Artesans of Albia, Book Two, King’s Champion: http://www.amazon.com/Kings-Champion-Artesans-Albia-ebook/dp/B008OPADEQ/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1376640074&sr=1-1&keywords=kings+champion+cas+peace

Artesans of Albia, Book Three, King’s Artesan: http://www.amazon.com/Kings-Artesan-Artesans-Albia-Book/dp/1936850222/ref=sr_1_fkmr0_3?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1376640111&sr=1-3-fkmr0&keywords=kings+artisan+cas+peace

For the Love of Daisy: http://www.amazon.com/Love-Daisy-Cas-Peace/dp/0955488982/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1376640296&sr=1-1&keywords=for+the+love+of+daisy+cas+peace

Cas Peace

Author of the fantasy novels

King's Envoy and

King's Champion

and the non-fiction book

For the Love of Daisy

www.caspeace.com

www.rhemalda.com

http://rhemalda.com/authors/p/cas-peace-2/

Watch the King's Envoy book trailer:

http://rhemalda.com/2011/04/kings-envoy-book-trailer/

Find me on Facebook:

http://www.facebook.com/?ref=home#!/cas.peace

Dawn of the Apocolypse Book Blitz

Dawn of the Apocalypse

by E.S.P. 

Release Date: 08/09/13

Summary from Goodreads:

January 1, 2000.
May 21, 2011.
December 21, 2012

These are just a few of the days humans prophesied as bringing catastrophic events that would end the world. We predicted nuclear warfare. Drastic climate change. A call from God.

We were wrong.

Cue the gargoyle invasion—laboratory bred mutants designed to slaughter humans. When the government goes AWOL and gargoyles are swarming by the hundreds, it's up to the citizens of the United States to regroup and save themselves.

Meet Cliff Matthews, a teenage boy separated from his entire family with the exception of his younger sister, whom he is desperate to keep alive. Along the quest to save their lives, he encounters people who aren't all that they seem. Everyday's a battle, but if he can't trust his own species, where does that leave his family?

And we can't forget the man who may be willing to sacrifice Cliff's life, if it means world domination.

In terms of doomsday, no one could've seen this coming. The dawn of the apocalypse…

About the Author

Being the daughter of an accomplished author, E.S.P. grew up listening to stories and telling her own to classmates. After writing for several years and even publishing some short works, she finally decided to take the plunge to write (plus finish!)a full length novel. Thus, Dawn of the Apocalypse was born. When she's not writing, she's either reading books, blogging at whoistheserialreader.blogspot.com, or watching eighties movies.

   

***GIVEAWAY***

E-book copy of Dawn of the Apocalypse and $10 Amazon Gift Card (INT)

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Book Blitz hosted by:

Excerpt:

Angel’s chest was rising and falling rapidly as the gargoyles circled them silently. Hunter had never wanted something more in her entire life than  to live for another day. She couldn’t even entertain the idea of little Angel being gobbled up by the big bad gargoyle…

She squeezed her eyes shut. Please, please, please, she chanted silently over and over. 

She knew the type of wound a scratch had given Cliff. What type of pain would they concur on her entire body? Would they eat her right away or save her for dinner? Would they pluck out her limbs and eat them one by one?

Time stopped as the door creaked open. The gargoyles soundlessly cloaked themselves back in the shadows. The stairs groaned as someone walked down the stairs without a care in the world. Hunter could practically hear the gargoyles lick their lips. 

She wanted to cry out and warn the person. But it was beyond her control. 

That’s what you get for walking down the stairs so loudly. That’s what you get for walking in the dark during a damn invasion, she reasoned. But her heart was saying something else.

The person reached the bottom of the stairs. The gargoyles uniformly shifted through the shadows. “Hey…” he said suspiciously. 

He had realized his danger a second too late. He broke into a run, but the gargoyles would be on him in a second. And he’d be dead.

“C’mon, sweetie.” Hunter whispered to Angel, crawling out from under the stairs. Ignoring the cries of agony, pain, and sorrow, she raced up the stairs. The wood banged against her ankles, but she didn’t stop. There was the cruel sound of cracking. Hunter shielded Angel’s eyes from the scene and dared to look behind her. 

The gargoyles were circled around the man. The predominantly bigger gargoyle bit his neck. A gush of blood spewed across its face. The man’s eyes still stared at her, his mouth formed in an O, as if he was trying to speak to her. 

“I’m so sorry.” She choked.

She hurried up the steps, slamming her body into the door. The light washed over her body, as did her relief. But her nerves did not settle. 

Open Book Surgery

I'm smack dab in the middle of some massive revisions on my WIP (which I thought was about done until some recent critiques). I need to pick up the pacing in the beginning, revamp the plot, and develop my main character more. (Is that all? Yep.) So I'm shifting things around, bringing events that happen later into the forefront, cutting unnecessary scenes, figuring out and honing in on my character's motivations and desires. Basically, I'm doing open book surgery.


But wait. First, rather than jumping in and cutting and pasting away, I'm vegging, giving it time and thought, doing some character sketches for each character, and reworking my outline. For example, I've decided to have my main character start with one main goal at the beginning of the story (to sell the cabin she inherited from her father who she never knew and use the money for music school) and have that shift as she sorts through her father's belongings and learns more about him. Then she becomes obsessed with solving the mystery of his strange disappearance.

I'm moving some of those clues to his disappearance up front and adding some more in to beef up the tension in the early stages. My character needs to be more proactive in looking for clues earlier on, too, instead of merely stumbling across them time and time again. Really? Can't everything just happen by chance? No! There has to be a reason for everything she does and at least two purposes for each scene, ie: develop character and find another clue. Each chapter needs to build on the last and reveal new information.

I've got my work cut out for me. It's a process and that will take time, effort, and self restraint to plan and prepare, clear my head, clean my writing instruments before I begin to revise. I even ordered a new workbook on plotting called Ready Set, Novel, and am asking those writers I know who are good at plotting and character development for ideas on how they do it. Once I'm done I hope to have a new and much improved version of my story that's ready to send out to agents!

*Good news: my voice and descriptions of my character's emotions are good, two things I've struggled with in the past. (Hurray!) I can do this. Time to put on my gloves and scrubs and get to work. Ready, set, go!