Hey all!
The Sorcerer's Concubine is out and what a great launch! The book already has two glowing reviews on Amazon and the rank has mostly stayed above 20k on Amazon.com. It's really going well in France, where it doesn't take that many sales to top a bestsellers list. I'm #3 in epic fantasy there!
I spent some money on promo which begins to kick in today. Just one little promo site today, but some solid bookings from the 7th-11th, so I expect the peak rank is yet to come. I'm going to be pretty useless the next few days...
Meanwhile, yesterday I attended the first read-through with the cast of Clockwork Heart, the Magic Under Glass musical. Wow... that was utterly surreal. I hardly know what to say. Seriously, pretty speechless about the whole experience. Hearing our Erris and Nimira sing their love song...*SWOON* If you're in the Baltimore/DC area, I would love to see you there!
All of the books I've released this year that take place in the Hidden Lands, especially The Sorcerer's Concubine and The Stolen Heart, feature my race of lifelike living doll people called Fanarlem. They've been an integral part of the world since I created it, a slave race that gains something closer to equality over the course of the past century. The character of Anubis who appears in The Vengeful Half and The Stolen Heart as the Grim Reaper and world's most adorable dad was created 19 years ago. But I first published this theme in Magic Under Glass and Magic Under Stone, where Erris's soul was trapped in the body of a clockwork man. I was kind of ripping off my own doll people. Or should I say riffing off?
But I don't just love artificial people as a writer, I also love them as a reader/viewer, in all their variations--starting with Sally in the Nightmare Before Christmas, who was the original inspiration for Anubis and all the Fanarlem who came after him. I especially love the theme of someone who is not-quite-human trying to live among humans or wrestle with human emotions. I didn't focus on stories about literal dolls coming to life and living in doll worlds as in most children's stories about doll characters, because mainly, I love when the worlds meet. (Still, I was not that picky about theme in approaching authors. I love talking to other writers about their inspirations, whether they press my buttons or not, and I'm delighted at how many authors got back to me with their interview!)
So, for July, I have gathered up some fellow writers to talk about their created beings, and I also made a master list of "created beings" stories. Please PLEASE tell me if you have any other favorites as I'm sure I've forgotten some!
If the book has a * beside it, we'll be hearing from the author this month!
BOOKS
--The Scorpion Rules and The Swan Riders by Erin Bow (AI...with some twists)*
--The Mad Scientist's Daughter by Cassandra Clarke (androids)*
--Wired for Love series by Greg Dragon (androids)*
--MILA 2.0 by Debra Driza
--Untamed by Madeline Dyer (enhanced humans)*
--The Poppet and the Lune by Madeline Claire Franklin (patchwork girl)*
--Spare and Found Parts by Sarah Maria Griffin (girl builds a boy from scraps)
--The Silver Metal Lover by Tanith Lee (robot with emotions)
--Broken Dolls and Shattered Girls by Tyrolin Puxty (doll people)*
--The Body Electric by Beth Revis (cyborg/clone hybrid)*
--Man-Made Boy and This Broken Wondrous World by Jon Skovron (Frankenstein's monster's son and other artificial characters as well)
--The Mennyms series by Sylvia Waugh (doll people)
--The Golem and the Jinni by Helene Wecker (golem)
MOVIES
--Bicentennial Man (robot with emotions)
--The Nightmare Before Christmas (rag doll Sally)
...I'll add some more as I remember them, too. I just need to get on with my day! =D
The first author interview will be posted soon!
this is amazing site
ReplyDeleteSatta king