And the Blog Tour continues - RESCUING MARA'S FATHER #sf #mg

Pamela S. Thibodeaux invited me to stop by her blog on my tour for Tuesday Treasure. I share some thoughts on one of my favorite treasures.

https://pamswildroseblog.blogspot.com/2019/04/tuesdaytreasures-with-diane-burton.html

Stop by and enter the Rafflecopter for a chance to win a $10 Amazon Gift Card.

#WeWriWa RESCUING MARA'S FATHER She looks like her mother. #sf #MG

Each weekend, the Weekend Writing Warriors share an 8 - 10 sentence snippet. Be sure to visit the other authors. You can find them here.

I'm sharing snippets from my Middle Grade/YA science fiction adventure, Rescuing Mara's Father. The narrator is Mara, an almost 15-year-old girl who lives in a mining outpost on the Outer Rim. This snippet takes place right after last week's, which ended with: He rarely talks about my mother, who died giving me birth. When I used to ask about her, he would get such a pained look in his eyes I always backed off. This time, I can’t let the opportunity pass. “Please, Father, tell me about her.”

Please excuse the creative punctuation, necessary to keep this within the guidelines. It's also edited from the original.

 

He doesn’t say anything, and disappointment settles over me—just like before. Then, he turns around, “She was tall and slender with hair as dark as midnight and eyes as green as a mountain meadow. You look very much like her—your skin is not as fair as hers, though. She would not go outdoors without covering up for fear of burning,” He smiles, warmth and love shining from his eyes, “She hated freckles.”

“I hate them, too.”

He chuckles, “Not enough to stay indoors. Your mother cared deeply for others, as you do, but she would not have risked her life in combat. Learning was important to her. She would not have been pleased with your attitude in the classroom.”

Rescuing Mara's Father is available in digital format at:

Amazon ~ Amazon UK ~ Kobo ~ B&N ~ Smashwords

Available in Print: Amazon

3 friends, a hidden starship, a quest

Her father is gone! Taken by the Queen of Compara’s agents. Mara has to rescue him before the Queen tortures and kills him.

Instead of the kind, loving father she’s always known, he’s become demanding, critical, with impossible expectations—not just as Father but also as the only teacher in their frontier outpost. Mara would rather scoop zircan poop than listen to another boring lecture about governments on Central Planets. Give her a starship engine to take apart or better yet, fly, and she’s happy. Now, he's gone.

Never mind, they’ve had a rocky road lately. 

Never mind, Father promised she could go off planet to Tech Institute next month when she turns fifteen, where she’ll learn to fly starships.

Never mind, she ran away because she’s furious with him because he reneged on that promise. Father is her only parent. She has to save him.

Along with her best friend, eleven-year-old Jako, and his brother 15-year-old Lukus, Mara sets off to find her father. An old spaceport mechanic and her mentor seems to know why the Queen captured Father. In fact, he seems to know her father well. But, does he tell her everything? Of course not. He dribbles out info like a mush-eating baby. Worse, he indicates he’ll be leaving them soon. And Lukus can’t wait to get off our planet. Mara’s afraid they will all leave her, and she’ll be on her own. Despite her fears, she has to rescue her father.

GIVEAWAY

A $10 AMAZON e-GIFT CARD

Many chances to win.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Be sure to check out the other WeWriWa authors.

Rescuing Mara's Father Blog Tour Continues

I'm visiting two places today. First up, I'm visiting across the state (Michigan) with Chemist Ken. He has some very nice things to say about Rescuing Mara's Father.

https://hogwartssabbatical.blogspot.com

I'm sharing my Two Cents Worth on Teresa Cypher's blog.

https://tuesdaytwocents.blogspot.com/2019/04/diane-burton-tuesday-two-cents.html

At both blogs, you can enter the Rafflecopter for more chances to win that $10 Amazon e-Gift Card.

#WeWriWa RESCUING MARA'S FATHER Your Mother Would've Been Proud

Each weekend, the Weekend Writing Warriors share an 8 - 10 sentence snippet. Be sure to visit the other authors. You can find them here.

Last weekend, I was so happy about my new release, Rescuing Mara's Father, only to come crashing down when I started rereading the Amazon ebook. Errors! Errors, I thought I corrected. Discovered I'd uploaded the wrong file! Ack. All is well now. Uploaded the right file, and Amazon said they'd send an email to purchasers that a new file is available. Whew. Crisis over. Lesson learned.

I'm sharing snippets from my Middle Grade/YA science fiction adventure, Rescuing Mara's Father. The narrator is Mara, an almost 15-year-old girl who lives in a mining outpost on the Outer Rim. This snippet takes place shortly after last week's. After Mara and her friend Jako win their fight with the Dunpus brothers, her father takes her home to tend her wounds. He holds her for a moment.

Please excuse the creative punctuation, necessary to keep this within the guidelines. It's also edited from the original.

Abruptly, he pushes me away and stands, I want him to come back, to hold me again—to be the warm, loving Father he used to be. He doesn’t. “I concur with your little friend—you did well, however you could have been killed. Those Dunpus boys are mean, the father meaner—stay away from them.”

“But they were beating up Jako, it wasn’t fair.”

Father walks over to the stove and lifts the lid of the large pot, “You have a good heart,” He stirs the stew, “You are very much like your mother. She would have been proud of you.”

He rarely talks about my mother, who died giving me birth. When I used to ask about her, he would get such a pained look in his eyes I always backed off—this time, I can’t let the opportunity pass, “Please, Father, tell me about her.”

Rescuing Mara's Father is available in digital format at:

Amazon ~ Amazon UK ~ Kobo ~ B&N ~ Smashwords

Available in Print: Amazon

3 friends, a hidden starship, a quest

Her father is gone! Taken by the Queen of Compara’s agents. Mara has to rescue him before the Queen tortures and kills him.

Instead of the kind, loving father she’s always known, he’s become demanding, critical, with impossible expectations—not just as Father but also as the only teacher in their frontier outpost. Mara would rather scoop zircan poop than listen to another boring lecture about governments on Central Planets. Give her a starship engine to take apart or better yet, fly, and she’s happy. Now, he's gone.

Never mind, they’ve had a rocky road lately. 

Never mind, Father promised she could go off planet to Tech Institute next month when she turns fifteen, where she’ll learn to fly starships.

Never mind, she ran away because she’s furious with him because he reneged on that promise. Father is her only parent. She has to save him.

Along with her best friend, eleven-year-old Jako, and his brother 15-year-old Lukus, Mara sets off to find her father. An old spaceport mechanic and her mentor seems to know why the Queen captured Father. In fact, he seems to know her father well. But, does he tell her everything? Of course not. He dribbles out info like a mush-eating baby. Worse, he indicates he’ll be leaving them soon. And Lukus can’t wait to get off our planet. Mara’s afraid they will all leave her, and she’ll be on her own. Despite her fears, she has to rescue her father.

GIVEAWAY

A $10 AMAZON e-GIFT CARD

Many chances to win.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Be sure to check out the other WeWriWa authors.

#WeWriWa - RESCUING MARA'S FATHER Father is Angry #sf #middlegrade #Giveaway

Each weekend, the Weekend Writing Warriors share an 8 - 10 sentence snippet. Be sure to visit the other authors. You can find them here.

I'm sharing my latest release, a Middle Grade/YA science fiction adventure, titled Rescuing Mara's Father. The narrator is Mara, an almost 15-year-old girl who lives in a mining outpost on the Outer Rim. This snippet takes place shortly after last week's. After Mara and her friend Jako win their fight with the Dunpus brothers, her father leads her home, lecturing her over the fight. 

Please excuse the creative punctuation, necessary to keep this within the guidelines. It's also edited from the original.

Father makes me sit on a chair in the kitchen because the light’s better in there. He is gentle as he cleans my scrapes and bruises. He’s almost finished when I see his lips thin and his eyes harden, he tilts my chin and pulls aside the neck of the old shirt I’m wearing.

“You have bruises on your throat. That—” he calls the bully a filthy name, I’m surprised—he never swears or calls anyone bad names.

What he does next surprises me even more, he kneels next to me and pulls me into his arms. I can’t remember the last time he hugged me. He strokes my hair, and I think this is how it used to be . . . when he loved me. Tears prickle my eyes, and my throat thickens.

Rescuing Mara's Father released yesterday. Yay! It's available in digital format at:

Amazon ~ Amazon UK ~ Kobo ~ B&N ~ Smashwords

Available in Print: Amazon

3 friends, a hidden starship, a quest

Her father is gone! Taken by the Queen of Compara’s agents. Mara has to rescue him before the Queen tortures and kills him.

Instead of the kind, loving father she’s always known, he’s become demanding, critical, with impossible expectations—not just as Father but also as the only teacher in their frontier outpost. Mara would rather scoop zircan poop than listen to another boring lecture about governments on Central Planets. Give her a starship engine to take apart or better yet, fly, and she’s happy. Now, he's gone.

Never mind, they’ve had a rocky road lately. 

Never mind, Father promised she could go off planet to Tech Institute next month when she turns fifteen, where she’ll learn to fly starships.

Never mind, she ran away because she’s furious with him because he reneged on that promise. Father is her only parent. She has to save him.

Along with her best friend, eleven-year-old Jako, and his brother 15-year-old Lukus, Mara sets off to find her father. An old spaceport mechanic and her mentor seems to know why the Queen captured Father. In fact, he seems to know her father well. But, does he tell her everything? Of course not. He dribbles out info like a mush-eating baby. Worse, he indicates he’ll be leaving them soon. And Lukus can’t wait to get off our planet. Mara’s afraid they will all leave her, and she’ll be on her own. Despite her fears, she has to rescue her father.

GIVEAWAY

A $10 AMAZON e-GIFT CARD

Many chances to win.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Be sure to check out the other WeWriWa authors.

RELEASE DAY! Rescuing Mara's Father is live! #scifi #adventure #Giveaway

RELEASE DAY

My science fiction adventure for middle grade (3rd grade & up) is now available.

3 friends, a hidden starship, a quest

Her father is gone! Taken by the Queen of Compara’s agents. Mara has to rescue him before the Queen tortures and kills him.

Instead of the kind, loving father she’s always known, he’s become demanding, critical, with impossible expectations—not just as Father but also as the only teacher in their frontier outpost. Mara would rather scoop zircan poop than listen to another boring lecture about governments on Central Planets. Give her a starship engine to take apart or, better yet, fly, and she’s happy. Now, he’s gone.

Never mind, they’ve had a rocky road lately.

Never mind, Father promised she could go off planet to Tech Institute next month when she turns fifteen, where she’ll learn to fly starships.

Never mind, she ran away because she’s furious with him because he reneged on that promise. Father is her only parent. She has to save him.

Along with her best friend, eleven-year-old Jako, and his brother 15-year-old Lukus, Mara sets off to find her father. Her mentor, old spaceport mechanic, seems to know why the Queen captured Father. In fact, he seems to know her father well. But, does he tell her everything? Of course not. He dribbles out info like a mush-eating baby. Worse, he indicates he’ll be leaving them soon. And Lukus can’t wait to get off our planet. Mara’s afraid they will all leave, and she’ll be on her own. Despite her fears, Mara has to rescue her father.

Amazon ~ Amazon UK ~ Kobo ~ B&N ~ Smashwords

GIVEAWAY

A $10 AMAZON e-GIFT CARD

Many chances to win.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

#WeWriWa RESCUING MARA'S FATHER: Run, You Galactic Garbage!

Each weekend, the Weekend Writing Warriors share an 8 - 10 sentence snippet. Be sure to visit the other authors. You can find them here.

Apologies for not getting around to the blogs last week. I worked nonstop (almost) to prepare Rescuing Mara's Father for publication--final proofing, formatting, and finally uploading it to the major vendors. (More below.) I'll do better about visiting this week. Promise!
I'm sharing my newest story, a Middle Grade/YA science fiction adventure, titled Rescuing Mara's Father. The narrator is Mara, an almost 15-year-old girl who lives in a mining outpost on the Outer Rim. This snippet takes place after last week's. When Mara's friend Jako is being beaten up by the Dunpus brothers, she joins the fight. Since they've never heard the brothers' first names, she and Jako call them by numbers. 

Please excuse the creative punctuation, necessary to keep this within the guidelines. It's also edited from the original.

 

I straddle Dunpus #2, my knees grinding into his upper arms, then I grab his hair and slam his head into the dusty ground. While he’s dazed, I say, “Leave Jako alone. Hurt him again, and you’re planetary poop, understand?” I slam his head into the hard-packed dirt again.

“He understands, Mara,” Stars and asteroids, it’s Father. He lifts me off the stunned boy, while Lukus does the same to Jako who really cleaned Dunpus #1’s clock.

The Dunpus brothers stagger to their feet, take a look at the four of us, and stumble backward in their haste to get away.

Jako yells, “Yeah, run, you galactic garbage. Go back to your farm,” He looks over at me and grins, “We done good, didn’t we?” He holds his hand up in the air, and I slap it.

Rescuing Mara's Father is now available for pre-order at the following vendors:

Amazon ~ Amazon UK ~ Kobo ~ B&N ~ Smashwords

Blurb:

Her father is gone! Taken by the Queen of Compara’s agents. Mara has to rescue him before the Queen tortures and kills him.

Instead of the kind, loving father she’s always known, he’s become demanding, critical, with impossible expectations—not just as Father but also as the only teacher in their frontier outpost. Mara would rather scoop zircan poop than listen to another boring lecture about governments on Central Planets. Give her a starship engine to take apart or better yet, fly, and she’s happy. Now, he's gone.

Never mind, they’ve had a rocky road lately. 

Never mind, Father promised she could go off planet to Tech Institute next month when she turns fifteen, where she’ll learn to fly starships.

Never mind, she ran away because she’s furious with him because he reneged on that promise. Father is her only parent. She has to save him.

Along with her best friend, eleven-year-old Jako, and his brother 15-year-old Lukus, Mara sets off to find her father. An old spaceport mechanic and her mentor seems to know why the Queen captured Father. In fact, he seems to know her father well. But, does he tell her everything? Of course not. He dribbles out info like a mush-eating baby. Worse, he indicates he’ll be leaving them soon. And Lukus can’t wait to get off our planet. Mara’s afraid they will all leave her, and she’ll be on her own. Despite her fears, she has to rescue her father.

Be sure to check out the other WeWriWa authors. 

#WeWriWa - RESCUING MARA'S FATHER - Mara Joins the Fight

Each weekend, the Weekend Writing Warriors share an 8 - 10 sentence snippet. Be sure to visit the other authors. You can find them here.

I'm sharing a new story, a Middle Grade/YA science fiction adventure, titled Rescuing Mara's Father. The narrator is Mara, an almost 15-year-old girl who lives in a mining outpost on the Outer Rim. This snippet takes place after last week's. Mara's friend Jako is being beaten by the Dunpus brothers. Since they've never heard their first names, she and Jako call them by numbers. 

Please excuse the creative punctuation, necessary to keep this within the guidelines. It's also edited from the original.

  

They are a lot bigger than me, but I don’t hesitate. I’m tall for my age, but what I lack in bulk I make up for in cunning, thanks to Father’s self-defense lessons. I leap up and kick the back of the knee of the oldest brother—I’m wearing stout boots so I’m sure he’ll go down. He does and hits his head. While he lies there dazed, the middle brother starts dancing around so I can’t kick him. He must have seen what I did to Dunpus #1. I jump on #2’s back, and that gives Jako a fighting chance with the youngest. I wrap my forearm around Dunpus #2’s neck and hang on while he tries to shake me loose. If I press hard enough on his throat, I could choke him. Even though he’s a bully, I can’t do that.

Blurb:

Her father is gone! Taken by the Queen of Compara’s agents. Mara has to rescue him before the Queen tortures and kills him.

Instead of the kind, loving father she’s always known, he’s become demanding, critical, with impossible expectations—not just as Father but also as the only teacher in their frontier outpost. Mara would rather scoop zircan poop than listen to another boring lecture about governments on Central Planets. Give her a starship engine to take apart or better yet, fly, and she’s happy. Now, he's gone.

Never mind, they’ve had a rocky road lately. 

Never mind, Father promised she could go off planet to Tech Institute next month when she turns fifteen, where she’ll learn to fly starships.

Never mind, she ran away because she’s furious with him because he reneged on that promise. Father is her only parent. She has to save him.

Along with her best friend, eleven-year-old Jako, and his brother 15-year-old Lukus, Mara sets off to find her father. An old spaceport mechanic and her mentor seems to know why the Queen captured Father. In fact, he seems to know her father well. But, does he tell her everything? Of course not. He dribbles out info like a mush-eating baby. Worse, he indicates he’ll be leaving them soon. And Lukus can’t wait to get off our planet. Mara’s afraid they will all leave her, and she’ll be on her own. Despite her fears, she has to rescue her father.

Be sure to check out the other WeWriWa authors. 

#WeWriWa - RESCUING MARA'S FATHER: A Fight

Each weekend, the Weekend Writing Warriors share an 8 - 10 sentence snippet. Be sure to visit the other authors. You can find them here.

I'm sharing a new story, a Middle Grade/YA science fiction adventure, titled Rescuing Mara's Father. It's still a work in progress, so suggestions are welcome. The narrator is Mara, an almost 15-year-old girl who lives in a mining outpost on the Outer Rim. This snippet takes place a little later than last week's. Mara's friend Jako told her about a new ship that's come into spaceport. 

Please excuse the creative punctuation, necessary to keep this within the guidelines. It's also edited from the original.

 

Spaceport is at the far west end of the village, an easy ten-minute walk. I cut through the alley between Main and Back Street, but as I round the corner of the mercantile, I run into a cloud of dust. The dry season has been drier than usual. If the clouds actually bring rain tonight, everyone will be grateful, especially the farmers, but the dust cloud I’m seeing isn’t made by the wind whipping sand between the buildings.

No, it’s a fight—a one-sided fight, three against one. Since the ‘three’ are the Dunpus Brothers—meaner than vipers and stronger than hicans—and the ‘one’ is Jako, I wade in. I mean, he’s just a little kid, while the brothers are around my age. Two are older, one younger, I think. They don’t come to school—their father says it’s a waste of time.

Blurb:

Her father is gone! Taken by the Queen of Compara’s agents. Mara has to rescue him before the Queen tortures and kills him.

Instead of the kind, loving father she’s always known, he’s become demanding, critical, with impossible expectations—not just as Father but also as the only teacher in their frontier outpost. Mara would rather scoop zircan poop than listen to another boring lecture about governments on Central Planets. Give her a starship engine to take apart or, better yet, fly, and she’s happy. Now, he's gone.

Never mind, they’ve had a rocky road lately. 

Never mind, Father promised she could go off planet to Tech Institute next month when she turns fifteen, where she’ll learn to fly starships.

Never mind, she ran away because she’s furious with him because he reneged on that promise. Father is her only parent. She has to save him.

Along with her best friend, eleven-year-old Jako, and his brother 15-year-old Lukus, Mara sets off to find her father. An old spaceport mechanic and her mentor seems to know why the Queen captured Father. In fact, he seems to know her father well. But, does he tell her everything? Of course not. He dribbles out info like a mush-eating baby. Worse, he indicates he’ll be leaving them soon. And Lukus can’t wait to get off our planet. Mara’s afraid they will all leave her, and she’ll be on her own. Despite her fears, she has to rescue her father.

RESCUING MARA'S FATHER BLOG TOUR

Would you be interested in hosting me on my blog tour? If yes, please click here to sign up. Thank you in advance. When you have a new release, I'm happy to repay the favor.

Be sure to check out the other WeWriWa authors. 

#IWSG: Differing Perspectives

Happy Insecure Writers Support Group Day. IWSG is the brainchild of Ninja Captain Alex J. Cavanaugh.

Purpose: To share and encourage. Writers can express doubts and concerns without fear of appearing foolish or weak. Those who have been through the fire can offer assistance and guidance. It’s a safe haven for insecure writers of all kinds! Thanks, Alex, for starting this group and keeping it going. 

Thanks to this month's awesome hosts:  Fundy Blue, Beverly Stowe McClure, Erika Beebe, and Lisa Buie-Collard!

I am so grateful for this month's question. I'm neck-deep in edits for my middle grade science fiction adventure, RESCUING MARA'S FATHER. Although the revisions aren't onerous, the nit-picky edits are a pain in the you-know-where. I'm more than halfway through and getting to the exciting part of the story, where the MC finally learns the reason for prior events.

Consequently, I was at a loss as to what to write for this month's post. The optional question is a life saver.

 

Whose perspective do you like to write from best, the hero (protagonist) or the villain (antagonist)? And why?

Definitely the protagonist. In a few of my stories, I've included a few paragraphs from the villain's POV, just to give some info that the reader needs to know (to up the tension) but keeps the MC in the dark. Usually, I write third person POV, that way I can alternate between the hero and heroine. But my adult cozy mysteries and my latest, the MG sci-fi adventure, I write in first person. And I love it. Readers have commented on my "voice" that works well. A little snarky, self-deprecating, laughs at one's self. It's easy for me to slip into the character's mind and "become" her. And it's fun, too. Since I write light-hearted stories--no dark and dangerous thrillers for me--I enjoy writing from that perspective.

                RESCUING MARA'S FATHER BLOG TOUR

With regard to my upcoming release: would you be willing to host me on my blog tour? If yes, please click here to sign up. Thank you in advance. When you have a new release, I'm happy to repay the favor.

Here's more about the story.

RESCUING MARA’S FATHER

A Middle Grade Science Fiction Adventure

By D.M. Burton

Approx. 75,000 words

Blurb:

Her father is gone! Taken by the Queen of Compara’s agents. Mara has to rescue him before the Queen tortures and kills him.

Instead of the kind, loving father she’s always known, he’s become demanding, critical, with impossible expectations—not just as Father but also as the only teacher in their frontier outpost. Mara would rather scoop zircan poop than listen to another boring lecture about governments on Central Planets. Give her a starship engine to take apart or, better yet, fly, and she’s happy. Now, he’s gone.

Never mind, they’ve had a rocky road lately.

Never mind, Father promised she could go off planet to Tech Institute next month when she turns fifteen, where she’ll learn to fly starships.

Never mind, she ran away because she’s furious with him because he reneged on that promise. Father is her only parent. She has to save him.

Along with her best friend, eleven-year-old Jako, and his brother 15-year-old Lukus, Mara sets off to find her father. Her mentor, old spaceport mechanic, seems to know why the Queen captured Father. In fact, he seems to know her father well. But, does he tell her everything? Of course not. He dribbles out info like a mush-eating baby. Worse, he indicates he’ll be leaving them soon. And Lukus can’t wait to get off our planet. Mara’s afraid they will all leave, and she’ll be on her own. Despite her fears, Mara has to rescue her father.

Now, back to our regularly scheduled program. Click here to find others on the Insecure Writers Support Group Blog Hop. Or go to IWSG on Facebook to see who’s blogging today.