L.E. DeLano's Blog, page 31
August 21, 2017
He steps in closer again . . .
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. . . invading my personal space to the point where I can feel his breath fan my lips.
“But I do love a woman with gumption,” he adds.
#LoveLines
From: TRAVELER
Topic: “Breath”
August 15, 2017
I don’t remember much about the wounding . . .
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. . . other than being very young. When mother finally peeled the bandage off, she turned my wrist this way and that, clucking her tongue.
“Now that’s a proper scar,” she’d said, as if the twisted, red knot of flesh were a prize. A badge of honor—even though I was too slow to avoid being wounded.
As if I could find some pride in being weak.
August 14, 2017
I’m On Vacation!
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And by “on vacation” I mean sitting on a beach . . . and writing, of course. I’ve got an epic to revise and poke away at.
See ya next week!
August 11, 2017
I’ll Be Appearing At Barnes & Noble’s Teen Book Festival!
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I’m very happy to announce that I’ve been invited to take part in B-Fest, the teen book festival at Barnes & Noble!
Look for me at their store in Plymouth Meeting, PA on Saturday, September 23rd from 2pm – 4pm. I’ll be signing copies of TRAVELER, answering questions, and if the printing and publishing gods are smiling, I may have have an ARC of DREAMER to give away!
August 9, 2017
I open my eyes, giving up on sleep . . .
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“Silent as the grave” doesn’t seem to apply to Brin. You’d think a ghost as old as him would be tired of his own voice by now.
#1linewed
Topic: “Noise”
From: WIP
August 7, 2017
“Off with you, now,” he says, reaching for the wheel.
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I stroll to the bow and the ship rises and dips gently beneath me as I drink in the fresh sea air and the waning sun on my face.
#LoveLines
Topic: “Cruisin'”
From: DREAMER
August 3, 2017
When Irish Ears Are Smiling
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Welcome to my life. I am researching and writing my next book, which is based on the gods of ancient Ireland – the Tuatha Dé Danann, to be specific – and name pronunciation is really making my head swim. Not to mention, many of the names of these gods have gone through several iterations, and can be spelled a half-dozen different ways, depending on when in time they were written about, or where in Ireland you find the narrator of the story.
Saoirse Ronan did a wonderful bit on the pronunciation of Irish names on the Stephen Colbert show a while back. Skip to 2:40 to see it – you’ll get an idea of what I’m dealing with, here.
So when you’re writing a book, an exotic-sounding name is cool, but if you make it really rough to pronounce and your reader may get so hung up on pronouncing it, it can take them out of the story and we don’t want that.
God bless my Irish ancestors. But I have to find a happy medium here, and that may mean going with more modern versions of some of these names. I’m sticking as true as I can to most of this, but this is mythology, and many of these stories have multiple variations, so I’m building on a theme and writing a new path for these overly-voweled character names to trod upon.
So far, so good. I’ll keep you posted.
Sláinte!
August 1, 2017
Tidbit Tuesday: A First Glimpse Into Another World
In TRAVELER, Jessa learns that her dreams – the source of most of her imaginative writing – haven’t all been fantasy. In fact, they’ve been a window into all the alternate realities she is capable of traveling to. She’s still not sure at this moment if she really believes it, though, and she decides to dig a little deeper . . .
I’m hit with sudden inspiration and open up my dream journal, reading back over the entries there. It’s not surprising but definitely unsettling. I may not have known Finn’s name, but reading my notes brings the memories of the dreams back, and I connect the fragments easily into a picture of him. Or, more accurately, of us.
I’ve detailed walks in the park, trips to the beach, quiet meetings in coffee shops, and bizarre memories of swimming with dolphins, eating fruit the size of my head, even dancing someplace with palm trees in the background.
And if he’s telling the truth, I’ve lived every bit of it.
As long as I can remember, I’ve been told I have a wild imagination. I’ve had vivid dreams and lost myself in daydreams, and I always felt that was a sign that I was meant to be a writer.
When I was four, my family visited the aquarium. My parents were, as usual, chasing after my six-year-old brother, who had no interest in fish but did have a strong obsession with running up and down the handicap ramps by each set of stairs.
He took off at one point, knocking into a stroller and nearly tipping it over. My mother ran over to make sure the baby inside was all right and apologize to the parents, and my father took off after Danny.
I wandered over to the dolphin display, watching the light behind the giant wall of glass filter through the water, daydreaming about swimming with my dolphin friends in an underwater dolphin kingdom, when something odd happened.
I stood there, spellbound, staring with wide eyes at the girl staring back at me, and I was mesmerized by my own reflection.
They found me there nearly ten minutes later, and my mother scolded me even though Danny was the one who ran away first. She only remembers today that I was lost and scared her half to death.
But I remember these two things:
First, that Danny, as always, had all their attention.
Second, the way my hair rippled and swirled in my reflection on the other side of the glass . . .
TRAVELER takes Jessa on a whirlwind journey through multiple realities and multiple versions of herself, all while running from someone intent on destroying every single one of her. It ends on a nail-biting cliffhanger, but no worries – DREAMER is coming Spring of 2018!
July 28, 2017
Bibliophile Soprano Reviews TRAVELER!
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Happy Friday! And it’s a definite happy day for me thanks to this terrific review from Fay at Bibliophile Soprano!
She opened the review with this gem:
“I am in love with this book.
It’s a beautiful kind of love – the one you never saw coming.”
And of course, I am in love with Fay’s review! Thanks so much for reading and shouting me out! And if you loved TRAVELER, oh honey, are you ever going to love DREAMER.
July 25, 2017
Come See Me At Towne Book Center Tonight!
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Just a reminder that I’ll be sitting in with The Young Creatives club at Town Book Center in Collegeville, PA on tonight from 5 – 7pm, and we’ll be discussing the building of magical and fantastical worlds!
Let’s build a better world (or worlds!) together!
