Author: DelSheree

DelSheree Gladden was one of those shy, quiet kids who spent more time reading than talking. Literally. She didn't speak a single word for the first three months of preschool. Her fascination with reading led to many hours spent in the library and bookstores, and eventually to writing. She wrote her first novel when she was sixteen years old, but spent ten years rewriting it before having it published. Native to New Mexico, DelSheree and her family spent several years in Colorado for college and work before moving back home to be near family. When not writing novels, you can find DelSheree reading, painting, sewing, and working with other authors. DelSheree has several bestselling young adult series and has hit the USA Today Bestseller list twice as part of box sets. DelSheree also has contemporary romance, cozy mystery, and paranormal new adult series. Her writing is as varied as her reading interests.

Are You an Aerling Trivia Star?

The lovely Dorothy Dreyer debuted this fun game on her blog last week, and I wanted to share it here as well. So…let’s play!

Do you know the answers to these 15 Aerling Series trivia questions?

Click on the picture below, take the quiz, and comment below with your score!

If you have your own questions, feel free to post those too!

Or if that doesn’t work…CLICK HERE FOR THE QUIZ.

And…

If you don’t know the answers yet, but would like to…

Here’s where you can find the books:

INVISIBLE

INTANGIBLE

INVINCIBLE

Connect with me online:

Facebook: AuthorDelShereeGladden

Twitter: @DelSheree

Pintrest: DelSheree

Google+: DelSheree Gladden

Creating a Protagonist with Depth: Part 1

Where do you start when you want to create a really great character?

That’s a question that any writers, bot new and established, ask. There’s no black and white answer, but this series will offer up tips on creating strong characters that are layered and offer readers a reason to connect and share their story.

Today, I’ll start off with two popular options for getting started on Character Development.

Option One

Character Profiling

Start with the basics: Who is your character?
- Create a character profile sheet and be as detailed as possible
  - Physical characteristics
  - Eye/hair color, weight, height, etc.
  - Personality traits
  - Happy, gloomy, morose, optimistic, etc.
- Likes/Dislikes
- Fears/Dreams
- Talents/Goals
  - Secret or otherwise
- Flaws
- We’ll talk about this on in more depth later

Option Two

Start with a Picture

Instead of starting from scratch, find a picture you think is interesting and describe what you see. Go deeper than how they look. What motivates these characters? What are there goals? What are they afraid of? Start making a list of character traits that will help bring them to life.

Take a look at these two characters and tell me what they’re afraid of, why someone might be afraid of them, what they love, what they dream about, what their favorite flavor of ice cream is, or even what their secret fears are. Most of what you come up with you won’t actually use, but it will help you understand them.

I’d love to hear what you come up with for these two characters, so feel free to post your ideas in the comments! And don’t forget to come back for the next installment of Creating A Protagonist With Depth next week.

Things you learn at Comic Con

Attending my first ever comic con was loads of fun and a great learning experience. So, aside from trying to figure out who some of the guests were supposed to be dressed up as, I learned a few helpful tips for next time…whenever that might be.

1. Bring Bags – Books are heavy. Customers don’t really want to lug them all over the convention in their hands.

2. Bring Snacks – Seriously, you get hungry sitting there all day, and the chocolates on your table really don’t count as a good breakfast.

3. Bring Pens – Okay, I did bring pens, but I left them all at the hotel the first day, so make sure you have all your stuff so you don’t have to borrow your booth buddy’s pens.

4. Be Chatty – Not my strongest area, especially with strangers, but just start talking to people who come by your booth. You never know what connections you’ll make.

5. Dress Up! – We didn’t have a lot of time to plan, so our costumes were woefully basic, but great costumes help attract people to your booth, so glam it up!

6. Make Friends with your Neighbors – If you need to run to your panel or just go to the bathroom or get a drink, being a friendly neighbor may just save you if they’re willing to keep an eye on your stuff while you skip out for a minute.

7. Go Big! – We didn’t have time to do everything we wanted to, but having something vertical and tall behind your booth really helps you to stand out from the others.

8. Bring Business Cards – For authors, bookmarks are your business cards, but when you make a connection with say…a bookstore owner or teacher interested in having you talk to their class, a business card is nice to have. It fits in their wallet. Bookmarks, not so much.

9. Bring Aspirin – Seriously, you’ll have a headache and aching feet at the end of each day. It’s tons of fun, but exhausting. Caffeine is a good thing to have on hand too!

10. Be Square – Not really, but you should get a Square credit card reader. There were plenty of sales we would have missed out on without having one. Not everyone carries cash.

Like in all things, being prepared saves you a lot of problems, especially when dealing with Stormtroopers and Carmen Sandiego.

Dreams, Nightmares, or Something In Between

I’ve heard other authors say they got the idea for their book from a dream. That’s never happened to me, though I do tend to plot out my books and scenes while I try to fall asleep. I do, however, write about some pretty interesting dreams. Or are they nightmares? Or something in between?

Arrabella started out dreaming about Aztec human sacrifices, then moved on to Celtic curse stones. In book 3, hopefully coming out in late 2015, her dreams will take a slightly different track. The curse will be a little different, though I’ll keep it to myself just how it will be different. Regardless, it should be interesting, and Yes, there will be plenty of trouble stirred up with Bas and Tanner as well.

Escaping Fate will be an ongoing series, meaning that while the characters stay more or less the same, each book will contain its own story, and the the series have no particular end date. Each story will focus on whatever turns up in Arra’s dreams, be there everyday curses (if there is such a thing), or something a little more unusual.

So, I’d love your input.

What type of curses have piqued your interest? They can be from any culture, mythology, etc. or just something completely made up. I’d love to hear your suggestions!

While you’re thinking…

If you’d like to check out what dreams have been plaguing Arra so far, book 1 is FREE on most ebook platforms, and book 2 is also available now. Book 3 should be coming sometime later this year. I’ll keep you updated!

Escaping Fate (FREE)

Soul Stone

Connect with me online:

Facebook: AuthorDelShereeGladden

Twitter: @DelSheree

Pintrest: DelSheree

Google+: DelSheree Gladden

A Ten Year Journey

I think two of the most common questions I get when I do public events are 1) How long does it take to write a book? …and… 2) How did you get you first book published?

Question #1 always makes me chuckle a bit because the answer varies depending on the book. Question #2 is kind of a long story.

So, I thought I’d share the answer two both questions today in regards to my very first book, Escaping Fate.

How long did it take me to write it? Well…I started writing Escaping Fate when I was fifteen, back when I knew next to nothing about writing and thought I was really good at it. I wasn’t. Anyway, a lecture in Mrs. Hume’s history class about Aztecs performing human sacrifices really got me interested and I started researching. Back then, that involved digging out an encyclopedia and scouring the library for resources since my parents weren’t big fans of the internet at the time.

The first version was super short. It fit inside a chunky 6×4 inch paper notebook. Yeah. It was short. Eventually, I started transferring it to my first laptop, which was a brick and weighed a ton, and I started adding to the story. Actually, I removed an entire character and rewrote the story with only the MC, Arrabella, and her grandfather. That took a while. A long while. REWRITE #1.

Some time later, I met my future hubby and found out he was into writing too. Don’ tell him I told you that, though. He likes to keep his writing on the DL even though it’s really good. And I’m not just saying that because he’s my husband. Seriously, it’s good stuff, and if he ever actually lets anyone outside me and his brothers read it, you’ll agree.

Anyway…my hubby and I chatted about writing and when I mentioned nixing poor Tanner from the book, he talked me into putting him back in. After all, every story needs a little romance, right? REWRITE #2.

Years later, after getting married and having two kids and doing some college here and there, I pulled Escaping Fate back out, reread it, decided it was still missing something, or several somethings, and went back to work ironing things out, changing POV and tense, adding in more story elements to keep things interesting, and who knows what else. REWRITE #3.

By the time I was ready to submit it to agents and publishers, I was 25-ish. Yep, it took me ten years to finish this sucker. And guess what happened? Zip. That’s right, not a single agent or publisher was interested in it. I had no publishing credits, no social media presence, nothing at all that would convince an agent or publisher to take me on.

I didn’t give up, though. I decided to publish it on my own. At the time, I had no clue how to market, but I learned how to format for print and ebooks, painting a picture of an Aztec god for the cover art, and put together a pretty good book. Escaping Fate is a book that will always be close to my heart because of the journey it was to share it with readers. Even though it’s not a big seller for me, it got my toe in the door, forced me to learn a lot about writing, publishing, and marketing, and put me on the road to some pretty cool things.

Escaping Fate was published in 2010. Since then I’ve published 15 other books, including a sequel to Escaping Fate that I never planned to write (Soul Stone), have made the USA Today Bestseller list as part of a wildly popular box set, got a pretty good review from Kirkus, and have more than one book in a top 100 category on Amazon. Even if Escaping Fate is never one of my more popular books, it was the first step. Sometimes, that’s all it takes to get yourself moving in the right direction.

Connect with me online:

Facebook: AuthorDelShereeGladden

Twitter: @DelSheree

Pintrest: DelSheree

Google+: DelSheree Gladden

Funny Stuff, Because It’s Fun

It’s been a while since I’ve done a list, so here goes. This one’s just for fun, a few things to get you through your Friday while you’re counting down the hours until the weekend.

Hyperbole and a Half a blog/webcomic by Allie Brosh @AllieBrosh

The dog posts are hilarious, especially about moving with dogs, but the little kid trying to get the cake is pretty dang funny too. I can guarantee you’ll be cracking up at your desk with these posts!

And there is a graphic novel too, so check those out while you’re at it. You won’t be disappointed! Just be sure to use the “special crazy order button.” It’s more fun that way.

Olivia Muenter on The Truth behind those Instagram photos @OliviaMuenter

I don’t use Instgram. I don’t have the time or inclination to learn the ropes of yet another social media site. Okay, I’m too lazy to set up an account. My husband has an account and I don’t. That’s speaks volumes to those who know us in real life.

Anyway, click on the link, check out Olivia, and see what it really takes to make those Instagram pics look so perfect. You’ll be laughing at your desk, wishing you could have been there to watch the chaos unfold.

Weird Al

Do I really need to say anything else? I love Weird Al and I LOVED this new song.

And if you need another laugh, look up “The Drive-Through Song.” My kids have the whole thing memorized just about!

Thoughts on Contacting the Author from Heather Havrilesky of The New Yorker

This one may only be funny to me because I totally understand where she’s coming from, but I think this can applied to many things…

“How to Contact the Author” … Go ahead, read it, laugh, and then maybe you should try to get some work done 😉

Connect with me online:

Facebook: AuthorDelShereeGladden

Twitter: @DelSheree

Pintrest: DelSheree

Google+: DelSheree Gladden

Character Interview: Sebastian Wallace (Soul Stone)

Today I’d like to introduce you to Sebastian Wallace of Soul Stone (Escaping Fate #2) so you can make your own decision on whether he’s arrogant, annoying, and out to make Arra’s life miserable… or something else entirely.

Please join me in welcoming Bas. He’s ready to tell us more about his role in Soul Stone and why Arrabella, the girl with the dreams, apparently can’t stand him.

Bas: How did I know questions about Arra were coming? Silly me to think you wanted to hear about the curse.

By all means, tell us about the curse first. We’ll save the details about you and Arra for the end.

Bas: (shakes his head) Okay, fine with me. I missed the whole Aztec curse, as I was overseas visiting relatives during the summer. I really didn’t know what was going on with Arra even after I got back until she asked me for a favor. Even then, I wasn’t really sure what was going on, but I knew it was only the first step in a long, weird journey. One that’s probably not ending any time soon.

If you knew that, why did you decide to help Arra?

Bas: Why wouldn’t I help her?

Well… because you two don’t get along.

Bas: I get along with Arra just fine. She just doesn’t get along with me.

So, Arra’s the problem? Not you?

Bas: Of course not.

So, you didn’t give her a goose egg on her head and not apologize? Or get her phone confiscated? Or spill her chemistry experiment? Or…

Bas: Those were all accidents. Every single one of them.

And you wonder why Arra doesn’t believe you. Anyway, tell us about Sibeal Ahearn, the girl who has suddenly become the center of some very strange dreams.

Bas: Sibeal, yes, there’s definitely something weird going on with her. Aside from her creepy reflection. Really, she’s a nice girl. She’s pretty and smart, sweet. Under normal circumstances, the guys probably would have been all over her.

Including you?

Bas: Well, no …

Why not?

Bas: I’m just not interested in her like that. I mean, I want to help Arra figure out what’s going on and make sure she doesn’t die, but not for any romantic reasons.

Who would you like to save… for romantic reasons?

Bas: Are you trying to get me to admit something about Arra? It’s not going to happen. I don’t know why, but I seem to bring out the worst in her. We’re barely managing friends as it is. I just got sucked up in all of this because she’s Tanner’s girlfriend. I’m trying to help save Sibeal. It isn’t any more complicated than that.

Hmm, if you say so. What if Arra has more strange dreams? Will you help her with whatever they bring as well, or are you done after this one?

Bas: Well, just because we aren’t that great of friends doesn’t mean I want to see her die. If she needs my help again, she knows I’ll be there.

I’m sure she’ll be glad to hear that. Tanner, maybe not so much.

Bas: What’s that supposed to mean?

It looks like we’re about out of time, Bas, so sorry. I guess it will just have to remain an enigma, just like why the whole town of Grainer thinks you can do no wrong. So many mysteries, and only enough room for one more question. What will the dreams bring next?

Bas: I suppose it would be too much to ask for it to be something good. I’m not really sure, but Arra said something about Oracle Lost the other day. You’ll have to ask her for more details, I was only half paying attention because I was trying to get all of her pencils out of her backpack without her noticing at the time.

Bas, Bas, Bas. I do hope you know what you’re doing. Until we see you again, good luck with the curses, and with Arra.

Grab a copy of Book 1, ESCAPING FATE, for FREE on most ebook platforms, and then get ready to meet Sebastian Wallace in book 2, SOUL STONE.

Escaping Fate

Soul Stone

Connect with me online:

Facebook: AuthorDelShereeGladden

Twitter: @DelSheree

Pintrest: DelSheree

Google+: DelSheree Gladden

It’s Done…Walk Away

DeathtoStock_Medium6 I have to start this post off by saying, it was inspired by a post my lovely writing buddy, SeriouslyGina, recently posted on her blog. She was talking about the awfulness of querying agents and trying to write that perfect query letter that simply no one can refuse, despite the fact that it is like a rainbow unicorn made of sparkle dust and dark chocolate.

Hint: It doesn’t exist.

Querying is my least favorite part of writing. Maybe that’s why I gave up on trying to find and agent or pitch to publishers and went almost entirely indie. Actually, there are a whole bunch of other reasons for that!

In all honesty, though, thinking about what a torment querying is reminded me of some advice I got from one of my painting instructors in college that has really helped me in my writing and other areas of life. It was simple and kind of a silly thing to stick with me for almost fifteen years, now that I think of it, but oh well.

I had been working on a single painting, a master study of a JW Waterhouse painting, for the majority of the semester, and it just never seemed quite “done.” My painting professor, the incredible William Hatch, finally walked up behind me one day and said, “It’s done. Put your paintbrush down and start something new.” I didn’t think it was done. In fact, I have a print of it hanging in my house and every time I walk by it I think, “Ugh, I should have fixed that part.” But, there’s no sense trying to paint on top of a print and I don’t have the original painting anymore, and I’m not quite that much of a crazy person.

I think Professor Hatch might have just been sick of looking at that painting when he told me to put down my paintbrush, but even if he really did think it was as good as it was going to get, his comment actually stuck with me and I’ve applied it to more than just painting.

I often reach a point in a project, writing or otherwise, when I just have to put it down and say, “It’s done.” When I’m writing, that’s usually after way too many edits when my eyes are crossing and I’m beginning to hate my own book because I’m so tired of looking at it. Before I actually get to that point, I tell myself, IT’S DONE…WALK AWAY. I don’t go back to it. I move on to a new project and don’t look back whether I have that nagging feeling that it could use a little more tweaking or not. It’s just done.

I heard a piece of advice once, and I can’t remember who it was from but I’m pretty sure it was one of those huge 19th century writers we all aspire to be. The advice was to never read your published book. You’ll always find little errors or things you could have tweaked, sections that could have been stronger, blah, blah, blah. It will never be perfect. No book will ever be, nor has ever been perfect. NOT A SINGLE ONE.

Instead of chasing your starburst and sunshine with sprinkles on top masterpiece, write the best book you can write, find great beta readers, even better editors, friends who’ll support you no matter what, and pour your heart and soul into your story.

Your book will never be perfect, but the message you share and the way it impacts your readers will make up the difference.

Connect with me online:

Facebook: AuthorDelShereeGladden

Twitter: @DelSheree

Pintrest: DelSheree

Google+: DelSheree Gladden

Because puppies are just too cute

After being gone for the weekend and missing my kiddos and hubby A LOT, I came home to hugs from my family and slobber from our puppy. Unlike a cat, he didn’t hold it against me for being gone. He was just happy we were all back together and has been under my feet all day, except to do this…

I Survived! #ComicCon

The invite came a little last minute, but off to the Albuquerque Comic Con I went! Luckily I had two friends with me to keep me from getting too lost. We learned a ton about what worked and what didn’t (bring shopping bags for customers next time!), how to set up, where the best spots are, and lots more. Plus, we had a blast. I’ll post some of the tips and things we learned next week when I’m not so fried, but I thought I’d share some pics today just for fun.

Bonus points if you can tell me who are the costumes are supposed to be 🙂