Friday 31 May 2013

Jamie Guerard on Writing and Plotting and other Goodies

We've reached the end of May (cue the panicked screaming because JuNoWriMo starts tomorrow) and because I know some people are stressing out I thought we'd take it easy and let the lovely Jamie Guerard come and talk to us about how she planned and wrote the first book in her series Awaken.
 
Take it away Jamie!
 
Three things run through my mind at this very moment…
ONE, my life as I once knew it will never be the same.

TWO, the person I’m in love with might not even exist.

THREE, the deception that has unfolded before me has the power of life and death.

Sixteen year old, Breanna Davis, has heard the saying; life isn’t always what it seems…well, that saying rings true now more than ever. As horrifying visions appear before her, revealing tragedies that will forever change the fate of those she loves, she realizes that she may be the only person who can stop them from becoming reality. 

Amongst the chaos of this new discovery, Bre is faced with a stranger, Eve, who moves in on Bre’s friends and begins to follow her every move. As Eve’s true motives begin to surface, Bre must fight against, not only the visions, but the dangers Eve holds close. 

There is another secret kept- Collin, a boy held captive in Bre’s dreams, the boy she is secretly falling in love with but isn’t sure he even exists. As she tries to make it work with Austin, an old friend who could possibly be more, Bre battles against her feelings for Collin. 

Bre is faced with an almost impossible decision, to choose her life or follow her destiny. If she doesn’t intercede, people will certainly die. If she does, her own life could be at stake. In the end, if she fails, she’ll lose everything.
 
Purchase: Amazon
 
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                My planning process for writing novels is a little different than most authors I’ve talked to. For Awaken I had the concept (the major details in all three books) dump into my head one day. Once I had the structure in place (and I knew the storyline) I just began to write. ‘Vomit onto the page’ is what I call it.
                In the very beginning I would write a chapter and then go back and try to edit. However, that was taking me a very long time. I knew if I continued to edit instead of get the story out of my head and down on paper I would never finish. So that’s what I did. I just wrote and if something didn’t seem right, I would highlight that section and go back later and fix or delete it.
                For plotting I’m not like some authors who use storyboards. Everything is in my head. For book one (in the Awaken Series) I thought about the main events that needed to happen there were three major scenes that the main character, Bre, had to get to. Then I would take it chapter-by-chapter and write out the different scenarios; relationships, family dynamics, pieces of the visions that Bre is facing and the struggles that she had. Most of the time I wouldn’t write unless the chapter came to me. I’m not an author who writes daily for word count. I write when I have the chapter sequence and I just write until I don’t know what the next scene is yet.
                I haven’t faced a lot of road blocks. My struggles mostly are to find time to sit and write (around everyday life). However, the little road blocks that I have faced, what I typically do is step away from the manuscript for a day or so. I’ve found that if you do that the scene will eventually come to me.  
                Writing has been a complete challenge and total joy all-in-one.  It by far is the most rewarding endeavor I’ve ventured out on and I hope to help others who also have dreams of publishing their work one day.
About the Author
Jaime GuerardJaime grew up in a small town in Northern California. Having a passion for dance and music, she never would have thought herself to become an author.
 
In late 2008, Jaime found the pieces of her novel beginning to take form and a story was born. Soon she had a full novel in her hands and a writer was developed. Awaken is Jaime's first published novel. With many features still in the works, this debut novel is just a taste of the action-packed romantic thrillers to come from this aspiring new author.

Jaime now lives in Nevada with her husband and three boys. Loving life, and living a dream.

 
AND OF COURSE THE GIVEAWAY 
a Rafflecopter giveaway

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