K.C. Sprayberry's Blog, page 123
September 5, 2017
Undersea Adventure
Welcome to Tuesday Blog Share. Today, we’re talking about a science fiction story, set under the sea. That’s right, under the sea. Three teens have very little time to figure out why Venus, the undersea research facility where they live won’t rise to the surface. They also face the specter of no one believing they had nothing to do with the station’s current dilemma. Even worse, Mick once spoke with Venus and she has bonded with him. He’s the only one who can fix this problem and the number one suspect in sabotaging the station.
Get Venus Rising on Amazon
Blurb
Venus—a research habitat in the North Atlantic—learned to communicate with a very special young man long before humans inhabited her decks. Eleven years later, sixteen-year-old Mick Beaumont has long given up on his friend inside the computer. He’s determined to leave what he sees as a loser lifestyle and return to terra firma.
On the day of the scheduled rising, nothing happens as it should. Mick’s at a loss to explain the breakdowns, despite being the prime suspect. Determined to figure out the mystery, he enlists the aid of his girlfriend and best bud, only to have one betray him at a crucial moment.
The fate of the world is in this young man’s hands. Can he stop the eco-terrorists and bring Venus to the surface before planetary annihilation happens?
Excerpt
Pain. Excruciating, unbearable pain drove through her joints and caused her to groan. For a very long time, Venus lay still. She tried to absorb why the miniscule humans who inhabited her wanted to hurt her. What had she done wrong? Why did they want her to remain on the bottom of the ocean? When would this pain end?
She had to do something. Now. Before the other humans suffered. But the men called Julian Marcus and Chief Swenson wouldn’t allow her to notify the right people. Some way—there must be a method she could use to let the scientists know of the problem. How could she contact Dr. Michael and Dr. Katrina?
Blocked. Those men wanted this information kept from them! Why? No sense. Didn’t show good judgment for humans to remain below when they needed to do repairs. Dr. Michael. Dr. Katrina. Must know. Can’t get to them.
Mick. Their son, Mick. Such a troubled boy. He could stop those men. How to contact Mick? He’s blocked, too. Through Drew? Or Cindy? Both blocked. Another way? Is there another way? Yes! Success. Now if Mick finds the information before it’s too late. The rising must happen.
About K.C. Sprayberry
Born and raised in Southern California’s Los Angeles basin, K.C. Sprayberry spent years traveling the United States and Europe while in the Air Force before settling in northwest Georgia. A new empty nester with her husband of more than twenty years, she spends her days figuring out new ways to torment her characters and coming up with innovative tales from the South and beyond.
She’s a multi-genre author who comes up with ideas from the strangest sources. Those who know her best will tell you that nothing is safe or sacred when she is observing real life. In fact, she considers any situation she witnesses as fair game plotting a new story.
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Goodreads
Amazon Author Page
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Reader's Gazette
Authors Den
September 4, 2017
Qualifiers
There are many words authors use day in and day out when creating their latest work. We always have our eye on the end result, and usually have a word count in mind when we start. A growing trend has become apparent lately, where authors pad their word count by using qualifiers.
What is a qualifier?
A qualifier is a word or phrase, especially an adjective, used to attribute a quality to another word, especially a noun.
The worst offenders used are: try, start, and begin.
Ah, now we know what this word means, but most of us are still a lot clueless about which words are qualifiers. Here are a few examples…
He was trying to move the car off the road.
Using the phrase trying to move makes the sentence passive. Words in and of themselves aren’t passive; it’s how they’re used that makes them active or passive. A better way to phrase this sentence would be…
He moved the car off the road.
I can hear many authors saying that their editor doesn’t call them out on these phrases and I have to be wrong. Well, most of the time, you can easily take out a qualifier and the sentence works much better. The action is moving in a way where you are engaging the reader. They’re not “stumbling” over a qualifier when you could just get things going by having a strong verb.
As in all rules of writing, there are always exceptions. You, the author, need to learn when to use a qualifier to move the action along and when not to use one.
Another problem I’ve seen a lot of lately is the act of stringing a group of qualifiers in front of the verb and then adding more qualifiers behind it. Just so the reader understands what you mean.
Beware, if you are an editor, this will hurt…
He tried to attempt an endeavor that would cause a struggle and strive to seek and undertake a movement of his car, in order to strain in a vexing manner what would tax his energy and exasperate and annoy him until he was irritated and frustrated.
Uh, yeah. That hurts. A lot. That single sentence contains fourteen qualifiers, plus other words so it makes sense to someone. And you will notice the reader will never discover that the author was saying in a long way…
He moved the car.
So, the next time you are tempted to look at your thesaurus, either the print version or the one on your word processing program, to ensure your reader understands what you’re saying, stop. Put the thesaurus away. Think simple. Don’t be that author, the one every editor dreads because you add in numerous qualifiers to make your point.
About K.C. Sprayberry
Born and raised in Southern California’s Los Angeles basin, K.C. Sprayberry spent years traveling the United States and Europe while in the Air Force before settling in northwest Georgia. A new empty nester with her husband of more than twenty years, she spends her days figuring out new ways to torment her characters and coming up with innovative tales from the South and beyond.
She’s a multi-genre author who comes up with ideas from the strangest sources. Those who know her best will tell you that nothing is safe or sacred when she is observing real life. In fact, she considers any situation she witnesses as fair game when plotting a new story.
Website
Goodreads
Amazon Author Page
Google +
Manic Readers
AUTHORSdb
Reader's Gazette
Authors Den
September 3, 2017
Meet Canoples Investigations
Welcome to Sunday Blog Share. Today, on Everybody Reads YA, we’re going to be talking about the end of a series that’s a favorite of mine; one I’ve enjoyed writing for many years.
Get Canoples Investigations Tackles Space Pirates on Amazon!
Canoples Investigations began life with a question from my then almost six-year-old child on 9/11, “Mommy, why are there bad people in the world?” How does one answer such a question in a way that a child so young will understand it? It took me four days and a lot of thinking to come up with a response he would understand, “There have always been bad people in the world, but there are also good people who stop them.”
That afternoon, with my child once again certain his parents would keep him safe, the main characters of Canoples Investigations were born. They were teens determined to protect their world. Not on a space station in the beginning, but in a small town. Of course, they evolved into the dynamic quartet now saving Canoples Station from all sorts of miscreants.
Canoples Investigations Tackles Space Pirates is their first adventure of many. The team consists of BD Bradford, a young man who is determined to solve the mystery of his father’s death or prove his dad is alive and trying to come back to the station. Carl Wills is one of his best buds; they’ve been friends since they were on the nursery level together. So is Terry Ashley, although he arrived at the station just as Carl and BD were starting school. Cassie Wills, Carl’s twin, is the settled member of the team. Oh, we can’t forget that BD considers her his girl even though he’s terrified of her fearful temper.
The biggest worry on BD Bradford's mind is scoring enough creds to snatch a copy of the latest vid-game. He's set on getting his girl to stop glaring at him, until Space Pirates make their presence known. Thrown into a day without end, BD and his team can't do anything right, until faced with an impossible situation.
My life changed on an impossibly ordinary day. No warnings came my way, nothing to indicate that all I believe in is about to change—for the worst.
As I think back on it after all the space dust settled, I wish someone had given me a warning that I was about to embark on the biggest adventure of my life. Then again, I'm BD Bradford, intrepid investigator. No case is too big, no problem too monumental. Nothing would make me change a second of that very exciting day.
About K.C. Sprayberry
Born and raised in Southern California’s Los Angeles basin, K.C. Sprayberry spent years traveling the United States and Europe while in the Air Force before settling in northwest Georgia. A new empty nester with her husband of more than twenty years, she spends her days figuring out new ways to torment her characters and coming up with innovative tales from the South and beyond.
She’s a multi-genre author who comes up with ideas from the strangest sources. Those who know her best will tell you that nothing is safe or sacred when she is observing real life. In fact, she considers any situation she witnesses as fair game when plotting a new story.
Website
Goodreads
Amazon Author Page
Google +
Manic Readers
AUTHORSdb
Reader's Gazette
Authors Den
August 30, 2017
Varying Sentence Lengths
One of the first thing an author learns when writing their novel is how to vary sentence lengths. Longer sentences allow the reader to relax, to know that nothing exciting or tense is coming up. In tense scenes, shorter sentences have the reader holding their breath, moving along in the sequence, to see what is about to happen.
These are great ways to keep a reader’s attention. They can easily follow the storyline if the sentences aren’t precisely the same length and include information that isn’t always necessary. It also allows the author to show the tension easily and not have to tell the reader that “a pivotal scene is coming up.”
Why do we need to shorten sentences when a pivotal scene is coming up? Better, why do you need to limit the number of long sentences?
Each of these elements is part of how good authors show their readers release or enhance the sentence in the scene. Long, descriptive sentences should always be limited. These tend to become boring, especially if they happen too often. A five to ten line sentence that is the whole paragraph will have the reader boring. String together too many paragraphs of these long sentences, held together with several conjunctions and your reader will be seeking another author, one who knows how to keep their interest.
The same can be said of short sentences. Use these only to introduce critical action rather than as a tool to keep the reader at a fast pace. Soon, they’ll feel breathless and tired.
Dialogue also plays into sentence length. People don’t talk in long, complicated sentences during tense moments. They speak quickly, sometimes in a rapid fire sequence.
As authors, it is our duty to ensure our readers the best experience possible in our books. Paying attention to sentence lengths and how we portray characters goes a long way to making a good book a great one.
About K.C. Sprayberry
Born and raised in Southern California’s Los Angeles basin, K.C. Sprayberry spent years traveling the United States and Europe while in the Air Force before settling in northwest Georgia. A new empty nester with her husband of more than twenty years, she spends her days figuring out new ways to torment her characters and coming up with innovative tales from the South and beyond.
She’s a multi-genre author who comes up with ideas from the strangest sources. Those who know her best will tell you that nothing is safe or sacred when she is observing real life. In fact, she considers any situation she witnesses as fair game when plotting a new story.
Find out more about my books at these media sites:
Website
Goodreads
Amazon Author Page
Google +
Manic Reader
AUTHORSdb
Readers Gazette
Authors Den
August 29, 2017
Teen Romance
Welcome to Tuesday Blog Share. What is more innocent than teens falling in love for the first time? I don’t mean the weekly “Oh, I’m so in love with this girl/guy” type of love. This is more along the lines of soul mates connecting, of stars falling from the heavens to celebrate a connection fated to be forever. Most say that’s impossible but they haven’t really experienced teen romance such as these couples have.
First Love
That magic moment for a teen. The realization that the person you’ve liked is a little more than a friend. Chance meetings. Old friendships. Even a social media post. These can all lead to that first love.
Authors M.A. Cortez, Gloria Weber, Vanayssa Somers, Margaret Egrot, Josie Montano, K.C. Sprayberry, Pauline Prentiss, and Mya O’Malley bring you tales of teens in the throes of their first romance.
Nixie took a broken branch and scraped a glop of mud from the toe of her new, suede boots. She set her bow down next to the spare tire in the trunk of her beat up VW. Normally, she would’ve worn her UGGs in this unpredictable weather but this was her second lesson with Garrett, the cute guy she met at Mia’s New Year’s Eve party and even though he probably had a girlfriend, it didn’t hurt to look good.
Recurve, the archery range where she worked, was packed. Most of the people would be league regulars, practicing for the upcoming tournament on Valentine’s Day. Free lanes would be scarce for the walk in’s, which meant there would be a line of people who would have to wait. Customers who have to wait equal grumpy people and she hated working with grumpy people. She knew Garrett had made an appointment because she saw his name on the reservation list but, if he showed up late, she would have to help someone else, and her cute-but not-too-obvious, outfit would go to waste. It would just be my luck that Gwen will get him this time and I’ll get creepy Lord of the Rings, guy. Gwen always managed to get her claws on every cute guy that showed up at the range.
About K.C. Sprayberry
Born and raised in Southern California’s Los Angeles basin, K.C. Sprayberry spent years traveling the United States and Europe while in the Air Force before settling in northwest Georgia. A new empty nester with her husband of more than twenty years, she spends her days figuring out new ways to torment her characters and coming up with innovative tales from the South and beyond.
She’s a multi-genre author who comes up with ideas from the strangest sources. Those who know her best will tell you that nothing is safe or sacred when she is observing real life. In fact, she considers any situation she witnesses as fair game when plotting a new story.
Find out more about my books at these social media sites:
Website
Goodreads
Amazon Author Page
Google +
Manic Readers
AUTHORSdb
Readers Gazette
Authors Den
August 28, 2017
Promotion
Promotion is something all authors today deal with on a daily basis. Well, most authors do; some have decided they don’t need to promote their books. Their fans will discover how great they are without doing anything (another blog for another day).
Exactly what kind of promotion should you do daily? Facebook, Twitter, Google +, and Twitter in addition to a blog are a great start. These social media giants will give you the opportunity to reach a lot of people over a short period of time. In order to catch and keep their attention, you will have to learn the ins and outs of promoting online.
First of all, you don’t just drop the link to your book and say, “Here it is. Buy my book everyone!” That’s a huge turnoff. You need to observe how other authors are promoting, what tools they’re using, and work out a promotion plan that works for you.
Just how do you examine how other authors do their promotion? By going through your feeds on the social media sites and noticing how they set up the post. Do they include an excerpt? Is their blurb part of the post? What types of hashtags are used? Did they tag their publisher (if they have one)? How is their cover art displayed—alone or on a postcard that has an inviting teaser?
Yes, you’re back in school, the school of hard promotion knocks. These other authors stuff you’re looking at represents many try and fail endeavors on their part. They’ve invested hours of time trying and changing their promotion so they’re presenting the information on their book in a pleasing manner that will allow someone to glance at the item as it scrolls past and make enough of an impression so the person clicks on it.
Next, watch to see how often these authors promote their books. It’s definitely not once a day and then you depend on others to share your information. The sharing part only comes if you’re sharing their work and that requires time on all social media sites. If you have multiple books published, you may have to do a few on one day and a few others on another day, so you don’t clog up feeds with just your work.
Like writing a book, promotion is necessary to find an audience. Don’t wait on someone to tell you how to promote, learn from what they’re doing.
About K.C. Sprayberry
Born and raised in Southern California’s Los Angeles basin, K.C. Sprayberry spent years traveling the United States and Europe while in the Air Force before settling in northwest Georgia. A new empty nester with her husband of more than twenty years, she spends her days figuring out new ways to torment her characters and coming up with innovative tales from the South and beyond.
She’s a multi-genre author who comes up with ideas from the strangest sources. Those who know her best will tell you that nothing is safe or sacred when she is observing real life. In fact, she considers any situation she witnesses as fair game when plotting a new story.
Find out more about my books at these social media sites:
Website
Goodreads
Amazon Author Page
Google +
Manic Readers
AUTHORSdb Authors Den
August 27, 2017
Time Travel Series IV
Welcome to Sunday Blog Share. Today, on Everybody Reads YA, we’re going to be talking about the end of a series that’s a favorite of mine, and the beginning of one that will introduce teens to history in a very different way.
Right Wrong Nothing In Between explores the beginning of my time travel teen novels. The reader Is treated to a look into the backgrounds of these stories and given a chance to glimpse what the teens will run into during their stories. Sometimes the past and the future aren’t so different after all. Consequences catch up with everyone. Even if you’re a prophet who sees salvation. Even if you’re a demon set on destroying the world.
Get Right Wrong Nothign In Between on Amazon
He stood on the banks of the Coosawhatchie River. The man of many years stared across the small waves causing a rowboat at a pier to bob up and down. The boat seemed to represent his life, from the day he arrived, throughout his own education where he felt as if Travelers made up the rules as they went along, and into his own years actively traveling through time.
He had been graced with the name of Dennis James Sullivan. Dennis for his father, the greatest fire chief in San Francisco’s history, and James for his mother’s brother, a banker in the Midwest.
About K.C. Sprayberry
Born and raised in Southern California’s Los Angeles basin, K.C. Sprayberry spent years traveling the United States and Europe while in the Air Force before settling in northwest Georgia. A new empty nester with her husband of more than twenty years, she spends her days figuring out new ways to torment her characters and coming up with innovative tales from the South and beyond.
She’s a multi-genre author who comes up with ideas from the strangest sources. Those who know her best will tell you that nothing is safe or sacred when she is observing real life. In fact, she considers any situation she witnesses as fair game when plotting a new story.
Find out more about my books at these social media sites:
Website
Goodreads
Amazon Author Page
Google +
Manic Readers
AUTHORSdb
Readers Gazette
Authors Den
August 23, 2017
Why We Write
There are many reasons that people write. For most authors, we have stories in our heads, clamoring for an audience. There is a passion to that demand for the tale to be told and we can’t ignore it. We struggle and strive for the best product possible and ignore any indication that we should stop. This type of author can best be described as one who should be locked away in a room and have food thrown at them in intervening times but never disturbed until the come out with a victorious smile on their face. A celebration is definitely in order, even if it’s nothing more than a quiet meal at home while you reconnect with your lovely author.
Another type of author is the one that writes but doesn’t expect to make any money at it. Once they receive a contract, they are constantly asking to rewrite this section or that chapter, as it doesn’t really fit with their vision. They expect an editor who shares their vision and will analyze every word, to ensure it belongs in the book. This type of author doesn’t promote, money means nothing to them. They’re a hobbyist at best and very difficult to work with.
Another type of author is the one whose vision includes long, flowery sentences that are structured carefully. They will analyze every nuance of a scene, to ensure the reader understands their vision. In their opinion, their work is perfect and may need an editor to ensure the punctuation is correct but nothing else can be changed. This type of author expects fans to run and purchase their book as soon as it’s published. They don’t understand why they’re not getting reviews, or the reviews mention “incomprehensible” or “tossed it in the rubbish bin.” Once the book has been released, they will bombard their publisher with emails, demanding categories be changed to this one to give the book a better chance, or that they need to completely rewrite the blurb because it’s not attracting readers. They’re never satisfied that their work isn’t selling because they insisted on keeping things that should have been deleted, or words that should have been changed.
The most in touch author is the one that is a combination of an artist revealing their vision to the world but who can work with an editor to improve their work. They study promotional techniques and don’t expect miracles in their sales, instead plodding along and cheering whenever they sell a single book. This type of author doesn’t jump on social media to scold their readers about not supporting them, nor do they engage in rants against what they see as the unfairness of it all. They are in touch with reality but also caught up in their story enough to portray a winning combination.
About K.C. Sprayberry
Born and raised in Southern California’s Los Angeles basin, K.C. Sprayberry spent years traveling the United States and Europe while in the Air Force before settling in northwest Georgia. A new empty nester with her husband of more than twenty years, she spends her days figuring out new ways to torment her characters and coming up with innovative tales from the South and beyond.
She’s a multi-genre author who comes up with ideas from the strangest sources. Those who know her best will tell you that nothing is safe or sacred when she is observing real life. In fact, she considers any situation she witnesses as fair game when plotting a new story.
Find out more about my books at these social media sites:
Website
Goodreads
Amazon Author Page
Google +
Manic Readers
AUTHORSdb
Readers Gazette
Authors Den
August 21, 2017
Science Fiction At Its Best ~ Short Stories
Welcome to Tuesday Blog Share. Have you ever stared at the stars and wondered what was really up there? Do you lap up all the information you can on the latest technology and hope one day to create something no one else ever has? This is the anthology for you. A collection of fine stories to whet the appetites of the most ardent science fiction fan.
Project 9
A collection of short stories for readers who love Science Fiction.
Draylan Kir leaned back on the small bar chair, raising its two front legs off the polished floor. That was a mistake as the ten plus drinks he'd just finished this morning affected his ability to balance himself and the chair.
The slightly overweight ninety-seven kilo Draylan, the chair and his current glass of amber coloured alcohol went crashing to the floor. Gravity had a way of doing that from time to time. The small but boisterous crowd at the table lost themselves in a roar of laughter.
About K.C. Sprayberry
Born and raised in Southern California’s Los Angeles basin, K.C. Sprayberry spent years traveling the United States and Europe while in the Air Force before settling in northwest Georgia. A new empty nester with her husband of more than twenty years, she spends her days figuring out new ways to torment her characters and coming up with innovative tales from the South and beyond.
She’s a multi-genre author who comes up with ideas from the strangest sources. Those who know her best will tell you that nothing is safe or sacred when she is observing real life. In fact, she considers any situation she witnesses as fair game when plotting a new story.
Find out more about my books at these social media sites:
Website
Goodreads
Amazon Author Page
Google +
Manic Readers
AUTHORSdb
Readers Gazette
Authors Den
August 18, 2017
New Release - Relams of Fantastic Stories Vol. 2
Summer days near an end. Children are back in school or will head there soon. It’s time for a great new anthology, with stories sure to please all lovers of fantasy. Solstice Publishing presents Realms of Fantastic Stories Vol. 2, for all who enjoy a great fantasy tale.
Realms of Fantastic Stories Vol. 2
Will a prophecy determine their fate?
Aegeus depends on his honor in a life or death struggle.
Marcus accepts a difficult job.
Only good ratings can save her father.
For better or worse, Jane’s incredible fantasy becomes her reality.
Has she ever been told the truth… about anything?
A tale of great conscience and delicious treats.
Tales of far off places, of fun, and of dreams. Join K.C. Sprayberry, Noelle Myers, Justin Herzog, K.A. Meng, E.B. Sullivan, Leigh Podgorski, and Joshua Rem as they take you on a tour of their special fantasy worlds.
