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I want to hear the songs of the Wovlen.
Who are the Wovlen? They are a group of people I created. Keegan, the hero in my series (Tales of the Wovlen) is a Wovlen. If you would like to learn more about them, you can check out their page on my website: The Wovlen (it even has a pronunciation guide to help you, because I know you are trying to figure out how to say it right now...). The Wovlen have a complicated history and culture. And, yes, they even have their own folk songs and lore. You can read some of their songs on my website: Legends and Lore from Tales of the Wovlen. I would love nothing more than to hear the songs of the Wovlen playing on my computer. I want to actually hear someone put them to music and sing them. The songs I have written are really only poems. Out of all of my poems, only four of them have a tune that I came up with to sing them to. And of those tunes.... well... dang-it Jim, I'm an author, not a musician! So they aren't very good. One of my favorite YouTube artists is Karliene. She has a whole playlist to herself on my YouTube, which you can listen to HERE (and I do suggest you listen to at least a few of them). I love her voice. It's haunting, but still human. The way she composes her music and sings her songs - her style - is exactly what I hear when the Wovlen people sing me a song in the dead of night. Their haunting melodies never stay with me (I forget them by morning), but they force me to wake up and write them down before I forget the words. If I could choose anyone in the world to sing the songs of the Wovlen, I would choose Karliene... no offence to any of my musician friends. I love you and your music. Don't ever forget that. If you want to put my poems to music, go ahead! But, since none of you have done so yet...... I told my family about my fascination with Karliene's voice and that I feel her voice is perfect for the Wovlen songs. They suggested I contact her about it. They think it would be awesome if she made an entire album of Wovlen songs. They believe it would be a win/win for both Karliene and I - she would make money on the songs and album, and I would profit from the extra publicity. I, on the other hand, have this thing about contacting people (celebrities...cough, cough). I don't feel like I should message or call them out of the blue and ask them for stuff. It makes me feel like a pest, or one of those creepy people that we have all been warned about... Okay, no. That's not the real reason. I am afraid of being rejected. Plain and simple. I would rather approach the gal with money and offer her a paying job. I feel that, if I had money to offer, she'd at least take me seriously... and I'd take myself more seriously too. Alas, money and I are not on good terms. We remain distant acquaintances. My family also feel that I do not need to offer money to have my "songs" sang, especially when both parties would profit from it in this situation. I'm inclined to agree with them, but I'm still way to nervous to just contact the gal and ask her if she'd put my songs to music and sing them. After expressing my fears, my family took it a step further. We are all big fans of Celtic Woman, and one of our favorite voices from Celtic Woman has been Orla Fallon. Her voice is haunting and beautiful. Here are two of my favorite songs she has sang: Siúil a Run (Walk My Love) and Newgrange. Well, Orla has said that one of her dreams is to sing songs for a movie. My family really thinks my book is worthy of a movie. Therefore, they think I should contact Orla and ask if she would like to sing my Wovlen songs, and also see if she knew anyone who was in the movie making business. *Runs away... Hides under bed* Okay, so contacting Orla is probably WAAAAAAAAAAAAY out of the question. But is contacting Karliene, the YouTuber who has 50,000+ subscribers, out of the question? Would it be absolutely flagrant of me to send her a message and ask if she would be interested in working with me? Is it worth the risk? I don't expect much of a response, but what do you, my readers, think of this situation? Do you think I should let it lie? Or should I give it a try? To end this, I would like to leave you with one of my favorite songs by Karliene. She's a Game of Thrones fan. I'm not, but I love this song: You Win or You Die.
Space ships, playing cards, keys, and dragons, OH MY!
Here is a little video I made just yesterday about my favorite things that I own and geek out over. If you watch closely and look behind me, you can even see some of my favorite books!
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So, as I have been processing my grief and coping with the loss of my grandmother, I have turned into a YouTube junkie. More specifically, a short films junkie. I have been wasting an unbelievable amount of time watching short films and independently made "movies" on YouTube.
It's been a lot of fun! Before you rush off to YouTube and start doing it yourself, though, I gotta tell you that there have been a few short films I've watched that were pretty bad (and then there were a few that were worse than bad). However the good ones, the ones I like, I save to THIS PLAYLIST. If you want to have a fun short film marathon, you are welcome to start out on my list. I'd say it is a PG-13 list, in case you have kiddos that want to watch. Anyway. Of those videos I have saved, there have been a few about dragons. If you know me, you know that I EAT. THOSE. UP. Dragons - Can't get enough of them. Since I don't have anything better to post about, I thought I would share my top 3 favorite dragon short films from YouTube for your enjoyment. WARNING: The last one is a tear jerker!
No singing this week, kids. Sorry. However, I have three poems for you this time!
The first one today, "Song Of The Twisted Tree", is the one poem I had the most fun writing! My mother once told me that, if she ever owned a Bed & Breakfast, she would want to name it "The Twisted Tree" and have a sign by the door that read "Beware of the nuts!". Of course I had to write a song for it, and since my brain spends 95% of its time in a world of fantasy, I based it in the same, and it came out completely ridicules and fun! The tune I put it to is "O'Sullivans March", a traditional Irish song. The link will take you to a YouTube Video. In case you want to sing along, you should know that there is a "musical interlude" starting from 1:51 and lasting until 3:18 on the video where my song does not fit in. My little brothers and sisters just love to sing the song along with me, and they dance during the "interlude". They think it's a hoot!
Now, this short little poem is meant for summoning a dragon. If you speak it, the dragon nearest you will hear it and answer your call.
This summons must ONLY be used when you have no other choice. It isn't a "come to my tea-party" invitation. It is a "help me, help me, help me" sort of thing that the dragons take very seriously. I wrote it a long time ago when I was just a little kid, and it has changed a lot since then, and it still changes when I need it to. It's a very flexible poem. So, keep it in your pocket and use it wisely.
This song next song, "The Dragon's Breath", is a completely different pace from the other two. It is slow and sad.
I wrote it for the dragons in my books. The horrible things that I put my poor babies through sometimes require a soft, sad song to sooth them afterward. It actually goes to a song call "The Dragons Breath" composed by David Arkenstone. I took the liberty of putting together a video with my "lyrics" going to Arkenstone's music. Perhaps one day I will actually sing it for you, but, until then, you'll just have to keep your fingers crossed. Enjoy the video:
Picture - Amazon Affiliate Link
I am so excited that the third book in the Heroes of Ravenford series is out! I reviewed the first two books a while back, as you might recall (The Ruins on Stone Hill & The Serpent Cult).
I am going to make this review sweet and simple, since you can read everything about the world and the writing skill in my other two reviews. Author: F.P. Spirit Genre: Fiction/Fantasy/Sword & Sorcery Rating: 5/6 stars Synopsis: With the Serpent Cult vanquished, Ravenford is now safe. Or is it? A new threat comes to light that could endanger not just the town, but the entire continent of Thac. Once again our young Heroes must venture forth, this time to find an ancient monolith, hidden somewhere in the depths of the mysterious Darkwoods, far to the west of Ravenford. But first, they must deal with the arrogant Sir Fafnar and the Duke of Dunwynn. The Heroes have been accused of attacking a Dunwynn soldier. They must either prove their innocence, or be banished from Ravenford forever. Join our young Heroes and their new allies, as they face political exile, encounter strange mysteries, and confront grave dangers on their search for the Darkwoods Monolith. Will they be able to find it in time? Even so, what will be waiting for them there? Can they stop the Serpent Cult from gaining the secrets of the great Golem Thrall Master, or will the whole world be plunged into peril at the hands of the murderous cult? The Beginning: The Dark Monolith picks up the story right where the second book left off. There is some recapping to refresh the reader's memory, but then it swings right back into the story and the action, and it does so very smoothly. The Bottom Line: As with his last two books, author F.P. Spirit has not disappointed me with The Dark Monolith. Each book in the series has consecutively gotten better (something which I applaud the author for), and I have to say that The Dark Monolith is my favorite in the series thus far! Besides being packed with clean, fun adventure, great battles, and our beloved heroes who are full of sarcasm and wit, there is a lot more mystery, puzzle solving, and brain teasers presented in The Dark Monolith. I found myself trying to unravel the mysteries right along with the heroes. There is also a bit of a love triangle going on between a few of the character. Some of the shenanigans and conversations between the love sick peep had me laughing out loud more than once. As in the last two books, there are some brilliant plot twists. One of them in particular took me completely by surprise (an occurrence that rarely happens to this girl). However, unlike in the last two books, The Dark Monolith left me hanging off the edge of a cliff. As I read the last sentence, I started crying and hyperventilating... okay, not really. But, telling you that I was flustered at the author for leaving me hanging precariously, in the dark, at the end of the book just lacks the desperate expression I am searching for in this instance. I am pretty sure my favorite fictional people are about to die, and the author leaves me in the dark!? What in the blue blazes am I supposed to do with my life until the next book? (Other than finish writing my book...? Der, der, der...) Needless to say, I am DYING for the next book to come out.
Cons: There were a couple of mild cuss words (p*ss & d*amn) that were used in context and are easily skipped over. There was also a scene where a Succubus, a nude female demon, tries to seduce a few of the heroes, and there was a brief part where one of the characters walk to the river and find, much to his embarrassment, that the ladies are bathing. Neither scene was very graphic, but it is something that I would not really want my brothers to read. However, the demon is clearly depicted as a bad, bad guy, and is killed later on, and the dude who accidentally walked in on female bath time quickly bolted. Lesson learned.
As I said before, this book is my favorite in the series thus far and I can hardly wait for the next one to come out. I suspect that there will be a lot of dragons involved in it, and you know how much I LOVE dragons! The DRAGONS IN OUR MIDST series is, by far, one of my most favorite. It seriously ranks up there by Lord or the Rings. Bryan Davis, the author, awes me with his talent in making a labyrinth out of his plots while inputting a deep spiritual message throughout the story. One review has already voiced my thoughts perfectly: "... a contemporary fantasy story that inspires young people to dig deep within to find their God-given strengths and use them to overcome any obstacle. It’s a perfect blend of fantasy and science fiction with a Christian message."
These books are clean, intense, and fast paced, and the plot is brilliant! I would recommend these books to anyone - Christians and secular people alike. There are four books in the series: RAISING DRAGONS, THE CANDLESTONE, CIRCLES OF SEVEN, and TEARS OF A DRAGON. They are available in paperback, kindle, or audiobook. They are excellent in any format. Just pick one and get involved! This is an Amazon Affiliate Link. |
Kathryn FoglemanAuthor of the fantasy series, Tales of the Wovlen, Kathryn spends a great deal of time in the world of her imagination, having tea with fire breathing dragons, writing books on flying space ships, and practicing her mad scientist laugh with gusto. However, on occasion,she returns to this world just to play with her dog and blog about her fun. My BookGrab a Button!![]() Archives
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