Thursday, February 27, 2014

Top Ten Time Saving Tips for the Truly Deranged

by Broo Gammen

Lucky you. You’ve stumbled upon K.C. Blake’s blog on the very day that I took it over!

How dare you not know who I am. I am the Broo Gammen, High Empress of the Mogdoc Empire, Moon of Atlantis, Conquerer of the World. Every creature in Atlantis cringes before my presence. Well, they used to.

No! Keira Ryan didn’t defeat me. Unbelieveable! Is that what she said? Whatevs. She prances around in her Walmart jeans like some kind of almighty savior. Truth is, I got bored of it all and moved on. Can you say “over-rated”?

Don’t get me wrong, being a queen definitely had its benefits, but it’s sooo much work! It felt like a job…and Broo Gammen does not do 9 to 5. I would so rather take my chances on the human side of the barrier where I can rule as the queen of popularity among the young and the beautiful.

I guess it all comes down to time management. Ya know, making the most of the moments we have and blah, blah, blah. [insert more sentimental crap here].

So today I’m gracing you all with my incredible brilliance. May I present Broo Gammen’s Top Ten Time Management Techniques for the Truly Deranged.

10. Always put your werewolf away immediately after using it. It will take twice as long to clean it up later.

9. When sorting evil plans, be sure to discard the ridiculous ones instead of setting them aside for review later. Evil plans don’t get better with age.

8. When getting dressed in the morning, put your hand in the closet and put on the first thing you pull out. You’ll save tons of time and if you are truly deranged (or if you just want to appear that way), does it really matter what you wear?

7. A snitch in time saves nine.

6. Presort your weapons before battle.

5. Is your neighborhood teeming with rugrats. Put’em to work. Labor laws are for bleeding hearts.

4. Create concise bullet points for your super-villian rant and stick to it. We evil geniuses tend to ramble on and divulge too much info.

3. Keep important dates, secret launch codes, and ransom demands on a calendar or in a planner. You can steal one and save money too!

2. When using fireballs for fast cooking remember that moderation is key.

1. Cryogenics is cool…literally! Freeze your assistant now for use later.

Read more about Broo Gammen in The Midnight Guardian Series by Bryna Butler. Books 1-5 are available at all major bookstores. Pick up Book 1, Of Sun & Moon, for free at Amazon.
Thanks to K.C. Blake  for hosting this Fun Friday VILLAIN TAKEOVER from The Society of YA Storytellers.

Monday, February 24, 2014

This Friday the Villains Take Over

Hey!  Come join us for Fun Friday this week and read posts by our villains.  That's right.  The bad guys are going to take over.  What will they have to say?  No clue.  You will have to stop by to find out.

Who is going to post for me this Friday?  Will it be Jersey Clifford from the Rule Series?  One reviewer described him as gentleman who will quote poetry as he is ripping your face off.  Or will it be Maxx from Order of the Spirit Realm?  This power hungry shifter probably has a lot to say.  What about Morgan from Crushed?  As a witch's familiar, she is a rare creature, as clever as she is dangerous.

Check in on Friday to find out.
Then check with the other YA Storyteller Society members to read what their villains have to say.

Bwah-ha-ha!!!

Saturday, February 22, 2014

Books to Movies... Which Are Better?

You've experienced it.  You read a great book, love it, and you get super excited when you hear someone in Hollywood is making it into a movie.  Then you go see it.  The story is all wrong.  How could they have left that part out???  They ruined the whole thing!  Or they hire an actor to play a part that is SO wrong for them it makes you cringe.  

Here are my list of the best and worst movies coming from favorite books.  See if you agree with my choices and reviews.



1. CITY OF BONES:  I loved the Mortal Instrument books so much.  Then I heard City of Bones was coming out.  No one was more excited than me... until I saw it.  A lot of fans were upset over the choice of actor to play Jace, but I think he was spot-on.  I could listen to his voice all day (and night), and he delivered the lines with the careless and flip, yet vulnerable attitude that is perfect for Jace.  My biggest gripe about the movie was how they screwed up the nightclub scene and added so much fluff to the beginning.  If you can make it through the first ten minutes, you'll be glad you watched by the end.  That is, if you can forget how the story is SUPPOSED to go.  

Instead of starting with the nightclub scene like the book, we are forced to sit through some quick and boring crap that seems to have been thrown in to... I don't know why.  Then we finally arrive at the nightclub scene.  This is where we are supposed to meet Jace, Alec, and Isabelle.  This is where we are supposed to find out they are Shadowhunters and that Clary can see them when no one else can.  Jace is supposed to deliver awesome lines, like when Jace says, "That is a girl, Alec," when Alec stares at Clary as if he's never seen one before.  It is supposed to be the scene that Clary distracts Jace and almost gets him killed by a blue-haired demon.  This is important because it's a reason for Alec to hate her later.  With its removal, Alec's instant and heated hatred of Clary seems weird and out of place.

Okay, I could go on and on about how much this movie disappointed me, but I don't have all night.  Instead, let's talk about what went right.  The actors playing Jace and Clary saved this film, and I hope they make a second... with a better script.

2.  HUNGER GAMES:  Please don't throw rocks at me, but I think in this case the movie was better than the book, but that's only because the books are written in present tense.  I can't stand present tense.  Just a pet peeve of mine.  The actors were good, and the settings were just as I'd visualized them.


3.  TWILIGHT:  This would be on the top of my I-Can't-Believe-I-Paid-To-Watch-This list.  That's what I was thinking the whole time I was watching it.  I don't care what other people say about it being poorly written or dumb or a waste of time, whatever.  You have to give credit where it is deserved.  Regardless of how you feel about the book (the first one), it got people reading.  I can't even begin to count the people (women and teens) who've told me Twilight got them reading or writing.  

What did I hate about the movie?  First of all, the numerous shots of the trees.  Yes, it is a beautiful place, but I would have rather they spent more time on developing characters.  Edward was a vampire for eighty years, yet we are supposed to believe he's just going to blurt the truth out.  Also, he acts like he can't talk to girls.  He was awkward around Bella.  The Edward in the book is much smoother, more believable.  I hated this movie so much that I didn't watch any of the others, and I NEVER will.

4.  HARRY POTTER:  I'm going to throw this one in because the movies (the first four anyway) are awesome.  It's funny because I prefer the first three movies to the books, but I prefer the last two books to the movies.  I remember watching the first Harry Potter movie.  It didn't seem like anything was missing even though they did change some stuff and leave other things out.  They had to or the movie would have been over four hours long.  I also think they hired the perfect cast.  

5.  BEAUTIFUL CREATURES:  Another stinker of a movie, in my opinion.  I think the book was better, although it is not a favorite of mine.

Did I forget any?  What are your favorites?  Which movies made you wish the producer couldn't read and didn't mess with?

WHAT books would I like to see them make into movies (as long as they don't screw them up)?

1.  Shiver: I think a lot could be done with this, and what's not to like about werewolves?
2.  Need: This is a story about a girl who finds out she is a pixie, and her boyfriend is a werewolf.
3.  Bait or Vampires Rule:  Would I like any of my books to be made into movies?  Only if I have a guarantee they'll turn out good.  :)

Wednesday, February 12, 2014

Fun Friday: Romantic Excerpt

This time around, the YA Storyteller Society is all love.  That's right.  It's Valentine's Day, and we are giving you romantic excerpts from our books.  Some might be steamy.  Some are sexy.  Some are sweet.   http://www.yastorytellers.com  You can find links to them all at YA Storytellers (dot) com.  Take a look at mine, a quick look at Bay-Lee and Nick as they grow closer.


     She spent the night reading the book, every spell, until she found the most important one, the one they needed.  Flesh tingling with excitement, she couldn’t wait to show Nick.  There were so many things she wanted to share with him.  She was beginning to piece the mystery together.  He still had no idea she was trying to solve the school’s murder problem.
Nick was working out in the meditation room, performing yoga moves by himself.  Balanced on one foot, he stretched the other leg behind him and his arms reached for an invisible prize.  She hesitated, her mind going blank.  She wished she’d memorized a speech before looking for him.
            She took a step backwards. 
            Nick asked, “Are you going to stand there all day or what?”
            Gathering her courage, she approached him with a confidence she didn’t feel.  “I found a spell for releasing a wraith.”
            “Seriously?”  He dropped the yoga pose.  “And what happens when you release the thing?”
            “It goes after its master.”
            “The wraith might kill them before we can stop it.”
            She shrugged, not caring if a murderer died in place of someone innocent.  “You don’t trust me.”
            “How am I supposed to trust you when I keep finding you with Gavin?”
            “I’m not talking about Gavin.  You don’t trust me with your secrets, and you don’t trust me in battle.  You just don’t trust me period, and we can’t have a relationship without it.”
            He swallowed, and his gaze drifted from her face to the far off wall.  “You’re right, but I don’t know what to do about it.”
            “I do.  Are you willing to give something a try?”
            “I guess.”
            Smiling, she steepled her fingers and placed them beneath her chin as she explained.  “There’s an exercise I heard about that we can do that might help us.  Closing your eyes when you’re with another person takes a certain amount of trust, don’t you think?  It’s not going to magically change everything, but it’s a start.  Are you willing to do it with me?”
            In answer, he closed his eyes. 
            She took his hands and placed them on her ears as her eyes also drifted shut.  “Here.”
            “What am I supposed to be doing?”
            “Explore, ask questions, get to know me.”
            He chuckled low and sexy.  “You have small, delicate ears,” he said, and she heard the smile in his voice.  “Why aren’t they pierced?”
            “My mom died when I was five, and my single uncle raised me.  I suppose I could have gotten my ears pierced on my own.  Connor would have let me, but I was never a girlie-girl.”
            He reached down, took her hands, and lifted them to his face.  He placed them on his nose.  Her fingers glided down both sides, feeling a bump.  “It’s been broken.  When?  How?”
            He told her the story, their eyes still closed.  It seemed easier to be honest when not looking at each other.  Maybe he would even let something significant slip.  “My brother... Alec, he broke my nose when I was eight.  We were both daredevils, and he dared me to jump off the second floor balcony.  It was winter and there was a mound of snow below.  He convinced me it would be fun.”
            She lowered her hands and took a guess.  “Was there a rock or tree stump or something beneath the snow?”
            “No.  I landed okay and even remembered to bend my knees and roll when I hit the ground.  Alec was so excited he ran over to congratulate me, tripped, and fell right on top of me.  His elbow cracked me hard, broke my nose.”
            This time she led his hands to small dimpled scars on the small of her back.  “Since I was about nine, I’ve spent every summer in the castle with Van, and during one of those visits I got carried away.  I wanted him to show me how to use the cool looking weapons on his den wall and—”
            Nick interrupted.  “Did you hurt yourself on the mace?”
            It was a spike-covered metal ball on a chain, and she’d taken it from the wall without permission.  The thing was too heavy for her little hands.  “I think I managed to swing it around once before it hit me in the back.”
            “Ouch.”
            “I screamed and cried, and Van was there in seconds.”  She remembered how he’d scooped her up in his arms and held her on his lap while the tears streamed down her face, a rare moment of safety in her dangerous life.  “He didn’t know whether to scold me or comfort me.”
            “Touch the back of my neck,” Nick said.  “But keep your eyes closed.”
            Bay-Lee used her hands to find her way around him.  Her palms slid up his back to the nape of his neck.  She stroked the soft skin, searching for a scar and massaged the flesh slightly.  It felt smooth and warm.  “I don’t get it,” she finally said.  “What am I looking for?”
            “Nothing.”  His voice came out raspy.  “I just wanted to feel your hands there.”
            “What about my lips?  Do you want to feel them?”  She placed short kisses where her fingers had been moments before.
            Nick turned and cupped her face.  Then his mouth was on hers.  The kiss started out tender, soft, and sweet.  The tip of his tongue touched her lips.  It sent shockwaves through her.  Her lips parted and the kiss turned passionate.  Her arms went up around his neck while his slid around her waist.  Not even a breath of air could squeeze between them.
            A sound of outrage split them apart.