Archive for the 'Draven Atreides, Teenage Informant Series' Category

December 22, 2010 | Draven Atreides,Draven Atreides, Teenage Informant Series,Road Trip Wednesday

Road Trip Wednesday is a “Blog Carnival”, where YA Highway‘s contributors post a weekly writing or reading-related question and answer it in on our own blogs. You can hop from destination to destination and get everybody’s unique take on the topic.

You’re more than welcome to participate! Just answer the question on your own blog, and leave a link to it in their comments.

Topic #52:What would you give your favorite characters for Christmas, and why?

My favorite character is from the series I’m working on, Draven Atreides, Teenage Informant. For Christmas, I’d get Draven some kind of new gadget, like the Night Vision Infrared Stealth Binoculars from the International Spy Museum Store. She may only be an informant, but she feels the need to have all these little gadgets to assist her with her assignments.

On a personal level, I want to give her the gift of family. She’s a little cynical about the whole family unit thing and I’d like her to realize that all families aren’t the traditional Mom-Dad-Sibling. Families can be made up of people who care about you: like best friends…and your handler.

Technorati Tags: YA Highway, Night Vision Infrared Stealth Binoculars, International Spy Museum Store

October 21, 2010 | Draven Atreides, Teenage Informant Series,Life in General,Reading is FUNdamental,Road Trip Wednesday

Road Trip Wednesday is a “Blog Carnival”, where YA Highway‘s contributors post a weekly writing or reading-related question and answer it in on our own blogs. You can hop from destination to destination and get everybody’s unique take on the topic.

You’re more than welcome to participate! Just answer the question on your own blog, and leave a link to it in their comments.

Topic #49:Who’s your comp titles/authors?

I’ve been knee deep in homework and totally forgot about RTW. So I’m doing it today. Since I’m still working the Draven Atreides series (and will be for the forseeable future, it appears), I would have to say my comp titles/authors would be:

Shannon Greenland‘s The Specialists series: “Secret government spy agency that trains teen agents to go undercover.” Granted, Draven works for a government agency, but it’s not so secret. Well, to her friends it is. And she’s trained to go undercover, true, but not like The Specialists. She works alone, you see, and doesn’t get to travel to any exotic locales. In fact, her type of spying is along the lines of Louise Fitzhugh‘s

Yes, HARRIET THE SPY. It’s local. All the people she’s looking for are in Phoenix, AZ. Yes, it’s a hotbed of crime here. What, you didn’t know? It’s all very tattletale-like. She spies, writes it all down and reports to her handler/guardian. Then sits back and lets the not-so-secret-agency do their thing.

It’s been years since I’ve read HARRIET THE SPY, but it’s one of my favorite warm fuzzies childhood memory. And I’ve never read Shannon’s series, but I’m curious about the teen agents…do they get paid? Are the benefits any good?

Technorati Tags: YA Highway, Shannon Greenland, The Specialists, Louise Fitzhugh, HARRIET THE SPY

September 30, 2010 | Draven Atreides, Teenage Informant Series,Life in General,Writer Moment

Recently, I decided to make the DA series only 4 books, instead of 6. In the process of revising both books in the series so far, I have yet to decide how I want them to be published. Oh, they will definitely be self-published. I’m all about having complete control over that, but I’m not sure in what format.

For the longest it was going to be print. That was a given.

But before I printed, I was going to podcast the series. Gain a bit of a following first. I have yet to hear of a YA author who’s podcasted his/her book. I could be wrong. I hear it’s a lot of work. Very time consuming. Don’t know if I’d have the time, even after I graduate from college.

Then, for one of my classes, I was writing a research paper about how graphic novels can be used as an educational tool in the classroom. For about a week or so, I was actually thinking about going that route and did a little asking around about how to get started. I’m already two novels in. Not sure how I could go back and change everything to fit that genre.

Currently, the Draven Atreides website is being designed. I thought maybe I would just post the books online there. Throw them up as I finished, a week at a time, get feedback, and then revise again.

Then I read an article about this place and it made me contemplate the e-book route. Seeing as how I don’t own a Kindle, a Nook or an iPad–and I still love the feel of a book in my hand–I’m not sure I want to go this route. Besides, are any teens out there reading books online? Maybe I should take a poll…

After all that, I’m still not sure what route to take. Any suggestions?

September 22, 2010 | Book One,Book Two,Dance Jam Productions,Draven Atreides, Teenage Informant Series,Life in General,Road Trip Wednesday,Secrets and Kisses

Road Trip Wednesday is a “Blog Carnival”, where YA Highway‘s contributors post a weekly writing or reading-related question and answer it in on our own blogs. You can hop from destination to destination and get everybody’s unique take on the topic.

You’re more than welcome to participate! Just answer the question on your own blog, and leave a link to it in their comments.

Topic #46: If you went to high school with your characters, would you be friends?

Hells to the yeah!

For the simple reason that each of my characters has a little bit of me in them, they’re “inspired by” someone I know, or they’re someone I wish I could be. In my first book, SECRETS AND KISSES, I would be Skylar Knight. Actually, I was her. I was shy, I crushed from afar, when I was her age I worried about not knowing how to kiss—okay, let me rephrase that. I didn’t worry about not knowing how to kiss until I actually started dating. Which was right around the time I entered community college. Back in high school, I just crushed from afar and didn’t worry about the kissing part because I was attracted to white guys and knew that no white guy would be interested in a black girl. That’s just how it was at my school. Especially when the ratio of minorities to whites was pretty slim. And, being the bookworm that I was back then (and currently still), I so would’ve checked out a kissing how-to book from the library. Skylar’s best friend, Ellie, kind of reminded me of Six. You know, Blossom’s best friend on that show “Blossom”? She’s funny, she’s bubbly, and knows when to give you a kick in the pants for being stupid. Or when you need to suck it up and put your Big Girl panties on.

Mataya Black Hawk in DANCE JAM PRODUCTIONS, my second book, is not so much shy as reserved (because of the secret she carries), and slow to trust people she first meets. But once you’re in her little circle (and it’s little. Tiny, really), you’re there forever and the loyalty is ironclad. Her two best friends, Mici and Ren, sort of balance her out. Ren’s a tomboy skater chick (but still a girly-girl) and Mici’s the feminine one, who wouldn’t be caught dead wearing baggy pants. There are differences, but the dynamics work.

My current series, DRAVEN ATREIDES, TEENAGE INFORMANT, Draven was inspired by my then 16-yr-old niece (she’s 21 now). She’s witty, independent, has a good head on her shoulders, and resourceful. She’s got to be because she’s leading a double life (Draven, not my niece). Her best friend, Rico, was inspired by an old high school friend of mine who “came out” during our senior year (luv ya, Michael). And OMG, he was hysterical. Hy. Sterical. He always had me crackin’ up, so I hope I’m able to do him a little bit of justice in this series. Draven’s other best friend, Poe, is a little wild and looking forward to that rocker musician lifestyle. LOL.

I think my group here is a great mix of personalities and ethnicity, with the occasional clash to make it interesting. LOL.

It’s funny, as I look at the break down of each character, I’ve noticed two things: 1) I tend to create an introverted/reserved MC and extroverted/silly/quirky friend(s) and 2) my MC’s have only one or two good friends.

I really am writing what I know. And I’m not just referring to the fact that all of my books are based in Phoenix, AZ. In real life, I’m the introverted/reserved MC and I have two best friends that I’ve known over 20 years each. That’s my tiny, ironclad circle of friendship. But they—and the other friends I have–are so much more than me: outgoing, bold, self-confident, strong. I feed off that and have come out of my shell a lot over the years. I have that “friendship diversity” in real life—and it works for me—and I guess I want that for my characters, too.

Technorati Tags: YA Highway, SECRETS AND KISSES, Blossom, DANCE JAM PRODUCTIONS, Phoenix, AZ

September 16, 2010 | "Whoa whoa I gotta go...back to schoooool...again",4th Semester,Book Stuff,Draven Atreides, Teenage Informant Series,Fall 2010,Fundraising,How coolio is THAT?,Intro to Fiction Writing,Life in General,Mentors,Prescott College,Rio Salado,School Daze,The 4-1-1 on Me

Today mark’s the official start of the fall 2010 semester at Prescott, but I don’t start my classes until Monday.
This semester, my two classes are:

Fundraising and Resource Development

Intro to Fiction Writing

The first one is a mentored course, and I feel I’m going to be learning a lot from Maureen Baker, manager of Individual Giving and Events at the Musical Instrument Museum. The other is an online course at Rio Salado College and by the end of that course, I will have completed a short story. Short stories were never my forte, but I’ve decided to try again. The DA series has a few little in-between stories that could be told and the best way seems to be in the form of a short story.

So, just like the GREASE song lyric states, it’s time for me to go back to school again. Join me for the ride.

Technorati Tags: Maureen Baker, Musical Instrument Museum