Kate Padilla's Blog, page 6

NEW RELEASES: JUNE 24-30

JUNE 25 THE GILDED KING (SOVEREIGN, 1), BY JOSIE JAFFREY
Fiction: YA Fantasy. Self-published. 292 pp.

In the Blue, the world's last city, all is not well.

JUNE 26 GATE CRASHERS, BY PATRICK S. TOMLINSON
Fiction: Science Fiction. Tor. 416 pp.

A light-hearted science fiction novel about first contact, exploration, and desperately trying not to screw up from an up-and-coming sci-fi author.

PLAYING WITH MATCHES, BY HANNAH ORENSTEIN
Fiction. Touchstone. 320 pp.

Sasha  Goldberg has got a lo...

INDIE REVIEW: THE MAN ON THE ROOF

THE MAN ON THE ROOF, BY MICHAEL STEPHENSON
Fiction: Thriller. Self-published. 639 pp. BUY THE MAN ON THE ROOF Someone has been creeping in the dark while others sleep, and they've done terrible, terrible things.

"There was a man on your roof," claims curmudgeonly lane-hermit Herbert McKinney. Then, he initiates an unprovoked fight with a local punk. Drama escalates when that punk's dead body is found hanging at mid-street one August morning -- a boastful killer messaging their nex...

THE STORY MAP: EXAMPLE - 'FOOLS RUSH IN'

I want to be extremely transparent here. This is the initial draft of the first part in my Story Map: the romance novel I've been working on for a while. It's not perfect, not by a long shot. But here it is, and there are two important points I want to make on it: It works. I have a tough time with writing enough. Typically, my writing is far shorter than it should be, and I don't include enough exposition or development to effectively get my story across. This method works -- when I wrote th...

THE STORY MAP: AFTER PART 1

Take a deep breath. You've officially made it one lap around the track (*hooray!*). You may be a bit tired, and perhaps you're a bit fatigued from your story. Both are totally okay; you've spent some pretty intense and extended time on what you may feel to be fairly minute details. It's okay to take a break. In fact, I highly suggest it. Take a week -- read something new or something you enjoy that spurs you creatively. Go for a walk in nature. For the next few days, get your mind off of this...

NEW RELEASES: MAY 27-JUNE 2

MAY 29 EATING MY WAY THROUGH ITALY: HEADING OFF THE MAIN ROADS TO DISCOVERY THE HIDDEN TREASURES OF THE ITALIAN TABLE, BY ELIZABETH MINCHILLI
Nonfiction: Travel. St. Martin's Griffin. 352 pp.

Rome's resident gastronomic expert offers a cultural and culinary celebration of everything that makes Italian cuisine great.

A SHARP SOLITUDE, BY  CHRISTINE CARBO
Fiction. Atria. 304 pp.

A gripping new mystery from the "fresh new voice in the thriller genre" (Steve Berry, New York Times bestselling author...

INDIE REVIEW: THE ROAD TO VERMILION LAKE

THE ROAD TO VERMILION LAKE, BY VIC CAVALLI
Fiction. Harvard Square Editions (2017). 256 pp. BUY THE ROAD TO VERMILION LAKE The Road to Vermilion Lake is set in the sublime interior mountains of British Columbia. There a young blaster's helper and industrial first-aid attendant (Thomas Neal Tems) meets and incredibly beautiful self-declared medieval woman (Johnny Nostal) and their electric love literally rocks the entire ecosystem.

Layering medieval, pioneer, and contemporary settin...

THE STORY MAP: FIRST PLOT POINT

First Plot Point: Antagonistic forces fully come into play here, defining the goal, stakes, and obstacles for the protagonist. This is the first time the meaning and implications of the antagonistic forces are seen.

I found myself thinking about the idea that we have spent weeks upon weeks talking about the story and the main characters, and we've only gotten to the villain now. It's an important part, right? Why are we just now only talking about him/her/it? And I came to this conclusion --...

NEW RELEASES: MAY 20-26

MAY 22 AMERICAN HIPPO (RIVER OF TEETH, TASTE OF MARROW, AND NEW STORIES), BY SARAH GAILEY
Fiction: Alternative History. Tor. 256 pp.

Experience hippo mayhem with this omnibus volume containing Sarah Gailey's raucous novellas River of Teeth and Taste of Marrow for fans of alternative history and weird westerns.

BEST BEACH EVER, BY WENDY WAX
Fiction: Women. Berkley. 400 pp.

Hoping for smooth sailing the ladies of Ten Beach Road confront choppy seas ...

MAY 23 ROBERT'S RULES (NORTH OF THE TENSION...

FAITH IN STORYTELLING: AFRICAN SKIES

AFRICAN SKIES, BY KAREN RISPIN
Fiction: Christian. Palisades (2000). 363 pp.
Do you ever re-read a book that you liked when you were younger and realize that you don't actually like it very much at all? That's the experience I went through when I recently re-read Karen Rispin's African Skies. I remember quite clearly reading this book in high school, by a pool during Spring Break. Maybe it's that my tastes have changed. Back then, I enjoyed quite a bit of Christian fiction/inspirational fictio...

THE STORY MAP: DEBATE

Debate: This is the point of no return -- your character must make a choice.

Does it feel like we answer the same question over and over? I've been getting that feeling, too. In fact, I've been a bit worried that maybe this process is a bit redundant. But then I read through the entire first section again and I realized that, while they may seem repetitive, each section does serve an individual purpose. And setting up the story is so important, so the tedium will likely benefit as we progress...