Our guest blogger today is author Ben Furman. Ben writes counterterrorism thrillers and young adult fantasy adventures. I've had the pleasure of reading Sam's Quest for the Crimson Crystal. You'll find my review here. After reading this first book in the Sam's Quest trilogy, I wondered where Ben got the idea for his unusual heroine. He shares that with us today.
SAM’S QUEST TRILOGY: The Story Behind the Books by Ben Furman
“Get off your fat butt and do something with this!” my sister said. She didn’t bother looking back as she dangled some yellowish paper over her shoulder and continued poring through stuff in the closet. I had returned home to help pack essentials my mother would need in the full care nursing facility. Every scrap of paper that had anything to do with her kids she had meticulously tucked away in stacks of labeled shoe boxes – even the drawings and scribbles of a love-spurned fifth grader, me.
Yep, there for all to see was my feeble effort to impress the cute redheaded girl, who had just joined the class. The small rural school, dead center in the California San Joaquin Valley farm country, seldom added anyone new, and that included Mrs. Higgins the history teacher, who delighted in telling me what a brat my father had been. Sins of the father, and she had a second crack at his son. So Samantha’s arrival had created quite a buzz, and Samantha instantly became my favorite girl’s name.
I wracked my brain trying to come up with something to impress Samantha, couldn’t bribe Johnny, who was sitting directly behind her, to switch places with me – Higgins cataracts had limited her field of fire to the first row seats, giving me adequate cover. I could draw and spin a pretty good story. A fantasy adventure with drawings of the characters – that was the ticket! As the project gained speed I heard the whispers. Samantha had asthma! Asthma? Was it contagious? “No” my brat father said. In the drawing I added an aspirator that Samantha sprayed in the eyes of the bad guy, thus defeating him and saving Innerworld! I slipped the finished story on her desk one recess and held my breath as she read it, shoved it in her desk, and turned around to smile at Johnny, who had just pulled her hair. Feeling stupid, I retrieved the story and took it home. At the end of the school year Samantha’s family moved, thus ending my gnawing embarrassment.
Following my sister’s directive, I decided to write a trilogy detailing Samantha’s adventures. The core characters of the story and positive message remains the same: to be successful you don’t have to be Superman, even he has a weakness, keep churning and good things will come of it.
The SAM'S QUEST FOR THE CRIMSON CRYSTAL VIRTUAL BOOK TOUR '08 will officially begin on September 2, '08 and end on September 26, '08. You can visit the Ben's tour stops at www.virtualbooktours.wordpress.com in September to find out more about him and his new book!
As a special promotion for all our authors, Pump Up Your Book Promotion is giving away one FREE virtual book tour to a published author with a recent release or a $50 Amazon gift certificate to those not published who comments on our authors' blog stops. More prizes will be announced as they become available. The winner will be announced on our main blog at www.pumpupyourbookpromotion.wordpress.com on September 26!
AND LOOK FOR BEN FURMAN AGAIN IN OCTOBER AND NOVEMBER WHEN HE TOURS WITH BOOK 2 OF THIS SERIES, THE ROYAL TRIDENT!
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1 comment:
This is a great story Ben. I really like your sister after this one. Okay, so you got the idea from a childhood crush and your sister forced you to do something with it, but how did that turn into the "Sam's Quest Trilogy"? How did you go about find a publisher? How long did it take from final draft to available at Amazon.com?
Thanks.
Cheryl
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