Rounding up our three days of our Kim Falconer and The Blood In The Beginning goodness, the Sorting Hat has spoken — or chosen, at any rate 😉 — and I now have a winner for the book giveaway.

The lucky winner of The Blood In The Beginning is: (Let the vuvuzelas sound!)

Christine

Congratulations, Christine!

If you contact me on contact[at]helenlowe[dot]info with your postal address I shall get the book away to you ‘interfrastically.’ 😉

Thank you again to Kim for a fantastic post and to all of you who participated either by reading or commenting.

KimFalconer

I hope you have all enjoyed reading Kim Falconer’s wonderful post on “Narrative Point Of View” as much as I did — it’s great to have some insightful and lively comments on the post as well. So a big thumbs up to Kim and to all of you in that respect.

The Andrew who commented is also the same Andrew Robins who also occasionally reviews and guest posts here, and he tells me he is not very well right now (oh no!) but is still really enjoying reading The Blood In The Beginning. I believe this is quite an accolade since it is sometime shard to enjoy a read, no matter how good, when you are feeling poorly!

All of which reminds me to remind you that the giveaway for  the copy of The Blood In the Beginning that I am giving away is not only still open and will remain open until midnight tonight (Saturday 23 July, NZ time.) Just leave a comment on Kim’s guest post to enter:

“Narrative Point Of View”

Introducing Kim Falconer:

KimFalconer

Kim probably needs no introductions for many of you, but I am going to introduce her anyway, for those of you who may not have met her before. 😉

I was privileged to meet Kim at Worldcon (Aussiecon 4) in Melbourne in 2010 and since then we have become friends-in-writing and fellow Supernatural Underground authors. Kim writes urban fantasy, paranormal romance, YA and epic science fantasy novels.

You can find out more about her at AvaSykes.com, the 11th House Blog, and on FaceBook and Twitter. She posts here at the Supernatural Underground on the 16th of every month and runs Save the Day Writer’s Community on Facebook and GoodVibeAstrology.com.

Kim’s latest release is the urban fantasy novel The Blood In The Beginning, which I know has a bearing on her topic choice of Narrative Point of View. So please join me in welcoming her to “..on Anything, Really” today.

The book giveaway details will follow the post.

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Narrative Point Of View

by Kim Falconer

Hi Helen, and everyone here on the blog. I’m delighted to write a guest post today, offering some practical thoughts on the topic of narrative POV.

POV is short for point of view, or literally, “the position from which something is perceived.” The primary options in literature are: 1^st person: I am telling this story, 2^nd person: You are telling this story, 3^rd person: She is telling this story.

It seems simple, but any POV you choose comes with certain constraints. Like naming a character, making a choice involves commitment. For example, if your protagonist’s name is Sally, you can’t suddenly start calling her Adele, at least, not without good reason. The same thing goes for POV.

If you’re using the first person point of view – “I hear voices,” (present tense), or “I heard voices,” (past tense) – and suddenly move to another POV –“The officer wonders what the voices mean,” (present tense) or, “The officer wondered what the voices meant,” (past tense) – you’ll need a good reason, and skill, to pull it off. It’s not generally done, or done well, unless you’re Charles Dickens or perhaps Stephen King.

POV — it’s all about perspective

Anyone who wants to brush up on POV options can duck over to Youtube and watch my 3 minute tutorial on the topic –  Point of View.

Any perspective is easy to stay in, once you commit. Think of it as the angle of the camera, and keep asking,“Can they see this? Can they know this?” Sticking to an established POV is a skill gained with practice; realising how the POV shapes the story can be illusive.

Why does that matter? POV influences everything, from the world building to the characters, and even the hidden, or not so hidden, connection between reader and author. The choice of POV, often made unconsciously, without a second thought, carries more weight than most writers care to believe. At least, that’s how it was for me, until I saw the light.

When I wrote The Blood in the Beginning I started out with the same POV I’d always used, 3^rd person limited, past tense, the she heard voices POV.  Why? It was familiar. I knew how to do it, and it would allow for a wide scope of character perspectives, resulting in a larger scale story-world. It was a logical choice, because I didn’t know where the story was going yet. It gave me room to explore. I also chose it because the genre, Urban Fantasy, allows it.

That last point should probably be first. Genre fiction carries with it a level of reader expectation. Yes, you can break the rules, but no, you don’t really want to, unless you’re Gabriel García Márquez, or King, or Dickens, in which case you can do whatever you want. But publishers might be cautious about acquiring an epic fantasy written in the second person, or a smorgasbord of 1^st and 3^rd, so it pays to know your genre as you set out. There are exceptions to everything, like those 2^nd person choose your own adventure books, but in general, I don’t recommend it.

With plenty of UF written in the 3^rd person, like Stacia Kane’s Downside Ghost series, Magic Street by Orson Scott Card, Neil Gaiman’s American Gods, and Cassandra Clare’s Mortal Instruments, I wasn’t exactly going out on a limb, doing the same. But … it didn’t work! Five chapters in and the story wasn’t developing the way I’d imagined. I struggled with why, and eventually it occurred to me.

The story didn’t need crazy amounts of scope that covered fifteen generations with thirty plus characters spanning every continent. The Blood in the Beginning tells the story of a lone gal in a tough town, a streetwise woman with strengths, fears, high hopes and the penchant of attracting supernatural trouble. I wanted the reader to be inside her head, feel what she felt, while it was happening. So, I started over, in the 1^st person, and the story broke like a barracuda—fast, dangerous and hungry.

Ava Sykes — a lone gal in a tough town…fast, dangerous & hungry

Is Ava Sykes reliable enough to tell her own story? In the end, I think she is, and I’m glad I took the risk. For the emerging and seasoned writers out there, I encourage you to experiment with POV and see how changing it allows your story to grow in new ways.

I’d love to hear your thoughts in the comments, perhaps on your favourite POV to read and write, or on how many POVs I’ve used in this short article. I’d really like to know if anyone has read a novel in the 2^nd person recently.

Thank you Helen!

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The Giveaway:

Thank you, Kim. As I always say when you post on the Supernatural Underground — another great post, as always! 😉

By the way, for those of you who would like to find out more about The Blood In The Beginning, Kim has a wonderful YouTube trailer here:

The Blood in the Beginning

To celebrate the release of The Blood in the Beginning and Kim’s guest post here today, I am giving away a copy of the book to one lucky commenter.

I am sure you know the drill off by heart, but just leave a comment (on anything, really… 😉 ) and you will go in the draw to win the book.

Comments must be made here on Kim’s guest post, with one entry allowed per commenter. Entries will close on Saturday at midnight (NZ time) with the draw being made (by Random.Org Integer Generator) and posted on Sunday 24 July — go to the top of the masthead to find the result.

~ by Rebecca Fisher

The original Ghostbusters came out in the same year I was born, and growing up it was something of a rite-of-passage to watch it for the first time. The kids in my class were divided into those who knew what people were talking about when they mentioned the ghost in the library, and those who didn’t.

In hindsight, Ghostbusters isn’t a particularly appropriate film for children – along with some very adult jokes there are some truly terrifying scenes as well (those hellhounds still creep me out). Perhaps it was the spin-off cartoon that gave everyone in my class the impression it was for kids, as the movie’s blend of dark comedy and genuine scares is probably what makes it such a cult classic.

Well, that and Bill Murray’s performance. And Ray Parker Junior’s theme song. And its quirky premise. And the loving depiction of New York in all its grit and glamour.

Yeah, there are many reasons why Ghostbusters is considered a classic, and though I can’t get behind the mentality that the recently released rebooting is going to ruin anyone’s childhood, I can understand why people are protective of the original.

Ray Stantz, Peter Venkman and Egon Spengler

Peter Venkman (Bill Murray), Ray Stantz (Dan Aykroyd) and Egon Spengler (Harold Ramis) are disgraced scientists kicked out of Colombia University and forced to go into business for themselves. Venkman’s great idea is to sell themselves as paranormal exterminators – or ghostbusters – who rid homes and businesses of unwelcome spooks. They’re an unexpected hit among the citizens of New York, particularly Dana Barrett (Sigourney Weaver) who goes to them for help after experiencing strange phenomena in her apartment.

The Ghostbusters – joined by Winston Zeddemore (Ernie Hudson) to help cope with demand – realize that the sudden influx in ghosts throughout the city portends something. But having become the target of an irate bureaucrat convinced that they’re phonies, the results of the Ghostbusters’ research into Dana’s case might not reach fruition before the city is destroyed.

Venkman tries to deal with a possessed Dana

It’s funny, it’s scary, it’s inventive, and it’s filled with iconic moments: from the first shot of the stone lions outside the New York Public Library to the climactic appearance of the Stay-Puft Marshmallow Man. And with the release of the new film starring Kirsten Wiig, Melissa McCarthy, Kate McKinnon and Leslie Jones as the next generation of Ghostbusters (hopefully I’ll be seeing it this Sunday!) it seemed like the perfect movie to finish off this sub-series: “Fantasy Films From the Eighties That Weren’t That Bad.”

Next Time:

Well, I’m going on a hiatus for a while – not because I’m tired of writing Big Worlds on Small Screens, but because I’ve simply run out of material to write on! I’ll be spending the next few months catching up on speculative television shows I haven’t seen yet so that I can write up lots of new articles when I return. See you then!

About The Reviewer:

Rebecca Fisher is a graduate of the University of Canterbury with a Masters degree in English Literature, mainly, she claims, because she was able to get away with writing her thesis on C.S. Lewis and Philip Pullman. She is a reviewer for FantasyLiterature.com, a large website that specializes in fantasy and science-fiction novels, as well as posting reviews to Amazon.com and her They’re All Fictional blog.

To read Rebecca’s detailed introduction of both herself and the series, as well as preceding reviews, click on:

Big Worlds On Small Screens

Rebecca won the 2015 Sir Julius Vogel Award for Best Fan Writer, for writing that included Big Worlds On Small Screens.

—

Rebecca’s Sabbatical:

I know we’ll all miss Rebecca’s column every fortnight, but I hope she enjoys her hiatus and comes back to us refreshed and ready for a renewed affray. After nearly three years now, though,  a break is more than well deserved. Thank you so much, Rebecca—and come back real soon now, y’all hear. 🙂

Plus — Coming Up Tomorrow:

And as well as today’s Big Worlds on Small Screens goodness, tomorrow we have a guest post from Kim Falconer, together with a giveaway of her new-out urban fantasy, The Blood In The Beginning. I’m looking forward to it.

There’s a certain Slant of light,
Winter Afternoons —
That oppresses, like the Heft
Of Cathedral Tunes —

Heavenly Hurt, it gives us —
We can find no scar,
But internal difference,
Where the Meanings, are —

None may teach it — Any —
’Tis the Seal Despair —
An imperial affliction
Sent us of the Air —

When it comes, the Landscape listens —
Shadows — hold their breath —
When it goes, ’tis like the Distance
On the look of Death —

by Emily Dickinson, 1830 – 1886

—

For today, I thought I’d depart from my recent focus on haiku — but stick with seasonal poetry. Like last week’s haiku, this poem by Emily Dickinson addresses the subject of winter.

I like the poem’s austerity and the way it alludes to the season rather than describing it directly: “telling it slant” indeed.

Whether you are currently experiencing high summer or the deep midwinter, I hope you will enjoy the poem.

A few weeks back, I interviewed Kim Falconer on Twitter, focusing on her newly released urban fantasy novel, The Blood In The Beginning.

This week I’m delighted to be hosting Kim here on Thursday 21, when she’ll be posting a guest feature on an aspect of her new book and/or her writing generally—or maybe even a bit of both. 🙂

Plus, to keep Kim’s launch goodness rolling I’ll also be doing a giveaway of the The Blood In The Beginning for one lucky commenter.

So that’s Thursday 21, folks (NZ/Australia time since Kim and I are Tasmanauts 😉 ) — bookmark the space!

Recently a stroll through Auckland’s Cornwall Park led to a meeting with today’s tree, a Quercus canariensis, alternatively known as Mirbeck’s oak or an Algerian oak.

Apparently it hails from the Iberian peninsula (Spain and Portugal) and the Tunisia-Morocco-Algerian region of North Africa.

You can read a little more about the tree here, but the plaque beneath it states that it is “the finest oak tree in Cornwall Park.” (Or words to like effect.)

Although I have insufficient knowledge of the Park’s oaks to be so absolute, I certainly felt as though I were meeting a remarkable tree.

Trees shaping landscape… (PJ Fitzpatrick)

That’s right: this week I’ve decided that everyone who commented for the Mystery Giveaway is a winner and shall have the opportunity to claim a Mystery Prize!

What’s more, my US editor is joining in on the fun. Personally, dear readers, I believe this is because she is made of awesome, but naturally I shall leave you to make up your own minds.

Anyway, here’s the deal: on Monday I posted my fifth and final post on the part trees play in shaping the Fantasy landscapes of my books. In doing so I made the final landscape into a riddle, with my original idea being that anyone who guessed right — it was a pretty easy riddle — would go into a draw for a mystery prize.

So far so good. But then I got to thinking, why shouldn’t everyone be a winner? Which made me put my thinking cap on as to what might make a giveaway special, different, and fun — all the same time! 😉

Fortunately I had my editor-of-awesome, Kate, to help me and here’s what we came up with:

Helen’s idea: “How about the opportunity to contribute a guest post telling blog readers who your favorite character in the WALL series is, and why, and also what you hope for that character in the fourth and final book?”

While Kate added in: “What about a set of all three WALL books to gift to a friend you believe might enjoy the story too?”

So that’s the mystery prize that’s available to the 5 commenters, should they choose to accept:

Trees & landscape (by Peter Fitzpatrick)

Either the opportunity to contribute a guest post on a character (as above), or a set of THE WALL OF NIGHT Books  1 – 3, to gift to a friend or family member —or both!

It’s compleatly the commenter’s choice!

I already know that two of the five will do the guest post, so I will let you know the details on that as soon as I’ve heard from everyone. 🙂

“For my part I know nothing with any certainty, but the sight of the stars makes me dream.”

-Vincent van Gogh

—

Vincent van Gogh’s “Starry Night” is probably one of his most well-known and publicly favoured paintings, and this quote goes with it perfectly.

It also reminds me of another, possibly even more famous quote, this time from Oscar Wilde’s play Lady Windermere’s Fan:

“We are all in the gutter, but some of us are looking at the stars.”

To check out Siobhan Harvey’s ekphrastic poem that addresses the painting—and a great deal else—click on:

Van Gogh In Aotearoa

Here’s to keeping on looking at the stars and dreaming dreams.

UK/AU/NZ cover

On Saturday I announced two winners for the giveaway of Children of Earth and Sky by Guy Gavriel Kay.

The deadline for claiming the books was 5 pm yesterday, 13 July — and although I asked the winners to contact me, I also emailed them myself (just to be sure, yanno!)

As one of the initial winners has not yet been in touch, I have redrawn in accordance with the process set out on July 4 and restated on July 13.

And the second round prize winner is:

Morag Gray

Again, Morag, if you don’t receive my email first, please contact me on contact[at]helenlowe[dot]info to confirm posting details for the book.

I shall look forward to hearing from you. 😉

Mystery Prize Deferral

Because of the redraw for Children of Earth and Sky I shall defer announcement of the mystery prize (details here) until tomorrow, Friday 15 July