Showing posts with label Wicked Hunger. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Wicked Hunger. Show all posts

Wednesday, 14 August 2013

Guest Post: The Search for a Critique Partner by DelSheree Gladden



Book Title:  Wicked Hunger
Series:  SomeOne Wicked This Way Comes
Author:  DelSheree Gladden
Release Date:  July 9th
Genre:  YA Urban Fantasy
Length: 95,000 words/240 pages
Publisher:  GMTA Publishing LLC
Presented by:  As You Wish Tours


The Search for a Critique Partner
One of the scariest things for a writer is showing their work to someone else, to another author especially. The fear of rejection and criticism can be overwhelming.  Regardless, this is such an important step in polishing your writing. I’m sure most of us writers out there finish a first draft and think it is absolutely amazing. I know I’ve done that plenty of times. It’s only after someone else reads it and points out a plot hole, or a bizarre reaction, or even an unlikeable character that we can admit the book might still need a little work.


Finding a critique partner can be a challenge. You want someone who will be honest without being brutal. You have to be able to trust that person enough to show them a project that you know needs work, or call on them when you are stuck and can’t write yourself out of a plot problem. So, how do you find someone like that?
Local writer’s groups are a great place to start. You can meet up in person and have a face-to-face discussion about each other’s work. This is a great way to get to know the other writers well enough to know who you can trust with a first draft.


Unfortunately, many writers live in areas where there are no writer’s groups available. That’s when you need to start looking online. There are several great online writer’s groups like The Next Big Writer, Scribophile, Authonomy from Harper Collins, and many others. These types of sites allow you to post chapters of your work in exchange for reviewing other authors’ work. This can be a great experience because you get a wide variety of readers’ thoughts. Another benefit is that you end up making friends with other writers, which can be helpful on staying up to date on publishing news, contests, and which publishers/agents to avoid.
Another way to find a critique partner is simply to ask. Do you know someone who is also a published or aspiring author? If you don’t, ask around. Your friends and family might. I had no idea that a lady I went to church with was a writer until a friend at work mentioned it. Sometimes writers think they are the only ones struggling with a chapter, or unsure of what direction the story should go. You’re not. We all struggle with the same things, and most of us are happy to have someone to turn to for help. Writers may not have a lot of money to spend on writing services either, so working out a trade can be mutually beneficial as well. You need a beta reader, maybe another writer needs and editor or cover designer. Just ask who needs your help, and you’ll find plenty of writers willing to help you in return.   


SYNOPSIS


Vanessa and Zander Roth are good at lying. They have to be when they are hiding a deadly secret. Day after day, they struggle to rein in their uncontrollable hunger for pain and suffering in order to live normal lives. Things only get worse when Ivy Guerra appears with her pink-striped hair and secrets. The vicious hunger Ivy inspires is frightening, not to mention suspicious.


Vanessa’s instincts are rarely wrong, so when they tell her that Ivy’s appearance is a sign of bad things to come, she listens.  She becomes determined to expose Ivy’s secrets. Vanessa tries to warn her brother, but Zander is too enamored with Ivy to pay attention to her conspiracy theories.


One of them is right about Ivy … but if they lose control of their hunger, it won’t matter who is right and who is wrong. One little slip, and they’ll all be dead.


AUTHOR RECOMMENDATIONS
Delsheree Gladden's first book in her new YA series SomeOne Wicked This Way Comes is a riveting story of uncontrollable bloodlust that turns dealing with family, friendships, trust, devotion and love into a WICKED HUNGER~~~Susan Stec, author of Dead Girls Never Shut Up and The Grateful Undead Series.


AUTHOR BIO
DelSheree Gladden lives in New Mexico with her husband and two children. The Southwest is a big influence in her writing because of its culture, beauty, and mythology. Local folk lore is strongly rooted in her writing, particularly ideas of prophecy, destiny, and talents born from natural abilities. When she is not writing, DelSheree is usually teaching yoga, coaching gymnastics, reading, painting, sewing, or working as a Dental Hygienist. Her works include Escaping Fate, Twin Souls Saga, and The Destroyer Trilogy. DelSheree's newest series, The SomeOne Wicked This Way Come series, follows Vanessa and Zander Roth, siblings with an uncontrollable hunger for pain and suffering that will either gain them limitless power or lead them to their deaths.


AUTHOR LINKS


BOOK LINKS



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Friday, 21 June 2013

Interview with DelSheree Gladden

Sometimes, the title of a book alone can pull a reader to it. That's the case with the book our next interviewee is here to talk about: WICKED HUNGER. Isn't that a great title? I bet you're dying to find out more about it, so let's have a chat with author DelSheree Gladden.

Welcome to We Do Write, DelSheree! Tell us a bit about yourself.

I have lived most of my life in New Mexico. I grew up in a little town that wasn’t even a real town by definition. Luckily, Farmington was nearby and that is where I met my hubby, Ryan. After a few forays into Arizona and Colorado, we ended up back in New Mexico to be near family. I just graduated from Dental Hygiene school, and while I wait for my license I am catching up on family time, writing, sewing, reading, and yoga.

How long have you been writing?

I started writing in my early teens. My first book was just plain terrible and will never, ever be published. I really didn’t start writing seriously until after I was married. My husband was the one to encourage me to explore writing more and really try to get it published. I’m so glad he did! Now if I can just get him to do the same. He is an excellent writer himself and has several books her is working on right now.

Tell us about WICKED HUNGER. What’s the story about?

Wicked Hunger is the story of the Roth siblings, Vanessa and Zander. Both are cursed with a nearly uncontrollable hunger for pain and suffering, yet the try to live a normal life. Keeping their deadly secret has never been easy, but the arrival of a strange new girl who has secrets of her own makes everything so much harder. Vanessa is convinced Ivy is dangerous, while Zander is falling in love with her. One of them is right about Ivy … but if they lose control of their hunger, it won’t matter who is right and who is wrong. One little slip, and they’ll all be dead.

How did the idea of the story come to you?

I was actually reading one of Jim Butcher’s Dresden Files books at the time. He had a line about the half-vampire character having a godling type hunger. It got me thinking. I wanted to write a story about siblings whose “power” was to have this all-consuming hunger for pain and destruction. What would those characters be like? Would they succumb to their power or learn control?

Do you have a critique group/partner or beta readers, or do you self-edit?

I am a member of The Next Big Writer, an online writer’s workshop. I get a lot of really helpful feedback on chapters I post there and I get to read other authors’ work as well. I also met a great group of ladies on the site that I now work with off the site as well for beta reading and promoting. My husband Ryan does the majority of my final editing. He catches everything from commas to storyline gaps. I’ve also worked with the wonderful Phyl Manning for editing. She seriously knows everything about punctuation.

Are you a plotter or a pantser?

Definitely a pantser. I hate outlining books. They make me feel boxed in and I think my characters suffer for it. I always feel like I am writing a character into a situation when I outline rather than letting them experience it for themselves.

What’s the hardest part of writing for you?

The ending. Not so much for an individual book, but for the series overall. I have this fear that I will have missed some glaringly obvious plot hole or forgotten an important point of the story and the whole thing will be ruined. I would hate to string a reader through a whole series only to let them down. That’s why my husband is such a lifesaver. He catches all of those kinds of mistakes before anyone else gets to see a book.

What do you absolutely have to have nearby when writing?

Pillows! I know, that probably deserves an explanation. Thanks to our living room couches being seriously overstuffed on the head portion, it gives me a serious crick in the neck when I sit there writing for too long. I have to shove a few pillows behind me to compensate. Lately, though, I’ve been considering couch surgery to de-stuff them and save my neck.

If you could have any super power, what would it be?

Super speed! I hate wasting time getting to where I need to go. I’d love it if I could zap place to place and get all my errands done super fast!

What's the weirdest thing you've googled?

Oh goodness, that’s a tough one. I’ve googled some weird topics when researching books. How about keloid scarring or the Black-eyed people? Anyone else googling those ones regularly?

Quick writing test! Use the following words in a sentence: hungry, massive, and infuriated.

The hungry little girl has a massive appetite, and frequently becomes infuriated when it is not fed.
(That one is for my daughter Abbey who has asked me for a snack about 14 times in the last hour and stomped away when I said no…again)

Finish this sentence: If I'm not writing, I'm probably ...

Reading. My book blog always keeps my TBR list full. Although, the final book of The Wheel of Time is about to put them all on hold. I’ve been waiting to read it for months!

Here’s the part where you thank the people who are supporting you. Let's hear your shout outs.

My husband first and foremost. He’s just awesome.

My author friends who are always willing to read and Tweet and post on Facebook: Linda Ulleseit, Susan Stec, Apryl Baker, Angela Fristoe, Ann Everett, Tess Black, and Karin Gastreich.

The awesome team at GMTA: my publisher Kitty Bullard, cover designer Amber Rendon, and marketing director Julia Hendrix. They are a wonderful team to work with.

My lovely fans who keep reading and asking me when the next book is coming out!

And finally, where can people find you and your books online?

Readers can find my books online at:
Readers can find me online at
DelSheree’s Blog  * DelSheree’s Website  * Facebook * Twitter * Goodreads * Wattpad * Amazon

DelSheree, thank you so much for visiting the blog. I wish you much success with your books!