Meet J Lenni Dorner in this Debut Author Spotlight

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If you read Operation Awesome regularly, then you're already familiar with J Lenni Dorner, blog contributor. Today, however, you get to meet J Lenni Dorner, debut fiction author! We are so excited for the release of J's first novel, FRACTIONS OF EXISTENCE. Congratulations, J. We hope it feels good to be on the other end of the interview questions. :0)


1- What five words represent your most notable characteristic or values? #In5Words

Wordsmith, Lenni-Lenape, persevering, nemophilist, quirky

2- Can you share a story from your life that shows who you are as a person and why you are a writer?

I once wrote using a twig dipped in blood.

Wow, that sounded creepy, didn’t it?

My bio-parents weren’t “grocery store” types. I grew up in a hunter-gatherer environment. We used every part of the animal. The first time someone asked me where I got deerskin pants, I looked at them like they were stupid. At that point in my young life, I had never met someone before who lived another way. Now when someone asks me something like that, I just laugh and shake my head. I’m just barely “civilized.”

Of the people you know, I’m the Daryl Dixon.

3- What ignited your passion for writing?

Writing was how I connected the life I was raised in with the life I was moved into. It’s how make sense of the world.

4- Would you share a picture with us of some of your rejected book covers?



On a scale of 1 to 10, how terrible were those covers for an urban fantasy?


5- What are some of your short and long-term writing goals?

Short:

To get 50 reviews for this book.

Long:

To sell 90,000 copies of Fractions of Existence by September 2020.
To publish another fiction book by April 2018.
To write and publish the entire Existence book series.

6- What emotions do you hope your book will evoke for the reader, and is there a particular scene you hope will resonate with readers?

Wend has some “Ugly Duckling” moments in this book. She has no idea what Xavier might see in her, and wonders if he calls her beautiful just to be polite. There’s a scene in a garage restroom where this feeling hits her. The truth is that Xavier sees who she really is, and that makes a real difference. Wend spends this book as a square peg trying to fit into a round hole, not that she’s aware of this reality. I think there are readers out there who have felt like outsiders in their own life until they discovered where they belonged. Sometimes you just have to find your people or your niche.

7- Who is currently your biggest fan? What does that person love most (or "ship") about your debut novel?

Sandi. She loves the characters. Heath is her favorite in this book. She's a friend and was the first editor of the manuscript.

8- What's with the "What-Are-They"? It's the name of your website and the title of the last chapter.

I've based these characters off of a legend an elder in my tribe taught me. There are a handful (with fingers to spare) of us who know this passed-down story. I created a video of words that may enter a reader's mind while reading this and trying to figure it out. In book two, the characters will have a discussion about the question.



9- What most helped you to improve your writing craft?

Editing! It's interesting how finding the mistakes of others can make a switch go off in your mind. "Wait, did I do that too?"
The tool that made the biggest difference has been Grammarly. It's an extension in my Chrome browser, and an add-on in MS Word. I don't know how I lived without it. Grammarly doesn't just point out that something is wrong or might be wrong, it explains the reasoning behind it. For example, it pointed out that I was using the British version of a word. It also picked up on my using aloud instead of out loud. (Aloud is considered a more formal action. One reads a Bible aloud in church. This interview, however, you could read out loud to a friend.)

10- What is the most memorable trait or visual oddity of one of your characters?

That would be the eyes. I highly suggest paying attention to Xavier, Heath, Jez, and Wend’s eyes. (Caleb and Jun have impressive eyes, too. But that doesn't come up in book one.)

11- How is Jun pronounced?

http://www.pronouncenames.com/pronounce/jun

12- #DiversityBingo2017 https://twitter.com/novelparadise/status/808828422700998656 Which squares does your book cover on the card?

• MC w/ Underrepresented body
• MC of Color in SFF
• Contemporary World Arranged Marriage
• Free Choice = Native American Author

13- Which character has your favorite Personality Contradiction?

I've always been intrigued that Dumbledore is protecting Harry on one hand, and shoving him, unprepared, into danger with the other hand (the one that wore the ring).
What? Ohhh... no one else has ever answered with a character that isn't their own. Sneaky sneaky!
My honest answer to this question is Heath. But, until book two, I can't even hint as to why, or which personality contradiction I'm talking about!

14- Can you think of any small change in the world you could make to potentially benefit hundreds of other authors or readers?

I'm doing it already. Interviewing debut authors makes a huge difference. The more authors, the more books. More books, better odds a reader will find one to love. More readers means less illiteracy, and that means a better world for everyone.

15- As a reader, what most motivates you to buy a new book to read?

If it's by one of my favorite authors, that's the easiest sale. But I didn't realize my other motivations until I started the "Down the TBR Hole" blog prompt posts on my blog. It turns out that I'm most motivated to buy any books about the Lenni-Lenape, and any books that remind me of my book or my characters.

16- How will you measure your publishing performance?

I am ALL about reviews. Those are the rings in my tree. Sure, some rings show years where the forest burned or insects attacked; but every ring is earned by a growing tree.

17- What was the deciding factor in your publication route?

I self-published largely because I like having control. Urban Fantasy, all of Speculative Fiction, really, is hard to get agents interested in. Throw in that my book is lacking vampires, detectives, orphaned main characters, magic users, (and neither dragon nor shifter would be entirely accurate to describe Caleb)... and it's easy to see why agents replied, politely, by saying they didn't think they had the "right contacts" for my story. (And other similar rejections.)

I found a list with other clichés and tropes I avoided: renegade female loner, rebellious normal who “plays” with paranormals, and vigilantes/hunters/professional monster-fighters as the protagonists (mine are antagonists, and it's a religious sect…).

I considered throwing a disclaimer in the front of the book. "Warning: This Urban Fantasy isn't like the other ones."

18- What is one question which you would like the readers of this interview to answer or remark on in the comments?

I want to know what debut books you're looking forward to in the coming months!

19- Anything else you would care to share about your book and yourself?

Once they were humanity's exalted protectors— now they are being hunted.

Xavier will weigh all human life against Gwendolyn's ignorant happiness. The good news is that her choice can blow his away.

Omnipotent beings find each other while playing an online game. Xavier has been searching for Gwendolyn, his true mate and the missing member of the Existence. Only if reunited can the group regain the rest of their memories and access all of their powers. Hidden in plain sight, disguised as humans, they help who they can, as best they can, when they can.

The Eyes in the Shadows, a religious sect, has been trying to free humans from the “prison” of life on Earth for millenniums. The Existence has always been able to thwart them… until now. They've discovered a way to end the world that no one will see coming.

Gwendolyn has her future all laid out. There is a plan. She knows what her parents want for her and how to get it. Then Xavier, a friend from a virtual game, makes her question everything. He's full of secrets, one being an understanding of her fear of the wind.

She tries to suppress her intense attraction to the mysterious and frustrating Xavier. She's engaged, after all, and the thoughts she's having aren't proper. Gwendolyn is swept into a whirlwind of secrets, danger, and forbidden attraction. She'll drive across the country in her beat-up old car, not knowing if he's is genuinely interested or just being polite. (He refuses to kiss her!) Gwendolyn's journey is full of self-doubt, sacrifice, and dark visions that invade her sleep. Will she uncover the truth about herself?


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J is the Operation Awesome Team member who (usually) runs the Debut Author Spotlight on Wednesdays. (Thanks, Kara!)
The author attended Penn State.
J has won several writing awards, some which included publication in anthologies.
Learn more on the website:
http://www.what-are-they.com/

There's a giveaway! rafflecopter

Thanks for this, Kara. Putting me in my own hot seat has been an interesting experience!

Welcome to the Crow's Rest Bloghop!

Today I'm celebrating the release of my debut novel, Crow's Rest, by taking part in a bloghop, yay! You can see the complete schedule here. Participants were asked to share a real-life ghost encounter, or other strange happening, and boy do I have something special to share. And, there are giveaways!

But first, I wanted to share a section from Crow's Rest, which features a sinister encounter for Avery at Warren Castle (which is modeled on the real, haunted Preston Castle in Ione, California). Here she is telling Daniel about it:



The story behind the story is that the spooky events Avery describes actually happened to me at Preston Castle. And also like Avery, I've been involved in documenting the Castle's restoration in photographs. Preston Castle has been featured in an episode of Ghost Adventures and The Great Escape, and it's a pretty creepy place. They offer overnight events, but I'm not quite that brave!

Since I already indirectly shared a ghost story, I'm not going to count it as my bloghop post, lol. Instead, I offer you photographic proof of a living Fae being--I'm not sure exactly what kind he is, but this enchanted forest citizen was captured on film at the Prairie Creek Redwoods State Park fifteen years ago:

You can click on the picture to see it larger, btw. Can you see the little bearded, pointy-eared man to the right? He's peering around the smaller trunk and looking very cheeky in his tophat. Perhaps my feet are blocking the entrance to his home under the tree? Tell me what mischief you think he's contemplating in the comments!

And now, for the giveaway!

One grand prize will be awarded, and it includes a signed copy of Crow's Rest, signed bookmarks, a Celtic knot necklace, and fun swag items

And two Swag Packs will also be awarded, and include signed bookmarks, a Celtic knot necklace, and fun swag items

These giveaways are open to U.S. addresses only, and you can enter through this Rafflecopter

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Title:  Crow's Rest

Author:  Angelica R. Jackson

Published:  May 12, 2015

Publisher:  Spencer Hill Press

Isbn: 9781633920040
Pages: 288
Retail: $9.95

Buy Links: Barnes and Noble |  Amazon | BookDepository

About the author:
In keeping with her scattered Gemini nature, Angelica R. Jackson has far too many interests to list here.

She has an obsession with creating more writing nooks in the home she shares with her husband and two corpulent cats in California's Gold Country. Fortunately, the writing nooks serve for reading and cat cuddling too.

Other pastimes include cooking for food allergies (not necessarily by choice, but she's come to terms with it), photography, and volunteering at a local no-kill cat sanctuary.

Twitter  |   Facebook  |   Goodreads  |   Photo Galleries  |   Blog  |   Website

Urban Fantasy Resources

Since it may be hard to recognize us from that still, the panel is (L to R): Moderator Jen Garrett, Author Christina Mercer, Author Angelica R. Jackson, Author Jessica Taylor, Author Heather Marie.

I took part in a panel of fantasy writers over the weekend (there's some video of it on my blog), representing the Urban Fantasy genre, and the first step in my preparation was to try to nail down a definition of Urban Fantasy. Not an easy thing to do, by the way, and greater minds than mine have tried.

The simplest definition is that Urban Fantasy is a story with fantastical elements that takes place in an urban--and usually modern--setting. But by that definition, some of the earliest and canonical UF titles don't actually make the cut. Some UF books are set in rural towns (as is my own Crow's Rest), and some are set in cities--but in historic or future times. And then there's the fact that paranormal stories, especially paranormal romance, often overlap UF enough that the two genres get lumped together on lists. So what separates urban fantasy from similar genres of paranormal, horror, romance, retold fairy tales, and even steampunk?

The website Best Fantasy Books has an answer to that question that I thought would be a great place to start: "Urban Fantasy is more of a hybrid of other genres than its own hard definition. Urban Fantasy tends to have a gritty atmosphere similar to crime fiction or noir, but mixes elements of mystery, romance, horror, and fantasy. As a result of its hybridity, authors have plenty of room to experiment and have fun."

(That last part is certainly true, and is one of the things that attracted me to the genre!)

Wikipedia offers a definition that is not quite as inclusive of setting as the one above:
"Urban fantasy is a subgenre of fantasy defined by place; the fantastic narrative has an urban setting. Urban fantasy exists on one side of a spectrum, opposite high fantasy, which is set in an entirely fictitious world. Many urban fantasies are set in contemporary times and contain supernatural elements. However, the stories can take place in historical, modern, or futuristic periods, and the settings may include fictional elements. The prerequisite is that they must be primarily set in a city."

But like me, writer Emma Newman also takes issue with the "rule" about a city setting, and in an article on The Creative Penn blog she presents the definition that I like best:
"The way I conceptualize urban fantasy is magic and weird stuff creeping in at the edges of a world in which magic is not the norm. Everything appears normal until you walk down a particular alleyway after midnight on the third Tuesday of the month...The majority of the people who live there will have normal lives, oblivious to the magical all around them, hidden in plain sight."

For me, that collision of the strange and the everyday, with more in-your-face magic and possibilities than magical realism offers, is essential to a great urban fantasy.

In fact, before researching UF definitions, I would have defined it as "Fairy tale or mythological creatures bleeding into our world, and the resulting havoc they wreak on our lives." Which fits my worldbuilding in Crow's Rest, but not necessarily the urban fantasy genre as a whole. For that purpose, I think I'll stick with that Best Fantasy Books definition. There's also a pretty exhaustive rundown of the history of UF on Refractory, and if the above definitions have left you unsatisfied you may want to check it out.

In the course of this quest for a definition, I realized examples would be helpful. So this is not by any means an exhaustive list of the Urban Fantasy canon--these are just some from my own bookshelves.


*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.

*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.

*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.

*Faerie Tale by Raymond E. Fiest is a great example of UF that straddles the line into horror

*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.

*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. Daughter of Smoke and Bone by Laini Taylor is another that fits that description (but not with vampires).

*Gail Carriger's Finishing School series, which begins with Etiquette and Espionage, is another world that could equally be described as steampunk or UF. So could Cassandra Clare's books, especially her Infernal Devices series, in my opinion.

Bonus: here's a highlights video from the panel




If you have any other favorite definitions of Urban Fantasy, or UF titles, please share them in the comments!

Cover Reveal for Crow's Rest by Angelica R. Jackson

Reveal Day is here! I can finally show you all the marvelous cover for Crow's Rest! Are you ready?
(No fancy blank space to scroll down because I'm just too impatient) Click on the image for a larger view

Squeeeeeeeeeee!
Now that I got that outburst out of the way, onto the book blurb:

Avery Flynn arrives for a visit at her Uncle Tam's, eager to rekindle her summertime romance with her crush-next-door, Daniel.

But Daniel’s not the sweet, neurotic guy she remembers—and she wonders if this is her Daniel at all. Or if someone—some thing—has taken his place.

Her quest to find the real Daniel—and get him back—plunges Avery into a world of Fae and changelings, where creatures swap bodies like humans change their socks, and magic lives much closer to home than she ever imagined.

You can add it on Goodreads here. My book comes out from Spencer Hill Press in paperback and ebook in May 2015.

I'd love it if you'll celebrate with me on Twitter, Facebook, or in the comments here. And if you haven't checked out my new website yet, it's at www.AngelicaRJackson.com. This was my concept, by the way, brought to life by the multi-talented Kelley York of X-Potions Designs.



Angelica R. Jackson, in keeping with her scattered Gemini nature, has published articles on gardening, natural history, web design, travel, hiking, and local history. Other interests include pets, reading, green living, and cooking for food allergies (the latter not necessarily by choice, but she’s come to terms with it). Ongoing projects include short fiction, poetry, novels, art photography, and children’s picture books.

In 2012, she started Pens for Paws Auction, which features critiques and swag from agents and authors to raise money for a no-kill, cage-free cat sanctuary where she volunteers, Fat Kitty City.

She’s also been involved with capturing the restoration efforts for Preston Castle (formerly the Preston School of Industry) in photographs and can sometimes be found haunting its hallways.

Sold: Angelica R. Jackson's Crow's Rest, to Spencer Hill Press

Yay, I finally get to announce that my book, Crow's Rest, and I are joining the Spencer Hill Press family!

And the release date is May 12, 2015!

(Illustration by Arthur Rackham for the fable, The Crow & The Pitcher)

That image for The Crow and The Pitcher is particularly fitting--this deal has been in the works for a while, but so many things cropped up in the meantime (some in my control, some not--I guess it would have been quicker to type "life happens") that it wasn't until last week that I signed the contract. Took awhile to be able to get a drink of that water! Even so, that May 2015 date seems like it's coming up awfully fast!

One thing that's helping with the timeline is that I did a lot of the "homework" ahead of time. Especially since this was a book that I got very close to starting the self-publishing process on, I had an entire list of things ready to go. Some publishers want more or less of this info, but Spencer Hill Press has a pretty exhaustive Author Information sheet to fill out. I provided links to cover art and artists that I like, elements that I want to include or don't want to see in a cover for Crow's Rest, and some choices for back copy and loglines.

That back cover copy is especially important--all the research I had done said to keep it below 200 words. I managed to do that--and then I learned that it may need to be as short as 500 characters. Yes, that's characters-- as in barely longer than 3 tweets!

So I encourage you all to put thought into this kind of thing before you get that deal (or while you're sitting on the news, waiting for permission to announce). You may not use your draft of the back copy on the final cover, but having several different ways to sum up your book helps with promotional opportunities down the road.

Here's the draft I've been using on my blog, so check back for the cover reveal and see how much it changed (or didn't):

Avery Flynn arrives for a visit at her Uncle Tam's, eager to rekindle her summertime romance with her crush-next-door, Daniel.

But Daniel’s not the sweet, neurotic guy she remembers—and she wonders if this is her Daniel at all.

Or if someone—some thing—has taken his place.

Her quest to find the real Daniel—and get him back—plunges Avery into a world of Fae and changelings.

Where creatures swap bodies like humans change their socks, and magic lives much closer to home than she ever imagined.

So excited to join our other Operatives at Operation Awesome who have also chosen to go with Spencer Hill--do we have a group signing in our future, Kell Andrews and Angela Townsend?

Query Crit: Heritage Blade Awakening by L. L. McKinney

Today we have another query critique, with L. L. McKinney's YA urban fantasy novel, Heritage Blade Awakening.

So, first, the unaltered query:

Due to bittersweet circumstances, my agent and I have parted ways. As such I'm querying again, and wondering if you would be interested in representing this and future works of mine.

Fifteen-year-old Jay Mitchell is the most lethal secret walking the streets of Chicago. He's killed before, and he'll kill again. Trained to protect an unwitting mankind from rogue Pandorans—supernatural beings who cross into this world through Pandora's box—he’s good at what he does. The problem? No one’s supposed to know he does it.

While rescuing a damsel in distress, Jay inadvertently reveals himself. Now the Guild knows he exists, and worse, he’s Unsanctioned, a crime punishable by death. On the run, Jay discovers there’s a price on his head, and everything that goes bump in the night arrives to collect. If he wants to survive he’ll have to draw on every ounce of his skill, and seek help from the most unlikely allies, including the hottie who got him into this mess in the first place.

HERITAGE BLADE AWAKENING is a young adult urban fantasy with series potential complete at 93,000 words. Thank you for your time and your consideration.

All the best,

L. L. McKinney

~About Me~

And now the query with my (Angelica's) comments:

Overall I think this is a great query--full of active language, with just enough terminology to set us in the world, and good use of archetypes to firmly place it in the urban fantasy genre. As long as they're not overused, archetypes/tropes are great shorthand tools and free up some word count in your query for the aspects that make your story unique.

Due to bittersweet circumstances, my agent and I have parted ways. As such I'm querying again, and wondering if you would be interested in representing this and future works of mine. Nice, professional way to handle this--you're not whining, not slandering. Just laying it out there so that they're aware of the situation.

Fifteen-year-old Jay Mitchell is the most lethal secret walking the streets of Chicago. He's killed before, and he'll kill again. Trained to protect an unwitting mankind from rogue Pandorans—supernatural beings who cross into this world through Pandora's box—he’s good at what he does. The problem? No one’s supposed to know he does it. This paragraph is really tight, and the voice and tone are coming through well.

While rescuing a damsel in distress And this is where archetypes can come back to kick you in the tail. When I read "damsel in distress", I picture a completely passive female character. Granted, this may be a term from Jay's point of view and not entirely accurate, but you've made me afraid that a passive girl (not a potential ally as she's labeled later) is exactly what I'll find in the pages., Jay inadvertently reveals himself. Now the Guild knows he exists, and worse, he’s Unsanctioned, a crime punishable by death. On the run, Jay discovers there’s a price on his head, and everything that goes bump in the night arrives to collect.<--Love this line! I could see this being a tagline on the cover. If he wants to survive he’ll have to draw on every ounce of his skill, and seek help from the most unlikely allies, including the hottie who got him into this mess in the first place.

I fully admit that the "damsel in distress" usage might be a hot button for me (and maybe commenters can add some feedback whether they were bothered by it), but it did throw me out of what was a great ride up until then. The rest was good enough that if I'd encountered this as back copy, I'd probably crack open the book and see how the characterization for the girl was handled.

But really, all that feels like nitpicking. ;) So congratulations for submitting a stellar query!

Encouragement and feedback are welcome in the comments, but please make sure they're constructive and helpful. If we get a good response, query critiques will become a regular feature of the blog, so please let us know if seeing this critique gave you any insights into your own work!

(Michelle's comments: I agree with Angelica's points. I also love the line about everything going bump in the night. Very nice! Damsel in distress didn't really bother me, but I can see Angelica's point. And it doesn't really tell us much about her (which is okay since she's not the MC but it does make her seem weaker than the last line seems to indicate). 

I think the world building could use a little beefing up. One question I had - who (or what) is the Guild and why do they have such power over his life? Are they a secret organization with authority over the supernatural policing or are they THE authority in this world? Who trained him if it wasn't the Guild? They seem to be the enemy (as they put the price on his head, yes?) but are they EVERYONE'S enemy or just his? Because if they are the ones who usually run this sort of thing, that would make them protectors of mankind as well, right? :D

I know you can't explain the WHOLE book in a query, but it's a world building issue that is leaving big holes for me. Instead of focusing on the cooler aspects of this query (are there are many, it's definitely raised my interest :D ), I'm left trying to figure out how this world works. I have no idea how this world is set up, what the rules are. 

I get that he's out protecting mankind, but the Guild sounds like the type of organization that would run that kind of thing, especially since they are out to punish him for doing what he's doing. But if they don't know about him, and his offense is so extreme as to be punishable by death, then is anyone helping him or did he just stumble upon this? 

So if you could add a line or two or just expound a bit on a few details, give us a bit more info on how things work in this world, that would be good. 

Other than that, I really like this :) )