Ask Allison Tebo Anything discussion
Ask Allison Tebo Anything!
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Allison
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Aug 20, 2019 05:43PM
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Brooke wrote: "WHERE DO YOU GET ALL THE GIFS????"You took the words out my mouth Lol!! XD XD
Where did you get the inspiration for the personality of your character Burndee, and I'm super curious: what does he look like to you?
How many stories do you think the Ambia universe will end up having? (I feel like I've asked you this before, but can't remember the answer . . . ;-) )
Mod
You took the words out my mouth Lol!! XD XD"
Brooke wrote: "WHERE DO YOU GET ALL THE GIFS????"
*GASPS*
I WALKED RIGHT INTO A TRAP.
You are forcing me to reveal deeply coveted secrets, but, since I promised, I am no forced to confess.
I get most of them from Google - if you type in something like "screaming muppet" and click "images" - you'll find a vast selection. Such as this!
*actual shot of Allison being forced to reveal her gif-mastery secrets*
You can also find them on websites such as Giphy and I make quite a few using websites such as Giphy or Ez-Gif.
In all seriousness, one of the main reasons I'm reluctant to share where I find gifs is that you have to sort through a LOT of garbage to find them (which is why I save a ton and create a database). Even if you type in something like "Mice from Cinderella gif" a lot of jokers have added text with foul language to them, etc. So . . . I don't recommend of searching for them to everyone.
Another way to find gifs (and the safest way) is to save them from other people's blogs! *cough, cough* Such as mine. :P
Mod
I love these questions, Penny!
I don't remember PRECISELY where Burndee came from (the whole story and it's too main characters popped into my head one night when I was supposed to be sleeping). I think the baking part might have been a subconscious nod to my recent new-found infatuation with baking (which struck about five years ago).
I'm afraid his sarcastic inner-monologue is probably inspired by myself. *hangs head in semi-shame*
As for his general crankiness, anti-social tendencies (yet gooey interior) - I'm kind of infamous for writing jerky characters. All of my stories have at least one Impossible But Lovable Jerk. They're all different types of lovable jerks, but it's a perennial favorite of mine - so it's always natural to me to weave one of their ilk into my stories! :P
The funny thing is, on a scale from 1-10, Burndee is only about a five or six on my Jerky But Lovable character scale. 😂😂 THE WORLD HAS NOT YET MET THESE HIDDEN GEMS OF HORROR. *laughing*
# 2. Ooo - what does he look like to me. This is interesting, because, for most of my stories, I often use actors faces as inspiration, but my Tales of Ambia characters are actually all my own images (which are a bit more vague), but let us endeavor!
I imagine him quite tall and rather rangy in his build. He has shaggy dark blond hair - rather straw-like in color and texture. It actually occurred to me that I don't KNOW what color his eyes are! *gasps*
I imagine him having quite a prominent nose and a rather weak chin (forgive me, Burndee). For his general facial shape - I would have to say the closet thing I can think of is Lee Pace or Benedict Cumberbatch.
Here are some reasonable facimisles.
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*nervous laugh* Too many!
Here is the whole planned series, in relative order. :P
1. The Reluctant Godfather (Cinderella).
2. The Frog Prince (no title yet)
3. A Royal Masquerade (The Goose Girl).
4. Little Red Riding Hood (no title yet).
5. Beauty and the Beast.
6. The Salt Prince.
7. Snow White.
8. Diamonds and Toads.
9. The Princess and the Pea.
10. Rapunzel.
11. Sleeping Beauty
12. Rumplestiltskin
13. The Little Mermaid
14. Aladdin / Mulan (a combination of these two tales)
*nervous laugh* #halp
Plus, there will be several short stories taking place between these novels / novellas. Although, they are not based off of fairy tales, except for Burndee's prequel story, which is based off of The Three Little Bears.
I originally was going to retell The Twelve Dancing Princesses and The Snow Queen as well, but decided to cut those because the ideas I had weren't lining up with my vision for Ambia.
Allison wrote: "Penny wrote: "Where did you get the inspiration for the personality of your character Burndee, and I'm super curious: what does he look like to you?"I love these questions, Penny!
I don't remem..."
BURNDEE LOOKS LIKE BENEDICT CUMBERBATCH: CONFIRMED
This is the best day of my life :D :D :D
Allison wrote: "Katie wrote: "How many stories do you think the Ambia universe will end up having? (I feel like I've asked you this before, but can't remember the answer . . . ;-) )"*nervous laugh* Too many!
H..."
14 books!!!!!! Yay!!!!!! WE WILL NEVER RUN OUT OF AMBIA STORIES
Haha, I totally feel you--my Western fantasy was supposed (?) to be just one book and now it's five!
Is there any character that has more of yourself in it than any of the other characters? If so which one? Also, if you had to go on a road trip with one of them, who would it be?
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I love these questions, Penny!..."
AHAHAHA! Glad it made your day. :P
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*nervous laug..."
*smiles* Probably, because it will take me a while to write all of these. I will be typing them out with arthritic fingers.... :P
Argh, I feel your pain. WHY DO WE DO THIS TO OURSELVES? :D
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Hey Sharla! I love these questions! *rubs hands together*
Okay, are there any characters that have more of myself. *ponders*
I'm going to limit this to my published stories. I'd say, of all of them, I'm the most like Prince Colin. A tendency to hide his true feelings, grounded but rather wild. Extroverted, a kind of combination of happy-go-lucky breeziness and grown-up snark and firmly straddling a fine line between mischievous instigator and down-to-earth problem solver and dispenser of wisdom. :)
OO - a road trip, my goodness, that could be potentially disastrous. I WOULD CHOOSE MECK THE DUMOVAI. He's furry, and sweet-tempered, and he'd watch my back - my ideal traveling companion. :)
In all honesty, I would be a little scared to be locked in a car with some of my other characters. 😂😂
Allison wrote: "Sharla wrote: "Is there any character that has more of yourself in it than any of the other characters? If so which one? Also, if you had to go on a road trip with one of them, who would it be?"H..."
YES! The Dumovai would be an excellent road trip companion!
Now that I think of it, I'm not sure I can think of many characters I'd like to be locked in a car with for long hours.
Mod
Oh yes!!!! 😀
*THINKS* I'm trying to think of someone.... 😂😂 OH! Flavius and Justin from The Silver Branch!! Flavius is fun in a low-key way and very steady, and Justin is my darling cinnamon roll. 💕 Plus, one of them is a soldier and the other one is a medic, so they would have my back!
That took some reflection, but I finally thought of someone. 😂 How about you?
My goodness, did you do that drawing of Burndee?! That's EXACTLY how I imagine him *hurrahs* Also, how do YOU see Cinderella (in your head), since of course it's from Burndee's perspective. I mean, he thinks she's really idiotic and stupid at first!! Were you inspired by the 2015 movie?? The bit with her mother's dress reminded me of it especially. Also, how did you come up with such a different storyline? It was really unexpected, but so good! 😂Psssssst....I loved your characterisation of the stepsisters differences I liked especially 😉
LOVE this book, Allison; I'm so excited to read your other books, keep up the good work!
Btw any good advice for a young author hoping to publish indie? Thanks!
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ABBIE - HI!!!!!!!!! *waves happily*
Hehe - oh goodness, I WISH. I'm not that talented. :P I'm more into cartoon-style sketches. :P
https://artistsjourney7.wixsite.com/a...
I just found the sketch on the Internet (it's of the actor, Benedict Cumberbatch) - but that's fabulous that it's exactly as you envisioned him!
I love hearing how the awesome people who have read my book often have very different images in their head for the various places and people in my books than I did - that's part of what makes readers fascinating! - but it's always delightful when our images align! <3
Oh, let's see. How do I imagine her look, you mean?
I imagine her short and rather sturdy in build (curvy and strong). She has a naturally athletic tendency and all of her service has made her tough and (plus, she can run like the dickens, haha!). I imagine her hair blond as well, but a little darker and more golden than Burndee's and she has light green eyes - a round, rosy face and probably a bit of a button nose. :P
HAHA - yes, everything from the first three novels (two published, one hopefully in the next year) will be from Burndee's perspective - so we know NOT TO TRUST his impressions of the other characters in the series, since his are obviously often faulty! :D
Actually, no. I've only seen clips of the modern Cinderella (and I think I saw them after I had published The Reluctant Godfather). So, no - no inspiration from the 2015 version.
Hehe, I wish I had a specific answer for that one, but the truth is, the whole thing rather just leapt into my mind one night and I was just lying there, staring agog at the ceiling as I watched the story line and basic characters parade past in my mind's eye. 😂😂 It was a rare and delicious experience of almost complete inspiration.
Awww, that makes me so happy!! *grins* I think you'll be interested to know then, that the stepsisters COME BACK and are going to have some pretty big roles later on in the series!
My number one advice for indie's is too wait. It's not a very popular answer, but I do think it's very valuable.
It's never "too late" to publish - it's always better to wait until we're TRULY sure that our writing has matured enough and that our publishing process is going to be as professional as possible. I had been writing for fifteen years before I finally decided to publish, and I needed every one of those years to polish my style and storytelling. Nothing can replace or replicate experience!
My other top tips would be to invest in your publishing. It's going to get pricey, but it's worth it to get as professional with the editing, cover design, formatting, as you can possibly afford.
And then, I would say make sure you have really "critical" writing partners that really push you to make sure your writing is as good as it can be. When I search for beta-readers, I don't just look for someone who's going to just love everything I do (which, don't get me wrong, that's awesome, but that's something I hope to find from reviewers, haha!). I look for people that savagely (but kindly) hold me to as high a standard as possible with my writing so that I don't give my readers anything less than the best and that I don't get lazy and settle for sloppy work when I could do better.
I will have to think about this question a little more - if you have ANY more questions about the indie publishing (or want recommendations for cover designers or formatters or the nitty-gritty procedure), do feel free to ask, Abbie! <3
Which one of your stories are you considering publishing??
What did it feel like eight after you first published The Reluctant Godfather? Joy? Relief that you didn't have to tinker with it? Apprehension that people wouldn't like it?
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All of the above? Haha!
I think I remember having a little trepidation (rather the feeling one has when you are submitting a test for something that is supposed to rate your intelligence and you're afraid you'll fail) but mostly it was a "glad that's over with" moment.
I remember being just a TAD disappointed because I didn't experience the wild elation other authors seem to experience. I've seen videos of people holding their book for the first time and crying or screaming or what have you, but, for the most part, all I felt was a sort of dim, easy glow of satisfaction, which, I suppose, in the long run, is better, since it is a more sustainable feeling. :D (I cried at other milestones with TRG, but not when I published)
Because I ended up re-releasing The Reluctant Godfather, it took a long time before I really felt like I was done with it - but for that first year, the most predominant feeling was total surprise. I didn't expect such love for it, and I was astounded by the enthusiasm of my reviewers - it was their enjoyment of it that sparked the entire Tales of Ambia series AND the paperback editions. My readers have brought so much magic to the series. <3
Allison wrote: "Sharla wrote: "Allison wrote: "Sharla wrote: "Is there any character that has more of yourself in it than any of the other characters? If so which one? Also, if you had to go on a road trip with on..."Oooh I haven't read The Silver Branch yet, shall have to add that to my list.
I thought about it, and I feel like Ella from Ella Enchanted would be a good car trip companion. She's funny and matter of fact and wouldn't be too bothered by any misadventures, but would probably enjoy them. :D
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It's one of my favorite books of all time! And Flavius and Justin are my imaginary cousins - haha!
Oo, that's a good choice, Sharla! Ella would be a very sweet and down-to-earth companion!
Allison wrote: "Abbie wrote: "My goodness, did you do that drawing of Burndee?! That's EXACTLY how I imagine him *hurrahs* Also, how do YOU see Cinderella (in your head), since of course it's from Burndee's perspe..."Thanks so so much for answering all my questions! The writing advice was really helpful. :) The book I'm thinking of publishing is called 'The Fire Watchers'. I'll hopefully post a sneak peak on my blog soon :)
Allison wrote: "Bethany wrote: "Brooke wrote: "WHERE DO YOU GET ALL THE GIFS????"You took the words out my mouth Lol!! XD XD"
Brooke wrote: "WHERE DO YOU GET ALL THE GIFS????"
*GASPS*
I WALKED RIGHT INTO A TR..."
Hahaha!!! Thank you so much for sharing such classified information at last!! :D :D But yes, I know what you mean about having to wade through tones of obscene ones too.
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You are most welcome and I'm so glad! Do feel free to ask me here or anywhere else if you are curious about any other aspects!
Oooo - I look forward to seeing that!
Mod
You took the words out my mouth Lol!! XD XD"
Brooke wrote: "WHERE DO YOU GET ALL THE GIFS????"
*GASPS*
I WALKED..."
YOU TRICKED IT OUT OF ME. *grins* But you're welcome. :P
Yeah, that's why I'm hesitant to share a lot of the details, because it's like handing over a plate of food with some poison in the dinner rolls.
Bad simile, but you know what I mean - haha.
Bethany wrote: "Allison wrote: "Bethany wrote: "Brooke wrote: "WHERE DO YOU GET ALL THE GIFS????"You took the words out my mouth Lol!! XD XD"
Brooke wrote: "WHERE DO YOU GET ALL THE GIFS????"
*GASPS*
I WALKED..."
Same, there are so many good ones, but also the not-so-good. Being really specific in your search helps, though. 😊
I'm trying to think of something to ask that no one has asked yet or that I don't already know the answer to and it's hard. XD So, how about this:Is there anything about you or your writing you wish we knew but that no one asks you about?
Mod
You took the words out my mouth Lol!! XD XD"
Brooke wrote: "WHERE DO YOU GET ALL THE GIFS????"
*..."
Definitely!
