Sheila Deeth's Blog, page 43

When angels sing for their dinner

Today I get to introduce an intriguing YA novel, I'll Sing for My Dinner, by BR Kingsolver. It has a great cover, revealed today, and a truly intriguing plot, with a cowboy angel and a young girl singing for her dinner, so read on, enjoy the cover picture, and enjoy a bonus excerpt from the book as well, with thanks to Juniper Grove!






About the Author:

BR Kingsolver is the author of the Telepathic Clans series (The Succubus Gift, Succubus Unleashed, and Succubus Rising) and Broken Dolls, a para...

Inspired by Criticism, but will it change my book reviews?

There's always something scary about submitting a story for critique. Last month I submitted a scene from Subtraction to our local critique group. Subtraction is the novel I'm supposed to be writing while I set up blogposts and book reviews instead. It had kind of stalled at 45,000 words. I knew how it was going to end. I even knew how to get there. But something was missing and I didn't know what.

Since I couldn't give our critique group 45,000 words to critique, I gave them 2,500 from near t...

All Work or All Play in Writing?

I reviewed Charles Davis' Standing at the Crossroads a couple of years ago, and soon I hope to read and review his upcoming Pilgrim of Love. If it's anything like Crossroads, I know I'll love it. 


Featuring mad monks, alchemy, and illicit love on Mont St. Michel in the early seventeenth century, Pilgrim of Love is a ludibrium or capricious game, a classic adventure story informed by riddles, myths and conspiracies. It is the eve of the Enlightenment, magic and mysticism are enjoying...

No Robot Dogs in This Garden

Today I'm delighted to welcome author Jane Yates and eleven-year-old Aberdeen from her steampunk novel,  Garden. Jane is touring the internet with b00k r3vi3w tours, and Aberdeen tagged along. She must have heard I have good virtual treats on my blog. So find a virtual coffee, pick your favorite virtual gluten-free cookie, and meet Aberdeen. But first, please excuse me while I pet Jane's dog!

Hi Aberdeen. I read online that you kind of like dragons. Why is that?
I love all dragon, but I gu...

Meeting Toi Thomas

I'm delighted to welcome Toi Thomas to my blog again. She's the author of Eternal Curse, and the keeper of the ToiBox of Words.

We decided to drink virtual refreshments and enjoy virtual cookies while catching up on each other. You can find half our very real conversation here, and the other half over on Toi's blog at http://etoithomas.com/blog/

So, Toi, what's new and special in your life?

TOI: In April I’ll celebrate 10 years of marriage to my best friend. It almost makes me feel old, but...

Real-world fiction offers a nice change of pace

Okay, so I love fantasy--I love the chance to test the world against other realities, to imagine what-ifs and their dire conclusions, and to let my imagination roam. I love children's fiction with its simple rules and well-directed flow. But I love real-world novels too--present day and historical. Which makes sense, since my novels are very real-world, and my children's books (until Tails of Mystery comes out) and very firmly historical. I love real people, living real lives. And I love book...

Fancy some Fantasy?

Do you read fantasy? Do you write fantasy? If the answer to the latter is yes, that should be the answer to the former too. And there's a great collection of fantasy stories from 16 authors just about to go on sale. So mark your calendars - March 10th - get reading, and get your 99 cents worth!

   

Grab your copy now for just .99 cents!
FIERCE: Sixteen Authors Of Fantasy with Mercedes Lackey For a limited time only!

Join epic fantasy legend Mercedes Lackey and fifteen additional New Yor...

Provoking thoughts in fiction

I went to a Christian Writers' Conference last weekend. It was wonderful, uplifting, inspiring, thought-provoking, and, yes, even a little depressing. The main speaker, Bill Giovannetti, was fantastic, funny, and wise - I'll include reviews of a couple of his books below (one read on Sunday, the other on Monday) - and I enjoyed his talks so much I even switched plans for a workshop to hear him again. Thus I began to learn how to write a non-fiction book proposal. And the timing's good. I have...

Run Scared and Win?

Do you write horror? I do sometimes, so I guess that's why I got an email about the Inkitt contest which opens today. I thought I'd share it, just in case any of you would like to enter. If you've tried this free writers platform before, I'd love to know your thoughts. Please leave them in the comments.

And here's the information...

Inkitt, a free platform for writers to cultivate ideas and watch their stories grow, is holding
their second horror writing contest this month! Inkitt is a place whe...

Are Children's Books Quick Reads?

Seriously, it doesn't take long to read a children's picture book. Sometimes it almost takes longer to write a review. But then I read it again, more slowly, listening for the cadence of the words. Does that make me too serious for the job? After all, kids are just looking to feel excited, not to listen. But part of me thinks a smooth cadence will draw children in, while a jolting one might fit with childish distraction. Perhaps that means I should rate smooth reading higher for bedtime and j...