L.E. DeLano's Blog, page 19
September 19, 2018
Ahoy, Me Hearties! It Be A Talk Like A Pirate Day GIVEAWAY!
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The charming Fay at Bibliophile Soprano is hosting a Talk Like A Pirate Day giveaway featuring your favorite multi-verse traveling Irish pirate, and a whole treasure chest of pirate booty.
CLICK HERE TO CAST A WEATHERED EYE UPON THE TREASURE AND ENTER THE DRAWING!
September 17, 2018
Great Weekend At Keystone Comic Con!
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Keystone Comic Con – I have to be honest here – was a mixed experience. For whatever reason, the con organizers sank a lot of time, money and effort into wrangling some great celebrity guests, but not a lot of time, money and effort into one crucial thing: marketing.
In other words, there weren’t a lot of people there. Certainly not enough for many of the vendors to have made a profit. (Many of the vendors I spoke to hadn’t even recouped their exhibition costs).
And it’s a damn shame. The con staff was terrific, the moderator they secured for our panels was simply outstanding (shoutout to Amanda!), the setup was professional and eye-catching, and this could have been a rocking con experience. But people have to know about it.
Honestly, if I hadn’t been invited, I would never have known it was going on. And I’m local! I listen to Philly radio stations every morning and afternoon on my hour-long commute. I’m subscribed to area subreddits on Reddit. I work in the near suburbs and pass two dozen billboards every day. Nada. I think I may have heard one radio spot. How was this not given a lot more buzz? Especially with some of the first-rate stars they brought in? No one I mentioned the con to at work, in my neighborhood, or on Facebook had any idea it was happening, other than hearing it from me.
But you’ll notice I said it was a great weekend in my title, and it was! We had a respectable amount of attendees to the Friday panel, and they were really engaged. Sunday yielded a handful of people in attendance, but that was okay – we had a great, relaxed back-and-forth conversation instead of a more formal panel and our audience was amazing to interact with. So that smile is genuine up there. It was a great experience.
I just wish more people knew they could have experienced it with us.
September 14, 2018
Heading To Keystone Comic Con? See You There!
And if you can tear yourself away from Joe Manganiello and the casts of Trueblood and The Office (among other squee-worthy celebs), be sure and drop into my panel today at 3pm, where we’ll be discussing world building, and all that entails!
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September 7, 2018
“From Reader to Author – Making the Leap” at Keystone Comic Con!
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Here it is, my 2nd panel announcement for Keystone Comic Con! Join me and my fellow MacMillan authors, Shani Petroff and Devon Taylor on Sunday, September 16th as we discuss the impact of online writing communities and all things YA!
KEYSTONE COMIC CON
From Reader to Author: Making the Leap!
Sunday, September 16, 2018
2:30-3:30 pm
Room 11AB
September 4, 2018
I’ll Be Paneling At Keystone Comic Con!
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This is only one of the panels I’ll be sitting on. The other is Sunday, September 16th and will feature fellow members of the MacMillan Swoon Squad as we talk all things YA – details on the time when I get it.
I’m thrilled to be in such great company on both panels, and unlike San Diego Comic-Con, these panels come with book signing ops afterward!
So come on out, Philly! I’d love to see you!
August 31, 2018
August 27, 2018
THE SOUL KEEPERS Is Finally Here!
Join me at Towne Book Center in Collegeville, PA tomorrow night for the much-anticipated book launch of my fellow Swoon Squad author, Devon Taylor and THE SOUL KEEPERS! You won’t want to miss this one!
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August 20, 2018
Fabulous Writing Tip I Picked Up At Comic-Con
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I’ve been meaning to drop this before now, but I’ve honestly been using it, and it spurred a whole flurry of writing activity.
I was privileged to catch a panel featuring award-winning writer/editor Marv Wolfman. Marv is the writer/creator of Blade, Black Cat, Bullseye, New Teen Titans, Deathstroke, (and many more), and has a successful writing career that spans over fifty years. Any time you can sit at the feet of a master, you should take it, and I’m so glad I did.
The title of the panel was “Writing 101: What to Think About Before You Start Writing” and Marv shared this awesome tidbit. When he begins to craft a story, he creates a chart for himself detailing how each major character feels about each other. I’ll give you a mockup here with four of the Avengers:
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This helps you stay on track with character interactions, and also reminds you to sew in foreshadowing where necessary. Why does Natasha have such foreboding about having to go talk to “The big guy?” Steve and Tony need to get in each other’s face to set the stage for a coming civil war, so we need their irritation with each other at the forefront.
Another thing Marv mentioned was doing a similar chart with each character’s secrets. Some won’t have any. Some may only have secrets from certain others. How they got those secrets, how they’re revealed, who reveals them and why – that’s how a story unfolds. For instance:
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You’ll notice Steve Rogers has no secrets. They guy isn’t big on subterfuge. Everything is black or white with him. Thor isn’t sharing with anyone all the potential threats out there in the rest of the universe because he’s so confident he can personally protect Midgard. Natasha is hiding her attraction for Bruce early on, and then hiding her forced sterility. I put that in parentheses because it’s not revealed until midway through the second movie, but it colors her interactions. When Bruce rocked that baby cradle and talked about how he can’t always get what he wants during their first encounter, she filed that away as a potential relationship issue. And her interactions with Clint’s kids take on a whole new level with that secret as a subtext.
This has been enormously helpful, especially if you’re looking at a story arc that moves through multiple books. It’s a great writing exercise and I know you’ll find it as invaluable as I do.
August 14, 2018
I’m Appearing At Barnes & Noble In Exton, PA On August 25th!
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Just in time for back-to-school, and what a great time to pick up a copy of TRAVELER, which is a Keystone To Reading Secondary Book Award Finalist for school year 2018-19! And of course, since TRAVELER ends on such a cliffhanger, you might as well pick up a copy of DREAMER so you’re not left hanging!
Hope to see you there!
July 27, 2018
FanArt Friday: It’s In The Details
I just adore this pic, courtesy of @carafoshizzle. All the little details – the rivets and latches on the trunks, the background items, the nautical pieces, the color of the candles and geodes – it’s just perfect!
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