What Janus Sees
January is named for the Roman God, Janus. He had two faces, one facing forward to see what lies ahead, and the other facing back, regarding that which has passed. (Random aside – it must have been hell finding a hat.) Early images show the rear-looking face as bearded and grizzled with age. It wears a serious expression as it contemplates and judges past experiences with value of wisdom gained. The forward-peering face is clean shaven, fresh and young, gazing into the future with innocence and openness, welcoming what will come. (No idea why backward Janus has ram’s horns and pointy ears in this pic, but the Ancients did seem to be big on that image.)
In fact, the word “janus” is based on the ancient Italian (Etruscan) word “jauna” which means “door”. Janus is often referred to as the God of Gates and Doors, which open to roads not yet traveled and closes on the places already seen. January is a time to open doors and close them, to learn from the past, recognize goals not reached, and resolve to change.
When Janus of the grizzled bearded looks back on 2011, he might notice that extra ten pounds Suki and Carlyle packed on, how it had melted away by July, only to have crept back in full and then some by December when the cheesecakes, sweet potatoes, and turkeys weighed down the table with their yearly reappearance. But hey, this was a momentous year full of celebration—which deserves feasting—and anxiety—which demands sugary (Suki) fried (Carlyle) comforting.
He’ll see Suki and Carlyle nervous as they await the release of their book because it combines YA, Dytopia, Urban Fantasy, and Sci-Fi. So why the nail-biting? Suki and Carlyle haven’t seen anything out there like it. It has no vampires or werewolves; is that terrific or terrible? There’s no way to know. As always, and as it should be with novels, the readers will decide. Will they plunk down hard-earned money in a tough economy for a novel by two newbies that doesn’t fit any known mold? But before the readers comes the professional critics, big ones to, Kirkus “The World’s Toughest Book Critics” and Foreword. And . . . they liked it, so much so that it became a “Kirkus Critic’s Pick” for Sci-Fi/Fantasy and they used wonderful phrases to describe it like “wildly imaginative” and “breakneck paced” and “a memorable read”, but jaded old Janus casts a jaundiced eye as he looks back on the happiness those review inspired.
Janus witnesses our gradual realization that, while many readers will find our story highly entertaining, it is inevitable that some will not. He watches us as we begin to understand that bringing a story to the world is not a sprint but a marathon and that no story will be uniformly loved by all. Old Two-Face smiles (well almost, he’s a stern god after all) as he sees our joy at having delivered a story that inspires some readers to contact us or leave reviews saying how much they enjoyed the story.
And what does fresh-faced, clean-shaven, still-innocent Janus see with his forward-riveted gaze? He sees two newly savvy, enthusiastic debut authors on a road they now know must be traveled step-by-step, review by review, and sale by sale. He sees our commitment not to let a day pass without dreaming up horrid, scary, beautiful, moving, and thrilling scenes for our readers. (He also sees the drivel we’re bound to write, words that will be edited or deletion, but we won’t talk about that.)
Young Janus sees that we will have new ideas, each with the potential to inspire an adventure. Most enlightening of all, he sees that The Apocalypse Gene will not be our only published work but simply the first of many.
What does Janus see for you?
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Jan 2 review
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book lovers paradise
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Jan 12 Guest Blog
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Lisa’s World of Books
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GraveTells
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I Just Wanna Sit Here and Read!
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Lissette E. Manning
Jan 25 review and promo
BookStacksOnDeck
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Jan 27 review
Braintasia Books
Jan 28 interview and review
Curling Up by the Fire
Jan 30 review
Curling Up by the Fire
Jan 30 Promo and Review
Beverly @ The Wormhole
The Apocalypse GeneBy Suki Michelle and Carlyle Clark
Genre: YA Urban Fantasy
Global pandemic is raging. Olivya Wright-Ono's once loving home has been converted to a hospice for the dying. Her ability to see auras forces her to witness, with agonizing detail, the vibrant colors of life consumed by malignancy.
The beautiful and troubled, Mikah, is an elite Empath in the ancient Kindred clan, led by the brooding, ever-morphing, monster named Prime. Mikah has learned a terrible truth .
. . the plague is linked to Kindred origins. When Olivya sees evidence of disease creeping into her mother's aura, she has no one to turn to but Mikah. Can he unearth the Kindred secrets and find a cure? Can she trust this boy whose power allows him to manipulate her very emotions?
With her mother's life, and that of the world, in the balance, Olivya and Mikah embark on a quest to stop the Pandemic, only to discover it is far, far more than a mere disease . .
Website: http://www.TheApocalypseGene.com
Facebook FanPage:
About the Authors:Suki Michelle is a life-long Chicagoan, happily divorced and still good friends with her Ex. She lives and writes with her soul-mate, Carlyle Clark. She has one beautiful daughter, Bree, who is the first reader and critic of The Apocalypse Gene, and without her input, it wouldn't be nearly as cool! Suki's other children are of the four-legged type, Dahlia, the German shepherd; Kilala the lazy calico chub-cat; and Koney, the tortoise-shell demon cat from the Seventh Ring.
Carlyle is a burly dude from San Diego. He can look menacing at a glance, but as soon as he opens his mouth, pure intellectual. They are eternally grateful for the day they met at an on-line writer's workshop. They've been together for four years. On the outside. Suki and Carlyle are totally disparate. On the inside, they are the REAL Neo-Twins. You'll have to read The Apocalypse Gene to find out who the Neo-Twins are, but here's a hint: They are twisted devils with mirror-melded auras.
As writers, Suki and Carlyle have complementary skill sets. Lyle is plot master and edgy dialoguer. He is a huge fan of Japanese anime, and he draws upon this to choreograph fight scenes. Suki enjoys painting a character's emotional landscape and writing vivid descriptions. They both have wild imagination.
Suki and Carlyle treasure every opportunity to share their work.
Twitter: @Suki_Michelle
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3 comments:
January is my birthmonth.
Hope Janus sees good things.
debby236 at gmail dot com
I hope Janus sees good things for me and my family in 2012. Please enter me in contest. I would love to read this book. Tore923@aol.com
Janus sees me reading your book ;) besides that I hope he sees me having a good year at school and completing my degree. Thanks for the chance to win your book. It sounds like a great read.
Tanyaw1224(at)yahoo(dot)com
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