New Release Fantasy - Creatures of Snow by Teresa Carlson

Looking for a good YA fantasy? Need an escape?

Beware the place where soul meets sky, where furies lurk and brave men die...

  

Teresa Carlson's first book, Creatures of Snow was released on the 26th of June 2014 and is a fantasy thriller that adults of all ages can enjoy. It is book 1 of the Snow series.

Just the stories of the Snow are generally enough to ward off anyone crazy enough to think about crossing the line between this reality and the next. Stories about the twisted, hateful creatures that lived there, and the heroes that never came home after meeting them. It is an awful place, a place people just aren’t meant to go.
Skyden Reagan, a boy with little ambition (but a lot of nerve), has never given a thought to the Snow or the realities beyond it. At least, not until his school chooses him for a program that wants to send him right into the heart of it – all for the sake of scientific exploration.

If that was his only problem, he might be able to handle it, but, between assassins made of shadow, galactic upheaval, ancient prophecies, being partnered with a girl that hates him, and finding out his estranged brother is part of a secret organization that wants to kill him…he’s got a little more to worry about then just surviving the Snow.

What Readers are Saying;

'This novel oozes style, imagination and mystery. It illuminates emotional and intellectual qualities seldom found in a first novel.' 5 Stars

 'A well written original story, I recommend to Y/A as well as Adult readers who enjoy fantasy/thrillers.' 5 Stars

Exclusive Book Excerpt - from Chapter 11

 

     Sky made his way down the path towards his home. The ship was gone from the back lot as it had been for the last week. His dad’s latest job was gonna keep him away for at least another day, just as Joshua had said.

Something shifted just beyond the light of the trail. He stopped, holding his breath to listen, but there was nothing but the wind. He knew the woods, and he knew there wasn’t any real danger, so he had no choice but to laugh it off.

The front door creaked open in its usual protest, as he slumped into the entryway.

He threw his wav-com onto a nearby crate and jumped as the clank of the metal against wood reverberated through the silent house. He didn’t know why he was so on edge. No, that was a lie. He was a creature of habit and his body was programmed to be anticipating a fight. Al had certainly been right about that.

Loosening his tie he made his way up the stairs. Routine had always made life in a habitually empty house more bearable. First on his agenda was to ditch the stiff uniform and find the kind of clothes that you would only dare to wear in your own home.

At the top of the stairs he was greeted by a narrow hallway gaudily decorated with seemingly hundreds of pictures, statues and printed decor of adorable animals. Never in his years had they ever owned or talked about owning a pet. He assumed this was Ixanna’s not so subtle way of telling them that they should.

He paused as a moment of alarm swept a chilly hand up his spine. Something felt off, but nothing looked out of place. He walked silently down the hall. The air around him seemed different; the smell, the weight, something just wasn’t right. His heart began to beat in his ears and grew louder with each passing step. Something dark caught his eyes, his head swung left and he found himself greeted by his own reflection. Letting out the breath he’d been holding he scolded himself for being so paranoid. This is what Arche training did to you.

He stared into the elaborately carved mirror, decorated with paw prints of all shapes and sizes. Leaning over the narrow desk he got a better look at his darkened reflection. He looked angry, or was he scared? Neither emotion seemed right. He had come home to relax.

A sound echoed in the darkness and his head snapped to the right. He searched the shadows, looking with more than his eyes. Maybe, he wasn’t being foolish. No, he was certain he wasn’t. This time he had heard something for sure and grabbed the heaviest looking cat sculpture he could find. Clenching his jaw he forced his legs to carry him forward.

He barged into his own room, the metal sculpture of the cat raised high above his head. His room was as he left it - bed unmade, a heap of cloths in the corner, and the desk covered in dishes and piles of notebooks.

Something crashed into Sky from behind and sent him flying into the room. He spun around just in time to see a blur of a figure come barreling into him once again, hitting him square in the guts. His only means of defense flew out of his hand and clattered uselessly to the floor, well out of reach. As he doubled over a hand came up and caught him under the jaw. In a sea of stars his head snapped back and he found himself on the ground as the world shifted in and out of focus above him.

The dark outline of his attacker loomed over him; it swayed back and forth in time to an unheard rhythm. Black robes that blended seamlessly into the shadows covered the intruder and flowed in a soft ripple, as if being blown by an invisible wind.

“Creepy.” He muttered and forced himself to focus. Gritting his teeth, he leapt to his feet, catching his attacker by surprise.

He took a sloppy swing that was easily dodged, but that was only meant to distract the intruder from the real punch that whipped up from the opposite arm. He felt his fist connect, but there was no give in the flesh he hit.

He let out a brief cry of surprise and pain, then grabbed his throbbing hand. “Who are you?” He growled, trying to straighten up and be intimidating.

They faced each other in the small room. He calmed his ragged breath and hoped the sweat that was building up below his hairline wouldn’t give away his fear. He couldn’t read his opponent - try as he might; he couldn’t see the intruders face under the oversized hood and swirl of shadows. If he had to guess at who he was fighting, his best guess would be the boogieman. There was no way this guy could be real.

Is this a test? He wondered desperately. He wouldn’t put it past Con to pull something like this.

The figure lunged towards him without a sound. Sky instinctively protected his aching hand by thrusting a kick into the chest of his attacker that resounded in a hollow thud. To his own surprise, the kick sent the figure back into the opposite wall where Sky’s collection of souvenir bottles crashed down upon the intruder in a kaleidoscope of colors, textures and scents.

In the brief disturbance Sky found his legs and ran. His wav-com was down by the front door, if he could get to it and make it outside he would be fine. The woods around their home were a dense mass of foliage covering a treacherous terrain and no one knew them better then him.

His foot landed awkwardly just before he reached the door, sending a shrill of pain up his leg and into the pit of his stomach. It was only a moment of hesitation before he regained his stride, but in that moment, long, slender fingers had found their way around his shoulder. His back hit the ground before he realized he’d been thrown down and a weight pressed down on his chest with enough force to squeeze out whatever air was left in him.

“You.” The figure hissed, holding him firmly down with a shiny black boot. “You’re no hero.” The voice was distorted and rough, nearly unintelligible. “There are no heroes here.” The voice was louder this time, but no less distinguishable.

He realized the voice was in his head.

The weight upon his chest was relieved and the dark figure slowly backed away. “There are no heroes.” It hissed.

 On shaking legs, Sky forced himself upright. He tried to judge the distance to the door, it was still his best option. “I’m not trying to be a hero.”

From the figure came a deep, guttural growl. “No heroes.”

A glint of metal caught Sky’s eye as the figure withdrew an old bullet-load gun from inside the folds of the flowing robes.

Sky’s hands shot out in a defensive manner, “Stop!” Desperation had found its way into his voice. “I don’t know what you want.”

A heavy laugh escaped from the shadowy depth of the hood and the figure lowered the gun slightly and straightened. “You will.”

Every cell in his body screamed in that instant to just run, but he found himself frozen to the ground.

If there was an opportunity, it was missed. The figure leveled the gun at him once again and let out a guttural, primal scream that was soon overpowered by the sound of the muzzle blast.

About Author Teresa Carlson

 

Raised on a healthy diet of Star Wars, The Neverending Story, The Goonies and a dash of Blade Runner, the fascination with other worlds, high adventure, magic and friendship was deeply ingrained from early on.
When reading and watching stories unfold just wasn't enough, she began to write...and never stopped.
In a town that is more lake than land, she settled down to raise her two amazing children alongside her wonderful and supportive husband. Although the ingredients have changed slightly, she still consumes a massive amount of science fiction, fantasy, and other nerd-based dishes on a regular basis.

Available on kindle from Amazon

 http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00KKZ4ZP

http://www.amazon.ca/Creatures-Snow-Teresa-Carlson-ebook/dp/B00KKZ4ZPQ

 http://www.amazon.co.uk/Creatures-Snow-Teresa-Carlson-ebook/dp/B00KKZ4ZPQ

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The Dreaded Edit - A terrible Chore or The Sculpting of a Masterpiece

So you've finished the first draft of your manuscript and it's time for editing to begin... do you run and hide under your covers hoping the elves will visit during the night and fix the errors? Do you send it on to someone else and let them deal with it? Or do you stare it in the face and refuse to let it beat you?

I don't think editing is anyone's favourite part of the writing process but it doesn't have to feel like a terrible chore either. 

I tend to believe that a good edit is great for the soul. It's where you get to flesh out problems, fix pesky mistakes, cut unnecessary words, sentences, paragraphs, chapters... (yes I said chapters too) and build on existing ideas that perhaps lack needed depth. It's where YOU as the author get to stand back and evaluate your work and make sure it reads the way you were hoping. After a good edit, reading your work can bring great pride and joy... or confusion as you ask yourself, 'Did I really write this? This is good stuff!'

Now I'm not for one second suggesting that you be the only editor of your work... no, no, no... what I am suggesting is that you start the process, after all this is your baby and you want every opportunity to make it all that you can.

So here are my suggestions on how you can make the most of your own edit before sending it on to someone else:

Edit while you write
You may be racing against the clock when writing the draft but taking a little time to review a chapter you have just finished will help to ensure you have written what you intended, fix any small details and see to it that it flows as you had hoped. If you see problems, fix them while ideas are fresh in your mind. If you notice spelling errors, especially words that are said the same way but have different spellings (homonyms) that Spellcheck will not pick up on, fix them straight away... you may not notice them later. This will give you a head start on your editing when you finish the draft.

Use a notebook to keep track of important information
This is useful at any stage of your writing but I tend to pull the notebook out when doing the first edit. I dedicate a page or two to each chapter to take notes that I can easily check back on when needed. I make notes of people (what they look like, what they wear, personality etc) chronology (What is the order and timing of events? does it make sense?) and the importance of that chapter (What do we learn here? Why do we need it? How does it progress the story?). In a book with 50+ chapters it is possible, that in writing over a 6 month or so period, some details will have somewhat changed or developed, its good to be able to refer back to these details and make sure things remain consistent.

Have the spelling and grammar check on and pay attention to what it highlights
What a great tool we have with Spellcheck! 
Imagine what a long and arduous process it must have been before computers. Eek! Editors had their work cut out for them, pouring over manuscripts littered with errors or in some cases whiteout with a, slightly out of sync, retyped letter. 
But not us in the 21st century! We have computers with spellcheck that underlines problematic words. When we right-click on them it will actually show us some word options. It's marvelous! No need to be an A grade speller, if you have some idea of the word you are trying to convey, it's an easy fix.
Yes spellcheck can be annoying, picking up on words you wrote that way on purpose eg. Ahh! or in my case picking up on words that are spelt the British way (because for me having been taught that way, anything else looks wrong) eg. specialise instead of specialize. Also I have my own world so I use many, many different words and names that are not in the english dictionary. But this is no big deal and I often make the effort to allow my program to learn the word so it won't bother me about it any more. 
So use the spellcheck and pay particular attention to what it brings up... if it’s a mistake, FIX IT. If it's deliberate, either ADD IT to the dictionary or IGNORE IT. As for the green underline for grammatical issues, don't ignore it entirely, read what it advises... it's not always perfect but it may bring a problem to your attention.

Read ALOUD each chapter after editing
Once you complete the chapter you were working on... go back to the beginning of it and read it OUT LOUD (this may not work so well if you have people around you as you edit but I'm assuming you like to edit in peace and quiet or at least without distraction). Reading aloud helps you to slow down the pace, take in word for word and hear the flow. This way you may pick up spelling errors you missed because your eyes had run straight over them and, highlight any awkward sentences. If they are awkward for you to get your mouth around then chances are they will be awkward for your readers to get their mind around. Besides, you want it to sound good read out loud anyway. This will guide you into getting it right.

Rearrange, delete, rewrite, add
Don't be afraid to do what's needed to get the manuscript right. Maybe certain chapters would be better placed in a different order or yes... deleted all together (you'll pick up on this fact when you note the purpose for the chapter) If it is just a fill in for the sake of adding extra padding, it may be better deleted or released as a blog post for fans wanting more. 
Take out unnecessary words or phrases that slow down the pace of the story or rewrite paragraphs that don't convey what you were hoping. You may even find you need to add bits and pieces here and there to ensure congruency or to fill in plot holes. Who knows what you will need to change but you are the best person to determine it since you have a complete understanding of the story. It may mean losing a beloved scene, killing off a good character or revealing something earlier or later than you had planned. Whatever it is, you'll be glad you did it.

Perfect each chapter before moving on
I'm not saying you should expect that each chapter will be perfection, if it were, you wouldn't need to forward it on to an editor. I'm saying get each chapter to a state where you feel happy with it and cannot find any other issues or mistakes... It will then be your editor’s job to find anything else problematic.

DO have someone else with some degree of knowledge of editing, grammar or english literature edit it for you, even if you are an editor yourself. The feedback you get from a differing outlook and unrelated pair of eyes is invaluable. Your edit is just the beginning of the process towards publishing but in no ways do you need to dread it, look it as a journey towards sculpting your masterpiece.

Fantasy Alive in a Small Town

Screenshots taken from December 22nd's  
Kitimat Daily Online newspaper.

O Canada - How I love thee, let me count the ways

Let me start by saying... I am not a Canadian, I'm a fairdinkum Aussie, born and bred. If you asked me what my favourite country was, I would have to say it's Australia... but Of Course!

Having said that though, after living for the last 6 1/2 years in Canada, I can't help but appreciate this fine land and what it offers. So today being the 1st of July, CANADA DAY, I thought would compile a list of things I love about this country.

The Snow

The first time I ever saw snow was in Australia (yes, it can and does snow there, in a few places). It was early in the morning and I woke to my mum running into my room screaming 'It's snowing! It's snowing!' I got out of bed and dressed (in very inappropriate snow attire of pants and a long sleeve skivvy) and ran outside attempting to enjoy what little snow there was covering the ground. I made a very miniature snowman and held a snowball in my hands. My hands were bare (I didn't even own gloves) and my lips were a nice shade of blue as I shivered through a few photos.
Since then I have really come to appreciate the snow. Not that all over Canada it snows big time but in the two places we have lived it snows a ridiculous amount, several feet in a matter of hours is not unheard of.
I was quickly introduced to clearing the driveway, brushing snow off the car windows and driving in the snow all within a matter of weeks after landing in Montreal. The novelty soon wore off and getting up early in the morning to clear snow from the car and drive to get children to school on time became a loathed chore. Having said that, I never stopped appreciating the beauty of watching its slow plummet to the ground.
After moving to Northern British Columbia (B.C) I learned to snowboard and found myself another way to appreciate the snow. Having Skateboarded and surfed as a teen, I quickly picked up the art of balancing on the board but I won't profess to being all that good. I do enjoy the thrill of the ride and the serene snowy beauty that surrounds me.

Canadians

I absolutely love Canadians...  Okay so I have to say that, some of my best friends are Canadian, but it's true. I've discovered that most Canadians are much like most Australians... easy going, laid back, work so that they can live not the other way around, appreciate their recreation time, can laugh at themselves and have a good sense of humour. It may sound simple but they are perfectly happy just sitting around the barbie (bbq) with mates on a summers day. Just add eh?! to the end of your sentence and you're in. 'You're a Canadian eh?'
Add to this their very warm welcoming nature, they open themselves up to other nationalities of people having an interest in the world outside their own backyard. This is evidenced by the amount they travel, if they haven't travelled the world, it's on their bucket list. Most have at least travelled into the States  numerous times... well why wouldn't you when you have another country just beyond your border? See Proximity

Four Seasons

While most cities in Australia see some form of four seasons during the year, I must say that I haven't quite experienced it like in North America... a real four seasons. In the far North of B.C winters can be very white and seem to last a long, long time. While it is pretty (and as I always say, if it must be cold, it might as well be white), it can lack a bit of colour... the washed out look of winter. Then along comes the spring and as the ground begins to warm, gardens burst alive with a myriad of colour... first the daffodils and tulips and then the many other varieties of plant life open their blooms as a salute to the warm sun. Yes spring happens in Australia too but it is not such a contrast to the winter. It's not white and it's not freezing cold so there's not the same appreciation for the warmth and colour when the spring rocks around. In Quebec where the winters are bitter cold people tend to go into their 'caves' for the majority of it... when the sun comes out and the cold passes, people come out and everybody is walking, running, skating, riding... you name it, they're doing it outside. The summer can be absolutely amazing, in Montreal the summers are hot and glorious... most houses have a pool so everyone is swimming, forgetting that only a month or so prior the pool was a block of solid ice. In Northern B.C it's not as hot but the days are long, with the sun not going down completely until close to midnight. This is my fave part, after the short dark days during the winter, the long warm days are a godsend. Autumn comes in a myriad of fall colours as all the deciduous trees change colour and drop their leaves. Driving through wooded areas in Autumn is just magical as the colours line the roadways. Sure we have Autumn in Oz but our Australian bush does not contain deciduous trees as they are not natural to our country. So you may see the colourful fall in special parks or peoples backyards but not driving along a highway. There it is either green if we've had a lot of rain, brown if we haven't or black if we have suffered a number of bushfires.

Releasing a salmon back into the river

Rivers

Where Australia might be short on water in most states, Canada is abounding in it. Rivers and lakes make up a good portion of it's beauty and they are everywhere! When living in Montreal, a couple of times we rented a house on a lake complete with paddle boats and canoes. Certainly a relaxing holiday that we could even take the dog. Where we now live, there is amazing salmon fishing (a reason my husband doesn't want to leave) that we are just fortunate to have a five minute drive away. Keen fisherman come here for the summer fishing and we are in the thick of it. While rivers tend to stay icy cold the lakes can be beautiful and warm (at least in spots). It's beautiful and serene and you don't have to go very far to access one.

Bear in our backyard... I called him Barry

The Animals

Okay so if you're from North America you may tend to think the animals I am excited about here are boring and you may instead get excited over kangaroos and koalas, animals that I have seen all my life (and sadly roos I have hit with my car)... don't worry there are more kangaroos in Australia than people.
I am LOVING the animals here that I had only ever seen in books or movies or perhaps a zoo but never on my own street! In Montreal we had a family of groundhogs living under our front porch, seriously a groundhog I had never heard of until I watched that movie Groundhog Day. Our neighbours called them rodents but we just thought they were gorgeous. I think they thought we were crazy. Every now and then I saw a skunk wandering down the street when the rubbish bins (trash cans) were out for collection. I would watch with excitement, hoping it would come a bit closer so I could get a better look (maybe I am crazy). We travelled to Saguenay in the north of Quebec just so I could see a moose at the St Felicien zoo, however I have since seen a number in the wild, two were on our street but I have also seen a couple on the road while driving... and that is absolutely frightening because their coat is dull and doesn't reflect headlights... you don't see them until the last minute. Fortunately we have never hit one... touch wood. I have seen wolves, coyotes, porcupines and deer but my favourite animal to see are bears. Where we live you can see them in our backyard from time to time. While some Aussies would happily live with the spiders and snakes in Australia over having bears in your backyard, I will gladly take the bears instead.

Proximity

Could Australia be further away from everything? I think not. Australia is kind of out on its own with New Zealand to one side, Indonesia in the north and nothing else other than islands nearby. To get to any other continent, it is far and it is expensive. A lot of Australians only ever get to Bali in their lifetime and that's if they make it overseas at all. As a kid I always dreamed of going to Disneyland but in all honestly thought that I would never ever get there after all I didn't know a single person who had been. When I went the first time, I thought it was a dream come true.
Since living in Canada we have crossed the border to the US a number of times. It was especially easy to do from Montreal as we were only an hour from the border. From that side of the country it was also easy to fly to Europe which we did a couple of times. Okay so Canada is not close to everything but we have been able to do a whole lot more travelling since being here and neigbouring the US is super convenient.

Two Languages

In Australia we pretty much only speak one language. While we have alot of nationalities there, our nations language is english and as a visitor you would have no need for any other, unless you don't speak it. Having a second language was a foreign concept to me. Sure there are plenty of families from other countries that speak another language in the home but most of my friends were either born in Australia or Britain so I didn't know very many people who could speak another language fluently. Then we move to Quebec of all places. In Quebec the first language is french and all road signage and information is in french. Needless to say, I needed to learn quick smart. I had a tutor for a year and my children went to an all french school, where even communication home to parents was in french. It was a little difficult to get used to but I found it even harder to learn properly because the closer you are to Montreal the more people who could speak english as well as french. I would try to speak to people but when they would see I was struggling for words they would speak in english to help me out... which it did help me communicate but not learn the language.  My kids can all speak french and my older two are fluent. I am constantly amazed by this. Even now that we are in B.C we make sure they attend a french immersion school so that they can retain the language they have learnt.

Maple Syrup

I couldn't talk about all the things I love about Canada and not add in something about maple syrup. Before I came here I had only ever had the fake stuff at home (the real stuff was far too expensive for our meager budget) but since being here I have learnt there is only one sort to have and that's the pure and natural syrup from the tree. Delish!
In Quebec just after the winter when the maple starts to pour they open up these places called sugar shacks and oh my what a sweet experience you can have.
Sitting at long communal tables you are fed a meal of bacon, eggs and pancakes with which you pour a whole lot of maple syrup to everything, just like gravy. Then you get yourself a Maple lollipop which is made from pouring hot maple on snow and then rolled up on a paddlepop or icecream stick as it quickly cools. It is sticky and delicious.
While I only went there once I have come to love maple syrup and use it as a sweetener instead of sugar or honey on occasion... and no more fake stuff for me, only the real macoy will do. Hang the expense.

While I truly love living in Canada and appreciate the different places, animals and feel it has, there is something very special about the place you come from and for me a big part of that is the sun and the surf. So I will have to take a leaf out of famous Australian, Peter Allen's book (song actually) when I say 'I still call Australia... home.'

HAPPY CANADA DAY!

Meet The Author - A.R. Silverberry

One exciting part of being involved with a great author group like the Fantasy Sci-Fi Network is being able to get to know other authors in my genre. Today I have the privilege of interviewing one of those brilliant authors, one who happens to be an award winning writer. 

A.R. Silverberry talks about his lack of boy scouting ability, the need to create and of course, his exciting new adventure, The Stream. 

                                         

 

Your book The Stream sounds so intriguing and such an original concept, what inspired you to come up with it?

The idea came from a conversation I was having where I was using the metaphor of a stream. Afterward, I kept thinking about that metaphor. In a few hours, the character of a small boy, alone, defenseless, trying to understand the ways of the world, popped into my mind. I saw images of him confronting the challenges we all face in life: love, loss, pain, losing your way. The next morning, I put aside the novel I was working on (it wasn’t working anyway), and started writing. It pretty much tumbled out of me and didn’t let go until it was done.

If The Stream were to be made into a movie, would you want a cameo? Who would you play?

Fun question! If you look at Alfred Hitchcock movies, he always puts himself in as a bystander in a crowd, or some anonymous person walking by. That would be the place for me. No aspirations here to get into acting, though both of my parents did it professionally. I loved watching them in plays from the front row. My father played Harry Brock in Born Yesterday, my mom played Billie Dawn. The both were fabulous actors, especially my mom, who ran 100% on pure talent and instinct and left people speechless. I think my dad knew that it was a little disconcerting for my young mind to see his parents so transformed, my sharp-witted mom into a ditzy doll, and my father into a gangster boss. So what did he do? He stuck his tongue out at me during the dress rehearsal. I’ll always love him for that!

How long did it take to write The Stream once you had the idea mapped out in your head?

Looking back on it, it’s a miracle I wrote it so quickly. I was going through a rough year looking for a house to buy. The market where I was looking was crazy. There were bidding wars with twenty or more people bidding on the same house and tossing out tens of thousands of dollars over asking. Some how, during all that, I wrote The Stream. Start to finish, it was about sixteen months before it went to edit.

Tell us about some of the learning you had to go through in order to make The Stream seem real and believable?

I never attended Cub Scouts or Boy Scouts. I never river rafted or took a wilderness course. That left me with a huge learning curve, understanding how my five-year-old hero, Wend, would survive in a primitive water world. What I did have was a sailing trip I took with a good friend and his dad during high school. Some of the imagery from that trip found it’s way into the story. He and I lost touch until a few years ago, but I reconnected with him at a reunion and gave him a call. He answered a lot of questions I had about boats, storms, and sailing.

Did you do any hands on research?

Henry James coined an interesting word: verisimilitude. It means the appearance of being true or real. That’s paramount in a novel. If something doesn’t have the ring of authenticity to it, readers are knocked out of the story, even if they aren’t aware of why. Since the setting, the stream, is a character in my story, I had to get it right. I visited two streams multiple times, sitting and absorbing with all my senses. I captured my impressions immediately in a notebook.

I actually wrote on how much research was involved in a post called The Secret Ingredient In Fantasy Novels.

What do you do for fun, when you are not writing award-winning novels?

Taking award-winning walks on the beach! Long before I started writing, I played piano. When I need serenity, that’s still the center I return to.

I hear you are a psychologist, working with children and teens, is there ever a time that your immense imagination comes in handy with those you are working with?

Psychotherapy is less about imagination and more about empathy; intuition; and sensitivity to process, listening with every part of yourself. Writers and psychologists do have this in common: the ability to step into someone elses shoes. For the author, that means not just the hero or heroine, but also the villain.

Ever had any interesting encounters with fans of your work?

After reading Wyndano’s Cloak, a number of girls wrote to me that I inspired them to write their own novels. Several parents told me their children came out of their shells and started showing their true colors after reading the book. Comments like that send me to the moon!

When did you know that you had to be a writer?

For me, it’s not that I have to be a writer per se, but that I have to create. Right now, writing just happens to be the best mode for me to express that side of myself.

What other authors to you look up to and feel inspired by?

Jane Austen, Dickens, Harper Lee, Tolkien, Hemmingway, Barbara Kingsolver, Dean Koontz, Stephen King.

What is the best part of writing?

Meeting readers at bookstores. Once, a girl of about nine was too shy to come up to my table, though her little brother did, and at last, he convinced her to stop by. We talked for a long time and I read her an excerpt. After paying for the book, she sat on the floor, carefully peeled off the stickers, and walked out of the store hugging the book to her. I’ll never forget her.

                                       

Synopsis of The Stream:

What if your world was six miles wide and endlessly long?

After a devastating storm kills his parents, five-year-old Wend awakens to the strange world of the Stream. He discovers he can only travel downstream, and dangers lurk at every turn: deadly rapids, ruthless pirates, a mysterious pavilion that lures him into intoxicating fantasies, and rumor of a giant waterfall at the edge of the world. Defenseless, alone, with only courage and his will to survive, Wend begins his quest to become a man. Will tragic loss trap him in a shadow world, or will he enter the Stream, with all its passion and peril?

Part coming-of-age tale, part adventure, part spiritual journey, The Stream is a fable about life, impermanence, and the gifts found in each moment.

Purchase The Stream:

Ebook:

Amazon

Barnes and Noble

iTunes

Softback:

Amazon

Barnes and Noble

Purchase Wyndano’s Cloak:

Ebook:

Amazon

Barnes and Noble

iTunes

Limited first edition Hardback:

Signed and unsigned copies available only from the author

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About A. R. Silverberry:

A. R. Silverberry writes fiction for adults and children. His novel, WYNDANO’S CLOAK, won multiple awards, including the Benjamin Franklin Award gold medal for Juvenile/Young Adult Fiction. He lives in California, where the majestic coastline, trees, and mountains inspire his writing. THE STREAM is his second novel.

Blog Tour - The Writing Process

Huge THANKS to British mate, Peter Facer for inviting me to join the blog tour about the writing process.
Peter is a retired police officer with broadcasting and writing experience spanning forty years. He is married with three grown-up children and three grand-children. Living close to the Essex/Suffolk border, he is able to enjoy country walks with the family dog, Gem.
Peter started writing late in life, but believes that this has enabled his experiences and knowledge of policing to bring a new and fresh angle to the usual UK police thriller novel. Unlike those traditional whodunits, Peter’s “Jake Sullivan” novels are fast-paced non-stop action thrillers with plenty of twists, turns and surprises.  You can check out his police thriller 'Legitimate Targets' or his answers to the same questions at http://peterfacer.wordpress.com/

So, here's the questions...

1. What are you working on right now? 
Right now I am editing the second book to the Titanian Chronicles trilogy, titled Ormnhi Moon (Ormnhi is said phonetically, the h is silent). Where book one, Journey of Destiny, opened us up to the world of Titania and sets our heroes out from the peaceful elvin kingdom to seek out their destinies in a land foreign to them and being infiltrated by the likes of the Darklord Moorlan, Ormnhi Moon sees our adventurers five years on. Where Wolflang, Afeclin and Lenna ended up in the first book, we see what has happened to them and where their alliances lie. Moorlan's infiltration into the Land of Marrapassa is heightened, we learn more about the various characters and their histories and the presence of the Ormnhi or 'chosen one'. Afeclin is tasked to find out what the Dark Mage and Warlord are up to, Wolflang finds himself rescuing old allies and Lenna protects her friend, Sarvina  (who is not all that she seems) with her life.
I enjoyed the write, now I enjoy the review and edit in preparation for turning it over to others to read and edit for me. The plan I am working on now is to have this book out by Christmas.

2. How does your writing differ from others if its genre?  
That is a hard question to answer, you always hope as an author to be original and I strive to come up with ideas that are different to those I have seen played out in other fantasy books but I understand fantasy adventure is not a new concept and has been done well by many others before me, for example Tolkien. As a writer, I look for different aspects to focus on, that I personally haven't come across. In Titanian Chronicles our hero is a human brought up in an all elvin kingdom by the very king himself. His understanding is elvin but is confusingly human.
I also built my world with many original animals and I have a few of my own races in the mix.

3. Why do you write what you do?
I  don't know that I write fantasy because I choose to or more because it chose me. I've had stories of all sorts in my head as long as I can remember. This story was one that stuck and I knew that I had to write out and see through. I am someone who loves fantasy myself but it is not necessarily my favourite genre. I would love to write some kind of crime mystery thriller, (hey I study criminology and criminal justice so I can't help but have stories with a criminological basis in my head). However for now it's Titania that I write about and I don't see myself moving away from that any time soon... even after the first trilogy is written. I'm enjoying it far too much.

4. How does your writing process work?
When  I first started seriously writing I would just sit down, write  and see where it went... I mean I had the main storyline in my head but on the road to getting there I would just fly by the seat of my pants... (I hear they would call me a pantser). It was a bit random and I never knew what was going to come next, which was always exciting. However in writing the second book, I refined my process a bit and began with a whole lot of plotting. I use the program Scrivener to write and organise my files and so when I sat down at the laptop with thoughts of where the storyline was going to go in the next installment, I set up a file for each chapter and scene and wrote a small synopsis for each. It actually made the flow of writing much more fluid. As I would come to the end of one chapter, I didn't have to give too much thought about moving on to the next. I would simply read my notes, have a brainstorm as to how the chapter would play out and move on to writing it in a very planned and orderly fashion. Of course things still changed along the way as ideas grew, developed and presented issues or questions that needed some resolution, which meant it was just as exciting, because even with such plans made, I was constantly surprised by where I found myself.
Now that I am editing, I go through chapter by chapter, re-reading and editing the text, making sure it sounds just right and is consistent with the rest of the book. I have a note book by my side and dedicate a page or so to each chapter, writing important notes that I may need to check up on later so that I don't end up changing aspects about my world, characters or what-have-you along the way. It has proven to be very useful and a quick reference when I need it. Before I move on, I read it out loud and make sure it has a good flow. Also reading it word for word out loud can help to pick up on pesky mistakes that our eyes sometimes miss when reading in our head. I also edit as I write... I can't help myself, after I have written a chapter I read it back and fix any problems, make any changes that I see fit at that time, knowing full well that I will be back to edit later so if I am unsure of something I often will put a question mark in the text to indicate I need to figure something out. However I tend to be a slow writer, in that, I don't just sit down and let my fingers go at the keyboard and worry about how smooth it sounds later. I spend time thinking about the best way to write each line so that I can get across the right message to my readers. Each chapter may take anything from a day to week to write (depending on time restraints) so that I can get it as close to where I want it that I can before moving on.

The End
Next Blog Stop is Dale Furse, writer of Science Fiction/Fantasy (heavy on the fantasy) novel, Curse Book 1 of Wexkia trilogy She has been writing novels, short stories, plays, songs and poems for over thirty years and still enjoys her journeys to unknown places meeting unheard-of peoples and beings. Dale answers the same questions on her blog http://dalefurse.wordpress.com/
Make sure you check her out!

Fantasy Anyone?

 Fantasy unlocks the gates of impossibility and meshes the dream world with reality. Leaving us a world we recognise, where anything can happen.

Are you a lover of fantasy?
Does a good sci-fi take you beyond this realm and open up your mind to a world of possibilities?
Perhaps you're someone who has casual encounters with the genre... you know the between book that gives your mind an escape from reality... just for a while.

Well this is your lucky day!
Today, that is Friday the 23rd of May, is Fantasy Sci-Fi Network's 99c Friday.
You heard me... 99c
Wet your appetite and delve into books from a variety of brilliant Sci-Fi and Fantasy authors from around the globe.

Pick up your next read while the price is still hot and let us take you on a trip to a world beyond our own, another dimension in time or space, an alternate reality or perhaps a galaxy outside the one we know... anything can happen and probably will... what are you waiting for?

http://www.facebook.com/l/NAQHqUkXr/bit.ly/fsfn990514

As the Crow Flies, by Robin Lythgoe, http://amzn.to/RQHDxA
Thread Slivers, by Leeland Artra, http://amzn.to/1ghMtyW
Dragon Fate, by J.D. Hallowell, http://amzn.to/1klrxXr
Thrusts of Justice, by Matt Youngmark, http://amzn.to/1ngJPbE
Elven Jewel, by Kasper Beaumont, http://amzn.to/1jPKtsL
Hunters' Quest, by Kasper Beaumont, http://amzn.to/1vwFvL5
The Count of the Living Death, by Joshua Grasso, http://amzn.to/1tfaIjP
Awakening, by Raymond Bolton, http://amzn.to/1ob8qzU
Calastan, by Cheryllynn Dyess, http://amzn.to/1qS7R2G
Resolution, by Cheryllynn Dyess, http://amzn.to/1o2dA3D
The Stream, by A. R. Silverberry (aka Peter Adler), http://amzn.to/1gL2TR2
The Enemy Within, by Lynette White, http://amzn.to/1lCYQ53
The Necklace of Goddess Athena, by Effrosyni Moschoudi, http://amzn.to/1nlm7Lm
Journey of Destiny, by Leisl Kaberry, http://amzn.to/1gLZr8U
Necromancers' Pride, by Charles David Carpenter, http://amzn.to/1h6I9hd
The Emperor's Edge Collection (Books 1, 2, and 3), by Lindsay Buroker, http://amzn.to/1nneXpV
The Lotus Effect, by Bridget Ladd, http://amzn.to/1of1S3o
Bloodline, by Katie Thornton-K, http://amzn.to/1qUZbZf