Publisher: Twilight Times Books
Genre: paranormal fantasy
Print ISBN: 978-1-60619-027-2
eBook ISBN: 978-1-60619-026-5
May 15, 2013 ebook
July 15, 2013 print
Pages: 168
Book Description:
Disfigured at birth and ostracized at school, Travis Hunter dreams of acceptance and secretly yearns for the affection of a beautiful young woman named Corrine. When a mysterious doctor promises to help Travis through something called lucid dreaming, Travis gets more than he ever bargained for and soon finds himself learning the secrets of love and life in a fantastic unconscious world.
Guest Post:
Guest Post:
The Importance of Books that Teach Empathy
I was a sensitive child. Books that taught empathy spoke to me in ways that to this day I still cannot verbalize. To Kill a Mockingbird, Grapes of Wrath, and Charlotte’s Web were read so many times that they became more than stories, they became personal memories.
Now in my thirties, I can still clearly see myself at twelve, sitting on the deck of our small suburban home, sipping iced tea, tears streaming down my face on a hot summer day, as I hurled the book Of Mice and Men away from me in defiance. I knew how it ended. I’d already read the book maybe half a dozen times. But somehow I thought that if I read it enough, if I wished hard enough — maybe, just maybe — I could change the ending- that these two misunderstood best friends could stay together.
When I decided to write my first book that’s what I wanted to do. I wanted to write a sweet, simple love story that spoke of acceptance. The problem? Today’s world is different. The books that so spoke to me as a young woman don’t exactly fit in a modern world. Today, there are computers and cell phones to interrupt a character’s every thought, books are five hundred page melodramas, and love is best served cold with a side of fangs.
The wonderful stories from my past did not contain epic battles. They were intense, internal struggles consisting mainly of dialogue between a just handful of characters. But they made you feel. Those stories made you walk away a better person. Lucid serves to show people that these kinds of stories are not doomed. They just need to be reworked a bit to incorporate bits and pieces of the real lives that young people live today. Today’s kids are the same people we were. They simply live in more fantastic surroundings and that needs to be acknowledged.
Thank you for your interest. I hope you enjoy Lucid. Not only is it a tool in reinforcing empathy through the story itself, but ten cents of every dollar I make will be donated to anti-bullying organizations.
Best,
Natalie
Chapter excerpt:
http://twilighttimesbooks.com/Lucid_ch1.html
I gave her a funny look and loosened the drawstrings. A dark green stone
fell out into my hand. It had little red splotches on it and was hung with three
small chains from a silver crescent that looked like the moon. The metal of the
crescent looked very old, as if it had been pounded by hand.
“You made me zink of it when you mentioned your dreams earlier.” Kelly
said. “I zought you might appreciate it.”
“What is it?”
“It’s a talisman. According to legend, it was originally used by da Lucid as a
gateway to da dream world.”
“That’s really cool,” I said, “What’s it got to do with me?”
“Talismans are very magical. Dey have da power to make extraordinary
transformations. Why don’t you keep it for a while? See how it works?”
“Oh, come on,” I disagreed. “You don’t really believe that, do you?”
Doctor Kelly smiled. “I believe very much in powerful transformations.”
Reviews
“Roers’ debut novel heralds the arrival of an intelligent, heartfelt voice in the world of young adult fiction. The rich characters, emotional complexity, and confident prose are matched only by the landscape of dreams that Roers sets them against… a landscape brought vividly to life by the author’s seemingly boundless imagination. This is a novel that respects its readers as much as its characters, and that’s a beautiful rarity.” ~ Mike Flanagan, Filmmaker, Absentia and Oculus
“Natalie Roers’ debut novel is both riveting and relevant. More than a paranormal/fantasy/thriller, this is a complex tale that cuts to the very of heart of issues facing young adults today. Well sculptured characters and powerful imagery propel Roers’ fascinating narrative.” ~ Jason Tinney Award-winning freelance journalist, musician, actor and the author of the story collection Bluebird.
“Lucid is an interesting story and a fun read.” ~ Amy Carol Reeves, author of Ripper and Renegade
“Natalie Roers’ voice is amazingly confident for a first novelist. Her journalist’s eye for human detail draws you in, and makes you care about the people who populate the LUCID world. The more I got to know them, both awake and asleep in the world of lucid dreaming, the more time I wanted to spend in their world.” ~ Jeff Howard, writer for Film District and Focus Features.
A veteran writer, voice artist, and on-air personality, Natalie Roers has been the host of hit radio and television shows in just about every region of the United States.
She also owns her own voice-over business where she creates everything from songs and ringtones to commercials and sound effects for clients around the globe.
A journalist by trade, Natalie is excited to venture into the world of fiction and hopes to raise money and social awareness for worthy causes with each book she writes. She lives with her husband Cory, and son Austin, in Columbia, South Carolina.
https://www.facebook.com/natalie.roers
https://www.facebook.com/jointhelucid
Goodreads
http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/16214486-lucid
Heavily based on the intriguing and relatable real world phenomenon of lucid dreaming (the ability to control ones’ dreams), Roers’ debut novel tells the anything but ordinary, coming of age story of a small town, teen aged, misfit named Travis Hunter.
Disfigured at birth and ostracized at school, Travis dreams of acceptance and secretly yearns for the affection of a beautiful young woman named Corrine. When a mysterious doctor promises to help Travis through lucid dreaming, Travis suddenly finds himself ushered into a secret society called “The Lucid”, a collection of social outcasts like himself, who have created their own world inside of dreams.
When Travis discovers he is able to bring Corrine into these dreams, he gets more than he ever bargained for and soon finds himself learning the secrets of love and life in a fantastic unconscious world.
With the doctor serving as their guide, Corrine and Travis embark on a powerful and often painful journey of self-discovery in order to unravel the mystery behind the lucid world and the people who inhabit it. The plot thickens when a destructive outside force uncovers their abilities and will stop at nothing to steal their power.
Debuting during the height of the anti-bullying movement, Lucid is a timeless story of self-acceptance with a portion of the author’s proceeds being donated to bullying prevention efforts.
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Kourtney Heintz writes emotionally evocative speculative fiction that captures the deepest truths of being human. For her characters, love is a journey never a destination.
About the Author:
What do you want to be when you grow up? For a couple of decades I had a lot of answers to that question. I was a filmmaker, a travelling salesman, a bookseller, a videogame tester, and a videogame producer before I figured it out. What I discovered was that sometimes we save the best part for last. Now (and forever) I’m a writer.