Sarah E. Morin's Blog, page 8
March 7, 2016
Darkness Reigns – FREE on Kindle today
Jill Williamson is a superb author of Christian speculative fiction, esp for teens. Her book, Darkness Reigns, is FREE in Kindle format on Amazon.com right now. Not sure how long this offer holds, so hurry!
This edition includes the first three parts of the
Kinsman Chronicles
originally released as ebooks.
o Part 1–Darkness Reigns
o Part 2–The Heir War
o Part 3–The End of All Things
The teaser:
The gods are angry.
Volcanic eruptions, sinkholes, ground shakers–everything points to their unhappiness. At least that is what the king of Armania believes. His son, Prince Wilek, thinks his father’s superstitions are nonsense, though he remains the ever dutiful First Arm of Armania.
When a messenger arrives and claims that the town of Farway has been swallowed by the earth, the king sends Wilek to investigate. But what Wilek discovers is more cataclysmic than one lost city. Even as the ground shifts beneath his feet, Wilek sets out on a desperate journey to save his people and his world. But can he do it before the entire land crumbles?
If you get it, write and tell me what you think in a comment below! Happy reading.
February 19, 2016
Art Inspired by Harper Lee
Today we mourn the passing of an American literary treasure: Harper Lee, Pulitzer-Prize-winning author of To Kill a Mockingbird.
This classic novel has inspired millions over the last five and a half decades to scrutinize their views of race, justice, and character. It has also inspired creative artists. This past October, my friend Alys Caviness-Gober and I launched an event called NICE: Noblesville Interdisciplinary Creativity Expo. We selected four classic works of literature and one specific passage from each. Artists of any medium, watercolor, poetry, textiles, glasswork, music, etc., then produced a piece inspired by our selections. Some chose to focus on the passage, some the book as a whole.
Alys and I knew almost immediately we wanted To Kill a Mockingbird in our inaugural list. In honor of Miss Lee, I’d like to share some of the artists’ work with you.
The quote we selected:
“I wanted you to see what real courage is, instead of getting the idea that courage is a man with a gun in his hand. It’s when you know you’re licked before you begin, but you begin anyway and see it through no matter what. You rarely win, but sometimes you do.”
Atticus Finch
Kelsey Bowyer
Artist Kelsey Bowyer describes her work:
My entry is a pen sketch done on a canvas of Atticus Finch holding his gun right before he shoots the mad dog. Atticus doesn’t see this action as heroic, and he doesn’t want his children to think this way either. This isn’t a heroic drawing of heroic man–this is a dull, ordinary moment in the life of a man with an extraordinary mind. The most courageous thing this man can do is stick up for a fellow man. And that is what makes Atticus Finch such an incredible character.
John Gilmore
John Gilmore is a talented musician and owner of Logan Street Sanctuary. “Maple Grove” has a Southern flair to it, a bit of melancholy, a bit of mystery, and it seems to fit the mood of To Kill a Mockingbird.
Jerry Dreesen
Artist Jerry Dreesen talks about his piece, framed and matted acrylic on paper.
Atticus Finch told his children that to kill a mockingbird is a sin, because the mockingbird is innocent, wants only to sing, to bring joy into their lives.
And so, like the mockingbird, Tom Robinson, a “colored man” who has been accused, wrongly, of raping a white woman, defended by Atticus Finch, is an innocent man but was found guilty by a white jury.
Atticus’s children witnessed this miscarriage of justice, and had to come to terms with the reality of the times and how they felt about it then and in times to come.
The dead bird, the gavel from which blood is oozing, the path of the bullet that killed the bird are all symbols of the story.
Tomas Howie
Artist Tomas Howie says about his piece:
True courage is learning from your past…acquiring a library of tools from our experience. We don’t need to yell, we don’t need to fear, we don’t need to attack. We only need to stand in the face of evil and show our courage and resolve. Quiet, firm, undeniable steadfastness in our spirit and ideals.
How has Harper Lee inspired you?
February 1, 2016
Book Giveaway Winner!
In January, we’ve been discussing the following question:
If you were writing a fairy tale crossover, which fairy tale and which genre (Western, horror, sci fi, etc) would you combine?
To get into the theme, I have been enjoying (again) the entire Lunar Chronicles series, with its cyborg Cinderella and computer hacker Rapunzel. In fact, Thorne is swaggering around trying to impress Cress as I type (listening to the audiobooks).
Thorne…sigh…shall I hug you or give you a very hard noogie?
Look for a review of the last book in the series, Winter, soon.
Anyway, now that we’re thinking about fairy tale crossovers, it’s time to announce the winner of the fairy tale crossover idea contest.
And the winner is…
Cadi for her idea of blending Swan Princess and Science Fiction. How would a space villain use science to turn someone (gender-swapped or not!) into an alien creature? And how would that someone turn back?
Would the aliens look birdlike at all, Cadi? Could they fly? Could this explain reports of surgeries during alien abductions? So intrigued!
There were so many great entries! You all really got my own creative juices flowing. Please, please, write these stories, people. Fill my bookshelves!
Winner receives:
Free signed copy of my novel, Waking Beauty
Waking Beauty bookmark
Password to unlock bonus discussion questions on this website
I’ll be contacting you shortly, Cadi, so you can receive your prize. Thanks everyone for playing! Now back to Cress and Thorne…(swoons)
January 30, 2016
Snow White in the Old West and Book Giveaway
I’m tickled to give you a sneak peek at the illustration for “Band of Seven,” which is being republished soon! The talented artist is Aili McGill, Executive Director at Nickel Plate Arts. I thought she captured the adventure and farcical tone of my piece perfectly. Great job, Aili!
So why the axe? And who’s that old biddy with the specs? Well I wrote “Band of Seven” as an editing exercise last winter. Splickety Magazine, which publishes flash fiction, did an issue with a Wild West theme. Since I am the fairy tale lady, I thought the Old West was a natural setting for say, a band of seven female dwarfs? Ones who took a note from temperance ladies like Carry A. Nation and attacked saloons? Splickety published the piece last year, but now I have the rights back to republish, so I am sharing it with a new audience.
I may lack qualifications as a dwarf (I am 6 ft tall), but I have experience as a Victorian temperance lady. Most of them were not militant, btw.
Nickel Plate Arts (a great supporter of artists of all media) will use this rollicking flash fiction piece to promote their upcoming Fairyville Trail. I’ve participated in Fairyville Trail for 3 years now. The event invites artists of all ages from the community to make miniature houses for fairies, which are judged and placed throughout a local park. Too cute!
Live fairies also wander the Nickel Plate Campus, eager to chat and talk up fairy-themed crafts.
Last year coincided perfectly with the release of Waking Beauty, so Nickel Plate helped me launch my first book. In other years I have recited some of my spoofy fairy tale poetry, such as Rapunzel the Hairbrained and Goldilock-Picker.
I’ll let you know more details about Fairyville and Band of Seven soon!
In the meantime, it’s not too late to enter the fairy tale crossover contest!
Just leave a comment here answering this question:
If you were writing a fairy tale crossover, which fairy tale and which genre (Western, horror, sci fi, etc) would you combine?
It doesn’t matter which January blog post you left your comment on – I’ll find it! There have been so many great ideas left so far. I really hope you people write these stories because now I want to read them all!
Winner (selected Feb 1) receives:
Free signed copy of my novel, Waking Beauty
Waking Beauty bookmark
Password to unlock bonus discussion questions on this website
January 24, 2016
INSPY Longlists
I’m happy to announce that Waking Beauty made it into the INSPY longlists. Thanks, you lovely bloggers!
The INSPYs (a name derived from the word “inspirational”) were created by bloggers to discover and highlight the very best in literature that grapples with expressions of the Christian faith. I’m honored a thoughtful nominator understood my grappling! Brierly is funny, but she delves into a little spiritual angst, too. If her journey was relatable to readers, then I bounce up and down in excitement like Nissa. Or Mr. Bounce.
The complete longlists can be found on the INSPY website. For now, let me highlight a few of my sister Enclave authors, who also made the lists. So happy for them!
In the category Literature for Young Adults:
Parvin Blackwater wanted to die, but now she’s being called to be a leader. The only problem is, no one wants to follow.
The Council is using Jude’s Clock-matching invention to force “new-and-improved” Clocks on the public. Those who can’t afford one are packed into boxcars like cattle and used for the Council’s purposes. Parvin and Solomon team up to rescue the people. Instead, they find themselves on a cargo ship of Radicals headed out to sea. What will the Council do to them? And why are people suddenly dying before their Clocks have zeroed-out?
In the category Speculative Fiction:
He’s coming for them. And the kingdom.
Haegan and Kaelyria Celahar are royal heirs of the Nine Kingdoms, but Haegan is physically crippled. What chance does he have against Poired Dyrth, the greatest enemy the kingdom has ever faced, who wields fire with a power none can match?
Their only hope is forbidden: Kaelyria must transfer her fire-harnessing abilities to Haegan. When she does it comes with a terrible price: Haegan’s disability is healed, but only by being transferred to Kaelyria. This decision causes their father, King Zireli, to unleash his wrath against Haegan. Haegan flees the kingdom alone with two impossible tasks: Find a cure for Kaelyria and stop the coming war with the omnipotent Poired Dyrth.
The great city of Thyra has fallen and shadows spread across the land. Rowen Mar, the last Truthsayer, is taken before the Shadonae. But the Shadonae are not who she thought they were, and now they want to claim her as their own. Caleb Tala, former assassin and prince, is now a Guardian of mankind. Exiled from his country, Caleb wanders the desert in search of his mother’s past and clues to who he is. These are the last days of the Eldaran race. Rowen and Caleb must find their way along the dark path set before them by their ancestors: to heal what was wounded and love where hatred grows. But the road is narrow and the darkness beckons. If either of them fails, all will be lost… And the human race will be no more. Book three of the Follower of the Word series.
January 23, 2016
The First Trek through Harry Potter
So in my day job (which I love) I run the youth volunteer program at a history museum. We’re in the midst of interviewing kids to become part of our program. I love breaking the ice by chatting about favorite books. In the past week, I’ve met a surprising number of 10yos who are working their way through Harry Potter for the first time.
Ah, the first reading of Harry Potter… Like setting your footprints into new-fallen snow at dawn.
In a way it is hard for me to wrap my mind around a Harry Potter Renaissance. The epic and beloved books are not exactly new. But these kids haven’t even seen the movies. But when you think about it, a 10yo would have been 5 or 6 when the last HP movie came out.
I enjoyed the movies, but it’s kind of gratifying that we may again have a generation of kids whose first entry into Hogwarts comes through the pages of a book. Are there children out there who have formed their own image of Harry, and he isn’t Daniel Radcliffe? Does Hermione once again have truly bushy hair and those glorious buckteeth?
Are there children out there whose Snape doesn’t look like Alan Rickman? Sigh…
I am a big re-reader. The best books are those that grow with you. I have read my favorite book, Elizabeth Marie Pope’s The Perilous Gard on Halloween every year since the 7th grade. And I swear Jane makes some new slightly snarky observation (back in the day they called this “wry”) with each perusal of Jane Eyre.
But there is something about setting out on your maiden voyage through a great book for the first time. To set sail in a skiff made of paper.
When your mind is unaffected by anyone else’s interpretation. When you discover those new lands for yourself. When you run into perils and plot twists and don’t have the assurance that everything will turn out all right. The stakes are higher, the blood pounds faster, and you truly don’t know what to make of Snape and Sirius and Luna and the whole host. You don’t have every flavor of Bertie Bott’s Every-Flavour Beans memorized, but you can just taste the earwax. That delightful first cringe.
Which book or series do you wish you could read again for the first time? Leave a comment!
Thanks to Tuomas_Lehtinen and radnatt at FreeDigitalPhotos.net for additional images.
January 12, 2016
Part 2 – Very Serious Writing Show
Here’s the second part of my podcast interview on the Very Serious Writing Show about twisting classics and fairy tales. I had so much fun chatting with Daniel Thompson about Into the Woods, crossovers, dystopian comedies, and the path to publication.
Want to win a signed copy of Waking Beauty?
Just leave a comment below answering the following question. Winner selected Feb 1.
If you were writing a fairy tale crossover, which fairy tale and which genre (Western, horror, sci fi, etc) would you combine?
January 8, 2016
Very Serious Writing Show Podcast
November 10, 2015
Coupon for Christmas Gift and Hobby Show
Who feels like Christmas shopping early? I’ll be sharing a booth with several great local authors this week at the Christmas Gift and Hobby Show at the Indiana State Fairgrounds. Because of this, I can share with you this special exhibitor coupon. Come see 350 vendors!
It looks like I won’t be the only one there in a princess costume!
At my particular booth, here’s the author lineup. I am there Wednesday and Saturday:
Wednesday, November 11th, 10:00 AM – 3:00 PM – M. Katherine Clark, Sarah E. Morin, Suzanne Purewal
Wednesday, November 11th, 3:00 PM – 8:00 PM – Nicole Kobrowski, Sarah E. Morin, Suzanne Purewal
Thursday, November 12th, 10:00 AM – 3:00 PM – Suzanne Purewal, Denise M. Rezsonya, Morgan K. Wyatt
Thursday, November 12th, 3:00 PM – 8:00 PM – Terry Hutchens, Suzanne Purewal, Denise M. Rezsonya, Morgan K. Wyatt
Friday, November 13th, 10:00 AM – 3:30 PM – Tia Catalina, M. Katherine Clark, Jillian Jacobs, Roxy Morgan, Suzanne Purewal, Denise Rezsonya
Friday, November 13th, 3:30 PM – 9:00 PM – Debra Knapp, Kenzie Michaels, Suzanne Purewal, Julee Sims
Saturday, November 14th, 10:00 AM – 3:30 PM – Max Bear with Kris Ball, M. Katherine Clark, Hans Cummings, A.D. Ellis, Madalyn S. Kinsey, George Kramer, Angela Nuttle, Cynthia Port, Kate SeRine
Saturday, November 14th, 3:30 PM – 9:00 PM – Max Bear with Kris Ball, Joel P. Blum, Hans Cummings, Terry Hutchens, Kenzie Michaels, Sarah E. Morin, Suzanne Purewal, Francesca Quarto, Morgan K. Wyatt
Sunday, November 15th, 10:00 AM – 5:00 PM – Hans Cummings, Terry Hutchens, Jillian Jacobs, George Kramer, Kurt A. Meyer, Suzanne Purewal, Shawn Reilly, Morgan K. Wyatt, Cy Wyss
October 25, 2015
Michael Erdelen – Immortality for Poets
The Indiana State Federation of Poetry Clubs (recently renamed Poetry Society of Indiana) gathered at McCormick’s Creek State Park a couple weeks ago for fellowship and poems, poems, poems. Here’s a presentation by Lowell, IN, poet, Michael Erdelen, called “Immortality for Poets.” Shown with permission.
It was the 37th such gathering for ISFPC, but my first. What impressed me was the immediate camaraderie of the poets. We come from all corners of the state and write all manner and forms of poetry, yet we share a bond of love of words distilled into that poignant or funny phrase. It was easy to plunk myself down at any table and find common ground with whomever was sitting there. It is also a pleasure to hear the different life experiences each writer infused into his or her poetry. Deborah spent years abroad. Joe discovered poetry after a fulfilling career as a neurologist. Whether people had been writing for 75 years or just a few, we’d all heard that common “Call of the Wild.”
My favorite part was hearing the poetry of others, through the contest announcements, round robins, and presentations. I especially enjoyed the half-hour feature readings by Mary Couch, premiere poet. Mary is from my club, Noble Poets. We have a running gag about the proper length of poems. Hers are pithy and beautifully succinct, capturing just a moment, an essence, in a few fine lines. Mine ramble on and on, and are usually about food.
We all got a huge kick out of Warren Jones, who won award after award in the Annual Contest. Warren sure got his exercise walking up to the podium to read his winning entries! I enjoyed not only the humor of his poems but the voice in which he read them. Warren told me later, “That’s the voice I hear them in. My voice.” Whatever is was that made the magic, it was earthy and charming and fun.
I also fared pretty well in our Annual Contest, and placed in five of the categories. My poem “Calling Hours” won the Grand Prize. I wrote it last year in response to the death of my Uncle Jay.
I’ll be posting highlights from the Rendezvous in future weeks. In the meantime, enjoy the video!
