A.L. Butcher's Blog, page 159

December 31, 2015

Into the Fray – Building a Battle Sequence

An interesting article from Chris O’Mara regarding writing battle scenes.

Source: Into the Fray – Building a Battle Sequence

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Published on December 31, 2015 02:13

December 28, 2015

New Year Promotions and Sales!

To celebrate the New Year I’m running a some promotions for my books.

Starting 29 Dec – 1st Jan Tales of Erana: The Warrior’s Curse will be FREE in all the Amazon stores!

Please note the audio book will NOT be free however it is pretty cheap already!

Also The Stolen Tower will be on a US and UK countdown event shortly.

Please do look out for that.

Also I have extended the sale on the paperbacks and Smashwords copies.

Tales of Erana – Volume One – Code 8FS57SZR on Create Space for 25% off. https://www.createspace.com/5306321

Light Beyond the Storm Chronicles – Code 483GN24U for $1.50 off at Create Space. https://www.createspace.com/4097384

And at Smashwords the voucher code is QD59M to get the e-book for only 99c until 28th Jan.

https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/290716

The Shining Citadel – Code 6YWSSRMU for $2.50 at

https://www.createspace.com/4122746

And at Smashwords Code HE29U to get the e-book for only 99c until 28th Jan.

https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/352783

Tales of Erana: Myths and Legends is also only 99c on Smashwords until the end 28th Jan. Coupon code CC64W at https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/431160

If you do download these, please be kind enough to leave a review, or comment on the blog.

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Published on December 28, 2015 05:59

December 27, 2015

Review – The Hogfather – Terry Pratchett

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Hogfather-Discworld-Novel-20-Novels/dp/0552167584/r

5 Stars

This is a re-read for me but as always Terry Pratchett hits the nail right on the head for wit, intelligence and humour wound tightly in this Christmas style fantasy.

The Hogfather – basically the Discworld’s equivalent of Santa Claus – an ‘old god doing a new job’. But he’s disappeared, and belief is waning so Death himself dons the beard and red suit to ensure Hogswatch goes as planned and, more importantly, the sun continues to rise. The humans need to believe in the ‘little lies’ so that they may believe in the bigger ones, such as morality, justice and right. This is what, says Death, makes them human. Yet there are places even Death cannot go. Susan Sto-Helit, technically human but on the Discworld technicalities are a little looser, nobility, governess and Death’s granddaughter seeks to go where none should go and defeat an assassin even the mighty Assassin’s guild fear.

As always the story has many layers – the nature of belief, the fluidic line between right and wrong, human nature and of course a damn good adventure.

Pratchett is a master of touching on the reality of things – humanity and it’s many strange ideas and ways, human behaviour and all it’s quirks and I find there’s an element of Discworld in us all. We can relate to this mad, wonderful, complex world in so many ways.

Two of my favourite quotes lie within the pages:

“The truth may be out there, but the lies are inside your head.”

“Where life can live life will, where life can’t it takes a little longer.”

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Published on December 27, 2015 05:21

December 24, 2015

Happy Holiday!

Whether you are celebrating the birth of Jesus, the winter solstice, or any other wintertime festival Library of Erana wishes you a fun time and a healthy and happy 2016.

Winter festivals go back a loooog way, long before the birth of Christ, and there are elements of many in European celebrations but whatever you believe it is a time to think over the previous year and plan for the new one.

I’ll post up shortly a summary of the year, in the Library and my own life and hopes for 2016. In the mean time don’t eat too many mince pies, look out for Santa and finally settle down with a good book or five.

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Published on December 24, 2015 11:44

December 20, 2015

Author Interview Number One Hundred – Chris O’Mara

I can’t believe this is interview one hundred! Anyway over to you Chris.

Welcome to Chris O’Mara.

Where are you from and where do you live now? I was born in Preston, Lancashire. It’s in northern England. I moved to the South East several years ago, and now live in the seaside town of Folkestone. It’s a cool place, lots of creatives.

Please tell us a little about your writing – for example genre, title, etc. Although I have one or two science fiction/space opera WIPs, I’m focusing on fantasy right now. I have published one novel, Healer’s Ruin, which was what happened when I took a break from working on a much longer project. I was completely immersed in this 850-page draft of what might hopefully become an epic fantasy series, and I decided to take time out so that I could return with fresh eyes and do some ruthless editing work. During this hiatus, I felt like writing something colourful and light, full of spectacle and action. But, as is my wont, Healer’s Ruin ended up being full of misery and horror as well. I think that’s just how I roll.

Where do you find inspiration? I have a very vivid imagination and I love awesome spectacle. But no matter how much time I spend describing ancient demons or foul castles or Lovecraftian monstrosities, or how much effort I put into worldbuilding, what keeps me coming back to the project, and what gets me over the finish line, is the interaction between the characters. Despite my love of action scenes and general phantasmagoria, I get my kicks from the human stories. Healer’s Ruin was no exception. Underneath all the warfare and in the shadows of the monsters, it’s about three kids – Chalos, Samine and the Wielder, Taray – and how they respond to what’s going on around them. Ultimately, I suppose I’m inspired by the concept of agency, how characters decide to act, and why.

Do you have a favourite character? If so why? I really like the way the Accomplices turned out. They were initially going to be humanoid demons that were bonded to the mages in order to provide them with counsel, but they eventually became souped-up familiars. Mysa became a really interesting character in her own right, and I admit to being surprised by the tenderness that developed between her and Chalos. This deep friendship. And when Sixt, Samine’s familiar, is introduced, there was some amusing interplay between the two Accomplices.

Some of the more villainous characters appealed to me, too. Jolm in particular. Just because of the way he got under my skin, and I started caring about him. That surprised me.

My favourite character is probably Chalos, because he was a challenge to write, and because he felt natural. He was a challenge mainly because in my epic project I was writing about heroes with great martial prowess, and here comes this healer who doesn’t even have a weapon. He turned out quite introspective, perhaps a little bipolar – which was something that interested me. He’s already been affected by his affinity with sorcery. His mindset was a very important part of the book, and I think he’s a lovely character.

I’m very happy with Samine, though. I wanted to write a female character who was smart, tough and capable. She’s much more heroic than Chalos, in terms of how readers expect protagonists to behave in fantasy. She also tends to be one step ahead of him when it comes to working things out. And she’s defined by her skills and abilities, rather than by her gender, which I felt was very important. She makes a difference plot-wise, too.

I love Taray, of course. But I didn’t feel that there was much viability in making him the central character. It just wouldn’t have been interesting reading page after page of him kicking ass.

Do you have a character you dislike? If so why? I was interested mainly in exploring how the machine of Empire consumes its own people. So naturally, the Ten Plains King is the ultimate villain. But he’s quite remote, story-wise. I didn’t dislike him, either. He made for a cool villain. This strange, distant creature that everyone’s afraid of. So I suppose the answer is no, I didn’t dislike any of them. Not really. I did feel some vague apathy towards Tankanis, but he wasn’t around long. He was meant to be this pretentious, arrogant wizard and that’s precisely what he was!

Are your characters based on real people? Maybe a little. I take small characteristics sometimes, just so I can get a hold of the character. Then, once they feel real to me, I can start making them feel real to the reader.

A small confession: I got the idea for Jolm’s malformed legs from watching footage of a Brazilian footballer called Garrincha. He was this astounding, superhuman player. Fast, strong,and nimble as the breeze. But he was born with one leg curving outwards, the other inwards. There are some wonderful videos online where you can watch him almost defy gravity when he turns on the ball. So I got the idea of Jolm having this similar birth defect, and through force of will using it to his advantage.

Have you ever used a person you don’t/didn’t like as a character then killed them off? I was pretty brutal in Healer’s Ruin, but I never did that.

Research can be important in world-building, how much do you need to do for your books? Do you enjoy this aspect of creating a novel and what are your favourite resources? Yeah I enjoy it. Fantasy is certainly less of a grind than science fiction in this regard. I studied medieval literature as part of my degree, as well as comparative mythology, so I developed an interest in that. The romance, the songs, the poetry, the stories… the legends, the gods, the cults. As for more practical aspects of worldbuilding – how far can a horse ride, what’s the economic model of Mordor, that sort of thing – I used a bunch of old books about wayfaring in the middle ages, and other obscure tomes. And of course, the internet. I’m a member of some really good groups on social media. Those people know all the answers!

Is there a message conveyed within your writing? Do you feel this is important in a book? I think every work of art has a message. Even in the thoroughly generic stories about farmboys who overthrow emperors, the message is that everyone has value, and sometimes rulers ought to be abominated rather than respected. It’s very hard to think of a story that doesn’t have a message.

Honestly, I’d never write a story that ran counter to my beliefs. Ultimately the moral and ethical questions of anything I wrote would have to adhere to my own ideals. I’m pretty sure my scepticism about empire comes through in Healer’s Ruin, for instance.

Fantasy often sees duty and the upholding of order as virtuous. I’d question that. Plenty of terrible people have flourished because of underlings doing their duty, right? I prefer warriors who do the right thing, not the dutiful thing. I’m sceptical about any kind of social machinery that tries to take that agency away, that replaces morality with a set of rules written in accordance to someone else’s interests. That’s why I love Dune. Paul Atreides stands up to religious doctrine, corporate interests and Imperial megalomania all at the same time. Not many heroes can do that!

Sort these into order of importance: Great characters; great world-building; solid plot; technically perfect. Can you explain why you chose this order? (Yes I know they all are important…) I think you’ve listed them in the right order. I’ll read a book if the characters are compelling, if they feel real, believable and suitably complex. I can take wonky worldbuilding, a meandering plot (I’ve read plenty of A-list fantasy and sci-fi that lack solid plots or good pacing) and a few typos if I care about the characters.

In what formats are your books available? (E-books, print, large print audio) Are you intending to expand these and if not, what is the reason? Healer’s Ruin is available as an ebook. My next novel, which I hope to have out in the next couple of months, will also be an ebook. I’m not overly interested in expanding to print just yet, as I want to focus on the writing.

Do you self-edit? If so why is that the case? Do you believe a book suffers without being professionally edited? Yes, I self-edit, pretty rigorously. I’ve edited a lot of poetry and prose, so I have experience. Also, I wanted to see what I could do on my own, without any real technical help. There’s a practical reason, too. I want to be in a position, in a few years perhaps, to approach a publishing house and say, ‘this is what I can do by myself.’ I don’t think there’s better proof of commitment than that, if you can pull it off.

Do books suffer without being professionally edited? Sure. The writing is woollier. The arcs might not be as smooth as they should be. But I’m wary of books being edited so that they fit the zeitgeist, or fit a market. You lose a lot of good shit doing that.

Do you think indie/self-published authors are viewed differently to traditionally published authors? Why do you think this might be? Yes, because there’s this idea that the best get deals and the worst self-publish, right? It’s not true; I mean, plenty of successful authors struggled to get deals (J.K. Rowling and Steven Eriksson, for example, didn’t get deals right away; in poetry, it’s even more starkly obvious – we only got T.S. Eliot because Ezra Pound bullied the editors of magazines into publishing him). I think it’s usually the case that the cream rises to the top, but remember, publishers want to sell good books, not just publish good books. And not all good books are marketable, so not all good books are viable in terms of publishing deals. So plenty get turned down and end up indie.

Do indie authors care? Well, I think we all want that six-figure deal! But if we’re good enough, we can earn a decent living from doing it all ourselves, with support from the community.

Do you read work by self-published authors? Yes! It’s exciting to not have to rely on publishers to vet stuff for me. Since I’ve started self-publishing, I’ve found that there’s this enormous coral reef of literature hidden beneath the surface of the mainstream. It’s very cool.

Practically too, you need to measure your skills against your peers. You need to know you’re good enough to rub shoulders with them. And there is a lot of good stuff that’s just a click away. I love that this is the case.

What are your opinions about authors commenting on reviews? How important are reviews? You know, I’m tempted to say that I don’t care about reviews, as I try to be objective about my work. If I know that something’s a little wonky, but I can’t fix it without bringing down the entire edifice of the project, I live with it. I think all writers do (even A-listers). If I’m happy, that’s what matters. But honestly, when you get a positive review, you grin from ear to ear. And you realise that’s all bullshit.

If a reviewer got something terribly wrong, or perceived a message that wasn’t there, I might be inclined to talk about it in a blog post, just to clarify. Authors are free to do that, and sometimes they should. Reviews are important because they sell the book for you. They’re an author’s magic carpet.

When buying a book do you read the reviews? Yes, fleetingly. I don’t worry about the stars aspect. I just want to know if the book is at least OK in terms of style. I just want a review to say, “OK, this wasn’t terrible.” Then I can think, “great, what’s the blurb?” Because people’s tastes are radically different, but also, some great books have bad aspects. Philip K. Dick’s style isn’t great. Lovecraft’s dialogue is bonkers. Dune is, at times, really boring. But none of them are terrible. So all I need reviews to say is, “this isn’t terrible.” That’s enough for me to consider reading the book.

What are your reviews on authors reviewing other authors? It’s cool. We’re all writing out of love for the craft. If you wrote a poem, who better to critique it than another poet? If you put up a shelf, who better to show off to than a carpenter? I find that other indie writers are honest and knowledgeable and they understand the hard work that goes into finishing a novel.

What experiences can a book provide that a movie or video game cannot? It’s more immersive. Movies are about suppression; the speed of the cuts, the sound, everything is about shutting down your higher functions. I love movies, I think cinema is a great communicator. But it’s very different to text. It’s like performance poetry versus poetry on the page. One is about grabbing your attention and eliciting a reaction, the other is about sitting in silence and contemplating. The movie versus literature distinction is the same. Movies I think are about what Keats called negative capability. You react to a movie. But a text requires your constant conscious critique. You interact with as text. You work it out as you read it.

As for video games, they’re as distinct from movies as literature is. They’re interactive, but they place you in what psychologists call the flow. It’s a state of automation, almost a meditative trance, where you respond to what’s going on with remarkable efficiency. It’s very different to the way you engage with a work of literature. Although with open-world games, with more convoluted narratives and moral choices, where various player actions have various consequences, we’re seeing a blur between the experience of reading and the experience of playing. However, this sees the player create the narrative. Which is like playing a Fighting Fantasy gamebook. And the drawback of those books is that the writer can’t tell a focused tale because player agency needs to be protected.

Books provide contemplation rather than agency. Conscious critique over the flow.

What three pieces of advice would you give to new writers?

I always think, what advice would I have loved someone to have given me? And it’s this.

Finish the book. Get to the end. Don’t keep rewriting the prologue. Just. Finish. The. Book. Then revise. Just by getting to the end of the draft you’ll feel like A Proper Writer. The buzz of this will carry you through editing. Then write the next one.
Don’t venerate. You need to be able to read your favourite authors and notice not only what’s great, but what’s wrong. Once you’ve noticed what’s wrong (woolly plot, broken magic system, lots of characters who all have the same mannerisms and tone of voice) make the decision not to do this in your own book.
Share your work. This is so easy nowadays, with self-publishing and social media. Don’t be so precious and obsessed with perfection that you never share anything. You can have the best story in the world, but if nobody sees it, who cares? By sharing, you learn how good you are, and how to get better.

What are your best marketing/networking tips? What are your worst?Well, I’m not a bestselling author, so take this with a pinch of salt. But I would say that it’s important to be genuine and to be open. If you love a genre, show that you love it. Blog about it and tweet about it. Often, prospective readers will buy your book based on a blog post you wrote about magical cats, rather than because of your five-star reviews. Some readers buy your books because of you, rather than because of the blurb. So market yourself, to a degree.

Worst tips? Well, I can tell you what marketing puts me off. I don’t like adverts that say “the new Lord of the Rings!” mainly because I want an original story, and I don’t want a new LOTR. Or adverts that say, “if you liked Mistborn, you’ll love this!” because that just makes me think, “OK, so you stole Mistborn.” Just sell what makes you unique, not what makes you generic. Nobody bought Mistborn because it promised to be just like something else.

Most authors like to read, what have you recently finished reading? Did you enjoy it? I’m pretty eclectic in my reading. I’ve got Salman Rushdie’s Fury, Roberto Bolano’s 2066, Name of the Wind and Ancillary Justice on the go right now. It’s a nightmare. I’m re-reading Neuromancer again, too, because it’s a gorgeous masterpiece. And there’s usually a Lovecraft collection on the bedside table. Because Cthulhu.

I just finished Diamond Dogs, a science fiction novella by Alastair Reynolds. It’s really good. Especially when you tie it in with the narrative of his Revelation Space series. It’s bleak, dark, gothic and mind-bending. I love his books.

Can you name your favourite traditionally published author? And your favourite indie/self-published author? That’s tough. I really like Murakami, and Salman Rushdie. J. G. Ballard’s supercool. There’s this Spanish post-modern writer called Juan Goytisolo who’s absolutely brilliant. In horror, Clive Barker. In science fiction, Iain M. Banks (RIP). Goodness, it depends on my mood.

In fantasy, I’m a big fan of Brandon Sanderson’s ideas, Steven Erikson’s sense of scale and Rothfuss’ style. I can’t name a favourite. It depends on what day of the week it is. But I remember being absolutely blown away by the Dragonlance Chronicles when I was a kid. It had a maturity that a lot of the whimsical fantasy novels lacked, mainly due to the light and shade of the characters (and the french kissing) and it was so much better than the ‘big muscley invincible hero kills everybody no problem for 200 pages’ stuff some of my friends were reading!

As for indie authors, I’m discovering so many on social media… and the depth of talent and range of ideas is extraordinary. I can’t choose a favourite, though. It would be unfair to all the ones I haven’t read yet. Which is both an honest answer, and a cop-out.

What are your views on authors offering free books? I understand why some writers don’t like it. I suppose they don’t like how it devalues the market, and forces them to compete with people who are selling books for £0. But sometimes giving books away free seems like the only way to grow a fanbase.

But honestly, I’ve found that readers who buy a book and like it are more likely to give feedback than those who got it for free. Perhaps there’s something psychological about appreciating the value of a book because you actually had to pay for it.

I don’t mind if writers want to give books away for free, and maybe it works for some (especially if they have a series). But it’s not something I plan to do. I can’t even gift books because Amazon refuses to let UK writers do that for some reason. So I have to sell them, and hope people think they’re worth it.

Do you have a favourite movie? Heh. Tricky. It’s either Akira, 2001: A Space Odyssey or The Third Man. Or Seven Samurai. Or The Big Lebowski. I watch a lot of movies.

Do you have any pets? No. I had a cat when I was younger, but I’m allergic to them now. I always thought I would have pets. But now I can’t imagine having one. I’d be red-eyed and pissed off all day!

Can you name your worst job? Do you think you learned anything from the position that you now use in your writing? I’ve had some good and bad jobs. I worked as a copywriter for a little while, and that was interesting but very stressful. But the worst jobs I ever had were the mindlessly laborious ones. Just watching the time go by, and knowing that you’re not getting the chance to do the things that you care about, is horrible.

So many people lack the chance to achieve their potential. Perhaps this makes its way into my writing, I’m not sure.

Can you give us a silly fact about yourself? I used to play guitar and write lyrics in a grunge/alt-rock band. Luckily there was another guitarist, who was awesome, as I’m a really scrappy player. But those were fun times!

Book links, website/blog and author links:

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Healers-Ruin-Chris-OMara-ebook/dp/B018ODEKGO/

Book

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Healers-Ruin-Chris-OMara-ebook/dp/B018ODEKGO/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1450370475&sr=8-1&keywords=healer%27s+ruin

Blog

https://chrisomarawrites.wordpress.com/

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Published on December 20, 2015 10:52

December 18, 2015

Heroika: Dragon Eaters – Audio

Dragon Eaters audio Heroika: Dragon Eaters – Seventeen tales of monsters, myth and mayhem where the outcomes are far from certain and the winners eat the losers. Hear the tales told by Shakespearean actor Rob Goll – very delicious it is too.

This is a wonderful collection of fantasy, heroes and brave deeds from some of the brightest writers of the genre and published by Perseid Press.

http://www.audible.co.uk/pd/Sci-Fi-Fantasy/Dragon-Eaters-Audiobook/B0193S0YUA/http://www.audible.com/pd/Sci-Fi-Fantasy/Dragon-Eaters-Audiobook/B0193RZ848/http://www.amazon.com/Dragon-Eaters-Heroika-Volume-1/dp/B0193RZ4XI/

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Published on December 18, 2015 16:05

December 15, 2015

Review – Hell Bound – Andrew Weston

http://www.amazon.com/Hell-Bound-Heroes-Andrew-Weston-ebook/dp/B015G2AI0I/

Devilishly delicious

5 Stars

There is conspiracy afoot in Hell and Lucifer isn’t happy about it. He is, after all, the master of deceit and this particular intrigue is not of his doing. So who does he sent to fix the thorn in the satanic side? Daemon Grim, Satan’s own Reaper.

Hell Bound is set in Perseid Press’ shared world of Hell –which is dark, twisted and witty – and Weston’s novel weaves in spectacularly to the series, although the reader need not have read the anthologies. This is a great introduction to a complex, delicious, and devilish world, and a way to meet some of the regular character such as the Undertaker. Locations include the Hell equivalent of Paris (Perish) and London – which is a den of iniquity comprised of Victorian, modern and medieval, and those wicked denizens who once stalked the world above do so in the underverse.

As you’d expect from this writer and this world the book is an intelligent read – with layers of wit and plots which wend and weave like the layers of Hell itself. Treachery, politics, murder, errant demons, lost and forbidden artefacts, and to compound it all Erra and his Sibitti trying to undermine the very foundations of hell itself. Satan is not having a great day.

Daemon Grim is not a good guy – but then again he is Satan’s servant and fiercely loyal. He’s also something far more than human; something hinted at all the way through, and not-quite-revealed, with teasers which, I’m really hoping mean another novel from Weston and Daemon. Daemon is wicked, he is unrelenting and he’s dark-hearted. This is NOT a book filled with happy endings, or heroes defeating the bad-guys. These ARE the bad guys – although for all that they are compelling and heroic in their own way. Dark anti-heroes and fallen idols battle to survive, to serve and to sever in a deeply complex, wonderfully created afterlife – one in which the citizens get what they deserve, even when they don’t realise they deserve it. Sin incarnate.

Dr Neill Cream – one of British histories particularly nasty serial killers; arrogant, evil and unrepentant he seeks to bring down the dark prince and further his own terrible agenda. In league with a troubled Chopin, a man seeking love in a place where love cannot exist, and Tesla – brilliant and misunderstood scientist – who once again wants the world to adore his work – and produces wild and dangerous genius. These three together (sort of) with a whole host of pirates, low lives, parodies and infernal inmates bring a heady mix of characters, some who invoke pity and some who certainly do not.

In conclusion this a clever read, with well-crafted characters, and a complex plot which is full of surprises which will keep the reader guessing and wanting more.

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Published on December 15, 2015 10:38

December 13, 2015

Author Interview Ninety-Nine – Dean Drinkel

Welcome to Dean M. Drinkel

Where are you from and where do you live now? I was born in Surrey, live in London for another few weeks and then relocating to Cannes, France.

Please tell us a little about your writing – for example, genre, title etc. I am primarily a horror writer as well as being a compiler / editor of anthologies. The last four or so years have been quite manic – this year alone has seen: Within A Forest Dark (novella), Tales Of The Titanic (anthology), Demonology (anthology) all from Lycopolis Press; Curse Of The Vampire (novella) from Hersham Horror; Masks from Black Shuk Books. December 2015 will see my final anthology of the year Chromatics (Lycopolis Press). I have also contributed a number of poems to The Book Of The Night by MoonDream Press. Next year is already shaping up quite nicely too with a number of contracts signed for collections, anthologies and novellas.

Where do you find inspiration? Absolutely anywhere and everywhere. It can happen whenever I least expect it, so I’m always carrying out a notebook and pen or if for some reason I can’t then I’ll type something direct into the phone to pick up the next day. I use the trains a lot and I’m able to phase right out now and write no matter who is around me. I’ve been known to write at football matches too.

Are your characters based on real people? They can be yes – sometimes an amalgamation of different people but then sometimes when I’m writing something and someone pops into my mind, fully formed as it were, I just think yeah – why the hell not? Change the name, perhaps the age or a characteristic but other than that just keep them as they are. Of course that sometimes backfires when someone reads a story of mine and they recognise themselves and then they try to take me to task about it but I’ll just take them for a couple of drinks and convince them they’ve got it wrong!

Have you ever used a person you don’t / didn’t like as a character then killed them off? Okay the answer to this is 100% yes. The lead character in Within A Forest Dark is totally based on someone I couldn’t stand. The first time I met him I thought he was a dick (don’t worry, I wasn’t the only one who thought this) and when I started writing the story I found I needed a complete and utter asshole and well, one thing led to another. I had great fun putting him through the ringer and killing him off. The good thing is that I am writing a sort of sequel in 2016 so am going to bring him back for a couple of pages and do it all over again! The lesson here is don’t piss me off.

Research can be important in world-building, how much do you need to do for your books? Do you enjoy this aspect of creating a novel and what are your favourite resources? There has always been an element of research for me because the majority of my stories are set in Paris, France. So when I feel I need some inspiration or if I need to check something out then I’m on the coach or Eurostar over there as quick as I can. This is a great question because at this moment in time I am in the middle of researching a big project for 2016 – it is not a horror story as such but a historical film script set in the middle of the 19th This is a going to be something massive – I’m working with a young French writer on it (Romain Collier) and I’m actually relocating to France for this. We’ve spent some time in Paris checking out some key places and whilst I’m actually moving to the south of France we will also be taking in Vienna, Austria for some major scenes. We have been working on the background research for a month or so and then will be sitting down and writing in late December / early Jan. Many books have been sourced and it’s been great fun thus far, though of course the hard work hasn’t yet started. I’ll let you know how we get on.

Is there a message conveyed within your writing? Do you feel this is important in a book? A lot of my short stories can be quite extreme – I love playing with boundaries but also the reader’s perception. Characters which may start off as ‘brother’ and ‘sister’ then end up sleeping with each other or murdering each other or murdering other people and then you realise that they weren’t related at all – I love fucking with people. I seem to have a go at Catholicism a lot too – this isn’t on purpose really, it’s just there is so much iconography / symbolism contained within that particular religion – it is such a deep sandpit to play in. I’m not sure if there is a real message as such except perhaps for this – life is so short, if you’re lucky to find someone along the way that loves you for being you then make sure you do everything to hang onto them – live for the moment because you never know what’s around the corner. Be happy and always keep smiling.

In what formats are your books available? Are you intending to expand these and if not, what is the reason? At the moment definitely paperback / ebooks but I am really interested in audiobooks – I’ve got some great actor friends who would be perfect for this so I’m tentatively dipping my toe into that so let’s see what we can do in 2016. I’m also thinking about graphic novels / manga – I’m always up for experimenting.

What three pieces of advice would you give to new writers? One: write, write and write. Every day. Even if it’s only a few lines – it’s true what they say, the brain is a muscle and it needs to be flexed. Two: believe in yourself. When your story is the best that it can be – get it out there, show it to friends, show it to family etc etc. Let them tell you their opinion and some of it you should / could take on board – but never doubt yourself. You will know when it is read and then start subbing it to editors / Anthos / competitions etc etc. Three: find a great editor, approach them, work with them but never piss them off and if you do that, they will take a chance with you. I’ve been compiling / editing an antho recently. It was invite only but as I was then approached by a young writer who had been told to contact me. I asked him to send in some stories and one of which actually fitted the theme – it was a very good story but needed a little work. So I went through it with a fine tooth comb and in his words turned a story which was 89% or lower into now something which was 100%. There was no quibbling from him about my edits, he could see that I had done something special with his tale – so we were both happy. He could have turned around and said “fuck you” but he realised the power of a good editor and all going well, we will be working together again in the near future.

Most authors like to read, what have you recently finished reading? Did you enjoy it? As I mentioned above, I’ve been reading a lot of historical non-fiction of late. I’m a great admirer of Umberto Eco and David Mitchell too so I’ve been reading their new books these last couple of weeks. I have just finished Michel Houellebecq’s novel Submission. I won’t say too much about this except that I enjoyed it immensely and whilst it is set in the near future it makes some great comments on the world (and France in particular) today – and could almost have predicted those terrible events of a couple of weeks ago in Paris – a city that I know and love very much.

Do you have a favourite movie? Doesn’t everyone? Hellraiser was the one that set me on my writing path; I also love Rob Zombie’s movies – particularly House of a 1000 Corpses and The Devil’s Rejects BUT I’m actually going to say that Amadeus is my current favourite movie – ask me this next week and I’ll probably give you another answer but for now let’s go for Amadeus. I’m a great lover of Mozart’s music and I simply love The Magic Flute…but the story here between Tom Hulce’s Amadeus and F. Murray Abraham’s Salieri is near damn perfect. I’ve never seen the original play but hope too at some stage…I also think Jeffery Jones is great as the Emperor. Damn it…as I’m typing this I’ve put it on in the background. I’d love to direct my own version of The Magic Flute if I could…love to do it in the open air…

Can you name your worst job? Do you think you learned anything from the position that you now use in your writing? I started writing whilst at University – I was lucky that my first collection came out not long after. It was only a small publisher and I sat by the front door every day expecting “Hollywood” to come calling offering me loads of cash to turn my stories into films – anyway, that didn’t happen so as I lived in a shared house I needed to bring in some money so a friend and I joined an employment agency and they got us some work at Heathrow airport – cleaning aeroplanes! There were the quick cleans that meant that as the passengers exited from the back we would go in via the front, we would be given one cloth which we had to clean the tables etc but then also used them to wipe down the toilets. Yes, the same cloth! It was absolutely disgusting and is one reason I don’t fly anymore. Where I can I mention this in my stories…filth, my friend, filth!!! But don’t get me started on that…

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Published on December 13, 2015 06:10

Mia Darien’s End of Year Giveaway

Mia Darien is giving away free stuff!

The Prizes

One (1) Adelheid Prize Pack
One (1) Here, Kitty Kitty Prize Pack
One (1) Bellator Prize Pack
One (1) Amor Vincit Omnia Prize Pack
One (1) International/Digital Prize Pack

Restrictions

All of the physical prize packs are restricted to US/Canada mailing addresses, but there is an international prize pack with a bunch of ebooks and a gift card to Amazon. Every physical prize pack will have a physical copy of the book, signed bookmark, and a collection of book-related items.

The Giveaway

a Rafflecopter giveaway

About Mia

Born a Connecticut Yankee in nobody’s court, Mia Darien grew up to brave snow and talk fast. She started reading when she was three and never looked back, soon frequently falling asleep with a book under her cheek. (Something she still does, though these days it’s her Nook as often as a paperback.)

At eleven, she discovered Night Mare by Piers Anthony and entered the world of grown-up fantasy fiction and it was all over from there. She started writing at fourteen, then met vampires as a teenager and the concept for what would become Adelheid was soon born. Epic fantasy remains her first love, but she enjoys writing whatever stories come to mind in any genre.

Now she loves both writing and helping her indie community with her freelancing. A geek till the end, she enjoys role-play by email games and World of Warcraft when she has the time. Married to her very own Named Man of the North, she lives with him, their mini-tank (also known as their son) and pets, who usually act more childish than the child.

She is the author of the urban fantasy series Adelheid, and several anthologies for charity. You can find her at her website, or the following social media.