Meet Elaine Cantrell
I would like to welcome Elaine Cantrell, author of The Enchanted to Emeraldfire's Bookmark. Ms. Cantrell was kind enough to write a guest post for me and here it is below in her own words:
Elaine Cantrell, author of The Enchanted
You can visit Elaine's website at www.elainecantrell.com
May you read well and often
Elaine Cantrell was born and raised in South Carolina where she obtained a master’s degree in personnel services from Clemson University. She is a member of Alpha Delta Kappa, an international honorary society for women educators, Romance Writers of America, and EPIC authors. Her first novel, A New Leaf, was the 2003 winner of the Timeless Love Contest. When she’s not writing or teaching, she enjoys movies, quilting, reading, and collecting vintage Christmas ornaments.
Her latest book is the fantasy romance, The Enchanted.
Visit her website at www.elainecantrell.com.
Synopsis from Goodreads: Forced by his father into a marriage he didn’t want, Prince Alan soon finds that his bride isn’t the sweet, submissive creature he expected. Morgane has the heart of a dragon and beauty beyond compare, but she isn’t thrilled about the marriage either. When black treachery threatens the kingdom, Morgane and Alan embark on a perilous journey that has an excellent chance of ending in failure and death for them and all of their people.
Coming to Amazon on 13 May 2013!
I would like to welcome Elaine Cantrell, author of The Enchanted to Emeraldfire's Bookmark. Ms. Cantrell was kind enough to write a guest post for me and here it is below in her own words:
'It’s More Than Hocus Pocus'
by Elaine Cantrell
After spending most of the last ten years writing contemporary romance, I decided it was time for a change. So in the spring of 2012 I sat down to write my first romantic fantasy, The Enchanted. Several challenges immediately presented themselves.
First, I knew that I didn't want the fantasy to overpower the romance which meant I'd have to balance my world building details with the romantic elements. In my fantasy world such creatures as dragons and unicorns are real creatures, not mythical, and the world is awash in enchanters who create havoc. I also changed the physical world a bit. Some natural laws such as rain and thunder are retained, yet there are two moons.
Challenge two was finding characters who'd fit into my newly created world. I didn't want plastic, stereotypical characters. I wanted real people with warts and human imperfections, people whose lives and problems would draw you in and make you care about them. It always annoys me when someone says, ‘Oh, but a real person wouldn’t do that.’ Of course they would. Perfect people don’t exist.
My third challenge was to craft a plot that included fantasy elements, yet at the same time allowed my characters to be in charge of their own destiny and in the process grow and change. For example, I allowed a good enchanter to tell my hero how to rescue Princess Morgane from the enchanted forest, but the prince always had the choice of whether he would actually put himself in danger or not. At the time this happened, he didn’t realize he was in love with the princess, so it took a lot of bravery on his part to enter the dreadful forest to find her.
I'm pleased with the way the book turned out. It has everything in it that I enjoy as a reader: believable characters, a fantasy world where my characters rely on themselves and each other, not just enchantment, and a huge quest to save their people from evil. I enjoyed writing romantic fantasy so much that I have another fantasy/sci fi romance in the wings waiting for December and its turn at publication. This one is titled Blue 52, and it’s set a few years into the future right here on earth. Given my new love affair with fantasy romance, will I write contemporary romance again? I sure will. I'm working on one right now, and I just love it. It will be my first full length romantic comedy.
First, I knew that I didn't want the fantasy to overpower the romance which meant I'd have to balance my world building details with the romantic elements. In my fantasy world such creatures as dragons and unicorns are real creatures, not mythical, and the world is awash in enchanters who create havoc. I also changed the physical world a bit. Some natural laws such as rain and thunder are retained, yet there are two moons.
Challenge two was finding characters who'd fit into my newly created world. I didn't want plastic, stereotypical characters. I wanted real people with warts and human imperfections, people whose lives and problems would draw you in and make you care about them. It always annoys me when someone says, ‘Oh, but a real person wouldn’t do that.’ Of course they would. Perfect people don’t exist.
My third challenge was to craft a plot that included fantasy elements, yet at the same time allowed my characters to be in charge of their own destiny and in the process grow and change. For example, I allowed a good enchanter to tell my hero how to rescue Princess Morgane from the enchanted forest, but the prince always had the choice of whether he would actually put himself in danger or not. At the time this happened, he didn’t realize he was in love with the princess, so it took a lot of bravery on his part to enter the dreadful forest to find her.
I'm pleased with the way the book turned out. It has everything in it that I enjoy as a reader: believable characters, a fantasy world where my characters rely on themselves and each other, not just enchantment, and a huge quest to save their people from evil. I enjoyed writing romantic fantasy so much that I have another fantasy/sci fi romance in the wings waiting for December and its turn at publication. This one is titled Blue 52, and it’s set a few years into the future right here on earth. Given my new love affair with fantasy romance, will I write contemporary romance again? I sure will. I'm working on one right now, and I just love it. It will be my first full length romantic comedy.
Elaine Cantrell, author of The Enchanted
You can visit Elaine's website at www.elainecantrell.com
May you read well and often
5 comments:
I think fantasy would not be a very easy genre to write.
Kit3247(at)aol(dot)com
Sounds like a great read Elaine! I've got it on my TBR pile! :)
I definitely agree that compelling characters must be "human" rather than perfect.
I don't go as far as demanding that every hero has a "tragic flaw" but rather than they exhibit a few warts, as you put it.
Thanks so much for hosting Elaine today, Mareena!
You're more than welcome, Dorothy! I'm thrilled to host Elaine! :)
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