A Discreet Gentleman of Discovery by Kris Tualla

Lynette: So Kris, an exciting day with the release of your new book.  Are you giving away anything to celebrate?
Kris: I'm giving away a keychain from the cathedral ruins (which are in the book) in Hamar, Norway, plus a "Norway is the new Scotland" coffee mug.

Lynette: Ruins?  Is your book contemporary or set in another time?
Kris: It is set in southern Norway in 1720.

Lynette: And this is only the first release in a series?
Kris: Yes. All of my heroes are Hansens, part of the fictional dynasty from Arendal, Norway. When I was thinking of intense heroes, I realized that Brander Hansen was deaf - and the story grew from there.

Lynette: I know you have a celebration going on over at your blog, also. And a comment there enters the reader in a contest for your keychain. What is that address?

http://kristualla.wordpress.com/

I know your hero is deaf. I am excited to read about your main character. And I know you have a book trailer in American Sign Language.

Kris: My silent trailer is here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NzBMPPVdZq8
And for the signing impaired: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Mjj986aaTR8

I have a lot to say about writing a deaf man in the 18th century!

http://www.KrisTualla.com

New releases - check out these titles! Available now!

The March 15 releases from Desert Breeze Publishing are available TODAY! Be sure to get your download so you can read TODAY, too.

Aren't these covers gorgeous? We will be posting more about each book as the day goes on. Keep checking in!

 Thanks for celebrating with us!

Writing Characters with Disabilities

Historically, characters with disabilities have been presented in the context of society's misperceptions. I will talk more about this over the next few weeks, but you will commonly see either amazing heroes (even if sometimes they are just living life) or terrible villains.

News Flash: People with disabilities are people first. We live our lives, whether or not our disability is apparent. Most people, if we live long enough, will experience some disability in our life.

A disability is a characteristic or attribute that sets the character apart in the same way hair color, eye color, height, and build do. As we write more realistic characters in our books, some of these characteristics will shine through.

Some of my friends have written such characters. Dave Bond's release, The Attache', features a hero who is losing his sight.  Kris Tualla's hero in A Discreet Gentleman of Discovery (March 15 release) is deaf , Tami Dee's hero Royal in Innocent Deception stutters.  Some of the people in my March 15 relase of More than a Job have developmental disabilities.

Check out these and more from my publisher at http://stores.desertbreezepublishing.com/StoreFront.bok