The Young Adult Writer's Journey by Elizabeth Fortin-Hinds & Janet Schrader-Post - Book Tour - Book Sale - Book Trailer - Guest Post - Giveaway - Enter Daily!

Hello lovelies!  It gives me great pleasure today to host Elizabeth Fortin-Hinds and Janet Schrader-Post and their new book, “The Young Adult Writer's Journey”!  For other stops on their Goddess Fish Promotions Book Tour, please click on the banner above or any of the images in this post.

Be sure to make it to the end of this post to enter to win a $25 Amazon or Barnes and Noble Gift Card!!  Also, come back daily to interact with Elizabeth and Janet and to increase your chances of winning!

This book is on SALE during the book tour for ONLY $0.99!!!  See below for more details.

Thanks for stopping by!  Wishing you lots of luck in this fabulous giveaway!

The Young Adult Writer's Journey

by Elizabeth Fortin-Hinds & Janet Schrader-Post

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GENRE: Non-Fiction

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BLURB:

Finally, an all-inclusive book on young adult fiction must-do, don’t do and how-to. If you want to write a young adult novel, you need to read this book first. Coauthored by an award-winning YA author and an acquisitions editor, both experts on kids and what they like to read, this encyclopedia contains all you need to start or improve a career as a YA fiction author.

From an examination of the market, genre and its sub-genres, to mechanics and the business, everything is at your fingertips. This amazing writer’s resource is written in a relaxed and interesting style, with plenty of contemporary references and examples for clear understanding and easier application.

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EXCERPT ONE:

Most writing classes for Young Adult fiction and Middle Grade tell you the duty of your book’s opening is to hook your reader and to catch the interest of an agent. The truth is, that’s only one of the purposes of your opening. Too often we forget that, as Frank Herbert said in Dune, “A beginning is a very delicate time.”

When writing for young adults, you should know where you’re going, just as when you write adult fiction. Plot construction for stories with universal themes is the same in any genre. There is a plan, a plot, a diagram you can follow to create a satisfying read. Just as with painting, every artist who uses the same subject will create a different and unique work of art. So, using a basic outline to be sure you write a story that resonates to the inner psyche of readers is not a bad idea. 

Some may argue that modern stories can’t demonstrate enough diversity when trying to fit the entire world into a single format such as The Hero’s Journey, but iconic success stories like Star Wars, The Lord of the Rings, the Harry Potter stories and more don’t seem to mind. They’re hardly the same stories, are they? Do they seem like boring knockoffs to you? Millions of fans and dollars later...they are still growing their fan base. Lucas even spoke of Star Wars and the incorporation of Joseph Campbell’s Hero’s Journey and appeared in his Bill Moyer’s series.

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BOOK TRAILER:

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GUEST POST:

Why I Love Books

When I was a kid, in the sixties, (yes I’m that old,) we didn’t have cell phones, computers, X-Boxes or even decent TV. I had books. My brother left home for college when I was fourteen, and from then on I was an only child. My parents were socially active. They liked to square dance and play golf. I wasn’t interested in either thing. I stayed home alone a lot. I’ve always been a little bit of an introvert. This period of spending so much time by myself just increased those tendencies. I didn’t have any friends living close by, so, my only escape was into books and I loved to read.

My obsession with books really started in kindergarten. I am severely dyslectic. Phonics was just emerging as a novel way to teach kids to read. They tried it on me, and I immediately caught on. I’ve always loved puzzles and phonics was like a puzzle. Sound out the letters correctly and you get words. I was amazed and so good at it, the people introducing the program dragged me around to show it off. By the time I was out of kindergarten, I’d read every book in their library. I was on my way to being a serious reader.

Everything we learn academically we learn from books. So, being a good reader with good comprehension is important. I did very well in school because of my reading habits. The first books I fell in love with were Walter Farley’s Black Stallion books. His series on the Black Stallion and the Red Stallion fascinated me because I also love horses.

After Farley, I read Nancy Drew mysteries and started reading science fiction, romance, fantasy, really any book I could get my hands on. When I discovered my father’s adult adventure novels, I became obsessed. He’d get the newest releases from the library, and while he was at work, I’d read them and slyly put them back when he came home. I loved James Clavell. His novels about the orient were fascinating. Taipan, Noble House and Shogun remain all-time favorites of mine.

Around age sixteen, I discovered Leon Uris. Exodus is to me, one of the best, most moving books, ever written. But it was Mail 18, the book about the Warsaw Ghetto, that inspired me to write the Vagrant series. When I read the story of the little kids used to run medicine through the sewers beneath Warsaw, food and necessities, from the Jews trapped inside the ghetto to Christians helping them outside the ghetto, I cried for them. It left a lasting impression. My Vagrants living under the big cities of my dystopic world, used kids to run medicine from doctors helping them, back to the Vagrants living under the city.

My favorite authors remain to this day and are all over the place as far as genre. I read everything Andre Norton ever wrote. She was a science fiction writer but much of her work is aimed at young adults. Another favorite, and this is a weird one, is Georgette Heyer. Her use of our language is amazing. Her sentences long and so well put together, are masterful and flow almost like poetry. Her characters are so beautifully drawn, so clever and often funny, I can read her books over and over just for the joy of her plots, characters and that masterful use of words.

When I first started reading romance, I read Roberta Gellis and Kathleen Woodiwiss. Their heroes were always easy to fall in love with and their heroines spirited. I also medieval settings. My first book I ever wrote was a romance. I joined Romance Writers of America and learned to write at conference workshops. The amount of information on the business of writing and how to do it at these workshops covered every aspect you could think of.

I like reading Lee Childs books about his fabulous character, Jack Reacher, thrillers by John Sanford and the crazy sorta-thrillers about Stephanie Plum by Janet Evanovich. I heard a trick to learning how to write when I was first starting. You take a chapter from a writer you think is really good and copy it out in long hand. I chose John Sanford. He has a no-nonsense style, I really admire. His sentence structures are simple, straightforward and they flow like water over slick rocks.

I was one of those kids who read the back of cereal boxes. I just love the written word. A good book can take you out of this world and transport you anywhere you want to go.

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AUTHOR BIO – JANET SCHRADER-POST:

Daughter of a Colonel, Janet Schrader-Post lived the military life until she got out of high school. She lived in Hawaii and worked as a polo groom for fifteen years, then moved to Florida where she became a reporter. For ten years she covered kids in high school and middle school. Kids as athletes, kids doing amazing things no matter how hard their circumstances. It impressed her, and it awed her. “How wonderful teens are. They have spirit and courage in the face of the roughest time of their lives. High school is a war zone. Between dodging bullies, school work and after school activities, teens nowadays have a lot on their plate. I wrote stories about them and I photographed them. My goal was to see every kid in their local newspaper before they graduated.”

Janet love kids and horses, and she paints and writes. Now she lives in the swampland of Florida with too many dogs and her fifteen-year-old granddaughter. She started to write young adult fiction with the help of her son, Gabe Thompson, who teaches middle school. Together they have written a number of award-winning YA novels in both science fiction and fantasy.

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CONNECT WITH JANET:

Website:

http://www.jpostauthor.com

Email:

http://www.jpostauthor.com/437489841

Tell-Tale Publishing Author Page:

https://www.tell-talepublishing.com/gabe-thompson.html

Goodreads Author Page:

https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/18643280.Janet_Schrader_Post

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AUTHOR BIO – ELIZABETH FORTIN-HINDS:

Elizabeth Fortin-Hinds knows kids well. She spent decades teaching teens and adults to write and improve their reading skills. As a literacy expert and certified coach, she helped both teachers from elementary to secondary and preservice graduate students learn to improve reading and writing instruction. She has taught at both the secondary and graduate level, everything from rhetoric, essays, and thesis statements, to poetry, short stories, and how to write a novel. She has learned to use both sides of her brain simultaneously, but enjoys the creative side the most, learning to play piano, draw and paint, and find time for her own writing since retiring from her “day” jobs. 

A “true believer” in Joseph Campbell’s The Hero with a Thousand Faces, mythic structures, she uses that lens when considering manuscripts for Tell-Tale Publishing Group, a company she founded with some friends from her critique group a decade ago.

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CONNECT WITH ELIZABETH:

YouTube Channel:

https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCE50rqm6CNAo0ygLTjFw3Xw

Wise Words Publishing Author Page:

http://www.wisewordspublishing.com/elizabeth-fortin-hinds-phd.html

Goodreads Author Page:

https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/18622739.Elizabeth_Fortin_Hinds

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WISE WORDS PUBLISHING:

Wise Words Publishing, an Affiliate of Tell-Tale Publishing Group, LLC

We are a small press, a traditional publishing company bringing you the best in E-books, print and audio books to feed your body, mind and spirit.  Our cutting-edge fiction includes old favorites and edgy speculative fiction for today's eclectic readers.  Our stories will grab your attention and take you on a fast, exciting ride that will leave you breathless. WW, our affiliate, publishes select literature under our Cosmos Imprint and nonfiction titles under our Ivy Tower Imprint. www.wisewordspublishing.com.

Founded in 2009, in Michigan's Lower Peninsula. Our company motto of "excellence in creative entertainment and learning, " informs our artwork, manuscript selection, editing and publishing. 

www.tell-talepublishing.com.

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BOOK BUY LINKS & BOOK SALE INFO:

**The Young Adult Writer’s Journey is on SALE during the book tour for ONLY $0.99!!!**

Amazon Kindle:

https://amzn.to/2RaCCDz

Amazon Hardcover:

https://amzn.to/2RB79cQ

Barnes and Noble Nook Book:

https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/the-young-adult-writers-journey-janet-schrader-post/1129933145

Barnes and Noble Hardcover:

https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/the-young-adult-writers-journey-janet-schrader-post/1129903135

The Book Depository Hardcover:

https://www.bookdepository.com/The-Young-Adult-Writers-Journey-Janet-Schrader-Post-Elizabeth-Fortin-Hinds/9781944056988

BAM! Books-A-Million Hardcover:

http://www.booksamillion.com/product/A15064567713

Goodreads Book Page:

https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/42934393-the-young-adult-writer-s-journey

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GIVEAWAY INFO:

Elizabeth and Janet will be awarding a $25 Amazon or B/N GC to a randomly drawn winner via Rafflecopter during the tour.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

**This post contains affiliate links and if clicked and a purchase is made, I may receive a small commission to help support this blog.  This does not cost you anything, it just helps pay for all those awesome giveaways on here.**

This contest is sponsored by a third party. Fabulous and Brunette is a registered host of Goddess Fish Promotions.  Prizes are given away by the sponsors and not Fabulous and Brunette. The featured author and Goddess Fish Promotions are solely responsible for the giveaway prize.