BLOG TOUR - DAY 3

DragonLight
by Donita K. Paul

Web site - http://www.donitakpaul.com/

Author moderated blog - http://www.donitakpaul.com/author/blog.html

(Click book for Amazon link)

On the final blog tour day, I wanted to mention that while DragonLight is the ending volume of the Dragonkeeper Chronicles, it isn't the end of Donita Paul's world of Amara. She is working on a story tentatively called A New Tail. Here's the first chapter download.

DragonLight struck me as a book of comparisons. Kale felt compelled to stay at the castle and oversee the estate while Bardon journeyed to take a cure for the stakes - a bone and joint ailment that brought great pain. Bardon followed Paladin and quoted Wulder's teachings, yet Bardon was quick to jump on Holt for schemes to turn a quick profit. Toopka enjoyed life and always looked for the postitives, while Sittiponder seemed the eternal pessimist at times; not because he looked for the negative but because he saw what was yet to come for his friends.

The second largest contrast existed between Kale and Gilda the Meech dragon. Kale looked outwards and thought of others. Gilda, as a Meech, looked down on the other races, deeming them less cultured and intelligent. Her problems were always the greatest, and needed solving the soonest. Of course the largest contrast existed between Wulder and Mot Angra. Wulder cared for all, and would bring all to him; even Mot Angra. Mot Angra brought only ruin and destruction through his self-centered goals and actions.

In the end, self sacrifice and compassion for others brought healing to the person and to the land.

Thanks to Nissa at LinaLamont. blogspot.com for mentioning the a link to Librettowit's Library
This page on Donita Paul's webpage explains about the character races and other items if you have questions.

In case you missed the earlier books in the series, CBD offers the complete set on sale.




DragonSpell, DragonQuest, DragonKnight, DragonFire, and DragonLight.


(Click books for link)

*Participants’ Links:

Brandon Barr
Justin Boyer
Jackie Castle
Valerie Comer
Karri Compton
CSFF Blog Tour
Gene Curtis
Stacey Dale
D. G. D. Davidson
Jeff Draper
April Erwin
Karina Fabian
* Beth Goddard
Mark Goodyear
Andrea Graham
Todd Michael Greene
Katie Hart
Timothy Hicks
Christopher Hopper
Joleen Howell
Jason Joyner
Carol Keen
Magma
Terri Main
Margaret
* Shannon McNear
Melissa Meeks
* Rebecca LuElla Miller
Nissa
John W. Otte
Deena Peterson
Steve Rice
* Cheryl Russel
Ashley Rutherford
Chawna Schroeder
James Somers
Robert Treskillard
* Steve Trower
Speculative Faith
Laura Williams

BLOG TOUR - DAY 2

DragonLight
by Donita K. Paul

Web site - http://www.donitakpaul.com/

Author moderated blog - http://www.donitakpaul.com/author/blog.html

(Click book for Amazon link)

DragonLight is a light, fun read. I'm not always in the mood for a heavy, epic conquest story. Sometimes the good guys do win, but not always the way that you would expect. Besides the Followers, DragonLight introduces the reader to an ancient evil considered more fable than fact. Add to this the dangerous black dragons, and Kale and Bardon find problems coming from all sides.

The black dragons are a fourth type of dragon in the land of Amara - the majestic riding dragons, the intelligent meech dragons, the talented minor dragons, and now the evil black dragons with poison spines and flaming saliva. Kale finds herself unable to communicate with this new dragon breed. Instead, the dark threat from the sky comes looking for Kale and attacks her as the DragonKeeper. And all she wanted was a few days away from the castle enjoying a quiet quest with her husband, Bardon.

Thanks to Nissa at LinaLamont. blogspot.com here is a link to Librettowit's Library
This page on Donita Paul's webpage explains about the character races and other items if you have a question.

*Participants’ Links:


Brandon Barr
Justin Boyer
Jackie Castle
Valerie Comer
Karri Compton
CSFF Blog Tour
Gene Curtis
Stacey Dale
D. G. D. Davidson
Jeff Draper
April Erwin
Karina Fabian
* Beth Goddard
Mark Goodyear
Andrea Graham
Todd Michael Greene
Katie Hart
Timothy Hicks
Christopher Hopper
Joleen Howell
Jason Joyner
Carol Keen
Magma
Terri Main
Margaret
* Shannon McNear
Melissa Meeks
* Rebecca LuElla Miller
Nissa
John W. Otte
Deena Peterson
Steve Rice
* Cheryl Russel
Ashley Rutherford
Chawna Schroeder
James Somers
Robert Treskillard
* Steve Trower
Speculative Faith
Laura Williams

BLOG TOUR - DAY 1

DragonLight
by Donita K. Paul

Web site - http://www.donitakpaul.com/

Author moderated blog - http://www.donitakpaul.com/author/blog.html

(Click book for Amazon link)

Dragonlight is the fifth and final volume in the Dragonkeeper Chronicles. One of the things I have liked about the series, and especially DragonLight, are the quotes from Wulder. They strike me as short, wise sayings like the book of Proverbs in the Bible. After a hard, long day Kale's husband Bardon the Knight quotes, "Words spoken from fatigue resurface like oil on water. They are clearly seen and not easily eradicated."

The main story centers around a new group known as The Followers, who corrupt Wulder's teachings by telling others they must learn new rules and work their way up the Follower ranks through their deeds. Their focus on works not faith in Wulder is known as Elevation.

I wanted to thank Mrs. Paul for answering a few questions on her series and on writing:

1) How did you get started writing fantasy stories?

I have to be truthful and admit it was done on a whim. I was not an ardent
fantasy fan and in fact, had not read much before I started. One June I had an
infection in my leg and had to stay down with my foot elevated higher than my
heart. The length of the ordeal was to be six weeks. I was bored in five
minutes. My son brought me a fantasy series - nine hardbound books, each about
900 pages! When I finished them, I thought, "That was pretty cool." Nine
months later, I decided I'd give fantasy a whirl just to see what would
happen.

2) Where did you get the idea to write a series about dragons?

I was just experimenting, and it worked. I'm glad it did.

3) Who is your favorite character in the Dragonkeeper Chronicles books?

I love Wizard Fenworth. He reminds me of me. I know I'm smart and capable of
doing things. However, sometimes I just can't remember how to do these things.
How do you change the light bulb in the microwave?

4) Would you have any new writer suggestions?

Tom Clancy said it best.
"Keep at it! The one talent that's indispensable to
a writer is persistence. You must write the book, else there is no book.
It will not finish itself. Do not try to commit art. Just tell the story."

Thank you for your time, and help with these questions.

*Participants’ Links:


Brandon Barr
Justin Boyer
Jackie Castle
Valerie Comer
Karri Compton
CSFF Blog Tour
Gene Curtis
Stacey Dale
D. G. D. Davidson
Jeff Draper
April Erwin
Karina Fabian
* Beth Goddard
Mark Goodyear
Andrea Graham
Todd Michael Greene
Katie Hart
Timothy Hicks
Christopher Hopper
Joleen Howell
Jason Joyner
Carol Keen
Magma
Terri Main
Magma
Margaret
* Shannon McNear
Melissa Meeks
* Rebecca LuElla Miller
John W. Otte
Deena Peterson
Steve Rice
* Cheryl Russel
Ashley Rutherford
Chawna Schroeder
James Somers
Robert Treskillard
* Steve Trower
Speculative Faith
Laura Williams

JulNoWriMo - Day 7
Progress: 5634 Words after Day 6

Summertime WriMos are harder to complete than Wintertime WriMos. During the Summer, there is grass to cut, dogs to walk, swimming, and summer sports. That doesn't leave a lot of time to sit down and get a lot of writing finished. You just have to hope for the best, and what you accomplish is what you accomplish. Suspense is a slower moving genre for me. Fantasy seems to flow more quickly, while suspense requires more thinking about how the pieces should fit together. Still, the story is still moving and that's a good sign.

JulNoWriMo - Day 3
Progress: 1328 Words after Day 2

Yesterday still started a bit slow. Thank goodness for the 4th's extra free writing time. Only about 48,700 words to go. Normally you have to average 1666 words a day to finish NaNoWriMo. Looks like 1700 words a day or better is needed for the rest of July.

The WriMo challenges are a great way to get that story out that you've been putting off. Things always seem to come up that take your spare time. JulNoWriMo allows you to put those interruptions aside for the time being. It's amazing how much free time is available when you just turn off your television and focus on writing.

JulNoWriMo - Day 2
Progress: 317 Words after Day 1

It's off to a slow start, but the writing extra day in July should help reach the 50,000 word goal by month end. NaNoWriMo begins in four months, so JulNoWriMo is a good warm up and a way to tide writers over that long dry spell between WriMos. JulNoWriMo operates on the author word total honor system. There's no verification step for your, but reaching a few hundred words over the 50,000 should cover any under-word balance.

I like the JulNo progress tracking spreadsheet. Once you enter your daily word total, time, and feeling score, the spreadsheet calculates your totals, averages, remaining words, and charts your monthly balances. This is a great aid to check how well you're progressing, and whether you're on track. JulNo Tracker: http://julnowrimo.thewrigro.com/julno-report-card2008.xls

JulNoWriMo
(July Novel Writing Month)

http://julnowrimo.thewrigro.com/

It's time for another mad dash to write 50,000 words in one month. NaNoWriMo returns on November 1 with only 30 days to rush our that next great novel. JulNoWriMo provides an extra day - 31 days to write your 50,000 words - and helps tide you over if you can't wait until November to write down the story you've been working on in your head.

One nice feature of JulNoWriMo is the JulNo Report Card spreadsheet. By entering data each day, you can track your progress, and check the chart if you are ahead, or behind schedule to complete by July 31. You can even track your daily, and total time that you've spent writing.

Time to put that thinking cap on and start typing away for the next 31 days.