Maggie has lived the last ten years with a woman who isn't her mother and carrying the label "Daughter of John Henning", a man sentenced to live out his days at Sunnyview Psychiatric Hospital after his conviction of fire bombing a church...
and killing the 8 people inside.
What Maggie learns will change her life.
She is the last of a race of creatures known as "The Phoenix", a race of supernatural beings with the ability to wield and control fire.
And she will need that power now...
Revenants- walking, living, skeletal creatures who have waged a war against an unseen, parallel world known simply as The Realm- need Maggie's blood to bring them to a full power...a power that will give them an unbeatable edge and offer the deciding weapon in this war.
Maggie is not alone as she learns not only what she really is, but what it is her destiny to become...
YA…”young adult”. It’s a giant market of readers, consisting
of as many subgenres as adult fiction. YA literature has been around for as
long as words have been in existence. We all begin with books that helped to
push our imaginations further, and many of the popular YA titles available now
are finding hugely successful crossover appeal with adult readers.
There are some out there that flat out refuse to pick up and
read any work labeled as young adult. I find that just… sad. The stories
they’re missing… Another HUGE misconception among some- that writing in the YA
category is easy, maybe even a ‘cop out”. Wow… are they misinformed.
But let us begin with the stories they’re missing. Books
like The Mortal Instruments series by
Cassandra Claire. Yes, angels. Yes, the main characters are in their late
teens/early twenties. They face problems within their world, battling demons
and such, but more over, these characters are also learning how to live their
lives. They are asked to make choices based on the information they have at the
time, sometimes with earth shattering consequences. They find love, they
experience loss. These are all things adults can read in the books they choose,
too.
The fact that the age of the characters is a factor in
determining whether or not you read the book? I’ll say it- you’re missing out.
These aren’t easy reading books, either.
The notion that because the books are targeting a young
adult audience doesn’t always translate to meaning “little words, simple
topics.” Some of the topics in YA books are as difficult to face as in any
adult oriented novel. Take the popular books The Hunger Games… kids chosen to fight to the death. These books
aren’t an attempt to glamorize killing or to take advantage of some fantasy
about children murdering each other. These books explore real human emotions;
they face tragedies and are forced to make difficult decisions that impact more
than just themselves.
As a parent, I appreciate these books. Day to day, my
children live in a society that puts hard choices on them and they must learn
to navigate them. No, as of yet, none of my kids have been asked to kill a
bunch of their fellow students or find sponsors (but my youngest does have a
bow…just in case) but this theme can be used in their day to day life. Issues
with friends, consequences to their actions, etc. And like it or not, kids
won’t always go to their parents to talk about it. Many YA books have
characters that face these choices and it gives kids the opportunity to think
about how they would react if faced with a similar situation.
I write mainly YA. It isn’t easy like many think. YA comes
with certain constraints that adult fiction doesn’t. For example, an adult
oriented novel may have cuss words out the kazoo; YA, in general, tries to
refrain from too much of that. It would be easy to drop an “F-bomb” in certain
situations, but YA focuses more about the character development and problem
resolution. My personal guideline in writing YA- would I let my children read
what I wrote? I’ve been known to delete entire chapters because I wouldn’t be
comfortable with it.
Emotions play a large
part in young adult writing too, no matter the subgenre. To assume that YA
readers are not at an emotional level to understand some of the concepts is a
misconception. I find emotional connections in YA books to be somewhat deeper.
Perhaps it’s because the characters typically are not involved in a physical
relationship, for the most part.
That’s another difficult part to writing YA- sex. We’ve
probably all read books where those physical scenes include words like
“throbbing” whatever. YA? Not so much. When a scene like that is written for
the young adult market, they usually focus more on the emotions rather than the
physical act. This can be a tricky thing to write. I believe we all, to one degree
or another, have issues facing emotions. Teens and young adults, many just
beginning in this area, especially so. Finding a balance between description of
the physical and the emotional pieces is like walking a tight rope made of
dental floss.
I'll admit, it upsets me to read posts and blogs where folks
state they will never read a YA book for whatever reason. I often wonder if
they skipped classics like Where the Wild Things Are or Alice in Wonderland-
both books written to target the YA audience, both, arguably, classics.
The Young Adult market is one of, if not THE, fastest
growing markets. Books geared for this age group are consistently found on best
seller lists around the planet. To write a blank check that says “will not
read” is unfortunate. These are not stories written in an afternoon, but for
the most part, well crafted, deeply engaging reads that draw at emotions we all
have. If books are the mini vacation many think they are, then Young Adult
novels are our chance to turn back the hands of time and experience some of our
most crucial and exciting life experiences. They give us a chance to see inside
the thoughts of today’s youth, to really grasp what our children are going
through, what they dream that they choose not to share with us “old fogies.”
Most of all, like any
good book out there, they give us the opportunity to escape, even for a little
while, into the life of someone else- to walk in their shoes, to live, love,
and breathe with them. And isn’t that what a reading experience is supposed to
be about?
I challenge you, set aside what you think you know about YA
and dig deeper. You may find you like it.
Author Bio:
Lisa C. Morgan lives in rural
Upstate NY with her husband, three children, a degu, a precocious Siberian
Husky, and a half Pom/Half Chi spoiled baby named Salacious B. Dustbunny.
A lover of books
and words, it has always been her desire to tell stories that the people near
her could listen and read, escaping the world around them by way of the page.
Always having a
new story idea popping into her head, (sometimes at the least appropriate of
times,) Lisa can always be found with a notebook and writing utensil somewhere
within reach, just as her 8th grade teacher made her promise to do.Lisa has two
short stories previously published in anthologies. A Romantic short titled Nothing’s Terminal (A Home for the
Holidays; December, 2011) and a zombie
themed short titled Antidote (The
Thorn of Death; March 2012). Her debut novel- Phoenix Rising is the first in a new YA series Maggie Henning &
The Realm and will be released July 2012. Upcoming will be the continuation in
the series- Phoenix Burning, Phoenix
Shadow, and Phoenix Ashes.
When she isn't
writing or taxing kids, Lisa enjoys reading, football, softball, cooking,
singing & dancing, tattoos, and spending time with family and friends.
Phoenix Rising (Maggie Henning & The Realm: book 1)
Synopsis
“…And I believe you do not have the control over your fire yet to
destroy us all.” He was calling my
bluff. Worse, he was right.
Phoenix Rising is
a first person story revolving around sixteen year old Maggie Henning. Maggie
lives with her mother and has spent the previous ten years of her life wearing
a label- daughter of the murderer John Henning. Her father resides at
Sunnybrook Psychiatric Hospital, having been convicted of killing eight people
inside of a local church, burning them alive. Or so Maggie has always been
told. Maggie’s world begins to change after finding a letter addressed to her
from the psychiatric hospital that offers an ominous warning. She ignores the
letter, waving it off as some random nut sending her mail.
Having to endure visits with her father, per her mother’s
request, has left Maggie feeling isolated and alone, with exception to her one
friend, Stephanie; daughter of her father’s deceased law partner. In an effort
to cheer Maggie up, Stephanie and she take in a little “retail therapy” at the
local mall.
Maggie finds herself drawn into a music store she doesn’t
normally go in to, drawn by a melody played by a mysterious raven haired guy
that apparently alarms Maggie’s friend.
Following an argument, Maggie is abandoned at the shopping
center to walk home, only to spot the mystery man again, riding a motorcycle,
who offers her a ride home. Maggie isn’t normally that reckless, but she
decides to throw caution to the wing and take him up on the offer.
The stage is set after a visit to her see her father,
normally in a fairly catatonic state, comes aware, giving Maggie the same
warning as the letter she received. Creatures, called “revenants” want Maggie’s
blood. Just when Maggie had felt optimistic about her father, the hopes were
dashed. But, she had seen strange things; bones, pointed teeth, rotting flesh…
The drive home reveals that Maggie’s mother is NOT what she
seemed to be and after she’s attacked, the mystery guy, named Michel, arrives
and rescues Maggie from one of these creatures.
Maggie is taken to “The Trust”, a manor house that offers
protection to beings from “The Realm”- another world that lives right below the
surface of the Mortal one. Maggie begins to learn of this strange world and the
creatures that inhabit it, including a young witch with much to live up to
named Autumn, a light hearted fairy named Seatha, and two Vampire Princes of
The Realm, one of which is Michel. Michel is kind and level headed. Luc, his
brother, is a smart ass and calls things as he sees them. The two brothers tend
to be opposites of each other in most things, with exceptions to their kingdom
and now, Maggie.
Maggie meets Liam at The Trust, learning that the crazy
board game eating man from the asylum is really her grandfather. Liam explains
The Realm, offering guidance, and more importantly, informs Maggie of what she
really is- the last of a race of beings called “Phoenixes”, creatures who have
the ability to call fire and use it as they wish.
The revenants, led by a creature named Ossa, will stop at
nothing to get Maggie; needing her blood to bring them to full power.
Maggie must not only come to believe in all that she has
heard, including that she’s one of these mythical creatures from stories, but
also learn how to wield her power to face the creatures that would destroy both
worlds Maggie has come to know of. All of this, even as she begins to feel more
than mere friendship with one of the Princes…
Links:
facebook: http://www.facebook.com/pages/Lisa-C-Morgan-Author/322116171151749
goodreads: http://www.goodreads.com/LisaCMorgan
twitter: @iluvvikingvamps
getglue: http://getglue.com/iluvvikingvamps
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