Posts by Writer Unboxed
Kath here. In the spirit of holiday giving, Therese and I decided to turn over the month of December to WU readers. That’s right, you get to set the agenda at WU for a whole month. We’re going to let you ask YOUR burning question about the craft of writing fiction, queries, agent hunting, the industry, or any other aspect of this crazy profession that’s been tickling your brain. We’ll then offer them up to our esteemed contributors and let them answer YOU.
And because our readers like free stuff, especially of the bookish variety, our friends at Tin House Books have generously gifted us a basket of their most popular titles to give to you, just in time for the holidays. Simply leave your question in the comments below, and we’ll randomly draw a winner. Only residents of the continental U.S. are eligible for the drawing (sorry!). But anyone anywhere can ask a question.
Oh, and p.s.: Of COURSE we’ll link to your website, blog, Twitter, Facebook (etc…) if your question is chosen. But if anonymity is preferred, drop your question at writerunboxed@writerunboxed.com and we’ll add it to the mix.
Please leave your question by Thursday, Nov. 25. Good luck!
Read More“Steeped in the magic and lore of Arthurian legend, Elliott paints a moving portrait of a timeless romance, fraught with danger, yet with the power to inspire heroism and transcend even the darkest age.”
Valued contributor Anna Elliott is celebrating the release of her second book in her Twilight of Avalon historical fantasy series. We asked Anna to tell us a little bit about DARK MOON OF AVALON, and she obliged. Enjoy!
Q: What is the premise of your new book?
AE: In Dark Moon of Avalon, Isolde is the former High Queen of Britain. Trystan, her friend and protector, is a Saxon mercenary and outlaw. The villainous Lord Marche has been ruthless in his attacks on King Madoc and the British kingdom. He has identified Trystan as his son and greatest threat. Five months after a hard-fought but tenuous victory, Isolde and Trystan are reunited to aid King Madoc again. Both the targets of Marche’s wrath, they are dispatched on a diplomatic mission through unstable and warring lands to persuade rulers of the smaller kingdoms surrounding Britain to join forces to protect the throne. Brought together under dire circumstances, Trystan and Isolde must confront their growing love for each other and face a battle that will test the strength of their will, their hearts, and the lives of all those in Britain.
Q: What would you like people to know about in this story?
AE: I fell in love with the Trystan and Isolde legend in college, and it was such a joy and privilege to get to write my own retelling of it. But I did try to make sure that anyone at all can read (and hopefully enjoy) my version–you don’t have to be familiar with the original Arthurian stories to understand Dark Moon of Avalon. This is the most romantic of the three books, I think, which I of course loved writing. And while the plot of Dark Moon does build on the events of Twilight of Avalon, I did intend Book 2 to somewhat stand on its own; you don’t have to have read Book 1 to understand Trystan and Isolde and their journey.
Q: What problems and challenges do your characters have to overcome in this story?
Read MoreBlog mama Kath is gearing up for the release of the next title in the First Daughter series (written as Cassidy Calloway). SECRETS OF A FIRST DAUGHTER releases September 1 by Harper Teen. We asked Kath to do a Take 5 to share with WU readers a little bit more about the National Disaster known as Morgan Abbott, the President’s daughter.
Q: What’s the premise of your new book?
SECRETS OF A FIRST DAUGHTER picks up where CONFESSIONS OF A FIRST DAUGHTER leaves off. Morgan Abbott is daughter of the President of the United States, who also happens to be her mother Morgan is still grappling with living within the caldron of celebrity while trying to negotiate all the problems of a typical senior in high school: trying to keep her grades from being embarrasing, romantic complications and deciding which college to go to. Meanwhile, she’s harboring a few secrets that could derail the plans her Mom has for her as the First Daughter. In typical Morgan fashion, she tries to live a double life between normal and celebrity, and screwing it up in the process.
Q: What would you like people to know about the story itself?
In SECRETS we see Morgan grow up and own who she is.
Read MoreValued contributor Sophie Masson’s latest children’s novel, THE MADMAN OF VENICE, releases in the U.S. on August 10! Sophie is traveling from Paris to her home in Australia this week, so hopefully she has time for a Take 5 interview to tell us all about her latest project. Until then, here is the teaser blurb:
Venice in 1602 is a vibrant and charming city. Yet beneath this splendor lies a sinister underworld in which murderous pirates and conniving noblemen have woven a tangled network.
Along with his daughter, Celia; his clerk, Ned; and his sister, Mistress Bess Quickly, Master Ashby, a prosperous merchant, sets forth from London to Venice to investigate the pirate attacks that have been plaguing English ships. But the group’s mission turns out to be far more than they bargained for when Ashby is beseeched to find Sarah Tedeschi, a Jewish girl who has vanished from the Venetian Ghetto after being accused of witchcraft by the powerful Countess of Montemoro.
Is Sarah’s disapperance somehow connected to the pirate attacks? Nothing is what it seems as Ned and Celia uncover secrets that have been hidden for far too long.
Doesn’t it sound great? THE MADMAN OF VENICE is available at booksellers everywhere.
Read MoreHappy 4th of July! Here’s to grills that don’t burn food, ice cold beverages, bug-free picnics and sparkly fireworks! Back to work July 5. Until then, have a safe and fun holiday.
Read MoreIt’s been a little while since we’ve done a Take 5 interview, and we’re thrilled to be able to do one with guest contributor Kay Cassidy. Kay’s YA novel for teens, The Cinderella Society, released in April.
Kay is the founder of the national Great Scavenger Hunt ContestTM reading program for kids and teens and the host of the inspirational Living Your FiveTM web project. In her free time, she enjoys yoga, movies, music, and reading. Lots and lots of reading. She hopes her debut YA novel, THE CINDERELLA SOCIETY (April 2010 – Egmont), will help girls embrace their inner Cindy.
Also, do you like winning things? At the end of the interview, we’ll post information for a fun giveaway contest sponsored by Kay for WU readers! Enjoy this Take 5 mini ‘view with Kay Cassidy!
Q: What’s the premise of your debut novel?
The Cinderella Society is about an outsider who gets tapped to join a secret society of good populars dedicated to defeating the mean girls of the world. It’s about girl empowerment: getting comfortable in your own skin and being true to who you are. It also deals with the effects of girl bullies and what unconditional friendship really means. And, of course, there are cute guys and lots of kissing. Romance rocks. :-)
Q: What would you like people to know about the story itself?
That covers can be deceiving. :-)
Read MoreWU contributor Ann Aguirre has a new book–the second in her Corine Solomon series, Hellfire. We know you have inquiring minds; we know you want to know. So we asked Ann five questions about her new book to learn more.
Q: What’s the premise of your new book?
AA: I’m still a redhead. Before we left Texas, I touched up the roots, and then I had some tawny apricot highlights put in. I guessed that meant I intended to keep this color for a while. Symbolic—I’d made a commitment, at least to my hair.
As a handler, Corine Solomon can touch any object and know its history. It’s too bad she can’t seem to forget her own. With her ex-boyfriend Chance in tow—lending his particularly supernatural brand of luck—Corine journeys back home to Kilmer, Georgia, in order to discover the truth behind her mother’s death and the origins of her “gift.”
But while trying to uncover the secrets in her past, Corine and Chance find that something is rotten in the state of Georgia. Just a few miles away, no one seems to know Kilmer exists. And inside the town borders there are signs of a dark curse affecting the town and all its residents—and it can only be satisfied with death…
Q: What would you like people to know about the story itself?
AA: It’s very creepy and atmospheric. Also, I think they’ll be surprised at the true evil.
Q: What do your characters have to overcome in this story? What challenge do
you set before them?
AA: A whole town that wants to kill them. They have to survive.
Q: What unique challenges did this book pose for you, if any?
AA: It was harder to make the Southern setting come alive since I’m not surrounded by it every day.
Q: What has been the most rewarding aspect of having written this book?
AA: Hearing that people enjoyed it.
Learn more about the book on Ann’s site, HERE.
Read MoreAfter several rounds, WU’s Juliet Marillier is still in the running for the BSC Reviews Tournament. She reports:
Heart’s Blood has survived to the round of 16 in this British-based book tournament. Thanks to all who voted to keep my book in the contest! I bet most of the votes came from outside the UK.
Round 3 voting is open from now until March 31. Heart’s Blood is up against Rosemary and Rue by Seanan McGuire.
To cast a vote, post the name of your chosen book in the appropriate match-up. For a bonus point, give a good reason for your choice. You need to be registered on the BSC Reviews site to post. Here’s the link again:
https://www.bscreview.com/forum/viewforum.php?f=93
Stay on top of all of Juliet’s latest news by following her fan page on Facebook HERE.
Read MoreFree Expressions Seminars is now welcoming applications for a full scholarship to its acclaimed Writing the Breakout Novel Weeklong Intensive, with top New York literary agent, Donald Maass.
The scholarship is available for one student who wishes to participate in the September 13-19 Writing the Breakout Novel Intensive, to be held in Charlotte, NC. It covers complete room, board, tuition and all other workshop expenses, except transportation.
The workshop offers thirty-five writers the opportunity to dig into their novels-in-progress in an intensive workshop in which they take daily classes with Don Maass and receive in-depth feedback on their work from Maass and a roster of experienced industry professionals.
Suitable for published and pre-published writers alike, the workshop’s core focus is on creating a “breakout” work, one that transcends genre to offer a rich, dramatic, and memorable experience to the reader.
“Even though this workshop regularly goes to waiting list status, we know that not every writer can afford the investment,” says workshop director, Lorin Oberweger. “We wish we could help a thousand writers, but this is one small way for us to lend a hand.”
For more information on the workshop or to download a scholarship application and information, visit: www.free-expressions.com. Or call toll-free: 866-497-4832.
Read MoreJuliet and Therese may have been knocked out of the Da Bwaha Tournament, but Juliet is still in the running for the BSC Reviews Tournament. Voting is easy. First, register, then vote (now through 3/25). Check it out HERE.
Read MoreWe’ve been overwhelmed and touched with the response to our call for a new contributor, one who’ll be our voice for the Unpublished Writer, and we’re excited about adding a new member to the WU family! Our plan is to bring one new person in as a permanent member–someone who’d blog with us once monthly. But we’re also interested in developing a stable of writers who’d share a revolving post. The latter position is obviously less intimate, but it’ll ensure WU readers with a variety of unique voices and perspectives from those trekking the long road to publication.
Does it matter for which position you’d like to apply? Not at this stage. For now, we just need for you to throw your hat in the ring, officially.
But. As much as we lurve you, we don’t want you to apply unless you’re really, really sure. Here’s our tough talk:
Our goal here at WU is to be informative, occasionally amusing, and above all, empowering to novelists and aspiring novelists who write genre fiction. These are qualities we’re also looking for in our contributors.
Our contributors take their commitment to posting with WU seriously. We’ve rarely had any fail to post (there are exceptions like Real Life issues, etc., but these have luckily been extremely rare). Please don’t apply if you feel you aren’t ready to be just as professional and committed.
Still interested? Here’s how to apply:
Read More
