Yesterday’s Gone by Kelly Pawlik
Please welcome Kelly Pawlik author of Yesterday’s Gone
Kelly Pawlik will be awarding a $25 Amazon or Barnes and Noble GC to a randomly drawn winner via rafflecopter during the tour.
Yesterday’s Gone
by Kelly Pawlik
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GENRE: young adult horror sci-fi
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INTERVIEW:
What or who inspired you to start writing?
Honestly, I have no idea when the journey began! I’ve always loved to read and make up stories. My mother certainly encouraged my fondness for reading and writing, and I’ve had some great teachers along the way who did the same. I’m not sure there was a single step, or a single inspiration. Like so many adventures, it’s a process.
How did you come up with ideas for your books?
I love the kids-on-bikes style 80s movies, and I played this great TTRPG (table-top role playing game) called Tales from the Loop. These books are inspired by my experience with both.
What expertise did you bring to your writing?
I’ve been writing since I was a little kid, and in more recent years, I started working on TTRPGs. I’ve done a lot of freelance work with that, and it’s allowed me to try different writing styles, work with different editors and just push myself.
As far as your writing goes, what are your future plans?
More Olympic Vista Chronicles for sure. I have book four in progress, with plans for lots more, but I have a couple of ideas for some other series that would be smaller in scope, like three novels instead of so many novellas!
If you could be one of the characters from any of your books, who would it be and why?
Oh, that’s tough! All of the characters have such obstacles in front of them! I’d probably have to go with Adelaide. She has such a rough childhood, but Darius’ arrival is the catalyst for some good (and bad) things to start happening in her life. She has a rough road ahead of her, but it’s a great journey with some amazing friends.
When did you first decide to submit your work? Please tell us what or who encouraged you to take this big step?
So many people were talking of everything they accomplished with all their free time during the COVID lockdowns. I have three kids, and we started homeschooling because of some health concerns with my youngest. I hated that I hadn’t felt like I had accomplished anything “extra,” and so at the beginning of 2021 I decided to change that. I sat down and started writing. I took a couple of introduction to writing classes. I found an editor and coach to work with. And then I decided to take the leap. This book, Yesterday’s Gone, was published in July!
Do you outline your books or just start writing?
I have a rough outline, and a lot of notes, but then I just write. The characters often seem to know what they’re doing, I just have to throw the occasional obstacle in their way!
Have you started your next project? If so, can you share a little bit about your book?
I have! I’m working on book four in the Olympic Vista Chronicles. The kids are really starting to understand how strange their hometown is, and they are getting a bit bolder when it comes to investigating. This time, their investigations take them to a farm house on the outskirts of town.
Can you tell us a little bit about what it was like to write a series.
I love it! With novellas, rather than novels, it’s like episodes of a TV show, nice bite-sized pieces of entertainment with a larger overarching story. I’ve created books that are the perfect size for an afternoon read, or a good length for a younger crowd just getting into reading. There is an 11-year-old I know who doesn’t spend much time reading, but he is loving this series and it’s really encouraging him to read.
A series also means we really get to see the characters grow and evolve as people over time, while still digging into some key moments of their lives and how these strange occurrences in town affect them.
Anything else you might want to add?
These books are full of music references from the 70s and 80s. They are also full of adventurous kids, weird happenings, and everything that goes hand-in-hand with coming of age in the 80s. (Like no cell phones and riding around on bikes all day in a neon windbreaker.) If you enjoy any of that, I think you’ll love these books, and I’ve love it if you picked up a copy of Yesterday’s Gone (free for this blog tour!) and tried the series out.
BLURB:
Book one of the Olympic Vista Chronicles novella series follows Darius and Adelaide as they explore a house rumoured to be haunted. What they find is so much worse.
An eager new kid, a deadpan music-lover, a fast-talking troublemaker, an anxious bookworm and a girl torn between popularity and adventure. Follow this group of friends as they delve into the mysteries of their small town while juggling the trials and tribulations of their home lives.
A tale of friendship, love, and coming of age (with a healthy dose of horror) in the late 1980s.
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EXCERPT:
Darius glanced over at Adelaide. She looked out toward the playground. “So, I heard this place is weird,” he said. “Because of The Link.”
Adelaide’s gaze was still on the playground. Tetsu shrugged. Sophie flicked her hair over her shoulder and smiled.
“They do a lot of experiments there, I guess,” Kurt said. “They say it doesn’t affect us and there’s a lot of safety protocols in place. Between you and me, though,” Kurt said, leaning in, “it’s full of commies. They are the real threat.”
“Come on, Kurt,” Sophie said as she rolled her eyes.
Kurt pursed his lips and looked at the ground. “That’s what my dad says.”
“No one believes that. And the other stuff is just rumours,” Tetsu said. “Got nothin’ to do with commies or Nazis. It’s just some stupid science building and observatory.”
“What about the haunted house?” Darius had thought about it nonstop since he’d heard about it yesterday. He wanted to ask Dillon or the twin boys more about it, but he hadn’t seen them at the school. “Have you guys ever gone there?”
“What haunted house?” Adelaide’s eyes flicked back to him.
“The one on Hyacinth Street. It isn’t far from where I live.” Darius liked her eyes on him.
“That’s a really nice area,” Sophie cooed.
Darius shuffled a step away from Sophie. Unlike with Adelaide, he didn’t like how she looked at him.
“I was going to check it out.” Darius ran his hand through his hair, and looked back at Adelaide. “Tonight.”
Adelaide cocked her head and looked at him. “I’m in.”
Darius grinned.
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AUTHOR Bio and Links:
Kelly Pawlik dabbled with story writing from a young age. She spent her childhood reading, dressing her beloved cat, Midnight, up in doll clothes and hunting garter snakes in the backyard. Her childhood dream was to be a writer and she is proud to have made her fiction debut with the Olympic Vista Chronicles novellas.
Kelly is a tabletop roleplaying game (TTRPG) writer and has released multiple RPG supplements with her husband under their micro-publishing company, Dire Rugrat Publishing. She has also contributed to several best-selling works with Kobold Press.
Kelly lives on Vancouver Island, BC with her husband, their three inquisitive children, and two lazy cats.
Yesterday’s Goneis available on Amazon.com
Songs from the Wood, book two in the Olympic Vista Chronicles series, will be available on Amazon in September 2021. (I CAN SUPPLY THIS LINK ONCE IT IS RELEASED)
You can follow Kelly on:
Facebook: kellypawlikauthor
Instagram: kellypawlikauthor
Twitter: @KellyPawlik84 Or visit her website at olympicvistapublishing.com
FREE SHORT STORY: Sign up to receive Kelly’s newsletter and get access to sneak peeks of upcoming novellas, behind the scenes information and other exclusive content. PLUS, you’ll get “Snow Day,” a short story set in the Olympic Vista Chronicles universe, right away! Sign up now.
The book will be on sale for $0.99.
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GIVEAWAY INFORMATION and RAFFLECOPTER CODE:
Kelly Pawlik will be awarding a $25 Amazon or Barnes and Noble GC to a randomly drawn winner via rafflecopter during the tour.
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