Author: Toi Thomas

Author and illustrator of children's books, as well as clean adult fiction and nonfiction. Toi is a geek-girl blogger, vlogger, reviewer, and advocate for a healthy reading lifestyle. She finds comfort in faith, family, and creative expression. Toi believes in the dream of world harmony and hopes all your dreams come true.

Categories
Author Insights

Titles Make Me Crazy

I don’t like coming up with titles, but not nearly as much I as I don’t like writing a synopsis; that’s a topic for another day. Titles are very important in many ways, but are also not import in many ways. As much as it seems to be the way to go these days, I just can’t make myself into one of those authors who comes up with the perfect title to either shock or entice an audience.

So many people have told me about the misconception they believe the title of my current book gives. Eternal Curse: Giovanni’s Angel has been perceived as a dark horror story by so many that I often regret the title, though in retrospect, the title is very fitting to the actual story. I have nothing against horror, but so many people haven’t bothered to learn more about the book, simply because they think they know what it’s about already. They only reason a few people have moved beyond this is because of my tiny web presence on multiple social media channels.

I have received several emails from people who have read my bio, seen interviews, and read samples of my work who stated that they’d seen my book before and overlooked it, simply because they weren’t in the mood for horror at the time. To their surprise, while my book isn’t a light hearted fairy tale targeted at children, it’s also not a horror tale. The thing that worries me now, is that the people who’ve picked up my book expecting it to be horror, maybe disappointed, but at least they are getting a fair share of demons and nightmares.

It’s so hard to tell what it is people expect from a book these days. Several people have told me that they liked the premise of my book, but that they are avid YA readers. So, my book isn’t written as a YA novel, that doesn’t mean you wouldn’t like it…And on top of all this, I have to start thinking of titles for my next few releases. At least the companion guide for ECGA already had a title that I’m not about to change. It will be a free ebook anyway. I don’t know that the title will be much of an issue for it.

Then there is the collection of short stories I’m working on and my new romance. I have no idea what I’m going to call them. My mind is so twisted with the notation of coming up with new titles, I’ve even started to question the use of titled chapters in my book, but again, that’s a topic for another day.  It’s just too bad that ideas can’t serve as titles. A gray man meets a woman online who helps him discover his true purpose in the world, only to realize that he’s not of this world, doesn’t really make for an easily searchable title.

This is an unofficial Author Insights post.

Categories
EC: Giovanni's Angel Fun Hops Other

The Next Big Thing Blog Hop- Week 15

Greeting everyone. Today I am listing my contribution to the Next Big Thing
Blog Hop. It’s like a chain letter that’s not creepy or annoying. It is actually
fun. It’s a great way for writers to promote themselves and inform people about their works. Each writer answers ten questions about one of their current, upcoming, or works in progress, and them tags a few other writers to keep the ball rolling the next week. I will be answering questions about my current release.

Before I get started with my answers, I would like to send a huge shout out to Quanie Mitchell over at Quanie Talks Writing for tagging
me last week. Quanie’s w.i.p. The New Mrs. Collins is in its final editing
phases. Be sure to stop by her blog and take a look around…And now
for my 10 answers.

What is the working title of your book? The title of my
published book is Eternal Curse: Giovanni’s Angel.
Where did the idea come from for the book? The idea for this book came from areoccurring dream about a gray man who turns into an angel, but that’s not thestory I wrote.
What genre does your book fall under? It is considered to be
fantasy, spiritual fiction, and to some speculative fiction.
Which actors would you choose to play your characters in a movie rendition? That’s a tough question because my main character is so odd. I think I’d have to choose an unknown for the role of Giovanni (the hero). I think I’d pick Naomie Harris to play Mira (love interest) and as for Abraham (the father figure), I might need two actors if I’m going to show him as young and old, but I have no suggestions at the moment. IMDB->
What is the one-sentence synopsis of your book? A gray man meets a woman online who helps him discover his true purpose in the world, only to find out that he is not of this world.
Will your book be self-published or represented by an agency? I have self-published my book. To learn about this, visit my Info. tab or go to this link https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/236158.
How long did it take you to write the first draft of your manuscript? It took me
about a year to write the first draft of my manuscript and another year to work
out all the kinks.
What other books would you compare this story to within your genre? Many people have compared the story to an unusual take on the classic Beauty and Beast tale. I agree with that assessment, but also consider my story to a bit prophetic in the sense that it has a character being singled-out as “the one.” Such is the case with stories like the Matrix (the movie) or The Wizard of Oz. In these stories, on character becomes “the one” that will solve all the problems.                                            IMDB->
Who or What inspired you to write this book? I was inspired to write the book because my mind wouldn’t stop thinking about it until I did.
What else about your book might pique the reader’s interest? This book is part of a 3-4 part series. The second draft of the sequel is complete and an outline with three chapters of the third book is complete. The Eternal Curse Series will
travel back and forth through time following the life of Giovanni and will open
up a world of angels, demons, and half-breeds. Even the fate of the world may be involved at some point.
Categories
Author Insights

When did fiction become so Speculative?

Someone posed this question to one of my social networking groups recently and though the topic was very popular, I don’t know that an answer was ever given. I guess the question is a bit vague. It’s not like all fiction has actually become speculative, but this genre has become very popular as of late. The term speculative is so broad that it’s not too hard to understand its popularity. There is something there to appeal to a great many people across the board.

Speculative fiction encompasses sci-fi, fantasy, horror, supernatural, paranormal, and all sorts of alternative reality themes including those with historical, romantic, and political undertones. The Speculative fiction umbrella is so vast that many like it and don’t even know they do, while some think they like it and actually don’t. I think it’s the term itself that’s really been getting the buzz lately.

As popular as the myriad of speculative genres are, fiction still stands strong and stands strong all on its own. Depending on the circles in which one travels, Speculative fiction may not even exist. I know lots of people who read fiction and have no idea what Speculative is. These people read historical novels, crime and suspense novels, romance novels, and so much more. People do still write stories that tell the tales of ordinary every people without any undertones of supernatural happenings, or creatures, or technological wonders of the past, present, or future.

I think maybe that sometimes people get so involved in the happenings of their social circles that they forget that everyone isn’t a part of their world. I know I’ve been guilty of that many times. And while I’m content to continuing working my series of Speculative spiritual fiction, that doesn’t mean I don’t take the time to step out of that world and experience something else from time to time.

This is an unofficial Author Insights post.