Then, as the release day approaches, I'll switch gears and drive us right into the new release with all new teasers. So remember to check back here on the blog on Thursdays!
Showing posts with label crow and pitcher press. Show all posts
Showing posts with label crow and pitcher press. Show all posts
The re-release of Crow's Rest is coming from Crow & Pitcher Press on May 22, 2018! As a way to pay tribute to its previous life as my debut novel, I'm sharing teasers and material from those early blog tours for the next several weeks.
Then, as the release day approaches, I'll switch gears and drive us right into the new release with all new teasers. So remember to check back here on the blog on Thursdays!
Then, as the release day approaches, I'll switch gears and drive us right into the new release with all new teasers. So remember to check back here on the blog on Thursdays!
The re-release of Crow's Rest is coming from Crow & Pitcher Press on May 22, 2018! As a way to pay tribute to its previous life as my debut novel, I'm sharing teasers and material from those early blog tours for the next several weeks.
Then, as the release day approaches, I'll switch gears and drive us right into the new release with all new teasers. So remember to check back here on the blog on Thursdays!
Then, as the release day approaches, I'll switch gears and drive us right into the new release with all new teasers. So remember to check back here on the blog on Thursdays!
Top Ten Places Where the Border Between Our World and Faerie
Is Weak
1. Las Vegas: think about it—it would explain so much. What
better place for the Fae to hide in plain sight than where people walk around
in elaborate costumes every day?
2. Arch in Balboa Park: okay, so I can’t remember exactly
where this was, but as teenagers, some friends and I were wandering around by
the outdoor theater in Balboa Park at dusk. I swear that one of the arches was
not just an arch, but a doorway.
3. Barton Woods: with views like this, how could it not be a
glimpse into Faerie?
4. The cave on Tom Sawyer’s Island at Disneyland: our family
had annual passes to Disneyland, and lots of summer days were spent on the
island (partly because I didn’t have much patience for lines at the rides).
Back when it was known as a racially insensitive _____ Joe’s Cave instead of
Dead Man’s Grotto (as I believe it’s now called), all kinds of spooky,
unexplainable things happened in there
5. Belvedere Castle in Central Park: you might think this is
just a 19th-century folly, but I’ve always suspected that it’s a
mirror castle, meaning there’s a corresponding (but oh so much better) castle
on the Fae side of the border
6. Davis Arboretum: the arboretum on the campus of
University of California, Davis, is a pleasant-enough place to stroll and study
plants, but there’s this one spot where the path passes under the road, and I
don’t think it’s just empty shadows under there…
7. Hope Valley Aspens: the aspen trees around Carson Pass
and Hope Valley truly do have an otherworldly beauty about them. This spot is
actually near a main road, but within a few short steps all you can hear is the
sound of trickling water and twirling leaves
8. White Wells baths: this historic bath house in Ilkley, West
Yorkshire, has a documented visit from the Little People, back in the 19th
century. They scampered about the walls like squirrels when they were
interrupted.
9. Preston Castle: Built as the Preston School of Industry
in Ione, California, the hauntings at this castle could also be signs of a
weakened Faerie border
10. Hollywood: same situation as Las Vegas—it explains so
much about the beautiful, Hollyweird celebrities, that they’re actually from
Faerie
(All photos by Angelica R. Jackson)
The re-release of Crow's Rest is coming from Crow & Pitcher Press on May 22, 2018! As a way to pay tribute to its previous life as my debut novel, I'm sharing teasers and material from those early blog tours for the next several weeks.
Then, as the release day approaches, I'll switch gears and drive us right into the new release with all new teasers. So remember to check back here on the blog on Thursdays!
Then, as the release day approaches, I'll switch gears and drive us right into the new release with all new teasers. So remember to check back here on the blog on Thursdays!
The re-release of Crow's Rest is coming from Crow & Pitcher Press on May 22, 2018! As a way to pay tribute to its previous life as my debut novel, I'm sharing teasers and material from those early blog tours for the next several weeks.
Then, as the release day approaches, I'll switch gears and drive us right into the new release with all new teasers. So remember to check back here on the blog on Thursdays!
Then, as the release day approaches, I'll switch gears and drive us right into the new release with all new teasers. So remember to check back here on the blog on Thursdays!
ARJ’s Top Ten Urban Fantasy Influences
1. The Borderland series,
which starts with an anthology
of the same name edited by Terri Windling, and moves on to some novel-length
works like Elsewhere
by Will Shetterly. It may have actually established the "collision
of the strange and the everyday" definition in my mind.
2. Ariel
by Steven R. Boyett is a cult favorite from 1983, which takes place in
a post-Apocalyptic landscape--where the Apocalypse was caused by technology
failing and magic returning to our world.
3. Books by Charles de Lint, who made Urban Fantasy popular
with his Newford stories. I recommend starting with Little
(Grrl) Lost for the younger YA set, or Svaha
for older readers.
4. Faerie
Tale by Raymond E. Fiest is a great example of UF that straddles the
line into horror
5. The Craft Sequence by Max Gladstone, which starts with Three
Parts Dead, is a great example of what makes UF so hard to
compartmentalize--this fantasy novel takes place in an urban environment where
the natural laws on the existence of magic are completely different from our
world, and yet aspects of the city and its denizens still seem so universal and
relatable.
6. The
Coldest Girl in Coldtown by Holly Black can stand in for the vampire
books that are sometimes labeled "paranormal" (with or without
"romance" added to it), sometimes fantasy, but in my mind are UF.
7. Daughter
of Smoke and Bone by Laini Taylor is another that fits the above
description (but not with vampires).
8. Gail Carriger's YA Finishing School series, which begins
with Etiquette
and Espionage, is another world that could equally be described as
steampunk or UF. Her Parasol
Protectorate series, which starts with Soulless, is more on the paranormal
end of the scale, in my opinion.
9. Cassandra Clare's books, especially her Infernal
Devices series, also straddles that steampunk/UF/paranormal line.
10. Christopher
Moore’s books, which are shelved in general fiction in most bookstores,
although they have elements of magical realism, urban fantasy, fantasy,
mythology, and horror to various degrees. My favorite is his A Dirty Job, and
there’s a sequel to it coming out in August.
The re-release of Crow's Rest is coming from Crow & Pitcher Press on May 22, 2018! As a way to pay tribute to its previous life as my debut novel, I'm sharing teasers and material from those early blog tours for the next several weeks.
Then, as the release day approaches, I'll switch gears and drive us right into the new release with all new teasers. So remember to check back here on the blog on Thursdays!
Then, as the release day approaches, I'll switch gears and drive us right into the new release with all new teasers. So remember to check back here on the blog on Thursdays!
The re-release of Crow's Rest is coming from Crow & Pitcher Press on May 22, 2018! As a way to pay tribute to its previous life as my debut novel, I'm sharing teasers and material from those early blog tours for the next several weeks.
Then, as the release day approaches, I'll switch gears and drive us right into the new release with all new teasers. So remember to check back here on the blog on Thursdays!
ARJ’s Top Ten Creatures from Myths and Legends
1. Kelpies: these water-horses have fascinated me since I was a child. I was horse crazy to begin with, and then you add in magic? Yes, please! The bit about them drowning and/or devouring people didn’t faze me a bit; I just knew I would be the exception and the kelpie and I would become fast friends. Fortunately, this belief was never tested, because older-me fears I would have just been another tasty morsel.
2. The Wild Hunt: this is another one that combined my love of horses with hounds, and like Hagrid and his blast-ended screwts, as a child I refused to believe their sinister reputation. Once I got older and more morbid, their sinister reputation was what renewed my fascination, lol. The Wild Hunt makes an appearance in the Crow’s Rest sequel, Merlin’s Stronghold.
3. Puca: I’m a sucker for trickster characters, and a puca is the ultimate trickster. If you haven’t seen the movie Harvey with Jimmy Stewart, I highly recommend that as an introduction. The film features the puca’s rabbit form, but they’re also fond of goat, horse, or dog shapes.
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| Art by ARJ |
5. Unicorns: yes, I admit I was one of those girls whose bedroom walls were covered in unicorn posters, and who toted around a sticker book containing 90% of the unicorn decals ever manufactured. They were like the best horse ever, but with an upgrade. My very first attempt at a novel, when I was around eleven, included unicorn and werewolf characters, lol
6. Selkie: One of my all-time favorite movies is The Secret of Roan Inish, a story of a young girl who tries to reclaim her baby brother, lost to the seals. It’s a great example of how the Fae can protect human folk, and aren’t always sinister.
7. Hedley Kow: You can find the tale of the Hedley Kow here, but he’s basically another shapeshifting trickster. His tricks are more on the prank end of the spectrum, than on the “laughing while they devour you alive” side.
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| The Hedley Kow as pictured in More English Fairy Tales by Joseph Jacobs (public domain) |
8. Cat Sith: this is a creature that must be appeased with a wake that includes games, singing, dancing, storytelling, and offerings, lest it steal the soul of your dead loved one. I may have shared a home with this sinister black cat for twenty-plus years, but I could never prove it. She answered to Tippy.
9. Pegasus: are you noticing the fantasy-horse theme among my favorites? What could be better than a horse that actually flies? I remember reading a book where some children climb up a pole to the gas station’s sign, a flying red horse, and bring it to life. They fly off on adventures, and I was so envious. Then there are the actual Pegasus myths from Greece, which are epic in their own right.
10. Corbin: okay, so this is the creature I made up for Crow’s Rest. But a corbin and his trickster ways, along with a more young adult sexiness, combines all the things I love about mythical and legendary creatures. So even though corbin don’t have as long of a history as his puca brethren (they’re closely related), they will always have a place in my heart.
The re-release of Crow's Rest is coming from Crow & Pitcher Press on May 22, 2018! As a way to pay tribute to its previous life as my debut novel, I'm sharing teasers and material from those early blog tours for the next several weeks.
Then, as the release day approaches, I'll switch gears and drive us right into the new release with all new teasers. So remember to check back here on the blog on Thursdays!
Then, as the release day approaches, I'll switch gears and drive us right into the new release with all new teasers. So remember to check back here on the blog on Thursdays!
The re-release of Crow's Rest is coming from Crow & Pitcher Press on May 22, 2018! As a way to pay tribute to its previous life as my debut novel, I'm sharing teasers and material from those early blog tours for the next several weeks.
Then, as the release day approaches, I'll switch gears and drive us right into the new release with all new teasers. So remember to check back here on the blog on Thursdays!
Top Ten Bad Titles for Crow’s Rest
There was a game going around Facebook for a while where you go to a random page and line in your book, and land on a short phrase—that phrase was then a Bad Title For Your Book. The funny thing is, some of them actually turn out really good. For this list, I randomly turned to a page and typed whatever phrase my finger stopped on.
1. Daniel’s Mom Is Expecting Me for Dinner (this one is actually pretty apt)
2. Threads of Weakened Laws (sounds kind of poetic, but more fitting for a literary lawyer novel)
3. Uncle Tam Made a Face (again, somewhat apt, but explaining why is spoilery)
4. Silence On The Other End (this one made me think of a fart joke)
5. Blecch, It Even Smells Like One (I would be afraid to use this as a title, in case someone cruelly turned it against the book in a review, lol)
6. His Smile Made Me Stumble (I actually like the romance feel of this one)
7. There’s Nothing In Here On That (out of context, this one makes me feel…nothing)
8. Where Did You Get That Spell? (I heard this one in a Valley Girl voice in my head, preceded by “Omigawd”)
9. Daniel’s Hands (could go either sexy or sinister)
10. Now Comes My Reward (again, sexy or sinister—or maybe that’s just the way my own mind works)
1. Daniel’s Mom Is Expecting Me for Dinner (this one is actually pretty apt)
2. Threads of Weakened Laws (sounds kind of poetic, but more fitting for a literary lawyer novel)
3. Uncle Tam Made a Face (again, somewhat apt, but explaining why is spoilery)
4. Silence On The Other End (this one made me think of a fart joke)
5. Blecch, It Even Smells Like One (I would be afraid to use this as a title, in case someone cruelly turned it against the book in a review, lol)
6. His Smile Made Me Stumble (I actually like the romance feel of this one)
7. There’s Nothing In Here On That (out of context, this one makes me feel…nothing)
8. Where Did You Get That Spell? (I heard this one in a Valley Girl voice in my head, preceded by “Omigawd”)
9. Daniel’s Hands (could go either sexy or sinister)
10. Now Comes My Reward (again, sexy or sinister—or maybe that’s just the way my own mind works)
The re-release of Crow's Rest is coming from Crow & Pitcher Press on May 22, 2018! As a way to pay tribute to its previous life as my debut novel, I'm sharing teasers and material from those early blog tours for the next several weeks.
Then, as the release day approaches, I'll switch gears and drive us right into the new release with all new teasers. So remember to check back here on the blog on Thursdays!
Then, as the release day approaches, I'll switch gears and drive us right into the new release with all new teasers. So remember to check back here on the blog on Thursdays!
I've been working hard behind the scenes to get Crow's Rest ready for a May 22 release, and I can finally share the cover! I started out by teasing on Facebook and my websites with a partial cover:
And now, the entire thing! (you can click on it to see it bigger)
I hope you all love it as much as I do! Kudos to Kelley York of X-Potion Designs for another great cover. She actually did the design on the earlier edition of this book, released through Spencer Hill Press in 2015, which was styled after a mockup I did with stock art.
This time around I didn't want to hassle with licensing and permissions, so we used entirely my own work (plus a little painting by Kelley, like the skirt). I paid to do a private photo shoot at Preston Castle with model Renee Sprouse and we got some great shots for this cover, Merlin's Stronghold's cover, and for assorted teasers. It was well worth the time and expense--and almost worth the 105+ degree day of the shoot.
The archway and brick, and stone rail, were taken on the front porch of Preston Castle, a haunted former boys' reformatory I've been photographing for about a decade.* I knew it would make the perfect framework for introducing Avery, and leading us into a magical world.
The path beyond the arch is at Bunratty Castle in Ireland, in the Folk Park which features tableaux of villages and cottages from surrounding areas. My husband and I stumbled into the grounds directly after landing, and my own skewed perceptions (from jetlag) lent them a surreal quality indeed. The real path is paved, but Kelley and I liked the wilder look of a grassy walk found in Stourhead Gardens (taken on the same UK trip).
Kelley expertly fused all these elements into an image that I hope conveys a bit of the story, with Avery's feet planted in one world but her attention captured by another. We have more great covers in store with the rest of the series, plus in the weeks leading up to the release on May 22, I'll be sharing teasers (some with the shots that didn't make the covers) and other fun content.
Stay tuned for more!
*I've collected my photos of Preston Castle in an art book, Capturing The Castle: Images of Preston Castle (2006-2016), which you can purchase on Amazon, B&N, etc with links here
And now, the entire thing! (you can click on it to see it bigger)
I hope you all love it as much as I do! Kudos to Kelley York of X-Potion Designs for another great cover. She actually did the design on the earlier edition of this book, released through Spencer Hill Press in 2015, which was styled after a mockup I did with stock art.
This time around I didn't want to hassle with licensing and permissions, so we used entirely my own work (plus a little painting by Kelley, like the skirt). I paid to do a private photo shoot at Preston Castle with model Renee Sprouse and we got some great shots for this cover, Merlin's Stronghold's cover, and for assorted teasers. It was well worth the time and expense--and almost worth the 105+ degree day of the shoot.
The archway and brick, and stone rail, were taken on the front porch of Preston Castle, a haunted former boys' reformatory I've been photographing for about a decade.* I knew it would make the perfect framework for introducing Avery, and leading us into a magical world.
The path beyond the arch is at Bunratty Castle in Ireland, in the Folk Park which features tableaux of villages and cottages from surrounding areas. My husband and I stumbled into the grounds directly after landing, and my own skewed perceptions (from jetlag) lent them a surreal quality indeed. The real path is paved, but Kelley and I liked the wilder look of a grassy walk found in Stourhead Gardens (taken on the same UK trip).
Kelley expertly fused all these elements into an image that I hope conveys a bit of the story, with Avery's feet planted in one world but her attention captured by another. We have more great covers in store with the rest of the series, plus in the weeks leading up to the release on May 22, I'll be sharing teasers (some with the shots that didn't make the covers) and other fun content.
Stay tuned for more!
*I've collected my photos of Preston Castle in an art book, Capturing The Castle: Images of Preston Castle (2006-2016), which you can purchase on Amazon, B&N, etc with links here
I made a book trailer for my latest book, so check out this tour inside the pages of Capturing The Castle: Images of Preston Castle (2006-2016)
If you've bought the book (thank you!) and enjoyed it, please consider leaving a review on Goodreads and/or Amazon.
If you've bought the book (thank you!) and enjoyed it, please consider leaving a review on Goodreads and/or Amazon.
Readers of Crow's Rest, my YA UF, may recognize Preston Castle as the inspiration for the book's Warren Castle. If you'd like to see it for yourself, I'll be doing a signing at the Castle on May 27th, from 10-1. 30% of all sales that day will go the the Preston Castle Foundation, and they'll be open for tours, so it's a great way to explore Preston Castle and leave with a signed keepsake. Hope to see you there!
I'm doing a spring cleaning of my writing and artwork, and most of it will be moving to my new project, Crow & Pitcher Press!
What does that mean, you ask? Crow & Pitcher Press will serve as the home of my independently-published books (such as more titles in the Faerie Crossed series, which began with Crow's Rest) and a range of gift items featuring my artwork (wall art, apparel, journals, etc).
I'll be sure to update you all on when new books are in the works, and the final links where you can find my writing and art projects. For now, I have a temporary website set up and you can see it here.
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