Casting the book

We all know the importance of the main character, the “star” in a story. But the wider cast is also crucial adding to the drama, complexity and believability. Here are some characters who inhabit A Thousand Perfect Things (August, 2013):

Important People In Book

The year is 1857 in an altered England called Anglica and an alternate India 9781624670954named Bharata.

Major character: Tori Harding, 18 year-old student and ardent supporter of her famous botanist grandfather.

Sir Charles Littlewood, the preeminent botanist of Anglica, age 87.

Colonel Terrence Harding, Tori’s father, who supports Tori’s scientific ambitions, but only so far. Read More…

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Got fan page?

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Inviting you to drop by my new fan page on Facebook. (Kay Kenyon, Author) What’ll be there? Book talk, mostly. What’s up with the new book, contests, giveaways, favorite books, great posts on the wonderful world of SF/F and beyond!

Please drop by and give me a “Like!” I get some cool features from Facebook if I reach a certain number. And thanks!

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Ups and downs

It was an up and down week.

It’s not the week I would normally talk about. But these are the scenes from the cutting room floor, the little realities of the writing life:

The ups

  • Hitting my stride on WIP, reasonable page count this week. Not great, but given what else is going on around here, quite respectable.
  • Advance Reader Copies of A Thousand Perfect Things will have full color wrap around cover, I learned this week.
  • Received a lovely advance blurb from a well-known writer for Perfect Things.
  • Wrote a tough scene for the WIP. Wondered if I could pull it off, but love it. Read More…

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Convergence of ideas

I have no idea how the brain works, but in a novel-writing brain (er, mine at least) it works from convergence. Or at least that’s my theory this morning.

BarloughIn the excellent on line magazine, Black Gate, I read an interview with Jeffrey E. Barlough, author of the Western Lights series. He described how his latest book in the series came from combining three different writing projects he was working on. He also said that his rich alternate history world came from the intersection of 1) his interest in paleontology; 2) a love of Victorian fiction; and 3) his time as a volunteer excavator and the La Brea Tar Pits.

I often cook up story ideas that way, too. Read More…

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Write on the River

J.A. Jance keynoter

J.A. Jance keynoter

The best little conference in the world.

Yup, I’m going out on a limb and making that claim for the Write on the River Conference in Wenatchee (Washington) next month.

You’ve been to conferences (please say you have!) and you know how workshops with published authors can instruct, inspire and impact your writing life. If not–find one! Writing conferences abound, and there’s one near you.

Join us in sunny Eastern Washington wine country on the banks of the Columbia River. We’re a small, boutique conference with major presenters, a full range of topics and with time to chat and time for you. Read More…

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