Discover Authors

I’m honored to welcome today’s guest, Tahlia Newland, author of the award-wnning Diamond Peak series.

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THE MIND-BLOWING FINALE TO THIS AWESOME FANTASY SERIES IS OUT NOW!

Yes; it is quite literally mind-blowing.

Don’t miss out on the award-winning Diamond Peak Fantasy Series. Each book in this new adult contemporary fantasy has been awarded an AIA Seal of Excellence in Independent Fiction.  (That means it’s pretty good.) Book one has also been awarded a BRAG medallion for outstanding independent fiction. Get the full series now and read some real magic.

WHAT READERS ARE SAYING ABOUT THE SERIES

A beautifully written, exciting fantasy-adventure with vibrant description.” Krisi Keley, author of Mareritt.

“A most exemplary work, a real joy to read. The colour, depth and vitality of both the writing and the narrative is stunningly good: the exploration of motives, outlooks and hopes of the characters quite intoxicating. It ranks as a true work of literary accomplishment.” Clive S Johnson, AIA reviewer.

“In a new twist on fantasy, Tahlia puts characters in fantastical situations, but they are actually fighting everyday situations that have to do with hate, greed, envy, and the like, as Ariel and Nick fight demons that prey off your emotions. Her characters are rich in real life experiences, following on life’s journey of emotional ups and downs. I love the relationship between Nick and Ariel. It’s so pure with the promise of young love and the maturity to put it on hold while they fought the demons they were pitted against. In a race to save Ariel’s mother’s life, Ariel discovers who she is and what she is capable of. This is a gripping series that I would recommend to anyone. It has a great moral compass to encompass the ages.” Cynthia Shepp, editor/reviewer

“I can’t even begin to describe all of the action you’ll find in this highly imaginative journey. This is a fantastic depiction of a fight between good and evil.” Crazy Four Books. 

ABOUT THE SERIES

Lethal InheritanceStalking ShadowsDemon’s Grip and Eternal Destinytake place in the hidden realm of Diamond Peak, a place that interfaces with the ‘real’ world, and is inhabited by demons and the Warriors who hunt them. Diamond Peak exists on a more subtle layer of reality than the one we normally see and can only be seen and entered by those who have refined their perception sufficiently to become attuned to its frequency.

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Inside, rocks move, reeds whisper, people fly and sadistic demons feed on and stir up negative emotions in their human prey. Warriors seek to climb the mountain and defeat the Master Demon who resides at the peak, because his death will free the world of all demons. To attain this goal however, the Warrior must pass through the territories of his bodyguards, the heads of the demon clans, and face their inner demons before they can subdue the outer ones.

The layers of meaning within this series are rich, the symbolism profound and the characters’ experiences, though cloaked in fantasy, are the journey we all take through life whether we know it or not. It is a journey of self discovery on the profoundest of levels. It is the journey to enlightenment.

These are no ordinary books. The magic within them is real. The powers of the characters are within your grasp and their success can be yours.

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 Run  and Ariel’s Dream are prequel short stories to the series. They are FREE in all major ebook stores and includes chapter one and two of book one, Lethal Inheritance. Book one is out in paperback and book two, Stalking Shadows, will be available in time for Christmas.

See all the books on my
Amazon author pageKobo author pageB&N author pageSmashwords author pageApple author page

SPECIAL OFFER

If you buy book one before the 15th of December and send me a copy of the receipt. I will give you book 2 for free and enter you in a draw to win the full series.

Email your receipt to CP(at)centrepieceproductions(dot)com.  (The email address is written like this to avoid being picked up by spammers. Replace (at) with @ and (dot) with a period.)

 Thanks to Kate Policani for organising the Awesome Indies Discovery Tour of which this post is a part.

Please help spread the word by sharing this post.

Today I’m pleased to host James DiBenedetto, author of the fascinating Dream series.

I was absolutely thrilled a couple of months ago when the first book in the Dream Series, “Dream Student” won the Awesome Indies seal of approval – it was a very nice bit of recognition.  It’s also sold several hundred copies, been turned into an audiobook and gotten dozens of great reviews.

And, honestly, I’m really proud of it.  What I’m most proud of is, ironically, the very thing that makes the book difficult to categorize: the way it straddles genres and balances several different aspects of Sara’s life.

Dream StudentIt’s not exactly a traditional romance novel; it isn’t a straight-out thriller; it’s not primarily a coming-of-age story; or a slice-of-life.  It’s all of that – or elements of all of those.  I tried very hard to maintain a balance in the book (and in the later books, as well) – showing Sara’s dreams and following them as they lead Sara into danger, but also giving plenty of attention to her day-to-day life.

And in the reviews, I can see that one of the biggest factors in readers’ reactions is what they expected the book to be.  Some people loved the time spent on Sara’s everyday activities and her friends and the minutae of college life; but others, who I think came to the book looking mainly for a suspense-filled thriller, didn’t like that at all.

Personally, I do think those parts of the book are important (obviously, since I wrote them!).  On a basic level, I wrote the story I wanted to read, but on a story level, I do think it’s vital to ground characters in their world, and make their lives relateable to readers – once readers can truly see themselves in Sara’s shoes and see their daily lives reflected in hers, then her supernatural dreams will be that much more effective, and readers will be willing to accept them and follow Sara as she tries to handle them.

Which leads me back to the question: what do I call this book, how do I pitch it, what genre do I stick it into?  I’ve been calling it a “paranormal romance/suspense” novel, and I’m still not happy with that, but it’s the best I’ve been able to come up with…

Discover Authors

Today I’m pleased to host Massimo Marino, author of the acclaimed Daimones sci-fi trilogy.

When I started writing I was too young to think of what I was doing and have moments of reflection on crafting a novel. My Dad received “Astounding Stories” but I wasn’t allowed to read the magazines but they did have astounding covers, and I dreamed about them. Based on those covers, I created stories in my mind, then put down on paper with a pencil in my little hands so that I could re-read and never forget them.

I didn’t think about plot and action, character development, building my voice, what themes and belief systems I had to, or wanted to cover. The place and the setting came from those cover pictures, and I wasn’t concerned with temporal or structural issues.

Later on, I kept doing that and stopped when I started my studies in Physics at the University. Between that and playing quarterback for the team of Palermo, my home town, chasing girls until I found my future wife thirty-four years ago, put a halt on writing. So it is only when I resumed that forgotten love and got the writing fever again—or my Muse awoke and found me ready—that I started exploring and thinking of  these elements in my work.

Suspense is one thing that will keep readers reading; there’s a tension in the pages and it is not resolved: The writer has been busy building suspense. A common mistake I’ve seen with writers still learning the ropes is eagerness with resolving the tension, as if it was a good thing to provide the readers with the resolution even on the same page. What a missed opportunity. Sure, the longer you wait, the higher the risk of disappointing your readers if the resolution is moot and weak. The readers would go “What! Is that all?” 
So keep in mind that suspense is your key factor to have your book defined by readers as a “page-turner”: they want to discover what resolves the tension points in your novel. If everything is in one page, there is no need to turn anything.

Daimones-Postcard-Front-smallYou will notice something very interesting that you may use as one of your mantras while honing your storyline: Where there is revelation, there is suspense.

Revelations can fall into many categories, it can be part of the plot, a trait of your main character, an anodyne, thinly disguised detail that goes undetected by most readers, and creates “Ah ha” moments later in the story. Try thinking of all the possible revelations in your book. How do these fit into your plot outline? If you have many to share with your readers, how can they be distributed in the storyline. Try not to amass all your revelations together and too early in the book as you need to keep up with the expectations of your readers through some 80,000 words.

Characters are revealed through their actions, what they do and what they say. Drama shows people at their extremes. Your main character must be in the midst of the battle of his or her life, physical or emotional, or an ultimate test, a challenge or crisis of faith.

As they say, “If you want to find out what a person is made of, put that person under pressure.” You’ll also will find that a place or a thing can also function as “character” and be developed. A place, or an object can be charged with emotions and tension to rival with the better developed characters of all stories.

You don’t even need to describe your character physically as if you were—and you are, if you do that—telling people about a picture you have of the character. A character is not a pair of blue eyes, blonde hair, fair incarnation, slim or not, tall or short, attractive or repulsive, beautiful or ugly. These are the traits of a cardboard, not a character.

Build your character slowly, with their thoughts, their action, their unique way of interacting with the events in the story and with other characters. This gives them depth, not whether they’re tall and brunette, or short and blondie. You can even avoid telling physical characters and have the reader guess whether they are tall (she’s able to reach the upper shelve without help) or short, she needs to be on her tiptoes.

Don’t tell how they look, show who they are, and the readers will fill in the gaps.
 If you need a physical trait to be unique and well described (but only if it is *needed* and adds to the story) then introduce that trait *when* needed.

Everyone can describe the picture of a person and tell how s/he looks like, but that’s not character development and—frankly—doesn’t add anything to the reader’s image of who is that person.

Forget physical traits, get into the characters’ personality and they will develop naturally and readers will love or hate them, but never indifferent to their fates.

Development and character—and how both are framed by time and place, and their impact on how your story is also a key feature of your storytelling. It is a key aspect of your story: where it is situated at a particular place. When I  am deep in writing a new story,  I have places and situations and scenes that build up. I try to view them via a close up on something particular in the landscape, or via a long shot from a mountaintop or a helicopter or any other vantage point from above.  I survey the scenery, and I forbid my characters to venture there with me. I explore, trying to “feel” the place well before my characters are allowed in. Then I walk with them, and I hear their thoughts, and question “How do you feel, here?”, “What excites you?”, “What scares you?”, and “Would you go there?”. Hearing “No” as an answer to the last question is usually a good sign that the place needs to be visited in the story

The plot of your book  can be an attempt to illuminate a particular philosophical problem, belief, or snapshot of a world at a particular point in time. In the plot, the writer can and wants to explore underlying belief systems, whether conscious or unconscious. Artfully understanding and using the thematic elements in your novel will result in a work that can be deep and resonant versus flat and merely commercial. Here you aim at writing with your heart, questioning your firm foundations of your persona, and forgetting about making more sales, while concentrating on how to better disrupt something inside the reader. If it bothers you to explore those things, it is a good sign they are good stuff to put the spotlight on in your story. But for this, you need to have the courage to write naked. You will aim at making your work even more resonant and expansive—a book that has the potential to be appreciated by many.

Voice. We’re in the habit of thinking, based on bland television and newspaper reporting, that a homogenized voice is the most objective and appropriate voice for conveying an unbiased story.  That may work well for presenting a certain type of general information to the public, but does not serve the richness and color and personal nature of authentic stories, stories that live and breath what life is really like and the gamut of human experience. For this last point, the only reflection I have to share is that your voice develops as an extension of you—the writer—as a character. When searched for consciously and purposefully it becomes affectation. Don’t fret on finding your voice, it will develop as part of who you are and if you write naked—again!
 The true worth of a writer is not in his style and voice, but in the feelings and sensations that come alive in the readers.