Thursday, April 19, 2012

Black Opal Books - Ghostly Justice by Bev Irwin


Hi BK. Thank you for having me on your blog site today.
I am still doing the happy dance after the release of my second book on Saturday. GHOSTLY JUSTICE is a paranormal young adult and I am so waiting to be able to hold it in my hot little hands.

Here’s a bit about me. Known as my official bio and picture.
Award-winning author, Bev Irwin, lives in London, Ontario, with three assorted cats. One that hid in her car when she moved from the farm and two others dropped off by her daughter on two different occasions. Her three children have flown the coup, but her granddaughter, Jasmine, is a frequent visitor.
As a registered nurse, she likes to add a touch of medical to her romance and mystery novels. She writes YA, children’s, and poetry. She prefers spending time in her garden, writing, and reading to being in the kitchen.
Her debut novel, WHEN HEARTS COLLIDE, a contemporary romance, came out in December of 2011 with Soul Mate Publishing under the pen name of Kendra James
That’s me and this is a bit about how I got here. The road has been long and full of twist and turns. There is so much work that leads up to this day.



Today, I want to talk about ideas and inspiration. Writers are often asked, "Where do you get your ideas?"
Where do I get them?
Everywhere.
But then that leads to a problem for me. I have so many ideas surfing around in my brain it makes it very confusing. Which one should I follow? Which one will lead me along enough of a twisting path that a reader would want to continue the journey with me accepting that they may have to suspend belief along the way? 
I also need to find an idea that I will want to continue with to the end. I’m a great starter. I have so many projects started, WIP's that may never see the light of day.
But this year I want to change that.
I have resolutions.
To name a few: I want to get my house in order, give away cloths and possessions I no longer need, clean up papers I have been letting pile up for years, give away some of the books that are flooding my house, and most importantly, to organize my writing area so that I can find room to write. Hopefully, weeding through my house will make room for more to come into my life.
This year, I have goals.  
Concrete goals. The main one is to finish off all the WIP's and get them out there so they can find a home. I plan on shooting an arrow for the sun and if I hit a few stars on the way, that is okay too. 
Too lofty you say. Maybe.
But I have a dream. A dream of having my writing be the only job I need to sustain my lifestyle. I dream of having all the techy gadgets I love. I dream of traveling. There are so many places I want to see. Then there are all those books I want to write.
Remember all those ideas surfing around in my brain. Well, with a lot of will power, a heaping dose of inspiration, and an angel on my shoulder, I hope to give those ideas a voice.
So here's to inspiration!

Here is GHOSTLY JUSTICE!!

Here is an excerpt
PROLOGUE

AMANDA

After all these years, I could finally feel something. It was as if a jolt of electricity surged through me, and my heart almost began to beat again.
At first, I didn’t know what caused it. I only knew an undeniable force drew me to my bedroom window. With each step, the tingle of fingernails tracking down my spine increased. The thought passed through me, maybe I should be afraid. But really, what was there to be afraid of? It couldn’t get worse. What’s worse than being dead?
I floated toward the window. Two girls were walking in front of the house. They looked about my age, maybe younger – fifteen, sixteen. I was drawn to the one with the dark curly hair. Her friend called her Daria. I reached out my hand, called her name. She looked up at the window. She sensed me. I knew it. I saw her shudder, but she kept walking.
I watched until they turned the corner at Colburn Street. Then the energy vanished and a profound sadness filled me. Even playing the piano held no joy that day.
I have to talk to her. But how?
I gave up trying to contact the living years ago. It became so tiresome—appearing in front of them, touching them, talking to them, yet never being noticed.
Until now.
Every day, I watch for her. Every day, I try to make contact. Every day I plead for her to look up at my window again. Two weeks have passed now. And every day, she hurries past; her gaze focused on the street ahead.
I must talk to her.
Daria is the first person I’ve been able to communicate with since the day I was murdered.


And here are pre pub blurbs


KUDOS for Ghostly Justice

Ghostly Justice by Bev Irwin is one of those books that can easily span the bridge between YA and adult fiction. Though the characters are teenagers and still in high school, like Harry Potter and Twilight, the story is fascinating enough to appeal to much broader audiences. Our heroine, Daria, is young, but she’s also spunky, creative, clever, and reluctantly courageous—my favorite kind of gal. And she is most definitely not pleased when she discovers that she is psychic and can talk to ghosts. Well, one ghost, at least...Irwin has added a well-rounded cast of secondary characters to help Daria in her quest, and together with a strong plot, excellent dialogue and a few surprises along the way, they all combine to make this book a very enjoyable read. – Taylor, Reviewer

Ghostly Justice was not quite what I expected when I learned it was YA. Even though the characters are teens, the subject matter—some of it anyway—was very adult. However, Bev Irwin seems to be a talented author and handled the sensitive issues with the same aplomb with which she did the scenes where her teenage characters break into an abandoned house. Daria, our very reluctant heroine, doesn’t want to be special. She especially doesn’t want to talk to dead people or to hear her best friend’s thoughts. She wants to keep clear of her mom’s creepy boyfriend, snag a hot, sexy boyfriend of her own—who doesn’t—and to be left in peace...The other characters in the book are equally well-developed and three-dimensional, the plot has some very nice twists and turns, and Irwin’s writing is superb. – Regan, Reviewer


GHOSTLY JUSTICE will be available on April 14th!!!!



And here is MISSING CLAYTON coming in June with Black Opal Books



1 comments:

Bev Irwin / Kendra James said...

Hi BK, Thanks for letting be post here today and promote my book.