A Day for Heroes

Screenwriters and playwrights know it. Novelists and biographers know it. Readers know it. Moviegoers know it. We all know it intuitively. Agent and writer Donald Maass says it simply in Writing the Breakout Novel: one quality that leaves the deepest, most lasting and powerful impression of a character is self-sacrifice.

In A Tale of Two Cities by Dickens, Carton willingly goes to the guillotine in Darnay’s place. In The Lord of the Rings trilogy, Gandalf willingly faces death by taking on a monster in the abyss in order to let his traveling companions escape. In Star Wars, Obi-Wan Kenobi allows himself to be cut down as Luke and friends escape. In Alison McGhee’s Shadow Baby, an old man saves a young girl from a burning trailer, losing his life in the process. In my second novel, Eye of the Sword, (March 2012), one of the characters dies saving the life of another. I’m sure you can think of many others. Writers of movies, novels, and plays know that a deed of self-sacrifice is one of the most heart-rending a character can perform.

These scenes grab our hearts, because they go where researchers of moral development say our greatest value resides. Kohlberg, Hoffman, and Gibbs, who trace the stages of moral growth, say that people in the highest stage embody “the supreme value of self-sacrifice” (Moral Development and Reality, Gibbs). They make that choice, because it’s who they are.

Today as we celebrate Memorial Day, may our greatest respect and honor go to the real-life men and women who willingly put their lives on the line for us. Heroes all.

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New York, New York!

This time yesterday I was in New York City. Actually I was stuck in rush hour traffic in NYC on the shuttle to the airport. (Thank God for shuttle drivers who know how to negotiate the crazy traffic. On one street, a fire truck pulled in behind us, honking and sounding its siren. Traffic couldn’t even budge to let it pass. Eventually, the fire truck got by as the traffic edged over, car by car.) But sitting in traffic yesterday was no problem; I scheduled the shuttle in plenty of time to get to my flight early – the problem was: at the airport I discovered that my flight had been cancelled due to the tornado-prone weather. So I had to spend another night in NYC. Still, that wasn’t such a bad problem (except for the expense). I had a nice dinner, took it easy in a comfortable hotel room, and made it back to the airport to fly home to Nashville today. (Can you have jet-lag from a two-hour flight? I feel it – having a cup of coffee to zing me back into action.)

Why was I in NYC, you ask? For BEA (Book Expo America), a huge convention where almost every publisher imaginable has a booth displaying their newest books, hoping booksellers, librarians, and book bloggers will buy. BEA is an amazing and overwhelming experience. I walked aisle after aisle of books, watched lots of authors sign their newest, and signed copies of my own Breath of Angel at the Random House booth for some of the wonderful attendees there. I met lots of nice people – as well as meeting my wonderful agent, Cheryl Pientka, face to face for the first time. She’s super!! Thanks, Cheryl!

Now that I’m back home, my Elevensies group has a couple of new books to announce:

The Rotten Adventures of Zachary Ruthless by Allan Woodrow: “Zachary would do anything to join the ‘Society of Utterly Rotten, Beastly and Loathsome Lawbreaking Scoundrels’ (SOURBALLS for short), the world’s most horrible gang of super villains. But first he must perform a truly terrible deed. He battles the horrible Mayor Mudfogg and other felonious foes, not only to join SOURBALLS, but to survive! Bwa-ha-ha!”

Blood Magic by Tessa Gratton: “Nick has tried to forget the blood magic his mom practiced. Silla is trying to unravel the mystery of her parents’ apparent murder-suicide. Together they plunge into the world of dark magic. But when a hundred year old witch comes hunting the bones of Silla’s parents and a spell book in her dad’s handwriting, Nick and Silla have to let go of everything they believe about who they are, the nature of life and death, and the deadly secrets that hide in blood.”

Congratulations to Allan and Tessa!

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The Many Faces of Fantasy

My husband’s elderly aunt had the habit of squinting at our cat again and again, each time asking, “What color would you say that cat is?” We would always answer truthfully, “White.” In the world of fantasy, publishers, marketing departments, publicists, and readers sometimes squint at a novel and ask, “What kind of fantasy would you say that novel is?” And the answer may not be so easy to come by.

Dystopian is easy to discern (the protagonist fights whatever is dehumanizing life – very popular these days). Paranormal is fairly easy (supernatural events or characters break into an otherwise normal, contemporary world – also popular now). Then there’s “high fantasy” (kings, queens, knights and such). Myth I defined in a previous blog. Fairy tale? Legend? I’ll cover those in the next few weeks. But there are other labels as well. Allegory for one. I’ve been asked what the allegory is in Breath of Angel. I had to answer, “There are no intentional allegories in the novel.”

Tolkein, writing about The Lord of the Rings, said, “As for any inner meaning or ‘message’, it has in the intention of the author none. It is neither allegorical nor topical . . . I cordially dislike allegory in all its manifestations, and always have done so since I grew old and wary enough to detect its presence. . . . I think that many confuse ‘applicability’ with ‘allegory’; but the one resides in the freedom of the reader, and the other in the purposed domination of the author.” (Alternative Worlds in Fantasy Fiction)

A reviewer recently labeled Breath of Angel  as “inspirational fantasy.” If that means the novel inspires, that’s great. Most good novels inspire, fantasy or not. But if “inspirational fantasy” is a code for “Christian” or even “religious,” the reviewer mislabeled the novel. Breath of Angel is not a Christian novel, nor is it religious. But, yes, I hope it inspires.

Ethical fantasy is another label, used to categorize novels “explicitly concerned with the existence of good and evil and the morality of human behavious . . . [it] takes for granted that good and evil exist and that there are substantive, discernible differences between them. [It assumes that] choosing between right and wrong and accepting the consequences of that choice are marks of maturity.” (F.J. Molson, quoted in Alternative Worlds in Fantasy Fiction) In that sense, Breath of Angel is ethical fantasy.

So . . . what kind of fantasy would you call the Angelaeon Circle novels? The story contained in Breath of Angel and its sequels mixes a legend and a fairy tale romance with a mythology of angels. I suspect each reader will find in the Angelaeon stories whatever he or she is ready to see and will come away with whatever he or she needs in life at the moment. Ethical? Yes. Inspiring? I hope so. But most of all, I hope reading the Angelaoen Circle novels is just plain enjoyable.

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Breath of Angel book trailer!

The book trailer for Breath of Angel is here!

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Triple Treat of Reads

Ah, summer approaches. Growing up, I looked forward to summer as a time to read, read, read. As you look toward this summer, here are three treats to try, debuting this month from my fellow Elevensies. Congratulations all!

 

Aliens on Vacation (first book in The Intergalactic Bed and Breakfast series) by Clete Barrett Smith: “A boy  named Scrub goes to work at his grandma’s bed and breakfast, where he learns that the inn is actually an  undercover operation used by aliens when they want to vacation on earth. Because the local sheriff is  suspicious, Scrub’s job becomes keeping Grandma’s secret and saving the bed and breakfast from being  shut down forever.”

 

 

 

 Under the Mesquite by Guadalupe Garcia McCall: “When Mama cries over a pesky mesquite growing in her  rose garden, Lupita knows something is wrong. She finds out that Mami has cancer, and Papi doesn’t  know whether to go out of town with Mami as she convalesces or stay home to care for Lupita and her  seven brothers and sisters. Suddenly being a high school student, dealing with difficult friends, starring in  a school play, even writing become less important to Lupita than doing whatever it takes to save Mami’s  life.”

 

 

Girl Wonder by Alexa Martin: “Desperate to escape the mediocrity of her third-rate classes, Charlotte joins  the debate team, where she is captivated by her extraordinary team captain, Neal, and her daring and  glamorous debate partner, Amanda. But on the night Charlotte needs Amanda most, Amanda turns on her.  Charlotte has no one to turn to but an obnoxious neighbor, a quirky boy with a passion for hunting wild  mushrooms and a talent for pushing her buttons.”

 

Read, read, and read some more!

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Mythic Fantasy

Zeus. Apollo. Athena. Hera. When I think myth, Greek and Roman gods and goddesses come to mind. Or the Norse Odin and Freya and Thor. But there are also Chinese myths, Japanese myths, and Middle Eastern myths among others. Beginning with the origins of the world, each culture’s myths explore supernatural explanations for natural phenomena and offer descriptions of what happens after death.

In the Ultimate Encyclopedia of Mythology, Arthur Cotterell & Rachel Storm write, “Myths of every culture reveal the power of love, with its accompanying anxiety and jealousy; the conflict between generations, the old and the new; the violence of men, especially on the battlefield or in hand-to-hand combat; the mischief of the trouble-maker, bored by the steady pace of everyday events; the sadness of illness or injury; the mystery of death; and the possibility of another life after it.” “Good luck, misfortune, and fate; the challenge of the unknown, journeys into uncharted waters or terrain; quests for a sacred objects; contests with monsters; betrayal and treachery” – these are subjects we’ll find in myths of all cultures.

In myth, gods and goddesses exhibit very human temperaments in both the divine and human worlds. In fact, the boundary between the god and human realms is almost nonexistent, and manipulating one realm affects the other in crucial ways. One of the most important tools of manipulation in myth is magic. So the mythic world includes not just deities, but also magical creatures and superhumans, all living out the struggles of life in a manipulable, bigger-than-life arena where the stakes are the world itself and humanity’s destiny.

Myths have staying power. And not just as ancient classics. Rick Riordan brought the gods and goddesses of Mt. Olympus – and the Egyptian gods and goddesses – roaring into the 21st century in his popular series of books for kids, which incorporate more myth than most fantasies. But we can find mythical elements in many other fantasies as well. Tamora Pierce‘s Tortall books come to mind; Pierce created her own unique divine realm. C.S. Lewis relied on mythical elements in his Narnia series. Shakespeare wove myth into his plays. And the Wisdom Tree in Breath of Angel is patterned after the World Tree that’s found in myths of many cultures.

Ancient myths enrich fantasy, so if you’re familiar with myths, you can spy mythic elements in many of the books you read and movies you watch, and maybe even discover myth in what you write!

Next blog: fairy tale fantasy. Meanwhile, what’s your favorite myth?

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Five Debuts for Mid-May!

Blue skies, white puff-clouds, hot temps, cicadas buzzing in the lush treetops . . . feels like summer here already. Grab a glass of your iced favorite and peruse five May Elevensies debuts with me!

 

 

 Flawless by Lara Chapman: Sarah Burke is just about perfect with killer blue eyes, gorgeous blonde hair,  and impeccable grades. There’s just one tiny – all right, enormous – flaw: her nose. On the first day of  senior year, Rock Conway walks into her journalism class and, well, rocks her world. Problem is, her best  friend, Kristen, falls for him too, and when Rock and Kristen stand together, it’s like Barbie and Ken come  to life. So when Kristen begs Sarah to help her nab Rock, Sarah does the only thing a best friend can do –  she agrees. For someone so smart, what was she thinking?

 

 

 OyMG by Amy Fellner Dominy: It’s the summer Christian Society Speech and Performing Arts camp and  Ellie Taylor can win it all: a scholarship to a private high school, a chance to compete on the best speech  team in the country, and Devon – the insanely hot guy who’s also her hottest competition. There’s just one  catch. If the private scholarship donor finds out she’s Jewish, Ellie could lose it all. Will hiding her true  identity be worth a shot at her dreams?

 

 

 

 Popular by Alissa Grosso: For reigning popularity queen Hamilton Best, the very idea of graduation is filled  with fear. She’s always been the star of Fidelity High’s most exclusive clique. But the clique is slowly  coming apart at the seams, and not just because of graduation. All the hand-picked members of the clique  have their own agendas, desires, and secrets, but they have one thing in common: they’re desperate to break  away from Hamilton. Yet she has the most shocking secret of all. If the truth got out, it would completely  destroy her fragile world. And she’ll do anything to keep that from happening.

 

 

 The Sweetest Thing by Christina Mandelski: In the world of Sheridan Wells, life is perfect when she’s  decorating a cake. Unfortunately, everything else is a complete mess: her mom ran off years ago, her dad is  more interested in his restaurant, and the idea of a boyfriend is laughable. Sheridan is convinced finding  her mom will solve all her problems – but her dad’s about to get a cooking show in New York, which  means her dream of a perfect family will be dashed.

 

 

 

 The Pull of Gravity by Gae Polisner: Nick’s family is falling apart and his best friend, the Scoot, is dying  from a freak disease. Enter Jaycee Amato, a quirky girl with an odd affinity for Of Mice and Men. She’s  made a seemingly impossible promise to Scoot and wants Nick’s help to keep it. Armed only with the  wisdom of Yoda, the beauty of Steinbeck, and the vaguest of plans, Nick and Jaycee set off on a secret,  whirlwind journey to find the father that Scoot has never known.

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Fantasy: Truth in Fancy Clothes

Fantasy is, in a sense, a “thought experiment.”  Patrick Grim, Professor of Philosophy at the State University of New York at Stony Brook says, “Thought experiments are intellectual probes, often analogous to testing the extremes . . .”  He goes on to explain that testing the extremes may not answer the questions, but at least it shows you what you’re dealing with.

In the same way fantasy – at least good fantasy – is a thought experiment, an intellectual probe. Fantasy is not meant to answer questions, but to pose them.  Fantasy is meant to show us what we’re dealing with and send us on a further journey when we close the book and turn to our real lives.  The issues raised in fantasy lead us to ponder deep and universal concepts, the cosmic realities of life. Fantasy is truth in fantastical clothing.

Fantastical clothing comes in a variety of designs: Legend. Fable. Fairy Tale. Myth. High Fantasy. Paranormal. I’ll take a look at each of these in the next few blogs. For now, let’s touch the tip of the magic wand and find out where the word “fantasy” came from.

Looking for the birthplace of the English word “fantasy” leads us down the road to a related word: “fancy.” We follow that road to ancient Greece, where “phos” means “light.” Since light reveals, the ancient Greek word for “to show” is “phanein.” From that word comes “phantazein,” which means “to present to the mind” or “imagine.” Ah, now we’re getting into familiar territory.

Latin branched off from Greek with the word “phantasia,” which means “appearance” or “imagination.” From phantasia came the Anglo-French word “fantasie,” which means “illusion,” and the Middle English word “fantsy,” also meaning “illusion”  as well as ”imagination” or “image.” From “fantsy” (which we spell “fancy”), all sorts of other words emerged: fantastic, fantasia, fantasize, phantom, phantasm, phantasmagoric.

Fantasy as a literary genre (also called fantasy fiction), is “imaginative fiction featuring especially strange settings and grotesque characters.” (Grotesque from the Old Italian “grottesca,” which literally meant “cave painting” – from the word “grotto.”) Grotesque does not necessarily mean ugly. It simply means different from what’s naturally expected or what’s typical.

I enjoy fantasy fiction, because it uses the unexpected and imaginative to reveal things I overlook in the expected and ordinary world. I believe the best fantasies leave readers richer and better for the journey. As Bruno Bettelheim says, “…without fantasies to give us hope, we do not have the strength to meet the adversities of life.” (Bruno Bettelheim, The Uses of Enchantment)

In my next blog, we’ll take a fork in the fantasy road and explore the realm of myth. (P.S. My thanks to Merriam-Webster’s Collegiate Dictionary for jump-starting my word exploration!)

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Moonglass Debut and a Seaside Fantasy

Moonglass. I love that title! Moonglass, by Elevensies member Jessi Kirby debuted this week, and it’s getting great reviews. Congratulations, Jessi! Here’s a description:

 

“Moonglass is a contemporary YA novel about a girl who, years after her mother’s death, gets a fresh start  in a new seaside town. She seems to be outrunning the past, but discovers that the sea glass she wears  around her neck is not just a token of her mother’s memory but a connection to the very stretch of water she  now calls home.”

 

Sounds intriguing. I could sit and watch the sea for hours. One of my favorite real-life fantasies is writing in a spacious room with big windows that look out on the sea.

But reality, though far from the sea, is a fantasy-come-true. I grew up in West Texas where the sky is big, but trees are small, scrubby, or nonexistent. When my husband and I moved to Nashville, Tennessee many years ago, I felt as if I were living in a park. Our yard has huge trees. And my writing desk is upstairs in a nook under the eaves, where my windows look out on the back yard – and trees! It’s almost like writing in a treehouse, especially when I can open the windows and listen to birds and wind in the treetops. So if writing by the sea remains a fantasy, I’m perfectly content right here in my treehouse!

Where’s your favorite spot – fantasy or real – to read or write?

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A Winner! + Juggling a Series

Congratulations to Natalie Zaman, winner of an ARC of Breath of Angel, which will soon (in 7 weeks!) be available in bookstores and online.

Meanwhile I’m learning to juggle books in a series. From now until release date, a huge amount of PR and marketing will kick in for book 1. Lots has already happened behind the scenes, but more will become visible as the next few weeks go by: A book trailer is almost ready; I’ll autograph Breath of Angel at the Random House booth at BEA in NYC (Wednesday at 10:00 between Lauren Kate at 9:00 and Christopher Paolini at 11:00 – okay, I’m shamelessly name dropping and hoping to meet these awesome authors); in the following weeks, I’ll be doing tv, radio, and book blog interviews, and during release week, I’ll have a launch party. Stay tuned for announcements and invites.

Meanwhile, line edits on book 2, Eye of the Sword, are almost complete. Once line edits are accepted, book 2 goes to production. At that point, my agent can begin negotiations for book 3, which has undergone a change of titles. (Now Throat of the Night.) And with book 3, the entire process will begin again.

Such is the life of a series. While Book 1 is in PR and release mode, Book 2 is finalizing edits and getting a bookcover, and book 3 is getting a contract and entering the editorial process. I’m learning to juggle.

Look exciting? It is. What most people don’t see is the amount of plain old hard work that goes into it. The trick with juggling is not dropping any balls – and making it look easy.

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