Guest Post: Sahar Sabati

Guest Post:

Reading a book allows us to escape into a world where things are different and, most of the time, better (at least at the end of the book).  In Spirit Within Club, I put together a group of ten year-olds who, although not perfect, were striving for excellence by constantly trying to improve themselves.

I found the response to these characters quite interesting.  Broadly speaking, they were of three kinds.  For the most part, readers responded positively to them; barely a handful were of the second kind, i.e. reacting quite negatively.  Then there were readers who liked the book but found it too unrealistic in its relentless optimism.  These are the ones who to this day intrigue me the most.  Some thought that the characters were too perfect; others thought that the adults were too nice; and some thought that everything tied up too neatly.  I constantly reread the first volume of the Spirit Within Club as I work on the second one and it strikes me each time how normal the kids in this book are to me; these are the ten year-olds that I have had the opportunity to interact with.  I feel sad that readers found them abnormal in the level of excellence they strived for.

No doubt that, amidst the noise created by sensationalistic articles about the plummeting norms of society and the increasing debauchery of the younger generation, countless stories of excellence are lost.  And yet, how can we consider the bar so low, when there are so many stories around us about the heroism and selflessness characteristic of that age group?  I came to realise that the third category of readers is the very reason why I need to continue writing this series.  In a small way, I’m contributing to a movement countering the portrayal of the younger generation in popular media.  We need more stories that look at the thousands upon thousands of youth who are working hard on becoming better individuals and contributing to the betterment of their community.  We need to stop focusing so much on the few that misbehave, and be inspired by those who shine brightly.  And so, the Spirit Within Club series—and the still untitled young adult book I’m currently working on—will continue to feature kids and youth who, although imperfect, try hard to be good people.

About the book:

The arts teacher is ruining what used to be Aiko's favorite class. 
Zeke misses out on the best part of the whole year – the science fair – when he has to go into the hospital. 
Arwen lives to play soccer but a stupid lie means he might not be allowed to play. 
Ghada comes home to find that her beloved grandma has died. 
When ten-year-old friends set up an after-school club so they can hang out together more often, they don't expect to be able to solve these problems themselves. 
But when they tap into the spirit within them, they and their friends discover that they have the power to make the world a better place.
The Spirit Within Club on Amazon
Author's Blog

Video Interview: Martin Rouillard Part 2

Here is a bit about the first book in his series, Tales of the Lorekeepers:
Samuel Osmond opens his eyes in a world he has always dreamed of, where legends are more than bedtime stories and fabled heroes battle fearsome foes. In his hand are the mysterious dice that brought him here, to this world called Metverold. He remembers casting the dice in his bedroom, and the red light that engulfed him, but has no idea why he has been brought to this place. Fortunately, he will soon meet Angeline, a fata tasked with helping Samuel understand his role as the new Lorekeeper, a guardian of legends. 

But Metverold is a harsh world, and Samuel quickly grasps the danger he is in. Hiding among the Briton army of King Vortigern, on the run from Saxon invaders, Samuel must find a dark sorcerer who threatens to change history before a force from an earlier time is unleashed upon Dinas Ffaraon. And what of this strange boy who knows much more than he should? Could he be the key to it all? 

Discover the story that has captivated readers all over the world, and join Samuel as he journeys across mythical lands and fights alongside legendary heroes.

Tales of the Lorekeepers on Amazon

Video Intervew: Martin Rouillard Part 1

I'd like to thank Martin for agreeing to be my guinea pig for my first video interview.

Here is a bit about the first book in his series, Tales of the Lorekeepers:
Samuel Osmond opens his eyes in a world he has always dreamed of, where legends are more than bedtime stories and fabled heroes battle fearsome foes. In his hand are the mysterious dice that brought him here, to this world called Metverold. He remembers casting the dice in his bedroom, and the red light that engulfed him, but has no idea why he has been brought to this place. Fortunately, he will soon meet Angeline, a fata tasked with helping Samuel understand his role as the new Lorekeeper, a guardian of legends. 

But Metverold is a harsh world, and Samuel quickly grasps the danger he is in. Hiding among the Briton army of King Vortigern, on the run from Saxon invaders, Samuel must find a dark sorcerer who threatens to change history before a force from an earlier time is unleashed upon Dinas Ffaraon. And what of this strange boy who knows much more than he should? Could he be the key to it all? 

Discover the story that has captivated readers all over the world, and join Samuel as he journeys across mythical lands and fights alongside legendary heroes.

Tales of the Lorekeepers on Amazon

Author Interview: Deanna Beach

How long have you been writing?

I wrote my first children’s book about 8 years ago.  I was the child psychologist on an Army post in Vicenza, Italy.  It’s home to the 173^rd Airborne Combat Unit.  As they deployed for their 2007 tour to Afghanistan a wave of children were brought in with the chief complaint being that the parents having difficulty getting them to sleep.  Given the stress in these families and the disruption to the family systems it was not surprising.  As part of getting the children to sleep I would have the parents help them visualize a safe and happy place with sensory cues like ‘feel the warm grass under your feet.’  My husband was also deployed with the 173^rd, and I started to do the same routine with my children.  The book ‘Dreamland Magic’ (due out this summer) is the result of those experiences.  Since I was in Europe and working a very full-time job with two small children at home, I did not have time to pursue publishing the book.  I just gave it to families as part of the tools that we would use when children were having difficulty sleeping and it helped.

Since we are in the military we get moved a lot.  After Italy my husband was stationed in Hawaii and it took a while for me to get my normal job back.  So, I started to thinking about a phrase that I developed during that same deployment to help children cope with stress -, ‘But Aren’t I Lucky That…” and out poured my second children’s book. 

I initially stumbled onto the phrase ‘But Aren’t I Lucky That…’ while trying to find a way to draw an anxious child out of his preoccupation with his fear that his father was going to die. Normally this would be one of those fears of childhood that has no basis in reality and is just part of developing object permanency, but we were on a small Army post in Italy and the 173rd Airborne Combat Unit was deployed to Afghanistan. It was a hard deployment and we had lots of wounded and killed in action. Saying, "It's okay." or "He'll be fine." would have been absurd. Kids know when you're lying. So, instead we focused on what we knew to be true at the moment. At that moment we were lucky because we had not had any bad news and the child had recently received a phone call from his father. We then took this deeper and started to find other things that were lucky about the day and quickly moved to making it a game. I then taught it to his mother and they would play it whenever he was having difficulty. This helped concretely bring him, and us, back to the here and now, which made the anxiety bearable.

During that deployment the Army initiated a massive campaign at about that time called Comprehensive Soldier and Family Fitness – CSF2.  It takes evidence-based strategies from the field of positive psychology that foster resiliency and teaches it to soldiers.  ‘But Aren’t I Lucky That…’ is the combination of these two influences – my experience helping children deal with intense stress and the current research findings.  

Why did you write But Aren't I Lucky That....?

It seemed like the best way to get these concepts into the hands of parents and caregivers would be to put them in a story.  The story conveys the meaning all by itself, but I have also included a discussion section in the back of the book that explains the tools that the book covers and gives care givers prompts to talk about the concepts with their kids.  When you know something works don’t you want to share it?  I do.

Are you currently working on any other projects?

Yes, I have revised the ‘Dreamland Magic’ book and plan to get that illustrated and published.  Also, I have started on another of what I hope will be a series of  ‘But Aren’t I Lucky That…’ books that makes it easy to incorporate the strategies we know reflect resilient thinking and good parenting.

Could you talk a bit about the publication process of your book?

When I decided to take the process of publishing seriously I did my research.  I learned about submitting query letters, the high rate of rejection, the possibility of self-publishing, and (most scary) the author’s platform.  I say the platform is the scariest for me because it is the most unnatural thing for me to do.  As a psychologist I don’t collect names and emails to stay in touch with my clients.  If I do my job right you are not supposed to need me again.  So, when all of a sudden I am supposed to be engaging and self-promoting it feels weird, but I’m learning. 

But I digress; I did the classic round after round of query letters.  Some of the ones that I got back were really sweet and encouraging.  For example, I will paraphrase, “while I love the story and it seems really marketable…it’s not in my lane.”  Sweet, but still a rejection.  I grew tired of waiting and started to look into the self-publishing option more seriously.  Most of the print-on-demand groups are set up for novels, but the Children’s book side of the house is growing.  I realized that if I could get it illustrated then I could get it printed.  That’s when I found my illustrator, Steven Lester, on www.freelancer.com.  I absolutely love his work.  His first illustration of my main character was so spot on that the choice was easy.

What do you like about writing for younger children?

What I like about writing for children is the same thing that I love about working with them.  When you bring a new idea or help to fix a difficulty it is like watching a new flower reaching for the sun.  A little light, a little water, a little love and they open up and blossom.

Deanna's Pubslush Campaign 

Deanna's Website

Deanna's Twitter: @deannabeech

Calling all authors: World Weaver Press open to submissions!

WORLD WEAVER PRESS

OPENS TO SUBMISSIONS

FEBURARY 1, 2015

Alpena, MI (January 26, 2014) – World Weaver Press (Eileen Wiedbrauk, Editor-in-Chief), publisher of fantasy, paranormal, and science fiction, will be open to unsolicited queries for novels, novellas, serialized fiction, anthology proposals, and single author collections from February 1 – February 28, 2015.

World Weaver Press believes in challenging genre boundaries and engaging the fundamental human drive to tell stories that resonate emotionally. This is accomplished by partnering with great writers to craft and edit the best fantasy, paranormal, and science fiction stories possible. For full submission guidelines and details, visit: www.worldweaverpress.com/submit-fiction.html. World Weaver Press will also be open to submissions in June and September, 2015.

In addition, World Weaver Press is looking for modern space adventures crafted in the Grand Tradition to be included in the second volume of the acclaimed Far Orbit science fiction adventure series. Editor Bascomb James is seeking stories that establish a new tradition in the much maligned sci-fi adventure genera – smart, modern stories built around the classic traditions that transport you from the everyday grind and leave you wondrously satisfied. Far Orbit: Apogee will be open to submissions through March 31, 2015. For more information, visit: http://www.worldweaverpress.com/submit-anthologies.html.

With the beginning of this open submissions period, World Weaver Press also welcomes two new assistant editors to the team:  Laura Harvey and Sarena Ulibarri. You can read more about the new editors and the speculative fiction they are looking for at: worldweaverpress.com/newsblog/introducing-new-wwp-editor-laura-harvey and worldweaverpress.com/newsblog/introducing-new-wwp-editor-sarena-ulibarri.

Laura Harvey is an editor, writer, bibliophile, horsewoman, historian, teacher, debate coach, nerd, DIY junkie, and occasional rescuer of kittens. She holds a BA, MA, and is ABD, making her an exceptional asset in Trivial Pursuit. She loves reading so much that all of her handbags share one crucial ability: fitting a standard paperback or Kindle. She lives in northern California with a menagerie of beasts (dogs, cats, horses, and family members).

Sarena Ulibarri earned an MFA from the University of Colorado at Boulder and attended the Clarion Fantasy and Science Fiction Writers' Workshop at UCSD in 2014. Her short fiction has appeared in Lightspeed, NewMyths.com, The Colored Lens, Kasma SF and elsewhere. She currently lives in New Mexico with her husband and their Welsh Corgi. sarenaulibarri.com

World Weaver Press is a publisher of fantasy, paranormal, and science fiction, dedicated to producing quality works. We believe in great storytelling.

# # # # #

worldweaverpress.com

@WorldWeaver_wwp

Author Interview: Riley Westbrook

​1. When did you first know you wanted to write?

I wasn't bit by the writing bug until I worked nights at a psych hospital. It was a period of boredom filled with short bursts of having to deal with someone telling me the walls were telling him to beat up his roommate. But I was 25 when I started planning out my timeline.

2. Which authors inspire you the most?

Anne McCaffrey, Robert Jordan, David Weber, Tolkien, David Brin, Frank Herbert, Raymond E. Feist, Robin Hobb, and Heinlein. I've also been known to read over old Issac Asimov books from time to time, though I don't think I write anything like he does.

3.How did you get the inspiration for your novel?

I played Dungeons and Dragons throughout high school. I built entire worlds and campaigns from my head, and kept notes for years and years. When I was 25 and found it again, I started planning a book. When I was 30, disabled and unable to do the job I love I became serious about that book. Breath of the Titans: The False Titanbringer is what sprang forth.

4. What is your favorite part about being an author?

When I was a kid, I remember my teachers always complaining that I would be daydreaming instead of paying attention in class. I've always had an over active imagination, and writing gives me the ability to freely express it without any fear of an authoritarian figure interfering. Only the day to day parts of living and paying the bills get in the way of my adventures inside of my own head.

5. Could you write a bit about what your publication process was like?

That part sucked. It's been mostly trial and error, and I still don't have it 100% down. For instance, my separate books are available on Smashwords.com in their premium catalog, but my book that contains all three isn't because I can't get the formatting just right. Hoping that this next project I'm working on will be a bit easier now that I have some experience under my belt.

6. Do you have any upcoming projects?

Yes, I'm working on a horror story this time around. Follows a drug addict around during the start of a zombie apocalypse, as well as another group trying to survive. I know, zombies, right? But there are twists, and it was much more fun to write than I thought it would be.

About Riley's Book:

 story that centers around a half elf, half dragon boy who just turned 16, named Lovonian. The story begins with Lov and his uncle Nord taking their annual hunting trip. On their return to Elvenhom, they find that the city’s population has been slaughtered by an army of Titans, except for those taken as slaves, when they see the collection of ears that were chopped off. With Amon dead and his mother captured, Lov and Nord begin their quest to find his mother by seeking out Nord’s old friend Jaxon. After acquiring weapons and knowledge of their enemy, they set out to rescue Lov’s mother with the help of a fairy sent by Lov’s grandfather. From there, they encounter all kinds of adventures and creatures, while in desperate pursuit.
Breath of the Titans on Amazon

Giveaway: New World: Rising

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Book synopsis: 

Since witnessing her parents’ murders at the age of eleven, Phoenix’s only purpose in life has been to uphold her mother’s dying words- to be strong and survive. But surviving outside of The Walls- outside of The Sanctuary- is more like a drawn-out death sentence. A cruel and ruthless city, Tartarus is run by the Tribes whose motto is simple, “Join or die.”


Refusing to join and determined to live, Phoenix fights to survive in this savage world. Trusting no one, she lives as a rogue, fending only for herself. Then in a moment of rash judgment, she breaks all of her rules to save a child, and in that moment her life is turned upside down. When the rescue mission goes awry, Phoenix is captured by an underground group who claims no allegiance with either the Tribes nor The Sanctuary. She finds herself in the most dangerous game of survival she has ever played.

In her captivity, only one person- the handsome and oddly sympathetic Triven- shows Phoenix something she has never before experienced: kindness. While warring with unfamiliar emotions and still skeptical of her captors' motives, Phoenix quickly realizes that these people may just hold the key to her lost memories. But who can she trust, when no one can be trusted? Not even herself.

About Jennifer:

As a child Jennifer loved getting lost in the stories of others, but struggled greatly with reading. A notoriously slow reader who stumbled with words and spelling, Jennifer shied away from books, leaning heavily on musical theater and movies to get her inspirational fix. 

It was not until in her mid-teens, when a persistent friend convinced her to read the Harry Potter series, that Jennifer found her love for the written word. J.K. Rowling’s books opened doors not only to the fascinating world of a young wizard, but to a life filled with a multitude of literary friends and fantastical worlds. Once a timid reader, Jennifer now devours books and loves getting lost in a new series.

Jennifer had wanted to write her own novel since her early twenties, but unfortunately inspiration doesn’t always strike on command. Her first book, The Chosen, was completed in 2013. But as most first attempts go, it was a flop. While looking through a multitude of rejection letters, inspiration struck again, putting Grace’s story got on hold as Phoenix’s began.

New World: Rising began to fill Jennifer’s brain, flowing like a fully opened valve from her fingertips. What was once such a struggle in her early years suddenly became a passion.

When Jennifer is not writing, she is enjoying life in Colorado, rock climbing, camping, exploring new foods, playing with her golden retriever, Duke, and sharing her life with her handsome and wonderful husband.

More details about Jennifer Wilson and New World: Rising can be found at:

www.jenniferkaywilson.com

@J_KayWilson
New World: Rising on Amazon

Review: Perception (EVE #3)

Title: Perception (EVE #3)
Author: A.L. Waddington
Page Count: 264
My Rating: 2 TURTLES: A so-so read. It had some redeeming qualities, but not enough to recommend.

Description:
Questions, questions, and more questions.. they consume Jocelyn Timmons’ life—both of them. Questions that never seem to have an answer. They haunt her, eat at her, and dreams of a normal senior year of high school have finally floated away into nothingness.

Inheriting the gift of EVE (Essence Voyager Era) has become both a gift and a curse. One that Jocelyn doesn’t know if she wants or can accept. The world she once knew and thrived in has all but disappeared in the last two months. And now she wonders if she can ever find her way home again.

Her fiancé, Jackson Chandler, and his family seem to be the only ones who understand what she’s going through besides her uncles, both of which she’s grown very close to. But even they do not fully grasp how turbulent the situation at home has become. Will Jocelyn survive the torments from her mother and brother? Or will she find a hidden key to finally unlock her golden cage?

Review:
I have been sent copies of all of the books from the series up to now by publicists and have been liking them less and less as I go along. The original premise of people leading two different lives at different times was so intriguing that I kept reading, hoping that the story would utilize this unique premise to create a kick butt story, but three books in I think that ship has finally sailed.

There are just so many things that have fallen short in this series for me, so I will try to string my issues together somewhat coherently and try not to rant. I have hopes for the first, less for the latter.

Here it goes....

One thing that bugged me about this story from the beginning was how much Waddington romanticizes "back then". The two times that the characters are living in are present day and the late nineteenth century, and while this book did address social issues of that time, it romanticized that era as much (more, in my opinion) than it criticized it. Present day Jocelyn praises the family values of "back then" and laments of how much we have lost, but this is mostly because her present day family is particularly messed up and her "back then" family is particularly close and put together. Its true that as the veil between the two times comes down and both Jocelyns remember each other, the "back then" Jocelyn gets upset that her family does not support her in going to college, but that's really the biggest one. She's not upset that she can't vote. She's not upset that she will have to depend on Jackson, modern and supportive he may claim to be(though he comes off as pretty patriarchal to me), for the rest of her life. Also, the only time she gets upset about the plight of her life back then is when it affects her specifically. I know if I were transported back then, I might have fun winning bets on who the next president will be or visiting my favorite late authors, but I know seeing the pervasive racism, sexism, homophobia, and other forms of oppression would make me sick. I wouldn't be able to do it. This doesn't bother Jocelyn particularly, though especially seeing as the only people of color in her life are the house staff in her "back then" life, and even though they are servants they are "like family" so it's all good.

Now that I'm down off my activist soap box, the next pressing issue I had with the story has to do with the premise and the plot.
Premise: There are a group of people who have this special genetic gift (I think going magic instead of science fiction would have made more sense with this one, but I digress) that means they live two different lives at two different times. They are born unaware of the other life they live until around adulthood when the barriers come down and they can integrate living two lives at once.

Plot: A young couple in the 1800s are about to get married. The man has this gift, and when he figures out his fiancee does too, even though she has no idea, he and his family scramble to find her in their present day lives. The reason? If she gets pregnant in her "back then" life she gets pregnant in her present life. Yes, pregnancy carries over both lives, though illness and injury does not, go figure. This would cause problems for present life Jocelyn, but "back then" Jocelyn would be irked if her husband didn't want to do it with her once they were married.

You see my problem? We have this cool magic/science fiction premise and the author uses it to pose the question: "what would you do if you knew getting your life pregnant in one life would royally screw up her other life, but still wanted to sleep with her once you were married?" Not exactly like the spine-chilling mirror-of-reality questions that other science fiction novels have sought to shed light on.

The last reason why I didn't like this book that I will address in this review is the fact that I don't like Jocelyn and Jackson very much.

Jocelyn comes off as clingy and disrespectful. She rolls her eyes, smirks, and snickers quite a bit, and maybe the author just wasn't paying to the connotation of the words she was using and meant that Jocelyn looks up with amusement, smiles coyly, and titters a lot. As it is though, Jocelyn comes off as kind of a brat.

Jackson, well, for a guy pursuing law in both of his lives, he is a bit of an idiot. Despite being 22, when he finds out that his 17 initially, but turns 18 by book 3 girlfriend lives in present day too, not just the 1800s, he decides that the best way to re-win her heart would be to fake his age and re-enroll in high school even though his family moved in across the street from her. This, of course, means he and his family have broken a lot of laws to get him to be near his one true love, when a neighborhood barbecue would have done the trick. It is because he has these crimes hanging over his head, not, apparently, because he has grown or matured in anyway, means he cannot partake in the shenanigans he used to with his buddies. Shenanigans that included stealing a bunch of street signs from the road on a drunken stint that caused an accident. But it's okay, because no one died and Jackson's lawyer daddy covered for him so he and his friends didn't get in trouble. Any shred of hope I had for Jackson as a character ended when I read that scene.


I recognize I am just one voice with one opinion, and there are many people who do like these books, but I cannot recommend them. I held out hope, I've had enough, and I will not be continuing with the series. 
Perception on Amazon

Author Interview: Sahar Sabati

What is your favorite thing about being an author?

There are two processes we can all contribute to:  our own mental, physical, and spiritual development, and the material and spiritual development of our communities.  Things are changing so fast that what works one day might not work the next.  My favorite thing as an author is the opportunity to explore different ways to pursue this two fold process.  I hope that my stories help others come up with unique and avant-garde ways of contributing to making their communities better.

What is one book that you read in your childhood/young adult years that had a particularly big impact on you?

Alexandre Dumas’ The Count of Monte Cristo, which I read when I was twelve, made me realise that even with the best of intentions—in Dantès’ case, a desire for justice—a hero can actually be quite the antihero.

What types of books do you read for fun?

Anything that captures my attention!  This changes according to what is happening in the world—from comets to natural phenomena to social affairs—as well as to what I am myself writing.  For example, I’m really curious about the question of social justice in the context of food, which I am satisfying with books like Salt, Sugar, Fat by Michael Moss.  I usually end up reviewing most of these!

What other projects are you working on?

I’m working on the second volume of Spirit Within Club, as well as on a young adult novel both of which I hope to have published by the end of the year!

What inspired you to write Spirit Within Club?

A lot of preteens want to make their communities a better place, but society deems them incapable of doing so significantly.  My personal experience has been that, when lovingly helped by their parents, their teachers, and older youth, they are able to do so much!  I had the opportunity of working with preteens when they were 12 and it was so inspiring to see how they grew to take ownership of the process of betterment of their communities.  They inspired me to write about the coming of age of a group of preteens who wish to make the world a better place, and what they can accomplish when they are helped adequately by older individuals.

Which literary character (preferably from a book most people know about) do you think you are most like?

I often feel like the women in Jane Austen’s books; misunderstood and encouraged to fit a mould that is completely different from who I am.


About the book:
The arts teacher is ruining what used to be Aiko's favorite class. 
Zeke misses out on the best part of the whole year – the science fair – when he has to go into the hospital. 
Arwen lives to play soccer but a stupid lie means he might not be allowed to play. 
Ghada comes home to find that her beloved grandma has died. 
When ten-year-old friends set up an after-school club so they can hang out together more often, they don't expect to be able to solve these problems themselves. 
But when they tap into the spirit within them, they and their friends discover that they have the power to make the world a better place.
Author's Blog
The Spirit Within Club on Amazon