S.E. Burr's Blog: Online Book Promotions, page 2
January 30, 2013
Read it free--this week only
I noted on my second giveaway listing that for a limited time (really limited) you can read Goblin Fruit for free here on Goodreads by clicking on the "read book" button on the book's page. You'll have to do it quickly, though. I plan to switch it back for the excerpt on Saturday morning. If you miss it, the Kindle version's available for $.99.
January 12, 2013
Inspiration
I thought I'd write little more about the inspiration behind Goblin Fruit.
The most direct inspiration was the poem, "Goblin Market" by Christina Rossetti. I highly recommend this poem. It is included in the appendix of my book.
Less direct inspirations came from some of my childhood fears and from the anti-drug campaigns in American schools in the 1990s.
When I was in elementary school, anti-drug campaigns tended to have a much stronger scared straight component than they usually do now. I remember there was one video we watched where a cloud of marijuana smoke followed a boy around and made him do awful things. It was terrifying.
One day, when I was around eight or nine years old, I was walking home from school and I stepped on a cigarette butt on the sidewalk. It looked a little strange to me and I decided it must be from a joint. Afterward, I refused to wear any of the clothes I'd had on that day, including even hair barrettes and my backpack. I wouldn't tell my parents why, so they were awfully perturbed, but my clothes were contaminated. I was contaminated.
I had nightmares about drugs, about not being able to resist trying them, even though I knew they would kill me. And I dreamed about a drug that spread like a plague. If you touched a user it would enter your system, and you'd want to use too.
Of course, now it is widely accepted that fear-mongering campaigns often backfire. Once I became a teenager and realized that my fears had been overblown, I was dying to try drugs to see what the fuss was all about. If they were worth lying about, they must be really good.
I didn't realize I was writing my childhood dreams until I was on the second or third draft of this story. I didn't forget the dreams, I just didn't realize they could still have such an impact on me as an adult. It was scary writing this book--a tale of drugs, apparent insanity, goblins, zombies, broken people, plagues--but in the end, like Rossetti's poem, I hope it's a tale of redemption, and our power to save the ones we love
The most direct inspiration was the poem, "Goblin Market" by Christina Rossetti. I highly recommend this poem. It is included in the appendix of my book.
Less direct inspirations came from some of my childhood fears and from the anti-drug campaigns in American schools in the 1990s.
When I was in elementary school, anti-drug campaigns tended to have a much stronger scared straight component than they usually do now. I remember there was one video we watched where a cloud of marijuana smoke followed a boy around and made him do awful things. It was terrifying.
One day, when I was around eight or nine years old, I was walking home from school and I stepped on a cigarette butt on the sidewalk. It looked a little strange to me and I decided it must be from a joint. Afterward, I refused to wear any of the clothes I'd had on that day, including even hair barrettes and my backpack. I wouldn't tell my parents why, so they were awfully perturbed, but my clothes were contaminated. I was contaminated.
I had nightmares about drugs, about not being able to resist trying them, even though I knew they would kill me. And I dreamed about a drug that spread like a plague. If you touched a user it would enter your system, and you'd want to use too.
Of course, now it is widely accepted that fear-mongering campaigns often backfire. Once I became a teenager and realized that my fears had been overblown, I was dying to try drugs to see what the fuss was all about. If they were worth lying about, they must be really good.
I didn't realize I was writing my childhood dreams until I was on the second or third draft of this story. I didn't forget the dreams, I just didn't realize they could still have such an impact on me as an adult. It was scary writing this book--a tale of drugs, apparent insanity, goblins, zombies, broken people, plagues--but in the end, like Rossetti's poem, I hope it's a tale of redemption, and our power to save the ones we love
December 26, 2012
Goblin Fruit Kindle Edition now available!
Amazon just went live with the Kindle edition of Goblin Fruit, It is listed for $.99 here: http://www.amazon.com/Goblin-Fruit-eb... .
The paperback version is available for as little as $7.27 .
The paperback version is available for as little as $7.27 .
Online Book Promotions
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