Guest Post on Thoughts in Progress!

I had the pleasure of guest posting on Mason Canyon's wonderful book blog, Thoughts in Progress, today. Mason's prompt-questions were very inspiring and a pleasure to think through, particularly those about the messages behind my novel, Barefoot Girls. I don't think anyone sits down to write a novel with a specific message, but it's fascinating to discover what themes came through as the work was created; things that usually are very meaningful to the writer.

What a great experience - thanks, Mason!

Check it out here:
http://www.masoncanyon.blogspot.com/2012/04/author-tara-mctiernan-voracious-reader.html

Ebook Drama

John Scalzi, that talented science fiction writer and very smart man, wrote a brilliant article on his blog about ebooks that I think all people who love books should read. Check it out here:

http://whatever.scalzi.com/2012/04/12/dear-consumers-who-apparently-think-the-current-drama-surrounding-ebooks-is-like-a-football-game/ 

Here is something he said that hit me in the solar plexus and made me want to blog about it. Commenting about the various players (including Amazon, major publishing, Apple, etc.)  in the current ebook drama unfolding due to the Department of Justice's case against Apple and five major publishers, Mr. Scalzi wisely said, "Each of these companies are interested in making it appear that they are on your side, or at the very least, will wish to validate your choice to be on their side. Please be smarter than that. Recognize that they love you for your money."

Exactly. 

There is a battle going on for readers' pocketbooks, pocketbooks that seem to be growing as more and more people are discovering how incredibly convenient, lightweight, and affordable ebooks are. All these players had no idea that there was so much money in ebooks and they want as much as they can get their hands on. And they will do whatever

How Do You Get Your Inspiration?

I've recently been asked the following question a number of times: "How do you get your inspiration?"

This is a time-worn question to writers along with the well-meant-but-still-insulting, "Where do you find the time to write?" (Apparently, we writers have just so much time on our hands! It's remarkable! Yet, most novelists have demanding full-time jobs, spouses, children, pets and a wide assortment of time-sucking responsibilities to attend to just like everyone else.)

The first question is not insulting at all. It's flattering. It is the innocent and fascinated question of a person who probably reads quite a lot; who read your novel and wondered, where does she come up with this stuff? Is there an ethereal being, the revered and also feared Muse, at her beck and call? How can I get this Muse to come to my house? Does she like warm cookies and milk?

The train of thought about creativity I just described is common. In fact, it's so common that a film, a late-90s comedy, was built around this premise of the necessity of a muse. It was called, appropriately, The Muse and starred Sharon Stone as the coveted creature living in the lap of luxury thanks to an army of deluded Hollywood screenwriters and directors who vie for her magical abilities. 

 

But the writer who waits for the muse writes sporadically if at all. No, if you want that magic, you're going to have some butt-in-chair time, hands on the keyboard, sans fairy dust. The only way to get inspired is

What’s a “Beach Read” Anyway?

Although I generally love the weather in North Carolina where my husband and I live, this spring has been ridiculously summer-like with its hot days and heavy humidity (today, it's 84 degrees). While this has most locals speculating about whether this summer will be an inferno so hot we’ll be frying eggs on the sidewalk, but what it got me thinking about is the term “beach read”. I guess all this steamy heat has me yearning for cool sea breezes and the roar of incoming waves against the shore.

So, what does this term mean, anyway? Isn’t every book a book you can read on the beach or by the pool? Honestly, I read all kinds of books on the beach (and everywhere else). I’ve read scary horror novels on the beach and touching memoirs on the beach and nonfiction how-to’s on the beach. I don’t have a particular kind of book I search for before I go to the beach – do you? So, what’s up with this silly seemingly-meaningless term?

You might be asking: “Why do you care, Tara? What’s the big kerfuffle?” (Damn, I’ve always wanted to use that word in a blog post, and I finally got my chance! Kerfuffle! Kerfuffle! Okay, calm down.) The answer: it’s one of the search terms on online book stores for Barefoot Girls.

So, I decided to do a little research, and this is what I found out

Interview on Freda's Voice

My very first author interview was recently conducted on Freda's Voice, a wonderful book blog I admire greatly.

It was a lot of fun doing this with Freda, who in addition to being well-read and very smart, is also very kind - offering her help to get the word out regarding my novel Barefoot Girls. If you're interested in seeing the interview in all its glory, check it out here: http://fredasvoice.blogspot.com/get-to-know-author-tara-mctiernan

Even better, sign up for the giveaway! A free copy of the ebook is being given to the lucky winner - why can't that be you?

Barefoot Girls Song List – Bonus Tracks!

A lot of novels have additional matter in the back including maps of the fictional place/setting, character listings, and Reader’s Guides for book clubs. One of my beta readers, Elise, said that Barefoot Girls was well-suited for a readers group, so, voila! The ebook has a list of questions for discussion designed for a book club in the back (the print version will have the same bonus content).

Another thing that came to mind while I was writing the book and again while I was editing and re-reading it, was that it was a natural for a soundtrack or playlist. There are just so many songs that the Barefoot Girls love, so many songs that are referenced in the book at pivotal moments and even quoted lyrics (printed with permission, of course) used for effect in one scene. So, that was another destined “back-matter” item located in the final pages of the book: a list of sing-along songs from Captain’s Island, where people still sing socially and without American Idol-inspired anxiety. No, on Captain’s, you don’t have to limit your warblings to the shower or a karaoke night.

For readers who visit this site, I thought I’d throw in some bonus tracks – the other great songs that call to mind moments from my novel Barefoot Girls. In fact, if this book is ever made into a movie, I’m going to insist on most of the songs on the original list plus a few from this one.

Barefoot Truths: You’ve got to have friends…

And most of us don’t have enough of them. Not the close kind, the kind of friends you can turn to both when things are going perfectly – blue skies forever - and when life is at its worst and you feel like nothing will ever be right again.

A question that people ask me after reading my novel Barefoot Girls is: what was your inspiration? Well, the book was about a lot of things - the unique mother-daughter relationship, finding true love, the past and its potential hold over our lives – but most of all, it’s about friends.  Specifically, it’s about women’s friendships: our basic need for them, the blessings and benefits that come with them, and the challenges that are also inherent within them.

In our ever-faster ever-busier modern lives, it seems to me that friendships are falling by the wayside, being dropped like dead weight as we rush onward, trying to keep up with a million responsibilities and interests. This is a mistake as that extra effort that goes into your friendships repays you a hundred-fold in the end. Your friends are your mirror, your cheerleaders, your helping hands, your shoulders to cry on. They are there for you in ways your family, your significant other, and your children just can’t be. Maybe it’s because