Climbing a mountain...

When I took a sabbatical to test out what writing full-time would be like, the image in my mind was one where I sat sedately at my desk tapping out my stories filled with inspiration from my muse. The truth of the situation is that while the writing part has absolutely more than fulfilled my expectations, I had no idea how addictive the process would become or of the challenges I would face. Finding readers has also been a surprising learning curve, and I have acquired a lot of skills I had no idea I would need!

But life is for learning, I’m enjoying the journey, and this week has been a real highlight for me. I published the final book in my urban fantasy, Demon’s Nemesis, and the three books in my first box set, The Kala Trilogy Box Set. I feel like a mountain climber who has reached the top of a mountain. The view is fantastic, and I’m real proud of this achievement—one I had only dreamed of a few years ago.

I’d very much like to share my excitement about this success with you, so starting today, and just for the month of February, if you sign up for my newsletter, you can download The Kala Trilogy Box Set for free!

Here's a description of the book:

A healer, a demon, a vampire: an eternal triangle with a difference.
When a powerful demon sets his sights on gaining control of Tatya's power, a series of tragic events ensues. Tatya finds love and friends in unlikely places, but ultimately she must face the demon and fight for her life. 

If you enjoy urban fantasy fused with mysticism, thrilling action, and determined heroines who never give up, then you’ll find this box set a real treat.
Click the link the link and start the journey: https://goo.gl/EeN8cM

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https://twitter.com/@teagankearney
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Thank you for visiting my blog, and please do leave a comment.
To all story lovers out there, good reading, and to those of you who write, good writing.

Fantasy: why do I write in this genre?

Truth becomes fiction when the fiction's true;

Real becomes not-real where the unreal's real.

The above quote is from the Chinese classic, Dream of the Red Chamber, and if you look at Wikipedia's list of top selling books of all time, six out of the top eight are fantasy, or have strong fantasy elements, so I'm not alone in being a fan of the genre. But why is fantasy, and I'm using the term loosely as there are many sub-genres, so popular?

I'm taking it as a given that genre delineation is a marketing tool used to direct readers to a particular type of book, because all stories, irrespective of genre, share the same basic requirements: a protagonist, a plot, and a setting.

Human protagonists experience a range of emotions, which enables readers to engage with them, and even those that are not, for example, robots or little furry animals, exhibit some or all of the same feelings. Whether your character is Leopold Bloom, Bilbo Baggins, Scarlett O'Hara or Miss Marples, readers must want to follow their journey, and find out what happens to them. A character's relationships, and their success or failure in this area of life are part of the emotional appeal of a story.

The term plot is used to describe the sequential events that take place within a story, and follows the standard dramatic arc of increasing internal and external tension, climax and resolution. From folk tales and myths to Greek tragedy, through Shakespeare's comedies to modernist novels, you find this convention. The reader's expectations about character and plot are present whether you read or write crime/detective, magic realism, rom-com, fantasy, fan fiction, or the genre known as literary fiction, and if you tick these boxes, you have a chance of satisfying readers.

For me, the setting of a fantasy novel offers a greater opportunity to bend the rules, although sub-genres such as urban fantasy or postcyberpunk, take place in the world as we know it, or use elements of our world with plenty of gritty kitchen sink realism thrown in. We owe a great debt to the myths and folklore of our ancestors, which we are adapting and passing on to the next generation. Tolkien's use of Norse mythology in Lord of the Rings springs to mind.

A more tricky aspect of genre writing is the framework created by established books which generates limitations. Fairies, elves, and space explorers are generally good, whereas trolls, goblins, and aliens are the standard baddies (except E.T. of course). On the other hand, you could have fun playing with these accepted norms, and feature a teenage troll worried about his complexion, although I'm sure the robot who constantly cracks bad jokes has been done. It's a delicate balance for genre writers to follow these conventions and yet introduce something new and original. If a writer is successful in doing so, their contribution is added to the cannon for later writers to follow.

As a reader and a writer, it's the otherness of fantasy that is its greatest appeal to me, and because the genre is generous, it can include romance, mystery, and be a thrilling tale of suspense on as epic or small a scale as the writer wishes. Sometimes the further we travel in our imagination away from the external world perceived by our senses, the more understanding we gain.

Writing Update:
In January I'll start outlining book three of my urban fantasy trilogy, Samsara, (Books One and Two are available), and until then, I'm editing a science-fiction/fantasy nanowrimo novel. Some years ago, I wrote a fantasy novel, and digging the manuscript out from the depths of a drawer, and reworking it is on the to do list. Although I've written in other genres, I keep returning to fantasy and my first love—sci-fi.

I was very happy to be interviewed earlier this month by the fantasy author, Kellie Steele, and you can find the interview on her website, as well as information about her debut novel, White Ghost and the Poison Arrow.

Useful Links:
http://kellie-steele.weebly.com/blog/

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_best-selling_books

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_writing_genres

Today's haiku:

snow lies on the ground

one red apple left hanging -

blackbird finds a feast.

Join me on Twitter at: @teagankearney

Thanks for visiting my blog, and please do leave a comment.

To all story lovers out there, good reading, and to those of you who write, good writing. 

TITLES MATTER

The first thing you read when you pick up a book is the title; it’s the hook which intrigues and attracts, offering that anticipatory moment between title and first page.

The majority of titles fall into two types: descriptive and evocative.

Descriptive titles indicate something of significance: the main character, Anna Karenina, Oliver Twist, Dracula; a reference to the theme or plot, Crime and Punishment, Angels and Demons; genre: I, Robot is clearly science-fiction, The Vampire Diaries a paranormal fantasy, and Confessions of a Shopaholic chick lit. These titles build expectation as they have a direct connection with the book’s subject. 

Evocative titles work because they fascinate and tempt readers. The Unbearable Lightness of Being is a beguiling title and one of my favourites, because I love the poetic juxtaposition of the words, and there’s no clue as to where this story will take you. A Clockwork Orange and Lord of the Flies are two other titles which fall into the enticing category; it's almost as if not understanding what the title refers to invites you to find out what the book is about - and it may not be what you expect.

How do writers set about choosing titles? John Steinbeck's Of Mice and Men is from a line in  Burn’s poem To a Mouse, and J.D. Salinger's Catcher in the Rye combines a children’s song with Burn’s poem, Coming thro’ the Rye. So poetry can be a fertile field when looking for a title. However, using quotes from other writers can be a delicate issue, because if you don’t have permission you can be accused of plagiarism. Older works such as religious texts or Shakespeare’s plays etc. are generally safe but if you choose this route, check with a legal expert to be sure.

Titles are often short and pithy as they have to catch the passing eye, and stick in the mind. Interestingly there is no copyright on titles, but it’s a good idea to check on Amazon or just google it and see what comes up. An original title saves your book being confused with others of the same name.

The title, like the cover, can pull readers in because we’re all susceptible to appealingly packaged goods, yet the real strength of a title is not in its capacity to attract.  The real power of a title is in its ability to summon from memory those images that live most strongly in our imagination, along with the emotions experienced during the reading of the story; and that’s something worth spending time on trying to achieve.

Writing Update

I feel so much better now I’ve started my read aloud read though and 3^rd edit. I needed a break, but I have to say I was miserable without my daily dose of writing. During my last editing break I worked on other pieces, but not this time – and the lesson is learned! On the plus side - the spare room is looking much better. 

Still no working title – but I’m nearer than I was to the general idea I want to encapsulate. The time line for publication is more likely to be the beginning of August, rather than July because I want to be sure I’ve done my best, and not rushed the details that will make a difference.  So I’m enthusiastically pushing forward... the thought of having a book ‘out there’ sometime in the near future is exhilarating. 

On a more minor note, Wattpad, the free reading platform, has promoted my sci-fi flash fiction, Space Glitch, (link on the right) to its quick read list - Quickies. Taking the wider world into consideration, I know this is a small step, but to me it's a validation that I'm on the right track - and it's brilliant to find out someone likes my writing!

Today’s Haiku

greening stalks of wheat

seed heads thicken ripen beige

gold - I love my toast

Useful Links

An entertaining post about naming characters:

http://www.niniehammon.com/dont-make-these-four-mistakes-when-you-name-your-characters-2/

Dr. Jeremy Dean’s popular psychology website isn’t writing related, but the jposts could be of use to writers looking to give background or depth to a character. The article in question is a good example of how to be informative and humorous.

http://www.spring.org.uk/2013/06/beard-psychology-4-signals-that-serious-facial-hair-sends.php

I’d love it if you popped over to Wattpad and read any of my posted stories...just click on the links to the right.

Thanks for visiting my blog, and please do leave a comment.

To all story lovers out there, good reading, and to those of you who write, good writing.