Monday, August 4, 2014

Creating the Characters for SOUL TAKER by Karen Michelle Nutt



MUSE MONDAY
I am honored to have Karen Michelle Nutt on Muse Monday today. You'll enjoy her post and you could win an audible book. Read on!
I believe a back-story breathes life into the characters. Their journey is what makes them what they are and why they react in a certain way. Of course, you don’t want to do info dumps, but to gradually add the tidbits of where they’ve been through the years with casual conversation, and inner thoughts like when they reminisce about an event. If not overdone, flashbacks or dreams are a great tool also.  
GARRAN MACLAURIN                                                        
My character, Garran MacLaurin is a Grim Sith (pronounced Grim Shee). This sept of vampires was created by a powerful Baobhan Sith, (pronounced baa’-van shee) from Scotland. Garran’s transformation took place following the battle of Culloden where his cousin Alexander betrayed him and his men by leading them into an ambush. Fallon, his maker, was the first Baobhan Sith to create what is now called the Grim Sith sept, the male species of this vampire clan.
We find out about Garran’s transformation when Isabella and Garran mind-link and the scenes of this event unfold.

HARRISON CONNELL

Harrison Connell is a werewolf from the Mac Tíre (pronounced Mock-tee-ra) clan of Ireland. They prefer to be called moon shifters than werewolves. He has left his clan to help Garran with preternatural business, but to Garran’s annoyance, he’s always looking to add members to the team.
In the story, Garran mentions this need to add people to their team in a passing conversation with Harrison. Harrison reveals more of his past when he admits he is a werewolf to Isabella. He gives her a brief history of his clan.
In Ireland, the wolf is often referred to as the Mac Tíre.  I thought since my werewolf pack or moon shifters fled from Ireland that it deemed appropriate they call themselves the Mac Tíre.  I first introduced the Mac Tíre mythology in my novella, Moon Shifter published by The Wild Rose Press.

ISABELLA LUCCI
Necromancy is a term used to describe manipulating death through the use of ritual magic or ceremony. You might say séances, channeling and Spiritualism are a form of necromancy since they involve invoking spirits to find out information.

Isabella Lucci’s family is from a long line of Necromancers. When Isabella was a child, she died, but her mother summoned Isabella back from death, but in doing so there came a price. Death can never be cheated. Her mother paid the ultimate price with her life. Isabella has not been trained, but she’s a natural. She can see the world beyond the veil. It is why Harrison wants to recruit her to help Garran and him find the Soul Taker. She uses a cell phone to communicate with the dead. The shades text their responses via a cell phone.

You learn about Isabella and her past through conversation, her reminiscing when she sees a photo of her parents, and still more information when her brother confronts Garran and his involvement with Isabella.

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There are many ways an author may incorporate information about their characters without taking away from the real heart of the story. I hope you enjoyed this behind the scene glance at my characters of SOUL TAKER. 

Brenda, thank you so much for allowing me to share.

*GIVEAWAY*: I’m giving away an audio book copy of SOUL TAKER to one lucky commenter. All you have to do is enter the Rafflecopter. (Coupons are good at Audible US or Audible UK). Good Luck!


About the Book:
E-book: $2.99     Print: $11.66 Audible: $24.95 or 1 credit
Word Count: About 95k
E-book Available at:
Print Available at: Amazon  /Barnes and Noble
 Available at: Audible US  / Audible UK
No soul is safe…

A vampire from the Grim Sith sept is sucking the souls out of young women from the Boston area, but this sinister crime is far worse than a vampire seeking substance. He’s selling the souls to the highest bidder and it seems business is booming.

A vampire, a werewolf, and a Necromancer are a most unlikely team, but Garran, Harrison, and Isabella plan on putting a kink in the dubbed Soul Taker’s plans. It’s personal now. One of their friends has fallen victim to the Soul Taker’s charms, but to stop him from hurting anyone else, their efforts may involve raising the dead.


Author’s Name – Bio

Karen Michelle Nutt resides in California with her husband, three fascinating children, and houseful of demanding pets. Jack, her Chorkie, is her writing buddy and sits long hours with her at the computer.
When she’s not time traveling, fighting outlaws, or otherworldly creatures, she creates pre-made book covers to order at Gillian’s Book Covers, “Judge Your Book By Its Cover”. You can also check out her published cover art designs at Western Trail Blazer and Rebecca J. Vickery Publishing.
Whether your reading fancy is paranormal, historical or time travel, all her stories capture the rich array of emotions that accompany the most fabulous human phenomena—falling in love.

Visit the author at her website: http://www.kmnbooks.com

Gillian’s Book Covers, “Judge Your Book By Its Cover”



Amazon Author Page:



14 comments:

  1. Brenda,
    Thank you again for having me here today on you lovely blog!!

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  2. And to answer the question: What was the last audible book I listened to? Actually, I'm still listening to it. :) Book Six: City of Heavenly Fire by Cassandra Clare. I really like her books. :)

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  3. Thank you for an interesting post about characters. It will certainly help aspiring authors. Good luck with all your books.

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    1. JoAnne,

      So glad you enjoyed the post. :) And thank you for the good luck. That is always welcomed. Take care.

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  4. Interesting blog, The characters rock & I love the blurb. The last audible book I listened to was Tom Baker reading Dr. Jekyll & Mr. Hyde. AWESOME!

    Mindy :)
    Birdsooong@comcast.net

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    1. Mindy,

      Thanks so much for stopping by.
      I'm going to sound like a total nerd here, but Tom Baker narrated as in the Tom Baker who played the 4th Doctor in the Dr. Who TV series? Just wondering. :) Sounds great.

      I love the story of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde. Saw the musical starring the American Idol star Constantine Maroulis and R&B superstar Deborah Cox at the La Mirada Preforming Arts. It was fantastic!!

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  5. One & the same. I'm kind of a Whovian too :)

    Mindy :)
    Birdso0oong@comcast.net

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    Replies
    1. Another Whovian! My daughters love Dr. Who, also. It all started when my dad introduced me to the Doctor way back when. lol

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  6. Interesting information - thanks for the post!

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    1. Ashantay,
      You're very welcome. So glad you enjoyed the post. :)

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  7. Karen Nutt is a talented writer who knows how to keep her readers on edge. You won't regret reading her books. Congrats, Karen!

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    1. Laurean,
      Thanks so much for such a lovely compliment. That means so much. :)

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