Fangs, Fur & Fey is a community of Urban, Paranormal & Contemporary Fantasy writers and readers. They recently had their first “con within a con” at the Conestoga Science Fiction and Fantasy Convention in Oklahoma. Hopefully this marks a trend in conventions for writers and fans of this sub-genre to enjoy panels and other events together.
I wonder if they’ll make an appearance in my neck of the woods at Dragon Con?
I just stumbled upon this one (the book series by Stephenie Meyer), and noticed the movie coming out in December November 2008.
After immersing myself in worlds created by Charlaine Harris, I discovered the novel Stray by Rachel Vincent.
Faythe Sanders is a young college grad student with a secret. She’s a werecat. Well, that’s enough right there to get me to buy the book. I’m interested in urban fantasy (this blog is about my effort to write in that genre), and I love cats, so books about shapeshifters who turn into cats are made for me.
Stray is about Faythe having to go home to her father, brothers and fellow pride members, because a stray werecat is endangering the lives of the precious female werecat population. At some point while reading the book, I fell in love with Faythe. She has some growing up to do, and she’s made her fair share of mistakes, but her faults are all believable and I can empathize with her situation. The last half of the book is absolutely gripping, one of the few books I had trouble putting down until the end.
Rogue, the sequel (and well worth reading), is also available. Pride, the third book in the series, is due out in February 2009.
Besides her writing, Rachel Vincent is remarkable in her willingness to share her love of writing and the process an aspiring author goes through in getting published. She reaches out to her fans and spends time regularly on her discussion forum and her blog. Her enthusiasm is infectious, and it’s easy to come away from her site feeling that you, too, can find your muse and enter into the process of writing as a labor of love.
Did you know:
I first noticed this when reading the Kitty Norville series by Carrie Vaughn. She includes a playlist of songs and artists she listened to while writing the book. I began seeing other author playlists in random books in the bookstore.
Rachel Vincent, author of the Werecat series, lists bands she likes to listen to on her web site biography.
Kelley Armstrong offers a soundtrack to her Women of the Otherworld series, listing songs and artists, along with an explanation of how each song fits in with the series.
Kim Harrison provides an extensive list of songs and artists for The Hollows series. She says:
“My muse exists in music. Logic maps the story, but music gives it its soul and sends my characters in directions that surprise even me.”
I’m starting to look for specific music that I can associate with my characters, their relationships, various scenes and themes within my story. I need silence to write by, but music can be invaluable for inspiration, either to establish a mood, or when I’m stuck.
I played guitar professionally for many years, so who knows. I may even start writing songs for my characters. Right now I don’t have time for that, so I’ll let the songs already out there inspire me.
Kidneythieves music nails one of my characters to a T.
What songs and artists inspire you (for writing, or anything you like to do)?
Slow going on my draft two outline revision. My full-time job is demanding most of my time. But I’m spending some time every day on my book, even if I don’t accomplish a lot for that day.
I’ve been playing around with this word meter:
It really doesn’t mean much at this point since I’m still working on the outline, but it’s kind of nice to have a visual indicator of progress. Especially for times like these where it seems to be stuck. Gives me an extra push to make more time for writing. Someone said, “Writers don’t find time to write, they make time to write.”
No, this post isn’t about the government’s ideas on how to protect yourself during a nuclear blast, nor is it about Carrie Vaughn’s brush with lightning. It’s only about what I’ve been up to lately.
The Cover
Yesterday I did the final touch-ups on my mother’s dust jacket cover design, and she’s sending it off today to the publisher. We’re really looking forward to seeing the final product.
The Duck
I’ve been feeling a little like Howard the Duck recently. While Howard was “trapped in a world he never made,” I’m trapped in a world I did make. I’m trying to finish up my outline for the second draft. My first draft had no formal outline, as I forged ahead in pure pantzer style. But now I’m paying the price. I think I’ve finally settled on the right approach, but there’s still quite a few details to work out. There’s a strong temptation to try and keep scenes and subplots I’ve already written in the first draft (many of which “worked”). I must be strong and only keep what’s best for the story.
Charlaine Harris is the next author I discovered after Carrie Vaughn.
I picked up a copy of Dead Until Dark and was introduced to Sookie Stackhouse. All urban fantasy I’ve read so far has been written in first person, and I must say that Sookie is one of the most original characters I’ve read in this voice. Sookie is a barmaid in a small town in Louisiana who finally gets to meet a vampire. Charlaine does a wonderful job showing us the unique way Sookie thinks about everything. Sookie is hilarious, interesting and charming, and it’s easy to fall in love with her. I found myself utterly fascinated by Sookie’s quirky personality.
It looks like they’re trying to change the name of the series from “Southern Vampire Mystery” to “Sookie Stackhouse” (as you can see by the image above; my copy says “A Southern Vampire Mystery”), but I rushed out and bought them all. For me, this is a perfect example of how the main character keeps me attached to the series, above plot, fantasy elements, etc.
Did you know:
Yes, it’s Friday again, cat blogging day.
