Coming Soon: REAPER
I will be hosting fellow author, LS Murphy, on her blog tour for her just released title, REAPER! A Young Adult Urban Fantasy/Paranormal Romance.
Stay tuned!
It’s Official!
I can finally talk again and share my big news! Details below:
Laney McMann signs three-book contract with J. Taylor Publishing for her Fire Born trilogy, a dark, Young Adult Urban Fantasy/Paranormal Romance series, including TIED, TORN and TRUE.
Apex, NC – October 24, 2012 - With a passion for the supernatural and all things magical, Laney McMann developed a voracious appetite for reading fantasy at a young age. By the time she reached her teens, Laney had accumulated notebooks full of poems which led to short stories and finally novels, specifically in the young adult dark fantasy, paranormal romance, and mythology genres.
“A lifelong love of writing fantasy led me to write TIED, ” says Laney. “TORN and TRUE naturally followed.”
That love of writing brought her to J. Taylor Publishing. “The premise of the Fire Borns compelled us to read TIED, the first of the trilogy, ” says J. Taylor Publishing, adding, “and the romantic possibilities, and intrinsic conflict placed up on the main characters won us over. We had absolutely no hesitation contracting this work.”
Figuring out life is a tremendous element in many young adult novels, and TIED is no different as it explores the facets of growing up, discovering oneself and deciding what parts of a future are important to the main characters.
”The tie in to lesser-known mythology truly captured our attention,” says J. Taylor Publishing. “We’re very excited to add another YA novel to our catalog and expect adults and teens alike will enjoy this series.”
TIED is planned for release in September 2013 with, TORN in late 2014 and TRUE to follow one year later.
About the Publisher
J. Taylor Publishing is an Independent Publisher who, thanks to the Internet, has a worldwide reach. Our debut authors are in the United States, the United Kingdom, and Canada. The company produces print and electronic books. For more information about J. Taylor Publishing, please visit www.jtaylorpublishing.com.
Don’t Think, Just Do.
My son, the skateboarder, is also a football player. Little league. He plays defense. Really well. On occasion, he plays on offense. Wide receiver. He’s a great receiver—in the front yard. On the field however, during a game, it’s hit or miss. 50/50. I told him it was in his head, and I believe that. He thinks too much. It’s all psychological. “Don’t think,” I told him, “Just do.”
I ran a post the other day, The Transitions, and talked about the need of an outline. Any kind of outline really. Something to lead you along incase you run astray, and lose your way. I am a pantster at heart. I believe in outlining loosely. Although I like having a guide, I feel it’s important to not rely too heavily on what you think your story should be. So..in that light, this post may sound a bit contradictory. It’s not.
My issue with traditional outlines is the feeling of being ‘locked in’ to an idea. For me, writing becomes the most difficult when I feel like I am trying to force the pieces of this massive novel-puzzle into holes that don’t fit. Sometimes even your best ideas, dialogue streams, and world building skills, simply don’t work. Sometimes you need to loosen the grip and let the story carry you. Let your imagination run wild. You would be amazed at what your mind can create when you let go of the boundaries.
Image via Wikipedia
When you get to know your characters—really know them, they will lead you, not the other way around. Everytime I feel myself getting stuck, hitting a wall, I ask myself, “What would Layla do? What would she say?” Layla is the main character in my novel—something I haven’t mentioned until now. I know her very well after almost two years of writing. Well enough that after my 6th draft, banging my head against the wall, and wanting to pull my hair out—I stopped thinking so much, and let her do the talking. Some writers think that sounds insane. While others, know exactly what I’m saying.
When I stopped thinking so much, and let Layla start talking, the whole scope of my story changed, and became alive. It wasn’t me telling the story anymore, it was her showing her world—leading the way. And….it became easier to write. Yup. Sure did.
That’s not to say that I went completely astray of the ideas I had loosely outlined for my story in the very beginning, only that I allowed those ideas to stay fluid.
There is a negative with being locked in to a specific idea when you write. Well….I should rephrase that. There is a negative when you write fantasy and paranormal. These stories aren’t built on traditional ideas. They are built on wild imaginations. In order to create alter universes, planes, and worlds—we need to let go of what we think the story should be, and allow it to be what it can be. Big difference. Let your thoughts take you, let your characters take you. Writing is about allowing yourself to be transported.
“Don’t think, just do.” Then edit. 
WRITE ON, WRITERS.
(**after drafting this post on Saturday morning, my son caught a 30 yard touchdown pass. His team won the league championship.)
Happy Anniversary!
I missed it. My anniversary. Because of the Flu. But on December 10, my one year Blog Anniversary came and went. I was too ill to think, much less write, but even my flu induced haze didn’t allow me to forget.
One year. Wow. It’s hard to believe. Harder still to believe that I had already completed the first and second draft of my novel five months prior to launching this blog. When I began it was primarily to talk about writing. To have an outlet for my overflowing brain. To create contacts and have a sounding board.
It has proved a far greater asset than I could have imagined. The fellow writer friends I have made over the past year have inspired me, helped me and ultimately kept me writing at times I thought I couldn’t keep going. All of the support and positive response I have received means so much to me. Thank you.
2012 should be a most challenging year, as I plan to publish my first novel in what will be a YA Fantasy/Paranormal series. April will mark two years of writing, editing and now revising this book.
Here’s to a successful and gratifying New Year. The sky’s the limit.
Image by kygp via Flickr
How important is the Title?
What role does a title play in the overall feel of a book? Does it pull at your heart-strings, begging you to pick it up or is the cover more important as a draw?
Since I am now in the position of weighing my options in regard to changing my title (or clinging to it with both hands), I’ve given the whole process quite a bit of thought.
There are a good amount of book titles out there that have little or no relevance to story content. Good books. Books that I’m sure had original titles, titles that fit and worked, only to be changed in order to draw more readers.
In the YA fantasy/paranormal genre they seem more prevalent. So here’s the question: Should the title represent the story? Or should the aim of a title be to draw more readers regardless of its relevance to the book?
Example: Twilight. Stephenie Meyer intended the first book of this series to be titled FORKS. It represented the town obviously, but it also represented where Bella was in her life. Stuck at various cross-roads, trying to do the right thing, make the right decisions. Put aside the fact the we are all comfortable, and there for biased to the Twilight title, and ask yourself if it really works. Does it have any real relevance to the story? It makes a great sounding book. It fits the cover nicely. It sold millions of copies.
How about Beautiful Creatures (Darkness and Chaos), a favorite series of mine, by Kami Garcia and Margaret Stohl. These books are magical and dark and delicious. They also have a different title. The original one. SIXTEEN MOONS (and Seventeen and Eighteen). Titles that fit beautifully with the storyline. But those titles aren’t the ones we see.
How about JK Rowling’s Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows? Pretty clear that her titles (and covers) could not be more perfectly matched to the story.
Michael Scott‘s The Alchemist? The Magician? All the titles in this incredible series are also wonderfully in sync with both story line and book covers.
That all being said, I am assuming it’s the romantic paranormal side of YA that tends to fall to luring titles, regardless of story content. Pretty covers sell. Put a catchy title on that pretty cover and you just increased your odds of selling a book.
So, what do you think? Choose the title that fits the storyline and hope it appeals to your readers? Choose the title that grips you as the writer from the start? Or choose a title (and cover) that targets your genre regardless of relevance to the book?
I know, I know. Be savvy enough to meld them all (EXCEPT relevance, I can’t move past that). Just answer the question;)
Content
I’m wondering about novel content today. Novel plot really and how it correlates with content. Being a fan of YA Mythology, Fantasy and recently, Paranormal Romance, I’ve wondered about the content of Urban Fantasy and how it relates to these other YA genres. I’m curious to know if readers, generally speaking, appreciate the mix of these elements in a story. For example, a paranormal romance mixed with modern-day crime or fantasy caught up in the big city drug scene. What are your thoughts?
Do they mix or distract from one another? Should the supernatural fantasy world be woven alongside the drug scene or inner city crime of say… New York city? And if they can coexist, what creates the draw? What about these two elements entices you as a reader? Is it the idea that this fantasy world could be ‘real’, or more believable if it was just outside your front door? Or is it the idea that it simply feels more relatable? Or let’s take the opposite approach. Do you hate it when these elements are woven together?
