If you like #Pixar 's Onward, You'll Love BROKEN BRANCH FALLS

This IWSG post is brought to you by the Taking Back Beast World Campaign - Phase 2. Stand up to your Bullies!

You may or may not know, but there's an animated film coming out next month: Onward by Disney/Pixar. Last summer one of my sons saw a sneak peek trailer and showed me because it reminded him of my Beast World series.

When I watched it unfold, my heart sank. I literally started to shake and freak out! Even more crushing, some of my fave actors are the voices. The stories are different, but the setting is the same, identical. I knew I had to do something. And the Taking Back Beast World Campaign was born.

It was a great success for little old me, pushing me to publish WINDY HOLLOW, BW #3. I shook things up, made new friends, got great new reviews, started a weekly chat, sold more books, and got noticed by Pixar (they basically said I was nobody and told me to stop bothering them...Ha!) I don't want to sue, I just want recognition!

Now on to Phase 2. The movie comes out Mar 6, and it's time to speak out again. I'm so excited to have an awesome writing community of friends backing me up. I have big ideas, but not a lot of time and money to carry it all out, so I'm doing what I can. I re-published BROKEN BRANCH FALLS and am working on CRADLE ROCK. I've organized lots of posts and interviews and reviews and social send-outs.

I may even "protest" at a theater--not a bashing Pixar protest, but a total publicity stunt. If the news caught it, that would be great! It all depends on if I can get some folks to help me. Most people don't like confrontation or attention.

My goal is to get Beast World noticed. I'm going to display the comparisons in a positive way:

• If you like Disney/Pixar's Onward, you'll love BROKEN BRANCH FALLS by Tara Tyler

That way, it's a win-win!
And here are some more comparisons for you...

• If you liked Game of Thrones, you'll love EFFIGY by M.J. Fifield
• If you like the Hallmark Channel, you'll love the MAGUIRE'S CORNER series by Heather M Gardner and HOOSIER DAD by Elizabeth Seckman
• If you liked Melrose Place and Vampire Diaries, you'll love THE THIRTEENTH FLOOR series by Christine Rains
• If you liked Battlestar Galactica, you'll love CASSASTAR by Alex J. Cavanaugh
• If you liked The Outsiders, you'll love NOT GUILTY by C. Lee McKenzie
• If you liked Murder, She Wrote, you'll love MURDER AT THE MARINA by Ellen Jacobsen
• If you liked The Great Wall, you'll love DRAGONFLY WARRIOR by Jay Noel
• If you liked American Pie, you'll love THREE DAVES by Nicki Elson

There are many more, but that's all I could think of at the moment. Share yours in the comments!

I won't give up. I'm up for the challenge. And I'm always happy to have more helpers, or just give my posts a share. We "nobody" writers have to stick together and not let the big bully mega-corps walk all over us.

Thanks for your support!

Tara Tyler Talks #Goals and Remember Blog Hops?

Anyone fall of the Resolution Wagon yet?
I hope not! Keep at it all month and it SHOULD become a good habit.

I was really feeling the need for New Year's Resolutions this year. The treat train finally came to a stop, and I totally purged my pantry. Better eating is Goal #1 and my method is--if I don't buy it, I can't eat it!

Speaking of goal-setting, one of my writer friends appropriately pushes forward any goals not met the year before. As surprises, emergencies, and other life stuffs jump out at us throughout the year, our goals get shoved aside. Sometimes this is for the better. Maybe we weren't ready to publish yet, which is just one more step toward the worst part of books--the dreaded marketing... Not to mention, some unexpected experiences can add quality to our writing. No worries, we deal with what comes and adjust accordingly. So don't fret if you can't reach all your goals.

The first step toward achieving goals is to write them down (and I love lists). So here are my broad Writing goals for 2020:

• Taking back BEAST WORLD Campaign, Phase 2 - a subtle undercut jab at Pixar for appropriating my unique setting. Would love to have you JOIN THE CAUSE!
• Repub Cradle Rock, Simulation, and Disposal (and tweak Windy Hollow) -- 2 down, 4 to go!
• Publish GERTRUDE - the Nerdy Princess
• Write first draft of CONDUCTION, Pop Travel #4
• Polish and Submit FARTHER ALONG, Christian YA
• Connect more with writer friends by posting more often
• Market more... ugh.

My process: chip away at this list on the weekends and go gung ho during the summer.

What are your goals for this year?? 

Let's help each other stay on track. I'll be checking in more regularly this year. Hopefully that will help!

One way to connect more... Remember Blog Hops? I was just reminiscing about how much I liked them and how I met new writer friends when we used to do them... and BLAMMO!
Patricia Josephine is having one!

Valentine's Day is ABDUCTED LIFE's birthday. To celebrate, Patricia's asking us to write a little story about being abducted by aliens... sounds like fun! I'm making the time.

Here are the deets:

• Possible approaches: Government report. First person encounter. Stowing away on an alien spaceship. Maybe write it from the alien's POV. Go to the Outer Limits!
• 500 words or less. 
• Posts will go up the week of Valentine's Day.

I hope you join in! Sign ups for the blog hop
(This prompt also fit right into another contest I happened to find, so I already wrote my story--submitted to the contest too. Love when that happens. Thanks, Patricia!)

Good luck with your Goals & Keep Writing!

Tara Tyler Talks about #StarWars (spoilers!)

Happy New Year - bla bla bla

But seriously IWSG-ers, I hope you have a great 2020. If things are going badly, I hope you find a way to turn them around. If things are going well, keep up the good work!

January is a time of reflection. I want to raise the level of my blog from a once-a-month series of IWSG entries to more frequent and more substantial posts. I want to be more engaging!

And so, I give you my first post for 2020--

Let's go to the Movies??

Consider STAR WARS. (NOTE - Spoiler Alert! Plenty of annoying spoilers ahead)

There's nothing like the opening burst...

There's also nothing like the original trilogy. Sure, special effects are better now, CGI is amazing, and meeting new characters is always fun. BUT, just like the last season of Game of Thrones was rushed and lacking, this latest Star Wars trilogy was full of spontaneous, easily foiled threats and not much substance or explanation. I'm sorry to say, True Star Wars fans have been let down.

The Rise of Skywalker was a great action-adventure sci-fi movie, no doubt. My hub even liked it, and he's not a big SW fan. But my closet-nerd son and I felt a disturbance in the Force. So many story lines were severely under-developed and conveniently explained away with a glib comment for us all to accept. It was full of miraculous, impossible saves; instant armies, easy escapes, and predictable rebellious behavior... I felt like I was watching a teenager's spoof seeing what he could get away with--wouldn't it be cool if this happened!

Most egregious irritations:

• Poor Fin - so much potential wasted--they made this guy do nothing but annoy everyone, "Rey!" 
• And the Planet-Destroying Cannons upgrade on a surprise fleet of Star Destroyers--where did they come from? Santa? But the placement of the cannons gave me a chuckle. It was like they all got a kick in the crotch... that magically destroys the whole ship **eye roll**

There was No build up. No anticipation. No time to wonder what might happen, we know what's going to happen. As a writer, you know what I'm talking about.

I had more complaints, but I won't torture you further. And there were some good moments.

• I really liked the new female characters, but there wasn't enough time to expand on them. I would've been happier if they'd split it into two films just to give us some backstory and character development.
• Palpatine was a great twist. But what were all those zombie fans??
• Funny thing, I liked Kylo Ren's character arc (Frankly, I would've chosen him over Rey as a true Skywalker.
• It's just a good thing Chewy didn't die! (Told you there'd be spoilers!)

One saving grace for Star Wars fans: The Mandalorian is fantastic! It has everything the new movies don't, plus awesome LOL scenes and Baby Yoda!


Movies in general lately are lacking in quality and depth. Sequels, Spinoffs, and Remakes are the currency of the day. Over the holidays, I also saw JUMANJI 2 which was pretty terrific, better than expected, but still a sequel, with a teaser of another is in the works. And here are the previews we saw:

>>Scooby Doo origins              >>Mulan live-action              >> Dr. Dolittle upgrade

>> Black Widow spinoff              >>"new and improved" Ghostbusters sequel

Absolutely nothing original.
Money is the biggest motivator which is understandable since it is a business. But the industry isn't taking chances on anything new...

So I call on YOU, fellow writers!
Keep writing. Keep improving. And try a Screenplay! Submit to contests. Put your awesome works out there for these sheltered producers living in their Hollywood Bubble. They need us! (I just submitted JOLISSA to an animated screenplay contest!)

Okay, I think I've talked enough.

Oh, yeah. One last thing -- I'm putting together a team!

Disney/Pixar's Onward is coming out soon (you may remember me mentioning how they "stole" my Beast World concept) So I'm starting Phase 2 of my Taking Back Beast World campaign. I re-published BROKEN BRANCH FALLS!! And CRADLE ROCK is soon to follow.

If you're up for helping me promote the ORIGINAL Fantasy Creatures in High School, here's the new FORM
Thanks for your support!

And don't forget to join us for the #WedWrant Twitter chat tonight at 7:30 PM EST - be sure to use the hashtag!

Blessings a-plenty in 20-20!

Life is a bully - always kicking you when you're down

2019 has been a brutal year in my writing life, and there's even more turmoil ahead...

Over the next few months, I'm going to publish WINDY HOLLOW myself. I'm also going to try to get my previous books back and publishable so I can go sell them at events. My heart broke not being able to go to Ohioana this year. I'm trying very hard to be strong in this transition. And since I recently accepted a permanent teaching position--we need $$ to live--I will have very little time during the school year to work on writing. I guess the balance of writing/teaching had to be achieved. Thank you fate, life, yin-yang, Murphy's Law, etc. You suck.

Unfortunately, that's not all. My rant isn't over, so hold onto your seat. This is an IWSG post for the ages...

You see, recovery from losing all my books at once was a blow I could handle, I saw it coming and prepared myself. But as my title suggests, I'm being kicked while I'm trying to get back up off the floor.

The same day my army son drove away to move to his new home base, I saw this...

coming out in 2020

THIS IS BEAST WORLD!! It's SO NOT FAIR! And it's Chris Pratt, my fave actor! Though the story line is a little different, they're teenager fantasy creatures who live in a suburban fantasy world with no humans, going on a quest - HELLO! That is BEAST WORLD! AHHHHHHH!!!!! Wahhh. Oh, and here's their cool trailer. I'm so UPSET!

Those two main characters, Ian and Barley are so close to my camp guides, Trevor and Bonk in CRADLE ROCK. Onward could be their sideline story!

I know this happens sometimes, but to this degree?? It's such a stab to my heart! So what do I do about it? My publisher couldn't even keep their $#!+ together to publish my third book. I've been sent back to the start, slipped down the longest Chute without a Ladder.

Well, I'll tell you what I'm going to do about it. I'm going to go on a campaign to be heard. The least they can do is enlist my writing skills in adapting my Beast World series for sequels!! Right? Well, maybe that's the most they can do. But they have to do something! Anything! It's so not fair that no one can breach the realms of big productions from little hometowns in "flyover" states. I'm not young, I'm not rich, I have no connections, and I have so many responsibilities that I can't just pick up and leave. But I have ambition, determination, and will power. I can't give up. Just like my DARN AWESOME CHARACTERS - I will find a way!

As you know, I always look for a solution and try to find the positives. So through tear-filled eyes and self-pitying sniffles, here is what I came up with...

• I have the tools--technology, social media, terrific books already written with publish dates before their measly idea was born
• I have more time--it's summer! though I always have a ton to do, my kids are self-sufficient and I don't have to plan or grade until August... two months of as much writing stuff as I can cram in!
• I have you guys--I know I've been pretty lame at visiting other blogs, but I always offer my services and shout outs. I don't like asking for something without offering something in return! Here's a volunteer FORM if you have time to help here and there this summer, easy stuff!

Maybe this was the kick in the pants I needed. Maybe I can get one of those people to notice me--they are just people after all. Things happen for a reason and we usually don't know why until we get to the end result (Life, you still suck).

So, Dragons as pets? We'll change that to "drakes" because the real Dragons will make a big appearance in the next one. Just you wait!

Thanks, you guys. I needed that. More news soon. It's going to be a busy summer.