Teens@Random

Random Buzzers is super excited to have its first joint author appearance starting on Monday, March 30th! Please help us give a warm welcome to Tamora Pierce, author of the upcoming Bloodhound - Beka Cooper! Feel free to ask questions about the book, her past work and any other random musings that come to mind about her writing and more! You can also check out an excerpt of the book right HERE!

Welcome, Tamora!

Posted Mar 20, 2009, 12:32:14 PM

I'm so excited!!!! Welcome Tammy!!! I ordered Bloodhound and can't wait to read it!  I love your books! (hopefully the fangirl moment is over.. for now)  So for the serious questions:

What's the strangest/most fun thing you've done while researching for a book?

and...  If you could go anywhere in the world right now where would you go?

Thanks for joining us and I can't wait to chat a little more!!!

Posted Mar 20, 2009, 01:46:31 PM

I've never experienced speechlessness via discussion board, but I think I am now.  I received Bloodhound today (takes break to stop hyperventilating) and I am taking a brief break from reading it to make this post.  I'm so excited.

When did you first get the idea to add things like ink spills to your Beka Cooper books?  I thought it was a really fantastic concept and it made the book visually interesting.

Happy reading!

Posted Mar 20, 2009, 11:21:38 PM

Hi! I'm your typical fanperson- sheroes member, lj reader, etc. I'm pretty excited about Bloodhound! I'm wondering about parallels to real history in your books, not just Beka's books, but in the rest of Tortall and Emelan. Not specific events in history, but with times. Inspired by a conversation on alcohol in in your books, and whether it was strange the Beka wanted water instead of it.

Alana 

Posted Mar 26, 2009, 10:25:58 PM

Hi! Welcome to Random Buzzers. I just got done reading Terrier and I thought that you did a really good job on it. It's the first book of yours that I've read and (in between the mountains of other books I have to read) I have to remind myself to read more!! I can't wait for Bloodhound to come out... Anyway, now my fangirl moment is over ;D, I have some questions. Do you ever take qualities from the people around you and use them in your characters? What, do you find, is the hardest part about writing a book? What's it like to hear people tell you how they feel about your writing, both good and bad? Out of all of your books, who would you say was the most fun character to write about? The most boring? And lastly, why do you write? What's the purpose behind your sitting down and revealing to your readers the fantastical places that reside in your mind? Again, welcome, and thank you for sticking with this incredibly long post!! Lol.

Posted Mar 27, 2009, 04:38:39 AM

Welcome Tamora!
I was so excited when i saw that you were one of the upcoming authors. You're my favorite author and i've read all your books. Every once in a while, i would pick one up and reread it again. I can't wait for Bloodhound, but i know it'll be worth the wait!
My questions:
Is there anything you can share about the upcoming Numair books?
Have you ever thought about writing a book on George Cooper's past? Like how he became the King of the Thieves?
and
What do you do for inspiration? Is there a special way you get rid of writer's block?
-Suzanne

Posted Mar 28, 2009, 03:26:34 PM

Welcome, welcome!

I 'll have you know I joined randombuzzers for the sole purpose of purchasing the Bloodhound ARC... and when I finished registering, they were all already sold out!  I was devastated, to say the least.

I am another of your typical fans - I've been reading your books since I was eight (about ten years ago) and Circle of Magic will always have a dear place in my heart for introducing you to me.  I'm curious though - your two upcoming Circle books will focus on Briar and Tris' adventures, which I am greatly looking forward to, but frankly, I am much more interested in Sandry because her story has the greatest potential for political intrigue and the like for me.  I know the Circle Reforged: The Empress' Will was in a way about Sandry, but I found it to be much more of a story about the four of them instead of just Sandry, the way Briar and Tris' books to be.  Plus, I felt like I got to know Tris and Daja a great deal more than I did Sandry in the Circle Opens series.  So really, this is a long way of asking, are there any Sandry centered book ideas churning in that fascinating mind of yours?

Last Modified Apr 06, 2009, 03:43:18 PM

Welcome, Tamora! I can not believe we actually get the chance to talk to you! XD I'm psyched.

I was wondering--

1. If you had the worlds attention for 5 minutes, what would you say?

2. What advice would you give people who want to be writers?

I love reading authors responses to those two questions :) It just thrills me. I would ask, 'what's it like to have your very own book PUBLISHED and REAL and LOVED by so many people?' But I guess that's not exactly an easy question to answer... haha 

Your books first got me into the fantasy genre (specifically 'Wild Magic', given to me by my grandmother for my birthday all those years back.. it's now tattered and worn from so many reads). And that has changed my life in ways you have no idea. THANK YOU :)

Please come to North Carolina! ;) 

Last Modified Apr 15, 2009, 08:43:42 AM

Hey, bookgrobie!  I apologize for not answering this sooner!  Officially I'm not supposed to be here until this coming Tuesday, but I was looking around, saw there were some comments already, and thought I may as well plunge right in!

>>What's the strangest/most fun thing you've done while researching for a book?<<

Strange yes,  Fun . . . It was more fun for my cats and anyone who could see me.  For SANDRY'S BOOK, I taught myself to hand spin on a drop spindle using a handy-dandy kit and video.  Every mistake and problem Sandry has I encountered myself, except that Sandry did not have four cats watching everything and waiting for a chance to jump in--literally!  (It's a lot more fun telling it than it was to be the victim.)

>>and...  If you could go anywhere in the world right now where would you go?<<

I would actually stay right here at home--I know, isn't that disappointing?  But I'm working well on MASTIFF, and I don't want to fall behind on that, and I would miss my cats and my husband.  Now, if I were between books . . . I would still miss my cats, and my husband says he won't go, but I would love to go to the red city of Petra, in Jordan.  It's carved all of rose-red stone; I have a zillion pictures and five books about it, and I would love to actually see it for myself!

Again, my apologies for taking so long to reply!

Tammy

Posted Apr 10, 2009, 03:43:15 PM

I received Bloodhound today (takes break to stop hyperventilating) and I am taking a brief break from reading it to make this post.  I'm so excited.

And?  And?  Are you still excited?  Do you like it?!  (We authors aren't gods, ya know!  Waiting for a book to come out and waiting to hear if people think it stinks or not is very anxiety-making!)

When did you first get the idea to add things like ink spills to your Beka Cooper books?

I just figured that if Beka was keeping a journal, the pages would get marked up, and it would be fun to show a few such marks, particularly those--like Pounce's paw marks, and spills when Beka jumps and knocks the bottle over--that accent what she's doing at the time.  I couldn't talk my editors into tear blisters last time, though.  Fooey.

Posted Apr 10, 2009, 03:47:54 PM

I'm wondering about parallels to real history in your books, not just Beka's books, but in the rest of Tortall and Emelan. Not specific events in history, but with times. Inspired by a conversation on alcohol in in your books, and whether it was strange the Beka wanted water instead of it.

Alana, hey!  It's always cool to hear from another Sheroes and lj friend!

I do loot history freely for ideas, mostly because I'm lousy at making things up.  I would rather work from the solid background of a time or an event, so if my invention engine coughs and runs out of gas, I can go back to the primary sources for more material.  I may get as specific as taking the Battle of Forgotten Well in SQUIRE from the Battle of Little Round Top from the battle of Gettysburg in the American Civil War, or base the Nothing Man on France's greatest serial murderer of children (a marshal of France who once fought at the side of Joan of Arc), or as general as getting the rough idea of Rubinyan and Bronau in TRICKSTER'S CHOICE from the Seymour brothers in Tudor England, or roughly basing Berenene in THE WILL OF THE EMPRESS on Elizabeth I of England and Catherine the Great of Russia.

I have to do quick stepping to keep Beka mostly alchohol-free, which would raise more ruction with adult authority figures than does all of her skull-cracking.  People drank wine, ale, beer, or stout instead of water for millennia, mostly because water wasn't safe.  Luckily, I've established it in other books that mages tend to keep away from alcohol for the most part, since only a minority can control the effects and their power.  Beka may only have a bit of magic, but she's very cautious.  Since she doesn't really know where it comes from or what more she can do with it, she's a very cautious drinker.  She's also a control freak.  Getting drunk means she loses control, so she prefers to leave alcohol.

I had the deuce of a time finding what the medieval and Renaissance folk drank if they weren't drinking water the first time I went looking, but I did not make twilsey up!

Posted Apr 10, 2009, 03:59:10 PM

Aloha Tammy! I've enjoyed reading your books over the years and every chance I get to introduce them to someone -- I do. I've encouraged teens (boys and girls) & adults to read your series because they are stories with a bit of fantasy, history, culture, and romance -- things that make humans interesting creatures. Kel & Sandry are my favorites with Briar & Tris close seconds, but I'm looking forward to the continuation of Beka's story. Your choice of 1st person p.o.v. made Terrier more immediate for me, just like Evvy in Melting Stone, Beka sounded like a real person & I wanted to know what challenges she would face. I can hardly wait to read Bloodhound. As for future books:

1. Will Sandry appear in the projected Briar or Tris books?
2. Is Kel younger than Maura of Dunlath? Will their paths cross again?
3. Why is Beka's 3rd book called Mastiff? Historically, terriers & bloodhounds were working dogs. Or is Beka's mastiff like the animals Lord Wyldon breeds, more aristocratic working dogs?

Mahalo for your response and best wishes as you continue to spin wonderful tales!

Posted Apr 11, 2009, 06:29:45 AM

Welcome Tamora! I'm really, really excited to read Bloodhound!

I do have a question ^_^

Its about Pounce. Is he related to Alanna's cat? Because they both seem special in the same way!

Posted Apr 11, 2009, 02:44:35 PM

Hello all
my question is about all of the "old ones", are you ever planning on comming back to them?

Posted Apr 12, 2009, 09:05:55 AM

Hello... I think that what I should say. I've always thought about what I would say to you if I was ever able to, but now I forget everything. I will try to keep the fangirl-ness to a minimum, hopefully you won't be able to tell on your end, but on mine there's a lot of hyperventilating and screaming. I absolutely adore all of your books, my favorite probably has to be the Lioness quartet, that's what got me started, you actually are the one that rekindled my love of the fantasy genre, or maybe even began it. I actually boasted about having all of your published ones... until Melting Stones came out, I still have yet to get that one, really quite upsetting. I just received Bloodhound in the mail a few weeks ago, it was definitely worth the wait, it was amazing, it's one of those books I can expect to read again and again. I have tons of questions, but I'm at a blank to remember all of them. So here are the few I do remember:
1.) What inspired you to write all that you have?
2.) If you had to choose, which books did you enjoy writing the most, the Tortallan or the Emelan?
3.) In accordance to question 2, which character did you have the most fun writing about?
(Don't worry, I'm almost done)
4.) I know someone already asked something similar to this, but just to clarify things for me, Pounce and Faithful are the same cat correct? That what I got out of it, in Lioness Rampant I remember something about after Faithful was killed there was a constellation named, I think it was The Cat (correct me if I'm wrong), while in the Beka Cooper books, especially Bloodhound, there are many references to Pounce being a constellation.  

Okay, I'm finally done with this extra long post, though undoubtably I will have more at some point or another. Thank you for sticking with me all the way through this.
~~~Miranda~~~

Posted Apr 12, 2009, 03:24:21 PM

*is so excited* :D :D :D

Questions for Tammy:

1. At what point did Roger turn evil? Was it something like Jon's birth and him being bumped down as heir, or dabbling in too much powerful sorcery - or was there even a turning point (i.e. was it a gradual thing)?

2. Also, what is the age difference between Roger and Jon? I've always been curious :D

3. Will Jon's other two daughters make diplomatic marriages like Kalasin, or do they have considerable more freedom in choosing who they marry?

4. Will Thom one day inherit both Pirate's Swoop and Olau, or will Alan be left one of the two?

5. Do Coram and Rispah have any children?

I think I've bombarded you with enough questions for now *sheepish*.

Posted Apr 12, 2009, 11:26:47 PM

Vroengirl, hi!  I'm glad you liked TERRIER, and like any good pusher, I hope it leads you to try other books of mine!

Now let me see what I can do about your questions . . .

Do you ever take qualities from the people around you and use them in your characters?

I'm not very good at making things up, so I always start with reality, including real people I know, or actors, performers, or sometimes actors in particular roles.  That way I know how the character sounds, moves, and reacts to situations, even if the situations I put him/her into are very different from those encountered by the original person.  Eventually the character becomes his or her own person, moving away from the original, but I always have to start with someone real.

What, do you find, is the hardest part about writing a book?

Applying my butt to the chair and getting it written.  There are so many distractions out there, including the ones on the very machine I use to write!  Curse you, Internet!

What's it like to hear people tell you how they feel about your writing, both good and bad?

I rise to defend it when I'm criticized, of course, to a point.  If I can tell someone is really set on their point of view, then I suggest they write what they would like to see.  (If I think they're right, of course, I admit it.  I hate to do it, but I really hate it when I'm right and people won't admit it, so no matter how painful it is, I admit it when the other person is right.)  And for the good stuff, I blush and stammer and say thanks.  There are so many people who help me to write that I don't feel the work is all mine, including the characters.  That may sound loony, but they definitely steer things in the way they have to go, and I've just learned to be smart enough to keep up.

Out of all of your books, who would you say was the most fun character to write about?

Hm.  Usually it's who's my favorite . . .  I really love Raoul of Goldenlake, who appears in the Alanna quartet and in SQUIRE--he's a lot of fun, one of those big guys with smarts and a great sense of humor. Rosethorn, from my Circle of Magic universe, is also lots of fun--she's the kind of person who can put an end to an argument with a raised eyebrow.  Then there's Kyprioth, the Trickster, from the Trickster books, who is a flirt.  He's also wicked, and funny, and unpredictable.  And the darkings, from THE REALMS OF THE GODS and TRICKSTER’S QUEEN, who are funny, and who love getting into things.

Oh, I give up.I have a good time with a lot of my characters!

The most boring?

I try not to write any boring characters, or at least, boring for myself.If I bore myself, I know I’ll bore a reader.The one- and two-line characters aren’t very interesting, but they aren’t around long enough to annoy me, and once they are around for longer than that, I know who they are and what their background is, so they don’t bore me.

And lastly, why do you write? What's the purpose behind your sitting down and revealing to your readers the fantastical places that reside in your mind?

I write because I need to, because I have all these stories and characters I need to talk about.I write to escape from the everyday world, which often bores and annoys me.I write to make a living.You see, I was a poor kid.If I was ever going to make anything of myself it had to be as a writer, because I’m not very good at anything else (well, teaching, editing, and social work are okay, but I burn out after a while).And writing is the one thing I can do most of the time without getting bored or annoyed, or running out of ideas.(You noticed I avoid getting bored or annoyed as much as possible?I get annoyed very easily, particularly when I get bored!)And I write for teenagers because I know I make a difference.That was my reason for writing for them when everyone told me no one ever made any money writing for teenagers, and that is why I still write for teenagers.Yes, it is nice to make a living this way, but to have my characters and my stories affect people’s lives—that has value that lasts long after money is spent.

And there’s a long answer to your questions!

Tammy

Posted Apr 12, 2009, 11:54:04 PM

Hey Tammy,

I saw this on your homepage and have seized the opportunity. There is so much I want to know... I'll start with what i can think of at the moment

1. Alex. What motivated him to side with Roger initially? Being Roger's squire must have been important, but why did he turn from his old friends and go to Roger? Was there a specific incident, or did he decide that he thought Jon would make a dud King?

2. Also, when Roger comes back in Lioness Rampant, he speaks to his 'followers', and asks Alex what Alex wants out of the whole rebellion situation. Alex just looks at him, and Roger says that Alex hasn't changed (don't have the book with me for details). What did Alex want out of the situation? Did he just want to be Champion, the best in the kingdom? In charge of the armies? Or the pleasure of killing Alanna? I was never really certain.

3. Did Trebond participate much in the Scanran War? In Afta Alanna mentions that Trebond deals with Scanran bandits most years - were Coram and Rispah heavily involved in the war too?

4. How did the Scanran war end? After Kel got rid of the Killing Devices, was it just a series of battles when the Tortallans bit-by-bit kept on winning and killing the Scanrans, or was there one huge battle where they smashed them?

5. In relation to Katty's question about the Conte girls: what about Liam and Jasson? Will they be married off, or be allowed to stay in Tortall to help their brother once he is on the throne?

I could keep going, but for the moment - i'll stop. Sorry for harassing.

Bloodhound's being released in two days over here, and I can't wait. While SotL characters are my absolute favourite, just thought i'd let you know that I absolutely LOVED Terrier, it was really excellent. In fact, even though it has NO sotl character cameos (except for Faithful), i've reread it as much, if not more, than some of the Immortals and Pots books. :) (I read the circle books too, but Tortall i find so much more interesting).

PS: and girls, yes, Faithful is Pounce, and faithful is the cat that Daine saw in Realms of the Gods, who sat on the Goddess' chair and refused to move.

Last Modified Apr 13, 2009, 02:37:08 AM

Oh, and I just have one more question (sorry!)

1. In Trickster’s Choice you say that Alanna wields the Crown’s authority when neither Jon or Thayet are present, and you’ve said on Sheroes that her job basically means that she’s either fighting bandits or is by the King’s side 24/7. What does the King’s Champion actually do? I get the impression that Alanna’s made up her responsibilities as she goes, but on a day-to-day basis what has she decided to do? Rounding up enemies of the Crown is one, I presume. Does she also involve herself in politics – convincing nobles and priests and merchants to agree to certain laws that Jon and Thayet want? Or is she just Jon’s slave? :P

Posted Apr 13, 2009, 03:35:03 AM

*bounces* I'm a typical fangirl too, I tend to follow on lj more than sheroes though. :D Everyone's posted great questions so far. Mine aren't half as awesome, but still...

1. Was Joren the heir to Stone Mountain? Lord Burchard is his uncle, yet he was the one to go after Kel in Squire.

2. What happened to New Hope once the war was over? Was it disbanded and the people went back to their own villages, or did people stay there and make a new community?

3. Cleon. He seems to always be running the fief with his mother. And there's no mention of a father or other brothers. Is he the Lord of Kennan, or is there some other thing going on?

4. If Roald (the younger one) were King, who would be his Champion?

5. Which book cover is your favourite, out of all the many ones that have been?

Last Modified Apr 13, 2009, 09:57:14 AM