YA

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IAM Interview…with author Ninfa Hayes

Guest Feature

Guest Feature

Ninfa Hayes is today’s featured author – this morning you can find out more about her in a full-length interview and feature on her novel Bites, this afternoon our second feature will give you a sneak peek at Divine, her current WIP that she’s writing with Misty Price. 

Ninfa lives in Manchester, UK with husband Gareth, daughter Cassandra and two gorgeous kitties, Jemima and Shelley. Originally from Italy, she’s half Spanish, half Italian and British by choice and marriage.

She loves books and is a total bookaholic! Reading and writing have always been a big part of her life and for this she thanks both her parents for passing down the literary gene and the passion for a good story.

Ninfa is big on Networking and co-runs an array of Facebook pages and blogs about books and all things supernatural. She also reviews books for the Facebook “Bookaholics Book Club” on a regular basis.

In this spirit, she’s also training her daughter in these dark arts and plans on making her a huge geek, whether she likes it or not!

If you’d like to find out more about Ninfa and her stories, you can check out her Facebook author page, Ninfa Hayes.

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Ninfa Hayes - Image

What is you favorite way to spend a rainy day?

Oh, it’s got to be been curled up on the sofa, tv or music playing in the background, a nice  big pot of steaming vanilla tea and snacks on the coffee table, and a good book in my hands 🙂

What is something people would be surprised to know about you?

I LARP (Live Action Role Play)! I get dressed up in costume and go interact in game with people. It’s awesome and it allows me to live stories that I would not be able to experience otherwise 🙂 My favorite game is called Odyssey and it’s steeped in ancient world Mythology 🙂

 You’re right – that was definitely not an answer we were expecting! OK – on the subject of an odyssey – you’ve found a time machine on your driveway this morning – where are you going to go in it?

Well, my very first trip would be back twenty years, to see my dad one more time. He passed away when I was 18 and it would be amazing to be able to tell him all about my life and his granddaughter. After that, I would head to 1815 to meet Jane Austen, one of my favorite writers…from then it would be a big tour of the history of books…Tolkien, Marion Zimmer Bradley…so many authors to meet! 🙂

What is the one book you think everyone should read?

Just one? That’s impossible, lol! Everyone should read as much as they can! Reading feeds your soul 🙂 But if I had to recommend a book or series, it would probably be “Harry Potter” by J. K. Rowling because at the heart of it, it has a very strong and positive message, and that’s to stand up for what is good and to believe in yourself because no matter who you are, young or old, strong or weak, you CAN change the world.

How do you react to a bad review?

It’s hard to receive criticism and I can’t say it doesn’t hurt to know that someone didn’t enjoy my book, but at the end of the day it’s part of being a writer and putting yourself out there. I like to think that I’m respectful of people’s opinions and if someone has taken the time to write down their thoughts on my work and share it, then I should be grateful for that time.

Which authors have influenced you most, and how?

There are several, but I think the top three would be Louisa May Alcott, because I read “Little Women” like 40 times when I was younger and wanted to be Jo March sooo bad! Marion Zimmer Bradley and her book “The Mists of Avalon” for introducing me to Fantasy, and last but not least, Kelley Armstrong, for writing the books I would want to have written myself and for giving me the best advice ever: “If you want to be a good writer, you have to read!”

Night owl or early bird?

Night Owl all the way. I don’t do mornings very well, although with a full time job and a family I don’t always have a choice. Thank goodness for my lovely hubby as he lets me have a lie in at the weekend most times 🙂

One food you would never eat?

Insects of any kind…I know in some parts of the world they are delicacies, but I could never eat a bug…never ever!

What are you working on at the moment – do you have any other books in the works?

I have several projects, but right now I’m working on two that I’m hoping to finish in 2013.

The first one is a team up with Misty Price from the Bookaholics Book Club on Facebook and Blog. We are writing a YA Mythological Fantasy called “Divine” and I’m very excited about this story. It’s about two girls, Callie and Tia, and the prophecy that ties them together. Lots of references to the Greek Gods and a lot of action and romance 🙂

The second project is one I’ve been working on for years, on and off, and it’s called “Morgan’s Legacy”, Book one in the House of Avalon series. As you can probably guess it’s a take on Arthurian legends, lots of magic and also a YA,

but “Divine” is the priority at the moment.

So…on the project you’re co-writing with Misty – how does that work?

We each write from the point of view of one of the protagonists, alternating chapters and forwarding each others stories. It’s great because you get a multiple view of the world and the story, and because it’s written by two different people you know that the characters will have very unique and individual voices.

That sounds like a great way to create two characters and keeping them independent. How do you find it working with someone else, is it easier than flying solo, or can it make things more difficult?

It’s exciting, because we each come up with new ideas and inject them in the story, so we are almost like readers, discovering the world of the book and the characters as we go. It keeps things interesting. Of course there are compromises to be made, because we’ll both have a rough idea of how we want things to go, but it’s not necessarily how the other will see it. So far it’s been a fairly smooth process, but we are just finishing first draft and I know there will be bumps to smooth over once we start reviewing the story.

Overall I’m loving the experience, and the word count doesn’t seem as scary when you’re only doing half 😉

What made you decide to write together?

I’ve been helping out a little with the Bookaholics Book club over the last couple of years, and Misty is a good friend. She is also a budding writer and was experimenting with her own stories which I was lucky enough to get to read. I like her ideas and her style. When we decided to launch a newsletter for the Book Club, Misty wanted to do something special for our followers, so we decided to write a short story in a few chapters as an extra. That’s how “Divine” was born. I came up with the initial setting, but as we started writing it we kinda realized we would need more than a few chapters. We fell in love with the characters and the story and from there decided to turn in into a full blown novel. 50K words later here we are, first edit is almost complete, then we’ll be developing the characters and world fully and hopefully sending our baby out into the world to see if we can attract the interest of a publishing house. If not, we will happily self publish as we really want to share “Divine” with all readers out there 🙂

If you could jump in to a book, and live in that world.. which would it be?

Oh gosh, that would be a dream come true…do I have to pick just one?! There are so many amazing worlds…okay, I’m going to narrow it down to either the world of Harry Potter because let’s face it, I need to get into Ravenclaw, and Tolkien’s Middle Earth, ’cause been a Hobbit would totally rock!

What was your favorite book when you were younger? 

“Anne of Green Gables” by Lucy M. Montgomery. I adored that book and the ones that followed. I could relate to Anne so much: the daydreaming, making up stories in my mind. It’s such a beautiful story, full of emotion, and it was a great inspiration as I grew up. Anne is a normal girl, she makes mistakes all the time and learns from them, she’s also a strong heroine and wants to make something better of herself. There are so many positive messages in her story and I can’t wait for my daughter to be old enough to read it 🙂

Is there a song you could list as the theme song for your book?

For “Bites” it would be “Ava Adore” by the Smashing Pumpkins, for “Divine” so far I’ve listened to Taylor Swifts album “Fearless” on repeat because it puts me in a teenage kinda mood and helps me get into my character’s head 🙂

If a movie was made about your life, who would you want to play the lead role and why?

Nia Vardalos, from “My Big Fat Greek Wedding”! She’s talented, funny, creative and she’s a woman with curves that has not given in to the “stick figure” Hollywood stereotype. She’s also Mediterranean in origin so she might actually be able to pull off my Italian/Spanish/ English weird accent Xp

How did you know you should become an author?

I’ve always written, since I was little, but never thought anything would come of it, it was just something I loved to do.

4 years ago I got pregnant with my daughter and whilst I was on maternity leave I realized I needed something to keep me sane, so I started writing more and more and actually found peace, something that could be just mine. When I gathered enough courage I showed my writing to friends, and got lots of encouragement. They liked my stories and wanted more. From there it progressed until I actually decided to send it to Dianna Hardy, who I admired as a writer and would later become my publisher. That was the best thing to ever happen to me, her guidance and insight into the publishing world are the reasons why “Bites” exists, and I’m forever grateful to her for that. Now I know I could not stop writin even if I wanted to, it’s a part of who I am and it makes me a better person.

Can you see yourself in any of your characters?

I think there’s a little of me in each of my main characters. Perhaps only little aspects such as common likes, a personality trait, a passion shared. After all they all come from my mind. The villains are the most difficult to write for me because of that I think, it’s almost like exorcising parts of me that I don’t like and I’ve been fighting to keep at bay, so it’s very intense to face them and accept them to be able to write them vividly enough that it will be believable, but it’s also very therapeutic in a way.

 What movie and/or book are you looking forward to this year?

“Catching Fire” (I LOVE “The Hunger Games” Trilogy!) and “The Host” for movies; “The Indigo Spell” by Richelle Mead, “Cry of the Wolf” by Dianna Hardy and “Loki’s Wolves – Blackwell Pages Book 1” by Kelley Armstrong and Melissa Marr in books 🙂

Facebook or Twitter?

Facebook. I’m still trying to work out how to use Twitter to its full potential, but I prefer the flexibility of Facebook for longer statuses and posting photos and links.

Favourite quote from a movie?

“Size matters not. Look at me. Judge me by my size, do you? Hmm? Hmm. And well you should not. For my ally is the Force, and a powerful ally it is. Life creates it, makes it grow. Its energy surrounds us and binds us. Luminous beings are we, not this crude mater. You must feel the Force around you; here, between you, me, the tree, the rock, everywhere, yes.”

Master Yoda to Luke, “Star Wars – The Empire Strikes Back”.

Yes, I’m a huge “Star Wars” fan, and a Geek, and proud of it 🙂

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Two short stories that will seduce you with romance, danger, sensuality … and Vampire bites.

BITES - Cover Image

Last of the Blood

When the sweet scent reaches me I know I have found what I’m looking for. My hands reach out in the darkness to the unaware girl. She’s warm and soft and doesn’t even get to scream before I’m drinking deeply from her, her struggles too feeble to bother me.

Only the blood counts.

I’ve never tasted anything like it.  Gloriously sweet, thick and strong and full of life.

I drink until the hunger subsides, until the body that I hold so close to me hangs lifelessly in my arms.  Only then I see.  Only then I recognize it, and the agony … oh, the agony is more than I can bear.

Demonica

Tonight is the Midwinter Solstice Ball, the most important night in the Daemonic Court’s calendar.

This is the night when new disciples are chosen, when demons come out to play, and all bets are off.

As it happens, tonight is also the night I become Queen. 

 Irina is about to become Queen of the Daemonic Court and Damon is on the run from his own nature …where will their paths take them?

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Want to know more? Check out the links!

Facebook: Ninfa Hayes www.facebook.com/ninfa.m.sferlazzo/posts/10151280692126655?ref=notif&notif_t=like#!/pages/Ninfa-Hayes/231118400279030

Twitter: @Ninfa76 www.twitter.com/Ninfa76

Goodreads: www.goodreads.com/author/show/5782405.Ninfa_Hayes

Publisher’s Website: www.bittenfruitbooks.com/bites-ya-dark-paranormal-fantasy.html

Books available on Amazon, Barnes and Nobles, Waterstones, the Book Depository, and all major online retailers.

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IAM Book of the Day…Expect Civilian Casualties

Guest Feature

Guest Feature

Our featured author today is Gary Bonn and we’re showcasing his novel Expect Civilian Casualties. 

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Expect Civilian Casulaties Synopsis Jason has spent the last six years living wild on beaches. Now he’s seventeen and a feral girl walks into his life.

A girl with no name.
He calls her Anna. She’s fun, she’s kind—and she’s the most dangerous person in    the world.
The most unusual love story, and a truly strange war story… Expect Civilian Casualties turns how we see the world upside down.

Author Interview 

What’s the craziest writing idea you’ve had?  Hey… I could be a writer!

If a movie was made about your life, who would you want to play the lead role and why? I’d be happy to play the lead role in my life. This time I’d like some warning of what was going to happen next, a decent script and I’d ask for a more professional director and a bigger budget.

Can you see yourself in any of your characters? Lol. A writer has to be their characters. You must be an old woman struggling upstairs, a child sitting beside his mother’s dead body, a suicidal teenage girl, a soldier knowing he’s going to die, a…

If you can’t live it – how are your readers going to?

There’s a huge picture here. A writer has to get into character as much as an actor. You write romance or tragedy – you have to live through the emotions. Write Sci-fi and you must wear the buttons and levers down until you are as familiar with them as the veteran astronaut (or whatever) you’re writing about.

I wrote a book (that I’d dearly like published) some years ago. In it, a number of people struggled to earn a living in the most unusual circumstances. I spent weeks, just being each of them, going through their daily routines until I felt the blisters and sunburn – and their excitement, hopes and fears. This sort of immersion pervades your waking life and it can be hard to concentrate on reality. Asleep, I dreamt of the morning-bell being struck. I shivered and clambered into my coarse overalls, stumbled though ill-lit sleeping quarters, tested my weapons and prepared to clear the working area of the most horrific monsters.

I still go there in my imagination, not that I like the place, but I love the people.

This level of immersion is so obvious when I read another writer’s book. I love it and I’m inspired when a real person leaps at me from the page.

How did you celebrate the sale of your first book? I hardly noticed – Firedance keeps me busy – but I don’t mind, because I like the intoxicating whirl of it all.

How do you react to a bad review? Anyone who gives me a bad review falls into one of four categories:

1)    I think they are the most wonderful people on earth and will help me strengthen my writing. This amounts to 99.99% of the people who give me negative criticism.

2)    I think they are stupid and don’t fit into the first category – but I’m wrong.

3)    They are 13 year old internet trolls who haven’t read my work, but still spout negativity – but may actually read my books one day and like them. It’s best to treat them with kindness and respect – or they may grow into adult trolls.

4)    It’s my mother.

Which authors have influenced you most, and how? I’d like to say Morris West (Clowns of God), Neville Shute (Round the Bend), |Laurens Van Der Post (A Story like the Wind), William Blake, etc, have most defined me as a person – as if they were surrogate fathers. However, Tove Jansson got to me first (when I was 8 years old). I grew up to be her character Snufkin. I like to be alone in mountains; I like few, but intense relationships. Jansson taught me to be considerate and kind. If Tove Jansson were alive today, I’d give her a big hug and say thank you.

As far as writing is concerned, the writers at WriterLot have been my greatest influence – constantly challenging and encouraging. My work would not be half so good without them. What you see on the site does not indicate the huge amount of support and development that goes on behind the scenes.

The editors at Firedance Books Ltd have been wonderful too. They know so much, and they’re only too happy to give me advice and encouragement.

Most recently, my son, Christy, has been an inspiration. Not only is he a great writer – but he’s the engine behind the UFOAI stories, (See WriterLot).

What’s one piece of advice you would give aspiring authors? Ooh, now we’re getting serious. Learning how to write takes longer than you could possibly believe – there are 3 and 4 year degree courses in creative writing. Learning to take negative criticism takes as long as you try to resist the fact that it’s the soil in which your writing grows. Learning to work with editors takes as long as your ego is big. Think 3 years to get the writing skills (and thick skin for editorial). If you are a beginner and have a good story, don’t let this put you off, write it – we all need good stories.

The most earnest piece of advice goes to those people who self publish. Often this is  without understanding the need for rigorous developmental/structural editing, copy editing and proof reading. I’ve been asked to review books that haven’t been through these processes – and it’s been heart breaking. I can’t stress the need for editorial support enough. For every hour a reader spends reading – you spend 200-300 hours writing, revising, revising, revising and revising again. Revision can only happen with the help of editors who are experts in fiction – or even better, in the genre of that book – you are blind to your own errors. However, working in this environment makes you a seriously good editor for other writers who will bless you for being objectively hard on them. It’s teamwork.

Whew, rant over – and, hopefully, a few tears saved.

What movie and/or book are you looking forward to this year? Ah, lucky you… I’ve know of some books that should go into print soon…I’m looking forward to:

The Devil’s Poetry by Louise Cole. The ending of which had me holding my breath for what felt like 6 hours…

Stillness Dancing, by Jae Erwin, which had me gasping over a single line of mind-bending dialogue which gave me a new way to understand people.

Coil, by Ren Warom (writer of Umwelt). This book sears images into your brain that will never leave you. You’ll beg for her next book.

Serpent, by Alison Gardiner – if only that had been written earlier. I could have read it to my children when they were younger. Think “Kick-ass hamster meets wizards and goblins…”. Vivid, hilarious and very clever.

The Kinless Sword (working title), by Stephen Godden, (author of Tales of the Shonri, City of Lights). No one builds worlds and whole cosmologies that suck me in so hard as his. You finish his stories and have to remember you live in this world.

There are others, wonderful books, but I think these will be published soonest – keep an eye out for them.

Please tell us in one sentence only, why we should read your book. Lol, last week, one of my editors said, ‛See your therapist before you write another book.’

When you were little, what did you want to be when you “grew up”? I never managed growing up – and with good reason. I decided all adults are mad. My first assessment of them was rather traumatic. Think of a six year old boy and lots of snow. I had weeks of fun and asked passing adults what they thought of snow. Almost all said they didn’t like it, or they did – but.

I learned that ‛but’ often meant ‛no’. Snow turned to slush, driving was tricky, snow makes your feet wet…

Adults were clearly stupid and I decided never be one. Since then I’ve worked out that adults don’t drag their children out to make snowmen.

You’ve found a time machine on your driveway this morning – where are you going to go in it? I would use it to enter the Dr Who story, ‛Blink’ – or meet the author. The author needs a hug/pint of beer for the incredible amount of effort that went into the timeline. I’m sure there are flaws in it – but I can’t find them (I forget to look after a few minutes). I’m impressed – really impressed. Well done.

If you could choose only one time period and place to live, when and where would you live and why? I would choose here and now. Writing takes a lot of time and the rest you spend in fantasy land. I miss out on reality and would like to catch up a bit.

Seriously, this has led to problems. People have asked me things like, ‛What do you think of Libya?’ To which I may reply, ‛It’s a hot place in the north of Africa.’ Somehow I missed the fact that we’d invaded it (or something) three weeks before.

I swear that, if I were to undergo a test for dementia, I’d be hospitalised. ‛Who is the current Prime Minister?’ (Er… dunno, do we have one?). ‛What day is it?’ (Today!).

 What are you working on at the moment – do you have any other books in the works? Another Y/A-crossover – but guess what? – I’m to do total revision of it. There are two humorous fantasy books ready for rejection… lol, (I love witches). Two speculative fiction books await inspection as well – although I need to cut 20% out of one and that’s going to be a lot of work. The UFOAI stories have added chapters now; Christy and I are pulling them together into a coherent book.

 What’s the best advice anyone has ever given you?  ‛Gary, shut up.’

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Want to know more? Check out the links!

WriterLot: http://writerlot.net/writerlot.htm

WriterLot: Gary Bonn. http://www.writerlot.net/GaryBonn.htm

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IAM Guest Post…Why I Write YA

Guest Feature

Guest Feature

Our featured author today is MB Mulhall, telling us why she writes YA books and showcasing her novel Tears of a Clown. Let’s find out more!

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Why I Write YA…

I am long past what is considered my “Young Adult” years, but I find myself drawn to writing stories dealing with teens and young adults more than anything else.  I think it’s because so many people can relate to them. Even though they’re meant for teens, most adults have fond (or not so fond) memories of that time in life and can take a trip down memory lane by reading the books I write.

Young Adult novels aren’t fluff and dumbed down writing.  They deal with serious topics and situations and I think it’s important for me to bring some of those issues to light whether it drug use, gay relationships or eating disorders.  I don’t tone down the language or the severity of the situations because I want it to be as realistic as possible.

I also love the idea of first love and all that comes along with it. Those butterflies in the stomach, the worries about whether they’ll do it the right way, say the wrong thing, that first kiss.  I love to be able to recreate it and have readers relive their own memories as they read along.

There’s so much growth and self-awareness in the teen years that leaves for so many writing possibilities and character development.  Writing young adult novels allows me relive the good and bad moments of my youth and hopefully instill in those reading my books that change is possible, a broken heart isn’t the end of the world, that high school won’t last forever and there’s plenty of good times to come.

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Tears of a Clown Some girls wear makeup to enhance their natural beauty.

Some wear it to make themselves look sexy and mature, in the hopes to attract the attention of a paramour.

Darcy wears hers as a mask, a deterrent, a tribute of sorts to the musical group who got her through her parents’ messy divorce.

When she’s uprooted from her hometown in Detroit and plopped down into rural Georgia, the townsfolk don’t know whether she’s an escapee from the circus or a devil worshiping antichrist looking to kill their pets and corrupt their children.

Much to her surprise, Darcy finds herself in the middle of a bizarre love triangle; the preppy good-looking popular boy that all parents would love on one side, and the bad boy heartthrob that would have fathers sitting on their porches with shotguns and mothers buying chastity belts on the other.

Not surprisingly, Darcy also finds herself the object of cruel jokes, bullying and pies in the face. While she’s trying to stand up for what she believes in and exact revenge on those who treat her and her friends badly, she also has to decide between the two guys vying for her attention.

Will one of them really be able to see beyond the makeup and love her for her? Or will she end up just being a pawn in a long standing rivalry between the boys?

*Recommended for older teens age 15+*

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About the Author 

MB Mulhall is the author of Young adult novels, Near Death and Tears of a Clown, as well as a budding photographer. When she’s not pecking away at her keyboard or looking at the world up close through her lens, she’s got her nose stuck in a book.  A Jersey girl, born and bred, she spends much of her time scouring the boardwalks for images to capture and conversations to overhear. MB dreams of filling bookshelves with her own work  and of plastering her walls with photographs she’s taken from places around the world.

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IAM Interview…with author David Estes

Guest Feature

Guest Feature

David Estes is today’s featured author – this morning you can find out more about him in a full-length interview. 

David Estes was born in El Paso, Texas but moved to Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania when he was very young. He grew up in Pittsburgh and then went to Penn State for college. Eventually he moved to Sydney, Australia where he met his wife and soul mate, Adele, who he’s now been happily married to for two years.
A reader all his life, David began writing novels for the children’s and YA markets in 2010, and has completed 10 novels, 8 of which have been published.  The Star Dwellers will be his 8th published novel. In June of 2012, David became a fulltime writer and is now travelling the world with his wife while he writes books, and she writes and takes photographs.
David gleans inspiration from all sorts of crazy places, like watching random people do entertaining things, dreams (which he jots copious notes about immediately after waking up), and even from thin air sometimes! Recently he’s been inspired by some of his favorite authors, like Suzanne Collins, Veronica Roth, and Maggie Stiefvater.
David’s a writer with OCD, a love of dancing and singing (but only when no one is looking or listening), a mad-skilled ping-pong player, an obsessive Goodreads group member, and prefers writing at the swimming pool to writing at a table.  He loves responding to e-mails, Facebook messages, Tweets, blog comments, and Goodreads comments from his readers, all of whom he considers to be his friends.

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 If you were stranded on a desert island, what three things would you want with you?

1. A magic lamp with a genie (preferably the Robin Williams voiced genie from Aladdin) who will grant me three wishes
2. A boxed set of The Lord of the Rings trilogy by J.R.R. Tolkien (Favorite. Series. Ever.)
3. A sturdy beach chair
How do you react to a bad review?
Sob, scream at the walls, rock back and forth. All three things at the same time. It’s messy, you don’t want to see it.
Kidding aside, I’ve had to grow some pretty thick skin, pretty fast. I never want someone to dislike my books, my writing style, my characters. But the truth is, everyone has different opinions, which is what makes life interesting. I mean, have you ever hated a book that all of your friends said was amazing? I know I have. My goal as a writer cannot be to please everyone. It’s simply to improve my writing with each and every book and do my very best to entertain my incredible readers. So when I do occasionally get a negative review, I read it and try to glean any constructive feedback from it that may help me in the future. Anything I disagree with or that is mean spirited, I just ignore. It’s all about having the right attitude and always striving to improve.
Give us a glimpse into a typical day in your day starting when you wake up till you lie down again.
Absolutely! Sleep in (yeah, not a morning person) first. Get up around 9am, have breakfast with my wife. Then I start writing, putting in at least two hours in the morning (2,000+ words). Lunch with my wife and then we try to do something fun together, like if we’re near a beach (which we usually are), we go to the beach, go swimming, read books together, etc. I’ll put in another hour or two of writing in the afternoon, too, to bring my word count to between 3 and 4 thousand, or the occasional 5,000+ word day. We have dinner and spend the evening either at home watching movies, watching our favorite TV shows, or hanging out with friends, or going to watch live music.
Throughout the day and into the evening I do all the other stuff that comes with being a full time writer, like interviews, blog appearances, answering reader mail, doing blog posts, and publishing my books.
I always read before bed, too, usually 50+ pages of whatever book I’ve currently got my nose in. That’s it! That’s a day in the life. Day in and day out I put in 3-4 hours of writing a day, and at least that much time doing other author activities, which is the commitment required to publish a book every 2-3 months. It’s a lot of work, but the flexible lifestyle and creativity of it makes it all worthwhile. And, of course, all the support from my readers, who are absolutely incredible, the best people in the world, and my dearest friends!
If you could have any superpower, what would you choose?
Besides my OCD, which I’ve blogged about as my real superpower (I’m not kidding), I would want to fly! There’s a reason I chose flying for my nine-year-old child superhero Nikki Powergloves (from my The Adventures of Nikki Powergloves series) as her favorite superpower. Namely, who doesn’t want to be able to fly? I mean, really, what kid doesn’t dream of being able to fly above the trees, above the clouds, and over buildings? IT WOULD BE AWESOME!
What are you working on at the moment – do you have any other books in the works?
I’m always working on something! Having recently released The Star Dwellers, the sequel to The Moon Dwellers, my focus is on publishing the third book in the Dwellers Saga, The Sun Dwellers, which I’ve already written. Currently I’m working on editing and revising it and getting it ready for publishing. At the same time, I’m working on the first book in my sister series to The Dwellers Saga, titled Fire Country, another YA dystopian novel that will eventually connect with the underground world of the Tri-Realms.
For those who love YA dystopian novels with lots of twists, turns, a bit of comedy and a whole lot of emotion, you’ll likely enjoy the Dwellers Saga.

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The Moon Dwellers In a desperate attempt to escape destruction decades earlier, humankind was forced underground, into the depths of the earth, creating a new society called the Tri-Realms.

After her parents and sister are abducted by the Enforcers, seventeen-year-old Adele, a member of the middle-class moon dwellers, is unjustly sentenced to life in prison for her parents’ crimes of treason.

Against all odds, Adele must escape from the Pen and find her family, while being hunted by a deranged, killing machine named Rivet, who works for the President. She is helped by two other inmates, Tawni and Cole, each of whom have dark secrets that are better left undiscovered. Other than her friends, the only thing she has going for her is a wicked roundhouse kick and two fists that have been well-trained for combat by her father.

At the other end of the social spectrum is Tristan, the son of the President and a sun dweller. His mother is gone. He hates his father. Backed by only his servant and best friend, Roc, he leaves his lavish lifestyle in the Sun Realm, seeking to make something good out of his troubled life.

When a war breaks out within the Tri-Realms, Tristan is thrust into the middle of a conflict that seems to mysteriously follow Adele as she seeks to find her family and uncover her parents true past. In their world, someone must die.

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Want to know more? Check out the links!

His Goodreads author page: http://www.goodreads.com/davidestesbooks
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IAM Interview…with author Jade Varden

Guest Feature

Guest Feature

Jade Varden is today’s featured author – and one of the lovely regular contributors at Aside from Writing. Her ‘Writing 101’ features, which we re-post from Jade’s author blog are a great resource for both experienced indie writers, as well as those people just starting off. She offers advice on everything from grammar to marketing your books, and now you can find out more about Jade and her own writing in our exclusive interview…

Jade Varden writes young adult novels for teen readers. When she’s not crafting mysteries in her books, Jade also blogs practical writing tips for authors who self-publish. Jade currently makes her home in Louisville, Kentucky, where she enjoys reading and reviewing indie books by other self-published authors. Follow her on Twitter @JadeVarden. Visit Jade’s blog at http://jadevarden.blogspot.com/ for reviews, writing tips, self-publishing advice and everything else you ever wanted to know about reading and writing books.

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What is something people would be surprised to know about you? I have really long nails! I spend a lot of time on them, every Sunday, and they usually look terrible by Wednesday. I think people would find that surprising, because I type all day long. It is difficult to write books on a flat keyboard with long nails, but I’ve totally mastered it. This is why I have to work on them every Sunday. If I skip a week, they get too long and start getting stuck in-between the keys!

If you were stranded on a desert island, what three things would you want with you? Some flint, to make a fire. A good, sharp knife. And a flare.

How do you react to a bad review? No review is bad. Someone took the time to read my book, at least in part, and then took even more time to share their thoughts. This is valuable to me. I read the review, maybe I grimace a little, and I try to absorb it. I take in the information, and maybe I’ll keep it in mind the next time I’m working on a book.

If you could have any superpower, what would you choose? Speed. Super-super speed.

Please tell us in one sentence only, why we should read your book. Because I know you won’t be able to predict what’s going to happen in it.

What has been your most rewarding experience since being published? I got a piece of fan mail. Fan email, to be precise, but still.

If you could jump in to a book, and live in that world.. which would it be? Gone With the Wind. Guess who I’d be.

What’s one piece of advice you would give aspiring authors?  Read what you’ve written. Read it until you’re sick of reading it, then read it some more.

If you could choose only one time period and place to live, when and where would you live and why?

The 1930s United States. Clothes were still very stylish back then, and laptops didn’t exist but electricity and indoor plumbing did. Then my love of Jimmy Stewart would be much more relevant.

When you were little, what did you want to be when you “grew up”? Since I was 9, a writer. Before then? A ballerina. Sometimes I regret giving it up. I might have made a better dancer than author.

Can you see yourself in any of your characters? I’m in all of them. Little pieces of me are scattered throughout my books, and I think some of them would surprise my readers. A lot of the really crazy stuff my characters do is actually stuff that I do.

Hidden talent? I can answer any Star Trek question you ask me.

What movie and/or book are you looking forward to this year? Catching Fire. It comes out in November, and by that time I will have a handcrafted Mockingjay necklace ordered from Etsy. Wait and see.

Favorite quote from a movie? “After all, tomorrow is another day!”

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Check out Jade’s Deck of Lies series – out now!

Jade Book

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Tony’s Review: The Sacrifice, Charlie Higson

5/5

Everyone over the age of 14 has been consumed by a virus that essentially turns them into zombies. Only the children are immune…for now, maybe.

This is number four in what Charlie Higson is now planning to make a seven book epic, and there’s a sense of things being set up for the later books, especially in the later chapters. There’s a change in the behaviour of the adults, for good and bad – the good guys get an ally, and the bad guys get a leader.

This is a book without fault. There isn’t a single wasted character or event, no matter how minor, and all the strands of plot tie up at the end and then leave room for more books (apart from DogNut, who I’m sure will appear in Book Five or somewhere down the line…).

What’s getting hard after four books and a gap of a few years between them, is to get the timeline sorted out. Events in this book overlap events in the other three, and it’s hard to remember who all the characters are in the previous books and their ‘status’ in this one. But that’s a minor niggle.

Higson goes to lengths to point out that the monsters inside – the children who decide to lead the children – are as dangerous as those outside. There are shades of Lord of The Flies in Ed and Little Sam and the situations they find themselves in, and I think the comparison is a worthy one.

This is not a book for the squeamish. A nine year old boy gets flogged, anyone can die (and they do), and the fights against the adults are long, bloody and vicious. It doesn’t go into extravagant details, but it doesn’t shy away from them either. Be warned: This is the book Stephen King would write if he wrote YA.

The real star of the show are Little Sam and the delightfully batty (or is he?) The Kid, who talks like Alex from A Clockwork Orange but is sharp as a sat-on-box-of-pins. Sam’s grim determination to find his sister and then The Kid is one of the underlying themes of the book – and there are so many: dictatorships, loyalty, sacrifice, friendship, not judging people by their appearances, rebuilding society. Everything is packed in there, but nothing feels rushed or thrown in. This is a book carefully constructed to make you think and reconsider, and I’m already hungry for the next three sequels.

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Just Finished…The Moon Dwellers, David Estes (Spoilers)

3/5

At some point in the future, humanity is wiped out from the surface of the globe and forced underground. Society splits into three factions, the elite Sun realm, the working drones of the Moon Dwellers and the underclass of the Star realm.

Adele Rose is in prison for no reason other than her parents were branded as ‘traitors to society’. Her family torn away from her, she waits to rot in prison. Tristan Nailin, son of the Sun Realm president, is a prisoner too…a prisoner of his fathers empire and expectations.

When he drives by the prison where Adele is a ‘guest’, they find themselves powerfully physically and psychically affected by their encounter, even though they don’t meet.

That night, both Adele and Tristan break out of their lives and go on the run. Adele to find her sister and parents, and Tristan to find what spell Adele has cast over him.

David Estes has written a technically flawless book. The characters are all fleshed out, the dialogue sharp and witty, the chapters all end on cliffhangers that keep you glued to the page. The plot bounces along and doesn’t lag. The world he creates is consistent and logical. I did spot a few errors with a few things…being electrocuted on barbed wire fence would make you clutch it tighter, not throw you off, and would humanity a thousand years underground know what cardboard was? But those are minor points.

So why don’t I want to give it five stars?

For me, the characters didn’t gel. I never connected with them in any meaningful way until close to the end. I had a feeling that I’d seen them all before a dozen times: Feisty yet vulnerable female heroine. Handsome yet insecure male hero. Minor characters for some comic relief and tension, one of who dies.

When Cole is killed near the end of the story, I should have been moved. I should have felt chills when soldiers footsteps echo from the next stone corridor. I think what was missing for me was atmosphere. I should have smelt the damp air of the caves and the chill breeze as it moved around me. I didn’t get a feeling past a physical description of how different the sun realm was from the moon dwellers, for instance. It took me twenty or thirty percent of the book to realise the light was lower in the moon caves.

I also felt that towards the middle of the book, Estes suddenly realises he has a sequel in mind. Thus, characters suddenly start talking about ‘The Secret’, and there is no explanation for Adele and Tristan’s odd psychic bond.

Adele’s father talks only in elliptical sentences for the few pages he’s in the book, then is quickly pushed out again, taking Adele’s sister with him. Two plot points tied up in one swoop. The same with the super killer Rivet, who is quickly dispatched…so much for being a super killer.

Ultimately though, despite the excellent writing, pacing and characters, everything about the book felt like I had seen it before, and towards the end it started to feel like a setup for the sequel.

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Just finished…Hope’s Daughter (Melanie Cusick-Jones) *Spoilers*

Cassie and the remains of humanity live on an immense space station, taken from earth when environmental disaster wipes out the population.

At least that what she’s always been told…with the help of her friend (and then boyfriend) Balik, Cassie explores the dark secret behind Space Station Hope, a revelation that eventually leads to her fleeing for her life.

Although the book was a little slow to get started, I didn’t feel like I wanted to put it down at any point. Mel C-J created a believable world, and a mystery which kept me guessing right up to the last chapters.

Some theories I was flicking through as I was reading included Nineteen-Eighty-Four, Logan’s Run, Soylent Green…Was it even a space station, I wondered?
All of these theories were way off the mark, and close to the end, I wondered if Cassie’s parents were androids, and all of what was happening was benign. Wrong again!

The idea of a space station run by aliens so they can harvest human DNA was done with subtle hints and misdirection. At no point did I guess that was what was happening on the station.

In some places, the editing was a little rushed, and because of that, some of the nice ideas in the book slipped past me. I was too busy trying to figure out the sentence to concentrate on the story. Mel C-J did seem to need more commas so I could get a sense of what’s going on.

That was particularly bad near the end of the book, when Cassie’s father showed up. I think the scenes with him could have been cleaned up quite a bit, and the pacing slowed a little so I could absorb what was going on. I also think a bit more world building to establish the scale of the space station would have helped, and I would have liked to have seen more of the guts of the place, as it were.

I liked all the characters in the book, even breathless Ami and Olivia, who shows her humanity later in the book despite her superficial appearance and personality. Everyone was well rounded and nicely developed. I even felt empathy for the aliens, forced to harvest humans to survive.

In the end, I’d give it 4/5, mainly dropping the star for the grammar errors that needed fixing. But I’m hooked enough to start looking for the sequel!

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Just Finished…The First by Sara Zaske

   What a great and unexpected book!

I’d read – I think – that The First was a dystopian and so I’d left it in my Kindle dwindling having had a good dose of dystopia recently. And then I began reading it (after pressing the wrong button on my Kindle) and mistakenly thought I was reading a book about vampires and at around 15% in was wondering how the hell the people with power over nature were going to have anything to do with vampires…what can I say – I don’t always pay attention!

So – back to the book. There are dystopian elements to The First, but it would only be a dystopian book if you are one of the First People – if you’re a human, like me, then the environmental indiciators in the book are a nice nod in the direction of dystopia, but it’s not the end of the world, but a little journey down that path0. The environmental message is handled really well in the book, so it isn’t overbearing, but there are lots of good pieces of information to get you thinking.

The characters, dialogue and writing are great – very engaging, perfect pitch for a YA (I would also suggest this as being suitable for MG audience as it is clean, quirky and fun on the whole). The character voices feel authentically teenaged and the pitch, pace and action are all perfectly balanced with the motivations of the individuals. For me it felt a little like a fantasy cross-over in parts – the powers of the First People and their approach to life certainly had those elements, but it worked very well in the contemporary setting. I also liked the family/military references, which are outside the main plot, but I felt were very ‘real’ to life for anyone who has been in those situations.

Overall Thoughts: 4* – I think this was a great read. It is a nice length and paced so well to keep you reading – I got through it in four days, which is quick for me as I don’t always get too much time to read. I think the story was also very original and quality of writing was good. I would recommend this to anyone looking for an adventure story with interesting characters.

Thanks very much to Sara for releasing this free at Amazon on Earth Day, as that’s where I got my copy.

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Just Finished…In Your Dreams by Amy Martin

This book is great: from the well-rounded characters, to the interesting twist-filled, but believable plot I went for this hook, line and sinker.

Told from Zip’s (Zara ‘Zip’ McKee) point of view – a heroine with a nice combination of self-depreciation, sporting ability, brains and maturity (that doesn’t seem like a 30-year-old in a 17-year-old!) – the story unfolds in traditional YA territory of high school. But the gorgeous new guy, with pale skin thankfully doesn’t turn out to be a vampire (or anything else otherworldly), but someone who suffers with narcolepsy.

The treatment of Kieran’s condition was very interesting – I’d never really thought about how people with narcolepsy deal with various situations and seeing Zip having to work these out as their relationship develops gave an added layer of interest for me and also showed a good deal of Zip’s character and outlook on life. It was nice to read about realistic characters dealing with real world issues, that can be just as problematic as dealing with being a YA in the first place! Hormones and high school are tough enough without passing out on a regular basis :)

All the key characters: Kayla, the parents, Kieran, Zip’s team mates… are all well-drawn and as you work through some of the twists and turns I think hold up well with their behaviour and motivation. I loved the dialogue and scene-setting in this book: Zip and Kieran bounce off one another so well that you could be watching them bantering away; and Zip is similar with her mother and Kayla over time. I had a few ‘awwww’ moments in their relationship – they are very cute and believable, without being cheesy. I also found that I really wanted to know what happened next – I read the book in a couple of days which is quick for me – all credit to the author, whose style of writing is engaging, fun and balances plot/drama with regular characters extremely well.

Overall: 4.5* A great debut and I was very pleased to see that this was ‘The End of Book One’ as I reached the last page – I would certainly look out for anything Amy Martin writes in the future and definitely want to hear more from the lovely Zip!

PS – Thanks to author Amy Martin for providing me a copy of this to read / review – love it from the minute I started reading it in the hairdressers! :)