Shadow and Sword
by N. K. Carlson
~~~~~~~~~~~~~
GENRE: YA Fantasy
~~~~~~~~~~~~~
BLURB:
The word was just below a whisper, yet in sixteen-year-old Reith’s ears, it rang louder than he could have ever imagined. Reith had his life in order: apprentice under his mentor, Master Chronicler Vereinen, and follow in his footsteps. Until a shadowy figure appeared in his village, burning everything to the ground, including Reith’s future. Now Reith’s mentor is missing and Reith is on the run from the mysterious Shadow.
Reith adventures through magical forests, ancient ruins, and the lands of prejudiced elves to find his mentor, learn the secret of his sword, and unravel the mystery of the Shadow. Will Reith discover the truth of will the Shadow continue to fall over all of Terrashonen?
~~~~~~~~~~~~~
EXCERPT
“Run,” the word was almost a whisper, yet it rang out, louder than Reith could have thought possible. It beat against his ear drum as if someone had rung a bell by his ear. “Run. If you look back, we will shoot over your head. The next arrow will be right behind it, aimed true at your back. If you come back, we will kill you. I am a man of my word. If you come back, I will give you a name we can mark on your tomb.”
Reith hesitated for just a moment, but then the Gray Man screamed, “RUN!”
The word hung in the air like the smoke from the smoldering town and Reith bolted. He pushed past the archers and rushed out of town, running in a headlong sprint, running for his life.
At the town’s edge, just before he reached the forest, he chanced a look back and an arrow whizzed past his head, sending a short breeze across his face. He jumped behind a tree and heard the thud of an arrow hit the other side of the trunk.
Reith fled from the horror behind him, running faster than he ever thought he was capable of running. The Gray Man yelled after him, “If you see Vereinen, tell him I’m looking for him! Run!”
~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Music I Listen to While Writing
By N. K. Carlson
No writing session is complete without some good tunes to set the mood for the writing process. So today, I want to share some of my favorite artists and playlists that I listen to while writing. Hopefully you find something to add to your reading and writing playlists!
I find words in music to be distracting while I focus on crafting a fictional world or trying to find that perfect word with which to turn a phrase, so the music I listen to is almost entirely wordless. Most of what I listen to can be broken down into three genres: post-rock, ambient, and orchestral.
Post-rock is instrumental music usually with instruments traditional to rock music such as guitar, bass, and drums, but post-rock usually doesn’t include vocals. Some of my favorite post-rock bands are Explosions in the Sky, Caspian, Mono, This Will Destroy You, Ranges, Old Seas Young Mountains, Paint the Sky Red, and This Patch of Sky. If you have seen the TV show Friday Night Lights, chances are you are already familiar with Explosions in the Sky. Check out Your Hand in Mine by them!
Ambient music is the perfect background music for writing. Stylistically, ambient is much more subdued than post-rock, though the lines sometimes blur between the two genres. Lowercase Noises is by far my favorite ambient artist. Spotify has some great ambient playlists such as Ambient Post-Rock and Ambient Relaxation.
I also love listening to orchestral music, and particularly film scores. John Williams, Hans Zimmer, Howard Shore, Jeremy Soule, James Newton Howard, Klaus Badelt, and Harry Gregson-Williams are some of my favorites. Spotify has a wonderful playlist called Reading Adventure which I love listening to while writing.
I love all of these instrumental genres because I love the ability to convey emotions with just music. I wish one of these amazing composers could write several hours’ worth of music to accompany the reading of my books.
What music do you like to listen to while reading or writing? Let me know on Twitter, Instagram, or Facebook!
~~~~~~~~~~~~~
AUTHOR Bio and Links:
N. K. Carlson is an author living in Texas. Originally from the Chicago area, he graduated from the University of Illinois before studying at Logsdon Seminary, where he graduated with a master of divinity degree. He has published two books.
The Things that Charm Us and the Smelly Gospel (which was co-written with Drew Doss) both came out in 2020.
His love of writing began in elementary school when each student was given a blank white book to fill with a story. In college, he took an interest in blogging and writing novels.
Website: https://www.nkcarlson.com/
https://www.facebook.com/nkcarlson
Amazon buy link: https://www.amazon.com/Shadow-Sword-N-K-Carlson/dp/1956183930/
~~~~~~~~~~~~~
GIVEAWAY
N. K. Carlson will be awarding a $25 Amazon or Barnes and Noble GC to a randomly drawn winner via rafflecopter during the tour.
a Rafflecopter giveaway
Thanks for hosting!
Thank you for hosting!
I love the cover and the excerpt.
This is a wonderful excerpt, the book sounds great
Pingback: Author Guest Post with N. K. Carlson, Shadow and Sword