Beautiful Books 2016 – Introduce Your Novel

What’s up writers?! Nanowrimo is approaching, calling our names, wanting us to write aim for our goals of fifty thousand words, and beyond. Actually, it isn’t chocolate chip cookies and unicorns. It is fire and an occasional trip to the counselor’s office.

Just kidding. There will not be a trip to the counselor’s office and nobody will catch on fire. However, you can have a chocolate chip cookie.

“Beautiful Books” only happens once a year and it is just for writers. Cait @ Paper Fury and Sky @ Further up & Further In created this amazing link-up! You know, you have to do it. It is just that amazing.

Cue the cheers and let’s throw our chocolate chip cookies in the air! Folks, Nanowrimo is here! We have to write fifty thousand words, you can friend other writers, and become queen or king of the writer galaxy along with other amazing people who like to write also! I guess you could say it is going to be a #GoodTime. You can also be my writing buddy! I would really like that.

Also, you don’t have to participate in Nanowrimo just to do this. You can do this link-up with your past novels!

I am going to be doing my “Working Title.” Don’t worry, it is a title in the progress. It will get better. It is a modern-day novel full of British people, gelato, cyborgs, and a not-so-fancy gala.  Let’s answer some questions, shall we?

What inspired the idea for your novel, and how long have you had the idea?

I love the UK. It is my dream place to live. I love British people for so many reasons. We are connected to them, but they are so different from us! I think after reading tons of different books, I had the idea to write my novel.

Man, I don’t even remember how long I have had the idea. Probably since August or September. It has been a pretty long time.

Describe what your novel is about!

My novel is about a boy named Jake. His mum died from a heart attack when he was five years old. He and his father are not close at all. When his father is starting to spread farther and farther away from Jake, he creates the world’s first cyborg. He names it Ember and they become really close. They go on adventures and have the best time of their lives.

Sounds good, doesn’t it?

What is your book’s aesthetic? Use words or photos or whatever you like!

This is where my Pinterest comes in handy. You can follow me here and see all of the super cool things I pin. 

I like anything old-fashioned and rustic in my book with a hint of new technology. Since my book is about Jake inventing the first ever cyborg, I like to picture the square by Jake’s house old and rustic, but it is still in fantastic shape. I like seeing Jake’s house as a really run-down house that should be contaminated. To be honest, I love it all. One of the places in my novel is the old-fashioned ice cream shop that just opened. They have everything from ice cream to delicious new flavors of gelato that Jake has never tried before.

Introduce us to each of your characters!

Yay! Characters! I love my characters. Jake is this fifteen year old teen who feels a little bit left out in the big world because he really likes inventing things while other boys his age really like sports. I picture him as Asa Butterfield because Asa played in the movie Hugo based on the book and when I think of that I see him as an inventor.

Ember is a realistic cyborg who just wants to be as real as she can be. Ever since Jake built Ember, she has been wanting to explore the world. She has a thirst for going outside and seeing all of the sights in the world. Appearance wise, she has a blonde pixie cut with fair skin. She is very slim and a few inches taller than Jake.

How do you prepare to write? (Outline, research, stocking up on chocolate, howling, etc.?)

Well, my process of writing preparation isn’t very big. I just sit at the computer and think about what I want to happen next, what I don’t want to happen, who should come into the chapter, and if there should be a plot twist or not. I usually grab a bottle of water also and I usually listen to Florence + The Machine, mostly their new song “Wish That You Were Here.”

What are you most looking forward to about this novel?

Well, mostly getting done with it! Just kidding! That sounds mean. I am just excited to revise it, make a cover for it, and get it out there for people to read once all of the stages of the writing process are done.

List 3 things about your novel’s setting.

01: The novel is set in London, England. It is one of my favorite places in the world and I think it is one of the best places for a young inventor to be born.

02: There is a not-so fancy gala and an invention auction towards the middle of the novel. Jake has never been to the Summer Night gala because he hates socializing and he doesn’t want to go through the trouble of asking a girl out, so he stays at home or he goes to the factory.

03: SUMMER! Yes, I know that it is fall, but maybe I just want to go back to summer? Just kidding! There is no way I am erasing the wonderful fall weather for the scorching heat.

What’s your character’s goal and who (or what) stands in the way?

Jake just wants to keep Ember safe. That is his number one priority. He wants to keep her secret safe. He wants it to be between the two of them. The only thing that stands in the way of Jake and Ember is Jake’s father.

How does your protagonist change by the end of the novel?

The sad thing is I haven’t even written my whole novel yet, but I still have some time to get finished with it. Anyway, I think Jake changes a lot towards the end of the novel. I hate to say this, but he stops being a brat and he starts to get closer to his father.

What are your book’s themes? How do you want readers to feel when the story is over?

I want readers to feel heartbroken with a touch of hope when they finish the book. I want them to feel like they can do anything that they dream to do. Jake wanted to be an inventor, so he created Ember. Even though it didn’t end out the way he thought it would be, he still did it.

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Don’t think that I was going to leave you hanging from that tree! You are not a monkey, unless you really want to be one. If you do, I’ll let you be. Anyway, I am going to show you guys a mini snippet of the first chapter! After you get done reading it, please comment below what you all think!

This snippet is going to be about Jake and his friend William and they are currently talking about ice cream. It is just a fun little scene for you all. Enjoy!

snippet time

 

William rolled his hazel eyes, annoyed with how Jake stayed in his father’s factory all of the time. “Ugh, I thought that you were coming to my charity football game tonight. My cousin Amelia is even going to be there.” William gave Jake a little pout that included the quivering lip, but Jake knew that William was too old to be giving him a pathetic pout.

“William, I just really want to fix this right quick.” He said, sliding back under the camper van. “Come back two hours before the game and see if I am done.”

William sighed and sat down besides the red van. “I can’t. Mum said that she is going to get me and Amelia ice cream from the ice cream shop at the square. It just opened up two weeks ago.”

Jake put the screwdriver down and slid out from under the van. “Wait, did you say ice cream.”

William nodded.

“I like ice cream. Do they have rocky road?” Jake asked.

“Yes sir.” William replied.

“Do they have vanilla with the chocolate drizzle that they put on top?” Jake asked, his mind buzzing around with questions.

“You bet.” William replied back.

“One more thing, what about cookies n’ cream?” Jake asked, a smile spreading onto his face.

William nodded. “Yep. Mum told me that it is one of the biggest ice cream stores in London, England.”

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what do you think about my novel? do you like it so far? what is your favorite ice cream flavor? have you done “beautiful books” this month? if so, comment the link to your’s below!