Christine Amsden's Blog: Christine Amsden Author Blog, page 33

Rereading Wheel of Time: The Great Hunt (Book 2)

My journey back through the 14-volume Wheel of Time Series continues with book 2, The Great Hunt. I think this is where the series really begins to take off. Rand is already no longer the boy he was when it all began just a few months earlier, but he still fears and mistrusts his destiny. There is one thing he knows for sure — he will not be anyone’s puppet. The dark lord isn’t the only one who wants to hold his strings. Well-meaning Aes Sedai would use him as well, especially Moiraine, who first ushered him away from his home and saved his life. She has told him that he’s The Dragon Reborn, the most feared and hated man in history and in prophecy, here to save the world or break it again.

Rand is in denial throughout this book. He’s struggling to control the one power while attempting not to use it at all — for if he does, eh taint will drive him mad.

He already seems a bit mad in this book, but it’s not true madness, it’s the pressure of everything he knows, everything he wants to reject, and all those who want to kill or control him. He has a lot on his shoulders.

The first book in the series is a great foundation, but this book is better. I like that the characters are all flawed, and the progression of destiny is very well done here. From a nostalgic point of view, I read this as the end of the beginning, because I knew it would be.

Rating 5/5

Title: The Great Hung

Author: Robert Jordan

ISBN: 0812517725

Published October 15, 1991

Interview with Author Shah Wharton

Today, I’m joined by Shah Wharton, author of a new adult fantasy novel, Finding Esta…

Shah, the “new adult” label is a relatively recent book category. How would you define the term? And what made you decide to write new adult, as opposed to young adult or adult?

Actually, Heather from Buried in Books told me my book was new adult, last year. I’d never really paid much attention to the genre before that, so hadn’t considered whether

Finding Esta, fit. As soon as she said that, however, I went off to investigate and found it to be the perfect category.

Luna is twenty-three and in her first home, working at her first job, and rekindles her first love, while longing for her first lover. There are a lot of first-time experiences in Luna’s story – adult experiences, which make the story a kind of coming-of-age story. It’s about finding ones true identity (however supernatural), of realising we are more than what other’s think of us, and when pushed, we can reach further than our perceived limitations. So I thought, hell yeah, Heather is right (she usually is, especially about anything new adult and YA), this book fits the genre perfectly.

But like most new adult, it would be just as interesting to younger and older adults.

I’m a character girl. If I could change the way we categorise books, I’d have a section for character stories. Luna struck me as a potentially fascinating character. Can you tell us about her, and what she’s going through?

I adore character too, even more than plot. A supreme plot is lost on me if not pinned to interesting characters. Because if we don’t care for the characters, we are not invested in the plot, so tension and intrigue are non-existent.

Luna is an empath, a friend and host to Shadows (ghosts), and a psychometrist (psychic touch), all of which have debilitated her socially, throughout her lonely life. She is desperate to secure the pride (and possibly, love) of her parents, who she learnt to appease, or get sent to an expensive hospital for ‘treatment.’ A torturous regimen of anti-psychotic drugs and electro-convulsive-treatments were been used to treat Luna’s so-called ‘mental health issues,’ since she was a child.

She takes on the story of Esta – a baby stolen from her family twenty years ago, while they were murdered in front of her – in the hope of proving herself to her parent

s, finally. Still, no leads left the case of Esta’ kidnapping, icy cold, and all evidence of these crimes languished in the dereliction of Esta’s home – a dangerous place for someone of Luna’s talents to go.

Luna’s adventure leads her to find out that not just Shadows walk undetected amongst us, but a whole other culture of magical beings, too. And while trying to find Esta, she finds out about herself – about her own destiny, potential, and more.

How did you meet Luna?

We met while conceiving a flash fiction story about a haunted house, a few years ago. Needless to say, the flash fiction story didn’t work out. I fell for Luna, for her heart break, for how she clings to hope, no matter what. The flash became a novel, and then a series. Luna asks questions, which I need to answer.

Tell me a little bit about the cover art for you book. Does the pink moon mean anything?

Derek Murphy created this for me, interpreting my wishes perfectly. The background is Co

rnwall, where the fate of Esta is sought. The moon is integral to the plot, and the colour wash is more about the glow from Luna’s eyes than the moon itself. We tried the colour glaring from Luna’s eyes, but it looked more Sci-Fi than urban fantasy, then. So he washed the whole cover in mauve instead, and I love it.

I chose all the images used, and it took quite a few model choices till I found her. She is exactly Luna. And the model has many poses to choose from for the next books in the series. It was important to me to have the same model on each cover, to add consistency to the fantasy hidden within, but also as a marketing tactic, I suppose.

I see that the book is the first in a series. Do you know how many more there will be? Have you finished any of them?



In my mind, I have three in total, although I’m not restricting myself. The next one is Finding Luna, and the next is Finding William (subject to change). I wrote the second book for NaNoWriMo (2011), but due to major re-writes of Finding Esta last year, I’ve had to practically re-write Finding Luna too (most of which was done in NaNoWriMo (2012). It still needs work to secure an absolute first draft, but it’s pretty much ready for re-writes/edits to begin. I really need betas and critique partners if anyone’s interested J

Convince me to read your book. Don’t give me a blurb, just speak from the heart. What makes this book special?



As I’ve said, the book is all about Luna. She is a special character, but also achingly normal. She doesn’t want to be ‘special’, she doesn’t want any of it. She pines for a normal life, for normality in all forms. Alas, normal is something she will never be, so she must find peace within the chaos.

If you enjoy ghostly happenings, vampires who are both good and bad, but never saintly, alien copy-cats who are much more than they seem, hybrid were-vamps with psychotic tendencies, coming of age trials and tribulations, a little romance in it’s most delicate form, then read my book. There are lots of supernatural and paranormal characters to get to know, who you’ll learn more about throughout the series. Plus, it’s only $2.99, so if you hate it, it’s no great loss. J

Of course, I’ll be gutted, but I have to accept that not everyone will love it, like I do.

Tell me something interesting or unusual about yourself.

Not sure if this counts, but I’m terribly anti-social, insular and reach exhaustion quickly if placed in social situations too often. Especially if I’m not with my husband, who is the only person in the world with whom I can be myself.

Bipolar disorder runs in my family, so it quite possibly has something to do with that. Or perhaps I’m just shy?

I’d go with shy, but that’s because I feel the same way about social situations. It can make marketing stressful. I find the Internet helps because I can write all my answers down, with time to think about them., instead of having to come up with something quick and clever. How do you feel about promotion, on the internet and elsewhere?

It’s all part and parcel of being a writer, these days. I would rather write all the time and not be burdened by the marketing side, but I accept it as a fundamental part of the industry. And I agree, this is all so much easier online. If I had to do interviews live on TV or radio, I don’t think I’d be able to do it. Really… shivers are travelling up and own my spine even thinking of it. But there is a wonderful support network online, for writers. We are close, especially indies.

Does your family (especially your husband) support your writing career?

My husband is trying his hardest to read my book (bless), but he hates most fiction. He reads very little, the odd biography, or thriller. But he’s not a fan of reading anything other than car magazines or the newspaper. Crazy, right? Despite this, he supports me and tells his friends I’m going to be famous. He jokes about getting his screen-writer buddy from L.A to read it, and get it on TV or in cinemas Bless him, he’s proud but clueless about the realities of the industry. He doesn’t like it when I’m lost in my world and want to ignore everyone and everything else, though. He insists on quitting time at around 7pm (now actually, we are about to eat – whoops!). We eat dinner, then have circle time on the sofa and watch movies or a favourite series, with Bobby, our German Shepherd.

WHERE ARE YOU FROM, ORIGINALLY? (I NOTICED THE BRITISH SPELLINGS, AND WANT TO CLARIFY FOR MY MOSTLY AMERICAN AUDIENCE THAT THEY ARE NOT TYPOS. REALISE IS SPELLS WITH AN S INSTEAD OF A Z IN THE UK AND AUSTRALIA, COLOUR HAS A U…)

Where are you from, originally? (I noticed the British spellings, and want to clarify for my mostly American audience that they are not typos. Realise is spelled with an s in the UK and Australia, colour has a u.)

Yes, I’m British, and originate from the West Midlands (Sutton Coldfield and Lichfield). My proofer is always sending me spelling errors, but they’re not wrong, really.

Who makes the best tea?

Twinnings J

Thanks! It’s been a pleasure having you here.

Characters Welcome

I’m teaching a new writing workshop this Monday at Savvy Authors. This one involves coming in character to add depth and breadth. We’ll ask one another questions and dig deep. Details here. 

Follow Friday #138

Confess your blogger sins! Is there anything as a newbie blogger that you’ve done, that as you gained more experience you were like — oops?

 

The biggest mistake I made at first was simply not hooking up with other bloggers. I just kind of put my stuff up there and wandered away, wondering if anyone was reading it. They weren’t! I hope some of you are now.

 

Coming May 15, 2013

Rereading Wheel of Time: The Eye of the World (Book 1)

It seems so many years ago that I got caught up in this larger than life series. I discovered it during my college years, nearly 15 years ago, and read the books faithfully through book 9. And though I had complaints, I didn’t give up on it even then, I simply could not remember enough of the intricate details to proceed to book 10 when it finally came to print! The books are looonnnngggg, and I could not bring myself to reread the series in anticipation of each new title, as I easily did for the Harry Potter series. So I waited.

I was still waiting when news or Robert Jordan’s death came. I have been saddened by the death of a few favorite authors over the years, but never quite like this. He had begun something wonderful, and never had the chance to finish it. Yet he had made arrangements for someone else to finish. When I get to the final three books, I will find out for myself if Brandon Sanderson did them justice. He had his work cut out for him.

Last month, the final book in the Wheel of Time series, A Memory of Light, was released. I have 5 new books to read, and 9 old books to reread, so for the next 3-4 months, these will be the focus of my review blog. I doubt I will have time to read anything else!

To those who have never read the series but who read epic fantasy, The Eye of the World may not stand out much from the crowd. Going back to the beginning, when Rand and his friends were simple country folk, was nostalgic for me. There are so many details in this series that I was surprised how many I had forgotten, but I had not forgotten that the world was about to get much, much bigger for Rand than the Two Rivers, and that his innocence would not last long.

The first book is a quest — or more of a flight, really. They spend much of the time fleeing bad guys rather than seeking anything. It is well-written, richly described, and the stakes are high.

The seeds of what will come are already being laid out, but that is something best appreciated in a reread. It might be better appreciated in a reread that takes place within a decade of the first read, because so many of the details slipped through my fingers.

One of the things I like about this series is that as big as the story becomes, it does begin with a simple shepherd boy fleeing dark creatures to try to save his own life, and to lead them away from the friends and family he loved. My recollections have me liking some of the subsequent books better, but they do rely on this foundation, and it supports them well.

I don’t read much epic fantasy. I read more when I was younger, but these days my interests have shifted. Yet I enjoyed rereading this book. The series is a huge undertaking, but I remember it fondly enough, and am currently enjoying it enough, to willingly set aside my normal reading for months in order to tackle 14 700+ page novels. If that doesn’t tell you what I think of these books, nothing will.

I recommend them. I don’t know to who, exactly — certainly anyone who likes epic fantasy, but if you’ve never given the genre a try, this is the best of it.

Rating: 5/5

Title: The Eye of the World

Author: Robert Jordan

ISBN: 9780812511819

Published November 15, 1990

Tips for Writers: The Perfect Crit Group

Not all critique groups are created equal. We all know that to improve as writers, we need to find that perfect balance — the reader who knows how to be honest and constructive, the one who can point out our flaws without fatally wounding our muse. Yet reality rarely offers that perfect balance. Most crit groups pander. They tell us, “This is very good!” when they don’t mean it. They think they’re being nice, when in truth they’re being cowards, and they are hurting your chances for success.

You want to hear the brutally honest truth? The one I hope helps you without destroying your muse? It’s up to you. You have to exercise just enough objectivity when it comes to your own work that you can step back and think, “Hm. This is the first thing I ever wrote, so it seems strange that nobody found anything at all wrong with it.” You also have to have enough pride to step back and think, “That was harsh. I’m sure this needs improvement, but telling me to give up doesn’t help.”

It’s up to you to know which criticism to believe, and which to discard. It’s up to you to figure out which changes are necessary, and which are simply one reader’s opinion. It is up to you to stay true to your vision, while embracing new ideas. It’s up to you to know when to ditch a crit group in favor of another.

In the end, it is entirely up to you. Great stories aren’t written in committee.

The worst part is that even after you find that perfect critique group, you can’t stay with them forever. The perfect group becomes less perfect over time as their perspective becomes stale. You have already implemented every improvement they know how to suggest to you, and you can anticipate what they will say. When you start writing with a single crit group in mind, it’s time to move on and start all over again.

Of course that, too, is up to you.

The trick to finding the perfect critique group lies, not in the members of the group, but within yourself. I know how to recognize enemies of my muse — panderers and destructive critics alike. If I need an ego boost, I’ll send mys stories to my parents, but otherwise I don’t ask people’s opinions if I already know their answers. If you’re serious, neither will you.

I wish you the best of luck with all you do!

Book Review: Alien Proliferation

This series manages to remain engaging as our heroine, Kitty, gives birth in a rather dramatic (melodramatic?) way. Her husband, Jeff, survives her labor pains — barely. Then, of course, all heck breaks loose. An old friend from high school barely escapes goons intent on killing her, there are traitors who need unmasking, and evil pharmaceutical companies are testing drugs on unsuspecting victims.

So basically, more of what you’ve come to expect if you’ve been reading this series. If you’re liking it, you’ll like this as well.

I do just feel the need to say that Kitty’s breastfeeding experience seemed incredibly odd to me, even given that she had a half-alien baby and her own body seemed to have been genetically modified by the experience. Nursing often strikes me as odd in fiction — usually glossing over early challenges and turning supply into a simple matter of inflated/deflated boobs. (Feelings of fullness are not necessarily indicative of milk availability.) The torpedo analogy utterly failed for me, but maybe Kitty had a severe oversupply.

In the midst of all this, there was some flat-out incorrect information, and I wanted to set the record straight. The book suggested that milk could be stored for up to two weeks in a freezer. Um, WHAT? In a deep freeze, it’s good for up to a YEAR. (six months to a year, depending upon certain factors). In a regular freezer, it’s good for 3 months. Heck, it’s good in a refrigerator for up to a week, and on the counter in a normal 70 degree room for 4 to 8 hours (so not as much urgency to get it on ice as suggested). So I honestly have no idea what the “up to two weeks in a freezer” bit was about — very strange. Almost as strange as the fact that in a single session of pumping, a woman with a newborn (meaning milk supply is only just being established) was able to pump enough milk to be away from her baby for many hours.

Rating: 3/5

Title: Alien Proliferation

Author: Gini Koch

ISBN: 0756406978

Published December 6, 2011

The Hot Seat

One of my favorite things to do with my characters is to tie them up, shine a bright light on them, and ask them difficult questions until they squirm.

Okay…not literally. Although I often picture them that way in my head.

You can’t always accept the first thing a character tells you as gospel truth. I hate to stereotype, but characters like to hold out on you. If you let them get away with it, they’ll revert to cliche and archetype. To get to the real truth, you sometimes have to ask them the same question over and over again, maybe in subtly different ways, until they start spilling their guts for real.

Why? Why? Why!

The first answer won’t surprise you. The third answer might.

The Next Big Thing – A Blog Hop

1) What is the working title of your next book?

My “next” four books have already been written and will be coming out back to back to back starting in May, with Cassie Scot: ParaNormal Detective. The rest of the books in the series are Secrets and Lies, Mind Games, and Dreamer.

As for what I’m working on right now, I have two ongoing projects. The first is a spin-off of the Cassie Scot series (which is complete at 4 volumes), involving a minor character who demanded a story of her own. At the moment, it has an embarrassing placeholder of a title, Cry of the Wolf. Ouch! Go ahead, I can take it! The other book I’m working on is called Dreamwalkers, which may also turn into a series, although right now I’m just focusing on finishing a rough draft.

2) Where did the idea come from for the book?

I was on the floor with my (then) nine-month-old daughter when I thought of Cassie. I was having a dry spell. I had finished The Immortality Virus three months earlier, but was feeling a bit burned out on writing and I wasn’t thrilled with any of the ideas I had been playing with. So I decided to take a year-long writing sabatical. Something about taking the pressure off must have freed my muse, because I didn’t make it a year. Three months later, on the floor with my daughter, it popped into my head: What if, instead of writing about the all-powerful sorcerer (which EVERYONE does), I write about someone in a magical world with no magic at all?

3) What genre does your book fall under?

Urban fantasy, paranormal, romance, mystery, coming of age … Oh, I assumed you meant genre(s)!

4) Which actors would you choose to play your characters in a movie rendition?

Oh no! Not the movie question. I don’t have an answer, and for once, I don’t want to make one up. (I did for my first two books.) I got to know Cassie from the inside out, so it’s not like I pictured a famous actress when I wrote her. If I’m ever lucky enough to see this dramatized for the big screen, I will trust the people in the movie industry to cast her — they’ve got to know more about picking an actress than I do. Whoever it is will need enough talent to play both Cassie and her mom, because they look so much alike.

5) What is the one-sentence synopsis of your book?

The ungifted daughter of powerful sorcerers is trying to build a normal life for herself when she is pulled into a paranormal investigation and tempted by a handsome sorcerer.

(And may I add that the three-sentence synopsis is TONS better? )

6) Will your book be represented by an agency, a publisher or will it be self-published?

Twilight Times Books, a small but wonderful press that prides itself in uncovering talented authors, has once again agreed to publish my new book. They published my first two novels, and have agreed to publish the entire Cassie Scot series.

7) How long did it take you to write the first draft of your manuscript?

The first draft took about three months. I was in the zone! Granted, I rewrote it three times after that, but the first draft took no time at all.

8) What other books would you compare this story to within your genre?

I wouldn’t. I don’t want to sound like this is an absolute original — I fully recognize and admit that the magical world is an amalgam of every urban fantasy novel I’ve ever read (so check out my goodreads profile for ideas), but the character…she’s not your typical tough chick. She’s not a bad-ass. She’s smart, compassionate, and brave, but she’ll have to use wit rather than strength, and I can’t think of another urban fantasy novel in which that is the case. Jim Butcher once wrote a high fantasy series in which the main character, Tavi, didn’t have the magic the rest of the world had, but he went someplace completely different with that character and that story. So I’m afraid I don’t have an easy, “If you liked this, you’ll like my books.” Give it a shot. It might surprise you.

9) Who or What inspired you to write this book?

This book, in particular? I’m not sure. I know I quickly and thoroughly fell in love with the character, so maybe Cassie herself inspired me to write it. I have to say that I have never, not before or since, felt as drawn to write a story. I HAD to write it. It wouldn’t let me put it down. I very much hope to find another such story one day, but may end up feeling blessed to have found the one.

10) What else about your book might pique the reader’s interest?

The first paragraph:

“My parents think the longer the name, the more powerful the sorcerer, so they named me Cassandra Morgan Ursula Margaret Scot. You can call me Cassie.”

And the beautiful cover painting:

Book Review: Cold Days by Jim Butcher

Dresden is BACK! Not that I was worried, but after the disappointing Ghost Days (#13), I was eager to reconnect with the Harry I knew.

Cold Days is the 14th (yes, that’s right) novel in an impressively long series — impressive because I’m still eager for more! This series doesn’t stagnate. With each new book, Harry changes. It’s not just that he faces tougher bad guys (although he does), it’s that the personal cost is high, and never more so than in this latest volume.

Harry is the winter knight. The mantle of winter is dark, predatory, and primitive, and it wants Harry to do things that he normally wouldn’t do. His thought processes changed subtly in this book as he took on the mantle, and as a result this wasn’t as light/witty a read as usual. There was still some humor, but not like before. This was darker.

The beginning was a little bit slow, although entirely necessary. Once it got revved up, though, it moved as quickly as any of the other books — forcing Dresden to work against a goal that puts the “dead” in deadline.

I highly recommend this book to Dresden fans, and I highly recommend the series to fantasy fans. (Start with book 3, the first 2 are meh.) That said, this was not my favorite in the series. I wasn’t disappointed per se (come on, I did give it 4 stars), but I’ve liked others better. If I had to point to one problem, I’d say it’s increasingly Karen Murphy. I never loved her as a character — she annoyed the heck out of me in the first couple of books (did I mention you should skip those?) and though I started warming to her, I’m going back the other way. She’s not making sense to me as a character any longer. She’s going up against these uber bad-guys without anything of particular note. I can believe that she’s a tough cookie and good with a gun, but I’m having trouble buying that she’s anywhere close to the same league as these super beings. Also, I’m struggling with her age. She had to have been close to 30 in the first book, and given that each one takes place at least a year later, she’s got to be in her mid-forties by now. As a normal human being, she’s past her physical prime. Plus, the (very minor) romance with her missed its moment about 6 books ago. It’s too late. I’m past it, and they need to be too.

But mostly, good book! It is impressive that after 14 books in a series, I am still very much game for more.

Rating: 4.5/5

Title: Cold Days

Author: Jim Butcher

ISBN: 0451464400

Published November 27th 2012