Spotlight - T.M. Wallace author of Under A Fairy Moon

Join T.M. Wallace, author of the YA fantasy novel, Under a Fairy Moon (Brownridge Publishing), as she virtually tours the blogosphere August 1 – September 30 2011 on her first virtual book tour with Pump Up Your Book!

 About T.M. Wallace:

T. M. Wallace lives in Ontario, Canada with her husband and four children. At eight years old, she won a short story contest and was published in a local newspaper. She wrote her first book at ten years old called “The Adventures of Pinkstar,” about a stuffed rabbit who magically comes to life. T. M. Wallace received her Master’s degree in English Literature from Carleton University and a degree in Education from the University of Ottawa. In 2010 her latest book, Under A Fairy Moon, was a quarter-finalist in the Amazon Breakthrough Novel awards. Under A Fairy Moon will be published by Brownridge Publishing in June, 2011.

You can visit her website at www.tmwallace.com.

About Under A Fairy Moon:

If you have been longing for an adventure and your family moves next-door to a beautiful garden full of lush plants and ancient stone, wouldn’t you sneak over to have a look at it – even if it was owned by the neighborhood witch?

Fourteen-year old Addy Marten doesn’t need to think twice: It is only a matter of time before she sets out to explore the garden’s winding paths and especially, the ring of mysterious stone statues that she has glimpsed through her bedroom window. Instead of the enticing hideaway she has imagined, however, she finds herself trapped in another world where she is challenged a game of Fairy Chess – played by real fairy creatures. She must use all her courage and wits to win the game and free herself from these malevolent creatures and their twisted fairy-tale world.

T.M. Wallace has this to share....

 Are Books really Dead?

By T.M. Wallace

There are nasty rumours floating around the web these days about the demise of the book. Some people in the industry are afraid that the rise of the e-book means that the printed copy of a book will soon be extinct. Many tie the future of the book to the baby boomer generation: that is to say, the book will die out after that generation leaves. As a writer and educator, I like to believe that there is room for both e-books and the printed copy in our complicated modern world.

As a writer who loves to read and write printed books, I can't help getting a little nervous when people say that the printed book is on the verge of extinction. Yet, there is a place for different kinds of books, just as there is room for many different kinds of art. In fact, saying that there is no place in the world for the printed book is a bit like saying there is no room for paintings, that all the visual arts will be replaced by the electronic versions of themselves. At the extreme end, it is like saying that our lives in this physical world will be replaced by lives in a digital one – and that is simply not going to happen.

As an educator, I can see that the printed book is still very much alive and well. While the new generation is reading more electronic versions of both fiction and non-fiction books in the classroom, the majority of students still read the printed versions of books. Younger children are still absorbed by picture books and that early experience with paper. Even though children are at the same time exposed to all kinds of computer learning games, the experience of reading a paper book remains an important and primary way of learning about the world. The library is still a favourite place for students of all ages and book fairs are still popular, especially as a fund-raising activity.

There is room for both printed books and e-books in the modern world, but that necessitates a lot of change within the book industry. There is no doubt that publishing is becoming a complicated business. It used to be enough to print and publish the paper copy of a book and distribute that book via physical bookstores and libraries. Now, the same book has to be published simultaneously in many different e-book formats such as; mobi, epub, azw, ereader and pdf, just to name a few. This plethora of ebook formats has aptly been referred to as the “Tower of eBabel.” Yet, this confusing variety of ebook platforms only highlights what is driving ebook pubishing in the first place: the fact that people like choice.

Now you can choose whether to read a paper book or an ebook of the same novel. Right now my husband is reading a paperback novel. However, he will at various times also read on his ipad or his kindle – this depending entirely on the situation. When he reads in bed at night, he reads on his ipad, which is back-lit. In his sunny backyard, he reads on his kindle. (The kindle has E-ink which, like the printed book requires bright light for optimal reading.) When having a bath or when going to the park, he takes along the paperback version, which is much more forgiving of moisture and sudden falls.

Happily, the end result of all this choice is that people can read more, and more often. Literacy is even more important (and more accessible) with the rise of the internet than it has ever been in the past, and the future is brighter for authors and readers alike.  No one really knows what the future holds for the printed book, but there is no reason to assume that a new technology must completely supplant the old way of doing things. Like many thousands of others, I have elected to enjoy the choices that technology offers. I am happy to read an e-book or a paper version of a book as the mood strikes me. In my world, both paper and E-ink peacefully co-exist.

and this...

Symbology of Dragons

By T.M. Wallace

I deal with dragons a lot in my writing. Why is the image of the dragon so captivating? There's a certain mystique about the beast that defies explanation. There are legends about dragons in every culture, so it would seem their appeal is universal. In the bible, of course, the dragon signifies evil. There is even a saint, St. George, who is supposed to have fought and killed a dragon. Was this a metaphoric slaying? A confrontation and victory over evil? Who can be certain?

           

In literature, dragons are sometimes an evil species of creatures, but equally as often they are simply barbaric or passionate beings that can be either good or evil depending on the choices they make – much like the human beings who conceptualize them.

           

Why do I use dragons in my writing? I think they are a spectacular literary device that can be used to represent a great and powerful mystery. Sometimes this mystery is the reality of evil, at other times it is more benevolent. In my book, “The Spindler's Web,” there is a species of good dragons, from Drakkonis - allies that the wizards of Wizenbury can call upon to help them to fight the evil Merlin. These dragons are noble, powerful, yet at their core, untamed.

           

Sometimes I use dragons as powerful incarnations of the fear that a character feels. In fighting these dragons the character is fighting his/her own fears; transforming from the “hunted” into the “hunter.” The dragon that Addy must face in my latest book, “Under a Fairy Moon” is like this. In confronting the evil Dubhan, she is really confronting her fears about about death. I relate closely to this, and I suspect other people might as well. We all have dragons of one sort or another, lurking about at the edge of our conscious minds, ready to pounce and tear our at our delicate self-concepts or our self-respect. Everyday an epic battle ensues, in which we fight and slay these predators – perhaps not in the manner of my characters, but certainly in any way that we can: with unsung bravery and resilience.

Thank you EVER so much T.M. for stopping by and sharing your thoughts...have a GREAT tour and may all that you dream for you reach~!!