Mac Fallows launches first fantasy e-book with embedded songs
Mac Fallows releases Wondertown, a musical story for readers of all ages, as an enhanced e-book for iPad. A full-length fantasy novel, it includes twelve original songs and illustrations from acclaimed illustrator, Emrah Elmasli.
/EINPresswire.com/Toronto, Ontario - October 17, 2012 -- Until recently, musical books have targeted readers under the age of 8, partly because the publishing industry has long maintained that adults and teens don't like to be distracted when reading fiction, and partly because music and book publishers simply work in very different ways.
With Wondertown, Canadian author/songwriter Mac Fallows is hoping to change that. A fantasy novel with original songs sung by the characters, Wondertown begins with the story of Neil Abbott, an undersized, introverted eleven-year old boy with the ability to tell about people by touching their possessions. He doesn't fit in either at home or at school and rarely speaks to anyone, with the exception of his grandmother, who has a secret talent of her own.
One day, after a particularly difficult week, Neil asks his grandmother if she thinks he's normal, and she responds by telling him the remarkable story of an unlikely hero, who long ago crossed the five parts of the world to free his only friend from a demon lord. Filled with hidden meaning and at times mirroring Neil's life, Wondertown is an unforgettable journey to a place inside each of us few of us dare to go.
Wondertown targets readers age 12 and up, and Fallows handles both the writing and the composing, tightly integrating the story and the songs, and Turkish illustrator Emrah Elmasli provides the illustrations.
Like a lot of innovative artists today, Fallows has bypassed the mainstream publishing industry, where the genre of musical stories doesn't yet exist for his target audience, and released Wondertown independently.
"Stories with related music are more deeply felt, as are songs delivered by characters in context," says Fallows, who has been hawking the idea in one form or another since the late eighties. "As technology developed, it became easier and easier to combine the two in a way that kept the reader from popping out of the fictional dream. Music and images are really only distracting to the reader if they're unrelated or irrelevant. With Wondertown, the songs and illustrations are an extension of the story, and the technology today isn't disruptive at all."
The Wondertown enhanced e-book is available free for iPad and iPhone for a limited time. The songs of Wondertown are also available separately in CD and MP3 format on iTunes and Amazon. E-book-only versions are available for Kindle, Nook and Sony Readers. A book-app version of Wondertown for iPad with enhanced controls and animation will be available shortly.
About the Author
Mac Fallows spent a decade travelling the world in search of adventure. Along the way, he wrote and produced over 100 songs in a dozen languages in places like Dakar, Mumbai, Prague and Santiago for singers like Youssou N'dour, Shankar Mahadevan, Pape and Chiekh, and Kavita Krishnamoorthy. He also lived with taxi drivers and their families, camped in farmers' fields, butchered bulls, sold tea, raised chickens, translated travel contracts, worked construction, and toured the biggest festivals in Europe as a keyboard player for Africa's most celebrated band. Mac studied music at McGill University and holds a writing degree from the University of Waterloo. Today he is a senior executive in one of North America's largest media companies.
For more on Wondertown, visit www.wondertownproject.com or contact Bev Crandon at bev@wondertownproject.com.
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/EINPresswire.com/Toronto, Ontario - October 17, 2012 -- Until recently, musical books have targeted readers under the age of 8, partly because the publishing industry has long maintained that adults and teens don't like to be distracted when reading fiction, and partly because music and book publishers simply work in very different ways.
With Wondertown, Canadian author/songwriter Mac Fallows is hoping to change that. A fantasy novel with original songs sung by the characters, Wondertown begins with the story of Neil Abbott, an undersized, introverted eleven-year old boy with the ability to tell about people by touching their possessions. He doesn't fit in either at home or at school and rarely speaks to anyone, with the exception of his grandmother, who has a secret talent of her own.
One day, after a particularly difficult week, Neil asks his grandmother if she thinks he's normal, and she responds by telling him the remarkable story of an unlikely hero, who long ago crossed the five parts of the world to free his only friend from a demon lord. Filled with hidden meaning and at times mirroring Neil's life, Wondertown is an unforgettable journey to a place inside each of us few of us dare to go.
Wondertown targets readers age 12 and up, and Fallows handles both the writing and the composing, tightly integrating the story and the songs, and Turkish illustrator Emrah Elmasli provides the illustrations.
Like a lot of innovative artists today, Fallows has bypassed the mainstream publishing industry, where the genre of musical stories doesn't yet exist for his target audience, and released Wondertown independently.
"Stories with related music are more deeply felt, as are songs delivered by characters in context," says Fallows, who has been hawking the idea in one form or another since the late eighties. "As technology developed, it became easier and easier to combine the two in a way that kept the reader from popping out of the fictional dream. Music and images are really only distracting to the reader if they're unrelated or irrelevant. With Wondertown, the songs and illustrations are an extension of the story, and the technology today isn't disruptive at all."
The Wondertown enhanced e-book is available free for iPad and iPhone for a limited time. The songs of Wondertown are also available separately in CD and MP3 format on iTunes and Amazon. E-book-only versions are available for Kindle, Nook and Sony Readers. A book-app version of Wondertown for iPad with enhanced controls and animation will be available shortly.
About the Author
Mac Fallows spent a decade travelling the world in search of adventure. Along the way, he wrote and produced over 100 songs in a dozen languages in places like Dakar, Mumbai, Prague and Santiago for singers like Youssou N'dour, Shankar Mahadevan, Pape and Chiekh, and Kavita Krishnamoorthy. He also lived with taxi drivers and their families, camped in farmers' fields, butchered bulls, sold tea, raised chickens, translated travel contracts, worked construction, and toured the biggest festivals in Europe as a keyboard player for Africa's most celebrated band. Mac studied music at McGill University and holds a writing degree from the University of Waterloo. Today he is a senior executive in one of North America's largest media companies.
For more on Wondertown, visit www.wondertownproject.com or contact Bev Crandon at bev@wondertownproject.com.
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