Today is my stop for the Taking Of The Dead Tour, and I have a guest post with Annie Walls and a swag pack giveaway. Check it out and take a look at that cool cover, love the machete!
Taking on the Dead (The Famished Trilogy #1) by Annie WallsLife for Kansas was perfect until the day the world changed.
She has been hiding out for four years in solitude. It’s the only way to survive. The only way not to draw the living dead. Helping a small group of people, she learns the new world might not be what she assumes. Venturing out of her refuge and comfort zone, she meets Rudy, who helps her find a greater purpose. She realizes that the world has moved on without her. Only it’s not what she expects. Her knowledge of the living dead grows and only makes her more curious as humanity continues to hang on by a thread. While on her search for answers she finds comfort in new friendships and love, but her past seems as if it will haunt her forever.
Kansas takes it upon herself to help other survivors, which would be easy if the famished were the only obstacles.
In a trilogy plot thick with twists and turns, this adult dark fantasy is emotional as much as it is horrifyingly gripping.
Annie Walls : Author of dark fantasy and sub-genres of horror. Voracious Reader and Googler. Lover of dark humor. Horror Buff. Zombie Apocalypse Enthusiast. Loyal Cracked follower. Pinterest Addict. Wife of adoring husband. Mother of a five year old Bruce Wayne. Cook. Maid. Kisser of boo-boos. Ultimate Time Waster. Perfect Procrastinator. Lolly Gagger. Trubie. Cake Decorator. Tea Drinker. Sculpey Sculptor. Girl Gamer. Perfectionist in the art of Facebook stalking. And now, God help me, a blogger. Oh yeah, and a twitter, twatter, tweeter. Well yeah, I’m one crafty bitch.
Buy Link:
Taking on the Dead
I'm excited to be here on Paranormal & Urban Fantasy Reviews!! Today I want to tell you about two of my co characters and my character creating process. The Famished Trilogy is a character driven story. I've had some people really love some of the characters you don't get to know much about. I have characters you'll love to hate and grow to love.
When coming up with them I knew more about their personalities than what they looked like. I have a guest post ( http://contagiousreads.blogspot.com/2012/10/taking-on-dead-blog-tour.html ) on a character I don't have a background for, one I made up off the top of my head. Most of my characters were not made up in this manner. I have a HUGE 3 inch, 3 ring binder on my characters throughout the trilogy. I guess you could say it's my writer's bible for The Famished Trilogy. It's kind of messy with all the magazine cut-outs for visual inspiration and my sloppy handwritten notes in the margins. I'm telling you this because my characters are well thought out. Things I write down about them include: region where they are from, education, profile stats (age, height, race, appearance) family stats, former occupation, weaknesses, personality traits, relationship stats, flaws, strengths, hobbies, etc. Somethings might not be filled out, most things are. Some things I didn't know until I was halfway finished with book two. That's just how it works with me for some reason.
The two characters I'm going to mention don't have a big part in Taking on the Dead, but we get to know more about them and love them throughout the trilogy.
Sam and Ty. I love these guys! If you've read TotD, you'll know Kansas spots them right away because they are in the back of the crowd cracking jokes with each other. Here is a small excerpt on their first appearance:
The Asian American eyes me and says, “Samaru, Sam.” He’s easily the shortest of the group, yet still muscular, like an English bulldog. A gray, zippered hoodie stretches over his huge chest and arms, and his baggy jeans cover shoes with the tongues and laces hanging out. I like him already because his black glossy faux-hawk is cemented in such a way, I’m sure he could stake zombies with it.
Sam's buddy, a bouncy African American with clothes five times too big for his body has charcoal black skin matches his sparse stubble and the small dreads sticking out from his head.
He notices me watching him and says, “Wussup? I’m Ty.” Dancing to a beat in his head, he raises his fingers in a mock salute.
An asian and a black dude. How stereotypical? I did this on purpose because they are anything but stereotypical. These guys are younger than the rest of the group and were friends before the "zombie outbreak."
Samaru's background includes his Japanese family having a place for inner city kids to hang out and stay out of trouble. Sam's family taught them discipline in the forms of Judo and Jujitsu with varying degrees of success. This place (I do not have a name for) is where Sam met Ty at a young age of around 15 or 16. Ty became close friends with Sam, but his skill in Judo is nil. Ty still sticks to his street given ways. Ty's family consisted of only his father, who worked at a railway museum. His mother passed due to cancer and not having much money to contribute to medical treatments. Even though Ty's family lived in an inner city environment, they worked for a living and made the best of what life had to offer. Sam is the more outgoing of the two, while Ty tends to stand back and watch things happen. They both develop a soft spot for Kan as the trilogy continues. The gang becomes more than a team trying to get answers, they become family. Which shows.
Even though, most of Ty and Sam's backgrounds aren't brought up, it makes them who they are and gives reasons for why they do the things they do. In Taking on the Dead, Kan says "asian" without knowing Sam's actual nationality. She also says "Kung-fu moves" because she doesn't know the difference between martial art styles and forms… these are realistic thoughts.
So there you have it! A little on my creative process and a little on some co characters! I hope you have as much fun reading Taking on the Dead as I had writing it!
Check out the rest of the tour HERE
- 2 book swag packs
- 1 signed print swag pack
I wonder if your characters ever metamorphose from what you originally saw them as?
ReplyDeleteKansas sounds like an interesting character as does the world she inhibits. The world created by the author sounds dark and sinister with a small flame of hope. This book sounds eerie and enthralling. I can't wait to check it out. Thanks for the giveaway!
ReplyDeleteI totally love this book and cannot wait for book two!!
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