Sheila Deeth's Blog, page 35

Write What You Know?

A friend was told she shouldn't write for teenagers as she didn't live with any. But she was a mother of teens, now grown, and a teen herself, not so very long ago. Why shouldn't she set her tales in the teen-hoods she knew for today's teens to read? After all, we're not a different breed; we're not even history. We're just the same people growing in different worlds.

That, of course, led to my wondering about historical fiction - not that my teen-hood is history yet. Some authors build on fam...

Bees, rattlesnakes, mountain lions and inspiration

Today I'm delighted to welcome some wonderfully pampered pets and their authors to my blog. The latest Pampered Pets book, Raiders of the Lost Bark, is being released as you read... so go buy it, or, if you'd prefer, peruse this post to learn where the inspiration comes from first - bees, rattlesnakes and mountain lions anyone? Then buy the book.

So, without more ado, welcome, dear authors, to my blog -- but do I call you Sparkle, Mary or Anita? Grab a coffee and a gluten-free cookie, then ple...

Does Picture Perfect Help Children Read?

I've read and reviewed quite a lot of picture books recently. Long years ago - I'm not counting how many - I read them just for pleasure, not for review. And sometime in between I read those pictures for sons as well. Lots of pictures. Lots of books.

I remember "reading" picture books with no words. Sons would help me tell the story - well, except for oldest son who determined it wasn't a story if it didn't have printed sets of letters in it. The books were hard work though. The boys would ima...

When a Sister Goes Missing... Read Last Vacation

Today I'm delighted to welcome author Sarah Elle Emm to my blog, as she tours the internet with b00kr3vi3w Tours. She's brought her latest book, Last Vacation, with her, and a fascinating interview with the protagonist, Megan - PLUS a great giveaway, so don't forget to read the whole post, down to the end!

About the Book: Seven days have passed since Naples real estate agent Megan MacKenna has heard from her twin sister, Madeline, who was vacationing on the beautiful, Caribbean island of St. Cr...

What Makes The Author Write The Book?

Today I'm delighted to welcome Bruce Edlen, author of Jazz Mergirl, to my blog. He's the author of a Jazz Mergirl, the biography of a teen activist - a book I'd certainly love to read. And here he's volunteered there to answer the question he's asked most often - Why did he write the book? I love his answer. And I know I shall love the book...

Titled Jazz Mergirl , this is the biography of Jazz Jennings, well-known teen activist and star of TLC’s I Am JazzTV docuseries. In 2014, Jazz was chosen...

How do we recreate the real world in fiction?

Recreating ancient history can be fraught with interpretations. But recent history must surely be just as hard. They tell us we should "write what we know" but I'm always afraid what I know might be skewed by what I thought I knew. If I painted the world I grew up in, I know my brothers would disagree. My older brother has already complained about things I said as a young adult that I can't even imagine wanting to say. There again, in fiction, the world is seen through a character's eyes. So...

How to Paint Rain

Today I'm delighted to feature Annette K. Larsen, author of Painting Rain, on my blog. It seems to have been raining for weeks, so the title seems kind of appropriate to the season. But what does rain mean to you? Is it just the sky crying?


ABOUT PAINTING RAIN
How do you heal your heart after tragedy leaves you broken? When the person you loved didn’t deserve it and they can’t earn your forgiveness because they’re already dead? How do you move on, and heal, and love?

If you’re Princess Lorraina,...

Can Faith, Science, History and Politics Co-exist in Fiction?

I've been trying to find a definition of fiction. Someone says it's the art of imagining the unreal then rendering it real enough with words for others to believe in it. I'd try "temporarily believe." I wouldn't want people permanently convinced that my fictional worlds were true. But the intended audience surely has something to do with it. Someone writing a fictional account of a saint's life, with the intent to inspire, will presumably write for an audience that can be inspired by saints....

How Do You Build A World?

I hope my Hemlock stories find a home sometime. They're set in a world not too far from our own, where four teens learn the power of magic in their dreams. But why do their parents want to keep them away from the wizard school, and who is the white lady?

Of course, if Hemlock finds a home, I'll have to finish writing the series, as well as writing everything else, and book reviews. And I'll have to worm my way back into their curious world.

But for now, I'm about to start on the next of my Five...

Have you entered the world of female protagonists?

When I was ten, fourteen seemed like the perfect age. I started writing stories whose protagonists were always female, of course, and always fourteen... and most probably always me. When I was fourteen, I decided it really was the perfect age so... when I was fifteen, sixteen, seventeen, I continued writing stories whose protagonists were fourteen-year-old females. I really wanted to stop the clock, but life moved on.

There's a limit, of course, to how many life experiences a fourteen-year-old...