Awesome Author Interviews

Tell us about yourself and how many books you have written.
I’m orginally from Queens, NYC. About six years ago I moved to a suburb of Raleigh and decided to do the stay-at-home mom thing. Being home most of the day gave me the time to write the Vistira Trilogy. Although I love NC, New York City features heavily in my books. My characters bounce between the mythical land of Vistira and New York.

I’m the mother of two human children and one canine child, and the wife of an insurance agent.

What is the name of your latest book and what inspired it?
I actually wrote and published all three of my books (Remembered, Reclaimed, Returned) at the same time. I had an idea of where the story was heading, so waited until I was finished the last to publish the three together.

Do you have any unusual writing habits?
Is drinking red wine and listening to classic rock considered unusual? If not, then no. Other than that, I really just let my fingers go where they please on the keyboards. Sometimes I go back over something I’ve just written and can’t remember even having the thought to write it.

What authors, or books have influenced you?
I am a geek at heart. I feel in love with C. S. Lewis’s The Chronicles of Narnia at the age of nine, and since have read and loved all the classic fantasy books. I suppose it’s a bit cliche, but Tolkien is my all time favorite.

What are you working on now?
I’m rolling around an idea for a YA series that will incorporate a little bit of early American history.

What is your best method or website when it comes to promoting your books?
I’m not really sure what works yet, to be honest.

Do you have any advice for new authors?
I just put this on my facebook page today.

The best way to avoid criticism:

Do Nothing

Say Nothing

And be Nothing. – Aristotle

Just write the book. If you believe in it, don’t listen to what others might say.

What is the best advice you have ever heard?
Grow a thick skin quickly. Bad reviews will come, but if you let them get you down, your lost.

What are you reading now?
A Novel Obsession by Jeff Joseph

What’s next for you as a writer?
To keep writing and promoting.

What is your favorite book of all time?
Lord of the Rings.

Author Websites and Profiles
E. D. Brady Website
E. D. Brady Amazon Profile

E. D. Brady’s Social Media Links
Goodreads Profile
Facebook Profile
Twitter Account

Tell us about yourself and how many books you have written.
I am a homeschooling mother of eight kids and I began writing and publishing because my kids loved The Lord of the Rings books so much and I wanted to connect their interest to their faith. I began with The Road Goes Ever On – A Christian Journey Through the Lord of the Rings. Then I felt I wanted to write my own fictional story so I created ARAM. The characters didn’t seem done with me so I ended up writing a sequel, Ishtar’s Redemption – Trial by Fire, and a pre-qell, Neb the Great. I am still writing but carrying on the family tree down several generations leaving the misty past for the ancient past. It is a great deal of fun to see what characters and their relations can do…

What is the name of your latest book and what inspired it?
My lastest soon-to-be-pubished book is Neb the Great and it is a look back to the generations leading up to ARAM…kind of like looking at a mystery backwards and seeing how things came to be. I wrote it because my kids kept asking me questions about the ARAM charaters as if they were real people so I just kept on making up reasons and history…and eventually it was another whole book.

Do you have any unusual writing habits?
I like a cup of tea when I write…not unusual perhaps but very helpful!

What authors, or books have influenced you?
I like J.R.R. Tolkein, C.S. Lewis, G.K. Chesterton…do you see a pattern here? All authors who love to reveal reality through fiction.

What are you working on now?
I am working on a 4th-5th century mystery on the island of Briton involving the descendants of my last book…

What is your best method or website when it comes to promoting your books?
I speak on the radio, at conferences, and give inspirational talks. I also send out newspaper articles, write my own blog and write a blog for the Christian Post.

Do you have any advice for new authors?
Try to give yourself the permission you need to write regularly. Life, like laundry will try to get in the way, but remember that while laundry will stay put…a good story, never written, might just fade away.

What is the best advice you have ever heard?
Just write what you are really trying to say…

What are you reading now?
I am reading Orthodoxy by G.K. Chesterton and the Old Testament.

What’s next for you as a writer?
I’ll keep following this multi-generational family down through history and see where they lead me.

What is your favorite book of all time?
Probabaly The Lord of the Rings though I enjoy so many different books I hate to narrow it down.

Author Websites and Profiles
Ann Frailey Website
Ann Frailey Amazon Profile

Tell us about yourself and how many books you have written.
I planned to become a foreign correspondent. I received a Master’s in Journalism from U.C. Berkeley, lived in Japan and traveled throughout Asia to earn my journalistic “creds.” When life, love, marriage, and kids made that line of work difficult—actually, impossible–I discovered it was much more fun to write my own stories with endings that satisfied rather than being stuck writing “just the facts.” My first books were romantic suspense, and one of the stories quickly evolved into a long-running mystery series (the Angie Amalfi mysteries). But I’ve always loved thrillers as well as romance, historicals, and romantic fantasy—in other words, any book that elicits emotions—and that is my goal in my writing. Now, with my sons grown and my husband retired, I have time to write the books I’ve always wanted.

A few years ago, we left the San Francisco Bay Area where I was born, and now live on several acres in the foothills above Boise, Idaho. I love it here—it’s very different from anything I’ve known before. I write at home, surrounded by nature, with beautiful views overlooking a valley and mountains far beyond. My favorite music ranges from classical and opera to Mo-town and Creedence Clearwater Revival. I also love the Idaho Shakespeare Festival, spicy ethnic food of all types, Dr. Who, and just about every crime show on TV, particularly Castle and Person of Interest.

To date, I’ve written 22 books, of which 21 have been published, and one will probably never see the light of day unless I figure out why it simply doesn’t “work.” I’ve also got a closet filled with “half-way” projects that I may go back to at some point. Most of the books (15 of them) are part of the Angie Amalfi mystery series.

What is the name of your latest book and what inspired it?
ANCIENT ECHOES, my latest novel, is a paranormal thriller. I was inspired to write a book set in Idaho ever since moving here over ten years ago and being intrigued by the emptiness and beauty of this state (there are more people living in and around San Francisco than in the entire state!). Working on the book gave me an opportunity to do a lot of research—to learn, for example, that when some railroad engineers explored the area along the Salmon River in order to lay railroad tracks, it took them months and they declared it to be the most dangerous and difficult terrain in the entire country. No train goes through the area to this day.

Then, a weird thing happened to me. I was in a dusty old bookstore in a small town near Boise, and a very thin, but oversized (about 10”x13”) book practically leaped off the shelf at me. I have no idea what made me open it, but it was a reprint of a book from 1624 reputed to be a true translation of a manuscript by the alchemist, Nicolas Flamel (whose name may be familiar to Harry Potter fans). The book was written in a weird Germanic looking font, and filled with strange pictures. It told the story of Flamel finding The Book of Abraham the Jew, and after several decades learning to understand it sufficiently that he was able to create gold. Needless to say, I bought the book, and as I learned about alchemy, I realized I could interweave Idaho history and alchemy, and turn the story into a thriller.

Do you have any unusual writing habits?
I’ve been seriously writing ever since high school when I was on the school newspaper and wrote a school gossip column (how’s that for a way to make yourself unpopular in high school?). If I have any unusual writing habits, they now seem normal to me! But then, all writers are a bit crazy or we wouldn’t spend so many hours alone writing.

What authors, or books have influenced you?
For ANCIENT ECHOES, I was very much influenced by the paranormal thrillers of Douglas Preston and Lincoln Childs. They are able to take normal American settings and make them seem creepily paranormal. I love that! Also, I adored Elizabeth Kostova’s THE HISTORIAN, both because of the size and depth of the book, and also by the way she interwove old writings, letters, and history, with what her modern day characters were experiencing. I tried to do much of that in ANCIENT ECHOES.

What are you working on now?
I’m actually planning three books. The first, and farthest along, is a sequel to ANCIENT ECHOES. It doesn’t have a title yet, but it follows Michael Rempart, the archeologist, to new and equally dangerous experiences. I also write a long running mystery series, the Angie Amalfi mysteries. The fifteen book, COOKING SPIRITS, was just released and I’m already hearing from Angie’s fans asking about the NEXT book. There will be one. The third book I’m planning comes as a complete surprise to me. With the e-book revolution, I put out a simple story I had written years ago, a romantic fantasy called THE GHOST OF SQUIRE HOUSE. It was not anything that interested my agent or publisher who said things like, “You’re a mystery writer, to publish a little romantic fantasy would confuse readers.” I guess readers aren’t as easily confused as they feared, or the book has found a lot of new readers, but I’ve gotten many requests for a sequel to it. In fact, one reviewer on Amazon challenged me to write such a sequel. Of course, I can’t back down from a challenge!

What is your best method or website when it comes to promoting your books?
The best method I’ve found is to post on sites such as Awesome Gang to tell people about new books, free books, or bargain books. It’s necessary to get the book into the hands of readers, even if it means reducing the price to zero for short periods of time. Readers need to learn about the book before anything else can happen, then read it, and if they like it, they will post good reviews that will encourage others to give the book a try.

Do you have any advice for new authors?
Write, rewrite, and then put the manuscript down for a while so you can read it with a “fresh” take. And then rewrite again. Too often, the author knows what the words “should” be saying…even when they don’t actually say that. The words on the page, not the vision that’s in the author’s head, are all that the reader sees. Make sure the page is complete before the work is published. Listen to that little voice in your head that says, “This section is kind of dull/confusing/awkward (whatever), but I’m sure the reader will love it.” No…they won’t. Listen to that voice and correct the problem.

What is the best advice you have ever heard?
“You can correct what you’ve written to make it better, but you can’t correct a blank page.” In other words, don’t try to write perfectly…just write. Get words down on the page, and you can always go back later and make them as close to perfect as you’re able. But get the words on the page. Writing is a craft, which means the more you do it, the better you’ll get at it.

What are you reading now?
I have such a gargantuan “to be read” pile…including on my Kindle…it isn’t even funny. At the moment I’m reading a book about social media, another on marketing, and for fun, an old story I somehow missed by romance author and friend, Patti Berg, called BORN TO BE WILD.

What’s next for you as a writer?
I’m one of the founders and current board member of the Idaho Writers Guild here in Boise, Idaho, and organizing conferences and programs for new writers as well as creating marketing and networking opportunities for professional writers takes up a lot of my time, but it’s fun, and gets me away from my computer and provides opportunities to meet people. As for myself as a writer, I’ve got three books (see above) just waiting to find a life! It’s always an adventure to see how each new book will turn out—some are docile and pretty much do what the author wants, and others simply have a mind of their own.

What is your favorite book of all time?
LITTLE WOMEN is the first book I ever read that so completely absorbed me that I sobbed when the young sister died. I never before realized how a person could become lost in a book, and I loved that feeling. That book opened the door to a lifetime of reading pleasure.

Author Websites and Profiles
Joanne Pence Website
Joanne Pence Amazon Profile

Joanne Pence’s Social Media Links
Facebook Profile
Twitter Account

Tell us about yourself and how many books you have written.
I’m a mother of two living in rural Ohio with my fiance. I read, I write and spend time with my family. I love nature, libraries, bookstores and horror. So far there’s only Eyes Like Blue Fire in print but I have several others in progress. One of them being the sequel.

What is the name of your latest book and what inspired it?
Eyes Like Blue fire started life as one of the longest pieces I’d ever written as a teen all of 10-15 pages. I was not a happy kid (I know not many are in the teen years) and I spent a lot of my time dreaming about finding someone who could understand me on some level. At first a lot of it was about getting that feeling out of my system and sort of having a conversation with myself on that but over time it grew into something more.

I’d been reading a lot of books on writing at that point and I made myself start over. I knew it needed to be longer and that I would have to write everyday to keep myself focused. I wanted to be a writer and if I was going to do that I needed to learn how to do it well. In many ways ELBF was my learning novel but it was also a labor of love. Most importantly a companion when I needed it most. While at first it was about all those teenage emotions and early writer’s ideas eventually with time and sporadic edits it grew into something better, a sort of life lesson for myself.

I was in the habit of dwelling on that sadness, that feeling of being separate and alone. It persisted into my adulthood and even the relationship that would prove to be the one that was going to be the closest that reality gets to true love. I was very like Katja thinking only of the things that hurt me and not moving on. Well eventually Katja is faced with her future in the guise of Raven, her instincts are to run no matter how much he makes her feel but eventually she had to come back. Raven was in danger because of that past she dwelled on and because she ran. Well I had been doing the same thing. I dwelled and I ran and I hid from my chances at happiness in life even when Todd came to pull me out of that darkness I hid there because it was what I knew, what I expected. It was always going to be me that had to pull myself away from that sort of thinking and I was the only one that could make me stand up and fight for the future I deserved. It took me years to stop procrastinating about finishing ELBF and that was because it took me years to believe I was worth the effort. I had to learn the lesson to complete the novel.

Do you have any unusual writing habits?
Not really. I just put on some music that seems to set the tone and then I type away. I don’t want to convey that I can do that every time but that’s how it’s done when I have the ideal setting and time.

What authors, or books have influenced you?
A lot of the authors are going to be obvious like Anne Rice, Stephen King and Clive Barker but there are a lot of others too. I love Alice Borchardt her voice was so-I don’t know-clear and enchanting I guess would be the best way to put it. I also like Jennifer Weiner for the same reason, she has a gift for writing something that doesn’t seem like it takes any effort. Not because it’s light but because she does all the work for you, makes it so real you just eat it up. Gary Braunbeck would be the writer who taught me about giving your characters soul, his books are as much about the hearts of his characters as all of the strange things that happen to them. He gets tragedy and what it does.

What are you working on now?
For the moment my focus is on self-promotion mostly, but I’ll be getting back to my other books soon. Out of the five books I have in progress I think focusing on the apocalypse novel and/or the sequel to Eyes Like Blue Fire would make the most sense. The sequel will go to self pub since it’s predecessor has but I’m going to give Other Dangers (the apocalypse novel) a shot at being published through the usual means. It doesn’t have the crazy market difficulties that ELBF did being romantically influenced but largely horror ELBF had a hard time finding a home. Other Dangers is more clearly defined as horror. It has fantasy elements but I don’t think that will hurt it. The premise is that an author ends the world and then she tries to save it. There’s more to it than that but I don’t want to reveal too much. It’s about 3/4 done at the moment I think. As for Cool Green Waters (the ELBF sequel) it’s about half completed and focuses more on Zero and Michael as they try to help Katja resolve some of Anton’s unresolved past. There’s a lot of dark stuff in it, it’s a much darker book than ELBF which was (while dark) more about loneliness. I can’t say too much more without risking spoilers for those who haven’t gotten to read ELBF yet.

What is your best method or website when it comes to promoting your books?
I’m honestly just starting on promotion but I find that Goodreads is one of the better sites to use for a lot of reasons. There are tons of resources in one place: giveaways (haven’t tried this yet but maybe down the road), groups, blogs, quotes, lists and best of all a real community of readers and authors who can communicate with each other. Without author groups I don’t think I’d have have found even half as many sources of promotion and ways to get your book reviewed. It’s also very satisfying to be able to see who added your book to their To Be Read shelf or better yet Currently Reading. You also have your reviews in one easy to navigate location.

Do you have any advice for new authors?
Be Polite and Appreciate What You Get: Never behave rudely with readers or other authors or you’ll make a bad name for yourself just when you need a good reputation the most. This is doubly true of advice and offers of promotion. It’s fine to say no but do it kindly and make it clear you appreciate the offer. If an established author offers some help take them up! They’ve been where you are a thousand times and many of them are still fighting the same battles. When you get that advice show them you appreciate it and thank them as often as you can.
Read!: Please don’t be a writer who doesn’t read. It’s a thousand times harder to write when you don’t have tons of examples to draw from and no writer ever stops learning how to improve unless they stop reading. When you stop learning how to do something the skill begins to degrade. Your imagination and your mind need the tune up just like your car.

 

What is the best advice you have ever heard?
Don’t Give Up: Try and try until you get some criticism you can improve your work with and then when you’ve fixed it up, try again.

Writing takes trial and error, courage, integrity and spirit. If you think a great imagination and an idea are all you need think again! You have to be able to get kicked in the gut and get right back up again.

What are you reading now?
I’m reading What Hides Within by Jason Parent. It’s an unusual novel and I’m just starting to get into the meat of the book. It’s horror and it goes a lot of places that you wouldn’t expect. Several character paths travel in parallel patterns and then crash into each other from times to time. It’s fun.

What’s next for you as a writer?
Well I hope Eyes Like Blue Fire will be selling well soon. Beyond that I think it’ll be about getting all of these novels finished up and either submitted or self-published over the next couple of years. I try not to plan so far ahead that I can’t keep up with the pace I’m setting so I’m taking it one step at a time.

What is your favorite book of all time?
I have quite a few favorites. Off the top of my head I’ll go with Stephen King’s The Stand.

Author Websites and Profiles
Amanda Lyons Website
Amanda Lyons Amazon Profile

Amanda Lyons’s Social Media Links
Goodreads Profile
Facebook Profile
Twitter Account

Tell us about yourself and how many books you have written.
I’m an “Ancient Geek” — been working with computer technology since… well, since before there was such a thing as a “personal computer.” I’ve also been writing Science Fiction for almost as long, mostly for my own enjoyment; but with encouragement from friends, I am now publishing. I’ve got one book out — entitled “The Moon and Beyond” (published November 2012) and a sequel entitled “Someday the Stars” being published now (due on Amazon, B&N, etc. May 16th) The third book is more than half written now and will probably be out early next year.

What is the name of your latest book and what inspired it?
“Someday the Stars” is a sequel to my first book, “The Moon and Beyond”; and I actually wrote both of these many years ago (and kept rewriting them and rewriting them and… well, they are near future SF, and have to be updated to reflect recent history). I finally told myself enough… time to publish, and here they are.

How would I categorize these two books? Well, to start with, I guess you could call them “Space Opera” (since they deal with human space exploration), but they are also “Military SF” since they involve space warfare (though that isn’t the primary story line). Political / Social? Yes, some of that, too, and some Action / Adventure in the mix.

I write what I like to read, and right now some of my favorite current authors include David Weber, John Ringo, and Elizabeth Moon. If you like their work, I hope you’ll like mine.

Do you have any unusual writing habits?
Hmmm… define “unusual.”

A Web Talk Radio host told me he was intrigued by an occasional habit I fall into: a significant event happens, and you see it from several different points of view (via several different characters) — just a little paragraph or two of what this person was doing and how he/she reacted to the event, then switch to another character experiencing the same event from another point of view.

What authors, or books have influenced you?
I go WAY back in SF, grew up reading the works of Heinlein, Asimov, and Arthur C. Clarke. One of my all-time favorites is Heinlein’s “The Moon is a Harsh Mistress” (1966), so much so than the protagonists in my first book name their new nation on the Moon the Lunar Free State (the name chosen by Heinlein’s protagonists after their rebellion against the hated Authority. My characters get to the Moon under very different circumstances (Heinlein’s characters were living there as inhabitants of a penal colony); but they probably share something of a kindred spirit with Heinlein’s “Loonies.”

More recent influences… well, I’d have to tip my hat to David Weber, particularly his Honor Harrington series. I certainly admire Weber’s attention to the science of his “universe” and I’ve tried to make mine equally consistent and plausible. Despite what Hollywood movie producers might think, real SF writers are not allowed to violate the laws of physics.

What are you working on now?
While I’ve got a couple of other projects in mind, right now I’m sticking with the Lunar Free State series — just because I like the universe I’ve created there, and the characters that populate it. I don’t like serial “cliffhangers” so I am trying to make each story a worthy read unto itself; but it is definitely a series — same world, same characters (or their children — book three moves on to a new generation), but a new and different story.

What is your best method or website when it comes to promoting your books?
I’ve been pretty active on Goodreads — mostly because I enjoy getting involved in the discussions there. I’ve also done a Goodreads book giveaway for my first book, and will soon be doing one for the second book as well.

I also have my own website at http://www.lunarfreestate.com, where prospective readers can read excerpts from the books and follow my blog — and can also buy the books (in hardcover, softcover, or any of the common ebook formats) at a discount through a link to MyBookOrders.com.

Do you have any advice for new authors?
Just WRITE!!! Write for yourself, write what you would like to read. You can never please everyone, but there will be readers out there who will like it, and if you publish it, they will come. The world of publishing has changed, and anyone with a will to do so can get a book published; but first, you still have to write it, so get busy and DO it.

What is the best advice you have ever heard?
“The journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step.”

What are you reading now?
David Weber’s “Shadow of Freedom”

What’s next for you as a writer?
Lots more books in this series, and maybe a few others. Who knows what the future holds.

What is your favorite book of all time?
Robert Heinlein’s “The Moon is a Harsh Mistress”

Author Websites and Profiles
John Siers Website
John Siers Amazon Profile

John Siers’s Social Media Links
Goodreads Profile

Tell us about yourself and how many books you have written.
I was born and raised in Northern California. I did some acting in Los Angeles for a time. After that I lived and traveled abroad for over 6 years. During my time abroad I fell in love with Design and Architecture. That brought me back to San Francisco where I got my degree in Interior Design. Now, I work by day as an Interior/Set Designer and by night a writer. During those years I never stopped writing. It took me until recently to really realize that is was what I want to do with my life. It’s my true passion. When I’m not writing I’m with friends, hiking, going to concerts, and just enjoying San Francisco.

What is the name of your latest book and what inspired it?
My Book is called Darkness Of Light, it is a NA/mature YA paranormal romance. Fantasy has always been my preferred genre. I was reading three to four fantasy books a week for a while. I was completely addicted. In between the ones that left me empty and lacking to the ones that had me in tears (because their next book wouldn’t be out for another year), my own characters and story kept popping up. I’ve always loved to write and did a lot on my own, but this was different. They started “haunting” me. Finally I just had to get them out so they’d shut up!

Do you have any unusual writing habits?
Besides an IV of caffeine hooked up to my vein? I don’t have any particular unusal writing habit. The only thing, if I need to be serious about writing, is I need to leave the house and go to a café. As much as I love staying in my flannel pj bottoms, there are too many distractions at home. I tend to find “sparkly” things everywhere but in what I should be concentrating on.

What authors, or books have influenced you?
I like so many for different reasons. I would have to say I really enjoy Karen Marie Moning, Ilona Andrews, Richelle Mead, Kelley Armstrong . . . The list could go on.

What are you working on now?
I just finished Book Two of the Darkness Series, Fire in the Darkness. It is being edited right now. Until it comes back to me for changes, I have started working on Book Three. There will be four in the series as of right now. If people really respond to them and want more. Who knows?

What is your best method or website when it comes to promoting your books?
Goodreads and Facebook.

Do you have any advice for new authors?
Seek therapy it’s quicker and cheaper…

Kidding! My advice is, if you enjoy doing it for fun or want to do it as your job, don’t give up. It is a LONG, grueling process. There is a lot of rejection and times you want to give up, but push through and keep writing. You also have to learn that not every word you write is worth keeping. You have to get thick skin and know people’s critiques are to better your book and you as a writer.

What is the best advice you have ever heard?
“Write drunk: edit sober.” Ernest Hemingway.

What’s next for you as a writer?
Continuing the Darkness Series. Have a few ideas for my next series, but concentrating on this first.

Author Websites and Profiles
Stacey Brown Website
Stacey Brown Amazon Profile
Stacey Brown Author Profile Other Bookseller

Stacey Brown’s Social Media Links
Goodreads Profile
Facebook Profile
Twitter Account
Pinterest Account

Tell us about yourself and how many books you have written.
I am a really big fantasy and science fiction reader. I mean BIG. I am six foot nine and bigger around than I really care to be.

I have only recently begun writing fantasy…but even then I can say I am a really big author, right? At least I can write about ogres and barbarians with a unique perspective. Seriously though, my writing stems from close to thirty years of fantasy role playing games (can you say D&D? I knew you could) and a lifetime of reading voraciously.

My first three books constitute a trilogy called The Gifts of Vorallon. The first book is called The Final Warden and it kicks off our hero’s journey and the world of magic called Vorallon.

What is the name of your latest book and what inspired it?
My latest book is Lord of Vengeance (Gifts of Vorallon 3). This is the conclusion of the trilogy and it was heavily inspired by my need to know!

When I read fantasy I need to know the answers to questions that typically are never answered. Such as where is this magic all coming from anyhow? If there are gods, and I can talk to them, how does that change who I am? Who and what are the gods? If I stand on a fantasy world of magic, dragons, elves, and dwarves, looking up — what stars do I see and is there anything happening out there?

I wanted to create a world that answered these questions and more, at least answered them to my own satisfaction — what I ended up with was a multiverse, a system of universes, creators, and magic that worked for me. I sincerely hope it provides a fun and exciting reading experience for the everyone… even if they don’t need to know the answers as much as I did.

Do you have any unusual writing habits?
I can’t write a scene before my artist brain fully pictures it in my head. I may not describe EVERY detail in the scene but it’s all alive in my head while I am writing.

I then read every chapter I write out loud to my wife (she HATED my writing when I first began). When she likes it, I know I am on the right track. This also helps me spot my most common writing faux pas of leaving out words, the ghost typo.

What authors, or books have influenced you?
I love the fantasy novels of Dennis L. Mckiernan, either in Mithgar or Faerie. He was the first author I have read to make the fantasy tropes of elves and dwarves, and even dragons, fully fleshed beings with their own cultures and ways of thinking that make them so much more than just long eared tree huggers or short men that like to dig for gold and gems.

Another hugely influencial writer to me is Stephen R. Donaldson whose Chronicles of Thomas Covenant the Unbeliever changed everything for me. He made me care for a mess of a man. He made me fear for his very life — never ever promising me that the protagonist was going to still be alive on the next page. And I LOVED it!

Finally there is the man I grew up reading, the Master of Adventure, Edgar Rice Burroughs. The man defined what a hero was for me… without John Carter, the Warlord of Barsoom, would we have Superman?

What are you working on now?
I am working on a book set hundreds of generations in the future of the events that occurred in The Gifts of Vorallon trilogy — the working title right now is The Return of King Levant, or for those WOW fans out there “Hey, the King’s back!”

It is a hero’s journey in reverse… a journey through the underworld of Nefryt – this is where the spirits of the corrupt and foul go when their lives upon Vorallon (and other worlds in the same universe) have come to an end. There they are cleansed of their corruption that they may be reborn as purified soulds. The truly foul, the extremely wicked, are given another option–to be given the flesh of demons and join the ranks of the deadliest army in all existence. King Levant was a wicked man in life, a conqueror and a tyrant, but he holds a spark of something else burning deep within, the passion of a man who knows love. Love for a wife who has been missing for many years and love for a daughter who is in terrible danger.

What is your best method or website when it comes to promoting your books?
I love Goodreads, both for the community of readers and writers and for the exposure I get to works I would never otherwise have discovered.

I gently promote my work in the groups where such promotion is encouraged, and I support my fellow authors with reviews and recommendations of their works to my growing circle of friends and readers.

My blog at Thomascardin.blogspot.com doesn’t get a lot of traffic yet, but I maintain it with artwork inspired by my story and essays I write about magic and worldbuilding. It’s one of the best places to find out what I am up to.

I also have a great circle of friends on Facebook who are among my first readers, some of whom are my beta readers and friends who are editors.

Do you have any advice for new authors?
Sit. Write. Don’t stop. There has never been a better time to be an author. The tools are there, many of them are free. All you need is dedication and the ability to learn – learn something new every day.

What is the best advice you have ever heard?
Well I will repeat it here. My father told this to me when I was a much shorter human being:

“Learn something new every day. Start your day off by telling yourself you are going to explore someplace new, or learn a fact of science, or math, or art.”

It’s such a simple thing, but I have lived with that thought every day and I grew up big and strong!

What are you reading now?
Awesome! An opportunity to promote another author! I am reading Stage Five by Robert Brumm Jr. It is five short stories and I picked it up during a free promotion on the Kindle!

What’s next for you as a writer?
Growth! I know, I am big enough already… I want my stories read and I want to engage with more readers. Currently I write on the side. Though I really enjoy my job, I could see myself as a full time author.

What is your favorite book of all time?
No! You can’t do this to me… So many wonderful books out there, but there is one I have read more than any other… one book I have recommended to people more than any other. And the best part? It’s free. You can pick it up in ebook form from project gutenberg or directly from amazon or B&N:

A Princess of Mars by Edgar Rice Burroughs. It’s a short book, a little thing really, but to me it’s a masterpiece that is trashed as pulp by critics.

Author Websites and Profiles
Thomas Cardin Website
Thomas Cardin Amazon Profile

Thomas Cardin’s Social Media Links
Goodreads Profile
Facebook Profile

Tell us about yourself and how many books you have written.
Hello, I’m a 34 year old writer who lives and works in London. By day, I publish a magazine for a membership organisation, and in the evenings I act in charity theatre productions and write. I’ve mostly written short stories and non-fiction articles for a variety of publishers. In terms of books, I self-published my MPhil thesis on Jean-Luc Godard back in 2004, and last year released a collection of short stories called “Something Nice”. My stories are also available in a number of anthologies, including The Cat That Walked Through Time (2000), Shelf Life (2008) and A Splendid Salmagundi (2012), with a story in Grimm & Grimmer Volume 4 to be released in August 2013.

What is the name of your latest book and what inspired it?
“Something Nice – 10 Stories” was inspired by my mother. My Mum has always been very supportive of my writing, but she hates the dark and sometimes twisted subject matter of my short stories. She’ll ask what I’m working on and I’ll tell her about serial killer auditors, haunted photocopiers or people growing a cow’s bum on their forehead after eating too many burgers. At which point she always says: “Oh Andrew, why don’t you write something NICE?” So now I have!

Do you have any unusual writing habits?
I don’t think it’s that unusual, but I do most of my first draft writing in the pub, with several pints of beer. I used to write in cafes when I was a student, but in the UK cafes tend to close in the early evening, leaving me with little choice. I like writing in pubs, people leave you to get on with it, and the relaxing properties of alcohol help the words flow. After three pints the writing needs more and more editing when I come to type it up later, but it works for me.

What authors, or books have influenced you?
I’ve read very widely in English and French, and I think most of my reading has influenced my writing to some extent. My short fiction has definitely been inspired by Guy de Maupassant, Philip K Dick, Isaac Asimov, Ray Bradbury and Robert Shearman, though not necessarily in that order. Marguerite Duras, Jean-Paul Sartre, Terry Pratchett, Douglas Adams and Paul Magrs have also been big influences at various points in my development as a writer. One of my stories is a direct response to some fairly impenetrable Foucault philosophy, but I wrote it so long ago that I can’t remember which philosophical point I was addressing, or even whether I agreed with it.

What are you working on now?
I’m always working on a variety of projects. Like just about everyone else I know, I’m working on some zombie fiction. But I’ve also got a few thousand words of an urban fantasy novel on the hard drive, and am pitching to write a YA novella. I also continue to write short fiction in various genres and on various themes, which I then pitch to professional anthologies. If they’re accepted, great, if not they go into a potential sequel to Something Nice. I also translated Casanova’s Histoire de ma Fuite a couple of years ago, and am dabbling with the idea of self-publishing that.

What is your best method or website when it comes to promoting your books?
I don’t tend to promote my writing very aggressively, I think people are fed up of being bombarded with offers of free e-books, etc. I’ve found that engaging in genuine conversation on sites like Goodreads has helped raise awareness of my work, but even if I hadn’t self-published, I’d still be on the internet talking about books. The only really active promotion I’ve done was setting up my Facebook author page, which has occasionally driven a few sales.

Do you have any advice for new authors?
A long time ago, I submitted a proposal for a Doctor Who New Adventure. I think I was 13. One of the New Adventures authors added a reader’s note to the inevitable rejection letter, and it was the best advice I ever received:

“Read a lot, write a lot, live a lot.”

What is the best advice you have ever heard?
Other than the above, I’m with Hemingway. “Write drunk, edit sober.”

What are you reading now?
I’m reading “The Critic” by Richard Brinsley Sheridan and “The Real Inspector Hound” by Tom Stoppard, as I’m rehearsing large parts in both plays for a charity show in early June.

What’s next for you as a writer?
My next challenge is to get a novel length work completed and published. I have a few works in progress which might fit the bill, and it’s going to be a case of talking to publishers and agents and seeing what has the best chance of succeeding.

What is your favorite book of all time?
I just don’t know. Probably Good Omens by Neil Gaiman and Terry Pratchett, or Reaper Man by Terry Pratchett. Both great books which are occasionally under-rated due to their humour. But I’ve read so many awesome books over the years that I always find it a bit heartbreaking to pick out just one as a favourite.

Author Websites and Profiles
Andrew Lawston Website
Andrew Lawston Amazon Profile

Andrew Lawston’s Social Media Links
Goodreads Profile
Facebook Profile
Twitter Account

Tell us about yourself and how many books you have written.
I’m mostly human, but part-sloth and part-writing desk. I think that’s because I’ve spent so much time sitting here. Mostly waiting for stuff to happen.

In the process, some book emerged, mostly guidebooks, but there was also a bit of journalism and a lot of rants about stuff (Government education policy, Southwark Council’s repairs team, misuse of ‘less’ and ‘fewer’, etc).

Once upon a time, a novel happened. And – about a dozen years after I wrote it – it’s just been published.

What is the name of your latest book and what inspired it?
‘The Human Script’ is a work of literary fiction, dealing will all sorts of deep stuff like determinism and free will, grief, sexuality, philosophy, art, celebrity and the nature of fiction.

But there’s some jokes in it too. Not many though. Don’t read it for laughs – you’ll be disappointed.

Instead read it because you want a strong storyline that makes you think and feel. It’s about a young guy working in a junior lab job on the Human Genome Project, but that is underselling it. There’s a love story involved, some tragedy, some sex and drugs. Quite a few anagrams too.

I’d like to thing it’s a good read if you like really intelligent material that you don’t have to work at. It comes to you.

Like all the best books, it was inspired by a small monkey with nipple tassels.

I wrote the first draft more than a decade ago while studying the world-famous masters course in Creative Writing at the University of East Anglia. Once I had a manuscript, literary agents were competing to represent me, but at the time publishing was in a woeful state and they weren’t prepared to take a risk on literary fiction by an unknown author.

The book went under the bed, but the monsters that have lived there since I was a child kicked it out again when they heard about a small indie publisher called Red Button, who have been nice enough to let the world have a look.

Do you have any unusual writing habits?
Apart from hanging from the ceiling and wearing a maid’s outfit? Not really.

I research a lot.

Partly because I like to understand what I’m writing about (or to think that I do).

And partly because I used to be a great procrastinator. I’m not so good at it any more – I keep putting it off.

What authors, or books have influenced you?
The Hungry Caterpillar was extremely powerful for me. The sense of a quest, an inner aching that could never be filled and ultimately, the transformation representing a redemption from the quotidian woes of the flesh. An apotheosis, if you will.

Beyond that, trying to identify your influences is like trying to mend a favourite shattered mug. You’ll never find all the bits and working out what goes where is impossible. Even if you could, it’ll probably still leak. And your coffee will taste of glue. Stop me if I’m over-extending the metaphor.

In The Human Script, I write quite a lot about influences, the factors that make things happen. Everything happens for a reason, or, more accurately, for many reasons. But those reasons are not in the future. Things don’t happen because they are directed towards an inevitable outcome. Things happen for reasons that are now in the past, unchangeable. Except in stories – where they’re hurtling towards the end and writers create the past to fit the future.

My influences creep into the book in very transparent ways. My literary inheritance – like the genetic code we all inherit – is quoted, referenced and alluded to symbolically, thematically and cryptically. There’s plenty of the Bible and Shakespeare, but also Joyce, Dickens and Woolf. Throw in some Vonnegut, Umberto Eco, Nabokov, Kafka, Borges, Martin Amis, Rushdie, Brett Easton Ellis, Nicholson Baker and just keep adding. You’ll never put that mug back together.

What are you working on now?
Answering your questions. Then I might have some coffee.

I’ve got an idea for a book about a robot called Fluffy who falls in love with a droid who becomes a woman. It’s called ‘Transister’. What do you think?

What is your best method or website when it comes to promoting your books?
Well, your website. Obviously. Remind me which it is again?

Do you have any advice for new authors?
Write.

What is the best advice you have ever heard?
Before you speak, ask yourself whether what you’re about to say is kind, true, necessary… and well modulated. If not, don’t say it.

Oh, and never eat anything bigger than your head.

What are you reading now?
This sentence. There. Finished.

Before now and after now, I am reading Tom McCarthy’s brilliant ‘C’.

What’s next for you as a writer?
More coffee.

What is your favorite book of all time?
I can’t tell you that. The others will get jealous. And besides, maybe I haven’t read it yet.

Author Websites and Profiles
Johnny Rich Website
Johnny Rich Amazon Profile

Johnny Rich’s Social Media Links
Goodreads Profile
Twitter Account

Tell us about yourself and how many books you have written.
I have currently written around 24 books, but have only published one of them so far, and am working on many others.

What is the name of your latest book and what inspired it?
My latest published book is, Mortal Realm Witch: Learning About Magic and it was inspired by a drawing that I did.

Do you have any unusual writing habits?
I can only write while I have either a TV show or a movie playing. The TV show or movie also has to be something I have never seen before, as well as something that I am liking but not into enough to give it my full attention.

What authors, or books have influenced you?
Over time, book series such as, Sabrina the Teenage Witch, and The Worst Witch have influenced me in writing my first series. For other books authors and series such as, Erin Hunters Warriors, Seekers, and Survivors, Rick Riordan’s Percy Jackson, and Heroes of Olympus, David Clement Davies The Sight, and Ben M. Baglio aka, Lucy Daniels Animal Ark series.

What are you working on now?
Currently I am working on writing Book Five in the Mortal Realm Witch series, The Second Mortal Realm Witch Series Companion, a few eBook exclusives, a book of Adventure stories, a book of Superhero stories, a comic book/graphic novel, a couple of nonfiction books, and a compilation story with a group of authors called: The Battle of Ebulon.

For other things having to do with my books, I am currently working on turning Book One in the Mortal Realm Witch series, Mortal Realm Witch: Learning About Magic, into an eBook, Book Two in the series, The Magic Continues, is getting reviews. For Book Three, Realms Unite?, I am currently designing it’s cover as well as putting it into book format. Book Four has yet to be edited by my editor so I am waiting on that. The First Series Companion Book, Tales of Familiars, is completed with everything except beta readers and reviews which will happen very soon.

In other book news I am working on creating two new websites for my books. The Mortal Realm Witch series website will soon be exclusive to the series and all other book information and everything not related to the series will be moving to these new sites.

Other than this I am just working on writing my other books, doing artwork for them, naming them, and doing my best to promote them.

What is your best method or website when it comes to promoting your books?
I haven’t really discovered a best method yet. So far when I have sold books online, I don’t know what it was the result of. I have found some vendor fairs to be a good place to sell books, or at least I sell some so I call it good, as well as library book sales, which the library in the next city over (not my own), let’s me sell during their sales. Because this is free and I usually sell a few books during that weekend, although it doesn’t hold the record for most books I have sold at one time, it is my most profitable method.

Do you have any advice for new authors?
Right now, no. I don’t think I have been in the world of publishing or book marketing long enough to have any good advice yet.

What is the best advice you have ever heard?
Probably to keep writing and publishing, because as people find your books and like them, if they like them enough they will want to buy the next ones and continue to do so as long as the books are well written and edited.

What are you reading now?
I am actually reading a lot of books right now. This is my currently reading list:

Ripple by: Tui Allen

The Remarkables by: A.D. Elliott

A Supremely Bad Idea by: Luke Dempsey

Following Atticus by: Tom Ryan

The Chronicles of Ancient Darkness Book Six, Ghost Hunter by: Michelle Paver

Time Riders: Day of the Predator, and Time Riders: The Doomsday Code by: Alex Scarrow

The Telling Pool by: David Clement Davies

Secrets of the Wolves (Book Two in The Wolf Chronicles) by: Dorothy Hearst

Green Lantern Sector 2814 Volume 1 by: Len Wein and Dave Gibbons

Tsubasa Those With Wings 1 by: Natsuki Takaya

The Last Days of Krypton by: Kevin J. Anderson

Batman: Inferno by: Alex Irvine

Eureka: Road Less Traveled by: Cris Ramsay

What’s next for you as a writer?
Refer back to the previous question of, What are you working on?, for the answer. You can also, until my new sites are up, always find what I am currently working on throughout the Mortal Realm Witch website: http://www.mortalrealmwitch.com.

What is your favorite book of all time?
I just have had and read too many books that I really like to choose one out of them all. One of my favorites that I read when I was younger and still read today (and I don’t really like to reread books so this is saying something) is not one book, rather a series or several series to be more accurate. For me it is the Wishbone series made up of: Wishbone: Tales of a Pup, Wishbone: The Early Years, Wishbone: Classics, The Adventures of Wishbone, The Super Adventures of Wishbone, Wishbone Mysteries, and Wishbone Super Mysteries. If I had to choose just one of these series I would choose the Wishbone Mysteries as my favorite, but that is as far as I can narrow down.

Author Websites and Profiles
Jennifer Priester Website
Jennifer Priester Amazon Profile
Jennifer Priester Author Profile Other Bookseller

Jennifer Priester’s Social Media Links
Goodreads Profile
Facebook Profile
Twitter Account

Tell us about yourself and how many books you have written.
Jim Musgrave’s work has been recently featured in Best New Writing 2011, Hopewell Press, Titusville, N.J. He was a semi-finalist the Black Lawrence Press 2012 Chapbook Awards. He was also in a Bram Stoker Award Finalist volume of horror fiction, Beneath the Surface, 13 Shocking Tales of Terror, Shroud Publishing, San Francisco, CA. His short story, “Zeru,” is published in Mixer. His science fiction was recently published in SciFi Short Story Magazine, Baton Rouge, LA. He has also published six novels and three collections of short stories at English Majors Publishing. He is owner of English Majors Reviewers and Editors, LLC.

I live in sunny San Diego with my lovely wife, Ellen, and our two Siamese (not twins), Menasha and Lilah, who allow us to live here. We have four children spread around California (it’s a big state), and we enjoy exercising, traveling and teaching (aren’t we all teachers in one way or another?).

I hope you enjoy the novel and perhaps, if you enjoy it enough, you can even recommend it to your friends over the glorious Internet social highway. I wrote this novel because I suddenly, with the help of my students, realized that we are all freaks beneath the skin, and we must learn to understand how to live together without pain and violence.

What is the name of your latest book and what inspired it?
My latest book is Freak Story: 1967-1969. This is a book that is part alternate history and family drama. I was inspired to write this book by hearing a song by Marissa Nadler called “Daisy, Where Did You Go?” I then read the biography of the famous Hilton Siamese Twins by Dean Jensen. I have lived these turbulent times in the Sixties (one of the so-called “survivors” to whom I have dedicated this book), so I’m also an “old guy.” However, as I teach college writing and reading, I believe my students may be interested in this book because it examines, in a very personal way, these tumultuous times in the late sixties, and the theme is very prescient for today. For example, I have often shown a film to my classes, from 1932, Freaks directed by Tod Browning, and it is quite popular with them. The featured stars of my novel, Daisy and Violet Hilton, are also in this film, so I believe this generation of young people may be able to understand my theme quite well.

Do you have any unusual writing habits?
Since I teach, I must write during breaks, so my books tend to be written in “mad rushes of coffee-induced passion.” Luckily, I have enough experience to not believe in the Jack Keroac school of writing and just let it be. I get my work edited, and I also have readers to tell me where I have gone off the beaten track or screwed-up a character’s motivation.

What authors, or books have influenced you?
In genre fiction, I am most influenced by writers like Lawrence Block (mysteries: he taught me to “spring forward and fall back”), James Patterson (thrillers: he taught me to write “bite-sized chapters full of action”), and Thomas Harris (horror: he taught me that villains need not be stupid).

In literary fiction, I think Brian Evenson and Tobias Woolf have influenced me the most.

What are you working on now?
I am working on the second historical mystery in my Detective Pat O’Malley series set in post American Civil War New York City. Here’s a synopsis: Long before the Nazis dreamed of their “final solution,” there was the kidnapping of genius inventor and businessman, Dr. Arthur Mergenthaler, in New York City. He was the richest Jew in the United States, and he was being forced to create the first gas chamber and crematorium to secretly purify the races in the South during Reconstruction. Detective Pat O’Malley is hired by the Mergenthaler family to find this man, and O’Malley soon discovers there are bigger players involved in this world-wide “eugenics movement” than he could have ever imagined. Who is behind this crime, and how will O’Malley stop the perpetrators?

What is your best method or website when it comes to promoting your books?
I like Createspace and Amazon Kindle because they allow the best distribution opportunities for independent authors. They also have a cool spot to get your book recorded for audio book sales. That’s where I met Shandon Loring, who is recording my first historical mystery in the Pat O’Malley series: Forevermore, about the murder of Edgar Allan Poe in 1849.

Do you have any advice for new authors?
Never give up on your dreams. The best way to write is to keep doing it until it compares with the writers you admire. Also, always get other writers who have been published to critique the content of your work. Never, under any circumstances, get friends or family involved in your work! They will not give you the “tough love” you need to succeed at your craft.

What is the best advice you have ever heard?
When I was getting my Masters Degree in Creative Writing at San Diego State University, my advisor at the time, Jerry Bumpus, told me that I would not begin to write my best stuff until I was five years away from college classes. Boy, was he right! It was more like ten years, but I think I’ve finally made him proud.

What are you reading now?
Murder on the Mind, a mystery, by L.L. Bartlett. Also, The Meaning of Children, short stories by Beverly Akerman.

What’s next for you as a writer?
I want to keep pounding the keyboard and work more on the marketing end of the business.

What is your favorite book of all time?
1984 by George Orwell. I get to live it in 2013!

Author Websites and Profiles
Jim Musgrave Website
Jim Musgrave Amazon Profile
Jim Musgrave Author Profile Other Bookseller

Jim Musgrave’s Social Media Links
Goodreads Profile
Facebook Profile
Twitter Account
Pinterest Account

Tell us about yourself and how many books you have written.
I’m a biologist and a biochemist and I’ve written four books and many articles over the years. The first three books, however, were textbooks. Although I have written fiction and biographies in the past, this is the first that I have published. “The Only Real House of Mirrors” is my first literary work.

What is the name of your latest book and what inspired it?
“The Only Real House of Mirrors” grew out of a personal crisis. I had always defined myself as a research scientist and, many decades ago, funding crises and other things led to the loss of my laboratory. A remarkable psychiatrist recognized very quickly that I had a very active imagination and that I was quite open to suggestion. We used that ability to begin the journey that is described in the book.

The journey also took place in dreams, meditations, and long hikes and climbs in the California mountains.

Do you have any unusual writing habits?
In the case of “The Only Real House of Mirrors” I can honestly say that I did not write the book. The book wrote me.

What authors, or books have influenced you?
Ray Bradbury was a very early guide for me. I remember in high school that I wrote him to ask questions about _Dandelion Wine_. He replied with a multi-page hand written letter. His very human view of life took hold of me and never departed.

Similarly, I sent M. Scott Peck (“The Road Less Traveled”) an early draft of “The Only Real House of Mirrors”. I had written “Mirrors” as fiction and he replied that I had written of a genuine mystical experience. Perhaps he was right. It’s certainly true that I have since come to recognize that “Mirrors” is an “inner autobiography”. Dr. Peck introduced me to his agent (who was about to retire) and I ultimately ended up in the hands of another agent, who was also a Middle Eastern scholar. The scholar offered to help me publish the book, but he recommended that I wait. “The book isn’t finished”, he said. “Wait until you have lived longer.” He was so right! Now it is ready.

I’ve always been fascinated by Carlos Castenedas and his “Don Juan” books. I doubt that Don Juan lived in the “real” world but that never mattered to me. When I also began to experience the confusion that can exist between the inner and outer worlds these books took on new meaning for me. Many people get angry and call him a fraud. I can personally guarantee that his early books are not frauds — they are very, very real!

It might seem strange that Carl Jung and Douglas Hofstadter were simultaneous guides for me, but perhaps “The Only Real House of Mirrors” can explain it to you :).

And so many others!!

What are you working on now?
Wait and see 🙂

What is your best method or website when it comes to promoting your books?
Ask me later.

Do you have any advice for new authors?
Not yet.

What is the best advice you have ever heard?
“If you don’t fail ninety percent of the time, you aren’t aiming high enough.” — Alan Kaye

What are you reading now?
I’m re-reading Neal Stephenson’s baroque cycle — beginning with Cryptonomicon.

What’s next for you as a writer?
I’m not certain. I now spend more time in Jakarta, and the world here is very different. “Mirrors” was intended to be a journey into the anguish and joy that joins science and religion. My background, perhaps, made “Mirrors” a Christian book. Indonesia is not only Muslim but also Christian, Hindu and Buddhist. There is also a strong animist tradition. I have no doubt that my second journey into “The Real House of Mirrors” will be strongly influenced by this world.

What is your favorite book of all time?
Lawrence Durrell’s the Alexandria Quartet — “Justine”, “Balthazar”, “Mountolive”, and “Clea”.

Author Websites and Profiles
David Barkley Website
David Barkley Amazon Profile

David Barkley’s Social Media Links
Twitter Account

Tell us about yourself and how many books you have written.
I was born and raised in Connecticut where I attended Central Connecticut State University, majoring in English Literature. Although I lived on the west coast for several years, I relocated back to my roots and birth place of Connecticut, where I presently resides with my two pugs, Mimi and Milo and our cats, Louise and Harry.

As a young girl growing up in Connecticut, I spent my summers writing stories and often times, together with neighboring girls my age, would present original plays for an audience of our parents. When I moved back to Connecticut, I took a job that required me to commute 4 hours a day by train to and from work. After a year of reading a book a week, I decided to make the time work for me, when one night after a strange dream about a dream catcher, I was inspired to write my first book, According to Legend. I have also written A Pirate’s Ransom which was published in August, 2012 and To Kill a Monarch which will be released over the summer.

What is the name of your latest book and what inspired it?
My latest book is According to Legend, which was inspired by a very vivid dream. Maybe I need to stop eating those pepperoni pizzas late at night.

Do you have any unusual writing habits?
I don’t know if it would be considered unusual, but I sit in a recliner with the lap top. What’s unusual about that? Well, my pugs are usually laying on the recliner with me and one of my cats, Harry, likes to lay on the arm of the chair. As you can see, I have pleanty of muses.

What authors, or books have influenced you?
J.K. Rowling and the Harry Potter Series. It was when watching Goblet of Fire that I was inspired to try my hand at writing.

What are you working on now?
My present work in progress is a YA. I call it “Son of a Witch.” I have only written a few pages, but have some really cool ideas for this book. I hope my readers will love it as much as they seem to love my other work.

What is your best method or website when it comes to promoting your books?
I use Facebook, Twitter and Goodreads. I have my accounts linked and so far it seems to be working. I have a website which is http://www.gerribrousseau.com and I blog every Thursday on Nights of Passion. I enjoy being on social media, making friends and building relationships. Word of mouth is still the best method of sales.

Do you have any advice for new authors?
Yes. Write what you love and never, ever give up.

What is the best advice you have ever heard?
Not to ever give up.

What are you reading now?
I’m one of those lucky people who can read a few books at a time. I’m nearly finished with Green Fire by Joy Smith and I’m starting Thirst by Mary Donnarumma Sharnick. I’m also researching and reading several books to help me with my current work in progress.

What’s next for you as a writer?
Right now I’m published with Soul Mate Publishing, and although I love them, my goal is to get an agent and move to a large publisher (one of the big six). I will keep writing and putting out books that my fans enjoy.

What is your favorite book of all time?
Oh – I could never pick just one.

Author Websites and Profiles
Gerri Brousseau Website
Gerri Brousseau Amazon Profile
Gerri Brousseau Author Profile Other Bookseller

Gerri Brousseau’s Social Media Links
Goodreads Profile
Facebook Profile
Twitter Account
Pinterest Account

Tell us about yourself and how many books you have written.
I’ve lived in Minnesota all of my life. Writing was a choice while I spent many hours in music, almost going for performance. In college, I wrote for the college newspaper and after jobs in publishing and reporting, I obtained an M.A. in writing at the University of Minnesota. Now I have three books published and another forthcoming in July. I also manage an internet bookstore.

The House in Windward Leaves was my first published book, self-published. It’s a comic fantasy for children.

Curiosity Killed the Sphinx and Other Stories won the Prize Americana and was published by Hollywood Books International. It’s a collection of short stories.

Newly released by Silver Knight Publishing is The Wide Awake Loons, a middle grade novel that unites two stories, those of kids at a lake and a family of loons.

In July, The Swan Bonnet will be published by GMTA Publishing. A historical novel, it is set in Alaska when swans were much endangered.

What is the name of your latest book and what inspired it?
The Wide Awake Loons was inspired by my lake stays in Northern Minnesota. My grandparents had a cabin there and eventually, there was another family cabin nearby. During my childhood, I also spent vacations at resorts and during college, I worked at two resorts. I listened to loons all of my life and I think it is the loons and their setting that inspired the book.

Do you have any unusual writing habits?
I recently bought a tablet that can fit in my purse. All the time that I was writing, I would say after an hour or so of creative work in the morning, “Don’t think about it until tomorrow. It’s too hard to think without a keyboard.” But while walking or going about my day, I would decide on something in my book. That would seem like a revelation. So now I have a tablet with me. Walking is often a time when I decide the next day’s lines.

What authors, or books have influenced you?
So many. Roald Dahl and E. B. White influenced my children’s work, besides others. I would say that Katherine Anne Porter and D. H. Lawrence influenced my short story work.

What are you working on now?
I am actually working on a nonfiction book for children. The project was outlined years ago but now I find, with the internet, that research has become quite interesting. But especially, there is recent archeology concerning the project that makes it even more challenging. I’m not certain how this book will work out because I usually write fiction. I might get started soon on a historical fiction project I’ve been planning for awhile, set in the Midwest.

What is your best method or website when it comes to promoting your books?
Blogs. When I self-published, I went to book review blogs. Some featured my book and that, with reviews, might have been the best boost.

Do you have any advice for new authors?
This is a piece of advice I got when I first began taking classes: “Write on something you care about. That’s the most important thing.” A new writer might emulate another writer, as painters study a great painter, but they will learn authorship finally by writing their own story.

After a story is done, it needs editing. It doesn’t seem that great writers needed editing but I suspect they did. You’ll want to do as much as possible at your end. That will impress editors.

What is the best advice you have ever heard?
I’d have to say that it came from editor submission guidelines: Send your best work. That meant finally to me that everything I sent should be my best work. It wasn’t about picking my best work. It was about doing my best work before submitting. It took a long time to understand that.

What are you reading now?
I usually read three or four books. I sell used book because I still love books before our time. I’m reading Lost Illusions by Balzac and King Solomon’s Mine by H. Rider Haggard.

The two new books that I’m reading are Cleopatra by Stacy Schiff and The Doll Collection by Joanna Stephen-Ward.

What’s next for you as a writer?
I’m not sure. The projects I mentioned above are in process or planning. I’m writing children’s work right now. But I’m involved with other books being published. I have other books that are seeking a publisher or my decision to self-publish.

What is your favorite book of all time?
Wow. So I’ll just say Anna Karenina by Leo Tolstoy.

Author Websites and Profiles
Katherine L. Holmes Website
Katherine L. Holmes Amazon Profile

Katherine L. Holmes’s Social Media Links
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Tell us about yourself and how many books you have written.
My life rotates around travel. If I don’t have a plane ticket booked, I turn funny. I have travelled around all the continents and have plenty of my own stories, but I love to read and write fiction. I didn’t want to write a book about myself, that’s not my thing.

I am currently writing my second novel, after my first came out earlier this year.

What is the name of your latest book and what inspired it?
‘The Misadventures of a Reluctant Traveller.’

When I was a kid I had this friend that used to sleep-walk. It got so bad that his parents had to lock him into his bedroom every night. One night he went missing, which terrified his parents, but luckily they found him at the train station in his pyjamas.

One thing that always stuck with me over the years was: where was he going? Did he have a plan or a destination?

That is the inspiration for this novel.

Do you have any unusual writing habits?
I don’t know. I don’t really know how other authors write. I do most of my writing in my head when I day-dream. Then when the beginning and the end are solid ideas I carry a little book where I write down little ideas as I have them. If they fit I include them in the story. I need quiet to write…I like to wonder in my mind and type what I see.

What authors, or books have influenced you?
Too many to number, I guess. I like authors like Jeff Long, Chuck Pahlaniuk and George R.R. Martin and Salman Rushdie, authors that can transport you into their stories.

What are you working on now?
My second novel is a complete change from the first in style, but it is still Travel-fiction. Its a horror story based on a Pacific island. I recently travelled to the Pacific and I had a story stick in my head while I was over there. I’m hoping this story will flow once I get into it.

What is your best method or website when it comes to promoting your books?
Goodreads is an excellent place to bridge the author-reader gap. All authors are readers anyway…so it’s good to be able to talk directly with people about what you are reading and writing at the moment and get fair reviews and constructive crticism so that you don’t practise your mistakes, but learn from them. You may even become a better writer.

Do you have any advice for new authors?
Patience, I guess. It’s a very slow process writing and releasing a book. Writing the book is only a third of the work…..then you have to submit, edit and design it and then comes the marketing. There is no rush, release the book when it is ready and don’t expect success to happen right away. Your book needs momentum…it could take years before it is noticed properly, but if your story lasts longer than you do then you have a success.

What is the best advice you have ever heard?
“Always carry toilet paper with you.” A travellers motto.

What are you reading now?
I have just started the monster task of reading the Game of Thrones series. Should take me a couple of years to get the time to finish them all, but I will sneak the odd book in just for a change.

What’s next for you as a writer?
The more I travel, the more ideas I get. So I think that as long as I keep travelling there will always be another book in progress. Hopefully people will understand and enjoy my style and if one person loves a book…then I will see it as a success.

What is your favorite book of all time?
Too hard! I love ‘The Descent’ by Jeff Long…very intimidating. That is definitely one of my favourites. Any book that gets the blood pressure up.

Author Websites and Profiles
Dean MacAllister Website
Dean MacAllister Amazon Profile
Dean MacAllister Author Profile Other Bookseller

Dean MacAllister’s Social Media Links
Goodreads Profile

Tell us about yourself and how many books you have written.
It’s been quite a journey. Once upon a time I owned a feed-and-harware store but decided that I wanted to do something different–so I went to school. I graduated from the University of California with a Ph.D. in chemistry and now work in agricultural formulation. At night I am the managing member of Luna Risen LLC. Between my two jobs I squeeze in spending time with my family and trying to teach myself Latin.

Most of my publications are in peer-reviewed scientific journals. “The Lightness of Dust” is my first published work of fiction and the second novel is on its way!

What is the name of your latest book and what inspired it?
“The Lightness of Dust” explores the idea that not only do the gods walk among us but that they have hopes, dreams, and regrets just as we do. The lives of three couples intertwine through ancient Anatolia, 1940 Seattle, and modern-day California.

Do you have any unusual writing habits?
Scent is very important. Sometimes I burn incense, but I usually like to have perfumes handy. Each of my characters reminds me of a different scent (Lily Ostendorf, for example, smells like Chanel No. 5).

What authors, or books have influenced you?
Ray Bradbury’s “Something Wicked This Way Comes” is, for me, the perfect example of how words should be pput together to form sentences. I also enjoyed Stephen King when I was younger, but I’m getting too old to scare myself intentionally!

What are you working on now?
“The Lightness of Dust” is the first book of my series The Meronymy. Each book will be stand-alone; readers won’t need to start with book one. All of the books will, however, share a few common themes.

What is your best method or website when it comes to promoting your books?
So far, Pinterest is working quite well. I have quite a few boards, some of which are dedicated to individual characters from “The Lightness of Dust.”

Do you have any advice for new authors?
Re-write. Re-write. Re-write. But keep in mind that your book will NEVER be finished–but you have to publish at some point.

What is the best advice you have ever heard?
“Don’t just extend the curve by another five percent.” This came from my research advisor in grad school, who cautioned me against adding incrementally to well-studied subjects. He wanted me to create an entirely new curve.

What are you reading now?
Since I’m in the middle of drafting a novel I’m avoiding fiction. So mostly things like Inked magazine and a few Latin textbooks.

What’s next for you as a writer?
The second book of The Meronymy will be published late this year and in early 2014 the third book will begin to take form.

What is your favorite book of all time?
“Something Wicked This Way Comes.” I have a very old copy (1972) that I pull out every once in a while.

Author Websites and Profiles
M.L. Weaver Website
M.L. Weaver Amazon Profile
M.L. Weaver Author Profile Other Bookseller

M.L. Weaver’s Social Media Links
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