Guest Post by Jody Wallace
you're writing a Southern-set romance, like I did in Kiss the Bride, or a
paranormal, an author still has to create an environment for her characters
to thrive in, an environment the reader can see, hear, taste, touch and
feel.
Worldbuilding is often easier to "spot" in fantasies and SF, another
favorite genre of mine. For example, in Diana Wynne Jones' Dark Lord of
Derkholm, citizens from our world can tour a nearby fantasy world in a novel
that is simultaneously clever, full of injokes, absorbing and romantic.
Before DLOD, Jones wrote The Tough Guide to Fantasyland, which would, in
effect, be a companion book a tourist might take with him or her into such a
fantasyland derived from Tolkien. That is a very visceral instance of
worldbuilding indeed!
Sometimes fictional worlds, through the skill of the author, come across as
so rich and real we feel like we've visited them ourselves...or we want to
visit them! I certainly feel like I've visited Tallwood, Tennessee, where
Kiss the Bride is set, and many of you may have as well. Then there are the
urban fantasies that take place in the here and now, yet a here and now that
has a secret world regular folks know nothing about.
For example, I would love to eat at the diner where Sookie Stackhouse works,
book a tour of the fauna and flora of Xanth, hitch a ride on the flying
carpet from David Brin's The Practice Effect, mind-meld with Robin Owens'
giant, intelligent cats in her Heart series (not to mention rub the tummies
of Linnea Sinclair's space-faring furzels), feel a "magic wave" flow over
the land in Magic Bites by Ilona Andrews, or take a class at Hogwarts and
hopefully not end up in the infirmary afterwards.
If you had two tickets to paradise, paradise being a literary landscape of
choice, where would you go and what would you pack in your bags?
Genre: Contemporary RomancePublisher: Entangled Publishing, LLC
Date of Publication: June 29, 2013
ISBN: 9781622662203
ASIN: B00DTDGJ3C
Amazon BN
Book Description:
Herman Edward Heckley knows all about drywall, concrete, and nail guns. So what's he doing fighting off taffeta in a bridal salon? He’s maid of honor for his best friend, Caroline Oakenfeld, in her wedding to a pencil-necked geek. But the closer he gets to the ceremony, the more he wonders if he's been missing out all this time.
Caroline has been missing out, and she knows it. She’s been in love with Heck forever, but frittering her life away until Heck wises up isn’t part of her life plan. She’s agreed to marry her boyfriend so she can move on with her life. But the closer she gets to the ceremony, the more she realizes she has to resolve her feelings for Heck.
For better or for worse.
About the Author:
Jody Wallace grew up in the South in a very rural area. She went to school a long time because there was always something new to learn and ended up with a Master's Degree in Creative Writing. Her resume includes college English instructor, technical documents editor, market analyst, web designer, and general all around pain in the butt. She currently lives in Tennessee with her family: 1 husband, 2 kids, 2 cats. One of her many alter egos is "The Grammar Wench", which should give you an indication of her character. She is a terrible packrat and likes to amass vintage clothing, books, Asian-inspired kitchenware, gnomes, and other items that threaten to force her family out of the house. She also likes cats. A lot.
Ms. Wallace's approach to writing is to tell as many outlandish lies as she can get her readers to swallow. Her dream is to be moderately well-paid for this service. She is active in RWA and occasionally conducts writing workshops. Among topics she's been known to cover are training sessions for contest judges (she coordinated her local RWA chapter contest for many years), point of view, dialogue punctuation and creativity enhancement.
Her headshots were taken by Cindy Sarlo Photography of Dixon, TN.
Website: http://www.jodywallace.com/
Blog: http://blog.jodywallace.com/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/jodywallace
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/JodyWallaceAuthor
Goodreads: http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/1321322.Jody_Wallace
a Rafflecopter giveaway
Amazon BN
Book Description:
Herman Edward Heckley knows all about drywall, concrete, and nail guns. So what's he doing fighting off taffeta in a bridal salon? He’s maid of honor for his best friend, Caroline Oakenfeld, in her wedding to a pencil-necked geek. But the closer he gets to the ceremony, the more he wonders if he's been missing out all this time.
Caroline has been missing out, and she knows it. She’s been in love with Heck forever, but frittering her life away until Heck wises up isn’t part of her life plan. She’s agreed to marry her boyfriend so she can move on with her life. But the closer she gets to the ceremony, the more she realizes she has to resolve her feelings for Heck.
For better or for worse.
About the Author:
Jody Wallace grew up in the South in a very rural area. She went to school a long time because there was always something new to learn and ended up with a Master's Degree in Creative Writing. Her resume includes college English instructor, technical documents editor, market analyst, web designer, and general all around pain in the butt. She currently lives in Tennessee with her family: 1 husband, 2 kids, 2 cats. One of her many alter egos is "The Grammar Wench", which should give you an indication of her character. She is a terrible packrat and likes to amass vintage clothing, books, Asian-inspired kitchenware, gnomes, and other items that threaten to force her family out of the house. She also likes cats. A lot.
Ms. Wallace's approach to writing is to tell as many outlandish lies as she can get her readers to swallow. Her dream is to be moderately well-paid for this service. She is active in RWA and occasionally conducts writing workshops. Among topics she's been known to cover are training sessions for contest judges (she coordinated her local RWA chapter contest for many years), point of view, dialogue punctuation and creativity enhancement.
Her headshots were taken by Cindy Sarlo Photography of Dixon, TN.
Website: http://www.jodywallace.com/
Blog: http://blog.jodywallace.com/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/jodywallace
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/JodyWallaceAuthor
Goodreads: http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/1321322.Jody_Wallace
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