Today I'm hosting Rachel McClellan during her Blog Tour for Fractured Soul--the sequel to Fractured Light. In this post you'll find her guest post on characters in a novel, an excerpt from Fractured Soul, and a giveaway for an ebook of Fractured Soul.
If You were a Character in a Novel, What Role would you Play?
Part Three – The Sidekick
Sidekick’s play a vital role in every novel. They are the character who strengthens and builds up the hero whenever he/she is down. They provide comfort, advice, a shoulder to cry on, whatever the hero needs. Author Bronwyn Williams explains, “The sidekick tends to be the more passive, literate character who fulfills the groundwork in order to free his or her hero to perform the action.”
A primary relationship between a hero and the sidekick is trust and loyalty. This bond should be unbreakable. And what often happens is when the hero is at his darkest moment, it always seems to be the sidekick who steps in to build the hero back up. So in some ways, the sidekick is also a hero.
Think about your life. Who are you a sidekick to?
For me it’s often my husband and my children. I want to support them. I want to make them feel good about themselves. But most importantly, I want them to know that in their story, they are the hero. And as a sidekick, it’s my job to encourage them to make the right choices, to stand up for what they believe in, and to never waver, thereby helping them to achieve hero status.
One of my favorite quotes regarding sidekicks is from Rachel Hawkins book Spellbound:
“Okay, fine. But just so you know, following me into hell means you're all definitely the sidekicks.”
Who are some of your favorite sidekicks?
--
Rachel McClellan
www.RachelMcClellan.com
Excerpt from Fractured Soul
As
soon as the Vyken appeared in the doorway, I tossed a ball hard. He dodged it
by jumping up along the side of the wall, his nails and bare toes somehow
finding a hold in the thin cracks of the wall. I threw another one, but he was
already moving, scrambling alongside the stones like a spider. He was grinning.
I rolled away from the wall until I was in the middle of the room. I lost sight
of him for just a fraction of a second, but that was enough. The Vyken was gone,
or, I should say, hiding. He was still here. I could feel him. I looked up
toward the rafters of the tower roof. It was pitch black.
At the bottom of the tower, I heard Christian begin to ascend the stairs. “I’m
coming, Llona!” he yelled.
Still staring up, I created Light again in the palm of my hand and willed it to
rise. The closer it got to the rafters the faster my heart beat. Sweat rolled
down the small of my back.
Light began to fill dark spaces, exposing that which wished to remain hidden.
My Vyken was there, but he wasn’t alone. Another sat crouched on a beam. Where
his left eye should’ve been there was an empty hole.
I screamed when my Vyken dropped from the ceiling, extinguishing the light. He
fell onto my stomach, pushing my shoulders into the floor. I tried to create
Light, but it was as if he knew what I was going to do because his hands
slipped up and pinned my wrists together. He bent forward and inhaled my skin.
The warmth of his breath steamed my ear when he said, “I’m going to eat every
part of you.”
About Fractured Soul (sequel to Fractured Light)
Llona
will do whatever it takes to protect her new found friends and home, but the
dark plot threatening Lucent Academy, a school that’s supposed to be a safe
place for Auras, may be too powerful for even Llona to defeat. This fast-paced
tale of love, loyalty, and overcoming the darkness will keep you on the edge of
your seat until the last page!
What others are saying:
“I love these books! A kick-butt heroine and a
hottie love interest, with a refreshingly original concept. Be prepared—once
you start, these are hard to put down.”
—Paula Cotton, book reviewer at ReadingLark.blogspot.com
“Fractured Soul is a brilliant
sequel, exceeding even the remarkable first book in the series. It will haunt
your every waking moment between the times you’re reading it, and it will stay
with you long after you’ve finished. It’s an amazingly well written and
engrossing story that I highly recommend—after you’ve read the first one, of
course.”
—Cindy Bennett, bestselling author of Geek Girl and Rapunzel Untangled
Author Bio
Rachel
McClellan was born and raised in Idaho, a place secretly known for its
supernatural creatures. When she's not in her writing lair, she's partying with
her husband and four crazy, yet lovable, children. Rachel's love for
storytelling began as a child when the moon first possessed the night. For when
the lights went out, her imagination painted a whole new world. And what a
scary world it was...
Find Rachel
Buy Fractured Light
Buy Fractured Soul
About
Fractured Light
Llona Reese is used to living on the run. After
the Vykens killed her parents, she knew they would eventually come for her too.
She can’t take any chances. But when she starts to make friends for the first
time in her life, she gets careless and lets her guard down. Big mistake.
As an Aura, Llona can manipulate light and harness its energy. But if she wants
to survive, Llona will have to defy the Auran Council and learn to use her
power as a weapon against the Vyken whose sole desire is to take her light. Now
she’s caught in something even bigger than she can understand, with a power she
can’t wield, and no one she can trust, except, just maybe, a mysterious
stranger.
a Rafflecopter giveaway
Vibe Grey Apathy is the first installment of my short story series. It's about 8800 words long and is perfect for those who love crime, science fiction, dystopian societies and a bit of the paranormal.
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Jen McConnel first began writing poetry as a child. Since then, her words have appeared in a variety of magazines and journals, including Sagewoman, PanGaia, and The Storyteller (where she won the people’s choice 3rd place award for her poem, “Luna”). 
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