Mia Darien's Blog, page 15
May 9, 2013
Character Interview: Larry Kollar & Cody from ‘White Pickups’ and ‘Pickups and Pestilence’
For today’s character interview, I’m glad to welcome Larry Kollar and Cody, from the two books of the truckalypse: White Pickups and Pickups and Pestilence. Welcome to you both!
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Mia: What is the name of the book where we’ll find you? Can you tell us a little about it?
Cody Sifko: Two books, actually. The first one’s called White Pickups, and the second one’s Pickups and Pestilence. That one just came out. As apocalypses go, this one is pretty damn weird. Everyone’s cars turn into white pickup trucks, and anyone who gets in one never gets out again. Y’know, the world don’t run on autopilot, so we’re all trying to figure out how to get by when everything’s gotten whack.
Mia: Tell us a little about yourself. Where do you fit into the story? What should we know about you?
Cody Sifko: I’m 16. Before the Truckalypse, as we call it, I was a skateboarder extraordinare, a chew toy for the jocks at school, and a pain in the ass to my Dad who wanted me to be a man. I learned to be self-sufficient, so I wouldn’t have to depend on him for anything, and I guess that helped after things went to hell. I figured out what we needed to do, me and other people would get it done, and after a while they all started looking at me when they had a problem. And the girls. I figured the world would end before girls started noticing me. I was right!
Mia: What do you think of the author? Be honest. We won’t tell.
Cody Sifko: I want to be pissed off at him, for writing this story in the first place, but I can’t. He really didn’t want to do the one thing that I really want to hate him for, because we made him do it. He said a few times, “I’m pantsing the hell out of this story.” Other times, he said we told him the story and he wrote it down. I guess that’s the same thing.
Mia: How do you feel about the story you’re in?
Cody Sifko: I go back and forth on it. All the jocks, all the assholes who made my old life miserable, they jumped in the trucks and left me alone. But so did the rest of my family. Dad I didn’t care about so much, but I wish Mom and especially my little sister hadn’t. If I had to make a choice, I guess I’d change it back. But the ones who didn’t jump in a truck, at least around here, are better off this way.
Mia: Do you like being a character in the book?
Cody Sifko: Beats being in a truck. Or not existing at all, which comes to the same thing. I kind of jumped into the story early on and became the main character, my author said if I wanted the job that bad…
Mia: How do you see your future? Without giving anything away about the story, naturally.
Cody Sifko: Everyone’s setting me up to be some kind of King Arthur dude. Advisors, knights, the whole package. It’s whack. I’m gonna break a skateboard over the head of the first dork who bows down to me.
Mia: What do you know about your author’s plans? Can we expect to see you in any future stories?
Cody Sifko: He’s got an idea for a “ten years after” kind of thing. We told him the story, but he’s having trouble writing it down for some reason. I guess he needs a little gear oil in his brain.
Mia: Let’s say they make a movie about this book. Who do you want to play you, and why?
Cody Sifko: Ha. Let him be like me, someone who comes outta nowhere. A competition skateboarder with some acting chops, that would be perfect!
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Author Bio: Kollar lives in north Georgia, surrounded by kudzu, trees, and in-laws. His day job involves writing user manuals — some of which may have been fiction, but not by intent. He has had short fictional works published in the Hogglepot Journal, the Were-Traveler, and the Best of Friday Flash, Vol. 2 anthology. Longer works include his first novel, White Pickups, and the popular Accidental Sorcerers series.
Author Site: http://farmanor.blogspot.com/
May 6, 2013
Ten Questions with… Stan Morris
Welcome to the first edition of Ten Questions with Mia for the month of May! Our guest today is Stan Morris, author of multiple stories. Welcome!
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Author Bio: Stan Morris (1951-) was born in Linwood, California, to religious fundamentalist parents. He grew up in Norwalk, California and Concord, California, where he discovered the amazing world of hard science fiction and became influenced by conservative atheism and liberal humanitarianism. He moved to New Mexico in 1972, and finally to Maui, Hawaii in 1983. He in worked a variety of jobs at oil and gas companies, driving situations, and computer tech operations. He retired in 2006. His first book, “Surviving the Fog,” was published in 2009. He lives on a farm and grows coffee, avocados, tangerines, peaches, plumeria, a variety of vegetables and herbs, and an incredible amount of weeds. He is married to Rene Yamafuji. They have two sons.
Author Site: https://sites.google.com/site/stanandrene/
You can find his stories at Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Smashwords, iTunes and his website!
About the Writer
1. What five words describe you?
Reader, writer, gardener, sports fan
2. What was the first story you ever wrote? I mean the really bad one we all have that you’re trying to hide in the back of closet now that you’re published?
I don’t remember the title. I was fourteen. It was a science fiction story with teleportation booths that allowed people to travel between Earth and Mars. Star Trek was popular at that time.
3. What inspires you?
Ordinary people who strive to do good things. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. was an ordinary man who changed the course of American history and will someday be seen as a man who changed the course of the world.
4. What distracts you?
At one time it was young pretty girls, especially oriental girls, but now it’s the internet.
5. What’s your favorite story? This can be specific, as in a particular book or even story-driven movie, or general, like “I’m a sucker for a hero looking for redemption story.”
I love stories of ordinary people in extraordinary situations. The story of some small hobbits facing an incredible ancient power is that type of story.
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About the Writing
1. Tell us about your currently available titles.
Surviving the Fog is a story about four dozen teenagers who are trapped in the Sierra Nevada Mountains by a mysterious brown fog that covers the Earth below 6,700 feet. It focuses on Mike who tries to get the others to see the necessity of preparing to survive.
Sarah’s Spaceship Adventure is from my Mackenzie’s Rock series, and it is about a girl who sneaks out of her house one evening to take a short hop on her boyfriend’s space yacht and ends up taking a trip to her star system’s asteroid belt. It’s a story that describes cultural drift.
The Colors of Passion and Love is about a young princess who can see the colors of the aura of the men around her and knows which color corresponds to a particular emotion in one special young man. It’s a story with light magic.
Tales of the Ragoon is a series of stories about some people living in central California after the Earth is colonized by a hermaphrodite, merchant, alien species. In Sam’s Winnings, a kid jokingly bets his sister in a poker game with life changing results. Kate’s Movie Star is about a girl who runs afoul of the Ragoon and is forced to live for one year with a young movie star. Amy’s Hero is about a girl who has become so withdrawn from life that her parents appeal to the Ragoon for help.
2. What’s your favorite part about writing these stories?
Creating something different. The aliens I read about or watch on TV are usually monsters or wonderful wise beings. In Tales of the Ragoon I created a group of aliens from a civilized society, but who have prejudices that have serious and sometimes terrible repercussions for the worlds they colonize. They have laws requiring them to pay for what they take, but they bend those laws out of greed. They have a religious moral code, but some of them use that religion as an excuse to do terrible things. They need humans to be content with their rule, so they sell us high tech stuff to get money to pay for what they are taking.
3. What would your characters say about you? Be honest!
They would probably say, “Why can’t you make us prettier, handsomer, smarter, nobler, and cooler. Why are we so average?”
4. Who would play your favorite character if they made a movie of their story?
I would like Elle Fanning to play either Kathy in Surviving the Fog, or Sarah in Sarah’s Spaceship Adventure. I would like Chandler Riggs from The Walking Dead to play Sam in Sam’s Winnings or Mike in Surviving the Fog.
5. Do you have any projects currently in the works you want to talk about?
I am about to epublish Surviving the Fog-Kathy’s Recollections. This is the story of Surviving the Fog from Kathy’s point of view. It focuses on the girls in the story. I have a number of other works in progress including some from the Mackenzie’s Rock series, a contemporary story, and a historical fiction book.
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Thank you for joining us today, Stan, and good luck with your writing!
April 26, 2013
Character Interview: Mark Knight & Daniel from ‘Blood Family’
Note: This was supposed to post on Thursday, but Mia was traveling so she scheduled its posting and she’s also an idiot who scheduled it on the road day… Sorry, Mark and Daniel, but here it is now!
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Welcome back to Mark Knight! This time he comes with a guest: Daniel, his main character in Blood Family. Hello to you both!
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Mia: What is the name of the book where we’ll find you? Can you tell us a little about it?
Daniel: The book is called Blood Family ~ Quest for the Vampire Key, by Mark Knight. It’s the perfect title; it really sums up what happened to me in those crazy months. You’ll see the book on Amazon. All the Amazons – Amazon US, Amazon, UK, and others.
Mia: Tell us a little about yourself. Where do you fit into the story? What should we know about you?
Daniel: I was seventeen when I found out that my world wasn’t what I thought it was. I was just rolling along, you know? Finished High School, got myself an okay job turning wrenches for the local greasy monkey, hung out with my friends. I live near Boston with my Mom and Dad. Mom is cool. Never have the best relationship with my father, though. He’s a pastor at a local church. He’s kind of strict. Always felt that I wasn’t so much his son as some dirt that he couldn’t scrape off his shoe.
Then a weird package was left for me at my door. I took it to my room and opened it. It was glass sphere – full of something red, dark, and pulsating. Turned out it was blood. It exploded all over my room, and me. Got into my mouth and throat. And that was when the s**t really hit the fan. It changed me. I had a kind of vision, had this voice speak to me. He said he was my real father and that my Mom and Dad had lied to me—about everything. Turned out my real father was a vampire, and not just any vampire. He was the king bloodsucker, the ruler. And I was his son.
Mia: What do you think of the author? Be honest. We won’t tell.
Daniel: I’ve run across a lot of weird stuff since this rollercoaster ride began. Vampires, other dimensions, possessed animals, you name it. But finding out that there is some guy writing about me and all that’s happened to me – that’s the freakiest of all. But I read the book; he’s got me down pat. It’s the real me. Everything I was thinking and feeling as my life was turning upside down, as the vampire powers inside me were coming out – he got it exactly right. Now anyone who reads about my search for the Key will know exactly what it was like for me. They’ll get inside my head. And that’s great. People will know what I was going through.
Mia: How do you feel about the story you’re in?
Daniel: My life was pretty random before any of this happened. After school finished, it was just work, friends, girlfriend, home. Chugging beer. Smoking the occasional joint. And that was all I wanted. I was going nowhere, but just had no motivation to do anything about it. But when I found out that my true father was a vampire and my real mother had been imprisoned by him, I left home and ended up in deep the forests of Chiapas in Mexico and then on to the spooky moors of southern England. I had to find and free my birth mother. And I knew that if I tried to do that, I would probably have to go head-to-head with my vampire father. But I had to know who I really was. I wasn’t the same Daniel any more. I wasn’t that lazy goof-off who just wanted to waste time and get wasted. I was changing into something else, something powerful. I was on a mission.
Mia: Do you like being a character in the book?
Daniel: Hmm. I guess you could call me the main character. All the crazy stuff that happens is because I go on this journey. Sure, I leave my family, my friends, my girlfriend, but I found new friends. When got to England, looking for my mother, I teamed up with a young woman named Logan DuPris. She is a vampire hunter, and tough as nails. She’s a little bit older than me, but that didn’t stop us developing an attraction to one another. We joined forces and then set out together to discover what happened to my birth mother, and along the way we discovered a lot about ourselves, if you know what I mean. So, yeah, I really like being the main character. My actions set a lot of things into motions. Some bad stuff, some good stuff. But meeting Logan was definitely one of the good things.
Mia: How do you see your future? Without giving anything away about the story, naturally.
Daniel: Now that I know that I am a dhampir—a half-vampire—I know that my future isn’t going to be ordinary. I have vampire powers like strength, speed, and a this kind of intense hypnotism thing I can do. But there are other powers too, powers I never would have expected. Like the ability to heal. Logan says that no one really has the lowdown on dhampirs, even how long they live. I might have even more powers that haven’t emerged yet. One thing I will say, since leaving home to search for my mother, everything has changed.
Mia: What do you know about your author’s plans? Can we expect to see you in any future stories?
Daniel: All the crazy stuff that happened to me in Blood Family sure didn’t stop after the last page! It was only the beginning. But, yeah, I think Mr. Knight is writing about what happened next.
Mia: Let’s say they make a movie about this book. Who do you want to play you, and why?
Daniel: Wow, I’ve never been asked anything like that before. I try to keep up with movies, but it’s hard with all the strange things going on in my life. Logan tells me that there is an actor who reminds her a lot of me, his name is Thomas Dekker. She says he has that brooding quality that I have, whatever that means. He was in Heroes and the Sarah Connor Chronicles series. Never seen those; I’m more of a CSI person!
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Author Bio: Mark Knight grew up in Massachusetts, USA. Settling in the UK, Mark continued to write novels of differing genres, including horror and television scripts. Mark has worked on scripts for Hollywood’s Little Slices of Death production company and one for Illusion Studios, for which he has recently signed an Option Acquisition Agreement. He also won several short story competitions, and has had his work featured in published anthologies. Mark concentrates now on Young Adult urban fantasy novels.
Author Site: http://www.markknightbooks.com
April 22, 2013
Ten Questions with… Mark Knight
Welcome back to Ten Questions with Mia Mondays after my hiatus! My return interview is with fellow paranormal author Mark Knight, who has written Blood Family. Welcome, Mark!
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Author Bio: Mark Knight grew up in Massachusetts, USA. Settling in the UK, Mark continued to write novels of differing genres, including horror and television scripts. Mark has worked on scripts for Hollywood’s Little Slices of Death production company and one for Illusion Studios, for which he has recently signed an Option Acquisition Agreement. He also won several short story competitions, and has had his work featured in published anthologies. Mark concentrates now on Young Adult urban fantasy novels.
Author Site: http://www.markknightbooks.com
You can find his book on Amazon US and UK, as well as Smashwords, Barnes & Noble and Kobo!
About the Writer
1. What five words describe you?
Determined. Imaginative. Creative. Introspective. Searching.
2. What was the first story you ever wrote? I mean the really bad one we all have that you’re trying to hide in the back of closet now that you’re published?
An archaeological adventure called The Pyramid Phenomenon. I wrote a few 20 page ‘novels’ as a young teen. I just made them up as I went along—no intense structuring! This one was based on a dream, about a family having an adventure in Egypt, and unlocking some ancient powers within a pyramid. I still have it somewhere!
3. What inspires you?
That is actually a difficult one, because anything can inspire me to write. It could be a film, or book, or an idea. Or I could be just walking along and my mind goes travelling and next thing I know I have a sequence of events that could be a plot. Dreams often inspire me, as with that very first attempt at writing I spoke of in the last question. I guess the real answer is that life inspires me.
4. What distracts you?
As most writers know, we are enslaved to our computers and most computers these days are linked permanently to the internet. It is a great tool for research and promotion, but it is terribly distracting when emails come in and or someone sends a weird news item your way! Watching DVDs also distracts me; I have quite a collection and buy new films all the time, so there is quite a backlog. Oh – and endless cups of coffee. I should really have an espresso machine at my desk.
5. What’s your favorite story? This can be specific, as in a particular book or even story-driven movie, or general, like “I’m a sucker for a hero looking for redemption story.”
Most of my stories are about your average underdog who discovers great powers they never knew they had before, which ultimately triumph. They are often paranormal powers but sometimes just everyman powers like perseverance or fortitude. I want my readers to think, ‘Yeah, I have some of that too!’ If my work inspires people to reach deep within and find a strength they didn’t know they had, then I am happy.
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About the Writing
1. Tell us about your currently available titles.
Blood Family is a Young Adult urban fantasy novel about seventeen-year-old Daniel Dark, and his quest to find his true father, his real mother, and who he really is. After discovering that he is the son of a vampire named Dominus, he sets out on a globe-hopping journey to find his birth mother. She has been imprisoned by Dominus since his birth. Finding her will mean confronting him, and Dominus just happens to be the most powerful vampire who has ever existed.
From Elsewhere is a collection of six short stories, all about unearthly visitors. Angels, aliens, ghosts – they are all here. Many of these stories were previously published or won competitions. As they are all of similar theme, it seemed a good idea to compile them into an anthology. The collection has proven very popular, especially a story called Forbidden, which deals with the consequences of when an angel’s love affair with a demon.
Very soon I will be releasing another Young Adult book, Solomon Grimm and the Well of Souls. This is aimed at a slightly younger audience than Blood Family. Troubled fifteen-year-old British boy, Solomon Grimm, is sent away to live with nuns in Ireland. After running away, he falls afoul of a gypsy curse and is made undead. Together with his friend, Mungo, he braves the chilling Celtic underworld, domain of the flesh-eating Savage Dead, in search of a cure for his undead condition.
2. What’s your favorite part about writing these stories?
I love plotting it out, creating a structure of what happens on a separate Word file, adding images from the internet and anything else that can help create that world. I am finding out what happens in a similar way to the way the reader finds out when he or she begins to read the book. It is crucially important to create a very real world as a basis for a fantasy story, otherwise the fantasy parts fall apart. If it is based in a hard-edged, dirt-under-the-fingernails reality, then the fantasy elements come across as all the more believable.
3. What would your characters say about you? Be honest!
They’d probably say ‘You spend way too much time thinking about us! Get out and get a life!”
4. Who would play your favorite character if they made a movie of their story?
My main character, Daniel, already answered who would play him in a movie in his character interview, but if anyone could play his vampire-hunter girlfriend, Logan DuPris, I would like to see someone similar to Fairuza Balk . You know, gutsy but sexy, and with that shimmer of vulnerability in her eyes, kept well in check.
5. Do you have any projects currently in the works you want to talk about?
I will be releasing three more Young Adult fantasy novels after Blood Family, and am working on the second Blood Family novel. As far as brand new ideas go, I am currently noting out the plot for a dystopian YA book called The Wildwood Chronicles. This could very well be a series of novellas. It will have a young female main character; a girl who starts decides to fight against the creatures who have taken over the earth, creatures once thought to be myth. I am very excited about this one! It will have a hell of a lot of again, blood, and guts. Female warrior characters are great fun to write.
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Thank you, Mark, for joining us today and good luck with your stories!
March 25, 2013
Ten Questions with… Roxanne Bland
Welcome to today’s edition of Ten Questions with Mia! My guest for today is Roxanne Bland, author of The Underground. Welcome, Roxanne!
As a side note to my readers, this is the last interview–author or character–that anyone will be seeing for a couple weeks, as I (and my family, including my three year old son, nine year old Pug, and twelve year old cat) embark on a move across the country. I will still be scheduling/accepting/collecting interviews until I’m out of internet, but none will be posted till after 15 April. Thanks!
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Author Bio: A life-long fan of speculative fiction, Roxanne Bland is a genre-bending author of paranormal, science fiction, fantasy, romance and a few other things. She grew up in Washington, D.C., where she discovered strange new worlds through her local public library and bookstores. These and other life experiences have convinced her that reality is highly overrated.
Author Sites: http://www.blackrosepress.com; http://roxannebland.com
You can find her book on Amazon, for both Kindle and print!
About the Writer
1. What five words describe you?
I’m a dreamer. I’m also shy—not exactly the life of the party. I think I’m a kind person—I can be very generous if the need arises. I can be secretive. Finally, I like to think of myself as intelligent, though there are those who might say otherwise.
2. What was the first story you ever wrote? I mean the really bad one we all have that you’re trying to hide in the back of closet now that you’re published?
The first story I ever wrote won a contest when I was in elementary school, so I guess that doesn’t count. It was about a gaggle of children who stumble upon a portal to another planet, and then have to figure out how to return to Earth. Now the second story, well, I don’t have it anymore, it was that bad. It was about a young woman who buys an old, beat up WWII fighter plane and restores it. She discovers, via a dream sequence (that of course turns out to be no dream), that her deceased father had flown it before his capture and execution by the Nazis. Whew! (Holds nose) I wouldn’t touch it with a ten foot pole, now.
3. What inspires you?
The world around me, to some extent. What if my backyard was a portal to a different realm? What if my dog was really an alien in disguise? What if that lady at the grocery store was really a secret agent? But mostly reading, I think. I read about something—say, some faraway place—and that sets my imagination rolling.
4. What distracts you?
Definitely the internet. Sometimes my dog, when she insists on being petted.
5. What’s your favorite story? This can be specific, as in a particular book or even story-driven movie, or general, like “I’m a sucker for a hero looking for redemption story.”
That would have to be “The Anubis Gates” by Tim Powers. A college professor, specializing in Coleridge, accidentally finds himself trapped in early 19th century London due to the machinations of an evil millionaire. He ties in ancient Egyptian magic, Lord Byron…what an imagination!
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About the Writing
1. Tell us about your currently available titles.
My debut novel, The Underground.
2. What’s your favorite part about writing these stories?
Watching the scene unfold in my head. It’s like watching a movie. And, of course, dialogue. I love writing dialogue. I like to think I’m pretty good at it, too.
3. What would your characters say about you? Be honest!
The werewolf would probably say I’m cruel, given all that I put him through. The mage would usually be somewhat annoyed with me—she’s practical, with both feet on the ground. My head’s usually in the clouds. The vampire would probably think of me as not much more than a blood-cow, and as a human, I’d probably be beneath the alien’s notice.
4. Who would play your favorite character if they made a movie of their story?
Dead or alive? I can’t think of anyone alive who could play any of my characters. But then, I don’t pay attention to Hollywood, so maybe there’s someone I don’t know about. Anyway, I don’t have a favorite character, so, with your indulgence, I’ll just list all four: the werewolf, Charlton Heston. The vampire, Laurence Olivier. The mage, Clara Bow, and the alien, Tamara Dobson.
5. Do you have any projects currently in the works you want to talk about?
Well, I’m working on the sequel to The Underground. It has a working title, Jahannan’s Children, but that’s not going hang around. It’ll probably come to me after I finish the book. I’m also working on a science fiction/romance, that doesn’t have a title as yet. Then there’s a slew of other ideas I have, but I can’t work on more than two books at a time, and I have trouble doing even that.
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Roxanne, thanks for joining us today and good luck with your stories!
March 24, 2013
Guest Promotional Post from Belinda Frisch
Hot off the Press! AFTERBIRTH is NOW AVAILABLE.
Kindle: http://amzn.to/YUcrsK
NOOK: http://bit.ly/VWMVaR
The survivors of the Nixon Center escape struggle in a post-apocalyptic world where the walking dead aren’t the biggest threats.
Working from a remote, mountain cabin, Dr. Howard Nixon is determined to salvage what is left of his experiment.
Allison escapes him, clinging to life and with no idea what’s happened in the world.
Zach is looking for her, but time is running out.
Reid lives holed up in the Nixon Center and waits for his revenge.
Tension is high as both Miranda and Carlene’s pregnancies come to term. Miranda, faced with the possibility that her delivery might cause her to become infected, is forced to seek help from the only other person who knows what has happened: Dr. Michael Waters, the physician who sent her to Dr. Nixon in the first place.
All roads lead back to Strandville where grudges resurface and old decisions must be answered for. Scott, Miranda, and Michael return to the center to face-off against their pasts and each other as Michael’s secret agenda comes to light.
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For those who haven’t started the series, BOOK 1 is available on all platforms.
Print: https://www.createspace.com/4191691
Kindle: http://amzn.to/12CyWuI
NOOK: http://bit.ly/KvSgRM
Smashwords: http://bit.ly/QnRp6L
KOBO: http://bit.ly/Z818RV
**Runner-up in the General Fiction category of the 2012 Halloween Book Festival
**BOOK ONE of the Strandville Zombie Series
Medicine meets horror in this thrilling escape tale about the evil men do in the name of progress.
Welcome to the Nixon Healing and Research Center, playground for the maniacal Dr. Howard Nixon whose medical research has him dabbling in the undead and has the women of Strandville disappearing.
Desperate to find a cure for the lethal virus which turns its victims into zombies, Nixon kidnaps Miranda Penton, a security recruit with a past that won’t let her go. He doesn’t count on anyone coming looking for her, least of all her ex-husband, Scott.
A warning call brings Scott to Strandville where he bands together with a team of locals determined to bring their own loved ones home. Together, they infiltrate Nixon’s staff, hatching a plan that releases not only the surviving women, but the virus on those left in the hospital.
Nixon locks down the center to contain the spread, turning patients, visitors, and staff into a dangerous horde that is almost impossible to escape. Miranda and the others fight for their lives. The town of Strandville is ground zero for the zombie apocalypse and Miranda must get free because the fate of humanity lies with her unborn child.
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About the Author:
Belinda Frisch’s fiction has appeared in Shroud Magazine, Dabblestone Horror, and Tales of Zombie War. She is an honorable mention winner in the Writer’s Digest 76th Annual Writing Competition and her novel, CURE, is the runner-up in the General Fiction category of the 2012 Halloween Book Festival. She is the author of DEAD SPELL, PAYBACK, CURE, and AFTERBIRTH.
March 21, 2013
New Adelheid Short Story!
Following on the heels of Cats & Dogs comes another short story from the Adelheid world! I plan to write a “Between the Tales” short story between each novel. These stories, like the first, will be character exercises to either revisit earlier characters or get a better glimpse into an otherwise background character.
Adelheid 3.5 is Family Matters, where we revisit Dakota in a story set between Voracious and the upcoming Written All Over Her, scheduled for release in May. I know that she has been a rather popular woman, so I hope you enjoy this new glimpse into her life!
Oh, and I recommend people have read When Forever Died and Voracious before this one!
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Dakota has been a loner for two centuries, but she suddenly has a constant presence in her life that she’s not sure how to handle. And now she gets a case that is just full of surprises, and will lead her to never look at a pet dog the same way again!
[Amazon]
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P.S. Fun fact? That’s my dog on the cover. 
Character Interview: Elizabeth Rose & Chip from “‘Till the Last Petal Falls”
As you’ll recall, From Mia’s Desk hosted Elizabeth Rose this week to answer Ten Questions, and now she and Chip–from her book ‘Till the Last Petal Falls–are here for another interview! Welcome!
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Mia: What is the name of the book where we’ll find you? Can you tell us a little about it?
Chip: Do you really… alright, I guess there’s really no harm in me admitting that I’m a character in a woman’s fiction novel, now is there? It’s called ‘Till the Last Petal Falls, partially because of me, actually, and it starts when I put out a Craigslist ad for a live-in tutor for my patient, Mister Emilie. Honestly? I just wanted him to have someone new to talk to, someone that could take him out of his slump and, I dunno, perk him up a bit? Make him more alive? I never thought that it would end up the way it did…
Mia: Tell us a little about yourself. Where do you fit into the story? What should we know about you?
Chip: Well, like I kind of mentioned, I work for Mister Emilie up at the mansion in Aspen. I’ve been working for him ever since I graduated nursing school, his father hired me straight out. Now that I think about it, it was probably because I was always so eager to trust people… but you know what? I don’t regret a thing. I was always there for Mister Emilie, and that’s all that matters to me.
Mia: What do you think of the author? Be honest. We won’t tell.
Chip: He shrugs. I’m not sure, really. She insists that I’m her favorite, but I’m also sure that you aren’t supposed to… looks in the direction of the author. Well, alright. She does do me some great justice, always playin’ up my good side, so she can’t be all that bad.
Mia: How do you feel about the story you’re in?
Chip: I would say that at the time, it made me angry. I honestly didn’t like the way things went- how could I? When I think about what happens to Mister Emilie I just… sighs. But it’s important, I suppose. I may not agree with Miss Rose on everything, but I can at least agree that her heart’s in the right place. I’m just glad she let me stick to my beliefs all the way through.
Mia: Do you like being a character in the book?
Chip: It’s sure easier than living your own life, isn’t it?
Mia: How do you see your future? Without giving anything away about the story, naturally.
Chip: Is this question supposed to be funny? The way I see my own future, I would say I get to stay with Mister Emilie forever, always being able to take care of him and see him grow into a fully-functioning member of society. But Rose knows why that won’t ever happen.
Mia: What do you know about your author’s plans? Can we expect to see you in any future stories?
Chip: Just driving the nail in, aren’t you. Stops. I’m sorry for my tone, I guess I’ve taken the time to become bitter since the book ended…Well, I guess yes and no. Wherever Jolee goes, I go too- and she’s become quite the fixture in Miss Rose’s series.
Mia: Let’s say they make a movie about this book. Who do you want to play you, and why?
Chip: Brightens. Finally! A fun question! I would want Iwan Rheon to play me- not the Iwan who was in Misfits, but the 2013 Iwan. He’d have to dye his hair blonde, of course, but that’s easy doing, right? If this is all going to be on camera, at least make me beautiful? Please?
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Author Bio: Elizabeth Rose is a twenty-something college student in Denver, Colorado, double majoring in Religious Studies and English. Though “‘Till the Last Petal Falls” is her first full-length novel, she has been published in poetry since her junior year of high school. To date, she had appeared under her real name in over twelve journals, both in print and online.
Author Site: http://www.thesingingroses.com
Buy Link: Author’s Site
March 19, 2013
Ten Questions with… Elizabeth Rose
Okay, so this one is more like Ten Questions with Mia Tuesday… Another apology for the lateness, but life is just utter chaos right now. That being said, at least I am not able to welcome my newest guest, Elizabeth Rose!
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Author Bio: Elizabeth Rose is a twenty-something college student in Denver, Colorado, double majoring in Religious Studies and English. Though “‘Till the Last Petal Falls” is her first full-length novel, she has been published in poetry since her junior year of high school. To date, she had appeared under her real name in over twelve journals, both in print and online.
Author Site: http://www.thesingingroses.com
You can find her book at the Brainfood Bookstore in Longmont, CO, on website!
About the Writer
1. What five words describe you?
Determined, Self-Motivated, Passionate, Curious, Reckless
2. What was the first story you ever wrote? I mean the really bad one we all have that you’re trying to hide in the back of closet now that you’re published?
Probably everything I ever published in my high school literary magazine. I mean, it’s not half-bad stuff, if I’m being honest with myself, but it’s just someone else’s style. I was masquerading as a writer, rather than focusing on being one.
3. What inspires you?
People. I love people watching. I love hearing people’s stories and just being able to experience the weirdest things. Which directly contradicts the fact that I’m not entirely fond of people in and of themselves- I really have to force myself into those situations that benefit me the best.
4. What distracts you?
Life. There’s just so much to do, so much to experience, so much to filter out that it’s difficult to sit down and say ‘only this is worth writing about’, because I want to be able to do that with every moment of every day. I have to be super strict with myself when picking topics, or I’ll just wander until I don’t have any time to write.
5. What’s your favorite story? This can be specific, as in a particular book or even story-driven movie, or general, like “I’m a sucker for a hero looking for redemption story.”
I love asexual narratives- stories that don’t rely on intimate physical relationships to keep the story going. If there’s a romance, I want it to be implied or hinted at. There’s a tension there that no spelled out erotica could ever provide. Terry Pratchett does this best- there’s just something so sexy about a sexless story, it makes no sense but it’s lovely.
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About the Writing
1. Tell us about your currently available titles.
‘Till the Last Petal Falls is my debut novel, available from Mockingbird Lane Press. It’s a woman’s fiction novel that takes the story of Beauty and the Beast, strips it of magic, and sees how it’s lessons match up against the rather daunting question of domestic violence.
2. What’s your favorite part about writing these stories?
I guess my favorite part about writing these stories would be the planning of them. It’s in the planning that I really get to work out these little details- how much of the original fairytale stays, what do I really want to say with each specific character, what stance do I want the book to take on the issue- it’s always exhilarating. I’m always planning the next novel!
3. What would your characters say about you? Be honest!
Probably that I’m a heartless b*tch. I’m not afraid to really put my characters through the wringer, or paint them out to be as shallow as they are, no matter how much I love them. I tend to base my characters off of a mash up of people I actually know, so I write them as I know these people would react- with sometimes hilarious or tragic results. I let the events pull them around, and I let their own characterization determine what they would do- even if I don’t want to let them.
4. Who would play your favorite character if they made a movie of their story?
So my favorite character is Gage Aristade. My all-time top actor to play this role would be Ian Somerhalder. He’s got the right look about him, even if he might be a bit too skinny, and he’s got the right mix of sweet and snarky that would be perfect for Gage.
5. Do you have any projects currently in the works you want to talk about?
I’m currently working on the second installment of the Once Upon a Reality series, which is going to be looking at post-partum depression, the baby-boomer mentality, and substance abuse through the lens of Sleeping Beauty. It’s tentative title is To Dwell in Dreams, and focuses on the drama surrounding Jolee’s older sister, Ashlyn, as she comes over to Colorado from France for a visit. I’ve also planned out the third book, The Thing About Apples, which will explore female autism in the light of the Snow White fairytale. I should be finishing Dreams sometime this summer, at which point it will be submitted to publishers and then I’ll get right to work on Apples! I’m hopefully going to be able to turn this into at least a seven-book series (which is all I have planned so far!)
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Thank you for joining us today, Elizabeth, and good luck with you stories!
March 15, 2013
Character Interview: Michael Brown & William from “William & Lucy”
First of all, this should have been posted yesterday. I apologize for the delay! Mia just has a little too much life taking place right now.
That being said… please welcome Michael Brown today, who is the author of William & Lucy. We will be joined by William in today’s character interview. Thank you both for being here, and everyone, enjoy!
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Mia: What is the name of the book where we’ll find you? Can you tell us a little about it?
The novel is William & Lucy by Michael Brown. I’m the “William” half of the title, my name is William Wordsworth. I am 28 years old and I am a struggling poet with more than a few enemies, both literary and political, who would enjoy seeing me hung as a French spy at a time when England is at war with France. I fall irrevocably in love with Lucy Sims, a 17 year-old woman who is ostracized because of social class and an independent will that is contrary to the mores of her time. This novel explores our relationship and uncovers one of literary history’s most enduring mysteries—my Lucy, the young woman who I feature in my five ‘Lucy’ poems.
Mia: What do you think of the author? Be honest. We won’t tell.
I’m grateful that he was inspired to write about my Lucy, the secret love of my life.
Mia: How do you feel about the story you’re in?
Thankful, is the word that comes to mind. The author ignored my older years, the ones wherein history depicts me as an dour older gentleman. This tale allows readers to see me as a rebellious young poet, a Francophile as well as political activist, and a youth with fire in his belly willing to fight for his new style of poetry and for the mysterious Lucy Sims.
Mia: Do you like being a character in the book?
Absolutely! When one has had a troubled youth such as mine, it’s rewarding to read an accurate accounting of those tumultuous years!
Mia: How do you see your future? Without giving anything away about the story, naturally.
My literary future as a character in novels will probably continue, I can only hope the depiction is as exciting as the one in this novel.
Mia: What do you know about your author’s plans? Can we expect to see you in any future stories?
My author and I are very close. I can even read his mind. There just might by another novel brewing with my irascible friend and sometime collaborator Samuel Taylor Coleridge.
Mia: Let’s say they make a movie about this book. Who do you want to play you, and why?
I would like to see a younger (because I’m 28) Daniel Day Lewis play my character.
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Author Bio: An acclaimed film editor, Michael Brown has won three Emmy Awards, an ACE Eddie Award and a Lifetime Career Achievement Award for feature and TV work. He is a member of the Directors Guild of America and the Writers Guild of America. As a TV writer, his credits include “CPO Sharkey” (NBC), “Brothers and Sisters” (NBC), “A.E.S. Hudson Street” (ABC), “Three for the Road” (CBS) and “Piper’s Pets” (NBC pilot). He lives in Chatsworth, California with his wife, Holly. William & Lucy is his first novel. His second title, the romantic comedy Love, Sex, and Other Near Death Experiences will launch this summer from Sunbury Press. Michael is at work on his third novel, a thriller.
Author Site: http://tarnpublishing.com/
Buy Link: Amazon
Buy Link: Smashword [20% Discount code: ED35D]
