Celebrating Debutantes 2017: The Wishing Heart by JC Welker (Playlist + Giveaway)

Hi guys! I'm featuring another playlist for #CelebratingDebutantes2017. At this rate, I would have hundreds of songs to download before the event is over. Stick around for a special giveaway at the end - open internationally!

Jennifer is going to share her playlist for the Wishing Heart, a YA fantasy with LGBT theme. I hope you guys enjoy the music! Jennifer you can take it from here. :)


Music is like a seed, it heavily influences my writing, planting seeds for me to grow a rich, tangled world. It can transport me into the mind of the character and the vision of the scene I'm creating. And in writing The Wishing Heart music created many seeds in reflecting a girl looking for love through stories and magic.

While some songs on the playlist dramatically evoke feelings and hit to the heart of each character, others reflect the world that Rebel becomes immersed in and the dark things crawling within it. You’ll notice the songs fluctuate with the books chapters, starting from the hopeless world Rebel lives in, leading into the magical, the whimsical, and the macabre, and back again until you feel like a storm is building.

If I had to pick one song for the theme of TWH it would be TRUE COLORS by Zedd/Kesha because it hits to the core of both Rebel and Anjeline coming to truly see each other for who they are, and their hearts. At one point the last song on the playlist ‘Hero’ made me cry every time I listened to it, because it’s the song I played continually when I wrote the last few chapters of the book-of Rebel’s character Arc.

And I hope you’ll see why.

Thank you, Jennifer for sharing!

About the Author:

J.C. Welker is an author who's been, among other things, a fashion designer, a filmmaker and a kickboxer (seriously). Her short documentaries, which focused on homeless Iraq veterans and lgbtq+ issues in the military have been featured on CURRENT TV, and her debut novel won first place in the paranormal category of the 2016 YARWA Rosemary Awards. She continues to work towards giving a voice to stories that are needed, while facing magic and monsters along the way.

Find Jennifer: Website | Twitter | Facebook | Instagram

Book Description:

Paperback
Published May 1st 2017 by Entangled Teen

Winner of the 2016 YARWA Rosemary Awards for paranormal fiction that Mia Siegert (JERKBAIT) calls, “An exhilarating read.”

With a book in her bag and a switchblade in her pocket, Rebel's been thieving her way through life while hoping for a cure to fix her ailing heart.

But when the bejeweled vase she just tried to hawk turns out to be a jinni's vessel, Rebel gets lost to her world and dragged within another. Now every magical being in the city wants the vase for himself.

Thrust into a game of cat and mouse in a world she never knew existed, Rebel must use her uncanny skills to find a way to free Anjeline the Wishmaker.

But wishes have consequences. And contracts. Anjeline's freedom could unravel a love like Rebel has never known, or it could come at the cost of Rebel's heart...

Amazon | B&N | iBooks | Kobo | Entangled

Giveaway

Thanks, Jennifer, for sponsoring this giveaway!
What's up for grabs: The Wishing Heart (finished copy) from the Book depository!
Scope: International

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Get your daily dose of YA and MG debut goodness in #CelebratingDebutantes2017! 

Click the button above to be redirected to the main page where you can browse the list of novels and authors that we are featuring.

Celebrating Debutantes 2016: Timekeeper by Tara Sim (Author Interview + Giveaway)

Hi guys! #CelebratingDebutantes2016 is coming to an end. We still have a lot of giveaways ongoing so don't miss out! Today I'm interviewing Tara about her steampunk debut, Timekeeper. Stick around for the international giveaway!


***
Could you explain the concept behind the clock towers controlling the flow of time? I was looking for a new story idea when I got inspired by clock towers; specifically, my Big Ben keychain. I love magic and fantasy, so I wondered how I could make something like clock towers magical. Naturally, time magic came from that. I then had to figure out how that time magic would work, and realized that every city, town, and village would need its own clock tower in order to run. Each tower controls a certain amount of land, and if something ever happens to the tower, something would then happen to the time connected to it—and the land it controls. That’s why there are clock mechanics around to keep these towers, and therefore time, functional.

What was your process for the world building? It was a surprisingly long process, actually. When I wrote the first draft, I only had a kernel of the world. Then, over multiple drafts, I added more and more layers from various sources. I had my Victorian layers (the historical aspect) and the fantasy/steampunk layers (the clock towers/Mechanics Union), as well as mythology for the time magic origins. I figured out more and more with every draft, so it was like slowly unwrapping something and finding the finished product underneath.

What was your favorite scene from the book? My favorite scene is kind of a spoiler, oops. But I will say it’s the scene where Danny finds out something surprising regarding his new, strange apprentice.

The book seems to be studded with quotable quotes that are beautiful and poetic. Could you tell us about your writing style? Thank you! When I first wrote Timekeeper, I actually had quite a different style than what I have now—which makes sense, considering this was three years ago. So in the later drafts, I tried to incorporate more of my current style into the words. People usually describe books as being either “commercial” or “literary,” and while Timekeeper is definitely more commercial, I try to hit that middle spot between the two. Just enough pretty description to balance out the action.

Was the story steampunk right from the start? What are the differences between the original and final version of the story? The story was steampunk from the start, since I knew the clock towers and Victorian era created a certain aesthetic that matched steampunk quite well. I would argue, though, that it’s more fantasy than it is steampunk, but I did purposefully use that aesthetic in Timekeeper and built the world around it. The differences between the original and final version are...well, just about everything, to be honest! The only things that have really stayed the same are the original concept of the towers, the setting, and the ending. Everything else has been molded and tempered and shaped in new ways.

Thank you for sharing, Tara!

About the Author:

Tara Sim is the author of Timekeeper (Sky Pony Press, November 2016) and can typically be found wandering the wilds of the Bay Area, California. When she’s not chasing cats or lurking in bookstores, she writes books about magic, clocks, and explosives. Follow her on Twitter at @EachStarAWorld, and check out her website at tarasim.com.

Find Tara: Twitter | Goodreads | Website | Pinterest | Facebook

Book Description:

Hardcover, 368 pages
Expected publication: November 1st 2016 by Sky Pony Press

Two o’clock was missing.

In an alternate Victorian world controlled by clock towers, a damaged clock can fracture time—and a destroyed one can stop it completely.

It’s a truth that seventeen-year-old clock mechanic Danny Hart knows all too well; his father has been trapped in a Stopped town east of London for three years. Though Danny is a prodigy who can repair not only clockwork, but the very fabric of time, his fixation with staging a rescue is quickly becoming a concern to his superiors.

And so they assign him to Enfield, a town where the tower seems to be forever plagued with problems. Danny’s new apprentice both annoys and intrigues him, and though the boy is eager to work, he maintains a secretive distance. Danny soon discovers why: he is the tower’s clock spirit, a mythical being that oversees Enfield’s time. Though the boys are drawn together by their loneliness, Danny knows falling in love with a clock spirit is forbidden, and means risking everything he’s fought to achieve.

But when a series of bombings at nearby towers threaten to Stop more cities, Danny must race to prevent Enfield from becoming the next target or he’ll not only lose his father, but the boy he loves, forever.

The stunning first novel in a new trilogy by debut author Tara Sim, Timekeeper is perfect for fans of Cassandra Clare and Victoria Schwab.

Giveaway

What's up for grabs: Pre-order of Timekeeper
Scope: International!

a Rafflecopter giveaway


Treat yourself to a complete #CelebratingDebutantes2016 experience. Click the image below for the full schedule and links to the posts!

Celebrating Debutantes 2016: Last Seen Leaving by Caleb Roehrig (Author Interview + Giveaway)

Hi guys! #CelebratingDebutantes2016 is coming to an end. We still have a lot of giveaways ongoing so don't miss out! Today I'm interviewing Caleb about Last Seen Leaving. Stick around for the giveaway!


***
Can you tell us about your writing style?In writing LAST SEEN LEAVING, I really wanted to create a main character whose voice would be recognizable and relatable to teenagers. Writing a contemporary teen in the first person meant I could make the narrative relaxed and conversational when it felt appropriate, which was great. It was important to me that the tension keep building throughout (it IS a thriller!) but that it also be balanced out with plenty of humor, so I tried to keep those objectives in mind throughout.

Do you have a writing ritual? Could you tell us about it?I don't have any rituals, per se, although I do tend to wait until later in the day to get started. I do a lot of plotting and problem-solving in my head when I exercise, so I prefer to work out before sitting down to do any writing. Sometimes I listen to a white noise app while I work, and always, always, always I need to have something caffeinated to drink, but that's about it!

You travel a lot. How does this contribute to your writing, in any way? Do you also write while traveling?I love to travel, and the past five years (in particular) have been filled with some really amazing adventures. I've seen places that have been on my bucket list forever (Rome, Monaco, Iceland), and visited ones I knew almost nothing about prior to getting there (Slovenia, the Faroe Islands). I find that I don't generally have the energy to write while I'm traveling, but every trip I go on provides inspiration; every new place I see becomes a possible backdrop for a new story idea.

You mixed the elements of mystery - missing girlfriend - and exploring sexuality. The former tends to lead to a fast-paced chapters, rendering readers palpitating while the latter tends to be (based on my experience as a reader) a luscious contemporary that savors and examines every moment. How did you write the novel and mix these two? How did you find the balance? This is a really interesting question! I definitely like for my thrillers to move quickly; but when digging into a topic as personal as a character's struggle with their sexuality, there also needs to be space for readers to slow down and appreciate the significance of what that character is going through. In the abstract, they might seem like objectives that shouldn't work together, but I have found (both as a reader and a writer) that the introspective personal beats allow readers a chance to breathe in between the big cliffhangers of a good suspense novel -- and that using one mood as a counterpoint to the other can greatly enhance both.

A lot of people commented on Flynn's voice. It seemed to me that while he is struggling with his sexuality, and while he suspected that he might be gay, he was also very much in love with January. He was in between of some sort. How did you establish his voice, to further cement his situation as "in struggle"? A lot of gay and lesbian teenagers who struggle with self-acceptance have relationships with someone of the opposite sex before they're ready to come out. It's a topic that most LGBT youth can relate to, I think, and one that I had a lot to say about. It was very important to me that readers understand that Flynn's relationship with January was not all "fake" or one-sided -- that he truly cared about her very much. I tried to bear that in mind throughout the crafting of the narrative, and to make it clear how deeply Flynn valued his friendship with her, regardless of anything else, and that his affection for her is part of what drives him to search for her when she goes missing.

Did you struggle with any scene or part in specific? How did you handle it? This is a hard question to answer without getting into spoilers, but I'll give it a try! There's a scene where Flynn finds himself alone with January's parents right after they've received some shocking news; this scene was probably the hardest to write, because I had three characters reacting very strongly -- yet very differently -- to the same set of circumstances at the same time. Choreographing these reactions, trying to balance them against each other and keep them real, was tricky. In the end, I essentially had to write the scene three times, once from each character's POV, and then integrate them.

Thank you for sharing, Caleb!

About the Author:

Caleb Roehrig is a writer and television producer originally from Ann Arbor, Michigan. A former actor, Roehrig has experience on both sides of the camera, with a résumé that includes appearances on film and TV—as well as seven years in the stranger-than-fiction salt mines of reality television. In the name of earning a paycheck, he has: hung around a frozen cornfield in his underwear, partied with an actual rock-star, chatted with a scandal-plagued politician, and been menaced by a disgruntled ostrich.

Find Caleb: Twitter | Goodreads | Website |

Book Description:

Hardcover, 336 pages
Expected publication: October 4th 2016 by Feiwel & Friends

Flynn's girlfriend has disappeared. How can he uncover her secrets without revealing his own?

Flynn's girlfriend, January, is missing. The cops are asking questions he can't answer, and her friends are telling stories that don't add up. All eyes are on Flynn—as January's boyfriend, he must know something.

But Flynn has a secret of his own. And as he struggles to uncover the truth about January's disappearance, he must also face the truth about himself.

Giveaway

What's up for grabs: Copy of Last Seen Leaving
Scope: US!

a Rafflecopter giveaway


Treat yourself to a complete #CelebratingDebutantes2016 experience. Click the image below for the full schedule and links to the posts!