FALL by A.K. Morgen, and More Random Babbling

More random babbling. Just kidding. I think I'm coherent enough to write something. What's that? Oh, Chris Charming, you're so adorably annoying.

Crap! Once again caught up in my head.

I better be quick about this. So, I asked AK Morgen (a very awesome friend of mine) about Character Continuity within a series, and below you'll find her answer. Make sure to grab a copy of FALL asap!

Character Continuity: What the Heck was I Thinking?!

One of my biggest pet peeves is a lack of character continuity in a series. Nothing throws me out of a story as fast as a character who acts completely at odds with who he or she is supposed to be, and for no real reason. A character who is set up to act one way in Book One shouldn't act a completely different way in Book Two unless there's a good reason. Character growth should be gradual. In a good story, it's also reasonable and generally provoked by the internal and external conflicts that particular character is required to deal with. If there's not a valid reason for a character to flip a behavioral switch, the integrity of the story becomes eroded, leaving readers wondering what the heck happened and why.

But ensuring character continuity is not always so easily done!

I began writing FADE, the first book the Ragnarök Prophesies series, seven years ago. I didn't really start working on book two, FALL, until 2012. I grew during the six years in between, and so did our main characters, Arionna Jacobs and Dace Matthews. That meant we all had to strip away so much of that growth and go back to the beginning. I had to relearn who these characters are and what motivates them. I also had to make sure they grew from FADE, but not quite so far as they had in my head in the last seven years.

As my beta team can attest, that was a nightmare for all of us at times. I wrote, rewrote, and then tore it up and started over so many times, they were ready to mutiny. I'm serious! They were one email away from killing me in my sleep.

On top of that, Arionna and Dace are in a unique position in that they share their souls with these mythic wolves, Geri and Freki, who have their own personalities, their own experiences, and their own way of dealing with all the sad and scary things happening in their world. Their motivations sometimes bleed over for Ari and Dace, meaning I had to find a way to make that work while still ensuring they were their own separate entities.

To do so, I'd spend a little time writing short pieces from different perspectives. How would the wolves cope with X if they were in charge? How would Ari deal with Y if she was forced into the back seat for a while? What would Dace do if Geri wasn't there? This exercise allowed me to get to know all my characters better, which helped me stay true to them while still letting those necessary bits bleed through.

Granted, that was frequently harder said than done, but I have to confess I'm pretty pleased with the outcome. Despite the six year gap in writing and the extraordinary situation they find themselves in, FALL sees Ari and Dace grow in a way that's true to who they were when FADE ended. And I now get to dive into the third book, FLAME, feeling as if no time at all has passed since I began writing their story so long ago.

I just love that because I have no idea what I was thinking waiting so long between stories! :) 

BLURB: How do you save someone who doesn't want to be saved?

Those called to stand guard against the end are broken, and Sköll and Hati run free. Now Arionna Jacobs and Dace Matthews face a threat unlike any before. Ragnarök is coming and they aren't strong enough to stop it.

Arionna thought she understood sacrifice, but she never counted on her destiny tearing Dace apart. Ever since she nearly died, he has been consumed with guilt. Now it threatens to turn him into the monster he always feared.

It's up to Arionna to stop him before it's too late, but the path to hell is paved with good intentions, and Dace is hurtling toward self destruction. This time, Arionna isn't sure she can save him from himself. Can she convince him to let the past go, or is her true destiny to sacrifice her heart in exchange for the lives of the people she loves?

You can read the official prologue to FALL here.

FALL – The Ragnarök Prophesies: Book Two will be available at Amazon and Barnes and Noble on October 5, 2013 from Curiosity Quills Press.  FADE – The Ragnarök Prophesies: Book One is available now at Amazon US, Barnes and Noble, and Kobo.

Blog Tour Giveaway:

a Rafflecopter giveaway

About the Author:

A.K. Morgen lives in Little Rock, Arkansas with her husband, three dogs, and demonic cat. She has a graduate degree in Criminal Justice and Law, and plans to save the world some day. When she’s not writing, she spends her time teaching her niece and nephews how to cause mischief. You can also find her dancing in the grocery store, building a spork army, and fundraising for nonprofits close to her heart.

You can learn more about Ayden at http://akmorgen.com or by following her on Twitter, Goodreads, or Facebook.

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Shared Quirks

Join me in welcoming Ayden Morgen, author of Fade. Ayden is a dear friend of mine, someone I've been through a lot with in our publishing careers. I also had the pleasure of editing her novel, and I hope you all enjoy Fade as much as I did.

I asked Ayden what character traits she shares with her main character Arionna, and this was her response.

Shared Quirks

Conventional wisdom says that a first novel is a bit autobiographical. If that's the case, Arionna Jacobs, Fade's heroine, is probably thanking her lucky stars that Fade is the first novel I've published, and not the first I've written. Those I've buried beneath old textbooks, in a pile labeled "what was I thinking?" It's for the best, trust me!

I have to admit though, Arionna and I do have a few things in common. We're both college students in love with gorgeous, mystery men . . . Oh wait. That's my dream world, isn't it?

In reality, I married my not-so-mysterious mystery man when I was Arionna's age, and finished graduate school this year, leaving her behind to wrangle Dace Matthews on her own. The man is a menace, but Arionna holds her own. I'd have tied him to a chair and left him long ago, but that's just me. ;)

You can find little pieces of me in Arionna's quirks and passions though. We both firmly believe that patience is for the birds. For the birds, I tell you! We both over think things far too often, and lack anything remotely resembling a verbal filter. She shares my love of the outdoors, especially the woods. And I may have also shared my love of history and fear of metal sinks with our stubborn heroine.

Yes, you read that right. Fear of metal sinks. More specifically, the area where the rim of the sink overlaps onto the cabinet. That area is lethal! Especially when it's not settled quite right. *shudders*

But I digress. Despite sharing a few quirks with me, Arionna is very much her own person. Her world is falling apart, but that doesn't stop her from going after the things she wants. She's a little bit broken, but meets each new challenge and loss with her head held high. She's courageous, intelligent, and has no intention of letting her mystery man make choices for her. And no matter how much she hurts, nothing keeps her down for long.

Not even the fact that her boyfriend is part wolf and can access her mind in the blink of an eye.

Me? Well, you're more likely to find me hiding under the bed with a shot of vodka and a shoe, speed-dialing the husband to come save me from anything that creeps, crawls, or goes bump in the night. Arionna? She prefers to save herself, no matter how scary things get or how much life hurts.

With a possible apocalypse hanging over her head, that's probably a good thing.

xoxo,
A.K. Morgen

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Curious Covers

You've waited forever for this moment, haven't you?

I know I have!

Wilde's Meadow is set to release November 5th--have you put that date on a calendar yet?--and I'm here to show you the pretty cover, as well as mention a couple other upcoming Curiosity Quills releases!



BLURB: Happy endings are hard to find, and even though Katriona is in the middle of a war with someone who’s already stolen more than she can replace, she aches for a positive future with her Draíochtans.

Armed with hope, confidence in her abilities, and a strange new gift from her mother, Kate ventures into the Darkness to defeat a fallen god.

Losses add up, and new obstacles rise to stand in the way. Is the one determined to bring Encardia light strong enough to keep fighting, or will all the sacrifices to stop those who seek domination be for nothing?

Pretty, right? I happen to like this one more than the others. I know the cover for Wilde's Fire is awesome, but this one . . . wow!

Add to your Goodreads TBR list NOW!

Wilde's Fire: B&N, Amazon, Kobo, & iTunes

Wilde's Army: Amazon, B&N

And if that wasn't enough to please your sense of sight, how about this cover?

 

BLURB: Seventeen-year-old Ever’s love life has been on hold for the past two years. She’s secretly in love with her best friend Frankie, and he’s completely oblivious.

Of course, it doesn't help that he’s dead, and waking up to his ghost every day has made moving on nearly impossible.

Frustrated and desperate for something real, Ever finds herself falling for her hot new neighbor Toby. His relaxed confidence is irresistible, and not just Ever knows it. But falling for Toby comes with a price that throws Ever’s life into a whirlwind of chaos and drama. More than hearts are on the line, and more than Ever will suffer.

Some girls lose their hearts to love.

Some girls lose their minds.

Ever Van Ruysdael could lose her soul.

Add to your Goodreads TBR List!

 

Oh wait. There's more! (Anyone else hearing one of those infomercial guys when you read this?)

 

BLURB: What do you do when you realize nothing in your life is what you’ve believed it to be?

When Arionna Jacobs loses her mother in a tragic accident, her world is turned upside down. She’s forced to leave her old life behind and move in with her father. Dace Matthews, a teaching assistant at her new college, is torn in two, unable to communicate with the feral wolf caged inside him.

When they meet, everything they thought they knew about life unravels. Dace has intimate access to Arionna’s mind, and something deep within her fights to rise to the surface. They don't understand what's happening to them or why, and they're running out of time to sort out the strange occurrences around them.

Their meeting sets an ancient Norse prophesy of destruction in motion, and what destiny has in store for them is bigger than either could have ever imagined. Unless they learn to trust themselves and one another, they may never resolve the mystery surrounding who they are to one another, and what that means for the world.

Add to Goodreads TBR List.

 

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