Wishapick Blog Tour - Author Guest Post by M.M. Allen

Creating Mood in a Story and with Music

MM Allen & Deborah Wynne MM Allen: Mood is a feeling a reader or listener gets when reading a book or listening to music. It can also be a variety of feelings all at once. What you feel when reading a book or listening to music is created by the author or composer for your enjoyment. I develop mood in my stories using words, dialogue, descriptions and action. Within my narrative, I may change the mood by describing an action. In Wishapick, Jack had many harrowing, ominous, and heroic moments involving his interactions with King O’Sirus. In the passage below, in his last battle with the king, Jack in one second of descriptive action was rendered helpless.

He knew he was in trouble as the king thrashed his head about in a rage. Jack barely held on. Yellow bile dripped from the king’s mouth. Jack lost his grip and slipped. The king flexed his muscular body and tossed his head. Chest first, Jack crashed onto the meadow. In agony, with the wind knocked out of him, unable to move, he curled his body into a fetal position. – Excerpt from Wishapick, Tickety Boo and the Black Trunk.

Deborah Wynne: Creating mood in music is similar to creating mood in a story, but rather than dialogue, action and descriptions, a composer will use melody, rhythm, tempo and mode, among other things. If I want a happy mood for a song, I will often use complimenting harmonies in the melody line, a smooth rhythm, an upbeat tempo and a major tonality/mode. If I want to change the mood in a piece of music, I might move to a slower tempo and perhaps a minor tonality/mode, which will feel more contemplative or sad. The mood of a song must of course fit the lyrics. On the Wishapick Cd, an example of mood change in a song would be in King O’Sirus and Queen Sanctuary. When King O’Sirus (a threatening character) is singing, the tonality is in the minor mode and he sounds quite scary, but as Queen Sanctuary (a character of grace and goodwill) begins to sing, the mode changes to a major tonality and the mood of the song moves from scary to comforting. The lyrics below reflect this change of mood. King O’Sirus: I’m the King of the night and I’ll give you such a fright, if you fall into my deep dark den. I will coil, I will hiss and my rattle you can’ miss, so welcome now let’s begin. Queen Sanctuary: Go, Jack, to the deepest darkest place, go now and don’t worry. I will help you, soon you shall escape, my name is Queen Sanctuary. –Lyrics from Wishapick, Tickety Boo and the Black Trunk. MM & Deborah: Words, imagery, and sounds take on a different meaning when presented by different authors and composers. Interesting, exciting and fresh ideas spark our imaginations through the feelings a story or piece of music evoke in us. To feel something uniquely ours, whether it be happy, sad, whimsical or forlorn, is the authors or composers gift to us as reader or listener. We do hope the feelings you get from our work, Wishapick, Tickety Boo and the Black Trunk will spark your imagination so that new exciting fresh ideas will be born into the work you do. With every good wish - MM Allen & Deborah Wynne Wishapick, Tickety Boo and the Black Trunk

About Wishapick: Tickety Boo and the Black Trunk

Darkness. Utter blackness. Was this why his mother had refused to let Jack unlock his father’s old trunk? It had been two years since his dad had died, and all Jack could think about was examining whatever treasures were stored inside the beloved trunk. But when he finally lifted the lid, he didn’t just fall in—he fell through it into a pit of rattlesnakes! Trying to recall his mother’s stories about “the Breath of All Good Things”—anything to shed light on his current situation—Jack wishes he’d paid better attention rather than mock the tales as childish myths…and that he’d waited to enter the trunk with his sister, Lilly, so they could at least face this together. Like L. Frank Baum’s Oz and C. S. Lewis’s Narnia, M. M. Allen brings to life the fantastical world of Wishapick—a land of courageous animals ruled by a cruel rattlesnake king who has condemned the villagers to live without light. Chosen as the reluctant hero to save the villagers, Jack must face terrifying creatures and overwhelming odds if he wants to help his new friends—and return home himself.

"... a breathy and fantastical storytelling style, imaginations will flourish and the tale will be enjoyed by kids ages 8-12 who enjoy the genre of fantasy.”—The Children's Book Review

Wishapick: Tickety Boo and the Black Trunk is available on Amazon.

Fun Stuff

Wishapick Soundtrack Be sure to check out the companion music CD, Wishapick, for purchase or download from DeborahWynne.com Book Club Questions Get to the heart of Wishapick by downloading this set of book club questions: Wishapick by M. M. Allen: Book Club Questions

About M. M. Allen

M. M. Allen, author of the acclaimed children’s picture book Let’s Play Ball, is the mother of two adult children and aunt to twenty-three nieces and nephews, including ten great-nieces and great-nephews. MM is a former teacher and university lecturer. She has also worked extensively in marketing and communications with varied businesses and non-profits. MM lives in a picturesque northern California town where she enjoys writing, tending to her rose garden, and caring for her West Highland terrier, Pip. www.Wishapick.com | Facebook

About Deborah Wynne

Composer and lyricist Deborah Wynne created a companion CD of songs to accompany Wishapick: Tickety Boo and the Black Trunk. Wynne’s primary talents lie in choral singing, stage musicals, and composing. Her musical projects include the 2013 album Strands of Gold and 2007 musical Moment of Truth. She is an active singer and composer in Santa Barbara, California, where she lives with her husband and their two shelties, Sparkle and Gracie. DeborahWynne.com

Wishapick and iPod Nano Giveaway

Enter to win an autographed copy of Wishapick: Tickety Boo and the Black Trunk written by acclaimed author M. M. Allen; plus an Apple iPod Nano to listen to your downloaded copy of the Wishapick: Tickety Boo and the Black Trunk soundtrack composed by the talented Deborah Wynne! Giveaway begins November 5, 2015, at 12:01 A.M. PST and ends December 31, 2015, at 11:59 P.M. PST. a Rafflecopter giveaway

Wishapick Tour Dates

Thursday November 5 2015 The Children's Book Review Tour Kick-Off & Giveaway Friday November 6 2015 The Review Wire Book Excerpt & Soundtrack Clip Tuesday November 17 2015 Suz Reviews Creating Mood in a Story with Music Monday November 23 2015 On Starships & Dragonwings 5 Things About the World of Wishapick Tuesday November 24 2015 Valerie's Reviews Book Excerpt & Soundtrack Clip Tuesday November 27 2015 Batch of Books Author Interview with M. M. Allen Saturday December 5 2015 The Fairview Review Wishapick Book Review Thursday December 10 2015 Inspired by Savannah Wishapick Book Review Tuesday December 15 2015 Just Another Mom Wishapick Book Review Wednesday December 23 2015 Satisfaction for Insatiable Readers Author Interview with M. M. Allen Sunday December 27 2015 Little Miss History Author Interview with M. M. Allen