T. Rae Mitchell's Blog, page 17

Guest speaking at Vancouver Public Library turned out to be really fun!

I was a little on the nervous side about being on the VPL’s panel for a talk on self-publishing yesterday. Okay, in all honesty, I was terrified since this was my first public speaking engagement. You know the usual worries. Tripping over your feet as you walk up to the podium and then drawing a big fat blank as you look out on all those expectant faces in the audience. But I actually got up there without falling on my face and I even managed to speak intelligently.

I attribute most of this to Sheila Maier and her wonderful staff. They gathered all of us authors together for a get-acquainted luncheon before the event. While snacking on yummy sandwiches and cookies, I really enjoyed meeting the other authors. Then Sheila put us at ease by filling us in on how the event would go. First we would introduce ourselves and then we’d move around the room to answer questions from the audience who were split up into a number of small groups. I had so much fun speaking with everyone who attended, most of whom were on their own journeys of writing and looking into the options of getting published.

I’d like to say a huge thank you to Sheila and her staff for providing a brilliant setting for the speakers and audience to interact with each other.

My friend and award winning author, Jacqui Nelson, was on the panel as well. It was also her first speaking engagement, so shared being nervous together, which really helped. She’s written a fantastic historical, western romance called, Adella’s Enemy.

 

Looking for the perfect book for the fantasy lover on your Christmas list? Fate’s Fables is a gift of 9 books in one!

See my guest blog post on Book Gift Guide: Unwrapping the Best Christmas Gift Ever

No, the best Christmas gift ever wasn’t a diamond ring or a new car. Although…I wouldn’t mind either one of those. To find out what this magical present was, you’ll have to jump on over to Book Gift Guide to read the post.

Book Gift Guide recommends Fate’s Fables as a great Christmas Gift for Blood Of Dragons fans this year!

I’m super excited ! Book Gift Guide is comparing Fate’s Fables to the New York Times bestseller, Blood of Dragons by Robin Hobb as a great gift for fantasy lovers. And did you know that when you purchase the print edition of Fate’s Fables, you can  buy the Kindle edition for only $1.99, instead of paying $4.99? That’s right. You can give the print book as a gift and get an eBook version for yourself. I’ve always loved the one for you, one for me kind of Christmas shopping.  :D

I’m sharing even more secrets about myself and Fate’s Fables than I did in this original interview

This is an interview I did back in May with Simona from Secrets From Books. She asked some great questions and I thought it’d be fun to expand a little further on my answers by sharing some never-before-seen visuals.

1. Hi T. Rae! Thank you for accepting this interview! I am sure that my readers are really excited and would like to know more about you. How about sharing with us some facts about yourself?

T: I’ve always been artistically inclined. I can’t remember a time when I wasn’t drawing, painting or crafting. In fact, my leaning towards art was so strong I found most other subjects in school such a snore that my old report cards contain notes of how I daydreamed too much. I was really embarrassed about this until later in life when I found out daydreaming is a valuable form of creativity. And I now realize I come up with my best ideas when I’m daydreaming.

2. What is your book “Fate’s Fables” about? Tell us a few words about it.

T: On the surface, Fate’s Fables is a sort of Alice in Wonderland meets Grimm’s Fairy Tales story. But the real heart of the book is about how Fate’s greatest dreams and deepest desires manifest into nightmares because she’s careless with her Words of Making, (the power to create anything with the written word). As she confronts the deadly creatures and chilling characters within each fable, her survival ultimately depends upon her becoming clear about who she is and whether or not she can trust herself enough to harness this volatile creative power she’s been given.

Something I didn’t say in the article was that the Words of Making represent to me the power every single person has. We all use our words and the intentions behind them in ways that either create really good things in our lives or really bad things. One of these days I’ll write a post about this concept on a much deeper level.

3. Will “Fate’s Journey” be a trilogy or you do not know yet?

T: When I first dreamed up the concept for Fate’s Fables, I thought it would be a stand-alone story, but I enjoyed living in Fate’s world so much I had to explore further. So I now have a trilogy planned with the second book titled Fate’s Keep, which is scheduled for release in 2014.

4. Any spoilers about the creation of the amazing cover? I really love it and I think that it fits the plot. 

T: Funny you should ask this, because I was set on a completely different idea for the cover before we arrived at what you see now. I wanted a huge open book with letters lifting off the pages and swirling around Fate’s face like a flurry of snowflakes against a black backdrop. But after I made the wooden Book of Fables prop for the book trailer, it became obvious the beautiful lock against the intricately carved design on the book should be as prominent as Fate’s face. After all, the Book of Fables is as much a main character as she is.

Here’s the cover I describe in the original interview but never included. As it turned out, we (my wonderful husband and I) used this as a guide for our photo shoot with our beautiful model, Emilee Moore, who’s now become the face of Fate Floyd. To get a larger view of it, just click on the book cover.

5. Which is your dearest character(s) from this book and which one(s) don’t you like?

T: Of course, I absolutely love Fate. But I also love Finn and Sithias every bit as much. I truly enjoyed creating a connection between Fate and Finn that transcends all ordinary bounds. And her friendship with Sithias is what helps keep her strong through the darkest times. As for which character I don’t like, that’s an easy one, Old Mother Grim. She was the hardest for me to write because she goes against everything I am as a mother and all my protective instincts towards children.

Just for kicks I thought I’d give you a look at one of the frames from the original storyboard of the Fate’s Fables book trailer of Old Mother Grim’s silhouette. We were going to do silhouettes of several of the Book of Fables’ characters but we ended up going in a different direction by using the graphics from the print book. Click on it to make it bigger.

6. What songs would you associate to your book?

T: Wonderland by The Mummers sums up Fate’s naïve love for everything make-believe and how she overlooks the fact that even in an imaginary reality there is pain and suffering.

Drift & Die by Puddle of Mudd conveys the raw emotions Finn feels when he’s forced to face the devastating truth of who he is.

Song Instead Of A Kiss by Alannah Myles works perfectly for Fate’s heartache when at a certain point in the book all she has left of Finn are her dreams of him playing the flute to make her forget him.

7. What are your favourite books/book series? You can make a top 5/10 if you want to.

T: It’s very rare that I read any book more than once, but Garth Nix’s Abhorsen trilogy is top of my list. I’ve read them all at least three times since they were published. Second to these are Anne Rice’s vampire series, Harry Potter of course, and Cassandra Clare’s The Mortal Instruments.

8. Which authors do you consider to have been your inspiration?

T: J.K. Rowling really sparked the magic in me, but Garth Nix’s writing stretched my imagination even farther.

9. Where do you usually write your works? Any favourite place?

T: I have my desk by the window with all my treasures around me for inspiration, such as my brass unicorn, my winged pig, steampunk clock, flowers, books, little birds and nests and uplifting sayings and surreal art to stir my imagination.

Here’s a few snapshots of what I was talking about in the interview. Click on it to see it bigger.

10. What country would you like your books to be popular in ?

T: I’d be thrilled if much of Europe loved Fate’s Fables, because so much of my inspiration for my fables come from the folklore, fairy tales, myths and legends of the old country.

11. What do you think about Romania, the country I live in? Would you like to visit it one day?

T: I’ve never been to Romania, but the pictures I’ve seen are breathtaking, especially the castles, rural countryside and villages. They look like scenes right out of the fables of my book. Or better yet, I should say the scenery of Romania is at the root of my imagination and that of so many other writers. After all, vampires originated in Transylvania. And yes, I would love to visit Romania someday and drink up its rich, historic sites in person.

12. As an ending, you can say anything that comes to your mind to those who are reading! Anything you would like to share with them is welcome! 

T: Since Fate’s a big fan of Peter Pan––as am I––I’ll leave everyone with a wonderful quote from J.M. Barrie I really like,“The moment you doubt whether you can fly, you cease forever to be able to do it.”  So always believe you can fly as high as you want to.

Simona: Thank you for taking the time to answer these questions!

I’m sharing even more secrets about Fate’s Fables than I did in this original interview

This is an interview I did back in May with Simona from Secrets From Books. She asked some great questions and I thought it’d be fun to expand a little further on my answers by sharing some never-before-seen visuals.

1. Hi T. Rae! Thank you for accepting this interview! I am sure that my readers are really excited and would like to know more about you. How about sharing with us some facts about yourself?

T: I’ve always been artistically inclined. I can’t remember a time when I wasn’t drawing, painting or crafting. In fact, my leaning towards art was so strong I found most other subjects in school such a snore that my old report cards contain notes of how I daydreamed too much. I was really embarrassed about this until later in life when I found out daydreaming is a valuable form of creativity. And I now realize I come up with my best ideas when I’m daydreaming.

2. What is your book “Fate’s Fables” about? Tell us a few words about it.

T: On the surface, Fate’s Fables is a sort of Alice in Wonderland meets Grimm’s Fairy Tales story. But the real heart of the book is about how Fate’s greatest dreams and deepest desires manifest into nightmares because she’s careless with her Words of Making, (the power to create anything with the written word). As she confronts the deadly creatures and chilling characters within each fable, her survival ultimately depends upon her becoming clear about who she is and whether or not she can trust herself enough to harness this volatile creative power she’s been given.

Something I didn’t say in the article was that the Words of Making represent to me the power every single person has. We all use our words and the intentions behind them in ways that either create really good things in our lives or really bad things. One of these days I’ll write a post about this concept on a much deeper level.

3. Will “Fate’s Journey” be a trilogy or you do not know yet?

T: When I first dreamed up the concept for Fate’s Fables, I thought it would be a stand-alone story, but I enjoyed living in Fate’s world so much I had to explore further. So I now have a trilogy planned with the second book titled Fate’s Keep, which is scheduled for release in 2014.

4. Any spoilers about the creation of the amazing cover? I really love it and I think that it fits the plot. 

T: Funny you should ask this, because I was set on a completely different idea for the cover before we arrived at what you see now. I wanted a huge open book with letters lifting off the pages and swirling around Fate’s face like a flurry of snowflakes against a black backdrop. But after I made the wooden Book of Fables prop for the book trailer, it became obvious the beautiful lock against the intricately carved design on the book should be as prominent as Fate’s face. After all, the Book of Fables is as much a main character as she is.

Here’s the cover I describe in the original interview but never included. As it turned out, we (my wonderful husband and I) used this as a guide for our photo shoot with our beautiful model, Emilee Moore, who’s now become the face of Fate Floyd. To get a larger view of it, just click on the book cover.

5. Which is your dearest character(s) from this book and which one(s) don’t you like?

T: Of course, I absolutely love Fate. But I also love Finn and Sithias every bit as much. I truly enjoyed creating a connection between Fate and Finn that transcends all ordinary bounds. And her friendship with Sithias is what helps keep her strong through the darkest times. As for which character I don’t like, that’s an easy one, Old Mother Grim. She was the hardest for me to write because she goes against everything I am as a mother and all my protective instincts towards children.

Just for kicks I thought I’d give you a look at one of the frames from the original storyboard of the Fate’s Fables book trailer of Old Mother Grim’s silhouette. We were going to do silhouettes of several of the Book of Fables’ characters but we ended up going in a different direction by using the graphics from the print book. Click on it to make it bigger.

6. What songs would you associate to your book?

T: Wonderland by The Mummers sums up Fate’s naïve love for everything make-believe and how she overlooks the fact that even in an imaginary reality there is pain and suffering.

Drift & Die by Puddle of Mudd conveys the raw emotions Finn feels when he’s forced to face the devastating truth of who he is.

Song Instead Of A Kiss by Alannah Myles works perfectly for Fate’s heartache when at a certain point in the book all she has left of Finn are her dreams of him playing the flute to make her forget him.

7. What are your favourite books/book series? You can make a top 5/10 if you want to.

T: It’s very rare that I read any book more than once, but Garth Nix’s Abhorsen trilogy is top of my list. I’ve read them all at least three times since they were published. Second to these are Anne Rice’s vampire series, Harry Potter of course, and Cassandra Clare’s The Mortal Instruments.

8. Which authors do you consider to have been your inspiration?

T: J.K. Rowling really sparked the magic in me, but Garth Nix’s writing stretched my imagination even farther.

9. Where do you usually write your works? Any favourite place?

T: I have my desk by the window with all my treasures around me for inspiration, such as my brass unicorn, my winged pig, steampunk clock, flowers, books, little birds and nests and uplifting sayings and surreal art to stir my imagination.

Here’s a few snapshots of what I was talking about in the interview. Click on it to see it bigger.

10. What country would you like your books to be popular in ?

T: I’d be thrilled if much of Europe loved Fate’s Fables, because so much of my inspiration for my fables come from the folklore, fairy tales, myths and legends of the old country.

11. What do you think about Romania, the country I live in? Would you like to visit it one day?

T: I’ve never been to Romania, but the pictures I’ve seen are breathtaking, especially the castles, rural countryside and villages. They look like scenes right out of the fables of my book. Or better yet, I should say the scenery of Romania is at the root of my imagination and that of so many other writers. After all, vampires originated in Transylvania. And yes, I would love to visit Romania someday and drink up its rich, historic sites in person.

12. As an ending, you can say anything that comes to your mind to those who are reading! Anything you would like to share with them is welcome! 

T: Since Fate’s a big fan of Peter Pan––as am I––I’ll leave everyone with a wonderful quote from J.M. Barrie I really like,

“The moment you doubt whether you can fly, you cease forever to be able to do it.” So always believe you can fly as high as you want to.

Simona: Thank you for taking the time to answer these questions!

Join me at the Vancouver Public Library on December 7th for a talk on self-publishing

For those of you in the Vancouver area here in BC Canada who just happen to be writing and wondering how to get published, come on down to VPL to hear me and seven other self-published authors talk about our experiences in the crazy world of indie publishing on Saturday, December 7th, 1:00 pm-4:00 pm. You’ll get the chance to speak to each author in small group discussions and ask us questions. For free registration and to see the list of authors, click here.

For those of you living too far away and totally not into publishing, you’ll find this little tidbit interesting. The Vancouver Public Library has been the backdrop for many movies and TV shows, some of which you may have seen:

The 6th Day (Interesting concept)

The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus (Weird and whimsical)

Battlestar Galactica (AWESOME!)

Caprica (Never really decided if I liked it)

Fringe (Sad it’s over)

Mr. Magoo (Cute)

Check out this video of the building and you’ll see why Hollywood likes to use it, especially for science fiction.

Oh yeah, James Marsters is resurrecting Spike!

In case you didn’t know, I’m a HUGE Buffy the Vampire Slayer and Angel fan. It’s been a decade since both series ended, but I revisit the shows every year. Partly because I miss them and mostly because there are few shows that offer the same magical combination of rich story, humor, darkness and lovable characters.

Willow started out as my favorite character, but over time Spike won me over with his unexpected complexity and became my absolute fave. Spike’s character went through the biggest transformation. He started out as a ruthless vampire who went down in Watcher history as a killer of  two slayers and was hellbent on killing his third when he stormed into Sunnydale to take on Buffy. Yet, Spike’s a hopeless romantic and totally faithful to his vampire girlfriend Drusilla. He gets really interesting after Drusilla tramples his heart into the ground and dumps him for a drippy fungus demon. Jilted and hurt, Spike pours all his fury into his mission to kill Buffy. After many battles and failed attempts, he’s horrified to realize he’s fallen in love with the vampire slayer. He fights his feelings but can’t keep himself from becoming her protector and helper. Buffy on the other hand never allows herself to fully trust Spike no matter how much he tries to prove he’s changed. In her eyes, he’ll never be anything more than a demon. She fell for another vampire, Angel, but that’s because he had a soul which made him good. So what does Spike do? He risks his life by going through a series of hellish tests to win back his soul so Buffy will love him. Suffice to say, his challenges don’t end there and Spike goes through a lot of heartbreak, humiliation and sacrifice to win the slayer’s love and respect.

So now to hear that James Marsters has written a whole new story for Spike is exciting. The graphic novel is called, Into The Light and is being published by Dark Horse Comics. I have to say, James Marsters is one super talented guy. In addition to being  an excellent actor, he’s an accomplished singer, songwriter and author. I can’t think of anyone better to write Spike’s story than the man who made this vampire unforgettable. For more details on his graphic novel, check out his interview on i09.com.

Watch this video for some true-blue Spike and Buffy moments.

I want to fly like an eagle. Okay, since I don’t have wings, this is the next best thing.

Have you ever wanted to see the world through the eyes of a bird? Well there’s no better perspective than an eagle’s. This video is awesome. Watching it makes me feel like Gandalf when he jumped on the back of one of those giant eagles. Which of course leads me to the question, why didn’t the wizard and his fellowship of the ring hitch a ride with those eagles from the very beginning of that long hellish trek? That’s so bad of me to bring that up. Of course we all know the answer to that question. Because the story would’ve been over way too fast and that bird’s eye view would’ve gotten pretty boring after awhile.

Hilarious new comedy web series MILKIN’ IT. You’ve got to see episode 2!

Hey my friends, episode 2 of Milkin’ It went up today! If you thought the first episode was funny, you’re in for a treat. This one’s even more hilarious.

In case you didn’t know, this is my son’s web series, so I’d be eternally grateful for shares and tweets to help him get it out there.

Series summary: New comedy web series, which centers around plaid, pajama wearing actor, Robin Milkin, who’s decided the demanding work of acting gets in the way of sleepy time and video games. So he’s turned his messy bedroom and Mom’s garage into a studio for aspiring actors who’ve heard that taking lessons from the pricey, unorthodox Robin Milkin actually results in booking roles.