Giveaways Inspirations and Influences

Transcendence Blog Tour & Giveaway: C.J. Omololu on Inspirations & Influences

Inspirations and Influences” is a series of articles in which we invite authors to write guest posts talking about their…well, Inspirations and Influences. The cool thing is that the writers are given free rein so they can go wild and write about anything they want: their new book, series or career as a whole.

Today, we’re happy to have C.J. Omololu over as our guest, here to talk about her new book Transcendence, a book about past lives, and the inspiration behind its premise.

Please give it up for C. J., folks!

That Eerie Feeling

In Transcendence, my main character Cole gets an overwhelming sense of déjà vu when she visits London for the first time. I think most of us have had those feelings at one time or another – the sense that you’ve been somewhere before, that you know what’s around the next corner in a city you’ve never been, the time you met that stranger and felt that you’ve known him all of your life.

I hate to exercise, but I do walk my dog every morning. He’s a big hairy thing – people tell me that it looks like I’m walking a bear – but he’s a great walking companion because he can go fast and far and rarely interrupts my thinking.

I don’t walk with anyone else or listen to music because I like to use the time to work out problems in my newest book or just think about what I have to do that day. Because I like to use the time to think, I take the same route every day so that I don’t have to worry about where I’m going.

I live in Northern California, and in my neighborhood most of the houses are old by our standards. I’ve always loved living in old houses – the bungalow we own was built in 1916. There are some great old houses on my dog walk route, but there’s one that has always attracted me more than any of the others.

Thanks to the Internet, I know that it was built in 1890. I don’t know whether it’s the wide front porch or the light over the door with the delicately painted flowers, but something about this house always makes me stop.

Whenever I look up at the porch, I get a strong sense of a group of people waiting under that light, all dressed in their Sunday best, the women in long skirts with bonnets on their heads. It’s cold out, so they also have on velvet capes and long coats trimmed with fur as they wait to be admitted into the warm glow of the parlor. It doesn’t matter what the weather is in real life, this is the scene that always hits me every time I pass this house, along with a feeling of homesickness for a house that I’ve never actually entered.

It probably means absolutely nothing. Maybe I’ve seen a porch like this in an old Jimmy Stewart movie or in a Thomas Kincaid painting. I’m sure my imagination is just running away with me (again). But what if these feelings of familiarity actually do mean something? What if déjà vu is really a crack in the memories we all carry with us of our past lives, a hint that what we know about our lives is only the beginning? Once I started asking myself these questions, I couldn’t stop, and the idea of the Akhet – a group of people who remember all of their past lives – was born.

The thing I love about déjà vu is that it’s universal. In almost every culture you can find people who have felt this feeling of ‘being there before’ whether they’re looking at an old photo, holding an antique vase or running their hand along the stone walls of a building at the Tower of London.

The people who actually live in that house don’t have a clue. If they glance out their window and see me looking up at the painted light fixture, they must think I’m just another dog walker out for a morning stroll. They have no idea that their house was the spark for a story about past lives, lost loves and second chances.

About the Author:

I’m a writer living in Northern California with my husband and two sons. I grew up with the serviceable last name of Jaynes, but then married a handsome Nigerian man, which is why my other last name has so many vowels.

I met my agent, Erin Murphy, in an elevator (really) at a writer’s conference and when I finished my first novel, we signed together. My young adult novel Dirty Little Secrets came out with Walker Books in February 2010. Transcendence, a new novel about reincarnation and the choices we make came out in June 2012 with the sequel to follow in June of 2013.

The Giveaway:

We have a copy of Transcendence up for grabs! The contest is open to ALL and will run until Saturday June 23 at 12:01pm EST. In order to enter, leave a comment using the form below. Good luck!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

49 Comments

  • discoveringstudent
    June 14, 2012 at 2:34 am

    I completely understand where C.J. is coming from – sometimes I just have a random thought and before long I’ve built an entire setting and/or plot around it.
    What she’s done, and I so rarely manage, is to get it down on paper 😀

  • Kaethe
    June 14, 2012 at 5:55 am

    Okay. Just reading that little bit on Inspiration convinces me that I’ll enjoy the writing of Transcendence. Thanks guys for introducing me to another new writer.

  • Kaethe
    June 14, 2012 at 5:57 am

    And also, the Rafflecopter thingy doesn’t seem to be working.

  • Ana
    June 14, 2012 at 7:17 am

    Sorry guys! the rafflecopter thing should be working now!

  • RT
    June 14, 2012 at 7:27 am

    Ahket – I learn a new word every day (and love this one). I’m looking forward to this book.

  • anna
    June 14, 2012 at 7:28 am

    It looks interesting!

  • Lark
    June 14, 2012 at 7:53 am

    Label me intrigued! I experienced that sense of… I would call it familiarity more than deja vu, for reasons I won’t get into here (except to say that for me, deja vu is far more specific)… the first time I went to England and Scotland, and on several subsequent trips. There were places that called to me, that evoked that same sense of mingled familiarity and homesickness C.J. Omololu describes. So I look forward to reading Transcendence and seeing what she has done with the idea that inspiration sparked in her.

  • Miss Bookiverse
    June 14, 2012 at 8:47 am

    I read Dirty Little Secret by the author and was very impressed by it. I’m really curious to see how she does with paranormal elements.

  • Josephine
    June 14, 2012 at 9:34 am

    Looking forward to reading it!

  • de Pizan
    June 14, 2012 at 11:34 am

    I really like the book cover. Also that house. And the interview. And that dog.

  • Na
    June 14, 2012 at 11:35 am

    The house is beautiful and I think it contains a lot of history. Maybe not important to everyone but are still memories. I like looking at olding things and imagining what secrets they have.

  • Stephanie C
    June 14, 2012 at 11:43 am

    Love the house! And yes, I get plenty of deja vu, so I know where C.J.’s coming from. Can’t wait to read the book! Awesome cover.

  • Yeti
    June 14, 2012 at 12:18 pm

    I am very intrigued by this, I’d love the ides of past lives and how cool would it be to remember them!

  • susie
    June 14, 2012 at 1:02 pm

    Well, I like the big, furry dog. And the idea of past lives is intriguing.

  • Katrina
    June 14, 2012 at 2:18 pm

    Seems interesting!

  • Mary
    June 14, 2012 at 3:07 pm

    The premise sounds really intriguing, and it looks like there’s some diversity in there too, which I always love to see. Can’t wait to read it!

  • Megan S.
    June 14, 2012 at 3:31 pm

    Loved this post. I haven’t experienced much déjà vu, but I can definitely relate to getting lots of thinking done while walking the dogs. 🙂

  • Athena Franco
    June 14, 2012 at 4:06 pm

    The book sounds so good! And can I just say that the cover is PURE LOVE.

  • Victoria Zumbrum
    June 14, 2012 at 5:34 pm

    Thanks for the awesome giveaway. Please enter me. I would love to read this book. Tore923@aol.com

  • Stephanie
    June 14, 2012 at 5:50 pm

    I also love old homes. They have a lot of character.

  • Michael
    June 14, 2012 at 8:40 pm

    Thanks For The Giveaway

  • Breanne
    June 14, 2012 at 9:35 pm

    Thanks for the giveaway! though I’m not sure the entry form is working properly…

  • Llehn
    June 15, 2012 at 2:36 am

    Am intrigued by the book.

  • Brie
    June 15, 2012 at 4:32 am

    This book looks extremely interesting.

  • Mary Preston
    June 15, 2012 at 4:56 am

    The house is lovely. Great that it inspired your story.

  • Jasmine Stairs
    June 15, 2012 at 5:16 am

    I love the idea of this book. (Yes, a terribly original thought, I know.) But I being a history junkie I love the idea of being in touch with the past so strongly. And I love the cover art.

  • Maureen
    June 15, 2012 at 7:08 am

    I love old houses too and it is fun to imagine the lives of the people living in them.

  • Malvina Beatrice
    June 15, 2012 at 8:33 am

    I really want to read this book.

  • Mia
    June 15, 2012 at 10:49 am

    This looks pretty awesome. I can’t wait to read it!

  • John J.
    June 15, 2012 at 11:12 am

    I have to say, I’ve been very interested in this book since I saw the cover – love love love the PoC hero. The inspiration for the story heightens the initial interest, as exploring the feelings of deja vu invokes unique questions – it is such a unique feeling. I’ll definitely be looking more into Transcendence. ^^

  • Rachael L
    June 15, 2012 at 11:24 pm

    Sounds great to read. Thank you for the giveaway!

  • Mieneke van der Salm (@Pallekenl)
    June 16, 2012 at 12:39 am

    This sounds amazing 🙂

  • Bee
    June 16, 2012 at 3:37 pm

    This book sounds interesting 🙂

  • Megan Earley
    June 16, 2012 at 7:05 pm

    I loved Dirty Little Secret and have been looking forward to the next book by Omololu!

  • Smugglers’ Stash and News | The Book Smugglers
    June 17, 2012 at 3:15 am

    […] Transcendence Blog Tour & Giveaway: C.J. Omololu on Inspirations & Influences […]

  • Katie S.
    June 17, 2012 at 3:42 am

    Sounds like an interesting read. 😀

  • Becca
    June 17, 2012 at 11:10 am

    Given all the cover fail that exists in the YA world, I’m happy to see that there’s a person of color on the cover of this one.

  • Gem
    June 17, 2012 at 3:43 pm

    Always loved the concept of reincarnation. Sound like a good book!

  • Gill Foreman
    June 18, 2012 at 10:29 am

    Really love this book! Felt like the author got a lot of inspiration from Fritz Lang. Anyone see the connection? I say this because I really think he pioneered the fantasy genre with this film. http://www.metropolismovie.co.uk/

  • Lucia
    June 18, 2012 at 11:31 am

    Loved the neighbourhood setting for this books. Looks really interesting!

  • Nikki Egerton
    June 19, 2012 at 4:26 am

    Oooh reincarnation! I’d love to read this. I get déjà vu all the time! Mostly it’ll be when people are talking, I feel absolutely convinced that I’ve heard that exact conversation in those exact circumstances before. It’s spooky!

  • bookangelemma
    June 19, 2012 at 7:18 am

    Would love to read this one 😀

  • sarac
    June 19, 2012 at 7:18 pm

    This sounds right up my alley!

  • Jessica
    June 19, 2012 at 8:29 pm

    Thanks for the giveaway!

    This book sounds really interesting. I’ll be sure to check it out.

  • kara-karina
    June 20, 2012 at 4:49 am

    I love my sense of deja vu – I get it a lot, but usually dream about something first, and then sometime later it happens. It’s fascinating really, and I don’t want to accept the mundane explanation of the phenomenon, but rather choose to believe that it’s something magical 🙂
    Thanks for a lovely guest post!

  • Anita Yancey
    June 20, 2012 at 12:19 pm

    Sounds like a very interesting book. I would really enjoy reading it. Thanks for having the giveaway.
    ayancey(at)dishmail(dot)net

  • Sarah
    June 21, 2012 at 5:46 pm

    this book sounds like it would be right up my alley. I must admit, that beautiful cover is calling my name 😀

  • Oriyomi Atuluku
    June 21, 2012 at 10:00 pm

    Nice read.I love that your husband and kids are Yoruba which is my tribe in Nigeria and I am a writer too.I will definitely be following your work.Looks good.

  • Smugglers’ Stash & News | The Book Smugglers
    June 24, 2012 at 12:02 am

    […] Transcendence Blog Tour & Giveaway: C.J. Omololu on Inspirations & Influences […]

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