Tag Archives: Brynn Stein

Guest Author: Brynn Stein!

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Today my guest is Brynn Stein–fellow Dreamspinner and Harmony Ink Press author! Welcome Brynn and thank you for visiting!

This is the ninth stop on my blog tour. I’m having such fun, as I always do on these tours, talking about various aspects of writing in general, and Ray of Sunlight in particular and getting to know all of you. Thanks so much for following the tour. If this is your first stop, feel free to go back and comment on the others, listed below, to be entered to win one of five prizes. More about that later.

Thanks so much for having me on your blog today, Charley. I always love dropping by.

Characters inspired by real life people…sort of.

I’ve already mentioned that Russ was inspired by my students and the homophobes in the story by the people I work with. Now I’d like to talk about CJ’s inspiration. At least part of it.

Years ago, when I was a homebound instructor, raising my own two small children, I taught a little girl with the same kind of cancer CJ has. Let’s call her Jessica.

Jessica was twelve and a half years old and had been fighting cancer for six months when I first met her. Because she was in and out of the hospital and even when she wasn’t she was way too sick to go to school, she need homebound instruction. That means the county schools paid for me to go into her home and work with her so she wouldn’t get too far behind in her studies.

When she was in the Children’s Hospital, of course, she had an educator on staff there who worked with her, but I still visited and kept up to date with what was going on with her. So, by virtue of working so closely with her, I know the symptoms of that kind of cancer, the toll chemo takes on a young body, how education in a children’s hospital works, and unfortunately, how it feels to lose someone so young to cancer.

I worked with her for almost two years. She had just turned fourteen when she went into the hospital for the last time. I visited her, as I always had, but she told me that day that she wouldn’t be there tomorrow. She said that for the first time in two years, she didn’t hurt. (She was always in pain, even with the high powered pain killers she was on). The nurses explained to me that that sometimes happens. The patient’s body shuts down enough toward the end that it doesn’t carry pain impulses anymore.

She was right. She died that evening. Her dad called me the next morning. (I didn’t know him as well as I knew her mom, but mom was justifiably distraught and wasn’t making phone calls.) I think I cried for the rest of the day. She wasn’t the first student I lost to death. And she wasn’t the last. But each one is devastating.

So, now, it feels like a little part of her is immortalized in CJ. He’s really nothing like her, except maybe that indomitable twinkle in his eye. He’s a different age; he has a very different home life. But still…Jessica is sort of the inspiration.

 

What about all of you? Writers, do you find that your characters are inspired by real life people? Maybe they’re not really anything like them, but the fact that you knew this one real life person went a long way toward your development of this fictional character? Readers, I’m sure far too many of you have had experience with loved ones, or at least people you know, having cancer. I’d love to hear your stories, if you’d like to share short memories, or better yet triumphs, of the people in your life who have fought or are fighting cancer.

Comment below for a chance to win.

Here’s how the giveaway will work. Visit as many sites as you want, as often as you want. Each comment will enter you to win one of the following prizes: 1st) An autographed paperback copy of Ray of Sunlight, 2nd) An electronic copy of Ray of Sunlight, 3rd) Your choice of audio or electronic copy of Living Again, 4th) An electronic copy of Through the Years, and 5th) an electronic copy of Haunted. The takeovers for Harmony Ink’s blog and Facebook page will be part of the tour, so comments on there will count. I will draw the winners during the FB takeover and will announce them then, but will come back and announce it to all the sites too. So, you don’t have to leave your email address here if you don’t want to, just remember to check back. You’re also welcome to leave your email in the comments if you’d rather or email me at brynnstein2@gmail.com with the subject heading of “just in case”, so I can contact you if you win, if you don’t want to have to stop back by the blog sites. You don’t have to be present at the FB takeover to win.

Thanks for playing.

 

Blog Tour Stops
3/3/2015 Bike Books Review http://bikebookreviews.blogspot.com/
3/4/2015 Grace Duncan http://www.grace-duncan.com/
3/5/2015 Susan Laine https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/5221828.Susan_Laine/blog
3/6/2015 Jo Ramsey http://www.joramsey.com/blog/
3/7/2015 Alicia Nordwell http://ciasstories.blogspot.com/2015/01/visiting-author-brynn-stein-with-ray-of.html
3/8/2015 Jana Denardo https://www.goodreads.com/author_blog_posts/
3/9/2015 Lex Chase http://lexchase.com/blog/author/megs/
3/10/2015 Sean Michael http://seanmichaelwrites.blogspot.ca/
3/11/2015 Charley Descoteaux and Charli Green https://cdescoteauxwrites.com/2015/03/11/guest-author-brynn-stein-4/ https://greencharli.wordpress.com
3/12/2015 Anne Barwell http://anne-barwell.livejournal.com/
3/13/2015 Karenna Colcroft http://www.karennacolcroft.com
3/14/2015 Anna Butler http://annabutlerfiction.com/2015/03/14/brynn-stein/
3/15/2015 Nic Starr www.becausetwomenarebetterthanone.com
3/16/2015 Shae Conner http://shaeconnorwrites.com
3/17/2015 Jessica Davies http://jessicaskyedavies.blogspot.com/
3/18/2015 Aidee Ladnier http://www.aideeladnier.com.
3/19/2015 Emma Tett http://emmy-j.blogspot.co.uk/
3/20/2015 Harmony Ink Blog http://harmonyinkpress.com/
3/21/2015 Harmony Ink Facebook Page facebook.com/harmonyinkpress

 

Ray of Sunlight

Brynn Stein

 

Russ Michaels has his whole life ahead of him but no plans beyond dropping out of school as soon as he turns eighteen. He’s been in and out of juvenile detention for the last four years and thoroughly expects to end up in an adult penitentiary at some point. He hates life and everyone in it, especially this latest community service that he earned in lieu of juvie yet again.

CJ Calhoun has big plans. He wants to bring joy and happiness to sick and injured children for as long as he can by performing as a clown. The problem is, he has stage-four cancer and a horrible prognosis.

When circumstances throw these two polar opposites together, they find they have more in common than they imagined. CJ discovers Russ’s talent for art and arranges for Russ to create a mural in the hospital foyer, which leads to a tentative scholarship to the Art Institute. As life changes in ways neither of them could have expected, Russ must work harder than ever to better himself as CJ struggles with his deteriorating health.

Buy Ray of Sunlight: 

http://www.dreamspinnerpress.com/store/product_info.php?products_id=6176

http://www.harmonyinkpress.com/books/ray-of-sunlight-by-brynn-stein-261-b

https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/25005560-ray-of-sunlight?from_search=true

 

Brynn Stein has always loved to write. Fan fiction, original fiction, whatever. While Brynn wrote in numerous genres—everything from mystery, to contemporary, to supernatural—she had always tended toward strong male characters. And then she discovered “slash,” male/male romance, and all those strong male characters were finally allowed to express their love for one another. It seems that there are always at least two characters clamoring to tell Brynn their story.

Brynn lives in Virginia near her two grown daughters who encourage her writing and provide a sounding board for fledgling stories. When she isn’t writing, Brynn teaches children with special needs. In free time, when such a thing exists, she reads anything she can get her hands on, and haunts bookstores. She draws and paints, and enjoys the outdoors—especially if she can get to the beach—and is always thinking about her next story.

Please feel free to contact Brynn at any of the following:
http://brynnstein2.wordpress.com
https://www.facebook.com/brynn.stein
brynnstein2@gmail.com

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Guest Author: Brynn Stein!

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If the name Brynn Stein sounds familiar, it’s because she’s been here before. Oh, and her book Living Again is also a bestseller! She’s here talking about common themes in her stories, and there’s a giveaway!

Thanks for visiting, Brynn, and best of luck on the rest of your tour!

 

Living Again

 

Hi all,

I’m enjoying my blog tour so far, and have gotten a fair number of responses for my giveaway. If you haven’t seen any of my other stops on this tour, here’s how the giveaway will work. Comment below, and go to as many sites listed in the blog schedule as you’d like and comment there as well. Each blog you comment on will earn you one entry for my giveaway. Three prizes will be given. One signed paperback copy, and two electronic copies of Living Again.

Now to talk about other things.

Since I just got my promo pack for my next story, I thought I’d tell you a little about it. It’s called Through the Years and follows the two lead characters across almost fifty years. They met in the 1960s and instantly clicked, though one character, Gene, didn’t really think anything romantic could come of it and he was okay with that, as long as he could be with Edward. Edward, on the other hand, started having romantic feelings toward Gene, and was terrified by it, due to his homophobic upbringing. So much so that he left the state and stopped communicating with Gene altogether. They meet again a couple years later and the story goes on from there, but for the purpose of this blog stop, I’d like to focus on that early part.

I’ve mentioned in some of my other posts during this blog tour, that homophobia often plays a big part in my stories, largely because I see it so much, either blatantly or subtly in my daily life here in the Bible Belt. Not all churches are blatantly homophobic and I try to make sure that shows up in most of my stories too. There is very little mention of the church in general in either Haunted or Living Again but several churches appear across the decades in Through the Years, from Edward’s extremely homophobic church to much more accepting churches that actually welcome the gay couple later.

While my stories don’t have the church in common, they do all have extremely homophobic characters. A powerful man who all but owns the town that Jason lived in before he was killed, in Haunted. Daniel’s Uncle Lawrence, in Living Again; and numerous people in Through the Years. There’s Edward’s family, first and foremost, but there’s also his pastor, several people on the college campus where they met, and a small gang of people who encounter Gene years later and take exception to the fact that he was gay.

Another thing these three stories have in common is the theme of family. Some of the families are supportive like Jason’s in Haunted, but most aren’t. Neither Daniel’s nor Jonah’s family is supportive of their lifestyle in Living Again. In Through the Years Edward’s parents most certainly are not, though there are other family members across the decades who are, indeed, supportive.

These last two books both have children with disabilities in them as well. In Living Again, Ethan is a huge part of the story, where in Through the Years we don’t meet Luca until much later in the story and while I wouldn’t call him a minor character, he doesn’t have quite as much impact on the storyline as Ethan does.

I’m always surprised how my characters, who, of course, all draw from my experiences and research, can have such different stories to tell. Yes, there are similarities because I draw from a finite set of personal experiences and interests, but they all manage to retain their individuality anyway.

What about you, writers? Do you find similarities in some of the elements of various stories you have written? And readers, have you followed an author and found common threads here and there, even though the stories themselves were very different?

Comment below and let me know.

 

Below is my Blog Schedule. Thanks so much for stopping by today. Please pay a visit to these other blog sites as well. Don’t forget, the more you comment, the greater your chance of winning a copy of Living Again.

Blog Schedule:

Blog Stop Date of blog Host Address of Blog
1 7/8/2014 Jessica Davies http://jessicaskyedavies.blogspot.com/2014/07/warm-hearts-relaunch-1-brynn-stein.html

 
2 7/10/2014 Grace Duncan http://www.grace-duncan.com/guest-author-brynn-stein/
3 7/11/2014 Emma Tett http://emmy-j.blogspot.co.uk/2014/07/brynn-stein.html
4 7/14/2014 Tara Lain http://taralain.com/2014/07/brynn-stein-brings-living-giveaways/
5 7/16/2014 Charlie Cochet’s Tea House http://purpleroseteahouse.charliecochet.com/brynn-stein-living-again-blog-tour-and-giveaway/
6 7/18/2014 Lex Chase http://lexchase.com
7 7/21/2014 Anne Barwell http://annebarwell.wordpress.com/2014/07/22/welcome-brynn-stein/
8 7/22/2014 Suki http://sukifleet.wordpress.com/2014/07/22/guest-post-brynn-stein/
9 7/24/2014 JP Barnaby http://www.jpbarnaby.com/?p=2679
10 7/28/2014 Tempest O’Riley http://tempesteoriley.com/blog-tour-for-living-again/
11 8/4/2014 Kit Moss http://kitmossreviews.blogspot.com
12 8/7/2014 Michael Rupured http://rupured.com/?p=3809&shareadraft=53e147c0d5640
13 8/11/2014 Shae Connor http://shaeconnorwrites.com
14 8/14/2014 Charley Descoteaux https://cdescoteauxwrites.com/blog
15 8/18/2014 Elizabeth Noble http://www.elizabeth-noble.com/my-blog
16 8/21/2014 Grace Duncan http://www.grace-duncan.com/graces-blog

 

 

Blurb of Living Again:

Daniel Larson has walled himself off from any possibility of romance since his lover died violently five years ago in Afghanistan. The same bomb that ended his partner’s life took the lower part of Daniel’s left leg. The only support Daniel has, his Uncle Lawrence, is dead-set against anything homosexual, including Daniel.

Now, a popular language teacher at the local university, Daniel’s suffering from a car accident that broke his one good leg. His uncle, who is much better at throwing money at things than offering emotional support, provides a rented power chair and a private in-home nurse. Unbeknownst to his uncle, the nurse comes in the form of a man named Jonah Thacker.

Instantly attracted, Daniel and Jonah fight their mutual feelings in favor of professionalism. They become friends anyway, and Jonah shares his life with Daniel, including his handicapped son, Ethan. As Jonah and Daniel grow closer, Daniel becomes more involved in Jonah and his son’s lives, even being there for Ethan when his medical conditions worsen. But when Daniel’s uncle finds out the nurse he’s hired is male, he uses all of his resources to keep Jonah and Daniel apart.

Buy Links:

Dreamspinner

http://www.dreamspinnerpress.com/store/product_info.php?products_id=5240&cPath=55_887

Goodreads

https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/22575458-living-again?from_search=true

 

Brynn’s Bio:

Brynn Stein has always loved to write. Fan fiction, original fiction, whatever. While Brynn wrote in numerous genres—everything from mystery, to contemporary, to supernatural—she had always tended toward strong male characters. And then she discovered “slash,” male/male romance, and all those strong male characters were finally allowed to express their love for one another. It seems that there are always at least two characters clamoring to tell Brynn their story.

Brynn lives in Virginia with one of her two two-legged children, and two four-legged ones. Her supportive family encourages her writing and provides a sounding board for fledgling stories. When she isn’t writing, Brynn teaches children with special needs. In free time, when such a thing exists, she reads anything she can get her hands on, and haunts bookstores. She draws and paints, and enjoys the outdoors—especially if she can get to the beach—and is always thinking about her next story.

Please feel free to contact Brynn at any of the following:

http://brynnstein2.wix.com/books-and-thoughts
https://twitter.com/BrynnStein
http://brynnstein2.wordpress.com
https://www.facebook.com/
brynnstein2@gmail.com

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