Cool Contest at The Quest for Truth

Hey everyone. I just wanted to quick point you in the direction of thequestfortruthbooks.blogspot.com. Author B.D. Eastman is having a cool contest with awesome prizes and he needs entrants.

Review: North! Or Be Eaten

This is a review as part of the blog tour of Andrew Peterson's new book: North! Or Be Eaten, book 2 in the Wingfeather Saga.

First off, I tried to start reading this book without having read the first, On the Edge of the Dark Sea of Darkness. That didn't work. The first page of North! Or Be Eaten is filled with most of the main characters names, seven to be precise, and they were all running around. So I found myself completely lost before even turning the page. To solve this I downloaded the first book and then found myself much better prepared for book 2. The moral of the story: read book one first.

And read them you should. The Wingfeather Saga and, even though I usually prefer audio books, I thought North! Or Be Eaten was an improvement on the first. Andrew Peterson has a humorous style that reminds me somewhat of Lemony Snicket's, "A Series of Unfortunate

Events." But it's definitely original, and the presence of humor doesn't mean the story is lacking in the adventure, imaginative setting, or memorable characters that any good young adult fantasy should have.

As a side note, both books are written in an omniscient viewpoint of sorts. I didn't find it overly distracting, but some people might.

Overall, I recommend North! Or Be Eaten to any readers of the fantasy genre.

Book Title Announcement!

Greetings. It has been awhile since I've been busy with edits among other things, and I'm not entirely certain what the plans are on the blogging front. But sooner or later I plan to be regularly blogging again (later being a couple months).

Right now I'm in contract negotiations with Flaming Pen Press, and short of something drastic happening I will post the conclusion to that.

Mainly, I just wanted to pop in to post the semi-official title of my book, and then request your thoughts on it. So, without any further ado...

Kestrel's Midnight Song

There it is! Now, tell me your thoughts and be honest!

Second Bryan Davis Interview

Christian Miles has sent me the second Bryan Davis interview as promised. Here it is...

Q1. Izori asks: How do you come up with your book ideas?
Bryan Davis: The idea for Dragons in our Midst came from a dream I had about a boy who could breathe fire. I told my eldest son about it, and we brainstormed until we came up with the concept for the story. My second-born son came up with the basic idea for Echoes from the Edge, and one of my daughters helped me with the idea for Dragons of Starlight, a new series that will come out next year.

Q2. How do you come up with your titles? Do they change when you find a publisher?
Bryan Davis: I base titles on a theme or story element in the book, something that will sound cool rolling off the tongue. Sometimes I labor over them for weeks, and sometimes they pop into my head without a second thought. One publisher accepts whatever title I choose, and another publisher is more strict and works with me until we come up with a title we both like.

Q3. What is the best advice you could give a teen writer?
Bryan Davis: The best advice for a teen writer is to learn the craft. It's not enough to be passionate about a story. You have to know the tools and how to use them. Read books on writing. Got to writing conferences. Get your stories critiqued by experienced writers. Allow the critiques to massage your writing without being offended.

Q4. How many words do you normally write in a day?
Bryan Davis: When I am writing all day, my minimum goal is 3000 words. If I don't get that many done, I consider it a bad day. I feel good if I get 4000, and 5000 is a great day.

Q5. What is your favorite book and why?
Bryan Davis: Probably To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee. She did a masterful job building powerful themes into her story without appearing to be preachy. They came across naturally [and] is some of the most skillful prose I have ever seen.

***

I hope everyone enjoyed that interview as much as I did!

Again, you can learn more about Bryan Davis and his books at DavisCrossing.com, and be sure to check out Christian Miles' cool writing e-zine at TeenInklings.blogspot.com

Friday Discussion: What Makes a Great Title?

First off, thanks for the tags everyone. I'll fill those out and probably post them on Monday, and I'll try to make it entertaining, as always. 

Second, I have received two free books in the mail so far from Waterbrook/Multnomah: North! Or Be Eaten by Andrew Peterson, and Sir Dalton and the Shadow Heart, by Chuck Black. In exchange for these free books, I must post a review for each of them--on September 14-18 for North! Or Be Eaten, and September 28-30 for Sir Dalton and the Shadow Heart.

Now, on to the main topic. Right now, with my novel, I'm working on

editing and Flaming Pen Press is working on a contract offer.

 Meanwhile, such things are being discussed as what the cover illustrations would be and what the title would be. 

Titles, it seems, are trickier than I once thought. We are making headway, but I want to hear your opinions on what makes a good title. What are some of the best titles you've heard? Keep in mind that great books don't necessarily have great titles. I think once we've read a book, (or heard about it enough times) the title fades into a mere name. For instance, it doesn't matter, at this point, whether or not Lord of the Rings is a great title. At the mention of it, our minds skip the step of acknowledging the title and jump to thoughts of adventures of elves, dwarves, ents, etc.

So I think titles serve mainly to attract new readers. But how can a title be made to better attract readers and catch on? What makes a great title?

Guest Post: An Interview with author Bryan Davis

Special thanks to fellow teen writer, Christian Miles! He has kindly offered to allow me to post an interview he conducted with Bryan Davis, bestselling author of many books, including the Dragons in our Midst series, Oracles of Fire Series, and Echoes from the Edge series. Furthermore, he'll be conducting another interview with Bryan Davis in the future, and he'd like some question ideas. So think up a great question and post it in the comments section! Without any more delay, here's the interview (conducted May 27,2009):

Christian Miles: What is your favorite book that you've written? And what is your favorite scene out of any of your books?

Bryan Davis: I don't answer favorites questions well, because I have multiple choices and any one "favorite" might change from moment to moment. The three books that usually rise to the top are Circles of Seven, Eye of the Oracle, and The Bones of Makaidos. There are many scenes I like, and the two that come immediately to mind are Sapphira dancing with Elohim in Eye of the Oracle and Bonnie becoming an Oracle of Fire in The Bones of Makaidos.

 

Christian Miles:  Are the dragons in your new series of books different than what we've seen in the DIOM and OoF books?

Bryan Davis: The dragons in the new series will be, for the most part, evil, and they will rule the world they inhabit. They won't vary much in appearance from my other series.

 

Christian Miles: There has been a lot of news circulating about a Rasing Dragons movie, where are things on that?

Bryan Davis: I sold the theatrical rights to Raising Dragons, and a script has been written. We are currently in the long process of raising funds.

 

Christian Miles:  Who is your favorite character to write?

Bryan Davis: Another favorites question! Three come to mind--Bonnie, Walter, and Daryl. I enjoy writing about holy characters as well as funny ones.

 

Christian MIles:  Why do you write what you write?

Bryan Davis: My objective in writing is to create images of warriors for the Light. They possess courage as well as righteousness, and I hope that readers will be inspired to follow the same path. So far, from the emails I have received, it seems to be working.

Great interview, huh? You can find out more about Bryan Davis and his books at DavisCrossing.com. But also be sure to check out the teen writing e-zine Christian has started up at teenwrites-ezine.blogspot.com! Don't miss that!

And again, remember to post your question ideas for Bryan Davis in the comments section.

Scott Appleton: National Book Tour!

Scott Appleton, author of Swords of the Six, is going on a national book tour starting in December! Right now he's working it out and looking for places to make appearances. If you'd like him to do book signings in your area, e-mail him at spappleton (at) gmail (dot) com. Go to his blog for more info.

Novel Update: Big News!

I've got some news to share regarding my novel, The Shepherd; Flaming Pen Press has offered to publish it. Some of you may remember the post about Scott Appleton's invitation. No details yet. I have some guesses as to advantages and disadvantages to publishing with them, and I've sent them a list of questions in order to help inform my decision to accept or not. Seeing as that decision has not been made yet, please don't celebrate. But I'll keep everyone posted, as usual. Please pray that I make the right decision!

Meanwhile, Waterbrook Press / Multnomah Books has accepted this blog to receive a free book to review! North! Or Be Eaten, by Andrew Peterson, should arrive in the mail any day now, and I'll post the review for that book sometime between September 14th and 18th. They asked if I'd be interested in invitations to receive more free books to review and I thought abou -- OF COURSE!

Okay, now back to editing. Though By Darkness Hid is calling me from my bookshelf...