Okay, so, who would I love to hear talk on a panel about books? They can be authors alive or dead, or even characters. Honestly? I’d love the panel to be focused on the writing process, world-building, and how to keep long series interesting.
World Building - Tolkien
First up would be the legendary J.R.R. Tolkien. His ability to create an entire world, complete with different languages and lineages is amazing. I love getting lost in descriptions of his. The beauty and detail of his world is something I don’t know if I’ll ever begin to come close to, but it’s inspiring.
Drive and Confidence - Amelia Atwater-Rhodes
Next, would have to be Amelia Atwater-Rhodes. She wrote a vampire series, starting with 'In The Forests of the Night,' when she was 13 years old. I’ve written countless stories since I was that age, but nothing complete or even near being published. I have not re-read her books since I was her age but I remember loving them. I'd love to have that kind of drive to write what I wanted, despite the voices (from myself or others) saying it's not likely to happen.
Endurance - K.A. Applegate
I'd want to learn how to keep a series going for a very long time without losing the interest of your readers. There are so many series that span many many books but the one from my childhood that springs to mind is Animorphs by K.A. Applegate. I’ll be honest, I did not read every single book in the series but I read most. (Including the Megamorphs offshoots and other specials about other alien races in the universe.) That kind of series endurance would be so great to get right.
Foreshadowing - J.K. Rowling
Lastly, I can't forget J.K. Rowling. The foreshadowing in her books is so much fun, especially on a second or third read. I'd love to learn how she planned everything out, if she knew each and every plot twist and turn at the start or if the story reviled it'self to her as she went and cleverly took things that already were there to make all the connections. I want to learn how to do both.
There are so many more people I could add to this list but these four feel like a good start. Thank you Eventbrite for the great idea...now I feel like opening scrivener to start planning my epic series...