Kevin Hearne was in town tonight and gave a fun-filled, informative talk on writing, teaching, and whiskey. He is a hoot! I had four thousand questions I wanted to ask him, but he had only an hour and there were quite a few of his fans there, all wanting to ask questions.
Kevin writes Celtic urban fantasy. His lead character is great - Atticus talks with his dog, Olerion. And is in big trouble with a band of gods, hell-bent on killing him. It's a fun read and great story.
Three points made me want to shout hooray. He says publishers are more and more open to having women as the main character in an epic fantasy. That is great news for me. Writers and editors here in the Midwest have been chiding me forever about making my main character male because it won't be published otherwise. So - Kevin gives me hope.
Second point - characters are now driving books. I absolutely adore my main character, so this is good news for me, too. I feel I have permission to flesh her out even more.
Third point - cover art. He says women characters are being portrayed more as women than sex symbols. This is good news - not that I don't think Zena was fun.... Even though I'm writing fantasy, I still want Kathleen to be dressed for the front cover.
All in all, it was a great night. Refreshing to find an author so at ease, so ribald, and so fun-loving. Not a hint of ego. It was a great evening. If you get a chance. borrow one of his books from your local library. Or better yet, buy one!
http://www.kevinhearne.com/
http://www.kevinhearne.com/writers-grove (This blog has a great article about the economics of author tours. I learned a truckload from it.)
Life is fun.
So glad you had such a wonderful opportunity!
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