For the love of your characters

I think most authors fall in love with their characters. I know I did and that was the main reason why I decided to write more books in the series. I just wasn't ready to let them go at that point and ended up writing in several unanswered questions and a cliff-hanger just so that I would be forced to write another. I also wanted to see how they would develop as people and how their relationships would evolve.

Now you may think that is quite an odd thing to say because aren't these characters already in my head? Surely I should know everything there is to know about them already, right? Wrong. You may be surprised to learn that it doesn't really work like that, not for me anyway.

My characters are growing as a I write them. At this point I have no idea how they are going to turn out because they could change at any time. You see when you write a book storylines can change. A plot line you thought was headed in one direction could suddenly change when an idea hits you right between the eyes while you're rinsing your hair in the shower. Which happens to me with worrying regularity.

Actually, scary as it may seem, alot of my ideas come to me in the shower. For some unknown reason, my characters will not shut up when I am covered in soap suds. Whole scenes of dialogue will unfold between massaging shampoo into my scalp and rinsing it off. Then I'm desperate to hurry up and get out so that I can write it all down.

Personally I think that as an author you have to love your characters, because let's face it, if you don't love them, why would anyone else care about them? And that's one of the main things you want your reader to do, is to be able to connect with your characters. Join them in their adventures every time they open the book and start reading.

A Most Unusual Character

I was asked who I thought my most unusual character was. I had to think really hard about that because most of my characters are unusual in someway or another. To explain the intricacies here would spoil the twists and turns, for the reader, that unfold for some of the characters on their journey through the series.

Obviously Faen and Jocelyn are unusual, in the very fact that they appear as ordinary pets at the start of the story. If I really had to define one, I would have to say that Todmus is probably the most unusual character at this stage in my head. He starts out as this unassuming little man, a trusted friend of Faen, but he has some surprises up his sleeve (in a good way) that surprise even the people who have known him the longest.

The redcaps are definitely unusual, just for the simple fact they are so grotesque and evil.

The king and Henry both have a past they'd rather Faedra didn't find out about, but I don't know if that would class them as unusual. And I have so many other characters in my head that haven't even made it onto the page yet. They are scrabbling to get out and some of them will be emerging in the next book.

What do you think? Who would you choose as my most unusual character?

Welcoming in the new decade

Happy New Year everyon. Not only do we have a new year we have started a new decade.

I for one am very optimistic about this coming decade, although what they are goin to call it is anyone's guess. To be honest you can hardly top the "Noughties" now can you? Any suggestions on what to call the next decade please leave your thoughts in the comments section.

I refuse to make New Year's resolutions but I promise to make a concerted effort to blog every Mon, Wed, & Fri and try to be consistent about it. How that will work with tax season looming just around the corner is another matter, but I'll try.

I have a feeling that things are going to get very interesting over the next 10 years, and I for one am going to strap myself in, put my arms in the air and scream with childish exitement for the whole ride.

I have one main goal for this year and that is to finish the 2nd Custodian book and have it published by the last weekend in September, ready for Apple Festival in my town so I can do a book signing again. It was very successful last year and word is a spreadin'. Please let me know what your goals are for the coming year, I would be very interested.

I hope you all had a safe and fun New Year's eve. I did. It was spent with friends, a good meal and few glasses of rather excellent wine.

Stay warm in the frosty weather, and the fates willing I will be back here bloggin again Monday.

Welcome 2010

Wow another decade nearly over. How fast did that go?? I am genuinely looking forward to the next decade, I believe it will hold some exciting times.

2009 is when I learned all I could about the publishing industry and I have to admit that what I learned was daunting and more than a little disheartening. I won't deny that I would love for my book to be a bestseller, but decided that I would like it even more if it were out there for people to read in the first place, something that probably wasn't going to happen anytime soon if I took the traditional publishing route.

Well, my book is out there and getting great reviews from the people who are finding it. No I'm not about to give up my day job, but you know what, I write for fun and relaxation and if I can share my imagination with others, that gives me a lot of satisfaction. That's not to say that if my book should somehow get into the hands of a publisher who instantly fell in love with it and offered me a 6 figure advance.... Well you get the picture and yes, I'm allowed to dream.

So I will carry on dreaming right on into 2010.

I hope you all have a wonderful New Year and may all your dreams come true, too.

The Day After

I hope everyone had a Merry Christmas yesterday. I spent the day with friends, my surrogate family I guess you would say. Christmas is always a hard time for me because my family are all 4,000 miles away and I haven't spent a Christmas with them for 8 years.

Yesterday it hit me just how lucky I am, living where I do. People here are so friendly that they will not allow you to be alone on Christmas, no matter what. Unfortunately yesterday my mum was not so lucky. I found it hard to believe that she did not get invited round to anyone's home for Christmas, even though everyone she knows and sees on a daily basis knew she would be on her own all day. My sister was on her honeymoon.

She has neighbors that check on her every single day through the year, they are wonderful people and I am blessed that she has them to look out for her, but it never even entered their heads to invite her to Christmas dinner, so that she wouldn't be on her own.

So I would like to extend a huge thank you to my surrogate family here in the States that will never allow me to be in the same boat my mum was in. You know who you are and I love you.

It's Cold Outside

We just got the cold front that is moving through the midwest. Luckily the worst of it went north of where I live so other than the freezing cold we came off lucky.

Even though it is so cold your fingers feel like they are going to snap off after just a few moments outside, I just love this time of year. People think I'm crazy but there is just something about snuggling under a fleecy blanket with your hands wrapped around a cup of hot toddy and watching a classic Christmas movie on the television that makes me all gooey inside.

I haven't done much writing the past few weeks. It is getting to be a busy time of year for me. I am currently helping with a production of The Nutcracker. I have stepped outside my comfort zone to be the stage manager. Something I have never done before. I've always been on stage, not back stage, but I am really enjoying it.

I did another booksigning last weekend (Dec 5th) and sold several more books. It was wonderful because most of the people buying were granparents for their granddaughters. So my book is getting out there slowly but surely.

I have also finished recording the book and the whole story is now available to listen to on www.podbean.com Do a search on Alison Pensy and it will take you to my book. It is free to listen to and word is spreading much more quickly than I had imagined. I have quite a few subscribers now.

The Amulet - Book Trailer

I have uploaded a book trailer for The Amulet. It was so much fun playing around with Windows Movie Maker. I had read about other authors making book trailers for their books and decided to look at a few on YouTube. Then I started playing around with the movie maker program.

Click on the title of this post and it should take you straight to the trailer.

This is my first attempt at anything like this and I would be most interested to hear your views as to whether I did a decent job or not. I am open to all comments.

Hope you take a peek and let me know

Thanks