Kate Avery Ellison's Blog, page 21

Romeo + Jane Eyre = Major Literary Shenanigans, People!

Happy Tuesday, everyone!

It's Valentine's Day, the day we come together as a culture with our significant others, friends, or family to celebrate love, romance, red and pink balloons, and all the other glitzy lures of this Hallmark holiday. (Or, if you're cheap frugal like Captain Nemo and me, you might be celebrating Valentine's Day on WEDNESDAY because that is when all the chocolate is on sale and the restaurants are less crowded).

Anyway, in honor of all this February 14th lovefestery, I thought I'd play a little game. I saw this idea on BookRiot a month or so ago, and then again yesterday someone brought up the subject on KindleBoards. It's...

Fictional Character Mashups, baby!

It's pretty simple. Take a character, any character, and pair them with another character from a completely different book. Explain your reasoning about why you think they'd make a good match. You aren't limited to the same time period or genre, either. It's fun!

I thought I'd pick some literary characters and play match-maker! I've even included obnoxious helpful shipper names for you guys!
 
Sydney Carton (A Tale of Two Cities) and Emma Woodhouse (Emma), AKA Symma

Symma!Sydney Carton was one of my first literary crushes. He is handsome, brilliant, clever, caustic, and desperately in need of love. I wept like a baby at the end of ATOTC when I read it in high school, and I think it's high time Sydney found some love. He loved Lucie, but I never really cared for her--she was a little too much "conventional sweetness and happy homemaking" for my taste. I think he needs a woman with a little fire, someone as sharp and clever as he is, someone who will appreciate his intelligence while also inspiring a little gentleness in him. Emma is clever and snarky while still being a bit of a "girly girl," which I have a feeling Sydney likes given his attraction to Lucie. I think they could really enjoy each other's company.

Alternate option: Elizabeth Bennet, AKA Syzabeth (those Austen ladies... what can I say?)


Katniss Everdeen (The Hunger Games) and Valek (Poison Study), AKA Katlek 


Who (besides Peeta and Gale) do you think would make a good match for this fearless heroine? She's tough as nails and capable of taking care of herself, but I think she needs someone who could be a good partner for her, equal to her strength and skills. She also probably needs someone who can deal with the fact that she's been through so much, plus gracefully handle her celebrity status. I think Valek fits well because he is clever and ruthless like her, but her fierce love for her family would probably soften him a little. Since Valek was a former assassin, Katniss won't have to take care of him in dangerous situations, and as the right-hand man for the Commander of Ixia, he won't be star-struck by her fame, either. Win-win situation.

Romeo (Romeo and Juliet) and Jane Eyre (Jane Eyre), AKA Jomeo


Okay, this might seem like an odd pairing. But I've always felt that Juliet was disappointingly passive. Rather than run away with her new husband that she's secretly married, she stays with her family while he is banished and then FAKES HER OWN DEATH rather than fess up to to her 'rents that she's been, well, previously claimed. I can't say that I really blame the girl, given her age, the time, and the circumstances, but... I think Romeo might have benefited from a slightly more stalwart lady. And Jane is pretty spunky in a way that doesn't completely defy all convention, AKA she's clever, so she'd be totally sneaky about it too. I can totally see her climbing down that balcony to Romeo and running off with him under the cover of night.

Harry Potter (Harry Potter) and Katarina Bishop (Heist Society), AKA Karry


Okay, I know what you're thinking. This list is getting more and more ridiculous. But admit it. Harry falling for a muggle would really throw a wrench into things. Would it even work? I confess I'd really love to find out. And Kat is no ordinary muggle, either. She's a brilliant thief--practically magical. She's smart, spunky, and cool during a crisis. And if you're dating the Boy Who Lived, that last quality is a MUST.

Anne Shirley (Anne of Green Gables) and Huck Finn (The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn), AKA Hanne (with an "e")


Shut up, people. They would be AMAZING together. She's totally the spunky dreamer, and he's the scruffy bad-boy who would probably find himself simultaneously repelled and fascinated by her. It WORKS.

TEAM HANNE WITH AN E.

Somebody needs to make me a .gif with that, STAT.


Happy Valentine's Day, folks!


--------------------
 PS


(upon reading the draft of this post)

Captain Nemo: I think you've used the word "spunky" to describe every girl on this list.

Me: Duh. That's because SPUNKY LADIES ARE THE BEST!!

This Always Happens To Me...

A lifetime of reading, and yet somehow I've never learned to not start a book before bed.

My sleep schedule hates me.

Guest Post and Giveaway! Win an e-copy of PROMISING LIGHT!

Kate: Today I'd like to welcome Emily Ann Ward as part of the blog tour for her new novel Promising Light. Emily was featured previously in my Author Spotlight series and is also the author of the YA sci fi novel Finding Fiona. 


~NOTE: At the bottom of the post, you can enter to win a free ebook version of Promising Light! Scroll down to the end for details!!~

Emily: Hey, everyone! I'm happy to be on The Southern Scrawl as part of my blog tour for my fantasy novel, Promising Light. The story revolves around a young noble named Grace. She's in a secret relationship with a man named Dar, and she goes through quite a bit in the story.

I was looking through Grace's Google history. This girl looks up some strange things. . .

- What is a shape changer?
- Shape changers from Shyra
- How to impress a prince
- How to escape a kidnapping
- Prophecies
- Curses
- Breaking a curse
- Avialie shape changers
- Are the Protectors evil?
- History of conflict between Avialies and Protectors
- Contraception
- Fertility potions
- Leaving behind a comfortable life
- Are the Avialie ancient texts real?
- How to avoid arrest warrants
- Shape changers impersonating your loved ones
- Tigers
- Communicating with tigers
- How to convince your family you weren't kidnapped this time
- Directions to Kleisade
- Mumbar Jungle
- How to survive quicksand
- Love potions


Sounds like an interesting life, right? Here's part of the first chapter:


***


   Grace loved the vineyard. It stretched over miles and miles, and she and Dar could disappear
for hours without anyone ever finding them. Today it was warm, the sun baking down on the
grapes, causing the fragrance to surround them.
   She lay on a blanket Dar had brought, staring up at the clouds. Dar was next to her, putting
flowers in her blonde hair. His olive-colored skin was dark from the summer sun, and his black
hair, in need of trimming, curled at his ears. The two of them were hidden in a remote corner of
the vineyard where grape vines touched the ground next to them.
   "If I move, will I ruin your masterpiece?" she asked.
   "Yes, you definitely will," Dar said. "So don't move."
   "What are you doing to me?"
   "You look like a nymph." Dar pulled his hands back and gazed intently at her. His dark eyes
traveled over her hair, her face, her breasts. "I wish I could freeze this moment in time and carry
it around with me."
   Grace took his hand, raised it to her lips, and kissed it. "I really want to kiss you on the
mouth, but I'm not moving."
   He smiled and bent down. He kissed her, entwining his fingers through hers. He moved
to lay on top of her. Waves of warmth that had nothing to do with the weather went through
Grace. She held on to his hands tightly as he brought them up over her head. She felt completely
exposed to him, physically and emotionally.
   He pulled away after a moment and kissed each of her cheeks.
   "Dar," she whispered, "I don't want to keep sneaking around."
   His smile faded. He let go of one of her hands and ran his fingers along her jaw. "I know. I
don't either."
   "So?" she asked, raising her eyebrows.
   "Your father wouldn't approve of me."
   She huffed. "Do you even know why he doesn't like your family?" She didn't understand her
father's hostility toward them, considering Dar's father was a respected governor. Things like
wealth and status mattered to her father, who was the king's general. Grace had only met Dar's
parents a few times, and they seemed like good people who ruled Shyra well. His mother had
always been friendly to her at social events.
   Dar didn't meet her eyes. "I have an idea."
   "You do?"
   He kissed the line of her jaw softly, sending shivers down her spine. "I think so."
   She wouldn't be distracted. "Well, what is it?"
   "Shyra doesn't have a very good reputation."
   In court, Shyra was mostly spoken of as a poor state overrun with fake magicians and crime.
She'd only been there once and it seemed like a typical farming state, not much worse than the
seedy areas of Renaul. If someone as good as Dar came out of it, the place couldn't be horrible.
   He kissed her neck, and she closed her eyes.
   "I don't know," she said, her voice shaky. "It seems like more than that."
   "Maybe you should ask him."
   She laughed. "He probably doesn't even realize we know each other."
   Dar raised his head, meeting her eyes. "You probably know me better than anyone."
   She furrowed her brow. "I don't know. . ." She trailed off as she ran her fingers through his
soft curls. "It seems like there's a lot about you I don't know."
   "You know the important things," he said, his voice quiet.
   She didn't say anything for a moment. She wished that were the case, but she doubted it. It
hurt because she knew the opposite was true: Dar knew her better than anyone. He had some
competition with Jocelyn, her closest friend since childhood, but Grace felt like she'd always
hidden something from her, as well as from her parents and her brother. Not one specific thing or
an unseemly secret about herself, just something about her very nature, as though she may not be
good enough.
   She'd never had those fears with Dar. She'd given all of herself to him in the last six months,
even if it hadn't been wise. Their relationship had started off playful, but she'd fallen for him
quickly. He knew everything about her, from the birthmark on her stomach to how she liked her
tea to her secrets, fears, and dreams. Yet Dar still had his secrets and a past that he tried to keep
hidden.
   "What about what happened two years ago?" she asked.
   Dar's face tightened. He lay down next to her, resting his head on her shoulder. He'd talked
about some kind of tragedy that happened two years ago in Shyra, but he'd never given her the
details. She never pushed him, but now she wanted to know.
   "My parents took in two girls when I was four," he said. "They were like my sisters."
Grace touched the back of his head, her eyes wide. She'd always thought Dar was an only
child.
   "Two years ago. . .my family got into some trouble, and a lot of people were killed. One of
my sisters nearly died, and the other disappeared. I haven't seen her since."
   He'd lost so much. She feared saying anything in case he withdrew again. She ran her fingers
through his hair. His body moved softly against hers as he breathed in and out.
   "I want to see her again. I want to apologize for everything."
   "What would you say?" she whispered.
  "'Sierra, I'm sorry. I never should have let. . .'" Dar trailed off. He sat up suddenly, his back
to Grace.
   She sat up and felt flowers fall from her hair. She touched his shoulders, and he tensed.
   He got to his feet and kept his face averted from her. "I want that stuff to stay in the past,
Grace. I don't want it to come between us."
   She pursed her lips. Couldn't he see that keeping things from her would come between them?
   After standing, she started to gather up the blanket. "Well, then, you shouldn't say things like
that."
   "Things like what?"
   "'You know me better than anyone.'" His gaze lingered on her as she folded the blanket. She
looked at him, and he crossed the distance between them.
   "I wish I could tell you everything." He put his hands on her shoulders. "But I know it's
better for both of us if I don't."
   She stepped away and picked up the blanket. "We should go. We've been here for two hours
already."
   Dar took the blanket from her, and she picked up her bag. Maybe she was being
unreasonable. She took his hand and leaned toward him. Why did he feel like he couldn't tell her
things about him? She'd told him everything about her.
   They walked silently to the end of the vineyard where they came from, the opposite end of
Sir Henry's manor. The grapes twisted around wires and poles on either side of them. Dar took a
few grapes and handed some to Grace. She played with them, running her fingers over the dusty
surface.
   "Do you talk to Lady Rebekah about your past?" she asked, her eyes on the ground.
   Dar laughed. "No. Rebekah and I don't talk about anything deep at all. When I talk with her,
I think about you. When I kiss her, I think about you."
   He thought about Grace, and yet he was courting someone else. Not her. She hated to think
of him kissing someone else, especially Rebekah Mortren. Flighty, shallow Rebekah.
   They reached the spot where they usually parted ways. "I'll see you later?" Dar said.
   She nodded and glanced down at their hands. "Nothing in your past could change the way I
feel about you. I care about you. Not what's happened to you."
   He kissed her, holding her face in his hands. He pulled away and rested his forehead on
hers. "I know."
   She stepped back. "Goodbye." She turned and left. A few minutes later, she looked over her
shoulder, but he was gone. He did that often: just disappeared. She worried he'd do that to her
someday, just leave her behind without a thought.


***


You can read more of Grace's story in Promising Light. Enter the ebook giveaway below, or
check out the paperback giveaway on Ritesh's blog!

Click here for the entire blog tour schedule.


And don't forget about the gift card giveaway: the more posts on the tour you visit and comment
on, the more entries you have to win a $25 Amazon or Barnes and Noble (your choice!) gift
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And The Winner Of THE FAULT IN OUR STARS Is...

The John Green's The Fault in Our Stars giveaway is now closed. Thank you to everyone who participated! I really love having giveaways, and hopefully I can have an international one soon.

But now it is time to announce the winner.

Drumroll, please...

...

...

...

...

And the winner of the signed (and Hanklerfished!) copy of The Fault in Our Stars by John Green is...

Kate Weber!!

She won with her "Spread The Word" entry. The winning entry was picked with random.org.

Congrats, Kate! I will be contacting you shortly to get your shipping info.

Everybody else, thanks so much for entering. I'm sorry I don't have more copies to give away!

How Some People Think Books Are Written

I swear, I spend more time changing stuff and doing stuff over than anything else combined... but I guess before I can write the book, sometimes I have to figure out what it's not.

PS ~ If you haven't entered to win a SIGNED copy of The Fault in Our Stars by John Green, you can do so here! Giveaway ends Tuesday, January 31st!

Win a FREE SIGNED COPY of The Fault in Our Stars by John Green!!

I HAVE ANOTHER GIVEAWAY FOR YOU GUYS!
Their tour bus!
~NOTE: If you don't want to read my ramblings about meeting John Green in person, you can simply skip down to the end and enter to win a free signed (and Hanklerfished!) copy of John Green's newest book, The Fault in Our Stars. The entry widget is at the bottom of the post!~

FIRST, THE STORY!

So about two weeks ago, I had the enormous privilege of meeting John and Hank Green when they came to Atlanta on their Tour de Nerdfighting.

John Green reading a chapter of his new book.About John Green:

John Green is an award-winning YA author and YouTube celebrity (and hilariously, he was an author before he was an internet celebrity although usually it's the other way around). He has been called the JD Salinger of this generation--a totally deserved designation, in my opinion--and his books have won honors like the prestigious Printz and Edgar Allen Poe awards. In addition to penning incredible works of literary fiction for young adults, John and his musician brother Hank have an incredibly successful YouTube channel called the Vlogbrothers, which has over 600,000 subscribers and which is #36 Most Subscribed of All Time channel on YouTube. His brother, Hank Green, is a musician and the co-founder of DFTBA records, among many other awesome jobs like running Ecogeek.org.

Hank singing about HogwartsIt was a very memorable night. My husband went with me, and although he hasn't read any of John's books and has only seen a few of their vlogs (I am the avid nerdfighter in this family), he had a really good time too. They put on a complete show for a packed-out auditorium of readers and Vlogbrothers fans (there were like, 800 of us)--John read aloud from his The Fault in Our Stars, answered questions, and waxed really eloquent about the themes of the book. Hank played a bunch of his songs and sang. They did a bunch of other stuff that would be nearly impossible to explain if you don't watch the videos regularly, like sock puppets and a shock punishment to the person who went over time on the questions (Hank got shocked). It was a great experience. Then they signed books.

I stood in line for almost 3 hours because my husband and I were towards the back of the auditorium, but when we got up to the table John and Hank still took about 30 seconds to a minute to chat with us despite the fact that they must've been completely exhausted. They were so friendly and charming--John complimented my husband on his "awesome beard," and Hank and my husband chatted about Weird Al while I mostly quietly freaked out that I was so close to both of them. (Captain Nemo was not star-struck like me, as he isn't super familiar with them and so he just treated them like a couple of cool geeks that he might have met in line at a GameStop).

We had to each purchase a copy of TFioS to get into the show, so I ended up with two signed copies of The Fault in Our Stars. I don't need both, obviously, so I thought I'd give one away to you guys.

A word about The Fault in Our Stars:


This is my favorite John Green book, hands down. John has this incredible ability to write Very Important Literary Novels that are somehow hilarious, endearing, and accessible even while they're winning all kinds of lofty awards and facilitating deep philosophical discussions. Whenever anyone complains about how shallow or frothy YA lit is, I always point them to John Green. I truly think his books will be studied in classrooms in the future.

The Fault in Our Stars is about a girl named Hazel who is sixteen and dying of cancer. She meets and falls in love with Augustus, a seventeen-year-old guy who's had bone cancer but recovered, losing only his leg to amputation. The story takes an honest and unsentimental look at death, dying, love, and grief--John Green actually wrote TFioS after his one of own friends died of cancer about two years ago. I don't normally cry in books that are about tear-jerker subjects, but I definitely got a little sobby during the latter half of this book. The story takes several unexpected turns and the ending left me in tears (but in a good way).

(Note--for those concerned about this sort of thing, all John Green books fall under the "incredibly mature" YA section for language and sexual discussion/activity. He is an incredibly frank author, although this one probably had the least amount of strong language in it, only one F-word that I can remember.)

GIVEAWAY RULES!

So, here's the drill. I have one hardcover, signed (and Hanklerfished, a drawing of an angler fish compliments of Hank Green) copy of the book to give away. Due to the size and weight of the book, this is definitely a US ONLY giveaway (sorry, international readers! I'll have some kind of ebook giveaway soon, I promise).

I didn't make any of the entries mandatory, so you can just pick whichever ones you want to do. Each task that you complete gives you more chances to win!

The giveaway concludes next Tuesday, and the winner will be chosen using Random.org.



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The Weird Parts of YouTube

Of course I am ALWAYS a diligent, dedicated author and I always work very hard and never procrastinate.

*cough*

But SOMETIMES I like to waste time on YouTube. And then this happens...

YOUTUBE: A SAGAOr, Faces You Make While Watching YouTubeA Musical(not really)

I am bored. I think I'll browse cute videos on YouTube.
*CLICK*
Aw, a cute kitty doing something cute.*CLICK*
Double the kitties! Double the cute!!*CLICK*
Can't... handle... the... cute!! MOAR, I say, MOAR CUTE!*CLICK*
I've been *RICKROLLED* ? ...Very funny, internet.  *CLICK*
Back to the cuteness... Oh, what is this a video of?
*CLICK*
That was not cute. That was... painful looking... What is this "weirdest thing ever" video?*CLICK*


Is that Photoshopped? Please tell me that is Photoshopped... *CLICK*
IS THAT AN ALIEN???


*CLICK* GIANT CRABS ARE REAL?? THESE THINGS EXIST??? WHAT IS SEEN CANNOT BE UNSEEN...! Congrats, YouTube. You have broken my brain.
Has anybody else every gotten lost in the weird part of YouTube?

It is scaaaaarry...

SOPA and the Internet Blackout

In case you weren't aware, today numerous websites like Wikipedia, Reddit, ICanHazCheezburger, etc are participating in a blackout to protest SOPA (Stop Online Piracy Act).

I don't exactly have enough regular content to participate in a "blackout," since I don't post every day, but I would like to use my blog to raise awareness and point people in the direction of more information.

I am against piracy, yes, but I think this bill is a very bad idea, and I am very concerned about the impact it would have on the internet and the expression of ideas. Instead of solving the problem, I think this bill will create a myriad of new ones.

Read the information and decide for yourself.

What Is SOPA?

More About SOPA and PIPPA

Sign The Petition

Please take a few moments to educate yourself about this issue today!

Some of My Favorite Quotes About Writing

"I want to write books that unlock the traffic jam in everybody's head." ~John Updike
"It should be noted that there are two blissful things about writing novels: making them up and seeing them finished." ~ Ann Patchett
found here"Every secret of a writer's soul, every experience of his life, every quality of his mind is written large in his works." Virginia Woolf
"There are only two or three human stories, and they go on repeating themselves as fiercely as if they never happened." ~ Willa Cather

"It was books that taught me that the things that tormented me most were the very things that connected me with all the people who were alive, or who had ever been alive." ~ Jack Kerouac 
"The beautiful part of writing is that you don't have to get it right the 1st time unlike, say, brain surgery." R. Cormier
found here"Storytelling reveals meaning without committing the error of defining it." ~Hannah Arendt

"If there's a book you really want to read but it hasn't been written yet, then you must write it." ~Toni Morrison
"Writing books is the closest men will ever come to child bearing." - Norman Maile


"If I don't write to empty my mind, I go mad." ~Lord Byron

You and me both, Lord Byron. You and me both.
What's your favorite quote about writing?

The Worst Enemy to Creativity

"The worst enemy to creativity is self-doubt." ~ Sylvia Plath.

Hi, guys.

I read this inspiring post Sunday and wanted to share. It's called What If Your Biggest Naysayer Is Yourself?

This is a huge struggle for me personally. Internally, I am always dealing with these kinds of thoughts while I'm writing or editing a book. They're the kind that say what I write will never be good enough... The kind that kind that tell me I'm going to fail... The kind that tell me to quit now while I'm ahead.

They are insidious and hurtful and they kill my creativity, like Ms. Plath points out above. That quote of hers has always resonated with me deeply... maybe I should frame it and stick in on the wall above my desk.

Self-doubt. Fear. Sense of worthlessness.

In 2012, I'm not going to let those thoughts stop me from writing.

Does anybody else have an inner critic like mine?