YA Indie Carnival - Week Six

It is hard to believe we have reached week six of the YA Indie Carnival.  I’ve really enjoyed getting to know my fellow authors and their followers better.  They are an amazing group of people.  This week’s topic of discussion is ‘How do you get inspiration for the stories you write/read?’ 

I've said numerous times that my patients and their families’ grief were the inspiration for Allison La Crosse’s powers.  I still contend that healing the dying with nothing more than a touch (and a little soul sharing) would be an awesome ability. 

The inspiration for the Warriors of the Cross characters came straight from life.  It occurred to me the most believable characters would be ones who embodied the characteristics of people who I’ve known and cared about.  At the same time, I thought it would be a good opportunity for my children to remember their Nana and Papaw through lovable cameo characters, ones who exhibited their exact mannerisms.  I worried that pictures (no matter how great) would lead to one-dimensional and visual only memories.  There would be no sustenance to help my children to know that their grandparents loved and were loved.  By incorporating Nana (Lita - Brody’s mom) and Papaw (Daddy - Allie’s dad) into the story, I suddenly had an ingenious path whereby these wonderful people could be embedded into my children’s hearts even though they barely knew them. 

The inspiration for the storyline, its morals, ethics, and love of God was created from a need to communicate with my teen aged daughter without making her feel like I was preaching.  I wanted to create strong and honorable role-models who could lead by example.  I realized that if the story was told the right way, my daughter (or any reader) would walk away knowing and understanding the story’s messages without feeling like she (they) had suffered through an excruciating lecture.  This technique has been successfully utilized by some talented authors.  With The Wonderful Wizard of Oz, L. Frank Baum  taught us ‘there’s no place like home’.  With Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, Roald Dahl convinced us that ‘unspoiled, honest, and trustworthy people’s dreams can come true’.  Now, I’m certainly not insinuating Warriors of the Cross is for children.  In fact, my seven year old son will have to be MUCH older before reading the series.  I’m simply suggesting that some of the most memorable books of all time have had powerful messages.  By design, Warriors of the Cross has a timeless conscience when it comes to love, tolerance, and compassion.

Join me in visiting my fellow author's/blogger's sites and find out what inspires them to write/read books.  Also, CONGRATULATIONS, Rachel Coles, on having your story, Orphans of Lethe, included in the What Fears Become horror anthology!

NEXT, take a ride (by clicking their name) with:

Dani Snell - Book Blogger
Pattie Larsen - Author
Courtney Cole - Author
Wren Emerson - Author
Nicole Williams - Author
Fisher Amelie - Author
P. J. Hoover - Author
Laura Elliott - Author
Amy Jones Young - Author
Rachel Coles - Author and Book Blogger
Tiffany King - Author
Cyndi Tefft - Author
Alicia McCalla - Author  
Heather Cashman - Author
T. R. Graves - Author

(see previous blogs for the authors’ book lists)