Sequel Review: "The Invaders"

Spoilers may lurk for those who haven't read The Outcasts. You might be able to get away with hopping into the series starting with this book, but I think you'll have a deeper appreciation for the book if you read The Outcasts first. 

The Short:

The Invaders

Brotherband Chronicles, Book 2

By: John Flanagan

5/5 Stars (for intended age group)

What: Following the loss of the Andomal, Hal and the Herons set out on a quest to find Zavac and retrieve the treasure.

Recommended to those who like: Fantasy, Clean, Sailing, Middle Grade/ Teen, and have read Book One 

The Long:

If you’re ever looking for books for a boy who doesn’t like reading, I’d highly recommend John Flanagan as an author. His books feature young men, are easy, quick reads, and have a ton of adventure and action in them.

Hal and the Herons have set out to retrieve the Andomal and escape Hallasholm. However, storms, pirates, and infighting oppose their progress. Can they overcome their differences to complete their quest and regain their honor?

For adult readers, this book might be a four-star work. It’s not written at a very high reading level. However, for teens and middle grade readers the language and style are perfect. (There is an instance of foul language in the book, so take that into consideration when recommending it to anyone). 

The book’s a bit slow to start, but once the action gets going, it’s quite enjoyable. All of our favorite characters from book one have returned and they show some real character growth between the two books. Themes of the novel include teamwork and leadership.

You might be able to get away with not reading Book 1 prior to starting The Invaders; however, I think you’ll have a much greater appreciation for the characters if you read the books in chronological order. Readers of the Ranger’s Apprentice series will likely appreciate the connections between the two series.

Do you enjoy reading books for younger readers? 

I may be slow to respond to comments this weekend. Happy Valentine's Day/Singles Awareness Day!

The Getting to Know Me Tag

Thanks to Liz over at Out of Coffee, Out of Mind, for the tag!

Vital Stats:

Name: R.M. Lutz (And you thought I was going to reveal my secret identity! I think not ;)

Nicknames: Ray, Pumpkin, Taterhead

Birthday: The first day of Spring

Place of Birth: (Gee whiz, is this going to ask for my SSN next?) Ohio

Star Sign: I'm going to go non-traditional here and say the Big Dipper, because I'm obsessed with all things northern and snow and it points to the North Star. 

Occupation: Full-time student, intermittent freelance editor, and unpublished author. 

Appearance

Hair Color: Brown with the occasional blond streak in the front. Gotta love acne medication that bleaches your hair out. (On the bright side, free highlights!)

Hair Length: Collar bone? I only recently started cutting it this short. I'm still adjusting. 

Eye Color: Oh gosh, this question. I always put down hazel because I don't think gold-brown with green and gray would fit on my license.

Best Feature: My eyes. Which refuse to be put into any category. 

Braces: Thank goodness, no. I'll take my mediocre vision with lack of depth perception over braces any day. 

Piercings: Nope. I've considered getting my ears pierced, but I don't think I'd wear earrings frequently enough to justify it. 

Tattoos: Nope. 

Righty or lefty?: Righty

Firsts

First best friend: Tatiana. I actually got to see her again after several years of no contact. It was really fun catching up and seeing where we're both going. 

Award: My ribbon from my first set of swim lessons when I was three. It's hanging up with the ribbons/medals I won as a competitive swimmer and I like it just as much. (If not more, only because it's purple). 

Sport: Swimming/soccer. 

Real holiday: ? Not sure what to answer here. 

Concert: Lost and Found. It's a shame that they just finished up their Farewell Tour. Then again, it might have been Trans-Siberian Orchestra. That would probably be my first "real" concert. 

Favorites

Movie: This question is not fair. To list a few: Star Wars, The Lord of the Rings, and The Princess Bride. 

TV Show: Right now, Arrow. However, I also like Scooby-Doo (the originals) and Merlin. You can also catch me watching The Flash, Agent Carter, and I just got hooked on The Man in the High Castle. Ooh, and Castle. But I'm really behind. 

Color: Purple, like the lid on Crayola markers. 

Song: It greatly varies by mood. 

Stressed?--"Flood" by Jars of Clay or "Whispers in the Dark" by Skillet.

Happy? "50 Ways to Say Goodbye" by Train and a whole slew of other songs. 

Nostalgic? "Lights" by Journey. 

Need to get some work done? "Taking Care of Business" by Automotive, "Working for a Living" by Huey Lewis and the News, or "Blue Collar Man (Long Nights, Impossible odds) by Styx. 

Bad mood/mad? "Before He Cheats" by Carrie Underwood, or pretty much anything by Pat Benatar

Sappy? The newest addition is "I'm Gonna Be (500 Miles)" by the Proclaimers. "I Don't Dance" by Lee Brice. Also, Michael Buble, Billy Joel, and Train. 

Hymns? "God of Grace and God of Glory", "The Church's One Foundation", "All Hail the Power of Jesus Name", "Battle Hymn of the Republic"(If that counts), and "The Lamb" to name a few. 

Other? "Wheel in the Sky" by Journey, "The Iditarod Trail Song" by Hobo Jim, "If Today Was Your Last Day" by Nickelback, "The Piano Man" by Billy Joel, "Word Crimes" by Weird Al, "The Hockey Song", by the Ice Warriors, "All Star" by Smash Mouth, "The Devil Went Down to Georgia" by the Charlie Daniels Band, "Kryptonite" by 3 Doors Down, and "Breath of Life" by Florence + The Machine. 

In short, don't ask me what my favorite song is. Also, I just gave you the weirdest playlist known to man. 

Restaurant: Anything that involves pasta. Also, Cheesecake Factory. 

http://www.thecheesecakefactory.com/

Shop: Depends on what I'm looking for, but Books-A-Million or Yankee Candle. I go into Yankee Candle if I want to come out with money. 

Book: Do you want a list longer than the song list? I thought not. 

Magazine: I don't read these as much as I would like, but National Geographic and The Lutheran Witness are probably the two I'd be inclined to one day get a subscription for. 

Shoes: the pair of fleece-lined ankle boots I picked up at a second hand store. In lieu of that, sneakers. 

Currently

Feeling: Like my eyes hurt after finding all the songs I like. This tag is very long.

Single or Taken: Been on the single train my whole life. (Reminder, Single's Appreciation Day is February 15--all the candy goes half off, just for us). 

Listening to: "Uptown Girl" by Billy Joel. Now, "The Devil Went Down to Georgia" by the Charlie Daniels Band. (What did I say about asking me about music?)

Thinking about: I wonder what the cafeteria has for lunch? And is there time to take a nap this afternoon? Because if not, I have to load up on coffee. Also, maybe I should have split this post into two? 

Watching: At the moment, nothing. And I probably won't have time for TV for the next week. 

Wearing: My favorite hoodie, fuzzy socks, and warm-up pants. 

Future

Children: Yes. But, marriage first (Oh, "Keep Your Hands to Yourself" by the Georgia Satellites is also good).And before that, the single status needs fixed. Which requires a guy asking me out first. Which, despite me dropping hints, has not happened. :/

Married: See above conundrum. 

Careers: Vet Tech, writer, editor, and, if all else fails, musher. 

Where do you want to live? In a cozy cabin in the woods.

Do You Believe In...

God? Yes!

Miracles? I believe in the greatest miracle of all time--God sending His Son in human flesh to take my failures so that I can be with Him. I also believe He performed miracles while here. I don't go looking for miracles today, but I don't rule out the possibility of them happening. 

Love at first sight? Love is the act of choosing someone consistently above yourself and putting their needs first. Could this happen at first sight? Maybe? I doubt it. 

Ghosts? Spirits (demons, angels), yes. Ghosts, as in deceased persons? Not really, no. 

Aliens? Not really. Possible? Maybe. Probable? No. 

Soul mates? Please define the term. If you mean that every person has one person they're meant to be with, no. Because then one person choosing the wrong person would screw everything up. And humans are really good at screwing things up. 

Heaven? Yes. 

Hell? Yes.

Kissing on the first date? Ummm...no. Again, I refer you to the Georgia Satellites. I think you should get to know the person really well before you make any sort of physical connection with them, including kissing. I think kissing is appropriate for engaged couples. Not sure on the dating couples. Again, I'm on the single train. 

Yourself? I would hope so, or else this post is problematic. 

Thanks for sticking around for a really long article about me rambling about my various interests. If you want this tag, by all means, please steal it. 

Also, if anyone is interested, I am looking for a guest poster (or two) for the dates of Friday, February 26th and Tuesday, March 1st. Please use the contact form in the left-hand column. I accept posts on "clean" sci-fi/fantasy books and movies, as well as posts on writing. 

We Write Books Introduction Post

You might have noticed that I had a poll set up asking about interest in a writing challenge. (Thank you to the person who voted!) I was originally planning on doing a daily writing goal type challenge, but a different opportunity presented itself and I thought that it would be awesome to participate.

If you've followed the blog for very long, you know that I'm a bit obsessed with "Go Teen Writers". I credit that blog and my 8th grade English teacher for convincing me to keep writing.

The We Write Books (I don't do hashtags.) challenge is a way of walking through brainstorming, writing, and editing an entire novel with a group of other young writers. At the end, Ms. Williamson and the others over at GTW are going to have a contest for writers up to age 21. It's a bit slower pace than NaNoWriMo.

I'm currently finishing up writing my rough draft of Fractures and my focus is starting to shift to what project I want to tackle next. As much as I really want to write the cool sci-fi idea I have floating around in my head, I really need to return to my dystopian novels. They've been sitting on the shelf for a few months.

Yes, it's time to dust off Crossfire and re-write it. I'm not going to lie--I'm a little terrified. I love this story and I want to make sure it's told well. I've decided that I'm going to plot using the Snowflake Method all the way through and not skimp out on plotting time, even though it might be tempting.

I'd like to invite all of you to join me in this endeavor. My writing process posts will include updates on the challenge. As always, I'd love to hear how your writing is going!

Friday Fiction Fix: "Dreamtreaders"

The Short:

Dreamtreaders

Dreamtreaders, Book 1

By: Wayne Thomas Batson.

5/5 Stars

What: A boy has the remarkable ability to control a dream world, but with it comes the responsibility to protect it from evil.

Recommended to those who like: Fantasy, Christian, Middle Grade/Teen

The Long:

There are some great cover designers out there! This design

sucked me right in. And while it’s good advice not to judge a book by its cover, I’d say that this book lived up to the cover artwork.

Archer Keaton is a dreamtreader—someone who has the ability and responsibility to guard and protect the dream world. Just a teenager, some of that responsibility is exhausting and it’s easy to overestimate his powers. Whether he’s occupied trying to defeat the Nightmare Lord or sew up breaches in the dream world to keep it from mingling with the Waking World, his nights are more than a little busy.

This book is certainly unique and the imagery is fascinating and vivid. The theme of good vs. evil is strong and the spiritual warfare aspect won’t be lost on most readers, but the Christian element isn’t overwhelming. People who enjoy books for middle grade/teen readers will likely enjoy this the most, but many young adults will enjoy the book as well. I look forward to reading the rest of the trilogy.

Any thoughts?

Like pirates? Check out this other pair of books by Mr. Batson here and here.

The Writer's Mind: Carving out Writing Time

Well, life happened this week, so this is going to be a shorter post than I had originally planned. (Writing tip number 17: don't develop a social life or pick up hobbies. They take too much time).

From here.

This semester was supposed to be "easy" compared to the last one.

A conference, tournament, and two projects later, I'm starting to have my doubts. I've been running like a chicken with my head cut off for a couple weeks now and there doesn't seem to be an end coming any time soon. 

As often happens, something ended up on the back burner. This time around, it was writing. A month ago, I set out to write 5,000 words a week. 

That's about what I wrote last month. 

Yikes. 

So, I've been trying to focus on what I can do to improve my word count--and I realized that, unlike most other activities, I don't have a time of day set aside to write. It's been lumped in with homework and studying. 

As most college students would tell you, there isn't such a thing as being done with homework or studying, at least not during the middle of a semester. There's always one more project, one more reading assignment, and one more test for which to study. It's not easy. 

But very little that's good comes easily. 

Hence,why my alarm is now going to be going off a half hour earlier during the week. I need some serious writing time at a point of day when I'm not going to be as tempted to do homework or get sucked into Facebook. I typically write better at night, but right now it's between doing some not-so-inspired writing regularly in the morning or not writing very much at all. 

Editing can fix one of those problems, but not the other. 

So, here's to fighting for dreams. To balancing the five hundred things we decide to be involved in at any one point in time. Here's to the writing life. 

Friday Fiction Fix: "Half-Blood"

Although this is labeled as book 1.5, those who have not read anything in this series can easily enjoy this book. 

The Short:

Half-Blood

Ilyon Chronicles, 1.5

By: Jaye L. Knight

4.5/5 Stars

What: A young slave forced to become a gladiator struggles with his humanity.

Recommended to those who like: Christian, internal conflict, fantasy, sword fights, and quick reads.

The Long:

Although this book is labeled as 1.5, it’s really a prequel to Resistance. This would actually be a good way to try out a new author/series. Those who have read Resistance will also enjoy learning some of Jace’s backstory.

Jace has been a slave his whole life. Yet he can’t even associate with his fellows in bonds—he’s half ryrik, which gives him pointed ears, an odd appearance, and a violent reputation--though he hasn’t done anything to deserve it. He struggles with understanding how humans who could violently enslave him are considered better, even though he hasn’t done anything deserving of his treatment.

Taken to be trained as a gladiator, will he succumb to the violence in his blood to please his masters, or will he be able to become something better?

This book is a great read and it deals with some serious issues, including violence and slavery. 

However, it’s definitely a prequel-style story with less of a fleshed-out story line than a "normal" novel would have. (Hence the half star; I keep telling myself I’m not going to use those). 

I love Jace’s internal conflict throughout the story. It makes me question how I would react in a similar situation.

I would recommend this book to those who enjoy fantasy and gladiators, with some moral dilemmas thrown in. Again, it would be suitable for someone who is new to the story or someone who has read previous books in the series.

What are your thoughts on prequel novels? 

The Writer's Mind: Snowflake Method

This is a plotting/brainstorming method I tried out for Fractures, my fantasy NaNo novel this year. I'll talk about what I liked about it and what I didn't like quite as much.  I definitely learned a few things from it. If you're interested, I've also written another, more general post on plotting a novel.

What is the Snowflake Method? 

The snowflake method is a way to brainstorm a novel by starting small and making it bigger and more complex. It's based off of a concept called the Koch Snowflake, a type of fractal. Without getting into math stuff (yuck), here's a good little illustration: 

From here.

Essentially, it's a way of arranging triangles in a mathematical pattern that results in a snowflake picture that can be infinitely complex. If you like the mathematical jargon, click on the link in the caption.

Math and fun shapes aside, the Koch snowflake uses the same ideas as the Snowflake method. You use a big idea (like a triangle) and then keep expanding upon it to get a more complex story. 

Snowflake Method Steps

(Information was taken from here. I don't claim to have come up with this, because I'm a recovering pantser and still experimenting with plotting. The link has more detailed info if you're interested). 

1. Write one sentence that sums up your novel. 
2. Expand that sentence to one paragraph.
3. Write a skeleton outline of each of your big characters--motivation, description, one sentence character arc etc.
4. Elaborate on your paragraph of plot and turn it into a page or so outline. 
5. Flesh out your skeleton character outlines. 
6. Continue to flesh out your plot using info from your characters so that you have a several page long plot summary. 
7. Write a super detailed outline of your characters. 
8. Make a list/spreadsheet of every scene in your novel. 
9. Take that spreadsheet and write a paragraph of description for that scene. You'll have a skeleton book now (one paragraph for a scene).
10. Write the real rough draft, using your notes. 

Pros and Cons

I didn't quite follow the above instructions, due to the fact that I started too close to NaNo to complete all the steps. I basically did steps 1-5 and then wrote my rough draft. I'm considering trying to do an entire book this way at some point (perhaps for one of my novel re-writes). Maybe I'll meander less from my intended plot. I basically re-designed my story halfway through NaNo (my perpetual problem with plotting; I never seem to follow my plot). 

Pros:

• I actually knew a bit about my characters. This is abnormal for me. It was wonderful to have  an idea of how they should behave.
• My plot wasn't a complete mystery. I had a beginning, climax, and ending planned out. Again, this is abnormal for me. 
• I spent less time brainstorming while writing. I mainly had to figure out the little details between point A and point B, rather than trying figure out what point B was. This made NaNo less stressful. 

Cons:

• I still managed to deviate from my plot line. I realized that, if I followed my outline, I'd get to the climax far too quickly. So I added in a bit of pre-climax action...and it took over the story. For like 30,000 words. Maybe this would change if I got to steps 8 and 9 next time. This is why I'm interested in trying it again. 
• I didn't feel like I really got to know my characters. Characters are one of my perennial struggles. They tend to sound the same, act the same, and behave irrationally. While doing the character outlines helped me a bit, I felt like they were just paper cut-outs. I think character development is something that I'll perennially have to edit into my story. 
• It takes a lot of time. I got all excited about my story...but I wanted to write it before I was really done with plotting it. I got that wish, due to NaNo. In the future, I don't think I'm going to do this with NaNo coming up too soon, though it certainly helped me to exceed my NaNo goals. 

Plotting in the Future

I think I'm going to try the snowflake method all the way through at some point. I'm really intrigued  by the idea of writing one paragraph for each scene. I'm just always hesitant to plot too much, since I have a tendency to throw it all out the window in the middle of the story. I hate to put that much work into plotting if I'm not going to use it. 

If you're interested in trying this method out, you might be interested in ywriter, a free writing program. It allows you to put paragraph descriptions of your scenes together, as well as character notes. I didn't use it this NaNo, but I've used it in the past. My main complaint is that it formats things differently than Word, which can lead to some real editing nightmares. I also dislike having to edit in it. 

Are you a plotter or a pantser? How do you plan out your stories?