Wednesday, November 30, 2011

Character Interview 01

This interview was by Jennifer. Since I don't have much to share at the moment, I thought I'd repost it here:



Jennifer: Hi there Bran, thank you so much for taking the time out of your day to join us here at Book Crazy.  Please, have a seat.

Bran(dressed in all black straddles a chair and props his arms across the back): Pretty human…wonder if I can make her squirm (eyes narrows).  Times like this, I wish I had Lil’s abilities.  I’d make this human postpone the interview until after I’ve tracked down that Lazarus demon in Tijuana.  No, Lil will give me hell if I don’t go through with this.  She warned me to play nice or else, and there’s nothing I wouldn’t do for my girl.  But first things first.
Jennifer…may I call you Jennifer?

Jennifer:  Of course.

Bran:  You understand that you can never publish this interview. 

Jennifer(blinks):  I can’t?

Bran: No, you can’t.  As soon as the interview is over, Lil will erase all traces of this meeting from your memory.

Jennifer(frowns):  Why?

Bran(leans forward):  Because humans are not supposed to know about us or what we do.  If you’re recording this meeting and the High Council finds out, you will be terminated.

Jennifer (squirms):  Uh…uh….

Bran (smiles, dimples flashing):  I’m kidding.  No one is going to hurt you.  We, Guardians, hold human lives sacred.  In fact, our duty is to guard you against demons.  Without humans, we’d be lost, soulless beings like our brothers, the demons. 

Jennifer (sighs with relief and nods).  

Bran: However, Lil will erase your memory once this interview is over.

Jennifer (blinks again):  Oh, okay.

Bran (flashes another smile):  So what do you want to know?

Jennifer (consulting her notes, hands a little unsteady):  Could you tell us…me a little bit about yourself?

Bran:  I’m a Nephilim, a Guardian, I hunt down and vanquish demons.  My grandfather was a Cardinal Guardian with the ability to manipulate water, an ability I inherited through my father.  My mother (Bran frowns and shakes his head)…I don’t like talking about my mother, or me, for that matter.  Are you sure you don’t want to talk about Lil.  She’s more interesting.

Jennifer(smiles):  Maybe some other time.  This interview is about you.  You have one of the most interesting names, do you know the story behind it?

Bran (sighs):  Do you know that most civilizations have written about us?

Jennifer (looks confused):  Y…eees.  But I’m the one asking questions here, not you.

Bran (cocks his right eyebrow):  The human has guts, kind of reminds me of Lil.  My father named me after Bran, son of Sea-god Llyr…Bran the Blessed…a giant of man…an honorable man.  Of course, you do know he wasn’t just an interesting figure in Celtic mythology.  He was one of us.  I think we might be related somewhere down the line.  You know, my water powers, he being son of a sea god and all.

Jennifer(nods):  You have very different heritage than most, what do you find is the hardest part of being you? What's the best?

Bran (frowns):  The hardest part is having my fellow Guardians look at me and see my parents.  I’m not my mother or father.  I’m me, an individual. I’d like to be judged by what I do and say, not who my parents were.  The best part is using my experience to help the girl I love.  Having known the dark side, I know how to avoid its seduction.  Lil has hard times ahead of her and I plan to be there for her.  

Jennifer:  Could you tell us what you like to do in your spare time?

Bran(winks):  Doing stuff with Lil…and train.  Demon-hunting is a full-time job, and so is being in love with a stubborn girl.  But I have several centuries to do both.  

Jennifer(smiling dreamily):  What's one of your favorite memories?

Bran(shakes his head):  Of Lil?  Those are private.  But I can talk about childhood memories, which includes learning about my heritage from my father, flying with my little sister, goofing with my brother… before things changed (Bran stops smiling).

Jennifer:  Your relationship with Lil is complicated, yet beautiful, what's one of your favorite things to do together?

Bran (grins again, dimples flashing):  Lil’s pretty cool and an easy girl to love.  As long as we’re together, she’s happy.  We like to teleport to different places for lunch or dinner.  She likes the beach the best.  We’ve visited quite a few around the world.  We’ve also dined at some of the best restaurants.  (Bran laughs softly) We often don’t have reservation, but Lil’s power of persuasion makes that problem go away.

Jennifer:  Can you tell us anything juicy about her we don't already know?

Bran:  Oh no, I’m not going there.  She’ll kill me if I tell. 

Jennifer:  Come on, just one tinsy little secret.

Bran (sighs, looks up and smiles):  Okay.  You’re a very curious lady, just like Lil.  She’s very ticklish.  Whenever I tickle her she kicks and screams and promises to vanquish me.  But she never means it because afterwards we kiss and make-up.  (Bran’s grin broadened) I think that’s why I do it.  Making up is fun.

Jennifer (blushing):  I am not entirely sure what to think about your brother, it's clear that you love him desperately though, can you tell us something awesome about him we might not know?

Bran (no longer smiling):  He’s very protective of our little sister.  He and I don’t agree on many things, but when it comes to her, we’re on the same page.  He’d do anything to protect her. (Bran stands up)  I think we are done here.  I have a demon to catch and interrogate.

Jennifer(stands too):  Just one more question.  Can you tell us anything about what's next for the Guardians? 

Bran (shrugs):  We’ll continue what we always do, fight the good fight.  Personally, I’d like Lil’s father to disappear forever.  He’s pure poison and she’s not exactly sure about how to deal with him.  I don’t like seeing her worried about what he’ll do next.  I’d like to see my brother join the Guardianship program, but I don’t see that happening any time soon.  He’s too pissed at them at the moment.  I don’t particularly care about what happens to the other trainees on a personal level although Sykes needs a girlfriend.  Do you know a single girl who’d have him?  He pisses me off when he flirts with Lil.  I’ve really got to go now.  Nice chatting with you, Jennifer.  Lil will be here shortly.



Monday, November 28, 2011

GRATITUDE HOP winner

Welcome new followers and thank you for participating in the HOP. My faithful followers, who never miss stopping by when I have contests and continue to support my writing, luv you, guys.
 
The winnner is:

desitheblonde

Please email me ( link on the sidebar ) with your mailing information and I'll mail you the goodies. Another giveaway will start next week. Taking a break while I finish Nano.

XOXO

Wednesday, November 16, 2011

GRATITUDE GIVEAWAY HOP

Welcome to the Gratitude Giveaway Hop!
I'm down with the flu, so there's no telling if I'll be up tonight to post this, so I'm doing it early.


I'm participating in the hop to thank you, you wonderful readers and followers, who've followed me since I released AWAKENED (book 1 of the Guardian Legacy series) last year. Your were there when I had an early release of BETRAYED (book 2) a few months ago before it disappeared. Thank you for not being angry when you tried to buy it and found it unavailable. I've received numerous e-mails asking me when it will become available. The new publisher promised to have it in stores near you and online in June 2012. We also signed a deal with a publisher in Portugal, so the entire series will be in Portuguese, starting with Awakened. 


This hop is hosted by I Am a Reader, Not a Writer (HERE) and All Consuming Books (HERE)
There are hundreds of blogs participating, so don't miss out.  The hop starts November 17th and and runs through November 27th, midnight.

ONE LUCKY WINNER WILL GET: Guardian Legacy tee, GL bookbag and a water bottle






How to enter:

Follow my blog and leave a comment with a way to contact you (twitter, email).

Tuesday, November 15, 2011

NAMING CHARACTERS in FICTION

Somebody once asked me where I get names for my characters and I laughed. The fact is I suck at naming characters. I know of authors, who come up with unusual names like Katnis, Phury, Rhage…and I envy them. How the heck do they do it? Dream them up? J. R. Wards, author of Black Dagger Brotherhood, said she kept hearing the name Wrath in her head as she wrote her first BDB book, or was it before, I don’t remember. Stephanie M had a dream about Twilight, did she hear the names too or just teh story? Unfortunately, my characters only talk to me about their stories, not their names. Those I have to find on my own and make sure it suits their personalities. On a good day, I check names on heat list of my kids’ swim meet. Lame, I know. On a bad day, I use the local phone book. Even lamer. My teenage daughters keep telling me to use online name generators. Maybe I will for my next series.
For the Guardian Legacy series, I did something different. Since my characters are part fallen angels and part humans, I used a blend of normal names and angelic names, mythological names and demonic ones. A lot of angelic names tend to end with –iel or –el, like, Amitiel, Karael, Bariel, Eramiel, Ophiel…
Any fans of the TV series Supernatural here? If you are, you know of Cass (Castiel), the angel helping the Winchester boys.

The Winchester Boys

Angel Castiel


Lil, my MC, has a master trainer called Master Haziel, Bran’s father is Tariel and Izzy’s boyfriend is Rastiel. Demon names, on the other end, don’t have a pattern. So I make them up as I go, except Valafar. According to demonology, Valafar is a duke, commander of ten legions. Once I heard him go on and on in my head, his arrogance and contempt for humans so blatant, Valafar seemed like a perfect name for him.
Anyway, back to my main characters. Lil is short for Lilith, as in Lilith in most religious books, mythologies, and folklore. My favorite Lilith story is from Jewish folklore, which describes her as the first wife of Adam, created from the same clay. She refused to be subservient to him, left the Garden of Eden and refused to return after mating with archangel Samael. It seemed like the perfect name for a strong young lady, a conqueror, a leader.
Then there’s Bran the Blessed, son of the sea god Llyr in Celtic lore and grandson of Belenos, the Sun God. His name means Raven, and the raven was considered his symbol. How could I not name my character Bran when he has powers over water and the first time Lil saw him, he was hanging out with ravens. Sykes is Yorkshire, pretty normal, and Remy is short for Remus (named after Remus who founded Rome), and Ares, Lil’s grandfather, is named after the Greek God of War.
What unusual names in fiction have you seen?  Does it frustrate you when you can’t pronounce them? Do you need authors to explain how to pronounce them?

Friday, November 11, 2011

CONGRATS!!!

I'd like to welcome new followers. Thank you for showing interest in the Guardian Leagcy series. I love my characters, and I hope you get a chance to know them.

And as always, I love my regulars for always stopping by and entering my contests. You guys are the best.

Now for the winners. Drum rolls please...

Congrats to:

1. izylight
2. Shelia (ssdawn2001)
3. jen7waters

e-mail me.

Will be back in two weeks with another giveaway, promise. Right now, nano has me in its grip, so I must write...must write....


Keep reading.

XOXO

Ednah

Monday, November 7, 2011

November Hop

Hi ladies, thank you for your continued support. I'm thrilled to welcome new blog followers and appreciate the ones who continue to stop by regardless of whether I'm having a giveaway or just sharing my news.

I recently sold the Guardian Legacy series to a publisher, so Betrayed has a new cover...woohoo. We're also negotiating foreign rights for the series, so I'm thrilled. More news in the coming months.

Now for the Hop.

Thanks to Kathy of Thanks to Kathy of I Am A Reader Not a Writer and Tristi Pinston for holding this hop.

This time, we will have two winners:

1. The first two winners will each get a Guardian Legacy T-shirt and signed bookmarks
2. The third winner gets a water bottle and signed bookmarks





To enter:
1.  Follow my blog, leave a comment and your e-mail
2. follow me on twitter
3. follow me on FB

Contest is International

**

Wednesday, November 2, 2011

The story behind the Guardian Legacy series



Now available wherever books are sold online


Betrayed-coming to a store near you June 2012

The Guardians’ background is a blend of various mythologies and Judeo-Christian beliefs. Before I started writing Awakened, I came across the kris dagger, an Indonesian weapon believed to be forged from an element from the heavens and one from the earth. The Indonesians/Malaysians believed that the kris has a spirit attached to it, which could be good or bad. So when owned by an evil person, it did evil things, but it did good things when owned by a good person. The kris could protect the wielder from an attack or warn them if there was going to be harmed.
The Kris Dagger became my Excalibur. I wanted a young man to wield it and even started plotting it from his POV, but I kept hearing a girl’s voice in my head—an outsider, someone who wasn’t part of the in-crowd. Intrigued, I decided to focus on the girl, who she was and her story. To do that, I went back to her background, her people. She had to be special, have the right to wield the dagger, so I focused on who might have forged the dagger and why.
I chose the fallen angel who taught humans the art of war—Azazel. Fallen angels had children with humans-Nephilim, so it was easy to come up the Guardians’ lineage from there, making my heroine part angel and part human. Weaving in the powers of the fallen angels—from the ability to teleport, clairvoyance, see into the future, control all elements (air, fire, water and earth), manipulate what people see and felt, and change shape into other beings—made everything come together.
Once I had the people in place, I researched the Nephilim in details, read books about them and scoured online resources. Comparing their abilities to those of deities from different mythologies-from the Titans to Hindu Divas, it’s easy to see why people, me included, believe most of these gods and goddesses were all Nephilim. Incorporating this into the Guardians background made sense, so was giving them names like Bran, the famous son of Sea-god Llyr from Celtic mythology. Making him have water powers just made sense.
Then there’s the biblical connection:
Genesis 6:4 The Nephilim were on the earth in those days--and also afterward--when the sons of God went to the daughters of men and had children by them. They were the heroes of old, men of renown.”

According to the bible, a horde of angels was sent to destroy the Nephilim because they were corrupting and enslaving humans, setting themselves as gods and goddesses so humans could worship them. But after the angels annihilated the Nephilim, some were left behind. Combining the biblical aspect with mythologies made the Guardians real in my mind and so the series was born.

Most names I use are angel names, but that's another blog post.