Guest Post: Jennifer Brown

Today I have the pleasure of having Jennifer Brown, author of the recently released Bitter End, here on the blog. She is here to talk a little about the music behind the book, the music that both inspired her and the music that makes her think of the story and characters she wrote. Here is what she had to say.

I tend to be very inspired by music, so it only makes sense that my writing and music go hand-in-hand. In some ways, my first novel, Hate List, was inspired by the Nickelback song “If Everyone Cared,” and Bitter End is no different, in that there are some songs that really made me think of my novel and vice versa.

Now, this is not to say that these were the songs I was listening to while writing Bitter End. That’s something very different. I’m one of those singalong kind of people, and if a song has words in it that I know, I’m going to spend my brain power singing along. But I can’t write in silence. That’s just too boring. So I end up writing to music that either has no words, or foreign music that I can’t understand. I raid the 99-cent bin at Vintage Stock, looking for African or Chinese or Native American music, or old New Age instrumental music like Ray Lynch, and that’s what I write to every day.

But I do have a playlist that I like to think of as my unofficial Bitter End playlist, which begins with the song that I felt like was my “anchor” song, the song that most defined the story in my mind being the first song, and the others just being songs that reminded me of my characters or the story.

1. “Landslide,” by The Dixie Chicks

2. “Fall for You,” by Secondhand Serenade

3. “Face Down,” by The Red Jumpsuit Apparatus

4. “Broken,” by Lifehouse’

5. “Learned My Lesson,” by Daughtry

6. “I Would be Stronger than That,” by Faith Hill

7. “A Broken Wing,” by Martina McBride

8. “Falling Away from Me,” by Korn

9. “Sympathetic Character,” by Alanis Morisette

10. “Island,” by Heather Nova

11. “Overcome,” by Within Temptation

12. “Rain on Me,” by Ashanti

13. “The Silence is Broken,” by Damn Yankees

14. “With a Little Help from My Friends,” by The Beatles

15. “Friends Forever,” by Thunderbugs

    The great thing about playlists and novels, though, is that the songs never stop coming. Very often I will hear a song that will remind me of something I’ve written. I could keep adding to my playlist forever! I don’t mind. Not one bit.

Guest Post: Erica of Soon Remembered Tales

When considering what I would write for Emilie’s Book World I became indecisive. What could I write to a group of readers that would be eye-catching? What could I say that would give the best example of who I am as a book blogger and reflect what I write about on my own blog, Soon Remembered Tales? I thought of all the books I have read and having just come out of a hiatus myself I hadn’t the chance to read anything new.

But then it dawned on me while talking to a friend. We had been discussing the weather: it was snowing where she was and it was just dead and cold at my house. The summer warmth, the flowers in the garden, and the leaf filled trees felt as if they were a lifetime away. It made me think of my favorite winter read: Garden Spells by Sarah Addison Allen. When winter has me in its grasp I look to spring. The brightening sun, the resurgence of life, its all so magical and Allen captures that magic in her novel.

The Waverly’s were always seen as odd to the residents of Bascom, North Carolina. Claire accepts her label of being strange and dives deeper still. Living in the house she and her sister Sydney grew up in Claire runs a successful catering business. With the aide of her flourishing garden and the ever-watchful apple tree, which has a mind of its own, Claire creates delicacies that are more than just food- they hold powers. Eat a meal with lavender and your spirits will rise. Try some chicory if you need to conceal your bitterness. But when Claire’s wild-child of a sister Sydney returns to Bascom her troubles are close behind. Claire finds that she can no longer hide within her kitchen and she must step forward into the drama. The apple tree tries to provide as many answers as possible but at times you forget to listen to nature. Featuring a slew of characters you will love and hate it will be easy to become emotionally invested in this novel. Throw in the wonderfully worded descriptions of the hot North Carolina summertime and the enchanted garden you will find it easy to forget the winter weather outdoors.

Garden Spells is a book I can’t get enough of. I’ve read this so many times that I’ve lost count. The warm summer world of Bascom, North Carolina nearly feels like home at this point and I welcome you to come and experience it as well. So, if you’re in the Northern Hemisphere and you’re suffering from the winter doldrums I urge you to read Garden Spells and enjoy a little bit of summer.

Happy Winter and Happy Reading

Erica of Soon Remembered Tales

Guest Post: Melissa of I Swim for Oceans

First of all, a really big thank you to Emilie for allowing me to take over her blog for a day. I sound completely narcissistic by saying this, I'm sure, but I love doing guest posts...it's an entirely new way to meet other bloggers, and it's great to be able to help my fellow bloggers out, as well. Enough of that though...onto the real reason I'm posting. Emilie asked us to post about anything book related, and I sat there on my butt for about 45 minutes thinking “Sheesh! It takes me too long to think of my own posts! How in the world am I going to think of a post for another site, too?” And then I had a stroke of genius!

Why not highlight my three favourite and three least favourite books read in 2010? Not all of these books were published in 2010, but all of them were great (or horrible) for various reasons. At the very least, I hope this post will give my fellow bloggers out there some insight into what makes a good read in my

blunt

brutally honest opinion.

Melissa's Favourite Books of 2010

1. Nevermore by Kelly Creagh – Holy brilliance! Finally! This book was such a breath of fresh air in a sea of YA books swarming with love triangles, one-dimensional characters, and wishy-washy girls with a serious lack of spine. Perfectly blending the dark works of Edgar Allan Poe with a story of a mildly star-crossed teenage love that defies the odds, Nevermore breathes new life into YA fiction with a story that will send you on plot twists and turns that will keep your heart racing the entire time.

2. Paranormalcy by Kiersten White – I don't like pink. I'm not a super girly-girl, and in most circumstances, a girl calling her sparkly pink taser “Tasey” would make me want to punch a tiny infant punching bag. This gem, otherwise known as Paranormalcy defied my preconceived notions though and lived up to the hype surrounding it. With a loveable heroine, a fast-paced plot, and a sweet and believable romance (omg not a triangle!!!), this one will worm its way into your heart and stay there long after you've finished it.

3. Vampire Empire: The Greyfriar by Clay and Susan Griffith – Thank God for a book about vampires where they don't sparkle! The Greyfriar presents an alternate history where vampires have taken over the world, humans are in hiding, and there are no sparkly, wishy-washy vampires around! It's the perfect blend of steampunk, history and the paranormal that you could ever find. Trust me...it's awesome.

Melissa's Least Favourite Books of 2010

1. Witch & Wizard by James Patterson and Gabrielle Charbonnet – Awesome premise? Check. Great background? Check. Stunning Cover? Check. Follow-through? Epic fail. I rarely give really bad reviews, but this was just awful, in my opinion. The plot was jumbled, I never knew what drove the characters, and frankly, if I wanted to see 32 exclamation points on a single page, I'd just type them. Witch & Wizard had all the makings of an awesome book, but it fell so so SO flat for me.

2. This World We Live In by Susan Beth Pfeffer – I'm a fan of dystopian books. I really am. I adored how this series started and we watched as a selfish teen was transformed by tragedy into a really great young adult. Then the series continued and things began to waver, but I held out hope for this finale. Too bad Miranda turned into a selfish, egotistical, whining, crabby little girl again. Any inkling of character development we saw in book one was crushed in This World We Live In, leaving me more than a little disheartened. Hope just doesn't exist in this book.

3. Generation Dead by Daniel Waters – I have cover lust. It's not a secret. I was sold on this book by the cover alone, and unfortunately it didn't live up. For some strange reason, I just can't find zombies attractive, especially when they're tripping over their own feet, slurring their words and generally resemble corpses. Generation Dead was just a snooze-fest for me, but I will admit that it's well-written, and I'm sure there's an audience for it.

Well, there you have it. I have WAY more favourite reads from 2010, but I picked the ones that jumped to mind first. I think the moral of story for me is threefold:
1)Go for books that step outside of the box.
2)Find characters that defy stereotypes or put a new twist on the stereotype.
3)Don't fall for the hype! It's not always right...

Calling for Guest Posters!

I'm getting closer and closer to that time of the year where everything gets a little bit crazy. I only have two weeks of classes left and after that finals start. I'm going to be very busy studying for exams and writing all those papers they make you write and hand in right before the semester ends.

What I'm asking for is anyone out there who is a book blogger and would like to guest post on my blog. It can honestly be about anything you want so long as it's book related. You can write a review, a top ten, basically anything at all so long as it is related to books.

I appreciate any help anyone is able to help and should you need a guest poster in the future I would be happy to return the favor. If you are interested leave a comment here or send me an e-mail at emiliebookworld@gmail.com