Time Travel???

I'm working on my second novel "Far Far Away" and I'm trying to brainstorm a way to "time travel" but not write a Sci-Fi or Fantasy story.

I'd like to stay in the paranormal realm since this will be a sequel to "Far From Normal." A Paranormal Romance that I'm currently working on getting published. I started thinking about all the stories I've read that time travel. See my list below of my favorite time travel stories. Any suggestions on other books I can read that time travel but aren't strong Sci-Fi or Fantasy books? 

A favorite of mine is Diana Gabaldon's "Outlander" series. That's what I'm looking for a spiritual and magical place like the Stonehenge in Scotland where the character is warped back in time. I accepted that theory right away and loved the book. http://www.dianagabaldon.com/writing/the-outlander/outlander/

Janette Rallison does time travel in some of her books. In "Time Riders" the characters are in a science lab at college and someone in the future takes them through a wormhole by mistake as they were looking for an important scientist. It was believable enough because who am I to say that the future won't have that kind of advancement. (I found Janette's word play on how the future mistakes our meanings genius.) To purchase --->Time-Riders-Sierra-St-James/Janette Rallison

Janette also has two other stories that go back in time but to fairy-tale time. "My Fair Godmother" and "My Unfair Godmother." A fairy godmother is a great way to get your character sent back in time but very much a fantasy story. (see blog for  book review of My Unfair Godmother.)


<---To purchase  my-fair-godmother-janette-rallison

To Purchase --> my-unfair-godmother-janette-rallison








Jude Deveraux is another author that writes unusual stories dealing with characters being sent to another time. Always-Forever-Trilogy-Jude-Deveraux

Of course there is always "The Time Travelers Wife." We accepted the love story of him coming in and out of time. Time-Travelers-Wife-Audrey-Niffenegger

I want to write a story that is believable enough that after your done reading you stop and say, "what if?" 

Rejection Letter

My first rejection email has arrived from an agent that I thought for sure would be interested based on the other authors they represent. I sent the query back in October. October! That is five months it took them to read my query and reject it. Agents must really be backed up.The agency didn't give any feedback of why they weren't interested.

 I'm glad to get my first rejection letter, it feels like a rite of passage as a true writer.

I have my next agent in mind I'm really interested in. At the Changing Hands writers conference I attended last month, I was inspired by Arielle Eckstut and David Henry Terry's class. (if you want to read the blog click here--> It's a great time to be an author) They suggested going to your favorite books and those like your story and read the acknowledgement page as a great way to find an agent. I've had two series of books that I love and always reference my book as "like" stories. Lo and behold, I looked in the acknowledgment section for both and the same agent represents them. I'm excited to query him but my query has to be perfect to catch his attention. See previous blog for query always-in-pursuit-of-perfect-query. Any suggestions would be appreciated.

Always in pursuit of the perfect query letter- how's this?

Demons and Angels live among us, most of the time undetected and unseen. For eighteen-year old Krystal Teigen being aware of those spiritual creatures is a common occurrence, until a dark force becomes terrifyingly tangible. 
Growing up in Normal, Illinois proves to be ironic as Krystal is anything but normal. She can't shake the ghostly feeling of someone looming around her. When her family falls on hard times, she moves with them to Lake Geneva, Wisconsin. Krystal bumps into Boyd McLaws and is reminded they were once caught kissing in the barn when they were children. Boyd seems more than eager to take up where they left off but catastrophes keep happening when they are together. Krystal realizes she is the one who has put Boyd at risk when a strange wind pushes him off a cliff during a hike. Trying to find help Krystal encounters Seth, he claims he’s her “guard” sent to help. While Boyd is laid up with a broken leg Krystal makes friends with a tattooed bad boy; hanging out with him gets her into trouble with the local police. The officers enlist her to act as an informant to gain evidence on the drugs coming into their town. She is hesitant to cooperate until she realizes her younger brother is being lured into the very group the police want her to infiltrate. When things turn deadly, Krystal learns why she matters to those beyond.

Sample from Book two -Far Far Away!

Far Far Away
Book two of Anything But Normal series

“At first I was engrossed with Norway, my ancestry land where Princess Kristina comes from. The story I’m fascinated with is when she goes to Spain to marry her prince. What a love story.” I exhaled in a day dreamers sigh. I collected myself and with more determination I declared. “Something is calling me to go there. I need to go and stand where she stood. I just have to go.”



Devil's lake hiking area where Boyd falls off the cliff

OF course I'm still editing. Why does it feel like your forever editing when writing a book? The easy part is writing the creative story you came up with. All the other stuff takes to long. "What do you mean, I have to make this perfect before I even send it to an agent." I'm paying someone to editing my book right now. That is a painful process because it's paying someone to insult you. I've really liked the suggestions so far until my editor said they didn't like my character Boyd in one scene. Which became very disheartening for me. I have become completely attached to him. It's like looking at someones baby and telling them its ugly. So I licked my wounds and made the changes to make Boyd a little less of a real man and more like a romance novel man that we all like to read about.  I heard a guy say one time, "If men acted like the way the men do in movies (or books) we'd have a restraining order against us." Which is true, we don't read for reality. We read for that great love story that defies all logic.    

Query letter ideas

Eighteen- year old Krystal Teigen must overcome the dark presence influencing her life, or she’ll forever be a prisoner to its will.  It’s too bad that as she makes steps towards a better existence it provokes mysterious forces to work against her.

Growing up in Normal, Illinois proved to be ironic as Krystal never was. She can’t shake the ghostly feeling looming around her. When her family falls on hard times, she moves with them to Lake Geneva, Wisconsin, hoping it will make a difference. Instead, the troubling impression that has tormented her throughout her life follows her.

Krystal bumps into Boyd McLaws and remembers they were once caught kissing in the barn when they were children. Boyd seems more than eager to take up where they left off. But unexplainable accidents keep happening when they are together. A drunk driver slams into their truck and is heard telling the police that something took over. Krystal realizes she is the one who has placed Boyd at risk when a strange wind pushes him off a cliff during a hike. Bewildered, she loses the trail down the mountain to get help and encounters Seth. He claims to be her guard, sent to help her. Just when Krystal is making steps in the right direction, she makes new friends that get her in trouble with the local police. The officers enlist her to act as an informant to gain evidence on the drugs that are coming into their town. She is hesitant to do this, until she realizes her younger brother is being lured into the group. The situation becomes critical as she finds herself in a life and death situation.

As the plans for evil domination reveals themselves, Krystal must come to terms with why she matters so much to those beyond this life.

Princess Kristina

When I first started writing my book I was very clear on my characters Krystal and Seth. But as I wrote other characters came forward and became main characters; like Boyd. There wouldn't even be a book if there wasn't a Boyd. Another character surfaced while I was doing research on Norway, my characters ancestory home country. When I read the story of Princess Kristina, I just loved the story but there was a lot untold. I wanted to make Princess Kristina an important storyline but it took the story a whole different way. I had to scale her back much to my disappointment. I thought maybe someday I'll write her story. She lived in 1250's in Norway and then moved to Spain in her last part of her life. I was excited to find that an author wrote her story in 2010. The only problem is that the book is in Norwegian and Spanish. I wrote the publisher to see if they had plans to get an American publisher and they said no, but if I knew someone they would be interested. Someday I would like to help it get published here. The authors name is Mia Soreide.  The story someday would be a great companionship book with mine. Or at least I hope so.