Part II Interview with Shawn Keenan, author of The Intern's Tale

Welcome back, everyone! We are continuing on our journey with Shawn Keenan, who wrote The Intern's Tale.

About Shawn: Shawn Keenan lives in Florida with his beautiful wife and two fantastic kids, and two lordly dogs that rule the roost.  He has one other novel, The Buried Covenant.

See Shawn's Blog: Errant Author

Part II of Author Interview

1. What authors have inspired you and affected how you write?

I love the classics and all the greats from hundreds of years ago affect me in my bones somewhere that I’m not completely aware.  For this book, I’ll toss a little credit out to Suzanne Collins and her first Hunger Games book.  After reading that story, I was inspired to alter the overall approach to Intern, going from an alternate history to a dystopian future.  I really liked the way she used that, and of course everything about that book was great.

2. What words of advice do you have for a newbie writer trying to get through that first book? Ignore what’s not working for the moment and enjoy the moments of discovery in creating your own little world on paper (or, more realistically, on computer screen).  Rewriting is a hard time in my opinion, and you’ll spend plenty of time on the problems during that process.  Actually finishing that first draft will give you a second wind that will prepare you for the rewrites.  Just find the joy in getting through a first draft.  It’s the most creative part of a project.  And you’re always discovering something about your characters in every new scene.

3. Tell us a little more about The Buried Covenant, your other novel.
Where Intern is an adventure that carries along a character who is making a decision about who he is, Covenant is really about a character who is deciding who he is and an adventure kind of builds up around him.  Covenant feels very personal and tight where Intern is more sweeping and involves more characters.  I like that they’re so different but both still something I’d love to read.

4. What do you have on the horizon?

 I’ve started my third book.  It’s a modern day Rumpelstiltskin, but the strange little dwarf is a manipulative guy whose influence the main character has trouble getting out from under.  Some of the main themes are going to reflect on self-image, mistakes, and how you take back control of your own life when you’ve handed it over to others.  It has similar DNA to Covenant and I’m really enjoying the process of writing it so far.

5.  If you could have a superpower, what would it be and why?

 I want all of Spider-man’s powers.  How’s that for greedy?  I’ve already done all the heavy lifting of imagining I was Spider-man as a kid.  Just give me the powers, I’ll figure out the web-shooters and the costume on my own.  I’m ready!

Part I Interview with Shawn Keenan, author of The Intern's Tale

I'm so excited to introduce this next book because the author is a good friend of mine. He's been working very hard on re-editing his book, The Intern's Tale, and I am thrilled about what he's done with it. I also have to boast about his cover-- he drew it himself and yes, that is a mechomare! You know you all want one.

My Rating: 5 out of 5 stars

Amazon Book Description: 

By telling his corporate bosses to shove it, seventeen-year old intern Kip Pureweather may have pushed the Incorporated Realms of America into the third Dark Ages.

Kip’s first assignment away from Vassalcorp headquarters in York City sends him on mechanical horseback to the farmlands of Ohio. With feisty office-maiden Abbey Fairchild in tow, the two trade barbs as often as they do stolen glances. Just as Kip and Abbey are finding common ground, Kip learns the nature of his assignment – the foreclosure of the Fairchild farm. When faced with destroying a family to secure his future as a knight-executive, Kip defies the all-powerful corporations and changes his destiny forever.

Kip’s insubordination makes him an instant outlaw, and the only place out of the corporations’ reach is the forbidden Empty Lands north of the Realms. But the Empty Lands hold a secret the corporations have kept since the time of the Generex, a war that brought them to power and ushered in the second Dark Ages. With knowledge of an imminent threat, Kip returns for Abbey, and with the help of a slave, a mailroom clerk, a tabloid princess, and the self-proclaimed greatest-mind-of-their-time, they take a stand against the corporations and the impending destruction of their world.

See my review on Amazon: The Intern's Tale Amazon Review

About Shawn Keenan: Shawn Keenan is the manservant of two dogs who tricked him into adopting them last year.  He works for the sole purpose of feeding them, providing superior medical care than he receives, and replacing the many things they chew up while he is at said job.  At night they force him to slather them with attention and praise until his eyes are heavy and his bed is sufficiently covered in short, coppery hair.  When he finally lays them down on their opulent blanket of serenity for the night, they give him a look that promises more of the same the next day.  Fortunately, he has a beautiful wife and two fantastic kids to support him through this self-inflicted ordeal.  He lives in Florida and he also writes stuff, such as his other novel, The Buried Covenant.

Visit his blog at: Errant Author

Author Interview Part I.

1. When did you decide to start writing? Tell us a little bit about your journey to become a writer.

 I’d written short stories, poems, and the like since high school.  I had a good background in literature and writing from school but hadn’t done much in the field for years.  Then one day I was in a bookstore.  I’d just finished a really wonderful book and was looking for something new.  I kept picking up what seemed to be popular titles, reading the first few pages, and putting them back down.  I finally thought to myself, “If I want a really good book, I may just have to write one.”  Then, even more comically, I thought, “After all, it’s just a bunch of words.  I know words.  How hard can it be?”  I wish I could time travel back to that moment and throw a coffee mug at younger me’s head.

2. How did you come up with the idea behind The Intern's Tale?

 I had this image of castle skyscrapers.  I love medieval stuff anyway and during some random daydream (probably while driving – yikes!) I thought about what our country would look like if medieval times carried forward into modern day.  That was the inspiration.  Soon, interns were darting around the countryside on mechomares and I knew a story wasn’t far behind.

3. Who is your favorite character in The Intern's Tale and why?
Why don't you just ask who your favorite kid is? Or favorite dog? (Ok, that's Max, and he knows it).  I have to say Abbey. I think she's been the most consistent through the rewrites because I got her the most right from the start. There's little disguising the fact that Abbey is my ode to Princess Leia, my favorite headstrong, as-good-as-and-usually-better-than-the-guys character. I can totally see Abbey telling Kip to get a walking carpet out of her way. 

Curmudgeon's Corner: Copycat plots and Review of Pure by Julianna Baggott

Well, gang, you guys did it. Actually, the followers numbers just blew me away yesterday. I thought it would take longer to get to over 100! So you are definitely getting the 100+ followers giveaway, which will starts NOW along with Shawn Keenan's giveaway of The Intern's Tale. Watch for his interview on Monday!

So now for the topic of the day... This is the book I saw Jessi from Reading in the Corner reading when I met her at the Lauren Oliver event months ago. I asked her about it, and she said I had to read it. So I put it on my list and finally got to it. I didn't like it as much as she did, but I can see why she did. I'm going to put some major spoilers in this post (I don't do that in my other public reviews, but there are certain things about this book that I had huge issues with and want to talk about!)

Rating: 3/5 stars

Pure by Julianna Baggott follows several characters, but the main trio is composed of Pressia, Bradwell, and Partridge in their journey in a post-apocalyptic YA tale. The setup is pretty horrific-- we have humans that have been fused to other humans, animals, plants, and inanimate objects. In fact, Pressia has a fused doll's head instead of a hand. Each of these protagonists come from different backgrounds, but band together to figure out the truth behind their world and themselves.

I can see why my friend liked it. The author has great creativity. I cringed at a lot of the descriptions. The characters overall were likeable and compelling, my favorite being the very complex and twisted character of El Capitan. There are moments of beauty in the prose and each chapter feels very complete.

That said, there are a few reasons I decided to give it three stars. First, is my issue with the science. If this was a grotesque fantasy world with no real world reason to back it up, fine. But I can't wrap around an atomic bomb causing everyone to fuse to something else but either completely losing their humanity or staying separate entities, just fused together (for example, a mother fused to the baby, both were alive, separate entities like Siamese twins). I tried to suspend my belief, but I struggled through most of the book because of this. Second, the book dragged a lot. Even though this is a horrific world, and our characters get attacked pretty frequently, the actual plot can be honed down to a few paragraphs. And the plot-- it's unfortunate, but this story is Star Wars in a dystopian YA. I could match up all the characters and plot lines and could sometimes hear the Darth Vader tune in the background. SPOILERS ALERT! So get this as a plot. There is a REALLY evil guy (Darth Vader) who has a son who is good and is the hero of the piece (Luke Skywalker), who goes out exploring and finds a half sister he never had (Leia anyone??) and she falls in love with a guy who sounds suspiciously like Han Solo (except with birds fused to his back).

Overall, because of some great characters and creative world building, I can see how this book appealed to some readers, but unfortunately for me, because of the aforementioned issues, it never completely won me over.

Vote on my Amazon review: Pure by Julianna Baggott

I don't mind some overlap of story lines-- in this day and age, it's really hard to be completely original, but it was just too much for me!

How do you feel about copycat plots?

Feature and Follow Friday (1)

Feature and Follow Friday is a blog hop hosted by Parajunkee and Alison Can Read

This is my first time participating in this blog hop, but several of my blogger friends have highly recommended it! 

I just started this blog a few weeks ago and have been impressed and grateful for all the terrific traffic and comments that have been posted! It's definitely opened up a whole new world. 

I basically use my blog to post reviews, rants, thoughts, and love to host new upcoming authors and giveaways! 

Can't wait to meet all of you!  

Q: Jumping Genres: Ever pick up a book from a genre you usually don’t like and LOVE it? Tell us about it and why you picked it up in the first place.

I love to try books from genres I don't usually read. I don't usually read nonfiction, but I read The Checklist Manifesto by Atul Gawande, which now is one of my top all time favorite books. It's one of those rare books that completely change the way I think.

I tried it because I had read Complications and Better by him as it was recommended by my medical colleagues as one of the best examples of physician written novels for the lay person.  I think it's important for a reviewer to try new things once in a while! 



Goodreads Book Description:
The New York Times bestselling author of Better and Complications reveals the surprising power of the ordinary checklist
We live in a world of great and increasing complexity, where even the most expert professionals struggle to master the tasks they face. Longer training, ever more advanced technologies‚neither seems to prevent grievous errors. But in a hopeful turn, acclaimed surgeon and writer Atul Gawande finds a remedy in the humblest and simplest of techniques: the checklist.

First introduced decades ago by the U.S. Air Force, checklists have enabled pilots to fly aircraft of mind-boggling sophistication. Now innovative checklists are being adopted in hospitals around the world, helping doctors and nurses respond to everything from flu epidemics to avalanches. Even in the immensely complex world of surgery, a simple ninety-second variant has cut the rate of fatalities by more than a third.

In riveting stories, Gawande takes us from Austria, where an emergency checklist saved a drowning victim who had spent half an hour underwater, to Michigan, where a cleanliness checklist in intensive care units virtually eliminated a type of deadly hospital infection. He explains how checklists actually work to prompt striking and immediate improvements. And he follows the checklist revolution into fields well beyond medicine, from homeland security to investment banking, skyscraper construction, and businesses of all kinds.

An intellectual adventure in which lives are lost and saved and one simple idea makes a tremendous difference, The Checklist Manifesto is essential reading for anyone working to get things right.
 

Congrats to the winners of the giveaway for Hippie Boy: A Girl's Story by Ingrid Ricks!!

I just wanted to first thank everyone that entered my first giveaway. I'm thrilled by the interest in both my blog and this terrific book!

Congrats to Kate and Diana who won a signed copy. I've emailed you both, and Ingrid Ricks, the author, should be contacting you soon with details.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

I've heavily updated my interview/giveaway list in case you want to see what's up next on the agenda! Just go to the tab and it will show all the details.

Just 9 more to 100 GFC followers! I think we can do it! If so, I'll be giving away Insurgent along with Shawn Keenan's awesome book The Intern's Tale starting on Monday.