Diane Stringam Tolley - Carving Angels - Author Interview

My thanks to Diane Stringam Tolley for stopping by The Plot Thickens for an author interview during the blog tour for her book, Carving Angels.

Author Interview

1. Who is the plot based around?
Carving Angels is the story of Papa Adam, former chief wood-carver for Santa. An elderly elf who has given up on his life and livelihood with the loss of his sight.

2. What is the main idea of the plot?
Papa Adam is waiting to die. But a request to carve once more, given by his youngest grandchild and only granddaughter, Amy, helps him realize that his life is not over. And that he is definitely not useless. Together, the two of them begin a project that will change, not only their lives, but the lives of every single member of the North Pole community.

3. When does the plot take place?
The story begins in early spring and follows Papa Adam and Amy through the year till Christmas.

4. Where does the plot take place?
Almost the entirety of the story takes place in Pap Adam's cottage and work room. Though there is an occasional foray into the reindeer stables and the wood sheds. But all at the North Pole.

5. Why did the plot develop the way it did?
This story is a statement about people with disabilities. And in overcoming those disabilities. It was a sweet story about faith in others and in ourselves. Because of that, it needed no other 'antagonist' or 'motivator' to move it along. Once I realized that, I was free to simply follow my two protagonists through their gentle, peaceful days. To suggest that Carving Angels really took its own path might sound . . . odd. But that's exactly what happened!

6. How did you come up with the idea for the plot?
I was looking at a picture of Santa Claus and his sleigh. And the thought popped into my head, "I wonder where he got his sleigh?" I figured he couldn't have found it on E-Bay or at Sleighs Are Us. It must have been carved by an elf.

The rest of the story developed through a series of questions . . .So . . . what kind of elf? A wood-carver, obviously. But what makes him the most special wood-carver? Well, he was the best. Santa's chief. But what makes this an unusual accomplishment for him? He had retired because of disabilities. (Huh. Elves really do grow old and infirm!)

What sort of disabilities? Age and blindness. Okay, he will need someone to help him, at least at times. Who could it be? This was tricky. I wanted someone who could be a help, but who would also be disregarded by the community at large, due to a 'disability.' Then Amy came to me. A little girl, just five years old. Perfect!

About the Book
Carving Angels

Book Details:
Publisher: Cedar Fort, Inc.
Published: September 2011
Genre: Children, ages 9-12
Format: hardcover
Price: $12.99

Buy Links: Amazon, Barnes&Noble.com

Blurb:
Papa Adam, an elderly elf and former chief carver for Santa, has given up. Blind, frail and useless, he counts the minutes in every day as he waits to die.

But a challenge to carve, given by his youngest granddaughter, reawakens Papa Adam. Helps him to realize that he is not finished. And definitely not useless.

The two of them, the 'marginal' oldest and youngest members of North Pole society, begin a remarkable project that will change their community forever. Prove that the most paralyzing thing you can do is underestimate or undervalue anyone, especially yourself.

And that with the right love and encouragement, anything is possible.

About the Author
Diane Stringam Tolley

Diane Stringam Tolley was born and raised on a ranch in Southern Alberta, Canada. Educated in Journalism, she is the author of countless articles and short stories and 4 e-books including a novel for young adults, Essence. She and her husband, Grant are the parents of six children and live in Beaumont, Alberta, Canada.

Connect With Diane:
Blog
Author Web Site

Book Web Site
Facebook

Twitter

About the Tour

Cedar Fort Blog Tours

Sunday	Monday	Tuesday	Wednesday	Thursday	Friday	Saturday
			November	/December
	28	29	30	1	2	3
	I am a Reader, Not a Writer/	The Character Connection/	Book Dreaming/ The Plot Thickens/	Bookworm Lisa/	Bab’s Book Bistro/	Laurie LC Lewis/
4	5	6	7	8	9	10
Makobi Scribe/	Live to Read/ A Casual Reader’s Blog/	Keepin’ Up with LDS Bookstores/	Connections with Christy/	Practical Frugality/	Hippies, Beauty and Books. Oh my!/ Reviews by Molly/	Words are Timeless/ Starcrossed/

Teaser Tuesday

Teaser Tuesdays is a weekly bookish meme, hosted by MizB of Should Be Reading. Anyone can play along! Just do the following:

- Grab your current read
- Open to a random page
- Share two (2) “teaser” sentences from somewhere on that page

BE CAREFUL NOT TO INCLUDE SPOILERS! (make sure that what you share doesn’t give too much away! You don’t want to ruin the book for others!)

Share the title & author, too, so that other TT participants can add the book to their TBR Lists if they like your teasers!

My Teaser:

I entered the sari shop on Devon Avenue for the first time on that same day. To my surprise, the shop was very different from a similar shop in India.

- p. 49, The Evolution of an Identity by Diya Das

Gratitude Giveaway Winner

Congratulations to our Gratitude Giveaway winner!

kimyunalesac(at)yahoo(dot)com

Musing Monday

This week’s musing asks…

Will you be buying books for the holidays, this year? If so, for whom, and why?

I'm getting The Mortal Instruments box set by Cassandra Clare (along with City of Fallen Angels hardcover) for my best friend.

Susan Dean Elzey - Miracle of the Christmas Star - Author Interview

My thanks to Susan Dean Elzey for stopping by The Plot Thickens for an author interview during the blog tour for her book, Miracle of the Christmas Star.

Author Interview

1. Who is the plot based around?
The main characters in my novel Miracle of the Christmas Star are the family of Joshua and Sariah and their daughter Hannah, who has cerebral palsy.

2. What is the main idea of the plot?
The night Sariah’s baby of miracles, baby of sorrows is born blue and lifeless, a brilliant star shines through the window of her tiny home in a village close to Bethlehem. The star bathes the baby with light, and she begins to breathe. Sariah rejoices in the miracle, but soon realizes her daughter, whom she names “Hannah,” is not like the other babies in the village. She is crippled and will never be able to walk or talk. Although haunted by the spectre of her daughter’s future, Sariah believes the shepherds who say that the star heralded the birth of the long-awaited savior, and she begins years of searching and praying for him.

Lovingly caring for her daughter, Sariah’s life courageously endures a hard life, and although her faith wavers, it never burns out. Finally, as word of the Savior’s healing miracles reach her small village, Sariah determines that whatever the effort required, she will put Hannah in a wagon and take her to him to be healed. There follows a harrowing journey through the desert wilderness where Sariah is stripped of all in her life that gives her strength and hope. Only her faith remains, and during one fateful encounter in the terror of the wilderness, her abiding faith proves to be all that she and her daughter need.

3. When does the plot take place?
The story takes place concurrently during the 33 years of the life of Jesus Christ in a little village close to His birthplace of Bethlehem.

4. Why did the plot develop the way it did?
The story is basically the story of one mother’s faith and courage as she tries to find the Savior and have him help her daughter. Along the way in the novel, Sariah basically has to be stripped of everything in her life, except her faith, that she needs to approach the Savior and ask Him to help Hannah. That story line propelled the story line.

Throughout the book, Sariah is faced with seemingly insurmountable obstacles, which she faces with patience and love and a faith that if she just endures, she will one day find the miracle for her daughter.

5. How did you come up with the idea for the plot?
I have a daughter similarly handicapped with cerebral palsy as my character is. I have always marveled at the healing miracles of Jesus and the faith of the family members who would bring their handicapped loved ones to Jesus to be healed. I also have always believed that had I lived at the time of Christ, I would do make whatever sacrifice I had to and carry my daughter however far I had to for her to be healed by Jesus. My novel merged those two ideas into this story of a mother who had the opportunity to do just that, and did.

About the Book
Miracle of the Christmas Star

Book Details:
Publisher: Cedar Fort, Inc.
Published: September 2011
Genre: Holiday Christian Historical Fiction
Format: Paperback
Pages: 176
Price: $12.99

Buy Links: Amazon

Blurb:
Hannah died the night she was born. The new star's light brought her back to life, but left her stricken with palsy. Sariah, Hannah's mother, believes Hannah can be healed, if only she can find the Savior. Miracle of the Christmas Star is a tender story of love, faith and endurance that will touch your heart and remind you why miracles happen.

About the Author
Susan Dean Elzey

Susan Dean Elzey was raised an Army brat and moved to southern Virginia when she was a teenager. She is the mother of seven grown children, stepmother to two, and a grandmother to an ever-increasing brood of grandchildren. Her oldest daughter has cerebral palsy and is the inspiration behind the character of Hannah in her latest novel, "The Miracle of the Christmas Star."

Susan works as a writer and an adjunct English professor at a community college in a constant battle against comma mistakes and sentence fragments. For years, she has written a weekly humorous column entitled "7XMOM" (Seven Times Mom)for the "Danville Register & Bee" newspaper in which she shares the experiences of her life and of her family that, as her children say, "make us look stupid."

"Miracle of the Christmas Star" is Susan's fourth novel.

Connect With Susan:
Author Web Site

Book Web Site
Facebook

About the Tour

Cedar Fort Blog Tours

Sunday	Monday	Tuesday	Wednesday	Thursday	Friday	Saturday
			November	/December
					25	26
					The Character Connection/	The Plot Thickens/
27	28	29	30	1	2	3
		Fire and Ice Photos/		A Casual Reader’s Blog/	Keepin’ Up with LDS Bookstores/
4	5	6	7	8	9	10
		Practical Frugality/	LDS Women’s Book Review/	The Wormhole/	Reviews by Molly/	Why Not? Because I Said So/

Follow Friday

It’s Thanksgiving Day in the U.S. so we want to know what you are Thankful for – blogging related of course! Who has helped you out along the way? What books are you thankful for reading?

I'm grateful for bloggers like GRGenius.

I'm grateful for books like Saving CeeCee Honeycutt by Beth Hoffman.

Waiting On Wednesday

"Waiting On" Wednesday is a weekly event, hosted here, that spotlights upcoming releases that we're eagerly anticipating.

This week's pre-publication "can't-wait-to-read" selection is:

A Million Suns
by Beth Revis
Publication Date: January 10

Godspeed was fueled by lies. Now it is ruled by chaos.

It's been three months since Amy was unplugged. The life she always knew is over. And everywhere she looks, she sees the walls of the spaceship Godspeed. But there may just be hope: Elder has assumed leadership of the ship. He's finally free to enact his vision - no more Phydus, no more lies.

But when Elder discovers shocking news about the ship, he and Amy race to discover the truth behind life on Godspeed. They must work together to unlock a puzzle that was set in motion hundreds of years earlier, unable to fight the romance that's growing between them and the chaos that threatens to tear them apart.

In book two of the Across the Universe trilogy, New York Times bestselling author Beth Revis mesmerizes us again with a brilliantly crafted mystery filled with action, suspense, romance, and deep philosophical questions. And this time it all builds to one mind-bending conclusion: They have to get off this ship.

Teaser Tuesday

Teaser Tuesdays is a weekly bookish meme, hosted by MizB of Should Be Reading. Anyone can play along! Just do the following:

- Grab your current read
- Open to a random page
- Share two (2) “teaser” sentences from somewhere on that page

BE CAREFUL NOT TO INCLUDE SPOILERS! (make sure that what you share doesn’t give too much away! You don’t want to ruin the book for others!)

Share the title & author, too, so that other TT participants can add the book to their TBR Lists if they like your teasers!

My Teaser:

True, since then he'd tended to surprise her by materializing - usually behind her - in a startling and often disconcerting way. But York wasn't a big city like Chicago, and is she wandered the streets for long enough, Miranda was sure she'd find Nick again.

- p. 162, Dark Souls by Paula Morris

C. Elizabeth - Absolute Obsession - Author Interview

My thanks to C. Elizabeth for stopping by The Plot Thickens for an author interview during the blog tour for her book, Absolute Obsession.

Author Interview

1. Who is the plot based around?
Rose Gerbaldi and Michael Terrance

2. What is the main idea of the plot?
Finding true love, losing true love and discovering that fate always has a way.

3. When does the plot take place?
It takes place in the present.

4. Where does the plot take place?
It takes place in Edmonton, Alberta, London, England and Los Angeles, California.

5. Why did the plot develop the way it did?
The plot developed as it did because that is how Rose and Michael told it.

6. How did you come up with the idea for the plot?
The idea for the plot was brought to me by the characters.

About the Book
Absolute Obsession

Book Details:
Publisher: Wings ePress
Published: May 2011
Genre: Contemporary Romance
Pages 476
Format: paperback, ebook
Price: $16.95-$19.95 paperback, $7.50-$8.95 ebook

Buy Links: Kindle, Amazon, Wings Epress, Fictionwise

Blurb:
Triggering an intervention of fate, 42 year old Rose Gerbaldi, discovers her heart and soul have been forever united with beautiful, 30 year old, British movie star, Michael Terrance - - a discovery that compels her reality to fiercely reclaim her, ultimately devastating the very lives fate had so lovingly entwined.

Forsaken by a woman he’s never met, unable to control the debilitating agony, Michael seeks solace on the darker side of Hollywood. Meanwhile in Western Canada, having been doubly devastated, Rose relinquishes to a life of loneliness. Both are certain they’ll never again find that for which they long for - - each other.

Foolish people – fate is infallible.

About the Author
C. Elizabeth

C. Elizabeth lives in St. Albert, Alberta, Canada. She stumbled upon writing, it found her, she finds writing a peaceful escape and is very excited to have her characters come alive in her readers’ minds. Her contemporary romance novel, Absolute Obsession, is about 42 year old Rose Gerbaldi who by an intervention of fate unites her heart and soul with 30 year old British movie star, Michael Terrance.

Connect With C. Elizabeth:
Web Site

Facebook

Twitter

About the Tour

Pump Up Your Book

Tuesday, November 1

Book reviewed at Mad Moose Mama

Wednesday, November 2

Guest blogging at Thoughts in Progress

Thursday, November 3

Book reviewed at Live to Read

Friday, November 4

Interviewed at Examiner

Monday, November 7

Book reviewed at Cafe of Dreams

Tuesday, November 8

Interviewed at Lisa Haselton’s Reviews and Interviews

Wednesday, November 9

Interviewed at Book Marketing Buzz

Thursday, November 10

Guest blogging at Reader Girls

Friday, November 11

Book reviewed at Reader Girls

Monday, November 14

Interviewed at Laurie’s Thoughts & Reviews

Tuesday, November 15

Guest blogging at Coloquium

Thursday, November 17

Guest blogging at Cocktails and Books

Interviewed at Blogcritics

Friday, November 18

Interviewed at The Plot Thickens

Chat with C. Elizabeth at Pump Up Your Book Live! November Author Chat / Book Giveaway Party!

Monday, November 21

Book reviewed at Colloquium

Tuesday, November 22

Book reviewed at Wakela’s World

Wednesday, November 23

Interviewed at Literarily Speaking

Musing Monday

This week’s musing asks…

How do you decide to read a book by an author you haven’t read before? What sort of recommendations count most highly in making that decision?

I read the Iron Fey series by Julie Kagawa based on TwilightDance's recommendation on Twitter. It was a series I never would have heard of otherwise, if not for young adult book bloggers like Yara.

Follow Friday

Letter to Santa: Tell Santa what books you want for Christmas!

I've been hearing nothing but good things about Shatter Me by Tahereh Mafi and I'd love to see this book under by tree.

Booking Through Thursday

CATEGORY

Of the books you own, what’s the biggest category/genre?
Is this also the category that you actually read the most?

I'm a YA fanatic for sure!

Gratitude Giveaways

To enter giveaway, simply:

1) become a Google Friend Follower on the left sidebar

2) leave a comment with your email address

Win 2 young adult poetry books!

In Mind

by Diya Das

Poet Diya Das illuminates six years of adolescence through her introspective verse. Diya s first artistic musings are young and playful. As her inner landscape develops, themes become more complex as she ponders the contradictory nature of life. Lines crystallize the transformation of young girl into mature woman. As Diya begins to shape the foundation of her character, she takes an active role choosing what she will retain from childhood and what she will discard. With each poetic endeavor, her creativity is sharpened through the increased depth of her day-to-day experiences. The portrait of Diya as an artist comes into focus as she grasps the transcendent power inherent in the written word. Her teenage self eternally resides in these pages.

Call Me Sonya Grey

by Sonya Tupone Lloyd

Call Me Sonya Grey is a personal collection of poetic verse that is at once inspiring and challenging. Beginnng with the loss of her mother at age nine, Tupone Lloyd began collecting her thoughts in 40 poems in a diary from early childhood through her twenties. In Call Me, Tupone Lloyd describes the daily battles of self-image and self-expression she experienced growing up after the passing of one parent and the estrangement of another. With the death of her mother, Tupone Lloyd lost a part of everything she had known. Two states away, she finds herself with a different family, school, friends, home and a new name. The verses written during this time are one woman s exploration of her raw, emotional responses to dramatic life changes. This is Sonya's story.

Waiting on Wednesday

"Waiting On" Wednesday is a weekly event, hosted here, that spotlights upcoming releases that we're eagerly anticipating.

This week's pre-publication "can't-wait-to-read" selection is:

In Her Sights
by Robin Perini
Publication Date: November 29

SWAT Team Sniper Jasmine "Jazz" Parker can thread the eye of a needle with a bullet. As the only female sniper in the state of Colorado, Jazz is unique--for more than her extraordinary marksmanship skills and cool head. Jazz Parker and her weapon defend the helpless by exacting swift and uncompromising justice. Not bad for the daughter of the town whore.

After growing up on the seedy side of town, Jazz believed when she'd changed her name and her life at fifteen, she'd buried her past. Twelve years later, she even drove away the one man she believed she could love—ex-Army Ranger Luke Montgomery—to protect her secret.

Then, in a fleeting second, the time it takes for one clean shot, one perfect hit, to save the life of the Governor's daughter, Jazz's world begins to crumble around her. Her past and her present now threaten to destroy the life she so carefully constructed for herself. Her face and name have been splashed across the front page and her past has reawakened with a vengeance. A vicious enemy is bent on destroying Jazz's life, forcing her to turn to the one man she can never have in order to stop a killer before she and everyone she cares about pay with their lives.

Teaser Tuesday

Teaser Tuesdays is a weekly bookish meme, hosted by MizB of Should Be Reading. Anyone can play along! Just do the following:

- Grab your current read
- Open to a random page
- Share two (2) “teaser” sentences from somewhere on that page

BE CAREFUL NOT TO INCLUDE SPOILERS! (make sure that what you share doesn’t give too much away! You don’t want to ruin the book for others!)

Share the title & author, too, so that other TT participants can add the book to their TBR Lists if they like your teasers!

My Teaser:

"Did you know that he liked you?" I say. "I mean, you know. Like that."

"No!" She laughs. "The best part was, that was it. We just kept walking and talking like nothing happened. Well, until I kissed him."

- p. 369, Divergent by Veronica Roth

Noah Baird - Donations to Clarity - Author Interview

My thanks to Noah Baird for stopping by The Plot Thickens for an author interview during the blog tour for his book, Donations to Clarity.

Author Interview

1. Who is the plot based around?
My novel, Donations to Clarity, is based around two groups of people. The first are three unemployed friends decide to make money by hoaxing Bigfoot so they can start a Bigfoot tour company. The book is also about Bigfoot and government agents who are hunting him.

2. What is the main idea of the plot?
I think the plot is about people; damaged, marginalized people. I’ve always been attracted to misfits. Every character in the book is flawed. It’s a comedic book, so the flaws are outrageous but very real to the characters. It’s a humorous examination of the human condition without the photoshop treatment.

3. When does the plot take place?
It’s a contemporary book. It takes place now.

4. Where does the plot take place?
Upstate New York, near where I live. It’s loosely-based on Owego, NY in Tioga County. It also has elements of Ithaca, NY in it.

5. Why did the plot develop the way it did?
It just did. I intended to write a very different book. During the writing process, this plot thread immediately took over. I went with it. I sat down to write a chapter with a solid plan in my head, but would end up with something very different. For example, while I was writing the chapter introducing the Elvis-impersonating sheriff, I wrote one more line: ‘As far as ________ impersonators, there is exactly one: ________.’ I loved the line so much I couldn’t get rid of it. That one line led my to creating the Julian Lennon-impersonating deputy, which changed the plot.

6. How did you come up with the idea for the plot?
I don’t tell a lot of people this, but I feel like we have a connection. The book is an autobiography. I hoaxed Bigfoot so I could open a Bigfoot tour company. I was captured by a Bigfoot because, I can only assume, he thought I was a female Bigfoot. Bigfoot tried to make his sex slave, but I escaped with the help of Elvis. It’s all true.

About the Book
Donations to Clarity

Book Details:
Publisher: Second Wind Publishing
Published: September 2011
Genre: Fiction
Format: paperback & ebook
Pages: 220
Price: $14.95 paperback; $4.99 ebook

Buy Links: Amazon
Kindle

Blurb:
The plan was simple: hoax Bigfoot, then sell tours to Bigfoot enthusiasts. The plan wasn't brilliant, and neither were Harry, Earl, and Patch. The three chemical-abusing friends only wanted to avoid the 9 to 5 rat race, but their antics attract the attention of a real Bigfoot. When the misogynistic Earl is mistaken for a female Bigfoot by the nearsighted creature and captured; it is just the beginning of their problems.

The U.S. Government has a plan to naturalize the mythical creatures living within the U.S. borders. The problem is the plan needs to be carried out carefully. You can't just drop little green men and Sasquatch in the middle of Walmart without warning Ma and Pa Taxpayer. The naturalization program is not ready to be set into motion, and the rogue Bigfoot is bringing too much attention to itself, including a feisty investigative reporter who uncovers the truth of the government conspiracy and two Bigfoot researchers. No longer able to contain the situation, government agents are tasked with eliminating the Bigfoot and all witnesses.

Between bong hits and water balloon fights, Harry and Patch come up with a plan to save Earl and the lovestruck Bigfoot. Where do you hide a giant, mythical creature? In an insane asylum, because who is going to listen to them?

Along the way, the three friends learn Star Wars was a government training film for children, the truth behind Elvis meeting President Nixon, and the significance of the weight of the human turd.

About the Author
Noah Baird

Noah Baird wanted to attend the Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Clown College, but his grades weren’t good enough (who knew?). However, his grades were good enough to fly for the U.S. Navy (again, who knew?), where he spent 14 years until the government figured out surfers don’t make the best military aviators. He has also worked as a stand-up comedian in Hawaii for Japanese tourists, where the language barrier really screwed up some great jokes. On the bright side, a sailboat was named after the punchline of one of his jokes.

He has several political satire pieces published on The Spoof under the pen name orioncrew. Noah received his bachelors in Historical and Political Sciences from Chaminade University, where he graduated magna cum laude. He knows nothing about hoaxing Bigfoot. This is his first novel.

Connect With Noah:
Web Site

Facebook

Twitter

About the Tour

Pump Up Your Book

Tuesday, November 1

Interviewed at Pump Up Your Book

Wednesday, November 2

Interviewed at Beyond the Books

Thursday, November 3

Guest blogging at Reviews by Molly

Friday, November 4

Book spotlighted at Book Marketing Buzz

Monday, November 7

Interviewed at The Hot Author Report

Tuesday, November 8

Interviewed at The Writer’s Life

Wednesday, November 9

Interviewed at Review From Here

Thursday, November 10

Guest blogging at As the Pages Turn

Friday, November 11

Interviewed at Blogcritics

Tuesday, Novemer 15

Guest blogging at Night Owl Reviews

Thursday, November 17

Interviewed at Examiner

Monday, November 21

Guest blogging at Literal Exposure

Tuesday, November 22

Guest blogging at Writing Daze

Monday, December 5

Book reviewed at Between the Pages

Tuesday, December 6

Interviewed at Book Marketing Buzz

Wednesday, December 7

Book reviewed at Family Reads

Thursday, December 8

Guest blogging at Mad Moose Mama

Friday, December 9

Book reviewed at Mad Moose Mama

Monday, December 12

Book reviewed at Twisting the Lens

Tuesday, December 13

Interviewed LIVE at Blog Talk Radio’s A Book and a Chat

Wednesday, December 14

Interviewed at The Book Connection

Thursday, December 15

Guest blogging at The Book Faery Reviews

Friday, December 16

Chat with Noah at Pump Up Your Book December Authors on Tour Facebook Party! (link coming soon)

Musing Monday

This week’s musing asks…

Are you currently collecting any authors? Why?
Do you have all of their books? If not, why not?
Did you buy all the books in the collection at the same time, or did you buy a book here, a book there? Have you actually read all of the collection? If not, why not?

Yes, I'm collecting the Harry Potter series by J.K. Rowling.

I have all of the books.

I bought each book as it was released, except for the first three which I received as a Christmas gift in 2001.