Posted on

THE KING’S DAUGHTERS: New Look!

Spring is in the air and it’s time for a new look! More than three years ago I published my first short story on Amazon and while I’ve been mostly quiet since then, the year of 2019 will finally see the release of my debut novel. (To learn more about SEELIE PRINCESS, click here.) In honor of the upcoming release, I gave THE KING’S DAUGHTERS a new look, inside and out.

Here’s the blurb:
In this first part of a series of magical tales about the Fair Folk, the Faerie King of Tír na nÓg is caught in a battle between his two warring daughters, Titania and Ophira. As one strives to bring down her father, the other is plotting her revenge against her scheming sister. The king now has a fateful decision to make because he can’t save them both.

Click to buy it on Amazon US, UK, or DE.

Cover by Angela Fristoe

To receive updates on the upcoming release of SEELIE PRINCESS, sign up for my newsletter here.

Advertisements
Posted on

Writer Q&A #2

You can find my Writer Q&A #1 here. 

26 :   What would you like to see more of in your genre?

More LGBTQ+ protagonists

27 :   Where do you get inspiration from?

All kinds of places, really. Life, books, movies, dreams,…

28 :   On a scale of 1-10, how much do you stress about choosing character names?

Maybe 3? I usually know what kind of “vibe” I’m looking for and then I’ll scroll through lists of baby names until I find one that sounds good. 

29 :   Do you tend to underwrite or overwrite in a first draft?

I’ve done both. The first draft of my first novel was way too long, with a lot of unnecessary scenes I had to cut later. In the sequel, I totally underwrote. It’ll need a lot of revision.

30 :   Does writing calm you down or stress you out?

It can do both. Nothing’s more calming than finally solving a plot problem and have the words flow onto the page. But nothing’s more stressful than staring at your screen, unable to produce a single sentence. 

Continue reading → Writer Q&A #2

Posted on

Writer Q&A #1

What’s the best way to beat writer’s block? Write! 

I guess when people tell you that they mean you should write an actual story… but I decided to play a little fun game and answer these questions I found on tumblr!

 

1 :   What age-group do you write?

YA (mostly upper-grade)  

2 :   What genre do you write?

Fantasy (and some Sci-fi, though that’s still in its baby shoes)

3 :   Do you outline according to big ideas or small details?

Big ideas. But sometimes I like to focus on small details as well. 

4 :   Which do you prefer–line-editing or plot-revisions?

I like to look at the bigger picture, so plot-revisions. 

5 :   Do you write better with or without deadlines?

With deadlines, but if they’re unreasonably close they’re too much of a stress factor. I like to give myself deadlines that make sense for my project.

Continue reading → Writer Q&A #1

Posted on

THE SEELIE PRINCESS – Excerpt #1

Outside, heavy clouds had gathered over the city, but State Street was still bustling with life. People huddled under umbrellas or hurried from store to store with their faces hidden under their hoods.

Kayla bowed her head into the wind and rain. She should’ve taken an umbrella. By the time she reached Harold Washington Library, her wet hair was stuck to her face and neck. Without lifting her head, she continued her way up to the seventh floor. She walked through the long rows of bookshelves, occasionally stopping to take out a book, and when she was balancing a stack of six books on her arms, she sought out a table at the back.

She dropped her backpack on it and it toppled over. Her cellphone slipped out of the bag and Kayla caught a glimpse of the screen.

Her Mom had texted. Again.

Kayla shoved the phone back into the bag. She flipped open a book titled A Treasury of Irish Fairy and Folk Tales and leafed through it until one section caught her eye. The first line of it read: Faeries are deenee shee or fairy people. Who are they?

Great. That wasn’t very helpful.

Kayla tucked a strand of wet hair behind her ear and flipped through the pages again. One headline read “T’yeer-na-n-oge”. Kayla leaned in.

There is a country called Tír-na-n-Og, it read, which means the Country of the Young, for age and death have not found it. Further down it read: According to many stories, Tír-na-n-Og is the favorite dwelling of the faeries.

Yet none of those stories mentioned where to find such a place.

Kayla slammed the book shut and opened another one. Her eyes flitted across the pages, until the letters began to blur. Nothing she’d already known.

She leaned back, rubbing her eyes. This was not going to work. She needed coffee. She got up, shouldered her backpack, and gathered all the books in her arms. Head down again, she hurried back towards the shelves.

And knocked right into someone.

If you want to find out more about The Seelie Princess, check out this post.

Posted on

Happy New Year!

It’s the first week of 2019 and the internet is filled with everyone’s new year’s resolutions. And so I have to ask myself: Should I set some resolutions for myself? Is it really worth the pressure? I’ve decided that instead I will start off by looking back at 2018!

Accomplishments of 2018

I might not have published something, but it was a very successful year for me as a writer. I..

  1. wrote 8 flash fiction pieces (as part of my writers group challenge that you can find here)
  2. edited my first novel The Seelie Princess and received tons of great feedback
  3. entered both PitchWars and AuthorMentorMatch with that novel (and even though I did not get picked, I learned how to write a query letter and a synopsis)
  4. queried several agents
  5. tried NaNoWriMo and wrote 22,000 words in 15 days! I could not finish my project, but it was a valuable lesson to learn (read more about that here)
  6. outlined the sequel to The Seelie Princess and wrote approximately 40,000 words
  7. participated in two local writing workshops
  8. went to several Open Mic nights
  9. enjoyed at least one meeting a month with the most wonderful writers group (plus several fun evenings)
  10. read a few good books on writing and editing, including the very helpful Self-editing for Fiction Writers by Browne & King (available on Amazon)

Looking at this list now, I’m realizing how much I’ve accomplished! I’m going to be honest here and tell you that during the last year, at the end of most days, I felt as though I’d done nothing worthwhile. As though I was standing still and hadn’t progressed in my journey as a writer (and life in general) at all. But things look a bit different if I consider the sum of all those days. At the end of 2018, it didn’t matter that there were some days when I couldn’t get any work done (for whatever reason). There were plenty of other days when I was productive and creative, and those days all accumulated to that amazing list of accomplishments.

Goals for 2019

Since I can’t entirely resist the urge of planning this new year, I’m going to go ahead and make a short list of goals for 2019. This year I want to…

  1. revise The Seelie Princess and get it into the best shape possible
  2. learn more about traditional and self-publishing and see what works best for my novel
  3. finish writing the sequel
  4. participate in more writing workshops
  5. continue to meet with my writers group

To finish things up, I want to share a quote that is hanging on the wall right above my computer screen. It has guided me through difficult times in 2018 and it will continue to guide me through 2019. Sometimes we are so harsh on ourselves that we fail to see all the good that we’ve accomplished and that whatever we do is enough. HAVE A GOOD YEAR EVERYONE!

Posted on

Flash Fiction 2018 – May

Flash Fiction #05: M for Mocking

As the year 2018 draws to a close, I am looking at my various Flash Fiction pieces that I wrote throughout the year, but never edited. When I began writing in earnest four years ago, I never thought that there was so much more to it than putting pen to paper (figuratively speaking). I soon learned that editing and revising is just as important (if not more) and quite challenging. But it doesn’t matter that it took me half a year to sit down and actually edit this flash fiction piece; what matters is that I did edit it. So, without further ado, here it is: 

Mum, No. 

There’s one sentence that my Mum is particularly fond of: “Are you really going to wear that to school?” And she says exactly that as I walk into the kitchen in the morning to get some cereal.

I turn around to her. “What’s wrong with it?”

My mum sighs, shaking her head. “Honey,” she says, “why don’t you wear that nice dress I bought you?”

“Mum, no.” I empty some cereal into a bowl, then pour milk over it.

“Why not? You’d look so cute in it.”

I frown. “I’d look ridiculous. And this is much more comfortable.”

My mum eyes me sidelong, then grabs her purse. “You know, it’s not always about being comfortable,” she says. “Sometimes you need to dress a certain way.”

“Why?” I shovel a spoonful of cereal into my mouth.

“Because it shows others what kind of person you are.” She straightens her skirt, then picks the car keys off the table. “I’ll be home late tonight, but there’s food in the freezer.”

“Are you seeing that Gary guy again?”

My mum purses her lips. “His name is Garret.” She comes round the kitchen counter and pecks me on the cheek. I rub the spot with the back of my hand. “See you later, bug. And please change that sweater!”

“Sure!” I call after her. “Have fun with Gary!”

I finish my breakfast, walk into the hallway and stop in front of the mirror. The light here highlights my newest piece of clothing in all its glory. Every single sequin that shapes the mocking bird adorning my front. A beaded eye twinkles back at me.

“Sorry, mother,” I say, “but I am really going to wear that to school.”

Posted on

THE SEELIE PRINCESS – What’s it about?

I’ve briefly talked about this before here – but I want to tell you a bit more today. THE SEELIE PRINCESS is my first full-length novel, which I finished revising back in August. As of now, it has not been published, but I’m querying and excited to share this story with you. So today I want to rave about my book baby. 

A quick recap of what to expect:

  • YA Fantasy with LGBTQ rep
  • faeries! lot’s of them
  • f/f romance
  • strong female characters
  • a magical realm 
  • elements of Celtic mythology
  • names that are pretty on the eye but you won’t be able to pronounce them (sorry, not sorry)

Meet the MC – Kayla Whittemore

Everyone knows that faeries only exist in stories, but Kayla is certain that they are real and the reason why her father vanished when she was little. Even almost 10 years after his ‘death’, she holds on to the hope of finding him. When she finally receives word from the faeries, she doesn’t hesitate to strike a bargain with their queen. But finding her father is not as easy as she’s hoped and Kayla has to face treacherous faeries, hidden family heirlooms, and her first heartbreak. How far is she willing to go? 

Kayla was born in 1998 in a small down in Illinois. After her father disappeared, they moved to the bustling city of Chicago. When Kayla isn’t researching how to find faeries, she spends her time cuddled up with a good book or drinking way too much coffee with her best friend Abby. 

What inspired it? 

1 – Celtic Fairy Faith

In the summer of 2014, I was obsessed with Cassandra Clare’s Shadowhunter Chronicles. And even though I was a huge fan of all the badass Shadowhunters in the books, what fascinated me even more was her portrayal of the faeries as beautiful, cunning, and complicated creatures. So I began to research how she’d come about that idea and I soon learned she’d taken a lot of her inspiration from the Celtic Fairy Faith (as did her wonderful writer-friend Holly Black).

The Celtic mythology is filled to the brim with magical creatures and fantastic folktales. I could write for hours about this topic! But I don’t want to digress, so I’ll give you a little overview of characters that found their way into my story: 

  • faeries: also known as Daoine Sidhe, inhabitants of the magical Tír na nÓg, divided into the Seelie Court and the Unseelie Court
  • pookas: the underdogs of the faerie realm, shapeshifters and forest creatures
  • pixies: smallest inhabitants of Tír na nÓg, also the friendliest of the Fair Folk
  • merrows: merfolk living on a small island off the mainland, telepaths and constantly suspicious of the faeries
  • faerie cats: an ancient type of faeries who can perform magic and shares both a cat’s furry ears and its heightened senses 

2 – Diverse Storytelling

When I began this journey of writing THE SEELIE PRINCESS, I had decided on two aspects early on: there would be faeries (plenty of them!) and my main character would be a girl falling in love with another girl. Throughout my writing process, many ideas appeared, shifted, manifested, or disappeared again, but these two facts persisted until the very end. 

There has been an abundance of great stories where girls were whisked away to far lands by incredibly handsome boys (I’m looking at you, Jace Herondale!). I believe it’s time for girls to get whisked away by gorgeous girls, too. Or boys being seduced by other boys. Or just generally people falling in love. All mixed with a fair amount of faerie dust! 

So who’s the Seelie Princess? 

I can’t tell you just yet… but keep your eyes open for little excerpts and sneak peeks! If you’re interested in reading more about faeries and Tír na nÓg, please check out my two short stories: The King’s Daughters and Broken Bonds. Feel free to talk to me on twitter @sarah_tanzmann or leave a comment below! 

Posted on

My NaNoWriMo18 experience

-How I defied my inner demons-

On November 1st, I set out for my newest adventure as a writer. For years I had dreamed of participating in NaNoWriMo, but it never worked out due to other responsibilities. But this year, my schedule for November was clear – finally! So with a rough outline in my head, I put pen to paper and began to write. Soon, however, doubt settled in. 

Can I do this? Am I really able to write a WHOLE BOOK in just a month? Of course I’d written a book before, but that had been a long process. Months of research followed by months of planning, writing, and ultimately revising. The prospect of going through most of this process within just a month seemed daunting. And then another question settled in my mind like a parasite: What if I can’t write another book? What if I’m really an impostor, a fraud? What if I’m not really a writer? Maybe I had placed all my cards on this dream of being a writer, only to realize that I’d never make it. 

So on November 15th, halfway through NaNoWriMo18, I stopped writing. I just couldn’t continue. The thought of returning to my project was too much to handle and I turned the other way. The remainder of the month I spent licking the wounds of my bruised ego. One sentence ran through my head on constant repeat: I HAD FAILED. I had failed NaNoWriMo. I had failed writing another book. I had failed building up a writing habit. I had failed as a writer. I had failed as a human being. That was the only thing I could think of, until a friend of mine opened my eyes. It was true, I had not completed NaNoWriMo. “But you wrote 22.000 words in 15 days,” my friend said. “And even if you choose not to continue with this particular novel, you still did something! In the very least, you can consider it as practice.” Huh. I sat back in my chair. Others had told me similar things and somehow deep down I had always known that you could not fail NaNoWriMo. But this particular friend had highlighted all the things that I had accomplished and slowly the doubtful demon trying to tear me down from the inside started to subside. 

Yesterday, for the first time since November 15th, I sat back down to write. I did not continue my NaNoWriMo18 project (at least not now), but I tried to write something different. And I wrote this blog post as well. I’m not going to lie, it was hard to get back to writing, but it felt like the first sip of water after a long drought. So maybe NaNoWriMo just isn’t for me or maybe I try again next year and write even more than 50.000 words in a month. Or maybe I really needed to “fail” this year to realize that every single word I write is an achievement. Every written word can be the start of something new – or maybe it doesn’t amount to anything. Whichever it is, every second spend following my dream is an accomplishment in itself. 

So, to wrap this up, whether you finished NaNoWriMo or not, even if you wrote only a couple of words, YOU ACHIEVED SOMETHING! Be proud of what you did rather than mourn all that you could’ve done. Every single word you write is worth it!

Posted on

I’M D-O-N-E!!!

Yesterday was a pretty exciting day for me because…

I FINISHED MY NOVEL!

excited

Okay. Breathe. Let that sink in.

It feels kind of odd, because I’ve been here before. About three years ago I finished writing the first draft of my novel, then I put it aside. First, I celebrated. I’d done it! I had seriously sat down at my desk and wrote AN ENTIRE NOVEL, something I always wanted to do. But then… I wasn’t done, because, honestly, my first draft SUCKED.

And that’s when I learned that writing a book is about so much more than just getting the words onto paper. It’s about planning, about revising, about editing, about screaming at the screen because that. scene. just. won’t. work. AAAAARGH!

So I revised and revised. I gave my manuscript to my dear writer friends, who in return gave me tons of feedback (thanks, btw. I could not have done it without you!!!). And I revised some more. I cried, I laughed, I worried. And it all got me to where I am today.

My story is far from perfect, but it’s the best I could do. Now it’s time to send it out into the world and hope for the best!

Wish me luck 😉

Posted on

PitchWars 2018 #BoostMyBio

Hello everyone! Exciting news! As my WIP is rapidly approaching its final stages, I’m gearing up to send it out into the world. One of my fellow writer friends stumbled upon PitchWars, a mentoring program that could potentially help me improve my novel and get it ready for agents. So now it’s time to #BoostMyBio and introduce myself to them (and everyone else).

About MeFullSizeRender

My name is Sarah Tanzmann and I’m from Austria (not to be confused with Australia). I’m a student of English and American Studies at the University of Vienna and I try to surround myself with as much English as possible.

A few fun facts 

  • I’m a real Potterhead. My bookshelves are filled with way too many Harry Potter books, some even in languages that I don’t speak (because why not?)
  • German is my first language, but I haven’t read a German book in more than 5 years!!! Sorry, English is just way better.
  • I lived in the USA for a total of 18 months (Chicago, Florida, Pennsylvania) and it will forever be a home away from home.
  • I’ve kept every movie ticket I bought in the last ten years. Is that weird?

Some books I love

  • Simon vs. the Homo Sapiens Agenda AND Leah on the Off-Beat
  • The Hate U Give
  • A Closed and Common Orbit
  • The Mortal Instruments Series

Favorite book genres

  • fantasy! (mostly in writing)
  • sci-fi (I’ve already got an idea)
  • contemporary YA

But now on to the most important part…

 

My debut novel: SEELIE PRINCESS

This YA fantasy novel is the first full length novel I’ve ever written (in English, thank God no one will ever see the ones I wrote in German). It’s the first part in a series of two called THE CROWN OF TÍR NA NÓG. It is also set in the same realm as my two short stories (click here for more info).

What’s it about?

Kayla lives in the bustling city of Chicago. She and her family moved there when her father went missing, or, as Kayla’s mother believes, died in a car accident. But Kayla’s mother thinks that faeries only exist in stories. One day, encouraged by a mysterious message she receives hidden in an acorn, Kayla embarks on a journey into the lands of the faeries to find her lost father.

What to expect

  • faeries! lot’s of them
  • f/f romance
  • strong female characters
  • a magical realm (where words such as gay and lesbian just don’t exist, because everyone is open-minded)
  • elements of Celtic mythology
  • names that are pretty on the eye but you won’t be able to pronounce them (sorry, not sorry)

Why this story is worth your time

It’s been about four years since Kayla entered my heart. Ever since then, she’s been by my side as I struggled through heart-break and depression. She gives me strength when I have none left. She’s more than a character on paper (or screen), she’s my friend.

So for four years I’ve poured my heart and soul into this novel. When I first had the idea, I had this vision of a young girl, embarking on this big journey of finding her father and falling in love for the first time. I knew from the very beginning that this novel would tackle the issues of loss and queer love. And I always knew what I did not want: a coming-out story. While Kayla has to overcome many obstacles, this isn’t one of them.

So, to summarize, SEELIE PRINCESS is a story about love, loss, and friendship, all sprinkled with a good amount of faerie dust.

Why pick me as your mentee?

I am determined and diligent. I don’t give up easily. The best example for this is my novel. It took a year to plan it, another to write it, and two more to edit it. I never rushed this, but instead took the time to show it to some beta readers and share it with fellow writers. I have spent countless hours (days, months!) with the feedback that I’ve been given. But it’s all worth it, if it helps me achieve my dream of having this book published (so I can hold it in my hands and sniff it, hihi…).

No matter how much time I’ve spent on this novel, there’s only so much I can do. I’m not a native speaker (sadly) and I’m not an experienced writer. So now I’m looking for a guiding hand who’ll help me along this crooked path to become a published author.

 

You can find me on twitter @sarah_tanzmann