Witchlanders Blog Tour + Contest

I'm so happy to be a part of the Witchlanders blog tour! Witchlanders was a very different read for me and I'm glad I get this chance to share a bunch of awesomeness with all of you!


I'm a bonus post with a special contest so read on!


About the Book

High in their mountain covens, red witches pray to the Goddess, protecting the Witchlands by throwing the bones and foretelling the future.

It’s all a fake.

At least, that’s what Ryder thinks. He doubts the witches really deserve their tithes—one quarter of all the crops his village can produce. And even if they can predict the future, what danger is there to foretell, now that his people’s old enemy, the Baen, has been defeated?

But when a terrifying new magic threatens both his village and the coven, Ryder must confront the beautiful and silent witch who holds all the secrets. Everything he’s ever believed about witches, the Baen, magic and about himself will change, when he discovers that the prophecies he’s always scorned—

Are about him.

About the Author

Lena Coakley was born in Milford, Connecticut and grew up on Long Island. In high school, creative writing was the only class she ever failed (nothing was ever good enough to hand in!), but, undeterred, she went on to study writing at Sarah Lawrence College. She got interested in young adult literature when she moved to Toronto, Canada, and began working for CANSCAIP, the Canadian Society of Children’s Authors, Illustrators and Performers, where she eventually became the Administrative Director. She is now a full-time writer living in Toronto. Witchlanders is her debut novel.

The Interview :)

1. Witchlanders is very high fantasy and imaginative! How did you think up the whole concept and plot?

Thank you!  I really didn’t come up with it all at once.  The book took ten years to write, and I’m sure I threw out many more scenes than I kept.  It started with the two main characters, Ryder and Falpian, but at the beginning I didn’t know much about what would happen to them.  I didn’t make an outline at first; I just wrote to find the plot and then rewrote endlessly.  (Did I mention it took ten years?)

2. I'm very interested in names, and I really had fun reading a book with so many different names & name styles! How did you choose the names for your characters?

Since Witchlanders deals with two different cultures, I wanted the Witchlander names to have a different flavor from the Baen names.  Witchlander names tend to have more y’s and double letters: Skyla, Ryder, Aayse.  The Baen names, like Falpian Caraxus, have a more formal, less lyrical sound to them.  As far as choosing the names, it could sometimes be a very laborious practice!  Skyla took a whole writing day to name; I did nothing else that day but play with the sounds of words and figure out what name was right for her.  Mabis took even longer.

3. Witchlanders being your debut novel, what is the most exciting part of being published?

Definitely meeting other authors.  I joined Twitter and started blogging a bit reluctantly because I thought it would help to promote my book.  Now I really wish I’d done it sooner because I love the community I’ve found!

4. As a teen, what were some of your favourite books?

It’s funny.  Many interviewers ask me who my favorite YA writers are—and I have many!—but asking me what I actually read as a teen is a bit different.  I grew up in a time when there wasn’t quite so much YA out there, and so a lot of the books I read were for adults.  I remember loving Slaughterhouse Five and Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy.  I wanted to be an actress, so I went through a phase where I only read plays.  I liked the weird experimental ones like No Exit, Six Characters in Search of an Author, and Rhinoceros. (I wanted to be a beatnik, but, sadly, it was the eighties.)

5. What advice would you give to any aspiring writers out there?

Be persistent!  I’ve taken many writing courses where an aspiring author will come in with a brilliant first chapter and I’ll think: This person has what it takes.  This book is going to be published.  But I’m often wrong.  It takes a huge amount of determination to finish a book and it takes a huge amount of determination revise a book as deeply as most books need to be revised.  Sadly, not all good writers have that.  Even if they do, it takes even more patience and persistence to finally get published.  You really have to be a dog with a bone and never give up.  If you are reading this and you are an aspiring author: write regularly, hone your craft, take classes, read good books and keep at it!

Thanks so much for having me on your blog, Chloe!

The Giveaway !!


Simply fill out the form to be entered. Open to US/CAN only and the contest will close on Sept. 10th when I will notify the winner. Thank you to publishers, Kismet, and Lena for making this all possible!

Also, over at Mundie Moms there is a super spectacular giveaway for this incredibly awesome Kindle:



So cool!

Anyway, fill out the form to enter to win a copy of Witchlanders!

Thine Mighty Form

Also, be sure to check out the other tour stops!

Monday, August 22nd -The Page Turners

Tuesday, August 23rd- The Unread Reader

BONUS post! Tuesday, August, 23rd - The Zealous Reader

Wednesday, August 24th - Books Complete Me

BONUS post! Wednesday, August 24th - Rayment's Reading Rants and Rambles

Thursday, August 25th - We Fancy Books

Friday, August 26th - Read.Breathe.Relax
Monday, August 29th - EmilieÆs Book World

Tuesday, August 30th - The Mundie MomÆs

BONUS post! Tuesday, August 30th - YA Booklover's Blog

Wednesday, August 31st - The Enchanted Inkpot

Thursday, September 1st- Well Read Wife

Friday, September 2nd - A Journey of Books

Monday, September 5th- The Story Siren

Tuesday, September 6th - One A Day Y.A.

Wednesday, September 7th - Reading Angel

Thursday, September 8th - Soul Unsung

Friday, September 9th - Alice MarvelÆsLena's Site!