Faerie Prince Book Tour: A Guest Post By Rachel Morgan On Writing For An International Audience

Hello, everyone! Today I have the honor of hosting author Rachel Morgan, who is here to talk about writing for people in the connected world of the web. Take it away, Rachel!


Writing for an International Audience

I'm a South African living in South Africa, which means I write and speak British English (we like to add extra letters to our words and use "s" instead of "z". Like neighbour instead of neighbor, and realise instead of realize). I wrote my first novel using British spelling, because that's the way I'd always written words. But when I started writing books that I knew I was going to epublish through Amazon, I figured the majority of my audience would be US readers. (There are people in South Africa who read ebooks, but we're way behind the US in that regard.) So ... I decided to switch to US spelling.

The thing is, the difference doesn't stop at spelling. We use different words as well, and I didn't always realis/ze that while I was writing! Fortunately, my critique partner lives in the US and she pointed out the differences as she went through my manuscript. I remember a particularly confusing email exchange about a plug in a bathroom, because she thought I was referring to an electrical plug (what is your character plugging in?) while I was referring to the plug you put in the bath to stop the water running out (oh, you mean a stopper, she said).

Here are some other examples of words I changed after the first draft:

post = mail
zip = zipper
bath = bathtub (I even asked for suggestions on Facebook about what word to use for the noun bath! People were very helpful.)
icing = frosting (although it seemed to me from my Googling that US writers use both icing and frosting, so I stuck with icing in the end)
sweet = candy

And there are a whole lot of other word differences that I didn't use in this novel but that I have to remember in future writing (like bonnet = hood and chips = fries).

If you're a writer, have you had to consider these spelling/word differences before when thinking about your intended audience? If you're a reader, do you notice whether the book you're reading has US or UK spelling, or do you just read the book?

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Rachel Morgan is the author of the newly released YA paranormal fantasy The Faerie Prince, second novel in the Creepy Hollow series. You can find it at the following online retailers (and if you haven't yet read the first book, The Faerie Guardian, you can find out where to get it on this page):

Amazon US | Amazon UK

Barnes & Noble

Apple iBookstore

CreateSpace (print)

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Rachel Morgan was born in South Africa and spent a large portion of her childhood living in a fantasy land of her own making. After completing a degree in genetics, she decided science wasn’t for her—after all, they didn’t approve of made-up facts. These days she spends much of her time immersed in fantasy land once more, writing fiction for young adults.

Blog | Twitter | Facebook | Goodreads | Pinterest

Don't forget the giveaway!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Cover Reveal: The Faerie Guardian by Rachel Morgan

Rachel Morgan from Rachel Morgan Writes is releasing the cover for The Faerie Guardian today. The book comes out November 5, 2012 and is comprised of four separate stories published individually which have been brought together into a single book.

Blurb:

Protecting humans from dangerous magical creatures is all in a day’s work for a faerie training to be a guardian. Seventeen-year-old Violet Fairdale knows this better than anyone—she’s about to become the best guardian the Guild has seen in years. That is, until a cute human boy who can somehow see through her faerie glamour follows her into the fae realm. Now she’s broken Guild Law, a crime that could lead to her expulsion.
     The last thing Vi wants to do is spend any more time with the boy who got her into this mess, but the Guild requires that she return Nate to his home and make him forget everything he’s discovered of the fae realm. Easy, right? Not when you factor in evil faeries, long-lost family members, and inconvenient feelings of the romantic kind. Vi is about to find herself tangled up in a dangerous plot—and it’ll take all her training to get out of it alive. 

[This novel was originally published in four separate parts: Guardian, Labyrinth, Traitor and Masquerade. It includes bonus scenes at the end.]

Goodreads link.


Also, because this is a paperback release, there's a full wraparound cover image which is as gorgeous as the front alone:

Giveaway Time!

The bonus scenes at the end of the book are NOT written from the main character's point of view. If you'd like to win a $10 Amazon gift card, all you have to do is guess whose point of view these scenes are written from! Head on over to the cover reveal post at Rachel Morgan Writes and fill in the Rafflecopter form. There's a list of characters there that you can choose from. Good luck!


Read any of the books from The Faerie Guardian: Guardian, Labyrinth, Traitor, Masquerade? Know Rachel Morgan and/or follow her blog?


-----The Golden Eagle

Creepy Hollow Blog Tour: Book Review of Guardian by Rachel Morgan

Title: Creepy Hollow Series: Book One: Guardian

Author: Rachel Morgan

Publisher: Self-published

Genre: Paranormal/Young Adult

Page Count (e-book): 64

Rating: 4.2 out of 5

Cover Rating: 4.5 out of 5. I love the design, since it's simple and the purple is great contrast. Also, the girl's face seems perfect for the main character.

Blurb:

1. Receive assignment.
2. Save a life.
3. Sleep.
4. Repeat. 

Protecting humans from dangerous magical creatures is all in a day’s work for a faerie training to be a guardian. Seventeen-year-old Violet Fairdale knows this better than anyone—she’s about to become the best guardian the Guild has seen in years. That is, until one of her assignments—a human boy who shouldn’t even be able to see her—follows her into the fae realm. Now she’s broken Guild Law, a crime that could lead to her expulsion.  

The last thing Vi wants to do is spend any more time with the boy who got her into this mess, but the Guild requires that she return Nate to his home and make him forget everything he’s discovered of the fae realm. Easy, right? But Nate and Vi are about to land themselves in even bigger trouble—and it’ll take all Vi’s training to get them out alive.

My expectations: I wasn't quite sure what to expect from this story. I love reading Rachel Morgan's blog, but blogs and novels/novelettes are different things, and while there are many high-quality self-published books, I had to wonder if this would be one of them. 

Whatever my expectations were, however, Guardian definitely exceeded them.

About the book: Just to demonstrate what I thought of this novelette, one day (soon after I got the ARC) I resolved to read a few pages, as I didn't want to spend long on the computer. I ended up powering through it during that and another sitting.

• Writing:

Short and to the point. There wasn't much in the way of embellishment to the style (such as vivid description), but that seems to be the usual for the Paranormal genre and I think it fit the overall story, especially because novelettes have to be short. I can't recall finding any typos, either, a rare thing for any book--and an excellent one.

• Plot:

With some books it can take 50 pages to reach what Guardian put in on page 5, i.e. this novelette moves fast. There are a good number of twists to the story as well, which I loved.

• Characters:

Vi was determined, capable, and she had a great voice. Nate was sweet, and since the reader knows almost a little about Vi's world as the reader, the dialogue between him and Vi divulged information about the world without being an info dump and helped flesh the two out.

• Setting/Elements:

The world is a fascinating one. It plays on the usual faerie surroundings such as the Seelie and Unseelie Court (the Unseelie being evil), but there are unique details as well that help set it apart.

Content: Some violence, kissing. Nothing I'd really raise a flag over.

Other: I'll admit, I haven't read too many novelettes, and those were in a Science Fiction anthology. But the length works in Guardian's favor here, and since so many people are migrating over to e-readers and the like, shorter stories will probably find a much larger audience than they could have before.

Do I recommend this book? If you want a quick and entertaining Paranormal read, I highly recommend this book. The characters, plot, and efficient writing style make Guardian a great choice for those in the mood for a well-told adventure (with a bit of romance, too).

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Thanks to Rachel for providing me an ARC to review!

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Rachel Morgan is the author of Guardian, the first novelette in the Creepy Hollow series. She was born in South Africa and spent a large portion of her childhood living in a fantasy land of her own making. These days, in between teaching mathematics to high school children, she writes fiction for young adults.

Buy Guardian from

Amazon US | Amazon UK | Smashwords

The Creepy Hollow Series

Website | Goodreads | Facebook | Book Trailer

Author Info

Blog | Twitter | Facebook | Goodreads | Google+

And before you go, Rachel is also hosting a giveaway of a copy of Guardian. Enter below:

Creepy Hollow Blog Tour: On Writing YA

Today, please welcome author Rachel Morgan to The Eagle's Aerial Perspective! She's the author of Guardian, the first book in the Creepy Hollow Series, which is an awesome novelette that I will be reviewing on the 15th.

But today, she's here to talk about writing Young Adult.

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On Writing YA

Hi, my name’s Rachel, and I write YA (“Hi, Rachel”). I’ve always written YA, even when I didn’t know that’s what it was called. I wrote it when I was young and didn’t have the perseverance to get past the first few chapters, and I write it now when I’m, uh, not quite as young, and have the self-discipline to get myself to the end of a story. But it’s only recently that I started thinking about why I write YA.


Reason #1: The YA voice is the one I relate to the most. I mean, I’m technically not a young adult anymore. I’m an adult (in age, anyway!). But I don’t really feel like one, and when I sit down to write, it’s a YA voice that comes most naturally and easily to me. I don’t have to try and be formal or proper. I can just relax into the language.

Reason #2: I love writing about firsts. When you’ve kissed someone hundreds of times, it’s not that exciting anymore, but the first time . . . Well, it’s a kiss to remember, for good or for bad! And the first time someone holds your hand, the first date you go on, the first time your heart is broken, the first time you sneak out of the house to do something you shouldn’t . . . Life goes on and you can forget what these things feel like, but pick up a YA book and an author can make you remember exactly what that moment felt like when you were first there.

Reason #3: Everything is a big deal when you’re that age. Everything just means so much more! Good things aren’t just great, they’re epic. And bad things aren’t just terrible, they’re the end of the world. Having passed through the YA years, it’s a relief not to feel everything so intensely anymore. But I sure do enjoy writing about it!

Reason #4: I find it fascinating to look at a person (real or imagined) and examine all the things they’ve been through in life that have shaped them into the person they are right now. That must be why I love origin stories and prequels. With YA characters, that process is still happening.

Perhaps one day I’ll write an adult book. Or a middle grade book. For now, though, my true love is YA.

If you're a writer, what age category do you write for?

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Rachel Morgan is the author of Guardian, the first novelette in the Creepy Hollow series. She was born in South Africa and spent a large portion of her childhood living in a fantasy land of her own making. These days, in between teaching mathematics to high school children, she writes fiction for young adults.

Buy Guardian from

Amazon US | Amazon UK | Smashwords

The Creepy Hollow Series

Website | Goodreads | Facebook | Book Trailer

Author Info

Blog | Twitter | Facebook | Goodreads | Google+

-----The Golden Eagle