A Note:

6/2/13

I once told myself: IF I am accepted into grad school, this blog would no longer be updated. As it turns out, in April, I received news of my acceptance for the Fall 2013 semester, where I will attain a Master's degree of Science in Nutrition.

Running a blog, as many of you may already know, is a demanding side job once the excitement wears off. And once I fell out of the blogging community's loop (have you SEEN how many blogs there are now? Wow!), it was like the kiss of death. Despite my best efforts, I couldn't get into a blogging routine once this happened due to the disconnect I felt from the community.

So I took a break. I struggled with the loss and with missing my blog. And then I realized I didn't have to run Book Faery to still be a book reviewer; I could read my books and post reviews online. I'm still a book review blogger, just not in the traditional sense.

I'll still be online. You can chat with me on Twitter, where I'll be posting links to my reviews and talking books. I'll also be posting links to nutrition articles. And if you'd like to connect with me where I guarantee I will post reviews, just add me as a friend on Goodreads.

So that's all, folks! It's been a fun and amazing journey, and I thank you all for listening to my thoughts about books. I hope we all can keep in touch elsewhere :)

Tori

Wednesday, August 24, 2011

BOTS 2: Allison Pang



Secondary Characters
by Allison Pang

Secondary characters are sometimes my favorite thing about writing. As an author they give me the opportunity to focus on someone other than the main character, even if it’s for a few sentences here or there, as well as the ability to enhance the story. A good secondary character should be more than a cardboard cutout that shows up at opportune times – they need to be as much a part of the world as the main characters. Readers should feel as though those secondary characters have their own lives beyond what’s happening in the main course of the plot – but without having the secondary characters upstage the main characters. (Which does happen, sometimes – there’s quite a few secondary characters out there with fan followings of their own.)

My current favorite secondary character is Lady Corsair of The Iron Duke by Meljean Brook. I have a soft spot for pirates in particular, and this one intrigues me. We can see that she’s formidable, strong and sexy…but she’s got a secret or two that I *really* want to know. She’s not just a piece of the backdrop, either – she’s an intrinsic and necessary part of the world. Through her actions we learn more about the main characters and the world building in general, and all of it lends itself to a different facet of the plot.

For myself, I tend to sketch out the basics to begin with – brief family history, what they do, where they live. Additional details often pop up as I draft the book, but by the end I’ve got a pretty good idea of who they are – which is important, because sometimes even a tiny act performed by a secondary character can have longstanding repercussions in a series. It’s also helpful in case you decide you want to expand on that secondary character in a later book – i.e. make them the main character – much, much easier to do if you’ve already felt them out a bit.

(And speaking of which, for those of you who enjoyed Brush of Darkness, there is a Melanie short story in the works for a potential anthology. Anyone want to know how she got that magic violin? Me too.)



Giveaway 

One lucky winner will receiving trading cards and the following:


The man of her dreams might be the cause of her nightmares.


Six months ago, Abby Sinclair was struggling to pick up the pieces of her shattered life. Now, she has an enchanted iPod, a miniature unicorn living in her underwear drawer, and a magical marketplace to manage. But despite her growing knowledge of the OtherWorld, Abby isn’t at all prepared for Brystion, the dark, mysterious, and sexy-as- sin incubus searching for his sister, convinced Abby has the key to the succubus’s whereabouts. Abby has enough problems without having this seductive shape-shifter literally invade her dreams to get information. But when her Faery boss and some of her friends vanish, as well, Abby and Brystion must form an uneasy alliance. As she is sucked deeper and deeper into this perilous world of faeries, angels, and daemons, Abby realizes her life is in as much danger as her heart—and there’s no one she can trust to save her. 


Giveaway Guidelines:
* Open Internationally
* Leave a comment with your email address
* This giveaway ends September 7th
* IMPORTANT: I will not be contacting winners! Be sure to check back after September 7th to see if you've won this or any of the other giveaways!

Extra Entries:
* Link back to this giveaway on some social networking site or on your blog. Be sure to include the link to your post in your giveaway entry--and make sure that I can view it! (For every site you do this on, you'll receive one extra entry)

21 comments:

  1. Thank you for yet another amazing giveaway :) This book sounds really interesting, I would love to win it :D

    Love, Carina ~ carina-olsen@hotmail.com

    ReplyDelete
  2. Secondary characters are some of my favorites, like Grim (the Cait) in The Iron Fey series is one of my favorite!

    Jessica

    takingitonebookatatime(at)yahoo(dot)com

    ReplyDelete
  3. Great giveaway, this book sounds amazing:)

    Good reading ~ Escape by Fiction :)

    ReplyDelete
  4. Hi Allison!

    Thanks for the post on secondary characters. They really (done right) make a novel.

    And thank you for the giveaway!
    (TRADING CARDS!)
    :)

    All the best,
    RK Charron

    (G+d https://plus.google.com/102725257038855689557/posts/RVuW45oi9E2?hl=en)

    ReplyDelete
  5. I have to say that I love BOTS Sidekick Edition!!! I fall hard for the secondary characters and get super excited when my favorite ones get their own books.

    Michelle (@OBoyledBooks)

    OBoyledBooks [at] gmail [dot] com

    ReplyDelete
  6. I've heard good things about this book, would love to read it!

    miss.smileygirlie@gmail.com

    ReplyDelete
  7. You definitely make good work of the secondary characters. All the ones in your book intrigue me on one level or another. And anyone who has read your book knows that Phineas often steals the scene. The humor you right is subtle but absolutely hilarious. Thx!
    sommer.cleveland@gmail.com

    ReplyDelete
  8. This sounds awesome!

    carpenyx@gmail.com

    ReplyDelete
  9. I see the Battle of the Sexies is still going strong =) This book sounds great. It has all the good stuff in it...fairies, demons and shapeshifters. I'd love to win this. Fingers are crossed and thanks for the great giveaway. I also added this on my TBR list on GR.
    +1 tweeted at http://twitter.com/#!/Tanya1224/status/106536518612549632
    Tanyaw1224(at)yahoo(dot)com

    ReplyDelete
  10. Would love to read this series!

    angeldream3[AT]gmail[DOT]com

    ReplyDelete
  11. Great interview Allison! Definite add to my TBR list :)

    mharper1023@gmail.com

    ReplyDelete
  12. I haven't read Brush of Darkness yet but it's been on my TBR list.

    sgiden at verizon.net

    ReplyDelete
  13. Thank you for this great giveaway .I am very excited about Brush With Darkness its on my must get list .
    flanagan@mebtel.net

    ReplyDelete
  14. What would main characters be without secondary ones? And more often than not I end up liking them more than the main characters.

    danaan at gmx dot at

    ReplyDelete
  15. That looks like a fantastic book!

    kimberlyFDR@yahoo.com

    ReplyDelete
  16. Thanks for the awesome giveaway =)

    venturinhawendy(at)gmail(dot)com

    ReplyDelete
  17. Amazing giveaway.I'm dying to read this book
    elaing8(at)netscape(dot)net

    ReplyDelete
  18. Awesome giveaway, I've been wanting to read this!

    ReplyDelete
  19. Thanks for the giveaway. This book sounds great.

    rachaelmccully@yahoo.com

    ReplyDelete
  20. This book sounds good. I like the cover. Thanks for the giveaway.

    ReplyDelete
  21. I have to say I have been intrigued by your books since I heard about the unicorn in the underwear drawer at AAD. I can't wait to read it.

    +1 tweet:
    http://twitter.com/#!/beckerjo/status/111600100857487361

    beckerjo at verizon dot net

    ReplyDelete