JP McLean

Writing Addictive Fiction

Trick or Treat or Toadstool

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At October’s end, will it be trick or treat or toadstool? The monthly calendar is looking pretty thin, with just two pages left in the year. Where did October go?

Toadstools

We don’t see many ghouls or goblins at our door, but Halloween inspiration pops up in expected places, like pathways. This toadstool is far too spooktacular to be a mere mushroom.

Treat

October started off with a roar, 12th man roar, that is. We attended the Seattle Seahawks vs Indianapolis Colts game at Century Field (Now called Lumen Field). It was my first live football game, and it was so much more fun experienced from the stands. The crowd is named the 12th (wo)man because there are 11 players on both offense and defense. The Seahawks 12th are the loudest in the league and I can now attest to that.

Trick

One thing I wasn’t counting on was not being able to take my purse into the game. Security no longer allows purses, only wallets into the stadium. I had to buy a clear plastic bag, transfer my purse contents into it, and pay for a locker to store the purse until after the game. And even then, when I went through security, they wouldn’t allow me to take in my binoculars’ vinyl 5″ pouch. I had to toss it. I hope I can find a replacement for it. The security people told us this is or will be the new norm for stadiums across the US, so be prepared!

Back home, fall weather has set in. The crab apple tree and russet leaves are providing the exercise, and blazing fires in the evenings are providing the warmth.

In writing news, the outline for the final book in the Gift Legacy series is now roughed in and I’ve started writing. But … given Secret Sky (formerly Awakening) started as a one-off then grew into a trilogy which morphed into a series, I feel I need to qualify final: I’m writing the last planned book in the series.

Happy Halloween!

When you’re tired of raking leaves, take a load off and escape into Emelynn’s world. Get your copy of Secret Sky from your favourite retailer right here! Or click on the image for more purchase options.
3D Cover collection for all formats of Secret Sky

Does This Recording Make My Voice Look Fat?

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I’m miles outside of my comfort zone, in an entirely different format, as a matter of fact. I’ve decided to try my hand at audio recording. After all, I’m often invited to read from my books. It’s in that light that I decided to record audio editions of the excerpts from all four books in the Gift Legacy series. But it’s left me wondering if I’m out of my depth with voice recording.

How hard could it be?

Let’s just say it’s been an eye-opener.

I now have a much deeper respect for voice actors who are able to switch up their voices in a variety of ways to speak for different characters. I don’t have that knack. Nor, apparently, do I have the ability to read a simple sentence with the same intonation three times in a row over a very short span of time.

But it has been fun, despite stealing time away from my writing. I’ve learned a lot about mics (dynamic is the type you want for voice recordings) and boom stands (a must for changing positions) and Audacity, an incredibly easy to use and free software program that I would highly recommend for audio recording.

Cover for The Gift Awakening Audible edition blue watercolour of ocean, beach and mountains.And though I may never do more audio recording than these excerpts, it’s been an incredible experience.

Click here to hear the excerpt for The Gift Awakening. (Update: Awakening is now Secret Sky, but I haven’t yet re-recorded the excerpt.) I’m working on The Gift Revelation right now, and the others will following in the coming days. I’ll put up a link on the “excerpts” page when I’m done.

I would love to hear your opinion of the recording. Whether you find it pleasant, are indifferent, or hear nails on chalkboard, leave your comments below.

If you’re more of a “reader” than a “listener,” get your own copy of Secret Sky with one click right here. And if ebooks or Amazon aren’t your preference, more purchasing options are available under the Bookstore tab.

The Gift: Awakening has a new cover

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Awakening’s new cover is here! We’ve not strayed far from Viona Halim’s gorgeous design, just a little tweak here and there.

Awakening Book Cover(Update: Awakening is now titled Secret Sky.)

Everybody wishes they could fly—until it happens. When Emelynn Taylor wakes up in the emergency room, her injuries present Dr. Avery Coulter with more questions than answers. Who is this guarded young woman? Why was she found in the middle of Sunset Park? How can she have injuries consistent with falling from above the tree line? Seemingly from nowhere? And, more importantly: Why is she lying about it?

The truth is stranger than anyone could have imagined – least of all Emelynn herself.

Nine Years earlier . . .

Nine years earlier, during the same summer she’d lost her father, 12-year-old Emelynn accepted a ‘gift’ from a mysterious woman called Jolene. Now, as she recovers in Dr. Coulter’s emergency room, she’s left wondering if that blessing was really more of a curse. Jolene’s gift planted the seeds of incredible power within Emelynn – but what’s the point of such abilities if you can’t control them? Her emerging gift of flight, for example, nearly killed Emelynn when it sent her plummeting to the sidewalk in Sunset Park. Next time, she might not be so lucky.

But Emelynn is determined to master her abilities, and returns to the seaside cottage where Jolene had once granted her this ‘gift.’ There, Dr. Coulter guides Emelynn in uncovering a secret society of others just like her, who inhabit a mysterious world-within-a-world that challenges everything Emelynn thought she’d known. But the more she uncovers, the murkier the truth becomes. Soon, Emelynn is left questioning the motives of those she’d trusted the most – and is forced to rely on her barely mastered powers in a desperate fight for survival.

Secret Sky is the first book in the thrilling, otherworldly The Gift Legacy series by JP McLean. Seamlessly blending paranormal mystery, fantasy, and romance, this beautifully written and deeply resonant adventure will swoop you into a vivid, new reality and leave your imagination soaring.

Awakening Book CoverFor those who prefer the older design (see below), which is no longer in print, I do have a limited number of first edition copies available. While supplies last, I’m happy to sign and personally inscribe a book, and ship it. Please contact me here for details.

You can pick up a copy of Awakening, now titled Secret Sky, with one click right here. And if ebooks or Amazon aren’t your preference, other options are available under the Bookstore Tab.

 

 

 

Coming Soon, JP McLean’s Debut Novel, Awakening

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JP McLean author photoJP (Jo-Anne) McLean’s debut novel, Awakening, is coming soon. JP lives and writes from her home on Denman Island. Her debut novel is an urban fantasy thriller. Awakening* is the first book in The Gift Legacy and it’s coming soon. Look for it in hardcover, paperback and e-book from FriesenPress.

Release Date TBA
353 pages
$19.99 Cdn

Have you ever dreamed you could fly? Emelynn Taylor did.
Except . . . it wasn’t a dream.

*Update! in 2017, The Gift Legacy books underwent a rebranding. Awakening is now titled Secret Sky. You can read about the rebranding here: JP McLean’s debut novel gets a makeover

When Emelynn Taylor wakes up in the emergency room, her injuries present Dr. Avery Coulter with more questions than answers.

Who is this guarded young woman? Why was she found in the middle of Sunset Park? How can she have injuries consistent with falling from above the tree line? Seemingly from nowhere?

And, more importantly: Why is she lying about it?

The truth is stranger than anyone could have imagined – least of all Emelynn herself.

Nine years earlier, during the same summer she’d lost her father, 12-year-old Emelynn accepted a ‘gift’ from a mysterious woman called Jolene.

Now, as she recovers in Dr. Coulter’s emergency room, she’s left wondering if that blessing was really more of a curse.

Jolene’s gift planted the seeds of incredible power within Emelynn – but what’s the point of such abilities if you can’t control them?

Her emerging gift of flight, for example, nearly killed Emelynn when it sent her plummeting to the sidewalk in Sunset Park. Next time, she might not be so lucky.

But Emelynn is determined to master her abilities, and returns to the seaside cottage where Jolene had once granted her this ‘gift.’ There, Dr. Coulter guides Emelynn in uncovering a secret society of others just like her, who inhabit a mysterious world-within-a-world that challenges everything Emelynn thought she’d known.

But the more she uncovers, the murkier the truth becomes. Soon, Emelynn is left questioning the motives of those she’d trusted the most – and is forced to rely on her barely-mastered powers in a desperate fight for survival.

Secret Sky is the first book in the thrilling, otherworldly The Gift Legacy series by JP McLean. Seamlessly blending paranormal mystery, fantasy, and romance, this beautifully written and deeply resonant adventure will swoop you into a vivid, new reality and leave your imagination soaring.