Tuesday, December 16, 2014

10 Books About Writing

I've probably left some great ones off the list, but here are the 10 books about writing I've found extremely helpful, in no particular order.

1)The Nighttime Novelist: Finish Your Novel in Your Spare Time by Joseph Bates   This book takes you through the story arc process and explains what you need to do to formulate characters and structure. There are only a few writing samples, which is why I liked it.

2)On Writing by Stephen King   This is an inspirational memoir from a great writer with fantastic advice.

3)Wonderbook by Jeff Vandermeer   A gorgeous manual on how to write, especially for fantasists, but anyone can use it. Full of illustrations and diagrams and imagination.

4)The Writer's Journey by Christopher Vogler   Mythic structure for writers. Basically, the Hero's Journey in detailed, helpful description.

5)Book in a Month by Victoria Lynn Schmidt   I couldn't write a book in a month, but this book pretty much charts how to write a novel in detailed steps.

6)Bullies, Bastards, and Bitches by Jessica Page Morrell   Need a hand with that antagonist you're creating? This book explains how to build a villain worthy of a hero.

7)Characters and Viewpoint by Orson Scott Card   Excellent advice on how to construct a character with depth and originality.

8)Thanks, But This Isn't For Us by Jessica Page Morrell   This book warns writers what to avoid when writing, the common pitfalls and boring bits. It also explains how to correct these problems.


9)Bird by Bird by Anne Lamott   Another fantastic memoir, a guide on how to write and manage a writer's life.

10)Torn wings and Faux Pas/The New Well-Tempered Sentence by Karen Elizabeth Gordon   Two excellent and fun books on the mechanics of writing. Lots of whimsical and entertaining examples.

Tuesday, December 2, 2014

Thorn Jack Contest Update


So the winners have been contacted and I hope everyone stays tuned for another contest! Thank you to everyone who entered on Twitter and through my newsletter sign-up! The newsletter is almost finished!

Congrats to Melinda, Brittany, Sia, and Laurice!

Sunday, November 30, 2014

Thorn Jack Contest News!


I'll be making the announcement for the winners of the Thorn Jack contest on Tuesday Dec. 2 instead of Monday Dec. 1, because I won't be at my computer on Monday. There'll be one grand prize winner and 3 winners of the Thorn Jack audio. Stay tuned!

My Trunk Novels: Books I Never Finished


They're the books that almost made it, but didn't quite get completed, or reach a final draft. They're the forgotten, the abandoned, the trunk novels...

ElfBlood: An epic fantasy about a war between Faeries and Elves. Lots of world-building.

TatterSleeves: Set on a fictional tropical island during the Victorian era, this one is about a young woman and her cousins who discover that her imaginary friend, a beautiful young man, is, in fact, real, and dangerous.

Halcyon Summer: A fantasy set in a world resembling a modern Renaissance Venice, with masked citizens and creepy saints and a grotesque killer called the Imago stalking the scattered siblings of a boy named Halcyon.

Liquid Air: A ghost story. A troubled young man learns that a twin brother and sister from a family that became rich making perfumes died in his house in the sixties, and that they might have a tragic connection to him.

The Butterfly Hotel: An urban fantasy set in a Florida resort town, where a young woman who is a witch falls in love with a young man harboring a dark secret.

AngelDust: Three young people in contemporary America are seduced by a fallen angel and learn there are others, who, when close to him, metamorphose into terrible or beautiful creatures.

Monday, November 17, 2014

10 Favorite Fairy Films

Someone asked me what some of my favorite fairy films were. It was actually a little difficult to come up with 10, but here they are:

Labyrinth (1986) Goblins, biting fairies, and a heroine trying to find her way through a maze-like wonderland. And David Bowie as a sinister, elegant Goblin King. Production by Froud!

The Neverending Story (1984) With its fairy-like Child Empress and strange creatures, this film of a boy reading about a young hero in a fantasy land is a modern fairy tale.

Pan's Labyrinth (2006) Guillermo del Toro's gorgeous and imaginative film about a young girl dealing with the brutal circumstances of her life by communicating with a grotesquely beautiful, ram-horned creature.

Mama (2013) The creature in this film could be the ghost of a fairy changeling. The terrifying and heartbreaking battle for the souls of two little girls makes this the perfect fairy tale.

The Lord of the Rings/The Hobbit (2001-2014) Elves and orcs who might as well be fairies and goblins . . . what more can you ask for?

The Brothers Grimm (2005) A film based on fairy tales, with the Brothers Grimm as the heroes, who must rescue the children of a German village from an evil and beautiful enchantress.

The Company of Wolves (1984) Okay, this film has no fairies, but it is a fairy tale and as sexy and disturbing as the original fairy tales were.The film is based on Angela Carter's short story of Little Red Riding Hood.

Outcast (2010) This Irish horror film uses the myth of the Tuatha De Danaan, the old gods of Ireland, as a race of supernatural beings who exist in contemporary Ireland. A mother and her son run from hunters as a hideous monster kills people in their wake.

The Ring (2002) This is another film that, although absent of any fairies, has a changeling child, obtained from some unknown place and raised by an affluent couple. Her malign influence infects anyone who views a VCR tape recorded over the well where she was murdered.

Peter Pan (2003) Fairies, mermaids, and a perfect Tinkerbell. And Jason Isaacs as the best Captain Hook ever.

Wednesday, November 12, 2014

Thorn Jack Trade Paperback Cover

HERE'S A LOOK at the new cover for the trade paperback version of Thorn Jack, due out March 2014.


Tuesday, October 21, 2014

Thorn Jack Contest!


SO HALLOWEEN'S OVER and I've made 2 amendments to the contest!

Throughout November, if you sign up for my newsletter http://katherineharbour.com/contact.php#mailing-list (coming out the end of this month), or follow me on Twitter https://twitter.com/katharbour with a tweet to @katharbour mentioning why you liked Thorn Jack, you'll be entered in the drawing for the 4 items pictured below!



Pictured on this page: the audio version of Thorn Jack with an autographed label; the book Faeries: The Deluxe Edition by Brian Froud; the Fairy Tale Tarot; and one of my small 8"x16" oil paintings on pressboard (pictured right).

Two runners up will each win the audio version of Thorn Jack with an autographed label.

The contest will run November 1-November 30, 2014, with the winners being announced as a separate post on this blog after Nov. 30. The winners have 2 weeks to send their contact emails and postal addresses. This contest is only available to U.S. residents. Prizes will be sent via U.S. mail.








And if you've read Thorn Jack, you have the advantage!







Wednesday, October 15, 2014

Interview With Bishop O'Connell


Bishop O'Connell is the author of The Stolen: An American Faerie Tale, now available in paperback or as an ebook. You can learn about his writing experience at his blog  A Quiet Pint  He was nice enough to be my first author interview!

Describe your book The Stolen in one paragraph:

It's a modern faerie tale. However, my faeries live in our world, hiding in plain sight. Because of this, they've evolved and grown with humanity. They've traded their bows for guns, horses for sports cars, and pots of gold for stock portfolios. They still have revels, but now they happen in nightclubs. In this world, a mortal child is taken, a violation of the faerie laws, and her mother must get her back. The problem being that her mother's knowledge of faeries and magic extends as far as Disney movies and the stories her immigrant grandparents told her.

What inspired The Stolen? Why did you want to write about fairy folk?

The inspiration was the poem 'The Stolen Child' by W.B. Yeats. The poem is about faeries luring a child away from 'a world more full of weeping than you can understand.' I wanted to tell the rest of the story, the parents' side.
I've always loved faerie tales, the magic and lore behind them. But, mostly, I just love faeries. I think it's because unlike so many other fantastical creatures, they're so close to human, they feel real. I like the idea of believable fantasy.

Is this your first work of fiction?

It's my first published work. The first novel I finished is a high fantasy, though in the Tolkien fashion, I set it in the past of our world. It was to be a trilogy on a different mythology, but I've decided to rework it as a side series to "An American Faerie Tale": In fact, the sequel to The Stolen, The Forgotten, makes some references to this side series.

What kind of research did you do for The Stolen?

I've been into fantasy since I was a little kid. I played D & D and I read faerie tales. Mostly, I pulled from what I knew, though I did look up a number of things to make sure I had it right. At first, The Stolen pulled from various mythologies--even Shakespeare--but I ended up going my own path and created my own mythos. The vast majority of research I did was on the languages in the book, Irish, Welsh, and Latin, and medical research. Since one of the characters is a doctor and another a nurse, I wanted to know what I was talking about.

Which character was easy to write? Which was the most difficult?

Edward was the easiest to write. He is what I imagine happening if I, or any of my fellow geeks, get our wish and find ourselves able to use magic. It doesn't always go very well. The hardest was Caitlin. It wasn't because she's a woman, but because she's a parent. I don't have kids, and I had to imagine what it would be like to be a parent, a mother, in her situation. Luckily, I have some really good friends who helped with that. One in particular really helped me understand what it would be like as a mother to be in Caitlin's shoes.

What is your writing space like? Or can you write anywhere?

I need a comfortable chair, a decent desk, and music. If I have those things, and a computer obviously, I can lose myself in my writing and go to work.

Any odd writing habits?

I don't know if it's odd, but I've been trying to drink less soda. When I write, I suck down Mountain Dew like it was ambrosia from the gods.

Do you outline?

I try, but it never works out. I usually start one to get an idea of where I want the story to go, what points along the way should happen and where it ends. However, around Chapter 3, the characters have decided to go their own way and I'm just trying to keep up.

What is the first fairy book you've ever read?

I don't remember if it was the first I read, but The Hobbit was the first I remember really enjoying. Like many my age, I saw that animated movie first, and I just had to read the book. I've been hooked ever since.

What is your favorite fictional world, one you'd want to visit?

This is going to sound like a cop out, but I like those worlds that are like ours. I've always used reading as an escape, and my childhood was less than pleasant. As such, I tended to be drawn to stories that felt like they could almost be real. It made me think maybe, just maybe, I could escape into them for real. Jim Butcher does a nice job with his Dresden Files series: In fact, I always look for landmarks when I go to Chicago. For a true fantasy, I have to go with Middle Earth. Who wouldn't want to have a drink with hobbits in front of a warm fire, or get to see Rivendell in person?

What is the best writing advice you've ever received?

It was the advice I received in the early stage of The Stolen, when my mythology was an amalgam of many existing mythologies. An editor I hired told me that what I came up with on my own was good, and that I should trust myself. So I went with that and while my roots are in traditional faerie lore, the book is something I think is original. I carried that advice forward into all my writing. Trusting yourself isn't always easy, especially as a first time published author. But that advice has gotten me this far, and if I do fail, it won't be because I wasn't true to myself.

In The Stolen, are there any hidden acknowledgements to friends, to places you've lived, favorite writers, etc;?

There are a couple of Easter eggs. The most obvious is a nod to Harry Dresden. In a scene one character asks another where they're going to find a wizard, "it's not like they're listed in the phone book under 'w.'" Fans of the Dresden Files know that Harry actually is in the phone book. Location is also important to me, so I set it in Manchester, NH and Boston, Ma. I live in Manchester and I liked adding depth to the story so people might recognize places and landmarks. I wanted the locations to feel real. The sequel is set quite a bit in Seattle, and I've spent time there. Anyone from there, or who has lived there, will find some famous landmarks taking on a very different appearance.

Can you tell us what we have to look forward to in the sequel to The Stolen?

I really stretched myself for The Forgotten. In it I use quantum mechanics as a way of explaining magic. In fact, one of the characters refers to herself as a "quantamancer." I also explore the idea of an unreliable narrator, to be blunt, she's crazy. I liked exploring the idea of someone who could shape reality having a less than firm grip on reality. What would that mean? It also reveals a lot about the history of the fae and one in particular who was a prominent--and popular--character from the first book, Dante.

Thank you!

Thank you. It's always nice to talk about my work to another faerie fan!


Thursday, October 9, 2014

Thank You to the Book Club


Thank you to the ladies who run one of Sarasota's most fun and elegant book clubs. I had a great time discussing Thorn Jack with you and meeting each of you. It was a perfect Halloween setting!

The Stolen: An American Faerie Tale by Bishop O'Connell


With a hero who reminds me a little of Jamie Fraser from Outlander crossed with a nicer version of Wolverine, The Stolen is a quick-moving urban fantasy set in Boston, about a young woman named Catilin, whose daughter is stolen by some truly nasty and creepy dark faeries. She's helped by Brendan, an exiled warrior; the elegant elf Dante; and Edward, Catilin's lovelorn friend, who is learning how to use his wizard powers. Brendan is struggling with a tragedy from long ago. Caitlin is attempting to rescue her child from the twist of a villain. Dante the elf is trying to prevent a supernatural disaster. And Edward is being tempted to go darkside. I love books about faeries, and this was a fun read. I could see the movie in my head. If you like Celtic mythology mixed with action and magic, The Stolen is for you.

Thursday, October 2, 2014

Flights of Fantasy Book Signing


Thank you to everyone who came to my book signing/Reading in Albany, New York. Everyone had great questions. And if anyone has any more, feel free to contact me at my public email katherine@katherineharbour.com.
And thank you to Maria, the owner of Flights of Fantasy (If you're anywhere near Albany and want to browse a large selection of Fantasy and SF, used and new, this is your place) for a delightful spread of tea and cupcakes which perfectly matched Thorn Jack's theme. (The Fatas like their tea parties as much as their revels.)


Join me at Books-A-Million in Sarasota, Florida, 6591 S. Tamiami Trail, for another book signing at 12-2 in the afternoon, Saturday, Oct. 8!

Thursday, September 18, 2014

Meet My Main Character Blog Hop



Welcome to the Meet My Main Character blog hop!

 Thanks to the gracious M.P. Cooley for inviting me. We both come from upstate New York, the setting for her gripping mystery, Ice Shear, now available from William Morrow/Harpercollins, here: Amazon .You can learn more about her lone wolf heroine June Lyons, here: M.P. Cooley.com 

  
   Finn Sullivan, from my dark fantasy Thorn Jack, is seventeen and about to enter college. She has recently lost her beautiful, wild older sister to suicide and is sleepwalking through her life in San Francisco. When her father, a professor of mythology, moves them to his hometown of Fair Hollow, New York, Finn meets the mysterious Jack Fata and his strange, dangerous family.
   Finn was named Serafina by her mother, after 'seraphim', which means angels of fire, with Finn as an abbreviated version because her father wanted to name her after a mythical hero, Finn mac Cool. Finn has experienced major losses early in life; her mother died when she was ten and her father inherited the Fair Hollow house of a recently deceased grandmother she scarcely knew. It is a resentment toward death that drives Finn to try and save a young man from being murdered by a tribe of nomadic creatures so that they might remain immortal.
   Finn Sullivan was inspired by Alice (of Wonderland fame), by Scout from To Kill a Mockingbird, and Nancy Drew. She doesn't literally kick ass, but she does learn how to outwit the villians and to maneuver through the supernatural world infringing on her own. She is a quiet, wry braveheart, reckless and fiercely loyal.


You can visit another Faerie world in The Stolen: An American Faerie Tale, by Bishop O'Connell, who is a consultant, writer, poet, blogger and member of the New Hampshire Writers' Project. Born in Naples, Italy, while his father was stationed in Sardinia, Bishop grew up in San Diego, California, where he fell in love with the ocean and fish tacos. While wandering the country for work and school, he experienced autumn in New England. Soon after, he settled in Manchester, New Hampshire, where he collects swords and kilts. But he only dons one of those two in public. He can be found online at A Quiet Pint.com where he muses philosophical on the various aspects of writing and the road to getting published.







Jack Heckel aspires to be either a witty, urbane world-traveler who lives on his vintage yacht, The Clever Double Entendre, or a geographically illiterate professor of literature who spends his non-writing time restoring an 18th Century lighthouse off a remote part of the Vermont coastline. Whatever you  want to

believe of him, he is without doubt the author of the premier volume of the Charming novels, Once Upon a Rhyme. So, no matter what rumors you might hear about Jack, particularly those spread by either litigious dwarves or litigious dwarfs or that in reality he is actually the pen name for co-authors Harry Heckel and John Peck, just remember that more than anything, Jack lives for his readers and can be found at Jack Heckel.wordpress.com


Tuesday, September 2, 2014

Childhood Books


  I remember discovering the public library in Albany, NY. It was located amid the shabby splendor of Albany's Pine Hills neighborhood, in a 3-story Victorian-type house, where the wooden floors creaked and the air smelled like books. The children's room was on the second floor, in one of the towers. I remember bringing ten books to the desk to check out the first time and thinking they wouldn't let me borrow them all.
   My first obsession was Laura Ingalls Wilder and Little House on the Prairie. These books were exciting adventures based on a real life. I soon owned all of them.
   Next came the Bobbsey Twins, the adventures of a bunch of well-to-do kids named Nan, Bert, Freddie, and Flossie.
   After that, I discovered Nancy Drew by Carolyn Keene. I read the first few mysteries and ended up getting them all through the years. I loved how Nancy and her friends just plunged into danger.
   Then there was The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe by C.S. Lewis, which I pulled off the shelf and opened to the illustration of the witch about to stab poor Aslan on the altar. I put it back on the shelf because it looked too disturbing. I read it a year later and the wardrobe in our house became the source of much speculation.
   A fascination with England, my mom's birthplace, led to Paddington Bear by Michael Bond. Paddington seemed a bit more sophisticated than Winnie-the-Pooh and led to my love of orange marmalade.
   Next was Edith Nesbit's The Enchanted Castle and The Magic City, more books in which English children dealt with magic.
   I found The Secret Garden by Frances Hodgson Burnett at the library and read it in one night. I bought that and A Little Princess at a school book fair a few months later.
   I didn't read Alice's Adventures in Wonderland until I found a pretty, illustrated version of it in the library. The same with Peter Pan. I thought Alice was hilarious and Peter Pan made me afraid to leave my window open.
   I wish I could remember the other books I fell in love with during those years of discovery. There was the one about the ballerina, set in the 1940s, and another about a girl befriending the weirdest person in her school. There were books on mythology and fairy tales, science fiction, and biographies.
   I miss that magical round room in a tower, where I discovered new worlds.

Tuesday, August 26, 2014

10 tips for Romancing your Muse (and Divorcing Writer's Block)



As a fantasy writer, I can generally find inspiration in anything. Here are 10 ways that work for me:

1)  A solid sleep pattern, some exercise, and good nutrition. (Okay, I fail at most of these three, but it doesn't mean you can't try)

2) A personal thesaurus. I have a journal filled with altenate words for the ones I tend to use often, turns of phrase, and varied descriptions for emotions, colors, buildings, trees etc;

3) A journal of the world and characters. I keep sketches, details, pictures and notes that inspire me. I've made a journal for every world I've ever written.

4) The library. I can browse a variety of subjects: history, science, mythology, sociology, architecture...anything that might spark my imagination.

5) Word tin. Remember those magnetic poetry kits? Whenever a word catches my fancy, I write it on a cardboard tab and put it in a tin. Occasionally, I'll dump the tabs out and come up with all sorts of interesting word combinations, some I might actually be able to use.

6) Music. If I need intense emotion in a scene I'm writing, I'll listen to music that reflects that mood.

7) Pinterest and the websites of my favorite artists. These sometimes give me great visual or atmospheric inspiration.

8) Get away. I'll take a walk, re-pot plants, clean my house, shop, work on something else. And I'll return to the story renewed.

9) Read. After 20 years of writing, I think I've found my own voice, so I don't worry about taking on the voices of others. Reading other authors keeps me from going stale.

10) Watch a film. I'll choose a film that reminds me of the scene or mood I'm trying to convey. When I want to write a scary scene, I'll watch a scary movie...

If you have any tips for temporary writer's block, feel free to comment!

Wednesday, August 20, 2014

GOODREADS CHAT TODAY

Join me and these other fantastic authors for a Goodreads question and answer chat throughout the day, if you so choose . . .





Here's the link: https://www.goodreads.com/group/show/140707-new-voices-in-fiction-authors-from-william-morrow

Just post your questions, any kind, to any of us! I'll be checking in morning, afternoon, and later in the evening, until 11 PM.

Monday, August 18, 2014

THORN JACK + VISIONS GIVEAWAY WINNER!



And the winner of a signed hardcover copy of THORN JACK and the reprint book Visions and Beliefs in the West of Ireland by Lady Gregory is . . . AISHA!

Congratulations!

You'll be receiving your email confirmation soon, with full name and address request. :)


Monday, August 11, 2014

Thorn Jack Book Giveaway!

THORN JACK GIVEAWAY + BONUS BOOK!

For a chance to win a signed, hardcover copy of Thorn Jack, together with a trade paperback reprint of Visions and Beliefs in the West of Ireland by Lady Gregory (the book that inspired the second incarnation of Thorn Jack), just sign up for my newsletter this week, from the date of this post, to Sunday August 17. One winner will be selected at random and receive both books. (If you've already signed up, you're included!).

You may sign up at this link,on my website's contact page, under Mailing List and the Join Now button:  http://katherineharbour.com/contact.php


The pretty newsletter may include upcoming author events, contest news, news on Thorn Jack and its 2 sequels, fascinating faery lore, and more about the world of Thorn Jack.

If you're under 18, please submit a parent's name and email address





The winner will be announced on this blog on August 18!

Monday, August 4, 2014

Tuesday, July 29, 2014

San Diego Comic Con: How I Tried to See Everything in One Day

I was able to attend SDCC courtesy of the panel Fairy Tale Remix, which I shared with authors Marissa Marr, Danielle Paige, Cornelia Funke, Tony DiTerlizzi, Shannon Hale, Ben Tripp, and John Peck. They've all written fantastic books. Ben Tripp's and John Peck's will be coming out soon.

Introverts like me aren't the best at public speaking, but it was surprisingly non-nerve-wracking. (Or maybe that was the jet lag, as I'd just gotten off a plane 2 hours earlier.) I do wish the panel had been a little longer, as everyone had intriguing things to say about old stories made new again. I think the best comment, from Shannon Hale, was that what we write is fan fiction.


After the book signing and meeting my agent Thao Le for lunch,https://twitter.com/ThaoLe8/status/492491753430065153/photo/1 I spent the next several hours swimming through a sea of amazingly non-aggressive people in the Exhibitor's Hall, (aka Nerd Heaven) and discovered that we nerds come in all ages. From film and TV exhibits, to artists and sculptors and toy makers, book publishers small and large, and probably every comic book or action figure ever made, there was a multitude of merch to choose from.

Here are some pictures that I managed while searching for something cool for my 13-year-old nephew and a souvenir for me and trying to avoid going broke.












Tuesday, July 22, 2014

Reviews for Thorn Jack!


Here's a selection of the book bloggers who have kindly taken the time to read Thorn Jack. Most of the opinions-phew!-are great, some are intriguing. I thank them all!

Fantasy Book Critic: http://fantasybookcritic.blogspot.com/2014/06/thorn-jack-by-katherine-harbour.html

Fresh Fiction: http://freshfiction.com/review.php?id=44694

Hidden in Pages:  http://hiddeninpages.com/2014/06/26/early-review-thorn-jack-night-and-nothing-book-1-by-katherine-harbour-45-stars/

In Bed With Books:   http://inbedwithbooks.blogspot.com/2014/06/review-thorn-jack.html?showComment=1405864388304

Good Reads Mad Reads: http://goodreadsmadreads.com/tag/thorn-jack/

Bookshelf Pirates:  http://bookshelfpiratereviews.wordpress.com/2014/07/13/thorn-jack/

Worlds of Wonder:  http://worldsofwonders.blogspot.com/2014/06/thorn-jack-katherine-harbour.html

Icey Books:  http://iceybooks.com/blog/2014/07/beautifully-dark-a-review-of-thorn-jack-by-katherine-harbour.html

From Gutter to Gilt:  http://www.fromguttertogilt.com/2014/07/17/thorn-jack-by-katherine-harbour/

VampChix:  http://vampchix.blogspot.com/2014/07/4-star-review-thorn-jack.html?spref=tw

Open Book Society:  http://openbooksociety.com/article/thorn-jack-night-and-nothing-by-katherine-harbour-obs-book-review/

Good Books and Good Wine:  http://goodbooksandgoodwine.com/2014/07/thorn-jack-by-katherine-harbour-book-review.html

Jaime Reviews: The Best Books Ever: http://www.thebestbooksever.com/2015_01_01_archive.html

All Things Urban Fantasy:  http://allthingsuf.com/2015/08/review-thorn-jack-by-katherine-harbour.html


YA Bibliophile: http://yabibliophile.com/2015/07/thorn-jack.html

Pop Sugar: http://www.popsugar.com/love/photo-gallery/35569138/image/35569175/Thorn-Jack

Underground Sparks Magazine: http://www.undergroundsparks.com/exposure/2015/5/14/book-review-thorn-jack-by-katherine-harbour

Bewitching Bibliophile: http://www.bewitchingbibliophile.com/2014/07/book-review-thorn-jack-by-katherine.html?m=0

Beyond Genre Journal: https://beyondgenrejournal.wordpress.com/2014/12/10/book-review-thorn-jack/

Sleeping Hedgehog: http://sleepinghedgehog.com/books/katherine-harbour-thorn-jack/

Otakus and Geeks: http://www.otakusandgeeks.com/2014/08/lenni-reviews-thorn-jack-by-katherine.html

Fantastic Stories of the Imagination: http://www.fantasticstoriesoftheimagination.com/reviews-area-51-12-january-2015/

Bookshop Santa Cruz: http://www.bookshopsantacruz.com/staff/thorn-jack-katherine-harbour

CoffeeTime Romance: http://coffeetimeromance.com/BookReviews/thornjackbykatherineharbour.html#.Va0vk_lqNsU

All Things Urban Fantasy: http://allthingsuf.com/2015/08/review-thorn-jack-by-katherine-harbour.html






Saturday, July 19, 2014

Thorn Jack: The Original Story


   I wrote THORN JACK years ago and I've been asked what the original story was when I penned it at seventeen. It was very '80s. So here are the most changed bits . . .
   The first setting was in Los Angeles. I don't know why. At the time it sounded exotic. I had a thing for deserts and Francesca Lia Block's LA-set magic realism.
   Finn, the heroine, was Maude Clare, a ballet student.
   Jack was still an assassin and slave of the faery folk, but his name was Kevin.
   Christie evovlved from two characters; Johnny, who had a blonde mohawk and was in a rock band; and Christopher, Maude's golden boyfriend, who was an actor.
   Sylvie was pretty much the same, only her name was Maggie and she worked at an antique shop.
   The Villain. There was no Reiko. The antagonist was the faery king, Seth Lot, elegant and cruel. (He became Seth Lot, the Wolf king, the villain in Briar Queen, Thorn Jack's sequel).
   Anna Weaver, the autistic girl who is also an oracle, was a runaway boy named Nathan (who became Nathan Clare), who was also autistic, and a changeling.
   There was no Fata family, just urban faeries who were dangerous and seductive.
   Stories don't have to be set in stone. Even when I've given up on a manuscript, I've saved it, knowing I might scavenge it at another time, or it might undergo a metamorphosis and become something else.

For more about story and such, here are some links to my favorite websites by authors:
http://cynthialeitichsmith.blogspot.com/
http://www.francescaliablock.com/blog
http://jenniferweiner.blogspot.com/
http://windling.typepad.com/blog/
how i write | Maggie Stiefvater









Saturday, July 12, 2014

The Characters of Thorn Jack: The Black Scissors

(slight spoilers)


The BLACK SCISSORS the Dubh Deamhais, was once William Harrow, a young tailor in colonial Virginia. Then he met Reiko Fata, who proceeded to seduce him. When her lover, a Fata from a dangerous family named Tiamat, was murdered, William was blamed and the Tiamats cursed him into something that would walk the earth forever. He became a highwayman, seeking vengeance on Reiko. Over the decades, he evolved into a faery doctor, a shadowy figure who walks the borders between the worlds and knows the Fatas' tricks.

Monday, July 7, 2014

San Diego Comic Con 2014 June 24


I'll be speaking on a panel called Fairy Tale Remix, with Shannon Hale (Ever After High series) moderating, and these authors of fabulous fairy tale-inspired books: Marissa Meyer (The Lunar series), Tony DiTerlizzi (The Wondla series) Cornelia Funke (The Mirrorworld series), Danielle Paige (Dorothy Must Die), John Peck (The Charming series), and Ben Tripp (The Accidental Highwayman). These authors have  been inspired by everything from Grimm fairy tales to the Wizard of Oz.

Below is the link to Marissa Meyer's site, with more info: http://www.marissameyer.com/event/san-diego-comic-con-2/

The darker, more gruesome Grimm fairy tales, such as Bluebeard, The Robber Bridegroom, and The Juniper Tree, appeal to me, because the heroines manage to survive nightmarish ordeals. And I love Hans Christian Andersen's The Snow Queen and The Little Mermaid, which are beautiful stories.

So...what's your favorite fairy tale? And why?

Thursday, July 3, 2014

The Characters of Thorn Jack: Absalom Askew


(Maybe spoilers)

ABSALOM ASKEW is the trickster, the wild card, the Fool. And he exists in the body of a teenage boy who dresses eccentrically, has orange hair, and a sweet face. No one knows who--or what--Absalom really is, but he's dangerous and capricious and a distributor of weed and alcohol. He's also very protective of Anna Weaver, an autistic young girl who tells fortunes and whose sister meets a bad end. He's also the hero Jack Fata's friend. And Jack doesn't trust him . . .

Tuesday, July 1, 2014

Thorn Jack's Launch Party: June 24


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Everything was perfect!
The cake was by Batter Up and Beneva Flowers made the gorgeous flower arrangement.
The launch party took place at the Sarasota Barnes and Noble.







A Thorn Jack-inspired charm bracelet I made as a gift.

 At the beginning...

Nervous the entire time I spoke and wishing I'd worn sports deodorant.

 The signing of books. The best part of the evening!












THORN JACK TRAILER!!!    
          



Click this link to see the awesome Thorn Jack eyecatch by Arianna Westerfield!
Thorn Jack trailer by Arianna Westerfield