Meet MG/YA Author B. Roman

Carpinello's Writing Pages welcomes MG/YA author B. Roman. She has also had an extensive writing career in newspapers and magazine.

First, a bit about B. Roman:

I began performing as a jazz/pop vocalist while still a teenager and continued performing until recently. Through the years I was always writing in one form or another - be it poetry, essays and songs. I studied Communications and Journalism in college, became a staff and free lance writer for newspapers and magazines on the subjects of music, fitness, film, theater, and dance. I was published and also self-published books on music and its power to affect changes in your life and health. I also created and presented workshops on writing books for children and how to use original song lyrics as a way to develop self-awareness.

Why did you pick to write books for Middle Grade & YA?

Actually it was an accident (of fate?). After many years of writing on non-fiction subject matter, I was working for a software company in Santa Cruz when there was a complete power outage. With nothing to do for about 3 hours, I was inspired to write my first children’s book, “Horace Won’t Sing - Unless He Doesn’t Have To.” It’s a humorous combination of prose and poetry. Shortly after, I wrote two more children’s stories on sheer inspiration. I was thinking about a new picture book called “The Crystal Clipper,” but it grew and grew in scope and Voila! the first book in the Moon Singer Trilogy was born. I was hooked after that and finished Books 2 & 3 out of a compulsion to see the stories through. They can be considered middle grade and young adult books.

What types of books do you like to read?

I run the gamut - from spiritual books:  e.g., Conversations with God, The Alchemist, The Power of Myth, to John Grisham legal thrillers as well as Anne Perry Victorian mysteries. And everything in between. I don’t like Gothic-type books about vampires, dark underworlds, teen killing machines, horror. I tend to like books that appeal to a higher consciousness. Even a good mystery that pits good against evil - when goodness wins out - falls into that category.

When you are not writing, what do you like to do?

Well, I still work a pretty demanding and rewarding job as an Activities coordinator in a retirement community, so that takes a lot of time. Before my knees gave out I loved to tap dance and hope to get back to some kind of dancing soon. I also love to listen to music in my car as I drive around and sing along.

Tell us about The Moon Singer Trilogy and how the story came to be.

The Moon Singer Trilogy comprises The Crystal Clipper, The War Chamber, and The Wind Rose.  The stories have their roots in my delving into spiritual and supernatural subjects. I actually own a Singer crystal – shaped like a small sailboat - that inspired the first adventure, The Crystal Clipper.  I found this unique crystal at a crystal workshop one day – actually, it found me – which, it is said, is what crystals are preordained to do. I would hold the crystal up and ponder it now and then, and a story began to take hold in my mind. 

I used my own knowledge of music, and much research, to develop the plot, and there are additional facets to the stories that are informed by my own feelings about social issues, war, ethics, personal integrity, and discovering how one’s “disability” (David is a deaf teen) can be one’s greatest gift. But it is the desire, of creating something more magnificent than mundane that the characters all share and move the stories vigorously along.

Here's a peek at The Moon Singer Trilogy:

Teenager David Nickerson tries to cope with a series of family crises:  his sister’s paralysis in the car crash that killed their mother, his father’s lingering guilt over the accident, and his deafness after a serious illness. Always one to escape into fantasy, David’s experiments with crystal energy conjures the supernaturally-powered clipper ship Moon Singer, which transports him on three amazing journeys to astonishing dimensions of time and space. The people he encounters all have a soul connection to him, and their lives are destined to intertwine many times over.

Strangely, in these other worlds David finds he can hear for the first time in years, while at home he is just as deaf as before. With the help of a young girl who has the power of immortality in her song, and through the musical synergy of three sacred artifacts, David learns how to use his natural silence to complete his missions: to save a life that means more to him than his own. Thus, his disability becomes his greatest gift.

Have you written other books? If so, tell us a bit about them.

Whatever Became of Sin? is my “debut” as an author of suspense fiction. It’s about an activist lawyer who fights corporate corruption and who discovers that the child he buried a few years back was not his real daughter; in a heinous scheme driven by racial hatred and sexual obsession the two babies were switched in order to cover up murder and political conspiracies. He must find his real daughter before she, too, is the next victim.

On a lighter note, Hubert in Heaven - a hi-tech angel gets his wings, is a sweet, Christmas-themed  picture book. A hologram in a video game, Hubert is accidentally transported to Heaven, where he must stay until he finds his purpose. As an aspiring angel, he must perform many Heavenly tasks which he attempts to automate with his personal computer - to disastrously delightful results.

What’s next for your writing? Are you working on a new story?

Yes. I’m working on a Prequel to The Moon Singer Trilogy which delves into the mother/son relationship between David and Billie Nickerson. The story is set in the “here and the hereafter,”  telling the story from the Mother’s point of view before and after her death. It is more “chilling” and mysterious than the Trilogy and reveals why Billie decided to raise her son, David, to become a seeker of spiritual truth even though it places him in grave danger. The story is an illustration of a mother’s love and devotion that transcends the boundaries of time as she tries to guide her son to his destiny.

I’m also working on another suspense fiction with the wine industry as a backdrop to murder, scandal and lots of juicy surprises. While I love writing metaphysical fantasies, I like having something like a suspense story in the works to create a balance - and one genre seems to nurture the other for some reason.

Also, I want to have my other three children’s books published soon.

What advice do you have for other authors?

Write what inspires you, not what others think you should write. Be yourself, have your own voice. It’s a lot of hard work but if you are sincere in your craft you’ll find there are lots of people who are happy to help you reach your goals.

Anything else you want readers to know?

The age of self-publishing is a boon to writers of all genres and levels of experience.  Even if you think your book is not marketable to conventional publishers or ready for an agent, being able to produce your own books - that you can hold in your hands, and share and see and feel - is an amazing experience. I self published before I was picked up by Creativia Publishing and it opened new vistas of exposure for my writing. It also gave me the incentive to keep plugging away because I eventually found someone who now believes in me and my work. I’ve been writing for decades and am now breaking through.  So don’t give up.

Where can readers find you and your books?

All five are on Amazon as well as on my author page at Creativia Publishing. This link will give you some insights about each book and how I came to write them.