If you know an author, then you’ll realize that they’re not entirely…stable folks. They talk to the voices in their heads. If they see something unique, BAM, it goes in a book. No one is entirely safe around them.
Nadine Brandes is an especially adventuresome sort. In honor of her book release this week of A Time To Speak, the second book in the Out of Time series, I picked her brain as we compared experiences we’ve done for writing research.
Nadine, I’ve seen some conversations online of crazy things you’ve done for researching your book. But you write speculative fiction. Isn’t that all made-up stuff anyway?
Stepping out of our understanding of normal is what connects spec-fic books with real life. Think about it. Fantasy/sci-fi novels create new worlds. . .and traveling to a different country is like being immersed in a new world. You’re forced to see things differently, to interact differently, to stretch into a new and adaptable person in order to function.
I agree totally. You remember the sensory details, your imagination is heightened, and you are inspired. I’ve been blessed to travel overseas myself. In fact, I used a lot of situations from my Thailand travels for my first book. What was a recent international adventure for you that helped you in writing?
I had the privilege of transiting the Panama Canal on a pretty little 44-foot sailboat. The same sailboat that instigated my adventure of being a sea-cook, in fact.
Here’s how it all came about:
At a certain point, in one of my books (no, I won’t tell you which one!) a character travels through the Panama Canal. My dad’s boat just happened to be traveling through the Panama Canal this January as it is being moved to the west coast. In Dad’s words, “You can’t not go, Nadine.”
Shoot, who could pass that up? Now that I’m writing a YA novel set in Silicon Valley, when visiting family in the Bay Area we toured the headquarters of Google and Facebook for research. Anything more local that you’ve done lately?
I live in the type of place where I can post on Facebook, “Anyone have dogsledding connections? I need it for book research,” and the next day I get a message from a friend saying, “I can get you a ride!”
I know, I’m spoiled.
So last March, I went on my first all-day dogsled ride to Granite Hot Springs out in the wilderness.
After some mushing commands, some dog intros, some warnings about flying off the back of the sled at the take-off (“Excuse me?!”), I hopped on, pressing down the brake with all my weight. And then, with a very un-Hollywoodish, “Alright, hike!” we took off.
I was an official musher.
Wow. And I thought it was interesting when I took a scooter for a test ride to see how to control the thing. Let’s see, what else have I done? Running on the beach to understand a getaway scene, trying out rock climbing walls, watching videos on YouTube of medical procedures. Any other research items stand out?
1. Walked a tightrope four stories off the ground (yes, I had a harness.) Also walked on slacklines without a harness.
2. Crawled across a river on a log
3. Chased down a boxcar train to record sounds, movement, and the size of boxcars.
4. Ate grilled cattails
5. Sailed on the open sea for four days, getting ridiculously seasick.
6. Ate a raw potato
7. Rock climbed real cliffs and man-made rock walls, as well as frayed ropes to get the right feel.
8. Walked through a cattail pond barefoot to get an idea of what it’d be like to be stuck in one for weeks.
Okay. I’d say you win. But I’m not going down easily. Anyway, what would you say to aspiring authors about research and being so adventurous?
Life experiences and adventuring have everything to do with writing! Stories I can use in my future novels, stories I can write about for you to use in your future novels, stories to inspire others in their future novels. Or stories that don’t have to be in novels at all–they can just be memories! My life is my greatest story. I’m a storyteller and writing is what I’m called to do. I can’t just limit it to fiction.
That’s great advice for anyone, not just a writer. Memories and stories to tell are priceless.
Since everyone’s probably intrigued with Nadine now, here’s where you can find her online.
Nadine’s website
Facebook
Twitter
Goodreads
And check out her books, A Time To Die and A Time To Speak. She’s got a great adventure going on in those pages. I’ll have a review of Speak next week. Check out the Amazon link or enter the contest below to win a free copy!
Hey gang, I’ve joined in with the Called To Speak Blog Hop to discuss the question: What makes you want to speak out?
It’s inspired by the new book A Time To Speak by Nadine Brandes, the second book in the YA dystopian series Out of Time. It releases on October 16th, and it is also to encourage myself and others to speak out for our passions and against injustice.
A passion of mine is speaking out against human trafficking and modern day slavery. A quick search of this blog will show multiple posts about the topic. The scourge of human trafficking is shocking that it happens in this day and age.
But it is deceptive, because there’s more slaves in the world today than during the entirety of the African slave trade.
It takes many forms: workers forced onto Thai fishing boats, prostitution in NYC or brothels in Cambodia, whole families trapped in indentured servitude on brick kilns in India, or domestic helpers with their passports confiscated.
In the paper this week was a story about a former cheerleader who was sentenced to prison in Oregon for leading a teen into prostitution. It happens in our backyards, not just around the world.
I hate the injustice of someone being forced to do things against their will. I’ve worked to raise awareness of the issue for several years now. This dark secret is being brought into the light more and more, and there are many organizations that are fighting in various ways and areas to combat this horror.
One of my favorites is International Justice Mission, a leader in the modern day slavery battle. However, there are many worthy groups that will show with a Google search that may hit areas closer to your heart.
I love the idea behind this blog tour because if we aren’t afraid to speak out, then we can see change come in the world. If we all keep silent, then what will change?
So thanks to Nadine for starting this campaign. Below you can find more information about her books and other bloggers in the hop. Be sure to scroll to the bottom to enter a contest to win copies of her books!
I’m Jason Joyner, and I’m #called2speak against the injustice of modern day slavery and human trafficking.
What happens when you live
longer than you wanted to?
Parvin Blackwater wanted to die, but now she’s being called to be a leader. The only problem is, no one wants to follow.
The Council uses Jude’s Clock-matching invention to force “new-and-improved” Clocks on the public.
Those who can’t afford one are packed into boxcars like cattle and used for the Council’s purposes.
Parvin and Hawke find themselves on a cargo ship of Radicals headed out to sea. What will the Council do to them? And why are people suddenly dying before their Clocks have zeroed-out?
Book Two in the “Out of Time” series. Read about the first book, A Time to Die, here. You can connect with Nadine Brandes at all of these links:
Blog Hop participants
Twenty years ago, I finished a life changing year.
I spent nine months in Canberra, Australia. Living in another country will be a landmark for anyone, but that was just the frosting on the cake.
I spent the nine months immersed in the Bible.
Seminaries are great tools to prepare people for ministry, but my program was a little different. I went to the School of Biblical Studies through Youth With A Mission. Instead of different classes covering doctrine, church history, counseling, and other skills required by pastors, we did one thing.
Read the Word.
We read the Bible five times in nine months. Probably more, honestly. We did the inductive Bible study method. The idea is to study the background, history, and literature style of each book, and read/study it in context.
When we did Galatians, we read about the region, the peoples there, what issues Paul seemed to be addressing. We then read through the book in one sitting, out loud. It would give us the overall context of the book. Then we would start drilling in until we went paragraph by paragraph through the Bible (except for some Psalms and Proverbs).
Reading Isaiah out loud in one sitting took over three hours.
It was an amazing time. We had a small class of students from Australia, Germany, Sweden, the Philippines, and me as the token American. This was on an international campus, so we were exposed to a lot of other nationalities as well.
I work as a physician assistant, so I have had many difficult classes dealing with physiology, medical assessment, and pharmacology. But the SBS was the hardest in the sheer fact of doing the work. We ended up doing a commentary on the whole Bible by paragraph. It was intensive, and there were no short cuts.
I can’t believe that I was leaving Oz about 20 years ago to the day. It seems just a few years ago. However, the mirror confirms that it has been a while. That, and my teenagers. Life has definitely had its twists and turns, things that I didn’t see coming. Relationships, love, death, birth, and all the in-between items. Life has been glorious at times, and life has been very hard.
Through it all, it has been such a blessing to have that background in the Bible. It has served me so well through the years. I can’t think of another investment in my life that was as profound as pouring through the Bible like we did.
So a simple piece of encouragement for today: dive into the Word. Learn the story of the Bible, dig into it as much as you can. It has given me such a foundation. I would be lost without it. You may not have the opportunity I had, but don’t forsake studying and learning the Bible.
So thank you Alan, Joyce, Sue, Sandra, and Mholly. Thank you for your service and faithful training to us. Thanks to all my classmates who allowed me to grow alongside you. I am forever grateful.
Your word is a lamp for my feet, a light on my path. Psalm 109:105
Now that the glow from Realm Makers is wearing off, it’s time for the rubber to hit the road. The inspiration of RM has me fired up with goals and dreams. I have to get them implemented.
A primary goal is to edit and revise the first draft of my YA story so it can be submitted. And writers just LOVE editing.
Some actually do. I like it when I get into making a story better, but it can be a slog as well.
One of the best decisions I’ve done with my writing is to work with freelance editors. On an early draft of my suspense, my heroine wasn’t likable. Thanks to Becky Miller, I was able to turn my main character around.
Then I worked with Ben Wolf after a couple of revisions of the full novel. This is where the nightmares set in.
See, Ben would see all the spots where I was telling something, instead of SHOWING what happened. Early in the book, he’d explain in his comments. As it went along, the code became:
Get Physical.
I’ve had a couple dreams where I see red over the manuscript, and the continual admonition to “get physical.” And it’s a great code to remind me to not be lazy and just tell the reader something.
Of course there’s time for telling. I’m not going to show you every breath a character takes. But we writers need to be ever vigilant on letting bad habits slip in.
That’s my encouragement to my writer friends, especially those Realm Makers Alumni who are hard at work on their WIPs. Keep going. Remember what Robert Liparulo said.
And get physical.
Realm Makers is an amazing opportunity.
I just got back from St. Louis for the 3 day speculative fiction conference. In just three years, the staff has produced a high quality gathering that was informative, yet it was so welcoming and encouraging. As far as I can tell, there’s been universal praise for it from writers coming back ready to tackle the writing world.
If you look for posts from other attendees, you’ll see them rave about the fun, the great books and authors, the study of craft, and being fired up to keep writing.
I can say “ditto” to all of those, but Realm Makers stood out to me for a different reason.
They were the quiet moments.
Like meeting my new friend Herbert. He’s not a writer. He’s a homeless Vietnam veteran who I met on the train after arrival. We got caught in a downpour together, and we ended up sharing pizza and prayers the first night. I could’ve caught a group going to dinner if I’d gone right to the dorm. Instead, I had a cool moment with a guy in need, and with God.
I may seem outgoing in the crowds there, but I’m also kinda reserved. I don’t like to impose on people. But when I goofed and was waiting for the shuttle to get to my first pitch appointment, I had to be bold. Because I timed things badly and was waiting for the shuttle during its down time. No shuttle to take me 15 minutes away with 5 minutes to go (after I’d waited 20 minutes).
That’s when Pam came in.
She was a random lady getting into her car when a crazed author flagged her down and asked for a ride to the conference center a mile away. God bless Pam, as she didn’t hesitate, and I made it on time.
Probably a good thing I wasn’t dressed for the costume dinner.
I met so many cool people during the conference, or got reacquainted with friends I’d met before. But one time stood out. My roommate Josh Smith had his van, and was very kind to run us back and forth (he wasn’t there for the last story). We got time to share heart to heart, especially when talking about ministry we each did back home.
God is good, and He works through pizza, hitchhiking, and simple talks among brothers.
And Realm Makers rocks. I’m sure many others have their quiet moments as well. Anyone want to share?
Not quite the same image Pam saw.
Here I am, with a new blog post after 4 months away.
What could drag me back into the blogosphere? Not a lot as I try to focus my writing on other areas. But one thing that could is the final book of my friend Morgan L. Busse’s trilogy, Heir of Hope.
I became acquainted with Morgan through the Christian Sci-fi and Fantasy Blog Tour, but we met at a writer’s conference in 2012 and hit it off. That’s when I first read her Follower of the Word series, when the first book Daughter of Light was available at the conference bookstore. (I got it signed, be jealous.) My blog review of it is here.
The deep story was a welcome addition to the fantasy I had read before, and I really enjoyed it. Then she came out with Son of Truth, the second book in the series, another 
great fantasy read. You know how the second part in a trilogy is always darker? Yeah, Morgan nailed that with this book. Her poor characters were probably ready to revolt by the end.
Now we get the epic conclusion in Heir of Hope.
The final book in the Follower of the Word series did not disappoint. Morgan created some deep main characters that had many obstacles to overcome throughout the trilogy, and it doesn’t get any better for them in Heir of Hope. Rowen Mar has been captured and taken to the Shadonae, her mortal enemies. Caleb Tala, the assassin with a change of heart, is forced to work with Captain Lore to escape the Great Desert. Since Caleb had killed Lore’s former charge, it isn’t an easy alliance. And they have the scribe Nierne, who hasn’t had much experience outside of the monastery.
This fantasy is character-driven, and each of the main characters have a lot to lose. Their internal and external battles are intriguing and keep the reader invested. As they head toward a final confrontation with the enemies taking over the land, there are steep consequences for all involved.
I really enjoyed the whole series, and Heir of Hope does not disappoint. It could have been trimmed down a little and still maintain the tension and depth, but the flow doesn’t lose out. There’s wonderful themes about love, forgiveness, and sacrifice in the novel that make it and the series a great addition to any fantasy fan’s library.
How about a little contest? Leave a comment telling me your favorite fantasy series, and I’ll pick a random winner to receive a paperback copy of Daughter of Light. Thanks for stopping by, and leave a comment to get the start of a great series.