In Which THE MASKED SONGBIRD Starts Its Tour!

Woo! Today is the Tour Kickoff day for Emmie Mears and her book THE MASKED SONGBIRD!

 

 

I luuurve this cover

 

 

Emmie and I met on QueryTracker Forum so I'm happy to have her here today on my blog.

Take it away Emmie!

 

 

 

 

Writing is Cheaper Than Therapy

...But sometimes I think it might cause me to need a shrink.

When I wrote the first draft of THE MASKED SONGBIRD, I didn’t realize how cathartic it would be.

The initial idea came to me in a flurry of inspirational indignation when I saw that the still-warm Spider-Man franchise was getting rebooted. I wanted to write a novel with a female superhero. I always loved the messy ones, the Logans who had people issues, the Peters who grew from being stomped on, the Rogues who struggled to combat things they didn’t understand.

A lot came out in that first draft, which I wrote in a measly six weeks. It was the fastest book I ever wrote. Some things (like Gwen’s spandex-y tutu) survived to the final product. Others (like a scene I wrote while processing my own recovery from sexual assault) did not, and for good reason. Yet other things I’m only noticing now as possible manifestations of my own subconscious.

It wasn’t until the final readthrough of the manuscript that I started realizing how much writing the book had allowed me to work through some of my own issues. Writing (and creative endeavors in general) has always been a cathartic process for me, whether it be journaling or fiction. While I didn’t base Gwen Maule on myself, she does have some traits with which I empathize. My whole life, I’ve struggled to assert myself, and Gwen, at the outset of THE MASKED SONGBIRD, is very much treated like a doormat.

In some ways, writing Gwen’s character helped me realize my own assertiveness and confidence. If she, a nobody from a croft in Sutherland, could become a hero, maybe I could at least manage to get through the next year -- and maybe others who struggled with fighting a learned tendency to let things slide would learn to stand up for themselves too.

How does writing (or reading) teach you things about yourself? Which characters have you read or written who have brought out latent traits in you?



You can preorder THE MASKED SONGBIRD here (http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00JD7TWZK)! Released in a box set, you get four great paranormal and urban fantasy books for less than $4!

Follow Emmie on Twitter @EmmieMears and join her on Facebook!

Friday Fun

Yesssssss!  We've made it through the week which means today is the beginning of the weekend!

I can practically taste it

And you know what that means . . . Friday Fun!
Let's DO this!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

In Which I'm Over At YA Confidential

Hey all!



Today I'm over at YA Confidential doing a tandem interview with Matt MacNish about Steve Brezenoff's new book GUY IN REAL LIFE.

It should be up in about an hour or so. It's a great book so stop on by! 

In Which I Hodge-Podge

Here we are, another Monday. Yay?

On the plus side, I've turned in my final assignments for my first semester of my MFA, which is awesome. Now I have a month off until semester two starts. Which is good because I'll be working on revisions and edits for ALL THAT REMAINS.

Also it will give me some time to try and get ahead on my required reading list. I'm reaching the end of the books I can find at my county library system. Soon I'll need to start asking about interlibrary loans.

June for me is the first month that starts to feel like summer. It's been warm and sunny enough that I've resumed eating my lunches outside while reading whatever I'm reading at the time. At least until the sun makes me too hot and I have to go inside. And unless it's raining, of course.

And June means one of my favorite local conferences: 4TH STREET FANTASY. It's small, it's single panel, and it attracts some big names in the fantasy and sci-fi community. It's also completely affordable (I think I paid $60 for my early registration, and that wasn't even the earliest price).
So I'm definitely looking forward to that next weekend.

Also, I've officially taken over the From the Vault posts at YA Confidential.

Every Monday the bloggers answer a question and anyone who comments on the Vault posts for the month have a chance of winning a free book at the end of the month. I'm not kidding here. Every month we give out a free book (winner's choice), and it could easily be you and all it takes is a comment.

So that's it! What's up with you?

Insecure Writer's Support Group

First Wednesday of the month means it's time for IWSG

I'm not really feeling insecure right now, which is good of course. I mean, maybe I should be feeling the weight of things and junk.

My second MFA semster will be starting in about a month. I'll be working on ATR revisions for my editor (tee hee). I'll be planning and doing pre-work for the ATR sequel which is due next year.

And yet, I dunno. None of that is really weighing on me. For a big chunk of it I'm actually excited, which helps.

I mean, maybe by this time next month i'll be feeling the heat but right now things are A-Okay.

How about you? How's things with you?

In Which I've Been Tagged

So, as the title says, I've been tagged by the awesome Rena Rocford! Don't know her? Check her out because I already told you once she's awesome. And she is. I pretty much luuurve her and that's no lie.

Anyway, this is a "Talk about your process" game and I'm in, so here we go.

What are you working on right now?

What AREN'T I working on right now, right? Nah I'm just kidding. Mostly what I'm working on right now is MFA work and a new WIP. The WIP is cleverly titled WIP right now (because no matter how hard I try (like, maybe a medium amount?) I haven't been able to come up with even a working title for it. But I've been thinking of it as Howl's Moving Castle meets Sherlock Holmes, and whether it's actually like either of those things, I dunno, but it's got a boy who's a cavalry cadet and another boy who's got a demon living inside him, granting him magical powers, and there's a looming war and secret weapon plans that must be discovered and feels and junk.
So yeah, I'm liking it.
I'm only about 40K in. I wish I was farther, but what can you do?

My first MFA semester is allllmost done. Next week, actually. And then I have a small break until Semester 2 starts in early July. So right now I'm doing some voice work for my mentor Anne Ursu to finish out my semester.

How does my book differ from others in my genre?

Shit, these aren't like easy question are they? Hell, I don't know. Maybe if I was, like, done with it, I could tell you? Nah, probably not. I guess I would say it's not often you get cavalry cadets and wizard boys mixing it up together, so I guess my fantasy and world building is what separates it out.

Why do I write what I write?

Because it's fun, natch. And even though I love YA contemporary, I don't think I could ever write it because I'm sure I'd reach a point and write "and then the monsters show up" or something. I mean, the backdrop of teen emotions and drama is made even worse when you have to deal with magic and murder and some other clever "m" word I can't think of off the top of my head.
Mystery? meh.
So, yeah. I write it mostly because it's what I want to read. I think that's pretty much the most important reason to write anything, you know?

How does my writing process work?

Well.
I usually spend months brainstorming an idea. Thinking about characters. About specific scenes, all that fun stuff.
Then when it's marinated enough, I'll tackle the first 4-5 steps of the Snowflake Method. Mostly I'll just come up with a one sentence description of the book. Then a one paragraph description.
Then I'll come up with 4 disasters and an ending and plan out what the inciting incident is.
Then I'll work through the MCs motivations, goals conflicts and epiphany.
And finally, when all of that is done, I'll write a query. It doesn't have to be a great query, but I try to make it, you know, not shitty.
Finally part 2, I'll make a list of scenes, which functions as an outline for me, and I jump in.
Jumping in is usually pretty easy because during all of the pre-work I usually come up with an opening scene or at least an opening line, so I know where to start.
Then I'll write the whole thing, beginning to end, chronologically.
Bam. Draft one is done. And because I allow myself to edit every day, after I've hit my word count, my drafts are usually pretty clean, which means revising doesn't take me forever.
And that's my process in a nutshell.

And that's it! I have to tag someone and I'm going to tag Matt MacNish, because, you know, we're pals.

Wednesday Weird: The Green Children of Woolpit

The Green Children of Woolpit were two children who appeared in the village of Woolpit in Suffolk, UK, in the 12th century. The brother and sister had green colored skin, even though they appeared normal in all other ways. They spoke an unrecognized language and refused to eat anything other than pitch from bean pods.
Eventually, their skin lost its green color. After they learned English, they explained that they were from the “Land of St Martin,” which was a dark place because the sun never rose far above the horizon. They claimed that they were tending their father’s herd and followed a river of light when they heard the sounds of bells. Then they arrived in Woolpit

Read more at http://www.viralnova.com/unsolved-earth-mysteries/#cLzcUUPDF2XVuUuu.99

The Green Children of Woolpit were two children who appeared in the village of Woolpit in Suffolk, UK, in the 12th century. The brother and sister had green colored skin, even though they appeared normal in all other ways. They spoke an unrecognized language and refused to eat anything other than pitch from bean pods.
Eventually, their skin lost its green color. After they learned English, they explained that they were from the “Land of St Martin,” which was a dark place because the sun never rose far above the horizon. They claimed that they were tending their father’s herd and followed a river of light when they heard the sounds of bells. Then they arrived in Woolpit

Read more at http://www.viralnova.com/unsolved-earth-mysteries/#cLzcUUPDF2XVuUuu.99

In the 12th century in Suffolk, England, two children appeared in the village of Woolpit beside one of the wolf pits the village was named after.

They were brother and sister, and though they looked pretty normal, they had green skin, wore strange clothing, and spoke an unknown foreign language.

The people of the village tried to take care of them, but the children refused all food for the first few days until they were finally offered bean pods.

After some time, they learned to eat other foods and when they did, they lost the green color to their skin. The boy was sickly, though, and died shortly after he and his sister were baptized.

After she learned English, the girl, dubbed Agnes, explained that they had come from "St. Martins Land" which was a dark place because the sun never rose far above the horizon and where everything was green. She said that they had ben tending their father's herd when they heard a loud noise, possibly the bells of Bury St Edmunds, and suddenly found themselves standing by the wolf pit.

Sign for Woolpit, created in 1977

The girl would eventually be employed as a servant in Richard de Calne's household where it was reported that she was "vey wanton and impudent". She eventually married and moved away from Woolpit.

So there you go. Kind of a weird little story. Thoughts or theories?

The Green Children of Woolpit were two children who appeared in the village of Woolpit in Suffolk, UK, in the 12th century. The brother and sister had green colored skin, even though they appeared normal in all other ways. They spoke an unrecognized language and refused to eat anything other than pitch from bean pods.
Eventually, their skin lost its green color. After they learned English, they explained that they were from the “Land of St Martin,” which was a dark place because the sun never rose far above the horizon. They claimed that they were tending their father’s herd and followed a river of light when they heard the sounds of bells. Then they arrived in Woolpit

Read more at http://www.viralnova.com/unsolved-earth-mysteries/#cLzcUUPDF2XVuUuu.99