Hi guys!
Today, I want to introduce YA Author Rendezvous – a group of independent Young Adult, Middle Grade and Children’s Book authors who have banded together to bring their stories to as wide an audience as possible. Visit them online and find some great reads!
Being a part in this really cool blog tour, I have the opportunity of featuring Kirby Howell, two lovely women who are part of YA Author Rendezvous! Here's a little something they wrote regarding how many people it really takes to finish a novel!
Stay tuned till the very end because there's a surprise waiting for you!
It takes a village
People always associate writers with a solitary life… the shut-in surrounded by dusty old books, pecking away on a typewriter. But modern day writing couldn’t be more different, especially for “Kirby Howell.” Kirby Howell is a pen name that Jessica “Kirby” Alexander and Dana “Howell” Melton publish under. Already you’re seeing a difference here – two writers, not one. While a writing partnership isn’t necessarily the norm for novelists, it’s becoming more and more commonplace, and most importantly it lets us work with our best friend.
But the work only BEGINS with the two of us. While we first break the stories together, work on outlines and trade chapters back and forth, our next step is to bring in more folks to make sure we haven’t gotten lost down the rabbit hole. (It happens – trust us!) We work with nearly 30 beta readers, from all walks of life, who read our polished draft and give us notes – that we then apply in the final draft. We’re up to about 32 brains helping us with our stories now… but we’re not done yet.
Writers need other writers. Not just for notes and beta readings, but for trading ideas and yes, a little psychological support. We met the folks at Young Adult Author Rendezvous (YAAR) when we were working on the third and final book in the Autumn Series, and we remember one time very specifically where we were having some trouble with the layout process for the last book cover. That darn spine just wasn’t lining up! After nearing a breaking point, we turned to our group. We got great advice, but we also got the support we needed to push through. And finally in September of 2015, the book (and the series!) was finished. As of this writing, there are about 80 members of YAAR. That brings the grand total of brains needed to bring our Autumn Series to a close to about 112… a village indeed.
Author Bio:
Dana Melton and Jessica Alexander, who write under the name Kirby Howell, have been writing together since 2000 when they met as freshman in their first script writing class at the University of Alabama. Dana, a native Southerner, quickly showed Jessica the ropes and the joys of living below the Mason Dixon Line. Having lived in nearly every other part of the country, it didn’t take Jessica long to acclimate to sweet tea, grits and football. Four years later, with a couple of film degrees under their belts, they moved to Los Angeles to pursue their professional writing careers.
For more YA Author Rendezvous Authors, visit their website!
GIVEAWAY!
a Rafflecopter giveaway A massive thank you to XPRESSO book tours for organizing this one and for hosting this amazing giveaway! I hope I helped you discover some new authors, their books sound awesome!
Sophie
