Some of my Favorite Books of 2014-- by Naomi

As December and Christmas come, I can't help but realize that the end of 2014 is coming and soon 2015 will begin. Scary. And I keep thinking that it is still 2013....

Anyway. I read a lot, and I thought I'd share some of the titles of some of the favorite books I've read this year.

The Hiding Place-- by Corrie ten Boom-- one of my all time favorites. So good. Read it.

Through Gates of Splendor-- by Elisabeth Elliot, also REALLY good... and sad... but good.

The Revised Life of Ellie Sweet-- by Stephanie Morrill, I definitely recommend it to any girl teen writer. It was SO good. I loved the sequel too. The characters are relatable (especially if you are a writer) and she keeps you wondering about it 'til the end. :)

By Darkness Hid-- by Jill Williamson, She created this amazing world and the characters that you get to know bit by bit... it's in the fantasy genre, but there really isn't that much magic. I loved and kept telling my sister (who actually is the one who bought it) to read it and she hasn't yet. But my mom (who usually sticks with romance) read and it and also really liked it.

A Charmed Life-- by Jenny B. Jones (this is technically a trilogy, but I got the books three in one, so I'm considering it one.) Ms. Jones wrote these characters relatable and even though the main character is going through some not necessarily easy times, Ms. Jones successfully puts humor in it... and a lot of it. Very good.

In Between-- also by Jenny B. Jones. This book is still humors, but maybe not quiet as much. I think I read this book in a day or two... it was good.

A Promise Made-- by Norma Downing, a romance that starts off on a farm (and on the page) but ends up in your heart (and I won't say anything else to avoid spoilers.) It keeps you turning pages, that's for sure. The first time I read this book, I read it in an afternoon. SO GOOD.

Author Interview with Leah Good

Today, I'm happy to say I'm interview our first author. Author of Counted Worthy, Leah Good agreed to answer some questions.


About the book:
Heather Stone lives in fear of repeating the past, yet she continues doing the one thing that could trigger another disaster. When the police trace an illegal Bible to her house, Heather’s world begins to crumble.
Her father’s life hangs in the balance. No one with the power to help knows or cares. If she tries to save him, she could lead her friends to their deaths. If she does nothing, her father’s fate is certain. Can she evade a hostile police force and win public sympathy before it’s too late?

About the author:

Leah E. Good is a daughter of God, lover of stories, homeschool graduate, and passionate orphan care advocate. She lives with her parents, brother, and Shetland Sheepdog in beautiful New England. You can find Leah at leahegood.com.

 Who is your favorite fictional character? (It could be one of yours but also someone else.)

Picking a favorite character is even harder than picking a favorite book! There are so many amazing “people” to choose from. One character jumps immediately to mind, though. Mikkel, from the Viking Quest series. I loved those books, and while Devin was originally my favorite, Mikkel is the one that stuck in my head and heart the longest. Of my own characters, I especially love Zaid, a runaway slave from the civil war era novel I wrote when I was fifteen.

How long did it take you to write Counted Worthy?

I started Counted Worthy in November of 2012. I originally wrote the first chapter as a short story. Several of my friends read it and protested the cliff hanger ending. You can check it out (http://leahegood.com/leahs-stories/counted-worthy/cw-sampler/) to see what they were talking about. I finished the rough draft around June 2013.

I read it. I can see why your friends would want you to continue! Is this your first published novel?

This is my first published novel, but it’s the forth I’ve written since getting serious about writing.

What’s your favorite color?

Light blue. Sky blue. Baby blue. Periwinkle. You get the idea. ;)

Who is your favorite author?

Oh man. Another hard one. I don’t think I can narrow it down to just one. My brother and I both carefully track release dates for books by Jill Williamson and Chuck Black. And Rachel Starr Thomson is a fantastic writer in the indie publishing world.

Ah, yes, Jill Williamson is definitely a favorite of mine.What kind of book covers catches your attention? (And I really like yours, by the way.) :)

To be honest, I’m not a very visual person, so for the most part I live out “don’t judge a book by its cover” pretty well. However, I do use covers to identify my favorite genres, like historical and dystopian. And, of course, I like covers that look professional.

What is one of the quirkiest things you’ve ever done?

My family and friends could probably answer that one better than me. According to them, my life is a continuous list of quirky things. They’re probably right. Completing three-quarters of a twin sized quilt in one day is pretty high on the list, though.

Whoa... that is a lot! If you could live anywhere, where would you want to live?

I’m pretty happy right where I am. Someday I would like to try some non-permanent but long-term missions work, though.

Do you listen to music while you write and who do you listen too if you do?

Nope. I listened to the Narnia soundtrack once or twice while editing, but that was mostly because I was bored. Music draws my attention too much to be able to focus on writing at the same time. I’m slightly envious of the people who do listen to music while they’re writing.

Could you name a few—or at least one—book that is somewhat similar to Counted Worthy? You can use your imagination. :)

I describe Counted Worthy as the Safe Lands Trilogy meets Safely Home. It’s also been described as The Hunger Games meets Safely Home with a dash of Fahrenheit 451. If you haven’t read Safely Home, you should add it to your reading list. One of my top five favorite books.

Ooh, I think I've heard of Safely Home... Yes, I DO need to read it... If you could choose one book to be turned into a movie, which book would it be? (Not counting your own…)

One of my friends and I were just thinking about how great The Shadow Children series would be as movies. Of those books, Among the Brave is my favorite. I’d love to see that as a movie (as long as the movie stuck the book and did it right).

No matter what book is being made a movie, they should stick to the book... they seem to have an issue with that sometimes, though... haha! When did you start writing?

I can’t remember when I first started writing. I got serious about becoming a good writer when I was fourteen.

Do you like to eat while you write?

Sadly, yes. I’ve got a sweet tooth a mile long, but salty will do when there’s nothing sweet available.

About how many words and pages is Counted Worthy?

250 pages, 53,000 words.

What is your favorite writing environment?

I enjoy writing in my room. On my bed when I’m feeling lazy, at my desk when I want to be professional.

Thank you for stopping by today, Leah. Can hardly wait to read your book! (Blog readers, look for a review of Counted Worthy coming up!)

 

Keep Your Series' Thrillng

Okay, so last week I talked about how you need to end your series or trilogies before you get obviously desperate. I finished with saying how I would talk about how to keep your series/trilogy interesting without getting desperate.... Honesty, I was stalling for time because I wasn't/am not sure exactly how to do that... I'll try to tell you though.

(Let me start off saying, I usually write stand-alones because I'm pretty paranoid about making it go on longer than it should...)
These examples are either ones that I like or ones I think they did something wrong.... and I'll explain, don't worry.

The Hunger Games, by Suzanne Collins

The first book in the Hunger Games trilogy and, in my opinion, probably the best. Collins starts the trilogy out well, the goal is clear (and something we can support-- getting out of the Hunger Games alive), you have sympathy-- being stuck in an arena with twenty-three other kids? On the other hand though, Katniss does seem a little standoff-ish, but... no one is perfect.

BUT in the sequel Catching Fire.... that's another story.
In a nutshell, it was a filler. A filler that could've been better... a lot better.
First off, Katniss doesn't really have a goal. Besides trying to choose from Gale and Peeta and trying to get Peeta out of the Hunger Games.... But wasn't it pretty much done in the first book? If you look at right, Catching Fire (in the writer's world) was useless. (Still fun, and obviously made her a lot of money, but it is my least favorite of her books, and when I think about it, I almost feel cheated...)

The last one was also fun-- but sad because it was the last one.
(In all honesty, I haven't read this one in awhile, so forgive me if I have forgotten something major that you think should have been a big deal.)
It's the wrap up of the trilogy, but also has a story of it's own. Now that Katniss has joined the actually existing District 13, she can do what she already decided she wanted to do-- lead a rebellion.
Some people think that Collins killed off to many people in the Hunger Games, and if that isn't your cup of tea, then yes, she did. But to go along with her plot, people needed to die. As a writer, I no the decision of who/when/ or even if to kill can be difficult, but when you are writing about a war it is necessary. (at least if you want it to be realistic...)
Over all, Collins did a good job in grasping the readers attention and not letting go, and pulling them all the way through the stories.



In Jill Williamson's Blood of Kings or The Safe Lands books she did well to give each story it's own plot-- while carrying on the main story-- with no book just as a filler.

I guess the main point I'm trying to get across is-- If you have a story that can be told as a complete story while also carrying over some of the main plot for the other all trilogy, it will work.

In trilogies/series' you should have them all be connected by some plot points, but also be able to carry the attention span of the reader...

I hope this made sense, haha!
Have a great weekend!