This is the first book I have read by Eichin Chang-Lim, and I’m sure it won’t be the last. The LoveLock has reached into my soul and touched me deeper than I ever remember a book doing. The Author’s prose is laced with the deep-seeded knowledge of what it is to lose someone you care about. But the story isn’t only about loss, it’s about love and the courage to keep love and hope alive no matter what.
Captivating and Compelling
Upon The LoveLock’s pages, Ms Chang-Lim’s characters become real and familiar. I believe from page one I related so strongly to Violet not from losing a twin or a sibling, but just from the emphatic knowledge of how it feels to be rejected and still seek to have that person in your life. The Author’s writing is beautiful and touching, captivating and compelling.
Closure
I was elated at the end as these two people, so injured by loss as children embrace their pain and rise above it, reaching out to others in need and from those experiences heal to become the adults they were meant to be. Yes, it’s just a story, but at the same time, it could easily be a memoir. Beautifully written, Eichin Chang-Lim. I highly recommend The LoveLock.
I am usually more of a dark fantasy, suspense and horror reader. But having seen Tina-Marie Miller’s book advertised on Twitter, the cover caught my attention. I decided to take a chance on it and I’m so very glad I did.
The Curious Miss Fortune reminded me of my favorite shows on the BBC. I never knew what would happen next and I was always eager to find out. The various character sub-stories within the story kept the prose well-paced and smooth; the story line both engaging and compelling.
The Curious Miss Fortune is a fun, mysterious and well-crafted adventure that I highly recommend. I forward to reading more by this author!
I recently finished K.N. Lee’s NETHERWORLD, the first book in her Chronicles of Koa series. Angels versus Vampires.
The Hook
The opening for the book is an instant hook, the characters entertaining and engaging. The writing isn’t as smooth as I’d prefer, but from start to finish I couldn’t stop reading.
The Story
The story is about a Korean half-vampire named Koa who works for an angel named Halston. Together, their job is to keep the human population safe from Netherworld vampires.
The only catch is two-fold, Koa’s mother is trapped inside a cat’s body and the only one who can release her is an imprisoned Netherworld vampire prince. A prince Halston and Koa must go to Netherworld to rescue and bring back to the human world.
The Stars
NETHERWORLD by K.N. Lee, the first book in her Chronicles of Koa series, a glowing 4 out of 5 stars!
This morning while dressing, it occurred to me that since young adult novels seem to be “it” right now in regards to book sales, maybe I should be working on that “great” young adult novel I still have inside my head. But, of course, being ADHD, my brain went in a multitude of directions from there. When I finally sat down to write what came out was more “new adult” than “young adult.”
One of the adages that writing teachers readily preach is “write what you know or know what you write.” So, with that in mind and being that my “new adult” experiences began when I left home and enlisted in the Air Force, this is what came forth from my cranium this morning….
The Plan?
In June of that year, I graduated high school, less than two weeks later, I turned nineteen and more than a month after I graduated, my new life began, or at least that was the plan. In retrospect, I probably never should have enlisted. I should have figured out a way to go to college and become this great, amazing writer, the one who lays dormant inside me.
But that wasn’t my life; mine was about surviving and getting away from the hell that was “home.” It wasn’t always that way, one upon a time I was surrounded by people who loved me and wanted me, but then not all fairy tales have happy endings and when my “wicked” stepmother married my father, she truly was not a very nice person. So like all fairy princesses, I needed to escape and my escape was the United States Air Force. Who knew the proverbial jumping from the frying pan into the fire actually existed? I soon found out.
The Great Escape
I was a farm girl in rural Pennsylvania, my graduating class was 265, actually I don’t think every one of them graduated. We were poor, no way around it. My father’s get-rich-at-farming attempts just never panned out, so if I stayed in PA (my favorite abbreviation for Pennsylvania) it was either flip burgers or marry a farmer. Somehow neither was very appealing. I wanted to travel, to see the world, so for someone like me, the best option was the Air Force.”
In truth, not a bad start. BUT, I write fiction, not creative nonfiction and isn’t my reality incredibly boring? So, here are my thoughts…perhaps, as I siphon through my memories of what my life had been like back then, maybe I can come up a few kernels of research to use in a fictional novel. With that goal in mind, I’ll keep writing and share whatever remotely clever bits I come up with here, on this blog… Or, at least, that’s the plan today. Of course, being ADHD, I could have a new plan tomorrow… 😉
Please welcome Sam Boush, Author of the great new Thriller – ALL SYSTEMS DOWN
Hello Sam, welcome, and thanks for doing the interview –
The Cyber War and ALL SYSTEMS DOWN
I just finished reading your amazing first book of your Cyber War Series, ALL SYSTEMS DOWN, and I was going to ask where a journalist and a novelist came up with the background for this story. But then, I noticed on your website: “Center for Internet Security, International Information Systems Security Certification Consortium, and Cloud Security Alliance.”
How did you get involved in writing about cyber attacks, and a hypothetical and realistic war? It is a big step from being a firefighter, a journalist and owning a marketing agency.
Sam Boush – After I sold my marketing agency, I had some time to finally jump into the career I’d wanted to pursue since I was a kid. (I have this theory that most of us secretly or not-so-secretly want to be an artist of some kind – whether it’s a rock star, sculptor, or scribbler.) So I wrote a novel on one of the subjects I find most interesting, which is the vulnerability of our physical infrastructure to cyber war.
All Systems Down has done pretty well, and I’m feeling good about the sequel that should be out in 2019.
Glad to hear the book is doing so well and that’s great news about the sequel!
While I was preparing for your interview, I spent some time on your website, Cyberwars.com , and came up with some questions.
Great website by the way, okay, now to learn more about Sam Boush…
About Sam Boush
Sam, you’ve led such an exciting and no-doubt dangerous life first as a wildland firefighter and then a journalist. What led you to being a wildland firefighter and what, if anything, do you miss about it? And regarding journalist, taking into account France and Spain, am I right in guessing you were a foreign correspondent?
Sam Boush – Firefighting was probably dangerous, but my journalism career wasn’t. I WISH I’d been a foreign correspondent. But, alas, my most successful article was a science piece about the (ahem) below-the-waist features of snakes. It did win a Society for Professional Journalists award, though!
“His Heart Belongs to Portland”
According to your website you have lived in France and Spain, but your heart belongs to Portland. I know there’s a story there, so please tell us as much as you want to share. Were you raised in Portland or does it have everything to do with your lovely family?
Sam Boush – I’m originally from Eugene, Oregon, about two hours south of Portland. But I’ve lived in this blustery city for fourteen years, and really do love it. Great neighborhoods, very livable, nice people. And of course, my family, like you say. My kids are elementary-school-aged and I’m pretty sure they like this place as much as any kids can love their hometown.
The Irishman and the Vikings
Please tell us about your first full-length story. No, not the first one you published, but the very first one you ever wrote. How old were you and what was it about?
Sam Boush –I’ve told the story before about how my first story, as a kid, was Winnie-the-Pooh fanfic. (http://jodigallegos.com/author-spotlight-sam-boush/). But I don’t think anyone has ever asked me about the first full-length book I wrote (and never published) as a teenager. It was a cringy historical fiction attempt about a 7th Century Irishman who gets captured by Vikings. If I can say one good thing about it, tackling that manuscript taught me a lot about writing.
Funny enough, the first fifty pages were actually decent enough to get me an award from the Pacific Northwest Writer’s Association. I guarantee that if they’d read the whole thing (as a couple unfortunate agents did) they’d never have given me that award.
Advice for New Writers
Sam, congratulations on the award! You mentioned how much you learned about writing while you wrote your Irishman story. What advice would you give new writers, especially those “cringing” after their first story?
Sam Boush – There’s so much. The advice I hear a lot is just to keep writing—and I think that’s great. But I’d also add that there’s a lot to the craft of writing that new writers sometimes struggle with. A few examples are: plotting, especially creating acts (as in a three-act structure); ensuring all major characters have a story arc with a resolution; and focusing on chapter-level writing, rather than trying to write perfect sentences.
The Cyber War Series
What can you tell us about your next book in the Cyber War Series?
Sam Boush – I can tell you that I’m wrapping it up now and that my publisher should be getting it after I get some more feedback from advance readers. There’s a much bigger military focus in this one, so I’ve got a lot of help from the good people in our armed forces around what they would do in certain situations if the lights went out and satellites started falling from the skies.
In Case of Cyber Attack?
Wow, how exciting. Can’t wait to read it!
Now, speaking of wrapping up, one last question, Sam. If there was a cyber attack on the US, much like in your book, knowing all that you know about the subject, where would you go?
Sam Boush – Well, the conceit of the book is that the cyber attack in All Systems Down is hugely devastating. More devastating than we’d probably see in real life because of the difficulty in coordination. But if a cyber war hit us at that scale, I’d probably stay home if I could. Heading out into the country or off camping with my family just wouldn’t cut it.
Well, I’m thinking that’s good advice. Thank you, Sam Boush, Author of ALL SYSTEMS DOWN, for being here. I wish you continued success in writing career and all the best on your upcoming book.
And for those who want to know more about the Sam Boush, his links are below:
Talking to my husband the other day, I told him I envision a room full of tables and around each table women and girls, mothers and daughters, aunts and nieces, grandmothers and granddaughter. And I am presenting on stage.
Your Power
“Do you remember a time?” I ask. “When you felt powerful? When you felt like you could do anything, be anything and no one could stop you?”
“Do you know, you still can?”
“Sure, we’ve gotten older, our skin is not so pliable, our bodies not as flexible, but our minds, our minds are still young and that power within us is still there. We just have to find new ways to work with these bodies that have aged or changed in some capacity.
Your Box
“So, this is what I want you to do. I want you to sit up straight in your chairs, look straight ahead and close your eyes. Now imagine a box, just an ordinary box, it can big, really big, or as small as you are. But every box has two things in common, they are square like a cube and they close at the top.
“Now you can decorate your box anyway you’d like inside your mind, but what I want you to do is imagine that that box is your life and you are living inside that box. Everything you do, every thought you have and every dream you dream for your life must fit inside that box.
Your Life
“No. No. No. These aren’t my rules. They’re yours. Unless you’re living a life where dreams can and do come true, you are currently living inside a box. And you’re life will never change.
“Do you know why? Because you don’t want your life to change. You like your box, you like your walls and how familiar they feel. And that’s fine, if you’re happy and content and you never want your life to change. But, if you’re not happy and you’re living to please someone else. It’s up to you to change.
“I won’t lie to you, going outside your box is scary and unfamiliar. It takes courage to move outside what’s familiar. It also takes faith.
Your Choice
“Sure, faith in God, faith in your higher power, but also faith in yourself. You have to believe you can do it, and you have to believe you deserve it. Once you get past that voice inside you that says, “You can’t do this. You’re too dumb. or you’re too weak, or dreams, especially yours, will never come true. Or, maybe, it’s just because you’re too busy taking care of everyone else and it’s selfish for you to think about what you want.
“But, I have to tell you. You deserve to be happy as much as everyone else. Now mommas and grandmothers and aunts and sisters and daughters and everyone else look across the table at the person you came here with tonight. I want you to say, “You’re allowed to take care of yourself. You’re allowed to be good to yourself. Your allowed to love yourself. And then, I want you to tell the other person, you don’t have to live in a box. Together we can tear down those walls.
“Well done, Ladies. So, now I want you to take that piece of paper on the table in front of you and I want you to write a number one. Beside that number one I want you to write something you can do today to start breaking free of your box.
Taking That First Step
It can be as simple or as complex as you want. But, if you are really serious about getting out of that box, I want you to start off with something you can do, really do, today. Because if you can accomplish one goal today, tomorrow you work on number two.
“Baby steps, Ladies. Mothers, do you remember when your child was a baby. Do he or she start walking overnight? Probably not, can they walk now? Do you get what I’m saying?
“Every goal starts with a dream and every dream is accomplish by you taking that first step and then your second step and your third and so on. So, Ladies, let’s start getting you out of that box!”
I’ve long been impressed by Carol Marrs Phipps’ marketing on Twitter. I’ve always found her artwork eye catching and compelling and let’s face it, that’s what marketing is all about. We want our target audience to stop whatever they’re doing, read our ads and potentially, buy our books.
With this in mind, when I discovered Carol had started her own graphics business, I jumped at the chance for her to create posters for me. I’m quite pleased with the results.
Below is a response from Carol regarding her new business; also enclosed are samples of her work. Just to give my two cents, Carol is amazing to work with and is highly responsive to your needs on a budget most Indie Authors can afford.
CMP – I’ve always been a bit of a do-it-yourselfer, so when I needed more graphics than I could comfortably afford to purchase from graphic artists to adequately promote my books, I decided it was time to learn how to use Photoshop and make my own.
And so the adventure began. Once I became much more adept with the program I started turning out better and better promo ads for my books, and people began commenting about how good my banners were. A few suggested I ought to earn some extra money andcharge people to make banners for them.
After much consideration I decided, “why not?” and opened up Carol’s Posters, Gifs & More (which I recently re-named Carol’s Banners, Gifs & More) http://www.niarg.com/carols-posters-gifs-more/. My rates are very reasonable and customer satisfaction is my highest priority.
Please welcome brilliant author Carol Marrs Phipps from the writer team of Carol Marrs and Tom Phipps
Hello Carol, welcome and thank you for doing this interview-
Aside from all the help and support you’ve given me regarding my own work, I know so little about you. Would you mind sharing a little about your background? Where are you from? How did you and your partner/husband Tom Phipps get started in writing? Have you always written fantasy?
About the Author
Carol Marrs Phipps – I am a mother, grandmother, wife and doting pet owner. I say this first because my husband is always telling me that if I didn’t have anything else, I would mother a rock Apparently my students agreed with my husband, because when I still taught elementary school, many of them often referred to me as “mom” rather than Mrs. Phipps.
My pets include six cats, a cockatiel, a raven and a blue-fronted Amazon parrot. (Though, anyone who has ever hand-raised a parrot understands they are far more like having another child, than a pet, particularly if they talk).
I also love the outdoors where I enjoy walking, hiking, swimming, biking and picnics in the woods. Movies, traveling and family get-togethers are also an important part of my life.
I was born and began life in Trenton, Missouri, but my parents moved to Illinois when I was very young. My husband Tom and I lived in the Southwest (Arizona, New Mexico and Nevada) where we taught on a number of Native American Reservations until we decided to move back to Illinois.
The Evolution from Teacher to Writer
Carol Marrs Phipps – I haven’t taught since our return, concentrating on our writing instead. Tom is retired from teaching, but now has a part time job (three 12 hr, days a week).
I am a fantasy writer and a dreamer. I love to weave the visions which play out in my imagination into fantastic tales for my own amusement and the enjoyment of others. If not writing I am a voracious reader.
I had a number of short stories I had written for my creative writing classes and the yearly anthology which I read to my husband and step children. Tom was impressed by my writing and encouraged me to take it up again.
Since writing had always been my first career choice, I was easy to convince. However, I discovered along the way that Tom also had a great writing talent, though he was more of a non-fiction writer. We soon decided that combining our skills would make some realistic fantasy stories that all ages could read and enjoy. Thus, we became a team.
The Troll Language
I just finished Elf Killers and like with WHAM!, could not stop reading. My only pause in the book was trying to decipher the troll language. That is until I found the glossary. Big help, by the way! Thanks for adding it.
How did you come upon the troll language or was this something you created?
Carol Marrs Phipps – Yes…and, no. As I mentioned earlier, Tom and I spent the bulk of our teaching careers on the Native Indian Reservations. The troll language evolved out of native Navajo…with some creative adjustment, mostly exchanging one consonant for another. The word meanings, however, remained the same for our book.
Elf Killers and Other Stories
Regarding Elf Killers, your world creation was highly detailed, your adventure compelling and fast paced, and your characters so fun to read, I absolutely lost myself in the book. Such an amazing story. Is Elf Killers a standalone novel or do you plan a sequel?
Carol Marrs Phipps – Again I must answer yes…and no to your question. Although ELF KILLERS is our first published work, it was not actually written first. Tom and I had written four or five of the HEART OF THE STAFF books before we decided to do ELF KILLERS.
In STONE HEART, the 3rd book of the HEART OF THE STAFF series, the elf killer trolls are actually introduced, and they appear in each book of the series thereafter. ELF KILLERS is more or less a prelude to the series, even though it is not so labeled. Most of the trolls and elves from the series appear in ELF KILLERS, too.
Then in WHAM! the readers who have read ELF KILLERS and/or the HEART OF THE STAFF series will discover in book 2 of the TIMEWALKER series, that the troll barber is a descendant of Thunderman Veyfnaryr. Yes…all of our books are “connected”. WHAM!, book 1 of the TIMEWALKER series takes place 700 years after the HEART OF THE STAFF series, but you’ll find some of those “eternal” fairies and long-lived elves cropping up from time to time.
What other books have you written?
Carol Marrs Phipps – To date we have written: ELF KILLERS, GOOD SISTER, BAD SISTER (book 1 of HOTS), THE COLLECTOR WITCH (book 2 of the HOTS), STONE HEART (book 3 of the HOTS), THE BURGEONING (book 4 of the HOTS), THE REAPER WITCH (book 5 of the HOTS), DOOM (book 6 of the HOTS), the HEART OF THE STAFF: complete appendix (a companion book for the boxed set, HEART OF THE STAFF: complete series. Amazon would not allow us to attach the appendix to the boxed set because they said their policy did not allow a work of that size to be sold for only 99 cents. At he time we were adamant about the 99 cent price as we were still relative unknowns and we hoped to develop a bit of a readership.), and WHAM! (Book 1 of Timewalker)
What is your favorite genre to read? Write?
Carol Marrs Phipps – Fantasy is my answer to both questions.
Regarding your series, Heart of the Staff, please tell us a little about it?
Carol Marrs Phipps – The HEART OF THE STAFF series is a true epic fantasy saga which spans four complete generations in the life of a wizarding family.
Two evil sorceresses are on a path to rule the entire world; one from the shadows and the other from the throne she “inherited” early by killing her adoptive parents, the former king and queen, shortly after her sixteenth birthday. The wizarding family, headed by the most powerful wizard in the land, Razzmorten Dewin , who had previously lived in a peaceful, even idyllic land, now find themselves and their very world in great peril.
In Closing
Thank you so much for taking the time to meet with me, Carol. I know you’re short on time. Is there anything else you’d like to add:
Carol Marrs Phipps – Thanks the opportunity, Ingrid. Yes, there is. To wrap up, I offer the following reader review for this series:
“I very highly recommend this “Heart of the Staff” epic
fantasy series. If you like fantasy stories, set in a time
of kingdoms and castles, loaded with evil witches, wizards,
elves, fairies, trolls, unicorns, dragons, kingdoms with
marching armies of war, this series has it all. I absolutely
loved these books!!”
A Great Announcement!
Many thanks to Author Carol Marrs Phipps for joining us! I have long admired her marketing efforts on Twitter, creating these elaborate detailed and colorful posters.
Click on this pic and get a great Christmas Wonderland Surprise!
Here’s one she designed for me –
For more on Carol’s great new venture, stay tuned for next week’s post!
and for more about Carol and Tom Phipps and their marvelous stories, use the following links –
ch an amazing story. Is Elf Killers a standalone novel or do you plan a sequel?
