WAKE
by Abria Mattina
Kindle / Barnes & Noble
Pages: 727
Published September 22nd 2011
ISBN: 9780986957
Eighteen isn’t too young to run your life into the ground, but it’s not too old to fix it, either. The desire for change drives Willa Kirk from St. John’s, Newfoundland back to her hometown of Smiths Falls, Ontario, away from her mistakes and the place where her sister died. She’s looking for a place to settle and rebuild, but Jem Harper just wants to get out of town, back to the life he knew before cancer. By letting the tragedies in their lives define them, they are both dying a little more every day. Welcome to the wake.
Guest Post: Abria Mattina
Author of WAKE
Reasons to Enjoy NaNoWriMo (and not look down on it)Last month, I tried my hand at writing a thirty-day novel as part of National Novel Writing Month (NaNoWriMo). It sounded completely crazy and therefore totally fun. And in the age of the internet, it took me about five minutes to encounter party-poopers who like to look down their noses at NaNoWriMo.
Some blogs of (yet unpublished) authors disparaged the thirty-day writing ‘competition’ in which participants are challenged to produce a fifty-thousand-word novel. Their reasons for disapproving of NaNoWriMo are varied—that a good novel can’t beproduced in thirty days; that people just do it for attention; that ‘real’ publishing
professionals dread it because their slush pile increases tenfold in December, etc.
In answer to that, I’d say it’s not all about the glory of publication. For some people it’s just a fun exercise. They want to prove to themselves that they have the self-discipline and creativity to finish such a daunting and prolonged project—and their ambition ends there.
Some people like the sense of community that NaNoWriMo offers is the main appeal. They like being part of a group with a common goal, encountering the same challenges, frustrations, and successes as their peers. It can be fulfilling to participate in something that’s so much larger than you and your little writing project.
Other people just work better when they have a deadline. Certain personality types can only respond to pressure when there is a sense of urgency, and the stat counter on NaNoWriMo’s website will cause that sense of urgency.
I don’t doubt that the slush piles of publishing industry professionals increase in December, but let’s remember that the people who send out their freshly drafted manuscripts are few among many. Most Wrimos know that their thirty-day novel is nothing more than a first draft, and that the time to start querying agents and publishers is not December 1st. Don’t let a few overeager people sour your entire view of National Novel Writing Month.
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Abria Mattina's links
Follow the rest of the WAKE tour!
12/1 review @ Maria's Handmade Love
12/2 review @ Books Glorious Books
12/4 review @ Nightly Reading
12/5 review @ Aobibliosphere
12/6 guest post @ Kickin Back with Kiwi
12/7 guest post @ Aobibliosphere
12/9 review @ The Phantom Paragrapher
12/10 guest post @ Maria's Handmade Love
12/10 review @ All things books
12/10 review @ The Book Diva's Reads
12/11 review @ Just Another Book Addict
12/12 guest post @ Books Glorious Books
12/12 guest post @ Just Another Book Addict
12/13 review @ Keeping Up With The Rheinlanders
12/14 review @ Owl Tell You About It
12/15 guest post @ Owl Tell You About It
12/16 review @ Celtic Lady's Reviews
12/17 guest post @ The Book Diva's Reads
12/18 guest post @ The Phantom Paragrapher
12/19 guest post @ Nightly Reading
12/20 guest post @ Keeping Up With The Rheinlanders
12/21 guest post @ Kickin Back With Kiwi
12/22 review @ Just One More Paragraph
12/22 guest post @ All things books
12/23 guest post @ Just One More Paragraph
12/30 guest post @ Celtic Lady's Reviews
