Thursday, February 25, 2010

A book interview with Elizabeth Harms, author of The Forgotten 3


Alone. Confused. Scared.
Years forgotten, people missing, evil occurring. There aren’t many who believe him, but there is one who needs his help and friendship more than anything else.
It’s life or death.
What’s done is done. No going back. No second chances. It’s up to Travis to do what he thinks is right, and pay for the consequences later.
He has to find them. He needs to escape. He has to protect. He needs to remember…


That is the plot of Elizabeth Harm's wonderful book, The Forgotten 3. I've read it, and I think it is amazing! Elizabeth, or Bessie as her friends call her, though only eighteen is a very gifted author, and I think she could storm the world (or at least the United States) with her book.

I had an awesome opportunity to interview Bessie about her book, and I hope you will enjoy it.






Brenna: How old were you when you began your novel?


Bessie: I was twelve-years-old. The story of Travis Brent wasn't my first idea. I was writing a story that was very similar to The Lord of the Rings trilogy, and after I noticed that I was "stealing" J.R.R. Tolkien ideas, I knew I needed to change a few things. So after a few years and many rewrites, I finally had my OWN idea.

Brenna: Do you remember what you were doing at the time the idea to write a book came to you?

Bessie: I was reading J.R.R. Tolkien book, The Hobbit, and decided I wanted to write my OWN epic.

Brenna: Did you develop a close bond with your characters after a while?

Bessie: Yes, I did. I put a lot of my characteristics into Travis Brent -- the way he reacts to certain situations, his attitude and outlook -- almost everything you see in Travis has a lot to do with my characteristics. So I had a very close bond with Travis. And Sierra Claire... I LOVED working with her character. Every one of us has a little bit of the British Redhead inside. Some show it more than others ;). But I had a close bond with Sierra Claire, and enjoyed developing her throughout the book.


Brenna: Who published your book?

Bessie: Publish America.
www.publishamerica.com

Brenna: Can fans be expecting to see a sequel to The Forgotten 3 on the horizon?

Bessie: Yes, hopefully. I'm working on a sequel, but right now have only progressed not even half-way into the outline. So it may be a while ;)

Bessie's book can be purchased at Barnes and Noble and Amazon.

Saturday, February 20, 2010

Battling Evil

Dalthenya crouched on the leaf-strewn ground and began to wait. Seconds passed. Minutes. Finally hours. Yet he waited without moving. What did he wait for with such astounding patience? The enemy. The Reolai.
What was the Reolai? A beast so terrible and treacherous that even the most faithful could not resist it. Except Dalthenya. The king had sent him on this mission because he was special. So unique, in fact, that no one else knew about him except the king.
"Dalthenyaaaa....." His name floated on the breeze like an eerie whisper full of foreboding danger.
Dalthenya tensed. This was it. The Reolai was here. Dalthenya scanned his surroundings. Trees, vines, boulders, poisonous plants. Everything was as it had been three hours ago.
The voice drifted by his ear again, carrying his name.
But Dalthenya did nothing. He could not risk falling into the path of the Reolai. The Reolai must come to him.
"Dalthenyaaa.... Listen to meeee....... You are putting yourself in great dangerrr..... Flee noowww...." Tempting words that could break any normal man, but not Dalthenya.
For the first time in a day Dalthenya spoke. "Come to me, O Reolai. I know you lurk here. If you are as fearless as they say, come and face me." His voice was deep and commanding, and shook the trees that he was sitting by.
Out of the corner of his eye he saw a flash of red. "You cannot resist the chance of killing me, Reolai. You shall come and try."
He heard quick, frantic breathing to his right, but he kept staring straight ahead. "Come. Come, and reap the rewards of killing me."
"You shall dieeee......." The Reolai jumped out in front of Dalthenya and swiped a talon at his face, barely missing it. The red and black scales and feathers glistened in the sunlight. His sharp, bird/wolf like head hung suspended from a long neck in front of Dalthenya's face. It's beady red eyes seemed to be trying to penetrate Dalthenya's soul, to find some weakness in him. It's long tail swatted the empty air behind him.
Dalthenya set his bow on the ground because he would never be able to fire an arrow with this beast breathing down his neck. He slowly drew out his golden dagger and held it by his side.
"Your evil has thrived too long in Ethias. I will banish it now."
"Evil shall always remainnn.... People's hearts shall always be corrupted by my stainnn.... Evil will always find a wayyy...."
"You lie not," Dalthenya answered. "But I will offer a way of escape from evil."
The Reolai's beak snapped and his head thrust towards Dalthenya's throat. Dalthenya grabbed his scaly neck and pushed it away and swiped his dagger forward. He missed the Reolai's body.
At the same time, the Reolai freed itself from our hero and bit down on his chest, and Dalthenya pushed his dagger through the Reolai's heart. Both eyes widened in shock.
"It is finished..." Dalthenya said with his dying breath. "I go home to my King today, for I have completed my purpose."
The two figures dropped to the ground. Dead.

Tuesday, February 16, 2010

Meeting Her Maker

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She slowly opened the door. Stepped inside the room. It was all in slow motion. She was trembling.
She knew this day would come. It had to. But now she looked back on her past and was filled with doubts. Had she walked in the Light? Was her faith strong? Questions swarm in her mind as she stepped forward, towards her freedom. Or her doom.
The piercing white light grew brighter as she stepped nearer to it. Oddly enough, her bare feet that slapped against the smooth floor made no sound in the silent room.
She trembled at the sight which she had traveled across the chamber to see. She fell to her knees and sobbed at the base of the throne. She couldn't bring her eyes up the the light in front of her. It was too bright to look upon.
"I'm sorry! Father, father, I'm so sorry. I don't deserve to enter into your eternal kingdom! I am but a sinner, oh Lord. I did nothing that is worthy of even a glimpse into your realm. I don't deserve to even be in your presence."
The light in front of her said nothing, but set His hands upon a book on His lap. Opened it. Flipped through its pages. Smiled.
"Weep not, My Child. It is unfit for the Kingdom of Heaven. Your name is written in the Lamb's Book of Life." His voice was indescribable. He continued, "The passage to Heaven is not made by how few sins you committed or your good works. Nay, it is granted to you by faith alone. Faith in the Lamb, the Word made flesh." and He scooped her up into his arms and said, "Welcome Home, Daughter."


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So this is the first short story in my Short Story Series! It didn't turn out quite as poetically as I imagined it last night when it came to my head. I didn't write it then because I had to go to bed and couldn't get on the computer anyways :p
Please critique!

Saturday, February 13, 2010

Short Story Series!


Lately I've been needing some motivation to just sit down and write. So a little idea hatched inside my mind. Write short stories to post on here.
Not only will it get me back into the mood of writing, but will also help to hone my skills.
I will also be taking suggestions on topics to write about. You can never have enough ideas to choose from!

And remember this when I post stories: Please, please, PLEASE feel obliged to criticize! From correcting spelling errors to pointing out sentences that don't make any sense.

So... ideas anyone?