Monday, October 31, 2011

Farsighted by Emlyn Chand - great journey of a read

I loved Farsighted by Emlyn Chand by the end of the first page when I realized Alex the main character in this adventure out-of-the-ordinary story is blind. It was obvious to me that the author spent a lot of time around blind people because she was able to not only convey what he saw, by not seeing but by hearing and listening to the empty spaces.

Alex is like any boy going into his sophomore year in high school. He wants to do well, have a real friend and nothing to do with his parents, or in this case, more his father. When a psychic lady takes over the shop next to his mother’s flower shop this opens the story to intrigue. And, when the new girl in town, Simmi enters the school, for the first time Alex feels he might be able to have a real friend.

The ironic thing with Alex is he has second sight and when his hallucinations take over he must rely on his senses to determine what’s real and what’s not. Farsighted takes the reader on a journey into mystism, the occult, psychic powers and a boy transitioning from boyhood to adulthood with real responsibilities. I especially enjoyed the fumbling love triangle Alex starts to develop.

Chand did a great job overlaying his blindness and grasping me into the type of world he lives in. I loved that she conveyed how anger tastes to him and how he starts to understand his hallucinations by different smells.

I will say that this is a book I wanted to hold in my hands. I wanted to be Alex, let my fingers glide over the chapter headings, feel the weight of the paper just like he does when reading and take in the smell of the book. I sincerely hope this book becomes available for the blind. I also thought this would make a great audio read book.

Emlyn Chand
The book is a journey and I highly recommend readers to embark upon it.

• Farsighted on Amazon > http://ow.ly/75HvL


• Farsighted on GoodReads > http://ow.ly/75Hwo

Don’t forget to check out the official Farsighted tour page.

http://www.emlynchand.com/

Thursday, October 27, 2011

Cry Me A leg of Tears

So we're into day three of post-recovery and hubby goes to library and brings me home Punkzilla by Adam Rapp, Just Another Hero by Sharon Draper and Broken by Alyxandra Harvey-Fitzhenry. I start to cry and he's all concerned but when I finally tell him why he just laughs. Ugh, he doesn't get it.

This is my week of hell. Thirty minutes before my Monday surgery my period shows up bright and bold just to make sure I'm not nervous and have more to think of than my upcoming ankle being ripped open. Picture me quietly trying to tell the person about to put me totally under that my period just started - picture a guy about 45 here and you see my dilemma. I then asked for the nurse and she lovingly told me she would take care of me - and she did, but seriously I had to tell them or else they'd wonder why I'm bleeding everywhere beside my ankle and since I have a bleeding problem well you get the picture. And today I woke up with a cold, so me and my pile of used Kleenex are growing. But the crying - that's because as I'm skimming Punkzilla I realized it's a Candlewick Press book. Let me just say here that between Flux and Candlewick Press books I'm in heaven and Candlewick really liked Off Leash but they went out of business. So now do you all get my crying!

How am I going to survive this? It hasn't even been a week and I'm totally bored of my living room and watching the birds (okay, I do like that but unless a freaky out of nova scotia bird shows up, I'm not getting excited anymore with the blue jays, hairy or downy woodpeckers or the white capped nut hatch) and all I can do is lug myself to the washroom, and while I like Jericho, I can't watch more than 3 episodes. I did manage to write 700 words and yes my girl in the story is recovering from an accident, had to put that in, as I can totally relate to my character now, but soooo bored. I keep thinking 11 more days and this first cast gets off and then 6 weeks in the other cast and somehow, just somehow I am going to take a damn bath (even if I have to wrap my frigging leg in a tarp).

So this is my rant of woes. All of this came about because of Punkzilla which I'm starting to read tonight.

Pride's Run by Cat Kalen amazing YA debut novel

I am so excited. My good friend is launching this amazing YA book and while she's a published author, like me in another genre, this is her first venture into the Indie YA market. This book I couldn't put down.

Coming November, 2011


Blurb

Seventeen year old Pride is a tracker—a werewolf with a hunger for blood. Taught to trick and to lure, she is the perfect killing machine.

Kept leashed in the cellar by a master who is as ruthless as he is powerful, Pride dreams of freedom, of living a normal life, but escape from the compound is near impossible and disobedience comes with a price.

When she learns her master intends to breed her she knows she has to run.

But Pride soon learns that if she is to survive in the wild, she must trust in the boy who promises her freedom, the same boy she was sent to hunt.

With life and death hanging in the balance the two find themselves on the run from the Paranormal Task Force—officers who shoot first and ask questions later—as well her master’s handlers.

Can Pride flee the man who has held her captive since birth and find sanctuary in the arms of a boy who has captured her heart? Or will her master find her first?

Chapter One

California Wine Country

August 23rd, six days until full moon

The click of the lock at the top of the stairwell is my only indication that morning is upon me. My ears perk up and I listen for the coming footfalls. The weight on the stairs combined with the creaking of each wooden step will let me know which handler has come for us this time, which unlucky puppet has drawn the short straw and is stuck with letting the dogs out, or in this case, the werewolves.

Sure, he’ll come sauntering down the stairs sporting a brave face and looking at me with cold, dark eyes meant to intimidate. But the wolf inside me can smell his inner fear. Despite the fact that I’m the one caged, underneath the handler’s cool, superficial shell he’s the one who’s truly afraid.

A long column of light filters down the stairs and I blink my eyes into focus as the bright rays infiltrate the pitch black cellar. I don’t really need to blink. Not with my exceptional vision. But I do it anyway because sometimes I simply like to pretend I’m a normal seventeen-year-old girl, one who can’t see in the dark. It’s nonsense, I know. I’m not fooling anyone. Least of all myself.

The door yawns wider and before the first heavy boot, soiled with old blood that he’ll pass off as wine stains, hits the top step, my senses go on high alert. I never know what morning will bring—or who will bring it.

A breeze rushes down the stairs ahead of the handler, carrying the aroma of the grand estate with it. I push past the metallic scent of dried blood to catch traces of grape juice in the air, a common smell on the majestic vineyard—that and illegal drugs, the estate’s real source of income. Going beyond those familiar fragrances, I breathe deeper and get hints of fresh bread baking in the upstairs kitchen. It must be Thursday. Mica, the estate’s cook, always bakes on Thursday.

In my human form I roll onto my side and lean toward the smell. Wistfully, my tongue darts out and brushes over my bottom lip. There is something about that scent that always entices me and before I can help it I envision myself eating a warm slice covered in rich creamy butter, crispy on the outside, moist and tender on the inside.

My nostrils widen, but I know the bread isn’t meant for me and not even one delicious crumb will pass over my dry lips. Not unless Mica sneaks it to me. As much as I’d love to taste her offerings I don’t like it when she takes chances for me. Disobedience is far too risky for the aging housekeeper. Despite that, my stomach growls in response to the aroma and I fight off the cravings. I can’t hope for bread when it’s unlikely that I’ll even be given a scrap of food today, especially if I can’t please him.

My master.

A boot hits the second step—the handlers always descend slowly—and as I stretch my legs out on my dusty mattress I hear the waking groans of Jace and Clover stirring in their own cages beside me. I glance their way, and that’s when my attention falls on the one empty cage in the cellar. My mother’s den. I breathe deep and fight off a pang of sadness that I cannot afford to feel.

I turn away from the empty cage and stare at the gray cement walls. I can’t bear to look at her den any longer. It only reminds me of how they killed her and how all the pups were forced to watch—to learn that disobedience comes with a price. Guilt and sorrow eat at me to think that she’d died trying to free me.

When step number five creaks, I diligently try to shake off the memories. The handler is close which means I can’t think about my mother right now. I push all thoughts of her aside, knowing that right now I have to think about my father and what he taught me before the master killed him. Never let them see your fear.

I harden myself.

Prepare.

Before my master’s puppet even reaches the bottom step, I know it’s the one they call Lawrence, the handler I hate the most. The one with a weak mind, strong back, teeth like baked beans and beady eyes that fit his ugly rat face.

He likes to call me kitten. I have a few choice names that I’d like to call him in return, but I always bite the inside of my cheek to resist the urge. Partly because I’d be whipped and partly because Miss Kara educated me and taught me all about manners. I realize that an educated wolf with manners might sound laughable. In my line of work, however, education and manners are as lethal as a bear trap to those I hunt. That’s how I lure my marks, how I bait my prey. A pretty face and good grace go a long way for a trained killer like me.

My glance wanders to my leg, the one peeking out from beneath my ratty blanket, and my eyes are drawn to the long jagged scar tracking the length of my calf. I grimace. Even with my education and manners, I never forget what I really am. I’m never allowed to.

“Hey kitten,” Lawrence says. Most would think the nickname is a play on my birth name, Pride. But I know it’s the handler’s way of cutting me down, to find control where he feels none. My parents called me Pride because I was their pride and joy. Lions live in a pride and since lions are cats…

He tosses a collar and chain into my cage. “Leash up.”

I take note of the gun in his holster before my glance locks on his. As I give him a good hard stare, he flinches. The movement is slight, but I notice it. Dressed in my knee length nightgown, long hair loose around my shoulders, I might look like an average seventeen-year-old girl—harmless and innocent—but we all know I’m not.

Even though Lawrence keeps his face blank and stares down at me with those dark eyes of his, he reeks of terror. The scent is like a mixture of hot sweat and rotting compost. Oh, it’s not pretty by any means. Nevertheless, the werewolf slumbering restlessly inside me feeds off his fear, thrives on it, so I inhale and draw it deep into my lungs.

Without taking my eyes off his, I take my time to leash up. My movements are slow and deliberate as I position the collar. Metal grinds metal and the sound cuts the silence as I secure it around my neck. The handler winces. So do the older, more obedient wolves that I bunk with.

Jace cuts me a glance, chocolate eyes now milky from old age warn me to behave. I realize he’s doing it for my own good, but this morning I’m cold and hungry and in no mood for Lawrence’s insults. Clover makes a noise to draw the handler’s attention away from me, and all sets of eyes shift to her.

As Clover tries to pacify Lawrence, averting her gaze in a show of respect and making small talk about the weather, Lawrence opens my mother’s former cage and pulls out her cot. He gives it a good hard shake and the breeze stirs the dust on the unfinished boards masquerading as our ceiling. The particles dance in the stairwell light before falling to the cold, cement floor.

When Lawrence tosses the cot into a corner I stiffen. It can only mean one thing. My mother has been gone for a little over a year now, and I know the master rarely keeps a cell empty for long, which makes me wonder when and how he’s going to fill it?

Who will he breed?

I cringe at the thought of bringing puppies into this world, but know it’s not something I have to worry about. The master would never breed a wolf like me. My mother always said I was a survivor, the only pup in a litter of three to make it, but hey, a runt is a runt. Thanks to Darwin and his theory of ‘natural selection’ a runt is a heritable trait that a pack can do without. When it comes to canine reproduction, only one motto dictates: runts need not apply.

Deep in the bowels of the estate’s basement, the master keeps other wolves, separating the strong and young from one another. I’m smart enough to understand that he distances us so we can’t conspire against him or speak telepathically. Wolves can only use telepathy when in animal form, however. Well, most wolves that is. Oddly enough, I along with Stone, an alpha wolf two years my senior, are able to communicate while in our human forms.

Sometimes the master does in-house breeding, sometimes he sends us out to one of his associates—other drug lords who also harbor werewolves. It’s like he’s running a regular old puppy mill in here. Except his puppies kill for him. Which begs the question, what does my master have in store for me today?


Check out www.catkalen.com




 
 

Tuesday, October 25, 2011

Recovering and in pain but functioning

Today I'm home recovering from ankle surgery which means I'm in a cast, can't really move and having to rely on my hubby and children to take care of me. I've discovered I'm not the best patient. And, this got me thinking about the ya books I've been writing. Off Leash is really all about a boy in pain, yes today that's me. I'm not taking the meds as they make me feel sick but while coping with the throbbing in my leg, I'm functioning. Off Limits which is book two in the nitty gritty series is about two girls in pain and Off Stroke which I've mapped out is once again POV of a boy in pain and for the first time I'm adding a girl POV.

I'm very excited about starting Off Stroke which will be my Nano challenge for the month of November - that's right folks I'll be writing 50,000 words in one month. The base for the third book is my own paddling club, Maskwa Aquatic Club, which I love being the club manager off. And just like my club in which we launched our first inner-city program to get youth who might never have the opportunity to be in a dragon boat or war canoe, my book Off Stroke starts with a young boy entering into an after school program in which he's forced to learn how to kayak. And yes he hates it at first, especially since he's black and everyone at the club is white but he quickly discovers it doesn't matter what color your skin is everyone has scars, some deeper than you think.

So, today I got my print proof for Off Leash and love it. Off to launch it on Amazon so it will be available in print. This makes my weeks ahead - 8 of them when I can't move around - look a lot better.

Wednesday, October 19, 2011

SPCA Animal Shelter in NS - what an average day is like

The spark of an idea to start my young adult book, Off Leash was my teenager taking a dog walking job. This opened my eyes to dogs in general, their needs, and often the cruelty that happens to these innocent animals daily. To highlight Nova Scotia’s SPCA and the role they play dealing with animal adoption and cruelty I interviewed Kristin Williams, Executive Director, NS SPCA.

Leave a comment on my blog and one lucky person will be randomly picked to receive an e-copy of Off Leash: Bonus Content, which has both endings in one book.


What is your average day like when you come into the office?
It depends on the area of our operations that you are speaking of. With respect to animal care, our volunteers and staff work tirelessly to attend to the needs of thousands of animals currently in our care, either in foster or in shelters. This includes cleaning, laundry, socializing and play, along with feeding, watering and health monitoring. Our shelters are bustling activity centers with the public and volunteers coming and going. At our Provincial Shelter in Dartmouth, we have over 400 active volunteers! Our adoption rates have increased by 63% in just two years and our overall provincial intake has increased by 8% this year. This was accomplished without additional capacity – just by addressing animal flow and adoption promotion.

Our special constables are no less busy. With just two provincial special constables to manage the work load of the entire province, we struggle to address the demand for service. We get over 18,000 calls per year on animal welfare concerns per year and our case load has increased this year by nearly 20%. The most disturbing trends are animal hoarding and abandonment, but we routinely see animals suffering neglect (not provided with food, water and shelter or veterinary care). In the majority of cases, we can resolve the matter through education and voluntary compliance, but there are serious cases of abuse, neglect and cruelty that we see every day. With the volume of calls that we receive, cases are prioritize based on the assessed level of distress of the animal and the potential harm the animal may be in.

In my role as Executive Director, I oversee all aspects of operations, which includes animal care, cruelty investigations, humane education, marketing and communications, public affairs, human resources, finance and administration and fund development. I support the Provincial Society and its network of Branches. In the last year in particular, I have been spending a great deal of time working on engagement with various stakeholders who have a role to play in animal welfare. This list includes, but is not limited to political leaders, municipal units, veterinary associations and police services. I have also been spending a great deal of time working with our Board of Directors on a new governance model to increase compliance and allow for greater standardization across our network of Branches.

How many dogs a week would you say the SPCA processes?
The Nova Scotia SPCA has a relative capacity, which includes both shelters and foster based branches. Our annual intake is close to 8,000. Our hard capacity for dogs at any time is 143 and it is 566 for cats.

How does the volunteer dog-walking program work? Can teens participate?
It depends on the Branch, but generally all of our Branches accept the generous assistance of volunteers who are keen to help give some love and social time to the dogs in our care. Because these activities are generally adhoc in nature, volunteers may be asked to sign in, leave some ID with us and receive some coaching from staff or volunteers in animal care. Many volunteers walk many animals each day, which helps our dogs become socialized. With improved behaviour, their prognosis for a quick adoption also increases. At this time, we accept the assistance of youth under 18 with the help of a guardian/parent.


It’s hard to pick a favorite but can you tell the readers about one special dog that came into the SPCA that captured your heart and why?
There are many wonderful stories and it is hard to pick just one. A recent case we had involving 27 pure bred huskies comes to mind. They were found in deplorable conditions at the hands of an irresponsible breeder. The case took nearly 8 months of hard work by our investigators and resulted in a conviction with a sentence of a prohibition of ownership. The accused also covered all vet costs. The accused actually pled guilty on the first appearance due to the strength of the case. The huskies required a great deal of time in foster care, because they needed to learn to be pets. Absolutely beautiful dogs. They are now in loving forever homes.

The SPCA is an animal shelter and needs funding how can donors donate and what at this time is needed most for the shelter?
Our area of greatest need is actually cruelty investigations. We only receive $3,000 from the provincial government and our budget for province-wide investigations is approximately $500,000. The quiet work that our investigators do behind the scenes is often shadowed by the higher profile of our wonderful shelters. Donors can best support us by visiting on line and donating via Canada Helps. They can target that donation to animal care, cruelty investigations or the area of greatest need. www.spcans.ca.



What is your average day like when you come into the office?
It depends on the area of our operations that you are speaking of.  With respect to animal care, our volunteers and staff work tirelessly to attend to the needs of thousands of animals currently in our care, either in foster or in shelters. This includes cleaning, laundry, socializing and play, along with feeding, watering and health monitoring. Our shelters are bustling activity centers with the public and volunteers coming and going. At our Provincial Shelter in Dartmouth, we have over 400 active volunteers! Our adoption rates have increased by 63% in just two years and our overall provincial intake has increased by 8% this year. This was accomplished without additional capacity – just by addressing animal flow and adoption promotion.

Our special constables are no less busy. With just two provincial special constables to manage the work load of the entire province, we struggle to address the demand for service. We get over 18,000 calls per year on animal welfare concerns per year and our case load has increased this year by nearly 20%. The most disturbing trends are animal hoarding and abandonment, but we routinely see animals suffering neglect (not provided with food, water and shelter or veterinary care). In the majority of cases, we can resolve the matter through education and voluntary compliance, but there are serious cases of abuse, neglect and cruelty that we see every day. With the volume of calls that we receive, cases are prioritize based on the assessed level of distress of the animal and the potential harm the animal may be in.

In my role as Executive Director, I oversee all aspects of operations, which includes animal care, cruelty investigations, humane education, marketing and communications, public affairs, human resources, finance and administration and fund development. I support the Provincial Society and its network of Branches. In the last year in particular, I have been spending a great deal of time working on engagement with various stakeholders who have a role to play in animal welfare. This list includes, but is not limited to political leaders, municipal units, veterinary associations and police services. I have also been spending a great deal of time working with our Board of Directors on a new governance model to increase compliance and allow for greater standardization across our network of Branches.

How many dogs a week would you say the SPCA processes?
The Nova Scotia SPCA has a relative capacity, which includes both shelters and foster based branches. Our annual intake is close to 8,000. Our hard capacity for dogs at any time is 143 and it is 566 for cats.

How does the volunteer dog-walking program work? Can teens participate?
It depends on the Branch, but generally all of our Branches accept the generous assistance of volunteers who are keen to help give some love and social time to the dogs in our care. Because these activities are generally adhoc in nature, volunteers may be asked to sign in, leave some ID with us and receive some coaching from staff or volunteers in animal care. Many volunteers walk many animals each day, which helps our dogs become socialized. With improved behaviour, their prognosis for a quick adoption also increases. At this time, we accept the assistance of youth under 18 with the help of a guardian/parent.

It’s hard to pick a favorite but can you tell the readers about one special dog that came into the SPCA that captured your heart and why?
There are many wonderful stories and it is hard to pick just one. A recent case we had involving 27 pure bred huskies comes to mind. They were found in deplorable conditions at the hands of an irresponsible breeder. The case took nearly 8 months of hard work by our investigators and resulted in a conviction with a sentence of a prohibition of ownership. The accused also covered all vet costs. The accused actually pled guilty on the first appearance due to the strength of the case. The huskies required a great deal of time in foster care, because they needed to learn to be pets. Absolutely beautiful dogs. They are now in loving forever homes.

The SPCA is an animal shelter and needs funding how can donors donate and what at this time is needed most for the shelter?
Our area of greatest need is actually cruelty investigations. We only receive $3,000 from the provincial government and our budget for province-wide investigations is approximately $500,000. The quiet work that our investigators do behind the scenes is often shadowed by the higher profile of our wonderful shelters. Donors can best support us by visiting on line and donating via Canada Helps. They can target that donation to animal care, cruelty investigations or the area of greatest need. www.spcans.ca.




Saturday, October 8, 2011

You Know You've Launched Your Indie Book When:

  • You live off coffee
  • Frantically search your house for your coffee mug because yet again you’ve lost it
  • You are addicted to your computer
  • You can’t stop searching for blog review sites but don’t have time to cook supper
  • You are becoming multi-lingual: bit/apps are part of your new language
  • You can see the inside of your fridge and your kids are the ones grossed out by what they are discovering in it
  • You mindlessly drive your children to their after school activities – on the wrong day!
  • Your hubby is trying to set the mood to help you celebrate your launch and you’re doing a list in your head of all the places you MUST email tomorrow
  • Your children are bringing you your coffee mugs because they feel sorry for you
  • First thing in the morning you check your Amazon sales site before you even shower
  • That diet you launched two weeks ago is totally gone out the window and you are allowing your kids to eat dry Mr. Noddles because that way you can still avoid getting groceries
  • You check your emails a gazillion times a day to the point the F9 button is worn through
  • You are one minute happy and the next crying and it’s not even PMS!


Renee Pace is trying to juggle motherhood and the launch of her first YA debut novel, Off Leash while keeping her sanity and she would love any help or feedback.

twitter@ReneePaceYA
Off Leash:Hollywood Ending (Nitty Gritty series)  | http://www.amazon.com/dp/B005S4G65Q
Off Leash: Nitty Gritty Ending (Nitty Gritty series)  | http://www.amazon.com/dp/B005S34JO2


Tuesday, October 4, 2011

BookHounds...YA: Contact Me

Wanted you all to check out this unique YA blog - take a peek

Monday, October 3, 2011

Off Leash Debuts on Smashwords


I have finally done it! Late last night I uploaded my first young adult Indie publication to Smashwords. Off Leash is my baby or rebirth in a way. It was an extremely hard book for me to write and took me over a year to polish and feel comfortable with to launch. The book was also a semi-finalist in the 2011 Amazon Breakthrough Novel Contest which had it's own ups and downs. I feel totally awed that it made it that far. And while two publishers expressed interest one passed on it and another publishing company folded. Five years ago that would have broken my heart. Not anymore. One good thing about this movement of Indie publications for authors is that the stories we feel most compelled to tell are getting told.

Someone once asked me where I got the story idea for Off Leash. It's two-fold. One I will admit I was in a writing rut and looking to move into a new genre so when my eldest son took a dog walking job with a neighbour I used that to start the story. The second aspect was I wanted the book to touch on poverty and more importantly I wanted to write about a little girl suffering with cancer because for me I wanted to write about my good friend, Sissy, who died when she was very young. I never forgot her and I wanted my character in this book to feel that way so I created Jay Walker, who's angry at life and the circumstances beyond his control which force him to make adult-like decisions but who loves his little sister with all his heart.

When I came across a US article on dog fighting I thought why not add that element into the story. Turns out dog fighting really does happen in Nova Scotia so in a way my fiction was based on reality.

You can read an excerpt of Off Leash and pick your ending - the nitty gritty real life ending based on reality or the Hollywood happily-ever after ending. I'm very curious to see which ending sells more.

Off Leash: Hollywood ending at http://www.smashwords.com/books/view/93453
Off Leash: Nitty Gritty ending at http://www.smashwords.com/books/view/93444

Thanks so much
Renee Pace