Author: ajmaguire

Yes, I’ve been quiet the past month or so, but for good reasons! My book Paw Prints on the Wall will be out for sale on November 2nd!

I’m so excited. I even put up a countdown widget on this website so you can see how many days are left before you can buy it.

Pre-orders are not available yet, but in case anyone other than my mother wants to do that I will be sure to bring that information here.

This is a Christian Fiction novel with a splash of romance added in, which is new for me. The only other book I’ve written that comes close is Persona, but that one was historical fiction with a splash of Christian fiction. This one is undeniably Christian and tackles some theological themes, so be aware of what you’re walking into when you pick the book up. With all my science fiction and fantasy novels out there, it is a change of pace.

So what is the book about?

In a word? Healing.

Michael York comes to the Almost Home Animal Shelter with little hope. His dog has stopped eating altogether, though the vets can find nothing physically wrong. The loss of his wife to cancer has left him raw, to lose his dog too seems an injustice. But Sarah Riley, the shelter’s owner, has a way with people as well as animals and before he knows it, Michael finds himself knee deep in shelter work, aiding those unfortunate souls who find themselves bereft of a home. But a series of events have stretched Sarah’s finances thin and she has her own troubled past haunting her.

Welcome to another Round Robin!

This month poses the question of whether or not I have placed current political, social, or environmental problems in my work.

Normally I like to try and put a fictional spin on these topics and bring forward a more lighthearted approach to our given content, but for this one…

For this one I am putting the fiction hat aside.

First, it is important to understand that all fiction is influenced by the culture and climate in which the author sits. So there is absolutely no one who should look at that question and say they haven’t managed to fit any of these problems into their work. Whether they meant to or not, it is there.

You can try to say that people are reading too far into the work in order to nitpick and find such hidden gems, but the true beauty of the written word is precisely the ability for readers to dig deeper. Further, their own political viewpoints and social understanding is going to be reflected in how they translate what has been written.

That said, I will admit that until recently I have never set out to deliberately say something about the political and social climate of the world. It has undoubtedly come out in certain works, though.

Deviation is absolutely a commentary on what the world demands women to be and our standards of beauty.

Tapped and Enemy Souls dissect religion versus faith.

The Haunting of Tessa Pines discusses the struggle of veterans as they return from war.

However, these were things that came out through the telling of the story. They were not deliberate set pieces that I put in there, which is good because I think if I’d tried to shove them in on purpose the stories would have felt stilted and preachy.

It is important for me to say that I did not at any time attempt to solve the problems displayed in the books. I cannot offer solutions, only illumination. And sometimes, hope. Because in the middle of illuminating the problem, others who identify with the characters on the page have a sense that they are not alone. And there is nothing that brings hope more than those four little words: You are not alone.

Take a look at what some of my fellows have to say about politics in fiction.

Skye Taylor http://www.skye-writer.com/blogging_by_the_sea

A.J. Maguire https://ajmaguire.wordpress.com/ (YOU ARE HERE)

Diane Bator http://dbator.blogspot.ca/

Connie Vines http://mizging.blogspot.com/

Marci Baun http://www.marcibaun.com/blog/

Anne Stenhouse http://annestenhousenovelist.wordpress.com

Dr. Bob Rich https://wp.me/p3Xihq-1Ng

Rhobin Courtright http://rhobincourtright.com

SO!

I read this book in a day.

Because I couldn’t put it down.

I deeply enjoyed the world the author created, and the characters on the page were vivid and clear. But most important… the end sequence. The stakes kept ramping up, the circumstances kept plummeting, and I wanted desperately to reach into the pages, grip Feyre by the arm and help her to her feet.

There were a number of swoon-worthy gentlemen in there that my romantic heart quite enjoyed as well.

I will say that I would have liked Feyre to have a female confidant, someone she could step away from all the smoldering looks and whatnot, so that she was not so heavily reliant on the men in this fairy castle, but that might have slowed the pacing down. Still, I am hopeful in the next book – which I absolutely must buy after that heart-pounding experience – that the world will open up a little more and give us some deeper friendships for Feyre to explore.

For parents out there — this book does have some adult situations in it, so it may not be appropriate to younger audiences.

For everyone else – yes, even the men – I highly recommend this book. The world came to life via the prejudices that were lived in it, and the love story was one that kept me turning the pages.

Purchas Info:: I had this on my Kindle, just waiting for me to discover it’s loveliness, so I’ll direct you to Amazon!

This month’s Round Robin conversation – Yes, I’m back to doing these after a rather long hiatus – poses the question of what we like to do when our writing stalls and if it helps us get back on track. Granted, I took this a different direction, but if I’m being honest… I’m not sure any of us are ever really free of a stalled story. It lurks and hounds us wherever we go.

STALL STAGE #1 – Identifying The Problem

All was well in the quiet house. The cats had ceased their attempts at usurping the keyboard and the dog lay subdued across the writer’s feet, lending their support to the writer’s endeavors in as unobtrusive a manner as possible. For the writer’s part, she was content. The words were flowing. She had an inkling of where the story was going and her characters were amusing – at least to her.

She hoped they would amuse others.

And then…

And then her fingers stopped moving on the keyboard, her mind a sudden and horrible blank.

It was as though the anti-muse had snuck into the writer’s sanctum between one word and the next, and breathed a horrid gas of indecision straight into the writer’s face. The words stopped flowing.

Fingers poised above the keyboard, the writer had a fleeting panic that maybe the words would never flow again, but in the next instant she shoved that thought away. She was a practiced hand at this now and she recognized the anti-muse for what it really was: her subconscious had spotted a mistake somewhere earlier in the draft.

STALL STAGE #2 – The Brain Dump

With the laptop closed, and the dog freshly walked – said dog is in a love-hate relationship with the anti-muse as the appearance of that spectral visitor does inevitably mean more walkies, and after proper homage has been dealt to the cats – best done with a brush, there’s really no better way to appease those monsters – the writer settles back into her chair. She draws out the precious notebook, its coffee-stained pages and scribbled notes her first hope of overcoming what has stalled her writing.

She turns to the page titled Brain Dump and proceeds to read everything she knows about the world her story is in: the tidbits she knows about her characters, the breadcrumbs that may lead to larger plots, the setting, and the rules of the magic system. All of it is here, written in various ink colors because the Brain Dump has been with her since the beginning, from the moment the great idea sparked, and she has been adding to it all along.

Reviewing the Brain Dump reminds her what she set out to do. She highlights things now that she had forgotten to keep forward, and she puts question marks by things she hasn’t used or that don’t feel quite right anymore.

And she thanks Neil Gaiman’s Master Class for teaching her to do this Brain Dump periodically in the writing process, because without it she would surely be beating her head against the keyboard.

STALL STAGE #3 – The Review

Our intrepid writer is tech-savvy enough to own a Kindle that has a means of accessing her work in progress, which she uses now to get out of the desk chair. Lounging as she would when reading anyone else’s book allows her to step outside of her writer-brain. The only difference here is that she can highlight things that need altering on the screen – like the fact that all of her characters either blink or smirk too much.

This is not a quick process.

Many walks are required.

The cats demand homage.

The family complains that they must eat.

But then…

Wrist-deep in dishwater, the scrub brush in one hand and a pot in the other, she sees it. The mistake that had been made, the missing moment from earlier in the story, or the fact that there are too many personalities on the page and three characters need to be morphed into one; it’s all clear to her now.

She scrubs the pot and continues with the dishes. The real Muse is back, playing out all the options for how the writer can fix it.

With the dishes dried and put away, the writer makers her way back to the desk. It’s late, but the words need to be captured. She brings out her notebook and turns back to the Brain Dump, this time with her pen ready to make an update. The dog brings her squeak toy a few times and one of the cats tries to lay on top of the notebook while the other chases the dip and swirl of the pen across the page. Who knows where the third cat is.

The writer might be exasperated, but that hardly matters.

The words are flowing again, and the story moves on.

—

My thanks to Rhobin and her wonderful Round Robin conversations. Have a look at what some of my fellow authors like to do when they need to step away from the page for a while.

Skye Taylor http://www.skye-writer.com/blogging_by_the_sea

Dr. Bob Rich — https://wp.me/p3Xihq-2CG

Connie Vines http://mizging.blogspot.com/

Anne Stenhouse http://annestenhousenovelist.wordpress.com

Diane Bator http://dbator.blogspot.ca/

A.J. Maguire  (YOU ARE HERE)

Rhobin Courtright https://www.rhobincourtright.com/

Every year at this time I take stock of what I’ve managed to accomplish writing-wise and take a peek at the calendar for next year. This is a fun post for me, even though it grants no real substance for those who come here looking for reviews and/or a glimpse into the struggles of writing life.

Which is really my way of saying you don’t have to read on if none of this interests you.

I suspect only die-hard fans and family really will. (Hello, all! I love you!)

This year I managed to complete two novels from start to finish. Pawprints on the Wall is my Christian Romance revolving around an animal shelter. And One Big Werewolf Wedding/Darkside of Bright (I’ll settle on a title eventually) is the beginning of a much longer series about Nora Grayson, marital counselor to the supernatural among us. Both are out on query.

I also revised Melody of Bones, but I admit that I am sitting on that one before I send it out to query.

If I send it out to query.

It may be that I choose to Wattpad/Kindle Vella that one.

When COVID hit, I had to loosen my standards for deadlines and works because I was helping my son at home with his schoolwork for much of the year. And, quite frankly, when he is home I tend to do less work. He will turn 14 in January, and I am beginning to feel the loss of him. Every day he grows and every day I sense his distancing from the little boy he was, so I will happily set aside my work to treasure what time I have with him.

That being said, two novels written to completion is fantastic. The third being revised was icing on the cake.

So what do I hope to do in 2022?

The second Nora book is being outlined presently, with first chapters already in the works. I will likely begin the new year with either a short story/novella or the second book in this series.

The third book in the Tapped series, tentatively titled Tango Five, has been niggling at me for weeks now. Enemy Souls did very well, and continues to bring in new reviews that make me smile. (To those of you who take the time to write a review, thank you so much! You’re all amazing.)

Beyond that, I have been feeling the itch to return to fantasy. I’m not sure if this means revisiting Trenna and the Sedition series or beginning something new. We will have to see.

I will keep querying the completed novels (Pawprints and Nora) until they find a home.

And lastly, in 2022, I want to read two books a month.

To my fellow writers out there, I hope you are inspired and happily working away at your novels. To my fellow readers out there, if you have any suggestions I am happy to take recommendations for books. I am on Goodreads!

To all of you, I wish you the happiest of holidays. Celebrate in safety.

I managed to read this book in a day. For those who love books – and let’s be honest, if you’re reading a book review you obviously love books – this is an adventure you are going to want to take. The writing was intelligent and fun and the adventure had me engaged from start to finish.

I particularly enjoyed the dirigible, but I’m one of those people who loves steampunk flavor whenever she can get it.

For those parents who need to know, this novel is safe for young adults. It does draw up interesting themes of chaos versus order, and some of the conversations may be better fit for a more mature crowd, but there are no explicit scenes you need to beware of.

I thoroughly enjoyed myself whilst reading and have already picked up the second novel in the series. Given the amount of time it took me to read the first, I’d say this was a good popcorn novel for people who need something while traveling via plane.