Books Direct: "Shades of the Stars (A Legend of the Dreamer Anthology)" by David James

AUTHOR INTERVIEW

Shades of the Stars

(A Legend of the Dreamer Anthology)

by David James

David James is on tour with his newly released book Shades of the Stars (A Legend of the Dreamer Anthology). You can find a list of all the tour stops below. David is visiting Books Direct today for an interview. So keep reading to find out more about this young author.

Description

This Legend of the Dreamer anthology features playlists, essays on the magical world of the Order, deleted scenes from Light of the Moon (Book 1), an author interview, and a special look at the sequel, Shadow of the Sun (Book 2). The pulse-pounding short stories The Witch's Curse, The Warrior's Code, and an exclusive story called The Enchanter's Fire are included together for the first time in this edition.

In The Witch's Curse, Magda cannot stop her heart from running rampant with the beating drum of love. Whenever her eyes find Samuel, she can feel the pull of strings so vividly alive against her heart. But for Magda, love goes against fate; her destiny as a witch forbids her to need anything but the dark binds of magic. Soon, the witch's curse begins to call to Magda. To deny her love for Samuel would be unthinkable, but to defy her destiny would be impossible. Before the curse can consume her, Magda must decide between Samuel and destiny, and her heart may beat too savagely for anyone to stop.

In The Warrior's Code, Warriors fight for justice, freedom, and peace. Becoming a Warrior is an honor given to few, and twelve-year-olds Zackery Solts and Kate Black will do anything to have a place among the elite. Zack and Kate must compete against eighteen others and pass three deadly tests of courage and skill. Above all, they must be strong because, while the dangers of the tests are unknown, one thing is clear: not everyone will survive.

In The Enchanter's Fire, Lily Woods is a girl on fire. Literally. Her element burns as fierce as her heart, and very few enchanters want to get close to a girl with such radiant power. None except for Shane Spencer, a boy as calm and cool as his icy element. But fire and ice don't mix, and the element Lily burns inside her is growing stronger. Unstoppable. Soon, Lily's fire may be the end of them all. Taking place during the final, pulse-pounding moments of Light of the Moon, The Enchanter's Fire burns with action and romance.

Shades of the Stars is a perfect read for fans of the Defy the Dark anthology and Lauren Oliver's Delirium Stories collection.

Excerpt

Review

By Christina

David James is not only a great friend but a very talented author. His words leap from the pages as vivid as a beautiful painting on a canvas. I loved Light of the Moon and sped through his novellas The Witch's Curse and The Warrior's Code. In Shades of the Stars you will find both The Witch's Curse and The Warrior's Code. Both give you a closer look at characters found in Light of the Moon. The Witch's Curse features Magda the witch and the love she gives up to face the curse of her family. In The Warrior's Code we meet Zack and get a closer look at Kate as they learn to become Warriors of the Order. The final character we get a look at is Lily in The Enchanter's Fire. I loved this one as well. Lily felt a little out of control with her element, which is fire. And had a burned heart from a guy. She wasn't willing to let anyone in because of it. But when Shane comes a lot with his cold element, will she let him in? In this book we also get a look at what happens when all H E Double Hockey Sticks breaks loose at the end of Light of The Moon.

I loved that David James wrote these stories to give us a closer look at a few characters that play parts in the bigger books. Also we get a sneak peak at Shadow of the Sun. In addition to that David provides some essays that explain the order and other parts of Light of the Moon.

Every author has some scenes that they delete and yep, you get to see some from Light Of the Moon.

Shades of the Stars was beautifully put together. Helen Boswell, Author of Mythology, also interviews David and that is included in this book. So all that you want to know about the world he has created in Light of the Moon is found in Shades of the Stars. I recommend getting it after reading Light of the Moon and get yourself ready for Shadow of the Sun!

Interview With the Author

Hi David, thanks for joining me today to discuss your new book Shades of the Stars.

Which writers have influenced you the most? Maggie Stiefvater, Holly Black, and Libba Bray have all influenced me the most. All three women are incredibly talented writers. Stiefvater is lyrical, Black is gritty, Bray is real. I love that, and I’ve learned a lot from reading their books.

What age group do you recommend your book for? Ages 12+. There is some smooching, after all.

What sparked the idea for this book? Shades of the Stars is an anthology that is part of the Legend of the Dreamer series. The first book in the series, Light of the Moon, has so much magic in it that I had to expand upon the world and create a few short stories!

Which comes first? The character's story or the idea for the novel? Both, I think. For me, the characters come first and then the story, but I also tend to change both as I write. Perhaps the story will change, or maybe the character, but I’ve found that both are pretty connected.

What was the hardest part to write in this book? The essays. Because this is an anthology, I wanted to include essays about the world. And because the world in Light of the Moon is so magical and so vast, it was difficult to write about it in such detail.

How to you hope this book affects its readers? I hope readers will love these new characters as much as I do, and I hope that they see each story as a piece of magic.

What is your writing routine? Usually, I wake up in the morning and run for the coffee. I’ll answer emails and respond to anything I need to. And then I’ll either read for a while or write. Lately, I’ve found that if I read before writing, I am more focused.

How did you get your book published? For this first series, I decided to self publish. I had gained a lot of positive responses the traditional way, but nothing stuck the way I wanted it to so I decided to do my own thing.

What advice do you have for someone who would like to become a published writer? Try. We all have stories to tell, the key is being focused enough to tell them. Write every day and read even more. Don’t give up, because if you do you’ll never succeed.

Great advice, David. What do you like to do when you're not writing? I read a lot. Like, a lot. For me, reading fuels everything I do, so that’s what I do the most. I also really love movies and spending time with the people I care about.

What does your family think of your writing? They are all very supportive! I couldn’t have asked for a better family if I wanted to.

Please tell us a bit about your childhood. My childhood was spent wishing I was a Power Ranger. I was surrounded by books and learning, so my imagination was always running wild. Actually, I still wish I was a Power Ranger.

Did you enjoy school? Very much so. I had great teachers and wonderful parents. Learning was always fun for me because I was presented with a lot of books to help. Reading, I think, is one of the key ways to gain interest in education.

When did you first realize you wanted to be a writer? I always was a writer, but it wasn’t until college that I knew I wanted to be an author. I loved telling stories and getting lost in books, and when I finally put words to paper, I couldn’t get enough.

What was your favorite book as a child? I loved The Boxcar Children!

Do you hear from your readers much? What kinds of things do they say? I do. Because I focus a lot on diversity and equality in my writing, I get a lot of messages about readers’ own personal stories. I love hearing about ways they want the world to change. Readers have the best thoughts, and I’m so lucky I get to hear from mine. Send me messages, readers! I love it.

What can we look forward to from you in the future? The sequel to Light of the Moon, Shadow of the Sun, will be out soon. After that, I have a few projects I’m almost finished with. Nothing New Adult, more Young Adult, but I have a few contemporary stories I’m working on. Still, I think I’ll always have a soft spot for fantasy.

Thanks so much for talking to me today, David. Have fun on the rest of your tour.

About the Author

David James writes books about stars and kisses and curses. He is the author of the young adult novel, Light of the Moon, the first book in the Legend of the Dreamer duet, as well as the companion novellas, The Witch's Curse and The Warrior's Code. A Legend of the Dreamer anthology, Shades of the Stars, has just been released (July 2013) and includes the exclusive novella, The Enchanter's Fire. The final book in the duet, Shadow of the Sun, will be released in late 2013. Living in Michigan, David is addicted to coffee, gummy things, and sarcastic comments. He enjoys bad movies, goofy moments, and shivery nights. Be sure to visit David's blog and Facebook page to learn more about his various addictions and novels.

Links

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Amazon UK author page

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Twitter @DJamesAuthor

Blog Tour Schedule