Sunstruck has two viewpoint characters, so I thought it’d be fun to word cloud both of them (using the services at Wordle). Click to see bigger versions.
Ari
Ari is a Bigfoot, who previously worked in a bar and really likes cats. She speaks Bigfoot English, which is based on a number of real English dialects (but isn’t a direct match for any of them). Common features are using ain’t, tending to use got/get rather than have/had and refusing to capitalise Bigfoot. This does show in her word cloud. The liking of cats does not, so apparently she needs more kittens.
Ben
Ben is Spokane (Native American), two-spirit, has OCPD and trained as a chemist. It’s interesting looking at Ben’s, as a notable difference is family. Ben has Grandpa, Mom and Tal, who are all his relatives (and don’t appear in Ari’s at all). He also mentions time more often, as he’s focused on tracking time (and keeping things tidy, but that doesn’t result in many repeated words).
Random Observation
I would have thought Ari talked about chocolate more often, but apparently not as much as Ben talks about coffee.
I loved the book. I've reviewed it on amazon and on my blog.
Thank you! I saw the review, but I don't like to comment directly on them. It does mean a lot when people review though, as I don't get many.
It might look odd to comment on the amazon review but on my blog it would just seem friendly. (Well, that's how I see it anyway!)
I wonder what it's like seeing other people's take on your books. How differently do we all see Sunstruck?
So far, there hasn't been an interpretation that makes me wonder where it came from (I've had that with other work, as vampires turn into zombies in the reviews). But it does highlight the things people especially liked or didn't, which is food for thought when it comes to marketing.
Wow! It must be a bit dispiriting when people read vampires as zombies!
I hope Sunstruck catches on with a wider audience because it really does deserve to.