The Role of Food and Beverages in Fiction, Part 1 by Tyrean Martinson / Guest Post / NEXUS

 

It has truly been an honor and a blast working on The Rayatana Series (Liftoff and Nexus) by Tyrean Martinson. I love watching these characters grow and the stories take shape. There's action and adventure, mystery, budding romance, and nailing-biting moments. Oh, and let's not forget space, distant planets, and aliens (Tuigseach). Really, what's not to love? Amaya is a strong, young, Black woman caught up in a great adventure. I definitely have favorite characters, like Tanwen and Bay; two more tough women. I am looking forward to the next!

But first...check out Book 2: Nexus!

The Role of Food and Beverages in Fiction, Part 1

A Guest Post by Tyrean Martinson

Food and beverage are both necessary for life. We need them to live. In fictional worlds, food and beverage show us our characters are normal people who have needs like we do. However, food and beverage can fill many different roles in fiction, in any genre.

Food and beverage offer familiar comfort for the readers and for the characters. If a character has a favorite comfort food or beverage, readers might relate more strongly with the character. This comfort food or beverage could be anything: coffee, tea, vodka, milk, cookies, popcorn, chocolate, pizza, Romulan Ale, or awak. The type of comfort food is going to share some insight into your character’s life and deepen a reader’s understanding of who they are.

The character might “always” indulge in special foods or beverages at certain times of the day which can signal to the reader when the character is in a certain mood, or when certain things might take place. The comfort food ritual might even be interrupted by the antagonist or by circumstances outside of the character’s control, and this might add to the character’s dilemma in the novel.

Food can also be a shaping influence on a character. Certain smells may remind him/her of childhood or certain memories. Imagine: cotton candy, popcorn, apple pie, or cornbread. Do you have memories associated with those? Characters might, too, and this deepens the characterization or helps readers understand the background of your characters.

 In The Rayatana Series, Amaya is thrown into a war between alien races. Awak is a hot beverage that seems like a blend of coffee and tea, with similar stimulating properties. At first, she’s worried about drinking and eating alien substances, but that dilemma is solved by the end of the first novel and awak is a comfort beverage in the second.

 

This post is one of three about The Role of Food and Beverages in Fiction!

Next, we’ll look at The Role of Food and Beverage in Politics at H.R. Sinclair’s Blog and M.J. Fifield's blog.

Held for crimes against the Neutral Zone, Amaya’s team may fall apart while she wrestles with her powers. 

BLURB: Amaya is supposed to bring peace to the galaxy. Which is tough when she’s being held for crimes against the Neutral Zone. Her imprisonment is on her own ship with her own crew. But close quarters create tension.

Honestly, her role as Rayatana is a mess.

She may never get to use her powers for anything good. Not if her teacher continues to keep secrets, and not if her powers keep harming others. Putting her mother in a coma should put her in prison, but she has a mission. She wants to bring peace to her people. She needs to become the Rayatana.

Book Links:

Amazon US / Amazon UK / Amazon AUS / Amazon Canada

Smashwords / Apple / Kobo 

Goodreads / Bookbub

Nexus: The Rayatana Book 2 is available all online, retail, and all ebook platforms. Published by Tyrean Martinson with Wings of Light Publishing, LLC. Young Adult - Science Fiction/Adventure/Sweet Romance.

ISBN for Kindle: 978-1-7357695-5-4,ISBN for  Paperback: 978-1-7357695-6-1, and ISBN for EPub: 978-1-7357695-7-8.

What Readers Are Saying About Nexus: The Rayatana, Book 2:

“This is a terrific read! The world-building is incredible with a fascinating array of characters, settings, and technology. All of that creates a wonderful backdrop for Amaya's powerful story. As the story opens, Amaya and her friends are facing a trial for violating the laws of the Neutral Zone. Amaya has to learn who to trust, who to listen to, and how to believe in herself. You'll find yourself caught up in the magic of the story in no time. A fabulous read!” - Jemi Fraser, Author and First Reviewer

Official Author Bio and Links:

Tyrean Martinson is a word hunter. She forages for words both sweet and tart in the South Sound of Washington State. An eclectic writer, she writes speculative fiction, contemporary and historical fiction, short scripts, devotions, writing books, song lyrics, and poetry. She has been a fencer (long ago), a kickboxer (for a short minute), and an action-movie fan. Tyrean is a life-long book lover, a Christ follower, and walker. Once upon a time, she was a Girl Scout who sang too loudly, and now she’s a podcaster and praise team member. Since childhood, her imagination has been swept away by fairy tales, science fiction, tales of overcoming the odds, and redemption arcs.

Tyrean’s Writing Spot Blog: https://tyreanswritingspot.blogspot.com/ 

Tyrean’s Tales: https://tyreanstales.com/ 

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/tyreanmartinson/ 

Twitter: https://twitter.com/TyreanMartinson 

Tyrean’s Tutoring Website Words Take Flight: https://words-take-flight.com/ 

A Better Alternative to Goodreads: The StoryGraph

 

Many authors and readers dislike Goodreads for several reasons.

1. Amazon owns it. Yup. That explains a lot, doesn’t it?

2. It’s become a place for scammers.

In fact, on the top of the Author Dashboard, Goodreads has a message for authors that says, "we are currently investigating a small number of bad actors who have attempted a reviews-based extortion scam against some authors on Goodreads."

3. The community can be toxic. This doesn’t just go for readers/reviewers but authors behaving badly, too.

4. The website is confusing and hard to navigate.

(They recently changed how book pages look in an effort to make them more user-friendly, but the rest of the site is still the same.)

Do you want to escape one or all of this?

But do you still want to have a great platform where you can build your TBR list, review books, check out book reviews, and set up a reading challenge?

Don’t worry. I’ve got you.

THE STORYGRAPH

Why is it amazing?

- Black woman-owned 

- Independent platform (no multibillion corporation using your data in nefarious ways)

- Website and app available for free in the App Store

- Sleek, uncluttered look

- Personalized recommendations based on your preferences

- Create your own reading challenges. For example: if you want to read specific books/themes.

- No paid placements (book recommendations are not influenced by ads and budgets)

- Your reading habits displayed in neat pie charts (see below)

- A better reviewing system

- You can rate with .5, .75, and .25, so if you’ve ever had to specify a 4.5 rating in a review on Goodreads but had to choose between selecting 4 or 5 stars, you don’t have to do that on The StoryGraph.

- A special content warning section that is extremely important. They are prominent and easy to see, not buried in reviews like on Goodreads, if a reviewer even thinks to add content warnings in their reviews.

- Easily upload your Goodreads data so you don’t lose anything!

Graphic Novels, Picture Books, MG & YA Books, Adult Romance / Recommendations + Reviews

This post goes with the one I shared back in July: Diverse Children's Books.

Why another blog post featuring (mostly) diverse reads?

Because I enjoy them! Because diverse rep is crucial! Because readers should read widely and diversify their bookshelves/book stacks. Because publishers should have more diverse rep among their authors and the books that they publish.

I understand that some people are immediately turned off by the word "diverse."

I want to challenge those people to pick up a book with diverse rep (set aside any prejudgments they may have before they even give a book/author/character a chance) and expand their horizons.

Here's my recommendations and reviews. I hope you enjoy them and find at least one book to add to your TBR list.

GRAPHIC NOVELS:

The Prince and the Dressmaker - I adored this book. ADORED it! I wouldn’t even tell you to read the blurb. Just read the title, look at the cover, know it’s about a prince who likes to wear dresses, and then dive right in. This story is cute and sweet and just perfect. I don’t know what else to say but that I loved it and read it in one sitting. I’ve been reading a lot of graphic novels and this one was my favorite of all the ones I’ve read.

Toi and MJ recommended this series to me in my last book post. Thank you both!

The March series of graphic novels are powerful and important. They depict events that should be taught in all schools, to all children. Book One is about the sit-ins at segregated lunch counters. Book Two is about the Freedom Riders and their dangerous, brave journey. Book Three is about voting rights and the marches that took place in Selma.

I have highly recommended books before, but these three graphic novels are above all those other books. These graphic novels are more than pieces of history that need to be told. They are eye-opening and inspiring in a time when we need our eyes opened and to be inspired the most.

Traditional Publishing - Pros and Cons / Vlog

 

First...I did a thing...I signed up for TikTok. I didn't think I ever would, and have said as much, but I guess it's true when they say to "never say never," cuz I took the plunge.

Are you on TikTok? Follow me! I'll follow you back!

***

Thank you for coming to a vlog edition of Write with Fey!

I posted this new PowerPoint Presentation with audio (and closed captioning that you can activate) on my YouTube Channel last week. It is a long video, clocking it over 30 minutes, but it is detailed. Anyone interested in trad publishing will get a lot of of this.

Traditional Publishing Pros and Cons

Length: 36:20

Thank you so much for watching/listening to this video, or saving it to watch later! And, as always, thank you for visiting my blog!

Subscribe to my YouTube Channel here. After you click "Subscribe," click the bell icon and then "All."

Good Causes to Support / PART 2

Causes and Donations for Books, Animals and People / Part 1

GOOD CAUSES TO SUPPORT / PART 2

Below are causes you can support through signing petitions, donating money, participating in events, learning more, and, of course, sharing.

ORANGE SHIRT DAY:

Below are causes you can support through signing petitions, donating money, participating in events, learning more, and, of course, sharing.

Orange Shirt Day: Every Child Matters occurs on September 30th. This event "opens the door to global conversation on all aspects of Residential Schools. It is an opportunity to create meaningful discussion about the effects of Residential Schools and the legacy they have left behind." [1]

2021 has been a heartbreaking year for Indigenous folks as countless graves have been uncovered at the sites of closed Residential Schools around Canada. This is not just a Canadian issue, though. The United States had MANY "boarding schools" for Native children, and we haven't started to look for graves, yet.

Get an "Every Child Matters" orange shirt from an Indigenous artist like Agnes Wooward to remember those who were lost to Residential Schools, as well as to honor survivors. Check out ReeCreeations shop for a shirt.

Learn more at OrangeShirtDay.org.

You can also participate in the Remembrance 5K Run (a virtual event) on September 30th for $25 or support a runner in need if you can't participate for whatever reason. 

IDA RELIEF:

Hurricane Ida struck Louisiana on the 16th anniversary of Hurricane Katrina. Now communities and impacted people and families need help.

DONATE:

Imagine Water Works: Donate to Hurricane Ida Relief & Recovery

UNICEF USA is aiming to help children impacted by Hurricane IDA. 

Greater New Orleans Foundation Disaster Response and Restoration Fund

THE CROWN ACT: 

Dove, National Urban League, Color Of Change, and Western Center on Law & Poverty have co-founded the CROWN Coalition to advance the CROWN Act. 

CROWN stands for: Creating a Respectful and Open World for Natural Hair.

The CROWN Act is a a law that prohibits discrimination based on hair texture and hairstyle.

ACTION ITEMS:

Sign the petition asking for the CROWN Act to be passed in all 50 states.

Email your senator.

STOP LINE 3:

People always show outrage at oil spills in the ocean (and rightly so), but what about inland oil spills? Also, for any animal rights activists, wildlife and other animals won’t have clean drinking water, either, like the dogs on reserves.

40% of America’s water will be contaminated. Are you in that 40%? Do you want to drink clean water? Remember Flint, Michigan? Do you know climate change is a serious problem? What about the safety of women and girls and two spirit people? Human trafficking increases at these pipelines. Four Line 3 workers have already been arrested in trafficking stings.

ACTION ITEMS:

- If you care about any one of those things, text PUCZGE to 50409 (Resist Bot will ask for your name and address because letters to government representatives require them.)

- You can also DM PUCZGE to @ResistBot on Twitter to do the same thing.

- Then sign the four petitions on RiceIsLife.Carrd.co.

10 Things All Authors Should Know

 

10 THINGS ALL AUTHORS SHOULD KNOW

1. How to Contact Amazon to Price Change

There may come the day when you want to change the price of your eBook to 0.99 or to free but you're unable to do that on your KDP dashboard. So how do you do it? Do you go to your book's Amazon page? Many used to reply on the "Tell us about a lower price" link under a book's product details, although that was very insufficient and could take a long time to hear back, if you ever did. In fact, that option is no longer there.

So, how do authors change their eBooks' prices to 0.99 or free on Amazon?

You do it through KDP's Contact Us page: https://kdp.amazon.com/en_US/contact-us

To the left, beneath "How can we help?", click on "Pricing" and then "Price matching." You can contact them through email or phone. Phone may be faster, but I always did email because I hate talking on the phone. When you choose to send an email, make sure you have the ASIN for your eBook in the Kindle store and the competitor's URL links. Always specify what the price is listed as and what you want it to be instead.

TIP: If you are changing the price permanently or even for a specific amount of time, always check back to make sure Amazon hasn't reverted it back, because they like to do that and it is maddening.

You can also ask them to price match on all Amazon marketplaces (UK, DE, etc.)

THE CURE by Patricia Josephine / Zombie Quiz and Excerpt + Giveaway / LIMITED TIME 99 Cents Sale

The Cure is a clever, fun take on the usual zombie stories that are out there. I thoroughly enjoyed it in its early stages. I've told Patricia many times that Zee is my favorite character she's ever created, and many of her characters have stuck with me. No lie, at random times, moments from The Cure pop into my head, which is a rare thing. I recommend The Cure to zombie lovers, paranormal lovers, post-apocalyptical setting lovers, novella lovers...pretty much everyone.

BLURB:

Every human in the world becomes a zombie when they die. But Erin refuses to accept the world as it is now. She’s heard about a cure locked away in a lab in Up-per Michigan, and she plans on retrieving it. To do so, she needs a zombie. Not just any zombie, though.

Zee is Erin’s link to the lab. His connection to the living world is her bargaining chip. But only if she can teach him to control his mindless impulses.

Can a zombie be trained? Or will Erin be Zee’s next meal and become a zombie herself? The fate of humanity rests in her hands.

ON SALE FOR 99 CENTS TILL 9/25

Universal Buy Link - https://books2read.com/u/mBZpkp

Add to Goodreads - https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/58343851-the-cure