Meet My Character Blog Tour!!


Here are the rules as they were sent to me for the Meet My Character Blog Tour

“This tour highlights a main character from your WIP (work in progress), recently published work, or soon to be published work. The person who invites you will have a set day to post. You will post one (or two) week(s) after that, the authors you tag will post one/two week(s) after you, and so on. Here are the questions to answer about your main character:

1) What is the name of your character? Is he/she fictional or a historic person?

2) When and where is the story set?

3) What should we know about him/her?

4) What is the main conflict? What messes up his/her life?

5) What is the personal goal of the character?

6) Is there a working title for this novel if it is a WIP, and can we read more about it? OR what is the title of this novel and where can it be found?

If a WIP: 7) When can we expect the book to be published?”

Let’s start with a little info about the author who tagged me, Michael Loring!

Michael Loring was born in Bristol, Connecticut, but has lived in a variety of places such as Florida and Tennessee. He likes to think of himself as an amateur Lycanthropologist, studying werewolves ever since he was eight years old when he first saw An American Werewolf In London. He spent most of his life switching between home school and public school, always focusing on his passion for writing no matter what. His interest in writing was sparked in the second grade when his teacher encouraged him to write short stories for the class, earning him more than one award at school assemblies for Creative Writing. He currently resides in Punta Gorda, FL with his father who, for some unexplainable reason, avoids him during the night of the full moon.

Now, let’s meet, Alia Stark!!

1) What is the name of your character? Is he/she fictional or a historic person? Well, her name is Alia Stark. She’s the queen of a fictional village called Lia Fail.

2) When and where is the story set? The story is set in the fictitious village of Lia Fail, which sits in the Santa Monica Mountains of Southern California, sometime in the future. There is no determined time frame.

3) What should we know about him/her? Alia is the queen of Lia Fail. She’s mother (many times over), a widow, a fighter. She has survived the destruction of the world as we know it and still manages to see the best in people. She is intelligent, loving and loyal. She is a pagan/witch, as is the village of Lia Fail, a pagan village (although all faiths, or those with no faith, are welcome).

4) What is the main conflict? What messes up his/her life? In this next installment, there is once again someone desperate to destroy what Alia has built. They will use whatever means are at their disposal to take everything she holds dear. And once again, she has to discover who it is and stop them in their tracks.

5) What is the personal goal of the character? Alia’s goal is to live out the rest of her life as peacefully and joyfully as possible, but as the Shape and other villains continually come after her, and the magic of the inter-dimensional world has now bridged to our own, she is constantly having to fight to protect what she loves.

6) Is there a working title for this novel if it is a WIP, and can we read more about it? OR what is the title of this novel and where can it be found? The WIP is a novel that is entitled The Bridging: Book Two of the Lia Fail Chronicles. The two books before it are The Gathering: Book One of the Lia Fail Chronicles and From The Gathering to The Bridging: A Lia Fail Short Story Collection. The shorts are my way of keeping fans in the know as well as expanding on back story that will be essential to the next full length novel. So, between each full length novel will be a series of shorts to cover the time frame between books. For instance, there is a year and half time span between the end of The Gathering and the beginning of The Bridging.

7) When can we expect the book to be published?” I’m looking to publish in November if 2014, fingers crossed.

My Two Tagged Authors are:

V. Cantrell

I graduated from Eastfield College and live in a small town in Texas with my husband, two children, and my cute little dogs Reeces and Pancake. I work full-time, on top of editing for Hot Tree Editing and writing for myself has been an on going process for a few years now. My busy life means when I can I seek out relaxation by escaping into a good book. Inspired by the many amazing indie authors I’ve met along my editing journey, I found the courage to follow my dream of publishing my first novel.

I fully embrace my one-click addiction, always love the idea of a happily ever after, but there is no denying I have a massive soft spot for the bad boys.

Kick back and share the journey with me it will be quite a ride! Visit her blog V. Cantrell

Bart Hopkins

I was born in Galveston, Texas, in the middle of the 1970s. Swimming and surfing were the center of my little universe for a while. I can’t recall exactly when it happened, but during one of the hot summers of my childhood, maybe 1982 or 1983, I sat down with the first book that I would read for pleasure. It was a foreign concept to me, but my dad had given me the book, so I figured I’d give it a try.
My life changed rapidly. I frequently remained indoors that summer, reading book after book that I had borrowed from the public library. The thirst was unquenchable. It would be a year or so before my life found balance, morphing into equal parts rolling in the dirt, playing in the water, and reading. Along with the reading came some writing. Many notepads would be filled with random scribblings. Many ideas would hit paper and sit idly … for a while, anyway.
After high school, and a year at Texas A&M (Galveston), I enlisted in the US Air Force in 1994 and left Texas for the first time. Since then, Mississippi, Louisiana, Tennessee, Kentucky, South Korea, and Germany are places I’ve called home. I’ve been lucky enough to live overseas and travel around Europe. Made forays into Bosnia and Kuwait for Uncle Sam. Lots of little side trips–always an interesting time.
In Mississippi I met my beautiful wife, Perla, and we added three children to the clan. Life was busy. Somewhere amid the madness I went back to school, and tied up those loose ends. Life remained busy. Life
seemed to be complete. Almost was complete…
Then the writing resurfaced. Wow, it’s been an amazing ride so far. It’s a strange thing when you find something you’re truly passionate about. That’s writing for me.
Visit his website Bart Hopkins

 

Considering SomeplacElse by B.L. Lindstrom


Have any of you ever wanted to work some place else?  I know I have and author B. L Lindstrom has created the place where we would all love to be employed… SomeplacElse.

Considering_Someplace_Else

      Among the desert landscapes of Arizona sits SomeplacElse, an experimental community that has perfected the concept of Utopia.  However, this community is about to go toe-to-toe with a millionaire running for governor and the out come will determine the future of all.

We follow Norm Lawson on his search for employment, which leads us to… yes, SomeplacElse.  Once we are introduced to this amazing community and the people within, we are then introduced to Adam Wainwright, an extremely lucky, yet intellectually lacking, millionaire running for the governorship of Arizona.  What ensues is a tale of love, friendship, betrayal, murder and redemption that will compel you to the end.

This book was a wonderful surprise as it was just a wonderful read.  I wasn’t sure what I was getting in to, but once B.L. Lindstrom takes us to SomeplacElse you can’t stay away.   SomeplacElse is the place most us dream of, with engaging characters and a compelling story.  Mr. Lindstrom describes his tale as a modern myth, but it’s just a great story.  I encourage everyone to partake in Considering SomeplacElse.

Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/Considering-SomeplacElse-B-L-Lindstrom-ebook/dp/B000ZLY26C/

The 2nd novel… OOOOO SCARY!!!


Well, yeah, it is.  It took me over 7 years to write my first novel, from idea to published product.  I took the advice of learned writers before me and I tossed several incarnations of the book.  The first was in the wrong place, the second was full of the wrong kind of dialogue, the third, I kept writing chapters that ended no where, but in the end, I had the book I wanted.  I love my book.  I love everything about it.  It’s a little bit of everything.  Fantasy, adventure, romance, thriller, horror… it covers them all.

Some people criticize the number of characters, but I think they are all needed.  I’ve had a lot of positive feedback and reviews, and some negative.  I have some of my fans who are screaming for the 2nd installment.  Thus the title of this post… the dreaded 2nd novel.  I always thought it might be somewhat difficult, but I had no idea the kind of pressure we put on ourselves as writers when it comes to a second book.  It’s not that I don’t want to return to Lia Fail and my beloved characters, I do.  I know where they are and what they’re doing for the most part (they will really get talking soon ; ), nor is it getting lost in their stories.  It’s not the hours of solitude (I actually love that part).  It’s the readers… the ones who loved my book.

The scary part is in the potential to disappoint them.  Something that scares the hell out of me.  I know I have two choices.  I can stop writing altogether (sucky option) or I can just man up and get it done.  Well, not writing anymore isn’t going to happen.  It’s part of me and who I am, like breathing.  I have to do it.  So I guess, I just need to man up.

It’s not like I’m out of ideas, those keep coming, actually piling up in my head.  Actually, I should get them out, right?  Ok, time to be a grown-up and sit down and start increasing that word count.  Kind of like here.   Ok, so maybe it’s not that scary.  Maybe I’m being a big baby.  I guess there’s only one way to find out… jumping off again!!!  Oh, My Lovelies, be kind!!! ; )