Winter Light and a Winner

Crisp air at forty below.

Congrats to Patricia O’Brien!! Random.org chose her as the winner of the Become gift package.

Thanks for stopping by. And, stay warm!!

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Author Spotlight and Giveaway: Become by Ali Cross

Become, a young adult novel by Ali Cross  officially comes out tomorrow but it is available now in both digital and print form.

Cover copy for Become:

Sixteen-year old Desolation Black wants nothing more than to stay in Hell where it’s cold and lonely and totally predictable. Instead, she’s sent back to Earth where she must face the evil she despises and the good she always feared.

When Desi is forced to embrace her inner demon, she assumes her choice has been made—that she has no hope of being anything other than what her father, Lucifer, has created her to be. What she doesn’t count on, is finding a reason to change—something she’s never had before—a friend.

And, a little bit about Ali before we start our interview:

Ali Cross is the sensei of the Writer's Dojo where she holds a black belt in awesome. She lives in Utah with her kickin' husband, two sparring sons, one ninja cat, two sumo dogs and four zen turtles.

Ali. Thanks for joining us today. Where did the idea for Become originate?

Sometimes I like to play the “what if” game and see what stories I can come up with from random ideas. I’ve written a few books that way and BECOME was the first!

As a writer myself, I’m always curious about this: When did you first start writing and when did you finish your first book?

I first started writing in the fall of 2002—a story born from my Dungeons & Dragon days.  My husband started his first book the same day as me, and we both finished  those books on New Year’s Eve 2003. Best New Year’s Eve ever!

Okay, so you’ve been at this for a while now. Tell us a little bit about your writing process. Do you outline, or just write, or do you use a combination of both?

I wrote most of my books off the cuff. I’d have a concept, title, character names and a general idea of where to go … and yeah, I think that’s why it took me so long to finish.  Now I work a little differently. I’m a huge fan of the Blake Snyder Beat Sheet—I’ll “beat” out a story, but from there, I’ll pants it. I like to have a good feel for where the story’s going, but I give myself the freedom to go where I need to go, too. So I’m a combo writer, I think. Anything to get ‘er done!

Blake Snyder was a talented person. I feel fortunate to have taken a workshop with him. You decided to self-publish Become. Can you tell us a little about your experience with self-publishing and what made you decide to go that route with Become?

I would have loved to find an agent to represent BECOME, and let me tell you, I sure did try! I was rejected 103 times, 32 times in the full, three times from one agent, and I got one agent offer. Plus, BECOME was contracted with a small publisher for a while, too. I believed there was something of value in my story, but I came to the conclusion that it wasn’t going to make it in the traditional route.

The choices were, shelve it and maybe someday query it again, or self-publish. When I had the chance to release with the other awesome girls in my “tour”, it seemed like maybe BECOME’s time had finally come!

Very cool, Ali. I’m looking forward to reading Become!! 🙂 My copy is already on my I-Pad.  Thanks for joining us today.

Ali is giving away a copy of Become, a signed bookmark, a key chain and a hand-knotted heart bracelet–all to one lucky winner.

Leave a comment before midnight (East Coast time) November 16th for a chance to win.

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Friday Photo: Moose Time

I took this photo last year.

But last night,

I saw fresh tracks in the driveway.

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