Judith Graves's Blog, page 13

UMS ebook cover

So much to be thankful for this holiday season, my family and friends, my loyal (though spastic) pups…not to mention this month has been a bevy of book cover goodness. I'm pleased to reveal the cover for the ebook edition of Under My Skin which is supposed to be released within the next few months. Sorry, no official date yet – but a cover! We're halfway there.

I love that it matches the design work for Second Skin and Skin of My Teeth. Now I'm off to celebrate with a Thanksgiving dinner. Fellow Canadians….I hope you enjoy some fantastic food and the company of your families!

 

A Ghostly Point of View

It's a crazy month of promotion here in my world and I apologize in advance for all the Crossroads Blog Tour and Spirited Anthology posts, tweets, Facebook updates, etc. However, if you're following the promo, you'll have loads of opportunities to learn about authors, writing and, of course, win SWAG.

October / Halloween is my favourite time of year, no more pesky bees or wasps, I get to embrace sweater weather and all things ghoulish that come out to play. Heck, today, October 8th, is even World Zombie Day (http://www.worldzombieday.org). What's not to love? Mr. Graves and I are plotting the decor for our front step in anticipation of trick or treaters, and at school I'll be working with a grade four class on a special project I call The Ghost Diaries. (See the SPIRITED tie-in there? I know, I'm shameless!)

Within our Ghost Diaries we'll be exploring both journaling and creative writing by capturing a day in the life of a ghost. Students will brainstorm different topics relating to ghosts – where they exist, what they do, what they eat, how they feel, what they hope for, dream of, etc., and then write journal entries based on a ghost they've created.

Before the actual writing starts we'll be brainstorming about key writing elements: setting (haunted places, haunted houses, haunted objects), character development (what they haunt and why, different kinds of ghosts – pets for example, shadow ghosts, ghosts that only appear on certain days – ghostly quirks, etc), plot (what kinds of things usually happen in ghost stories and how can we work that into diary format), vivid language (appealing to 5 senses, action verbs, spooky words…). Students will complete the project by drawing a picture of their ghost and including it with their diary entry as a completed page.

I'm thrilled to have the opportunity to work with classes this way – part of the benefit of being an author AND a library technician in a school library. Essentially this project is an exploration of point of view, getting under a character's skin and viewing the world – even a single day – from their unique perspective. It would serve any writer well in terms of character development. If you've got a character brewing, I suggest you try writing a diary entry from their point of view – who knows what skeletons you'll uncover? Bwahhhaaaa…

Gotta Secret?

This week I'm hanging out on Janet Gurtler's blog, chatting about secrets, high school and skinny jeans. Janet is the author of two contemporary YA titles, IF I TELL and I'M NOT HER, and her writing has been compared to that of Sarah Dessen. If you missed my interview with Janet, check it out HERE.

Cover Reveal: Skin of My Teeth

In addition to a fabulous month of blog touring with and organizing The Crossroads Blog Tour and promoting the release of Leap Books' YA anthology, Spirited: 13 Haunting Tales, in which I have two short stories (one written with the amazing Dawn Dalton), I'm crazy-excited to announce the cover for the third book in the SKINNED series is here!

Crack out the bubbly or the Chai tea, whatever your poison. You might want to turn up the lights, this one is a bit…haunting.

Blubs-R-Us

I'm at that crazy stage in a book's life when it is sent around to other authors in hopes that they'll perhaps love it enough to provide a book blurb for use on the cover flat or inside pages. While a nail-biting, chocolate consuming process, I'm thrilled to reveal the two quotes Second Skin has received thus far.

The first comes from Amanda Ashby, a crazy-cool YA author from Down Under I initially met a few years ago when the Wolfy Chicks interviewed her for our blog. Since then we've kept in touch and shared a laugh, besides, we both work in libraries and write on the side – clearly we're both insane. I thank Amanda for reading an early draft of Second Skin and still getting it. Here's her quote:

"Smart, sassy and more than a little scary, Second Skin hits all the right notes. I adored reading about Eyn and her attempts to deal with her life!" ~ Amanda Ashby, author of Zombie Queen of Newbury High and Fairy Bad Day

Go forth and purchase Amanda's books, you'll really DIG them. To learn more about Amanda, check out her blog, and follow her on Twitter: @amandaashby

The next blurb comes from a critique partner and YA author with a bevy of ultra hush-hush projects on the go. She's a young writer to watch. Seriously. Before you know it you'll all be diving into Dawn Dalton novels head first and not ever wanting to resurface. Learn more about Dawn on her blog and follow her on Twitter: @dawn_dalton. I'm honoured to have earned such a cool quote from one hell of a tough crit partner and awesome friend:

"If tasked to recruit a monster-hunting army, I'd want Eryn on my side – her tongue is as sharp as the athame she brandishes. In Second Skin, the second book in Judith Graves' thrilling SKINNED series, Eryn  goes head-to-head with a chilling new paranorm, has lingering feelings for two of Redgraves' hottest boys, and an endearing cast of family and friends. Prepare to be engrossed – Graves digs in her claws and doesn't let go until the mesmerizing cliffhanger end." ~ Dawn Dalton, author of Thread of the Past

Dawn's spooktacular tale, Thread of the Past, and a story we co-wrote, Death Warrant are two of thirteen chilling tales Leap Books is making available via an anthology. SPIRITED: There's No Rest For The Wicked unleashes this October 31st and features other best-selling and debut YA authors, including Maria V. Snyder, Candace Havens, Linda Joy Singleton, Shannon Delany, Kitty Keswick…and more –  it's gonna be a scream. The best part? Proceeds go to literacy-based charity, 826 National.

Chilling Tales Warm Up to Literacy

The weather has shifted. Leaves are taking on their rusty red and burnt orange autumn hues. The wind has bite. What better way to spend a cool evening than settling in to read some chilling tales that are guaranteed to crank up your internal body temperature?

13 tales to be exact.

This fall, Leap Books is releasing their first young adult fiction anthology, SPIRITED: There's No Rest For The Wicked. The ebook version of SPIRITED will be available on October 31st and the print edition is set for March 12, 2012.

SPIRITED includes haunting stories of young adult authors: Shannon Delany, Maria Snyder, Candace Havens, Linda Joy Singleton, Kitty Keswick, Dawn Dalton,  myself, and many more! My steampunk short story, STRANGEWAYS VS THE WRAITH, as well as a tale I co-wrote with Dawn Dalton, DEATH WARRANT, will send shivers down your thrill seeking spines and get that pulse of yours knocking. DEATH WARRANT features teen zombie hunter, Hope, a character based upon the non-fiction series Dawn and I have been furiously writing, MOST-WANTED MONSTERS.

I hope you consider purchasing the ebook, or print edition, for SPIRITED isn't just about ghosts and ghouls, it's about fanning the spirit of literacy. Leap Books is donating all proceeds of their sales from the anthology to 826 National.

"826 National is a nonprofit organization that provides strategic leadership, administration, and other resources to ensure the success of its network of eight writing and tutoring centers. 826 centers offer a variety of inventive programs that provide under-resourced students, ages 6-18, with opportunities to explore their creativity and improve their writing skills. We also aim to help teachers get their classes excited about writing. Our mission is based on the understanding that great leaps in learning can happen with one-on-one attention, and that strong writing skills are fundamental to future success."

Storystarter Pic and Giveaway

It's my second day back at school and it's wonderful to get back into the real world, with real live people to hang out with instead of my imaginary friends. To celebrate I have a Twitter giveaway contest going on today ONLY. ReTweet my contest notices to enter to win 1 of 2 copies of UNDER MY SKIN. Follow me on Twitter: @judithgraves.

Beyond contest goodness, I'm left wondering where the hell did the summer go? What happened to all those sleep ins, mid day naps in the hammock and lazy days on the beach? I think I managed two of each. Ah, such is the life of a writer: slaying deadlines, finishing short stories and WIP first drafts, indulging in a script-writing binge with the great Dawn Ius, plotting for the next book in a series and drinking far too much coffee than is good for one's teeth and perhaps kidney function.

But I did make it to Europe and that trip will be fodder for writing well into the future. I often lug my camera around and snap photos of anything I find inspiring. In hopes of inspiring YOU to write today, below is a pic I took in the Paris arts district of Montmartre, once home to the likes of Picasso and van Goth. Click on the image to see it at full size.

Why would an artist leave his/her supplies for anyone to steal? Did someone or something scare them off? You tell me:

Oh, and you might find the view from the top of the Montmartre hill inspiring as well:

A Conversation with The Steampunk Scholar

As a burgeoning steampunk fan I was thrilled to speak on several panels with The Steampunk Scholar at last year's Pure Speculation Festival in Edmonton. Mike Perschon, the man behind, The Steampunk Scholar, is indeed scholarly – a doctoral student at the University of Alberta and a professor of English at Edmonton's, Grant MacEwan University.

Mike knows his stuff and the stuff he knows is cool. So cool, that after a short discussion with my high school, social studies teacher husband, he'd convinced him to use Boilerplate: History's Mechanical Marvel, an alternate history, steampunk creation, in his classroom.

We've kept in touch and will hopefully sit on a panel together at this year's PureSpec as well. In the meantime, I've continued to devour titles in the genre and have even written a steampunk short story which will be published in a YA anthology this October, Strangeways vs The Wraith. In hopes of earning the genre more fans and providing you with a quick and dirty education, here's a Q&A session with The Steampunk Scholar on all things STEAM:

Your blog: http://steampunkscholar.blogspot.com/ is a wealth of information (and everyone should read it till the wee hours!), but could you give us the Coles notes version on what defines the steampunk genre? Any cliches / norms?

Early on in my research, I realized there wasn't an awful lot that defined the steampunk as a genre. It seems more useful to me to define it as a style, an aesthetic, that gets applied to genres. That's why we've got steampunk adventure, steampunk fantasy, steampunk romance, etc. But my definition of steampunk as a style contains three, possibly four elements. First, steampunk evokes the nineteenth century, either by setting the story in an alternate version of that time period, or by positing another time or place that feels like the nineteenth century in some way or another.

Second, steampunk is retrofuturist, which is to say, us imagining how the past imagined the future. So Jules Verne and H.G. Wells aren't steampunk – they're futurists, looking ahead. Steampunk looks back. Third, steampunk most often includes technofantasy – technology that seems scientific, but is really based in fantasy. For example, despite the physical reality of how airships really operate, steampunk often invents better materials or a special fuel that permits air travel in a technology we abandoned for pragmatic reasons. That technofantasy is often industrial in nature, but that seems to be saying the same thing as the first point, so I haven't decided if that needs to be a separate aspect or not.

What do you consider to be the first steampunk novel?

Michael Moorcock's "Warlord of the Air" in the UK, and "Morlock Night" by K.W. Jeter in the US. James Blaylock is arguably the first to write steampunk in the US though, with "The Ape Box Affair."

Here's a clip of Mike reading with author, Gail Carriger – whose Parasol Protectorate series is a delicious blend of steampunk and the paranormal.

Can you give us a bit of background on this appearance?

Gail and I met while speaking on a panel in 2008 at a Steampunk convention in Sunnyvale, California. We've remained friends by correspondence, phone calls, and meeting up at steampunk events. At the Nova Albion Steampunk Exhibition in 2010, I suggested the idea of doing a reading together, where she read female voices and the narration, and I read the male dialogue. She liked the idea, and since we were going to be at Steamcon 2010, we decided to do it there. The organizers of Steamcon were nice enough to give us a timeslot to do it, in a little salon room with an intimate crowd. It was a lot of fun, especially because my niece, who is a big fan of Gail's, was in attendance.

Any steampunk films we should be watching? (And am I alone in thinking Sherlock had such potential, but fell a little short?)

I don't think Sherlock Holmes fell short of anything except expectations for it. I think it's very good, for what it is. It's a good example of why I speak of steampunk as a style. There is definitely an application of the steampunk aesthetic in that film. As to steampunk films you should be watching, I'd recommend Katsuhiro Otomo's gorgeous anime Steamboy. It's slow moving in spots, but it's an incredible technical achievement, if nothing else. Chris Nolan's adaptation of Christopher Priest's The Prestige is also noteworthy, as it is the only steampunk novel to be adapted into film yet.

If you haven't watched The Mysterious Explorations of Jasper Morello on YouTube, you need to. It was nominated for an Academy Award for best animated: it's a mix of Poe, Lovecraft, and perhaps Alien, or The Thing. Mike Mignola's animated pilot for The Amazing Screw-On Head is also excellent, and available on YouTube as well. You can buy both as DVDs, but that's only necessary for those who love image fidelity. The City of Lost Children also has steampunk elements, and is a brilliant movie, if you don't mind subtitles. For TV series, I recommend the Anime series Last Exile, which has a new edition coming out shortly. Finally, I should mention that CityTV in Toronto is doing a steampunk spin-off from Murdoch Mysteries. You can check out the trailer here.

Where are your next speaking engagements?

I don't have anything solid lined up, but there's a very good chance I'll be at Steamcon in Seattle in October, and Pure Speculation here in Edmonton in November. Steamcon is dependent upon research travel funds. Those don't always get approval, but I'm hopeful. Steamcon's an excellent event.

I had some other opportunities this summer, but had to turn them down, as I'm working hard to get a first draft of the dissertation completed, so I can focus on just enjoying writing for my blogs, and Tor.com. Plus, I want to get back to writing fiction, so I'll likely have questions for you soon enough, Judith!

Of course! Can't wait to read your work. Thanks for the steampunk lessons and I look forward to hanging with you in November.

Featured Author: Heather McCorkle

I'm delighted to introduce you to YA fantasy author, Heather McCorkle, a fantastic purveyor of all things YA and writerly. Heather's blog outlining her journey to publication is a brilliant read and has many loyal followers. She's been supportive of my own adventures as a debut author and it's a treat to return the favour and champion her work.

Heather's debut novel, The Secret of Spruce Knoll will be released this month and she is busy editing the sequel.

 

Blurb:

Eren Donovan is about to discover she has access to a power that is latent in most humans. As if being orphaned and forced to live with an aunt she's never met wasn't bad enough, now she'll have to figure out what being a channeler means. Worse yet, the fate of channelers is tied to the fate of the earth. Because it is slowly dying, so are they.

The tiny Colorado town of Spruce Knoll is populated solely by channelers from four different countries who immigrated there when they were driven out of their own lands. Being half-Mayan and half-Irish, Erin doesn't exactly fit in. But not long after arriving she meets Aiden, an Irish boy who makes the ability to channel the energy of living things seem more fascinating than frightening. Complications arise when she and Aiden realize both of their parents' deaths were not accidents. They become drawn into a dangerous game that could end in either justice for their parents' murders or their own deaths.

The Questions:

You're a great supporter of other debut novelists, interviews on your blog, promotion of groups like The Elevensies, the Class of 2k11. How important to you is fostering relationships with other writers

It's everything to me. When I was first starting out in the industry (I won't say how many years ago it was hard to find information and social networking was really just getting started. There was little to no support for authors and at that time it was still a very lonely profession. I want to make it easier on those who are in the industry now. I love supporting them in any way I can.

You've started the Twitter chat, #WritersRoad, can you fill us in?

I participated in a prior chat that filled that slot, and unfortunately it went away because the moderator wasn't able to keep it up. There were so many people that got together every week for it, I hated for us to lose all that the chat offered. So, editor and writer TS Tate and I started the #WritersRoad in its place to help support writers and authors.

How do you see social media (Facebook, Twitter, blogging, etc) featuring in the lives of authors?

Social media is everything now days, it's where people are at. I've connected with so many wonderful authors, like yourself, that way, that I can't imagine not having it. It has closed the circle and made the lonely writer's life in a supportive and amazing community.

I know you're a lover of lore, your blog features different creatures each week. How much research did you undertake for The Secret of Spruce Knoll?

So much that it's staggering to think back on it, honestly. The story involves four very different cultures, Romanians, Tibetans, Irish, and Mayans. I got to learn about each of their cultures and it was amazing. The research was mountainous but it was worth it, it made the story so much richer.

On your blog you were very open about your decision to take your manuscript out of the hands of an agent and back into your own, via self-publishing. Can you tell us about this gutsy decision?

It was hands down the hardest decision of my life. Giving up 'the dream' of being traditionally published is not an easy thing, especially since I had two small, traditional presses that wanted it. After a lot of research I weighed what they could do for me, against what Abbott Press (Independent) could do for me. Unfortunately for the small traditional presses, they just couldn't compare. Abbott (Writer's Digest) has put something very unique together and I'm glad to be a part of it.

Do you have any events coming up which you'd like to plug?

I do, thank you! I have a massive blog tour, Tour Of Secrets, that is launching on August 8th. There will be many fun stops in which you can learn secrets about me, my novels, my characters, and writing. Of course there will be prizes too! On August 30th, YA Bound will be hosting a live chat with me to wrap up the tour and dish any final secrets, and there will be prizes there as well!

Thanks so much for hanging out, Heather! Follow Heather on Twitter: @HeatherMcCorkle

Strangeways vs The Wraith

Welcome to the steampunk world of Miss. Amelia Strangeways, necromancer and  ghosthunter living in an alternate version of New York City at the turn of the century. While Amelia's unusual skills aren't common knowledge, this world is rife with a hybrid of Victorian science, spiritualism, and alchemy – her cup of ghosthunting opportunities runeth over.

Too bad the Hunter Council, a secret organization dedicated to protecting humans from the supernatural beasties that stalk the night, does not believe women should have the vote. Or join their league of highly trained ghosthunters.

If Amelia can hone her ability to speak to, control, and reanimate the dead, she just might prove to be a suitable replacement for her father – a high ranking Council member. Perhaps her best friend's debut at The Specter's Ball will provide just the opportunity. She can feel the dead rise to the call Nora's father has sent forth to the spirit realm via a powerful spell.

Nora's ball could be one hell on Earth of a party.

Unless Strangeways can take on the wraiths.

Here's hoping her nemesis, Warren Fox, the Hunter Council's golden boy doesn't get them first.

Strangeways vs. The Wraith is one of thirteen tales written by a wicked blend of young adult authors and is being published by Leap Books in their SPIRITED Anthology set to be released October 2011. The full roster of participating authors has yet to be announced.

"Leap Books is putting together this anthology of 13 ghostly stories to support literacy. All proceeds from the sale of SPIRITED will be donated to 826 National. 826 offers free after-school tutoring, workshops, and in-schools programs because they believe that 'strong writing skills are fundamental to future success.'

SPIRITED will be available October 2011 as an ebook through all the major distributors and in print exclusively through Leap Books to maximize the amount we can give to charity."

I'm thrilled to be a part of SPIRITED and can't wait to dig into the other wicked stories entombed within its pages. As an avid steampunk reader and enthusiast, I enjoyed creating this world and have other adventures planned for Strangeways and her dashing Mr. Fox.

Because Leap Books is right, there's no rest for the wicked.