I contributed to a collaborative poem!

About a month ago I came across a new-to-me blog, Lucy’s Works. Having a look around, I saw she was creating a collaborative poem on the theme of “freedom.” Requirement was to post at least two but no more than four lines on what freedom means to me right now. I don’t usually do poetry, but this seemed interesting so I joined it. Lucy published it on May 1st, giving credit to the individual authors. I’ve put my four lines here, but I encourage you to check out the poem in its entirety – it’s quite interesting!

Lines 75-78 of the poem, attributed to The Edifying Word:

I choose.
Health, safety, caution.
For those I love and those I don’t know.
This is my freedom to love.

Thanks for reading!

Indie Author Spotlight: T. A. Hernandez

Indie Author SpotlightAnd we’re back for week four of Indie Author Spotlight by The Edifying Word, which is super exciting because when I hatched this idea I really had no idea whether anyone would take me up on it! I originally had ten, and the roster is growing so we’ll just keep on going. Today’s Spotlight is T. A. Hernandez, whose most recent release I reviewed here on the blog last year. She writes speculative fiction, which includes a whole host of things like fantasy, science fiction, paranormal, dystopian, and more. 

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TAHernandez.jpgI met T. A. Hernandez on Twitter (yup, you’re noticing a trend, aren’t you?) when I agreed to participate in her cover reveal for Calico Thunder Rides Again. I enjoy following her because her tweets are usually upbeat, I can identify with her as a mom, and I LOVE that she shares her writing-related artwork! Calico Thunder Rides Again is a fun read, and I’m looking forward to her next releases (more about that below). Check out her website for more info on all her books and some free stories! 

Please tell us about how you got started writing, and why you continue. 

I started writing when I was a kid, maybe ten or eleven years old. I was a voracious reader and just wanted to tell stories like the ones in the books I loved so much. I started to take it more seriously as a teenager and realized then that this writing thing was something I was really passionate about and wanted to pursue long-term. 

Still today, I write first and foremost because I love it. I love stories and it brings me a lot of joy to let my imagination run wild and record my stories for myself. But it’s also a lot of fun to share those stories with others, which is why I decided to go ahead and publish them. Writing is a big part of my self-care and mental/emotional well-being. I’ve always been a very creative person, and I have to be doing something with that creativity to feel like my life is fulfilling.

You make your own FABULOUS book covers – is art another of your creative outlets? 

I love art and have been drawing for even longer than I’ve been writing. I got into digital art about nine years ago and have really enjoyed doing that, as well as branching out into graphic design and other related things. The graphic design skills I’ve picked up have come in super handy as an indie author when it comes to things like making my own social media and promotional graphics as well as designing my own book covers. I also enjoy playing video games and take a lot of my writing inspiration from games. Some of my favorites are the Mass Effect series, The Last of Us, Horizon Zero Dawn, and Portal.

Can you tell us a little about your books? 

Right now I have four novels out. The first three belong to a new adult dystopian thriller trilogy called Secrets of PEACE, which follows a skilled but inexperienced young assassin named Zira who works for the authoritarian government. The other book, Calico Thunder Rides Again, is a fantasy novel set on a magical travelling circus in an alternate Prohibition-era America. The circus owner, Jake, finds himself indebted to some dangerous mobsters and has to find a way to repay them on a tight deadline.

What about your current work? I’m enjoying the artwork teasers!

I’m currently in the process of drafting the first book of a YA fantasy duology, which is told from the perspective of three main characters: Amar, Kesari, and Aleida. Amar is a man who seems to be immortal, but he doesn’t remember anything about his past and wants to figure out exactly what’s happening to him. Then there’s Kesari, a girl who traded part of her life for magical powers she now refuses to use. And finally, we have Aleida, a young refugee woman desperately trying to save her younger brother from a debilitating illness before it takes his life. When their paths intersect, they encounter new conflicts and are forced to face the darkest parts of themselves in order to get what they want. It’s a story that’s been floating around in my head for more than a decade, so I’m really excited to finally share it with readers.

You’ve said you write because you are passionate about it, which makes sense because it certainly doesn’t seem like you have loads of spare time for pursuing it. How do you fit it in? 

I have two kids, ages 6 and 9. I also work part-time as a therapist, and a year ago, I was a full-time graduate student doing a part-time internship and just trying to keep my head above water with all the responsibilities I had to juggle. So I’ve definitely had to learn to balance my time and fit writing in whenever I can. It’s not always easy, but as I said, writing is such an important part of my own mental health and self-care that I just have to make it work. Maybe that means I give up some of the time I’d spend watching TV or playing video games, or maybe it means I do a lot of my writing late at night when the kids are asleep. I’ll be the first to admit that I’m not a great housekeeper and have often put off whatever chores I could to write instead, but it makes me a happier, healthier person overall, and that helps me be a better mom, so I don’t feel too bad about it. My husband is also a huge support. Because he works full-time, I’ve been able to work part-time, and that leaves me with some time to write that I might not have otherwise. He’ll also take the kids out on his own sometimes so that I can just be alone at home and focus on my writing.

It’s so interesting to me to hear what authors read in their downtime so I’ve been asking everyone I feature here to share some favorites (which, honestly, is something I’d have a hard time doing). Do you have any favorites?

I love reading speculative fiction just as much as I love writing it, and I like to read across a variety of genres under that umbrella. Some of my favorite books are The Lord of the Rings by JRR Tolkien, Six of Crows by Leigh Bardugo, The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins, Howl’s Moving Castle by Diana Wynne Jones, the Tales of the Wendy series by Erin Michelle Sky and Steven Brown, the Ziva Payvan series by EJ Fisch, and the His Dark Materials books by Phillip Pullman.

What do you hope to achieve as an author?

I have a lot of different author dreams, some of which I’ve already achieved (selling a short story to a publisher, self-publishing a novel, receiving a positive review from an author whose work I greatly admire) and some of which I’m still working on. My overall goal is to reach as many readers as possible with my stories and to just keep getting better as a writer. And I’d love to eventually make enough money from my books to supplement my existing income in a more substantial way.

Thank you so much for participating here. Is there anything you’d like to leave with readers? 

I like to think I’m a pretty easy person to talk to, and I love hearing from readers and fellow writers, so if you ever have any questions about me or my writing process or my books or even just books I’ve read, please don’t hesitate to reach out. I especially love hearing about readers’ reactions to my stories and characters. I also love to connect with and support other indie authors, so if you’re an indie author or if you have a favorite indie book you want to recommend, definitely let me know.

All right, friends! Please visit T. A. Hernandez at her website, or on social media, and maybe buy her books!

Website: www.tahernandez.com
Book links: https://books2read.com/ap/n9bBBK/T-A-Hernandez
Twitter: @ta_hernandez5
Instagram: @ta_hernandez5

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Would you like to be featured, too? Please contact me at kristin@theedifyingword.com!

ARC Review: The Hag Rider by Thomas Fenske

The Hag Rider

You all know I’m a fan of Thomas Fenske‘s books, and have been ever since he contacted me to review his first book, The Fever, in 2015. I’ve consistently given them four-star ratings and positive reviews – excellent writing, superior storytelling, consistency in delivery. I know I won’t go wrong in picking up one of his books. I was SO excited to get an advanced reader copy of his newest, The Hag Rider, which is set to come out June 1 (I’ll let you know when it’s available for pre-order!). Friends, I REALLY REALLY REALLY like this one, and you should all read it!

So, I hear Thomas Fenske and think Texas, paranormal activity, a little bit of danger…and they’re all present, against the little-known (at least to me, raised on the East Coast) backdrop of the Civil War in Texas. The Hag Rider is the fictional memoir of a 15 year old Confederate cavalryman in Texas, who joins the fight to serve Texas, despite his youth and discomfort with slavery. He is protected through his ordeal by an old slave woman and witch, Vanita, whose presence follows him thousands of miles through the Confederacy and the Union.

As usual, Fenske manages to touch on important and heavy issues, things that get to the truths of human existence, without getting preachy. Being the Civil War, there’s a lot in The Hag Rider about racism and slavery and Fenske just makes it seem obvious that they’re wrong, just by presenting authentic human interactions. Jack’s relationship with the slave Moze, a father figure to him who cemented much of Jack’s sense of morality, is fundamental to the story and Jack reflects on and uses Moze’s wisdom to guide his actions throughout the book; these are some of my favorite parts.

Another thing I love about this book is the history. A historian by training, Fenske sticks to facts and brings them to life. I had the opportunity to learn about the Civil War in Texas, which I’ve never known much about. But beyond that, the history is brought to life; the writing is realistic and engaging, and I never found myself wondering whether details were historically accurate. Mostly, though, I love that he could bring the sentiments of the times to life, and how he offers plausible motivations. His characters are real people with nuanced views, and I root for Jack the whole time even though he’s a Confederate… I find it very interesting the way Jack justifies fighting for injustice:

“Vanita told me I was going to be fighting to free the slaves. She said she’d seen it because the South wasn’t ever going to win this war, but it was necessary because slavery was never going to end without a fight.” (179)

I can’t forget the witch aspect here. The books is a blend of history and the paranormal. I don’t believe in witches, but I do believe in God, his angels, and the Saints, so the idea of a supernatural being protecting Jack so he can fulfill his part in a fight for justice, as roundabout as it seems, is something I just get. It makes sense to me.

This book is the whole package: entertainment, history, existential truths. With a witch!

Five stars!