Wednesday, May 18, 2011

Kathleen Pickering - Book Review, Author Interview, Author Guest Post, Interaction/Chat, Book Giveaway

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Disillusioned, dumped and unemployed on his twenty-fifth birthday, Sam Wilson, a high school mythology teacher and self-proclaimed loser, knows his life is over when he is attacked by a shrieking demon out for his blood. 

Rescued by his fascinating, metro-sexual guardian angel, Sam’s gratitude earns him more than expected when his angel entangles him in a dangerous quest to find and silence a demonic sound and bring exiled angels back to San Francisco before demons destroy the city and ultimately, mankind.


The Review:

MYTHOLOGICAL SAM - THE CALL
Kathleen Pickering

Love how this book starts off. Huge wow factor. The writing style is amazing. In this completely Original storyline/plot, you can expect a wild ride, with laughter on the side. Pace was awesome, could not put down. And Sam **Drool*, He is mine! **Calls Dibs**Overall is was a fantastic read. One I hope to see more of, and definitely will be reading again soon.

My Rating 5 stars

Guest Post:

Sometimes things hit you out of the blue and change your life forever . . . even if you don’t know it at the time.


Ask Sam Wilson.
All he wanted to do as a geeky, ten year old kid with dreams of giving Hercules a “high-five” was climb Mount Olympus with his Dad and maybe get a glimpse of the gods. (Doesn't any kid??)

Instead, what did Sam get? A zap between the eyes by a freaky, blue Eye in a Triangle that knocked him out of a tree and ruined his trip to the top. Fast-forward fifteen years later and he ends up battling demons for his life while trying to save his guardian angel and his angelic buddies from the hottest, coolest and most terrifying bad dude of them all, Lucifer.

And, all he wanted to do was go on a hike in a foreign country. See? You never know. My only warning to you, is that if you hear an owl hooting . . . don’t climb that tree.

Author Interview:

 
PhotobucketCan you tell us a little about yourself?

Don’t ask that. . . I’ll go on, and on, and on! No, really. Ok. Briefly: Female, married, mother of two grown and amazing sons (and now a mother in law, as well.) Love to write, read, boogy board, dance, travel, sail, hang with folks, write some more. Would have been an actress if I truly had the guts.

Do you recall how your interest in writing originated? 

Absolutely! Sister George Ann in eighth grade. She had us dissect an e.e. cummings poem about a chipmunk. When I saw how powerfully words could be used to get across an image, I was hooked!

What surprised you the most about the writing/publishing process? 

How difficult both can be without discipline and tenacity.

How do you develop your plots and characters?

Great question. It all depends on whether the story is character or plot driven. If plot driven, I create characters that will best bring the plot to life. If the story is character driven, they come to life as I write. I can outline them before hand, but their true selves emerge as I go.

Do you use any set formula? 

No. the closest I get to formula is a white board broken down into chapter boxes waiting for the scenes and characters to fill them.

What, in your opinion, are the most important elements of good writing? 

Characters, voice, plot. In that order.

Can you share a little of your current work with us? 

I’m working on three very different books right now. (Oh, my agent will cringe if she reads this!) A sequel to Mythological Sam, A time-travel romance, and a contemporary romance that was just bought by Harlequin Super Romance due to come out Jan 2012 (Title: ‘Where It Began’). I’m busy!

In Twitter Fashion use140 characters or less, sum Mythological Sam for us. 

Self proclaimed loser rescues guardian angels & the world from doom—& gets the girl!

How did you come up with a story that was such a whirl wind of events?

I hate to answer this because it’s going to sound so bizarre. The truth is, I had a real-life, did-you-see-that! vision in a Catholic church 30 years ago. This is the result.

How long did it take you to write it, and did you have any writer’s block along the way? 

Less than a year (but mind you, it took almost 30 years to percolate!). And, no writers block. After all that time, it just wrote itself. LOL!

Will we be seeing a following book to this stories? 

Yes. This is a trilogy.

How did you come up with the character Sam? 

I spent two days alone in San Francisco and gave myself a walking tour of the city. Ended up on the Golden Gate Bridge and scared the heck out of myself over the movement of the bridge, and the height over the water. Something just clicked, and there was Sam, daring himself to get over his fear of heights. I knew he was my protagonist for the story.

PhotobucketI always must ask, If you could pick one actor to portray Sam on the big screen who would it be and why?

Hmmm. Michael Cera. He’s a great beta hero with an alpha hero’s heart.

Was there anything you find particularly challenging when writing this book? 

Yes. There was so much I wanted to directly say that would have sounded preachy or opinionated. It took a lot of concentration to keep this a light, but evocative story, with what I hope was a good dose of humor.

What were your feelings when you first saw the cover of your finished book?

My writer friend, Melissa Alvarez, designed the cover after we discussed it. I was thrilled, to say the least. Front and back of the cover depict the story perfectly.


Thanks again, for the fun, Melissa!!

Best,
Kathleen


Follow This Author:

Web Site: http://kathleenpickering.com

Facebook: http://facebook.com/kathleenppickering

Twitter: http://twitter.com/katpickering

Amazon: http://amazon.com/kathleenpickering

Smashwords: http://smashwords.com/kathleenpickerging



DON'T FORGET TO CHAT WITH THE AUTHOR VIA COMMENTS, THANKS!


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Five Ebooks
One Angel's Tear necklace
(A Herkimer diamond pendant--clear, faceted quartz. Good energy stone. 
Hand made by the author. Angel's tear is mentioned in the book.)


Six Winners ~ US shipping only for the pendant ~ Open Till May 31st


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21 comments:

Devon Ashley said...

Intriguing. I'll have to add this to my GoodReads shelf. :)

Read Between the Lines said...

this book sounds cool can't wait to read it

Unknown said...

I want this book just to stare at the cover! WOWSERS! I love the cover. The review above and interview with the author is INCREDIBLE! Great job. Now I realllly want to read it.

Question for Kathleen: Did you have any say in the cover of the book? Do you already know what the rest of the series is going to be or will you let it play out as your write it??

THANK YOU for the chance to win! How exciting!!

tears_of_fire said...

This book sounds like it will be really good :) I love the cover and that you got to help in designing it. It is going on my to be read list.

Unknown said...

Thank you all for the excellent feedback!
Mindy--yes, I described how I wanted to cover to Melissa Alvarez (melissaalvarez@comcast.net) and she built it. I love this cover!

I know how the rest of the series will end . . . just not sure how we'll arrive there. I'm letting Sam and Rosemary take me! :)

Toni said...

I just love trilogy series! You get some continuation to a great story, but you also get the story concluded!

Sounds like a great read! I love how the "beta" of the man world are getting the spotlight lately.

Can't wait to read. Adding to my TBR List. Also, so not fair that dibbs was already called on our hero!!

Unknown said...

Oops! I'm using my son's computer right now and my commented was posted as my daughter in law's, Maria. Let me try this again!

Thank you all for the excellent feedback!
Mindy--yes, I described how I wanted to cover to Melissa Alvarez (melissaalvarez@comcast.net) and she built it. I love this cover!

I know how the rest of the series will end . . . just not sure how we'll arrive there. I'm letting Sam and Rosemary take me! :)

IdentitySeeker said...

I've never heard of this book before, but I'm sure glad I have. It seems like an entertaining read. All the best for the future, Kathleen:)

Alyssa Maxwell said...

I loved Mythological Sam! It made me smile and laugh, and there was a touching message in the story, too. Very exciting and fast-paced!

Unknown said...

Mythalogical Sam is an amazing story, and I can't wait to read the rest of the series - kudos, Kathleen Pickering!!!

Jen B. said...

I love Michael Cera. I had never thought of him as a beta hero but I think you are right. The book sounds interesting and I would love to read it. Thanks for the giveaway.
GFC follower.
jepebATverizonDOTnet

Anonymous said...

Sounds like a very intriguing read. I shall look out for this one. Will it be/Is it available in print, at all?

Victoria said...

Isn't your choice for Sam the kid from Arrested Development? I loved him. In his acting he does show that he has the heart of an alpha.
Thanks for the giveaway.

vsloboda(at)gmail(dot)com

booklover0226 said...

Hi, Kathleen.

You're a new author for me but not for long. I checked out your other works and they sound great; I look forward in reading them.

Thanks,
Tracey D

Melissa Alvarez said...

Hey Kathleen!

Congratulations on a fantastic review. You're very welcome. I loved working on this cover with you for both the print book and ebook. Thanks for mentioning me in your post!

Smiles,

Melissa Alvarez
http://BookCoversGalore.com
http://MelissaA.com

Unknown said...

What wonderful responses. THANK YOU, Everyone!

Yes, Mythological Sam will be available in print form shortly. Please send me your email, and I will be sure to let you know! (kathleen@kathleenpickering.com).

This was great fun, Melissa. Thank you for the fabulous review. And, thank you, too, Melissa Alvarez for the great cover. I'll be asking you to help with more!

xox, Kathleen

Mary Ricksen said...

I am so proud of you and so happy for you I could burst! No matter how you got there sweetie, you sure have something fantastic in that muse of yours that thrills the big guys!!! Looking forward to reading it.
You made it girl!!!!!
WOW!!!

Patrice Wilton said...

Kathy-Congratulations on your wonderful 5 star review. Book sounds awesome-really fun. Loved your interview. I'm so proud of you.

lindalou said...

Wow! Congrats on your 5 star review! You are a new author to me... but, with a review like that, you've become a must-read author! This book sounds intriguing... and I like a little humor mixed in (mentioned in great review!) Thanks for the giveaways!
Linda T.
lindalou(at)cfl(dot)rr(dot)com

ArtemisG said...

Great post. This trilogy sounds really good! Thanks for the giveaway.

Rowan said...

Sounds like a great read! Will have to add to my list. :-)

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