A literary device is a technique in writing to help enhance the writing or otherwise help authors get their message across in creative ways. Many literary devices are widely known, such as the simile. But there are many you might not know about! Here are some lesser known literary devices to spice up your writing.

Metaphor

Metaphor is commonly thought of in the same vein as the simile. While a simile is a comparison using “like” or “as” (ex. Her eyes were blue like the sea), a metaphor is a comparison that does not use “like” or “as.” (ex. Her eyes were a blue sea.) A metaphor might be an ideal device for comparison if you wish to be more abstract and establish a recurring theme over the course of your story. 

Anaphora

Anaphora is the repetition of a word or phrase at the beginning of sentences/independent clauses. This kind of repetition is typical in oration and poetry, in order to emphasize ideas, provoke emotion in the audience. An example: The repetition of “I have a dream” in Martin Luther King’s 1963 “I Have A Dream” speech – so effective, it is how people know that speech all these years later!

Metonymy

Metonymy is symbolism, but phrased a certain way – a metonym is where a single object is used to represent a larger thing that is more complex. It comes to serve as a synonym for that thing or things. Examples: “The crown” representing the British Monarchy; In the phrase “the pen is mightier than the sword”, “pen” means written words, while “sword” means violence. 

Consonance

You probably have heard of alliteration before – the repetition of sounds at the beginning of words. But did you know that alliteration is actually a form of consonance, the repetition of non-vowel sounds in a series of words? Consonance can also happen in other places in a word, not just at the beginning. Example: “Hickory dickory dock,” “He struck a streak of bad luck.”

Parallelism 

Parallelism is a type of sentence structure. It is arranging similar words or phrases in a way that reflects their similarity or relationship. Typically, it creates a harmonious, poetic sound. It is more common in oratory, but can be effective in your book as well. Examples: “No pain, no gain,” “Where there is smoke, there is fire.”

Polysyndeton

Polysyndeton is a fancy sounding word for a device that is fairly simple. Polysyndeton is when a writer combines long clauses with conjunctions, rather than commas or starting a new sentence. It is usually for dramatic effect, such as to represent a train of thought or perhaps a worried tone. Example: In Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet, Act 2, Scene 5: ““Your love says, like an honest gentleman, and a courteous, and a kind, and a handsome, and, I warrant, a virtuous — where is your mother?””

In Medias Res

In medias res translated from Latin means “in the middle of things.” To use In medias res means to start a scene right in the middle of action. It is effective to use when you want to catch a reader’s attention right away. 

Allusion

Allusion is a term that simply means a reference to another work. Well placed references wont take away from your story but will enhance it. They can pay homage to works that inspired your work. 

Hypophora

Hypophora is similar to a rhetorical question. It is when someone asks a question for dramatic effect, and answers it themselves right away. It is typically used when a character is talking to themselves, making a dramatic point, or talking to an audience. Example: In The Great Gatsby, when Daisy Buchanan says, “Do you always watch for the longest day of the year and then miss it? I always watch for the longest day in the year and then miss it.”

Zoomorphism 

Zoomorphism is the opposite of personification – taking animal traits and assigning them to something that isn’t an animal. These traits can be metaphorical, or literal, such as the mythological creature of a centaur. Example: Saying someone is “barking up the wrong tree” to express bad behavior. 

(Source)

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When it comes to writing fiction, interesting characters are essential to a book that will keep readers engaged. Here are some tips for writing interesting characters that apply across all genres and story types.

1.) Direct vs Indirect

There are several approaches to developing interesting characters. One to keep in mind is the concept of direct vs. indirect characterization. If you have heard of “show vs. tell” before, this will be familiar.

Direct characterization is that which is told to the reader in a black-and-white manner.

Example: “The child was well-behaved as he sat in the waiting room with his mother.”

Here, the reader is told that the character of the child is acting well-behaved. It can be inferred that this means he is being quiet, respectful, or non-disruptive. The reader didn’t learn this information by observing the characters’ actions; it was told to them outright. 

Indirect characterization, on the other hand, is conveyed through other means, such as dialogue or small moments over time that the reader will have to think about to pick up on. A helpful acronym for how to achieve indirect characterization is STEAL.

2.) STEAL

The mnemonic device STEAL refers to how to accomplish indirect characterization. 

• Speech
• Thoughts
• Effect on others
• Actions
• Looks

Let’s go through each of these and see what they mean.

Speech refers to how a character talks. You can develop character through dialogue – how they speak to others and what they say.

Thoughts refers to what a character is thinking internally. You may have heard of the idea of a “internal monologue” before – a character talking to themselves. We all have a monologue in our heads and talk to ourselves. You can, as an author, show what a character is thinking through the narration. Conveying your character’s inner thoughts will make the reader feel like they know them, and they will want to know what happens to them. It will establish their character and make them more interesting.

Effect on others is how other characters react to and/or interpret the character. How does Character A, for example, react to what Character B is saying? How do they interpret Character B? This can be accomplished via dialogue – aka the characters speaking to each other. Other ways to show a character’s effect on others is through describing their body language when the character speaks or is around them, or their thoughts about the character.

Actions is what the character does. Actions can tell a lot about the character without it having to be explained. 

Looks is how the character physically appears at any given moment. For example, if they are described as smiling and sitting lazily in a chair, one can assume the character is relaxed or aloof. If they have a put-together, straightedge appearance, the reader can assume they are a Type A kind of person. Looks can also refer to facial expressions, such as reacting to their environment or what another character is saying. 

Overall, using the STEAL method will help you write interesting, well-developed characters. If you are big on taking notes about your writing, you can create a chart with each category and take notes for each character. 

3.)Flat vs round characters

Author EM Forster once said that one can think of characters as being “flat characters” or “round characters.” It is important to have both in a story. Flat characters are one-dimensional without many features. They exist in the background.

Round characters are three-dimensional characters, well-developed, with discernible features. Not all characters can be round, but  not every character should be flat. 

Most likely, your main character will be round, while background characters will be more flat. One can accomplish well-rounded characters through the STEAL method as explained above.

4.)Motivation

In order for characters to be interesting, the reader will have to be invested in their story. One way to accomplish this is to always be thinking about their motivations. Your main characters – and even those in the background – must act with purpose. Why are they doing what they are doing? You do not need to answer that question outright, and should answer it over time through the story. Keep your characters’ motivations in mind as you write your story or fiction novel. 

5.)Build on tropes

There are many character tropes out there – types of characters or molds for characters – that have been seen across time. You do not have to avoid using tropes; instead, you can build on them. Character tropes can be used for inspiration and then fleshed out more, or even subverted. Character tropes such as the Wise Elder, Manic Pixie Dream Girl, and Dumb Jock, for example, can be used as starting points for your characters. 

We hope these tips and methods will be helpful in crafting your characters for your novel!

Have a novel full of interesting characters that you would like to publish? Contact us!

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This November, Dorrance is getting you ready for the holiday season with our Homestyle Cooking Sale at the Dorrance Bookstore. Cookbooks to help you nourish yourself and family are available for a discounted price until the end of the month! See the end of this article for how to purchase.

Cookbooks have been around since human societies became literate and began writing their recipes down. The way in which cooking and baking instructions have been presented has evolved over thousands of years. According to the Encyclopedia Britannica, one of the most famous Ancient Greek cookbooks is Deipnosophistai, translated as “The Learned Banquet,” which is told as a conversation between two people talking about recipes and food preparation. Ancient China and Medieval European societies before the printing press recorded recipes and encyclopedias on food and cooking as well. 

The printing press popularized cookbooks for the middle classes and introduced them as a viable part of the publishing industry. The first cookbook published in the United States of America was American Cookery by Amelia Simmons in 1796. The book has many recipes, most notably for unique roasts and cakes. Historians regard American Cookery as important to American history due to how it honors European traditions of cooking but also introduces many new wholly American recipes and approaches. These American recipes were part of a swell of American culture at the time just after the United States won the Revolutionary War and became a new independent nation. Cooking and history enthusiasts still look to American Cookery today and use its recipes to feel connected to the past!

American Cookery was not simply a list of recipes, however. According to Smithsonian Magazine, the cookbook was published by political and social leaders of Connecticut. Little is known about author Amelia Simmons other than her status as an orphan. In the book, she gives housewives tips on how to cook and keep a home, such as how to preserve foods and arrange a table in a way that would be respected. She infuses herself and her experiences into the book, lamenting the hardships of being without a family in trying to make a home. More importantly, she felt minimized by her publisher.

There were two editions of American Cookery; in the second edition she thanked the women who bought the book and aired her dissatisfaction with the first edition. This was a risk, as women had very little standing in American society at this time, especially if they were orphaned and unmarried. The success of American Cookery showed that American housewives wanted and needed guidance in how to do their only jobs from other women who had advice to give, especially if they weren’t of high social status.

American cookbooks grew steadily in popularity over the next century. As America healed from the Civil War, a new audience for cookbooks made themselves known. Homemakers in the post–Civil War era needed to learn how to cook without the help of slaves. According to the Helen Zoe Veit, writing on the rise of cookbooks in America for the Saturday Evening Post:

“…millions of formerly enslaved people fled the households where they had been compelled to live, taking their expertise with them. Upper-class Southern whites often had no idea how to light a stove, much less how to produce the dozens of complicated dishes they had enjoyed eating, and the same people who had worked to keep enslaved people illiterate now rued the dearth of written recipes. For decades after the war, there was a boom in cookbooks, often written by white women, attempting to approximate antebellum recipes.”

In 1896, The Boston Cooking-School Cook Book was published, which filled some of this gap of knowledge, and also appealed to a general audience across America. This cookbook sold a record amount of copies and was a whopping 567 pages long. Fannie Merrit Farmer was the editor of The Boston Cooking-School Cook Book, which remains in print with over seven million copies sold.

In the 20th century, a cookbook production and purchasing boom happened. By the 1950s, American women had new technologies for the kitchen and new innovations at the grocery store that opened up a new world of culinary undertaking. Additionally, measurements in recipes in cookbooks became precise and standardized, and measuring devices were more readily available. Food brands began publishing their own recipes and cookbooks in an effort to get Americans to purchase their specific brand. The character of Betty Crocker, for example, was created to sell Betty Crocker brand baking mix through the image of the ideal American housewife. Cookbooks were written for women, as society still dictated that the kitchen and homemaking was strictly the domain of women. These norms began to relax later in the 20th century. By the end of the 20th century, television had created several celebrity chefs who were household names and published their own cookbooks to roaring success. 

In the 21st century, cookbooks have continued in popularity, with more options than ever as to the kinds of cuisines and traditions they come from. Cookbooks are mainstays of the publishing industry. Their popularity has not waned, even in an age of being able to find recipes on the internet. With cooking shows on the internet and celebrity chefs more popular than ever, it is safe to say that cookbooks will not be disappearing anytime soon. 

Sources:

American Cookbooks in the 1950s – Wikipedia 

Smithsonian Magazine

Saturday Evening Post 

Encyclopedia Britannica

Check out the Dorrance Bookstore Homestyle Cooking Sale!

Do YOU have a cookbook you would like to publish? CONTACT US!

The post The Tasty and Unique History of Cookbooks! appeared first on Dorrance Publishing Company.

We talked to Ms. Parks about her inspiration for writing the book and more!

Name: Malissa Parks

Hometown: Grew up in Carson, CA and now reside in Long Beach, CA.

Book Title: “I Like Being Brown, This Family & Hero 44”

Describe your book in 10 words or less.

A keepsake for families that teaches young learners to read.

What made you want to write your book?

I wrote this book because of the relevance of the most historical moment in African American History.

How long did it take you to write your book?

It took a year to write this book.

What do you do when you have writer’s block? 

Due to the history that is apparent behind writing this book, I never experienced writer’s block because I definitely was inspired by God. He gave me the wisdom so I knew exactly what I wanted to write about and it came to me naturally!  I knew what I wanted to say and how I wanted to present it. As an educator, I am very passionate about writing, especially writing about a topic that teaches.   

What was your favorite part to write and why?

My favorite part in Small Trilogy is in the story “I Like Being Brown” when Richard, the character, realizes he could be whatever he wanted to be, just being himself!

If your book includes illustrations, what was it like working with your illustrator? 

It was great working with all three of my illustrators. With my son and my nephew as two of them, it was really a surreal moment!! I really pride all three young men on making each picture come alive in the minds of children.

If you were stuck on an island and had to have one person from each category with you, who would they be and why:

-One friend or family member:

My son because he’s always been my little protector.

-One fictional character:

Character in the book, Richard because of his big imagination!

–One famous person (living or dead):

Maya Angelou because I love her thought process when creating some of her most famous and cultural poems and quotes.

What are some of your hobbies?

I enjoy skating, swimming, singing and socializing.

If your book was made into a movie, who would play the main characters?

The main characters would be Viola Davis, Phylicia Rashad, Denzel Washington, Tyler James Williams, Zendaya, Yara Shahidi, Marsai Martin, Jennifer Lewis with a splash of Sherri Shepard.

What did you enjoy most about working with Dorrance Publishing?

Receiving my Author’s copy of my finished project!

Five favorite books of all time?

“Becoming,” “I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings,” Of Thee I Sing: A Letter To My Daughters,” “Beloved,” and “How Stella Got Her Groove Back”

Do you have any advice for anyone looking to write a children’s book?

To write a good children’s book, you must be a creative writer with a big imagination that kids can relate to!

You can purchase I Like Being Brown now at the Dorrance Bookstore.

Have an educational children’s book you’d like to publish? Contact us!

The post Author Spotlight: Malissa Parks, “I Like Being Brown, This Family & Hero 44” appeared first on Dorrance Publishing Company.

Every good story has an established setting. Your novel has to exist somewhere – your characters can’t just float in space (and even that would be a setting!) Having a specific setting not only makes your story easier to understand, but can aid in the plot and characterization. 

These tips will focus on general fiction. For tips on worldbuilding in fantasy fiction, check out our blog post on fantasy writing.

Specificity

Choose a specific town or region for your novel to exist in. It can be a fictional town in an otherwise real place in the world, or the story can take place somewhere that exists completely in our world. Using the real world allows you to take existing qualities that may be relevant to your story (ex. a coal mining town having a hard-working populace.) Making up a city or town from scratch will allow you to tailor it to your story’s needs and give it the characteristics that make sense for your story. Give your town a specific name and geographic location. 

Setting and Plot Working Together

Along with choosing a specific setting, think about what the setting means for the plot of your story. A lot of plot tropes have to do with setting and plot being reliant on each other. For example, many stories begin with a character moving to a new place for a fresh start. The new place then introduces a conflict or an event that sets the story in motion (e.g. Bella moves to Forks, Washington in Twilight for a change of scenery sets off the events of the novel, and the town of Forks becomes integral to the plot.)

Even if the character doesn’t start the story in a setting unfamiliar to them, something else could happen in the setting that relates to the plot: a beloved business closes, a new landmark pops up one day, etc. As you sketch out your plot, think about how the setting relates to it. 

Senses

Describe your setting using the five senses. What does your character hear when they walk outside? What do they smell? Setting entails everything in the environment, not just geography. What do other people look like when they walk along the street? Are things old or new? Thinking about questions like these and answering them – when appropriate – will help you establish a sense of place for your reader using the senses. As the old adage goes, show, don’t tell. 

Time

In addition to what the world in your story looks and feels like, time is also part of the overall setting. What time period is your story set in? The present, the distant past? Making sense of time will help ground your story and help the other parts work together. It is easier to sketch out the town your novel takes place in if you have a general time period for it to be set in – for example, a novel taking place in a coal mining city in the late 19th century would be a lot different than a coal mining city in 2022.

These are certainly not all that needs to be considered with regards to setting in your novel, but they are here to get you started! Have fun as you embark on your writing journey.

For extra help, consider our writing coach program.

If your novel is already written and waiting to be published, contact us!

The post How to Establish Setting and Build Your Fictional World appeared first on Dorrance Publishing Company.

With our Book Promotion Website Package, you’ll receive a professionally designed, 3-page website that features your book, a profile of you as the author, and information on your motivation for writing your book. We’ll create your site, register a domain in your name, and pay your hosting fees for one year. When your site is complete, we’ll show you how to easily update the content on the site whenever you’d like. 

If Dorrance’s Book Promotion Website Package is not right for you, there are many other options. GoDaddy.com, Squarespace.com, Wix.com, and WordPress.com are examples of services where you can build a website. Wix and WordPress both have free options. Free blog services like Google’s Blogger are also an option. There are a lot of companies out there that can help you, so feel free to find the one that best suits your needs. 

The budget you have for a website will determine what you end up with. Purchasing a custom domain name will always cost a small fee (ex. yourname.com) but there are a range of services where you can build a website or blog. The cost can range from free to very expensive. 

What content should you include on your website?

Some information to include on your website:

• Publisher information.
• Contact information for yourself. (to the degree you are comfortable with.)
• Media Information: press release, cover image, etc.
• Where-to-Buy links: Make sure you link to your book on our website, not just to the home page.
• Social media accounts
• ISBN: This is the 13-digit number on the back of your book. It should start with 978. ISBN is an important number for booksellers and librarians.
• Book Title, and Author Name: This is important to have in the text of your web page because the text is what search engines are looking for.

What else should you include on your website?

Whether you are using a free, simple blog service or have started a more in-depth custom website, here are some ideas for content to include in an author website: 

• News about you: Whenever you are in the news, post a link to the video, article, radio interview, etc. And don’t forget to share that information with us as well!
• Key points about your work: Regularly post tidbits about your book, including major points of interest or plot points.  Post reader responses that might make others more inclined to read it as well. Think of unique things to say about your work.
• Photos and Videos: Make sure you post your photos of book events, signings, award ceremonies you attend, and conferences and workshops at which you are the speaker. A good picture is worth a thousand words!
• News related to your topic: Link to legitimate news articles related to your book subject or genre. 
• A guest blogger or review another author’s book.
• Share a video of you reading a sample of your book.
• Share what you are doing on a professional level. Are you working on another book? Did you just meet your favorite author? Look for reasons to keep people tuned in to what you are saying.
• Do a Q&A or poll.  If one person has asked a question, then there are probably five people thinking the same question.
• Consider posting your playlist. Several well-known authors do this and have attracted fans who may be listening to the same type of music as them!

Contact us about building your website!

Need your book published? Let us know!

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Name: Joy Winkie Viola

Hometown: Wayland, Massachusetts

Book Title: From Schnitzel to Nockerln And Everything That Happened In Between

Describe your book in 10 words or less.

Travel adventures, often humorous, about nature on all seven continents.

What made you want to write your book?

Before my husband died of COVID, I had been reading my old travel diaries to him. I realized there were many good stories within them that I thought others would enjoy.

What do you do when you have writer’s block?

Edit! I can always edit existing copy when the muse isn’t with me!

What was your favorite chapter to write and why?

Face to Face with a Polar Bear –  because it was such an unusual experience living in the tundra buggies, dealing with difficult weather conditions and being with the great bears. I really wanted to share that multi-faceted adventure.

If you were stuck on an island had to choose who to be with of the following, who would you choose?

-One friend or family member: Shane Dore, my great nephew. He’s an Eagle Scout!

-One fictional character: Shadow, he Golden retriever in the movie Homeward Bound

-One famous person: Betty White

Besides Writing, what are your other interests? Travel, birding, gardening, Golden Retriever Rescue, reading mysteries and spy novels.

Do you keep a journal?

Always when traveling – those journals were the basis for my book.

How did you celebrate the publishing of your book?

I had a great book launch at our local country club with hors d’oeuvres and a string trio from our local symphony playing classical music. 90 people attended.

If your book was made into a movie, who would play the characters?

That’s a tough question because the book spans so many decades of our lives.  Maybe Jessica Chastain could play me and Channing Tatum my husband. They are both in their 40’s so that’s midstream – not that this would ever happen!

What did you enjoy most about working with Dorrance Publishing? The editing process as I had so many unusual terms, names of bird species etc. for which we had to develop style that wasn’t in the Chicago Manual.

What are your 5 favorite books?

1) The Unlikely Spy (because it was Daniel Silva’s first book – and he’s now one of my favorites

2) All Creatures Great and Small (Because I love animals)

3) Cry of the Kalahari ( Because it was a wonderful story about African wildlife)

4) The Last Train to London (because it parallel’s my husband’s childhood experience in World War 11)

5) The Little Engine That Could (childhood book, but inspiring theme)

One sentence of advice for other writers:

Be consistent. Once you decide to write a book, stay with it daily.

Thank you, Joy!

Do you have a memoir you are itching to publish? Contact us!

The post Author Spotlight: Joy Winkie Viola appeared first on Dorrance Publishing Company.

The following are some of the most popular forms of poetry:

Rhymed Poetry

As opposed to free verse, poetry can follow a specific rhyme scheme. Popular rhyme schemes often involve rhyming words at the end of a line. Some specific poems, such as the limerick mentioned above, stick to certain rhyme schemes.

Free Verse

Free verse poetry does not follow any rhyme scheme or set meter. Sometimes called blank verse, these poems often follow natural speech rhythms, yet are still written in stanzas and lines. Free verse poetry is actually a more modern invention, with origins in France.

Elegy

An elegy is a poem written to mourn the death or loss of a person. They are often written in elegiac couplets, meaning stanzas containing two lines, although today any poem with reflective, melancholy themes is said to be an elegy. The tradition of elegies dates back to the 7th century B.C. in Ancient Greece.

Acrostic

An acrostic poem is a poem in which the beginning letters of each line spell out a word pertaining to the subject of the poem itself.

Haiku

One of the more famous and well-known poetic forms, haikus are three-line poems. The first line of a haiku contains 5 syllables, the second contains 7 syllables and the final also contains 5 syllables. Haikus are of Japanese origin and traditionally discuss nature and the seasons. Nowadays, one can find haikus written about a wide variety of topics.

Limerick

A limerick is a short, humorous poem that is five lines long and uses the rhyme scheme AABBA. According to the Encyclopedia Britannica, the dominant meter is anapestic, with two metrical feet in the third and fourth lines and three feet in the others. Anapestic foot consists of two unstressed syllables followed by a stressed syllable. 

Pastoral

Pastoral poetry centers on nature and man’s relationship with the natural world. It idealizes rural life and places utmost importance on nature. The tradition of pastoral poetry dates back to the Ancient Greeks.

Sonnet

The sonnet is a fourteen-line poem written in iambic pentameter. They can utilize several different rhyme schemes. Sonnets are typically thought of as pertaining to romantic themes, due to the influence of William Shakespeare’s sonnets, but they do not necessarily have to be about romantic relationships.

Have a book of poems you would like to publish? Contact us!

The post Popular Forms of Poetry appeared first on Dorrance Publishing Company.

Know Why You’re Writing

It is important to have a clear vision of why you are writing your nonfiction book. With a clear vision and purpose, your writing can be well organized. Otherwise, you run the risk of simply ranting about your topic. Ask yourself: Why is my topic important enough to write a book about? What do I want my readers to take away from the book? What is the ultimate message I want to send? If you don’t have quick answers to these questions, take some time to think about them.

Make An Outline

The best way to stay organized when writing your book is to make a detailed outline. Make headings for each chapter and use subheadings when appropriate. Under each heading and subheading, jot down the main points you want to make in that section. An outline is a guide – it doesn’t have to be set in stone. You can always make changes later if you find something that flows better as you are writing.

Research 

Even if you are an expert in your topic, it is a good idea to have research to back up your claims. Look for books, articles, and other sources at your local library and online to verify that your facts are correct. Include your sources in your book via a reference page at the end. If you have previously published books or studies that you have conducted that you are using, cite them as well and be sure to talk about how they make you credible. This will help you boost your credibility as an author while also qualifying you as an expert in your specific area of interest. 

Be Personal

While any nonfiction book is about a real-world topic, you can still show your personality. Write in a tone of voice that feels natural to you. Use words and phrases that you would use, not what necessarily sounds the “smartest.” Having a unique voice will make you more endearing and appealing to readers. Additionally, don’t be afraid to include personal anecdotes about your connection to your topic. These personal touches usually come in the introduction, as you work to establish why you are writing your book.

Flow

In addition to being personal, it is important to keep the flow of the narrative in mind while writing nonfiction. This relates to the question of why you are writing in the first place. Avoid diversions into other topics that are not relevant to your overall take-home message. Reader attention spans are finite, so it is important to keep a reader’s attention. Taking a sharp turn into other directions may confuse readers. For example, if you are writing a book about military aircraft, you might not need to include a rant about how passenger airplanes operate today.

Look to the Future 

As you near the end of your book, it is often helpful to look towards the future in regards to your topic. How is your topic relevant going forward? Remember the question of why you are writing the book in the first place. The end of the book is the place for you to drill down on why all the ideas, facts, and theories of your book are important.

We hope these do’s and don’ts are helpful in your writing journey.

Ready to go farther with your writing? Consider joining our Writing Coach program!

Finished with your nonfiction book? Contact us!

The post Neat Tips for Nonfiction Writing appeared first on Dorrance Publishing Company.

Name: Patrice Fentiman

Hometown: Spartanburg, SC

Book Title: Jamie’s Secret

Genre: Children’s/Spiritual

Dorrance Publishing (DP): Describe your book in 10 words or less:

Patrice Fentiman (PF): Jamie’s Secret is about a young girl’s discovery of magic.

DP: What made you want to write the book?:

PF: I wanted to offer support and recognition of children who experience the magic of seeing, hearing and knowing what others may not.  I was one such child.

DP: How long did it take you to write the book:

PF: Though the book was always a part of me, it took two years to complete my text and confirm my vision of the look of the book.

DP: What do you do when you have writer’s block?

PF: There are three things that relieve my writer’s block: 1) walking in nature; 2) meditating; 3) dancing.  Any one or all of these things wipe my cluttered or cloudy brain right away.

DP: What was your favorite chapter (or part) to write and why?

PF: My favorite part of the story is when Jamie admits to having so many questions for the fairies and can barely contain her curiosity.

DP: If you were stuck on an island and had to have one person from each category with you, who would they be and why:

-One friend or family member:

PF: I would have my fiancé, Ron, with me.  He is an avid reader, has a huge imagination, is the original renaissance man and is honest in his criticism.

-One fictional character:

The Very Hungry Caterpillar because it was all about transformation and change for the good of all.

-One famous person (living or dead):

Maya Angelou because her life spanned decades of civil, social, political and environmental change and she could speak about ways that we can work together to create a more cooperative world.

DP: Besides writing, what are your other interests?

PF: Besides writing, I love to read, mentor children & young adults, play piano, sing and cook.

DP: Do you keep a journal?

PF: I do keep a journal but don’t write in it daily.

DP: How did you celebrate the publishing of your book?

PF: We had a family barbecue.

DP: If your book was made into a movie, who would play the main characters?

PF: As my book is the first of a series of books, this first book only includes three characters that spoke

Jamie –  Skye Dakota Turner

Jamie’s Mother –  Wunmi Mosaku

Jamie’s Grandmother – Aunjanue Ellis

Shaylee (Fairy) –   Hailey Kilgore

DP: What did you enjoy most about working with Dorrance Publishing?

PF: The most important aspect of the Dorrance Publishing relationship for me was in keeping editorial control of all aspects of my book.

DP: Five favorite books of all time?

PF: 1)   The Untethered Soul by Michael A. Singer

2)   The Alchemist by Paulo Coelho

3)   The Very Hungry Caterpillar  by Eric Carle

4)   I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings by Maya Angelou

5)   The Tibetan Book of Living and Dying by Sogyal Rinpoche

DP: One sentence of advice for other writers:

PF: Though it may take a little while, allow yourself to fully see, hear, feel and know the story you are writing and why you are writing it.

Thank you, Patrice!

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