Anna Butler's Blog, page 35
August 4, 2015
Must Love Dogs… and K. Lynn
I’m delighted to welcome K. Lynn back to the blog. I’m awed by how busy she’s been this year and grateful she’s taking some time out to tell us about her latest release from Dreamspinner Press. Let’s hear from her :
Must Love Dogs, my latest novella from Dreamspinner Press, focuses on the emerging love story of Ben and Jay.
Since a mugging a year ago, Ben’s lived with blindness. Despite an art career on hold and a deadbeat boyfriend who left him because of his disability, he’s finally getting his life back on track. Ben is gaining a new sense of independence thanks to his guide dog, Colt.
But Ben’s carefully balanced life is thrown into chaos when veterinarian Dr. Jay Connor hits Colt with his car. While Colt is on the mend and recovering nicely, Ben finds that Jay is not only fond of Colt, but also quite interested in Ben.
However, one overheard conversation might put a stop to their romance before it can grow into something more. Maybe Ben’s destined to go it alone in the dark. Or can Jay help him see there’s still a chance for happily ever after?
This novella is my third release in as many months. 2015 has been a very busy year for me (2 anthologies, 1 novel, 3 novellas) and I’m hoping to continue working on possible future releases as time allows. Balancing full-time work, grad school, media reviews, freelance editing, and writing is often hard to do, but as long as the characters keep talking to me I don’t want to push them aside.
K. Lynn has been an avid reader and writer since childh
ood. While in college, K. Lynn increased her involvement in LGBT issues and writing within the LGBT fiction genre. She has become a long-time fan of the authors that seek to explore the commonality that exists within all sexualities and genders. Most of K. Lynn’s work features LGBT characters, many of whom are in established relationships and show how love perseveres through every trial and tribulation that life holds. She also has a particular interest in seeing transgender characters gain a larger foothold within the LGBT fiction genre, hoping that the market for these works expand in the future. Contact K. Lynn at writerklynn@gmail.com or follow her on Twitter @WriterKLynn
Must Love Dogs released from Dreamspinner Press on July 22nd and you can pick it up from your favorite online retailers.
July 27, 2015
The Homecoming… shifters, an abandoned Earth, and J.Scott’s Coatsworth’s deepest secrets
I’m delighted to welcome J. Scott Coatsworth to the blog today, to talk about his new release, The Homecoming. Actually, he’s being grilled by me as I try and extract secrets from him about his new book and the fascinating characters he’s created. He bravely submitted to an interrogation, but this first question is a purely rhetorical one: is it very wrong of me to want to keep both Aldiss and Hari for my very own?!
When his own world is destroyed, Aldiss and his crew barely manage to escape, leaving friends and lovers behind. What was meant to be an exploratory trip back to the home world turns into a mad dash for survival.
When they awaken from stasis on Earth, which was abandoned by humanity five centuries before, they must quickly learn about their new home. While exploring the region around the ship, Aldiss meets Hari, a shape-changer, whose people harbor secrets that might cost the crew their lives.
+^+^+^+^+^+^+
ANNA: Starting with an easy question on the paranormal/fantasy angle, what got you writing this genre in the first place? What are your influences there?
JSC: I’ve almost always loved sci fi and fantasy. I blame my mother – she got me started on Lord of the Rings back in second or third grade. Within a year, I’d read the Hobbit and all three books in the trilogy – and OMG I cried when Boromir died!
Growing up, I loved Piers Anthony and Anne McCaffrey, but when I found Sheri Tepper, I was astounded – the way her books would leave me thinking for days and weeks after.
I’ve been writing since about Fourth Grade, but didn’t have my first publishing success until last year. Now I bounce around between the “pure” fantasy and sci fi side and the “romance” side, and enjoy writing both.
ANNA: I’m wondering if we share a mother! At least we share the same taste in fantasy writers, Tolkien and Tepper in particular. So, onward! What inspired you to write this particular story? What were the challenges in bringing it to life?
JSC: The Homecoming has an interesting history. It started out as a short story maybe 20 years ago. When I was in high school, I built an entire world called Antana on the back of some discarded stationary. I wrote a novel about it some years after a worldwide catastrophe, a story that mixed sci fi and fantasy. Some years later, I started another story, this one about someone who escaped at the time of the disaster – thinking what if someone came home to find intelligent wolves? But I only wrote a few scenes.
Flash forward to last year, and Less Than Three Press had an anthology call for ‘Lovely, Dark and Deep’ – about things that happen deep in the forest. I pulled out this story starter and brushed it off and finished it, changing my wolves to shifters, and The Homecoming was born.
But the story doesn’t end there… the novella was rejected for the anthology, but LT3 asked me to resubmit it as a standalone. I did, and they accepted it almost immediately.
ANNA: I am awed that you literally did your worldbuilding on the back of an envelope! Tell us something we don’t know about your heroes. What makes them tick? Tell us one thing about them that we don’t learn from the book, the secret in their past.
JSC: Hmmm… well, you don’t know that Aldiss always wanted to live in the woods, but there were no woods on his home world. And you probably don’t know (unless you’re particularly astute) that Hari likes it better on bottom than on top.
ANNA: If I were a Hollywood producer about to put your book on the big screen, who would you want me to cast as the leads? Why? And can we have pictures to drool over?
JSC: Are you? LOL… Hmmm… good question.
I guess Aldiss would be kind of a Daniel Radcliffe sort – fairly young, kinda handsome, a little boyish.
For Hari, my white wolf, maybe a younger George Clooney type? And OK, one Radcliffe photo and some other guy I think would make a good Hari…
(ANNA : Oh yum!)
ANNA: What secondary character would you like to explore more? Tell me about him or her.
JSC: I’m fascinated by Cat, the other surviving member of the Sapphire crew. I’d like to see who she is, where she came from. Why did she choose to go on this long mission? How does she feel about being stranded on Earth? What would she do next? There’s a story there..
ANNA: What was one of the most surprising things you’ve learned in writing your books?
JSC: That I can trust my writing. I started writing early, had some rejections, and stopped. But I’ve gone back to read some of my earlier stuff, and it’s really not bad. LOL… then this last year I sold or placed 9 shorts and novellas. It’s been a big boost to my writers’ confidence.
ANNA: Oh yes, I agree! I would say that is one of the most fundamental, but often one of the hardest, things an author needs to learn. Believe in yourself. Believe that everything is possible. Go for it! But because we also know that we aren’t perfect, if you could change ONE thing about your novel, what would it be? Why?
JSC: Make it longer, to explore more of the story, and where it might go from here. I really enjoyed spending time with Hari and Aldiss.
ANNA: oh boy, YES! At the risk of repeating myself – go for it!
+^+^+^+^+^+
Hari reached the edge of the woods just in time to see Neru crouching to leap at the two-legs. Young fool.
He gathered himself and jumped after Neru, knocking him aside as his teeth reached for the two-legs’ throat.
Neru turned and snarled at him, backing away toward the woods.
Hari stood firm, ears back, hackles raised, and drew the corners of his mouth back to reveal his teeth. Back off, Neru.
The whelp shook his head and grinned with the brashness of youth, until Hari leaped at him and nipped his ear. With a surprised yelp, Neru turned his head, deferring to Hari’s strength. As you say, brother. There was a cockiness to Neru’s look that unsettled him.
The other wolf backed up slowly then turned to disappear into the woods.
Hari caught a glimpse of Mavi watching from the shadows. The old wolf snarled, and slunk off after her son.
What do you seek, old mother?Hari wondered, watching Mavi’s silver-tipped tail flicker into the darkness. It was clear where Neru’s courage and cunning had come from.
Hari turned back toward the two-legs. He was holding a strange stick, not unlike the one that Hari’s grandmother had shown him in the wolf dream.
But it was his face that caught Hari’s eye. He knew that face. The two-legs’ eyes were white-gray, and his jet-black hair was swept to the side.
Despite the danger, he shifted in the manner only a few of the clan are able to do in the cold. He grew quickly taller and less hairy but no less muscled, and stood naked before the two-legs.
They stared at each other for a long moment. Hari felt an immense attraction washing over him. He saw in his summer form that this two-legs was beautiful. His own body responded to this… man… in an unexpected way, seeing and feeling things his winter form could not. Hari leaned forward and sniffed the stranger, drinking in his musk. It smelled enticing. Strangely familiar.
He sensed the two-legs stiffen, and to reassure, him, Hari licked the man’s neck.
The two-legs was trembling now like a young whelp, so he tried something else. He took the stranger’s face in his hands and kissed him.
The shaking slowed, and then the man was kissing him back. Hari was hungry for him, like a starving wolf at the end of a long, hard winter.
It is not the time for this, the keh whispered in his ear.
He broke contact and turned away, ashamed that he was betraying his Clan, and for lust. An emotion of his summer form.
“I’m sorry,” he said to the two-legs, without looking back. “It won’t happen again.” Even he was not sure if he meant Neru’s attack, or the kiss.
He shifted back into his winter form and loped off into the woods after his pack mates.
Scott has been writing since elementary school, when he and won a University of Arizona writing contest in 4th grade for his first sci fi story (with illustrations!). He finished his first novel in his mid twenties, but after seeing it rejected by ten publishers, he gave up on writing for a while.
Over the ensuing years, he came back to it periodically, but it never stuck. Then one day, he was complaining to Mark, his husband, early last year about how he had been derailed yet again by the death of a family member, and Mark said to him “the only one stopping you from writing is you.”
Since then, Scott has gone back to writing in a big way, finishing more than a dozen short stories – some new, some that he had started years before – and seeing his first sale. He’s embarking on a new trilogy, and also runs the Queer Sci Fi site, a support group for writers of gay sci fi, fantasy, and supernatural fiction.
Find Scott at his website and on Facebook.
July 26, 2015
Links To Blog Posts on Writing – July 2015
You’re getting this early this month as I’m flying to Seattle on Wednesday to attend the Galacticon4 convention – I was invited back to repeat the panel on fanfiction and the writing workshop I designed for the last Galacticon in Houston two years ago. Very flattering to be asked to take an encore! I will be back in early August, when I expect I’ll be focused hard on house move things (more on that anon)
Anyhow, here’s a selection of posts and articles on writing that have caught my eye over the last month:
Writing (general)
Note: Am not linking to the Harper Lee book posts mostly because her ability to consent to publication seems iffy, to say the least, and the publication of a first draft book after she spent fifty years refusing to consider releasing it, leaves me uncomfortable about just how much she may be exploited. Personal thing, here. There are a myriad posts out there and easy to find if you google.
Note 2 : Word of the month is Monopsony. If you understand it, let me know.
In Our CyberVillage: So Much Anger Interesting post at The Writer Unboxed on the recent spats of bad temper on line – the #askELJames twitter debacle (if you missed it, a marketing ploy goes very, very wrong: a live Twitter event turned into a massive beat-the-shit out of the author fest instead with literally thousands of anti-James tweets ripping apart the Twittersphere), people disagreeing with Hugh Howey on Kindle Unlimited (see the publishing section below), reforming Reddit… a counterpoint to Chuck Wendig’s post -also see below.
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Writing (skills)
9 Ways to Use Point of View to Strengthen Your Story’s Characters – E C Ambrose guesting at KM Weiland’s excellent site, with some good advice.
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Writers on Writing
(a) Chuck Wendig
Online is IRL – a thoughtful piece about the #askELJames fiasco on Twitter at the very end of June. Chuck may not hold much of a brief for James, but he holds none at all for bullies. A great post, that calls our on line behaviour to account, and sadly Chuck was roasted for it in some quarters.
The Secret Behind Making Me Care For Your Characters – reminding us that it’s not the huge drama that captures us, but the little every day dramas the character faces that we can identify with.
Think, Plan, Write, Edit, Repeat – The mantra for success.
Dear Guy Who Is Mad Because I Wrote A Gay Character In A Book – wonderful, wonderful post that showed Chuck had refound his mojo for tackling contentious issues. Love it. It even has links to a picture that is not a cuddly pug. Grins.
(b) Everyone else
Lauren Roy: Five (And A Half!) Ways To Cast Out Writerly Doubt – am putting this first because go and read it.
Katie Pierson: Five Things I Learned *After* Writing ’89 Walls
John G. Hartness: Five Things I Learned Writing In The Still Of The Knight
Carrie Patel: Five Things I Learned Writing Cities and Thrones
S.K. Dunstall: Five Things I Learned Writing Linesman
Technical ‘Stuff’
Demystifying Keywords, Categories, and Themes For Amazon Indie Authors – sound advice from The Writer Unboxed.
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Marketing for Writers
Ask Annie: The Line Between Self-Promotion and Spam – Annie Neugebauer at The Writer Unboxed on a sensible way to use Twitter.
Publishing
Very heavy section this month!
20 Years of Amazon
5 reasons to wish Amazon an unhappy birthday – someone at The Salon doesn’t like our megagiant. (warning – the site blanks out for ruddy ages while a sponsor’s ad loads. Worse than the days of dial-up).
At 20, Amazon Continues to Defy Predictions – Bloomsberg Business piece.
Authors, ABA to DOJ: Investigate Amazon’s Abuse of Its Dominance in the Book Market – I’ll link here to the Passive Voice’s round up post, since it has plenty of links if you want to follow the story of how one set of vested interests accuses another set of chicanery. Authors United (which has already had run ins with Amazon over publisher contracting and the American Booksellers Association accuse Amazon of being a monopoly.
Authors United founder says Amazon’s control of the book industry is “about the same as Standard Oil’s when it was broken up” The Salon talks to Douglas Preston about why authors are pressuring the Department of Justice to take action.
Authors United Epic Fail-O-Rama – Joe Konrath is not impressed by the previous item. Amusing but cutting.
Why Amazon monopoly accusations deserve a closer look – Fortune Magazine piece that isn’t terribly sympathetic to most of the Author United claims, but does think that Amazon’s delisting policies are worth investigation.
Kindle Unlimited switches to paying for pages read:
KDP Select And The Myth Of “The Pot” from Kate Aaron – a post I missed last month when I closed the round up, but I think is worth adding here as a coda. Because that last line says it all.
Amazon set to pay self-published authors as little as $0.006 per page read – A Guardian article analysing Amazon’s latest move
Erotica Authors Pull-Out on Amazon KU – Time to Come To The Dark Side! – Doesn’t look like Amazon’s changes are causing orgasms of the good kind…
Analyzing Kindle Unlimited’s New Page Read System Author Susan Kaye Quinn’s analysis is less emotional, and far more nuanced than most.
The Great KU Flip-Out of 2015 – Hugh Howey –who, let us not forget, has made a *very* good living out of self pubbing as well as traditional – with some measured words on not getting into a tizz too early.
Yes, once more Amazon is “screwing” authors: Set to pay them .006 per page – a heading for a post from Bob Meyer that doesn’t truly convey its sarcasm. A good read.
Writers Are Going Cuckoo For KU – TechCrunch.com that concludes although things they are a-changing, it’s still the best time to be an indie author.
SCRIBD
Is the subscription model in trouble? Scribd dumps romance titles – Bob Meyer on Scribd’s decision to stop providing romance titles because it’s too much of a loss to continue. Romance readers read too much. Obviously.
Scribd Cuts Romance Catalogue – Mark Coker over at the Smashwords blog with a thoughtful analysis.
Have You Canceled Your Account at Scribd? You Might Want to Double Check That – The Digital Reader on some dodgy practices.
That’s it for July. Enjoy the links!
July 21, 2015
July 18, 2015
July 17, 2015
Between The Lines with J. Scott Coatsworth
That’s lines, not sheets. Sheesh.
I’m delighted to welcome Scott here today to talk about one of his two new releases—stay tuned for another post in a week or two about the second release. Scott, I know, is a sci-fi and fantasy buff, and it’s no surprise to me that he tries his hand at both. Over to Scott to tell us about Between The Lines.
Magical realism.
It’s hard to describe it – it’s one of those things you know when you see it.
The dictionary defines it as: a literary genre or style associated especially with Latin America that incorporates fantastic or mythical elements into otherwise realistic fiction
In practice, it means taking a regular story and infusing it with a little something magical, or supernatural. I’ve been drawn to stories like this for years… including Larque on the Wing, the story of a housewife who finds a magical gay street in her little town, and a man who can bring the “real” her out – a handsome young gay man.
I’ve dabbled in it now a few times – I’m almost incapable of writing a “straight” story or romance. In fact, my first sale was a magical realism story called The Bear at the Bar, about a twink who changes places with a bear for the day.
My new novella, Between the Lines, explores what happens when a political operative finds a way to hear the things behind the things people say – to read between the lines and hear what they really mean.
And when you bring a little magic into the story, you never know where its going to lead…
Brad Weston
’s life seems perfect. He’s GQ handsome, the Chief of Staff for a Republican California State Senator, and enjoys the power and the promise of a bright future. And he’s in a comfortable relationship with his boyfriend of six years, Alex.
Sam Fuller is Brad’s young, blond, blue-eyed intern, fresh out of college, running from a bad break-up, and questioning his choices and his new life in politics. To make things worse, Sam also has a thing for the boss, but Brad is already taken.
While looking for a gift for his boyfriend, Brad wanders into a curiosity shop and becomes fascinated by an old wooden medallion. Brad’s not a superstitious man, but when he takes out the medallion in his office, he sees the world in a new light. And nothing will ever be the same.
Publisher: Dreamspinner Press
ISBN: 978-1-63476-235-9
Author: J. Scott Coatsworth
Cover Artist: Aaron Anderson
Length: 15k
Format: eBook
Release Date: 7/15
Price: 3.99
It began with a medallion.
The piece was a simple wooden disk, hand carved with the shapes of leaves and forest boughs and polished by centuries of use, giving it a patina of great age.
It sat upon a small green velvet pillow—the kind jewelers sometimes use, rather unsuccessfully, to enhance a plain necklace of false pearls. The kind you might expect to find on your grandmother’s settee, in a slightly larger size, embroidered with “Home Sweet Home.”
There was something compulsive about it—something hidden in the dark crevices of the carving, filled with the dust of ages.
At least that’s what Brad would recall years later, when he thought back on the first time he saw it: the moment when the lines of his mundane life suddenly snarled, snapped, and ultimately recombined into something quite different.
Of course, he didn’t know any of this at the time.
Amazon
Kobo
B&N
ARe
Scott has been writing since elementary school, when he and won a University of Arizona writing contest in 4th grade for his first sci fi story (with illustrations!). He finished his first novel in his mid twenties, but after seeing it rejected by ten publishers, he gave up on writing for a while.
Over the ensuing years, he came back to it periodically, but it never stuck. Then one day, he was complaining to Mark, his husband, early last year about how he had been derailed yet again by the death of a family member, and Mark said to him “the only one stopping you from writing is you.”
Since then, Scott has gone back to writing in a big way, finishing more than a dozen short stories – some new, some that he had started years before – and seeing his first sale. He’s embarking on a new trilogy, and also runs the Queer Sci Fi (http://www.queerscifi.com) site, a support group for writers of gay sci fi, fantasy, and supernatural fiction.
Find Scott at :
July 14, 2015
Family and Reflection: Grilling Anne Barwell
This month has a bumper crop of amazing new books, and I’m delighted to welcome Anne Barwell here today to talk about hers, Family and Reflection. Anne very gamely agreed to answer a set of impertinent questions from yours truly, and she stood up to the grilling well. Over to her to tell us more about it
Thanks for hosting me, Anna.
Starting with an easy question on the paranormal/fantasy angle, what got you writing the Sleepless City series in the first place? What are your influences there?
I write what I love to read. I’ve read fantasy for years, including urban fantasy once it was available to read. When I was growing up there was a lot of science fiction, not much fantasy, and urban fantasy was unheard of. Now my reading is more fantasy/urban fantasy and there’s not as much science fiction in the mix, apart from audio books from Big Finish. Big Finish produces full cast Dr. Who audio as well as other cool stuff.
Books about vampires and werewolves weren’t easy to get hold of either as there wasn’t much out there. I love Tanya Huff’s Blood series, and her more recent book, Silvered. I’ve also watched TV shows such as Forever Knight, Ultraviolet, and Moonlight. More recently I’m hooked on Teen Wolf and Bitten. Although not about vampires, Highlander was also an influence as it asked questions about what it was like to be immortal, and unchanging, at least on the outside, while everyone around you grew older and eventually died.
What inspired you to write this particular series? What were the challenges in bringing it to life?
I had a character who is a vampire—Simon Hawthorne—who had fallen in love with a photographer who was human. I’d written a few short stories for them, and had been debating writing at least one novel for a while but hadn’t got around to doing it yet. Elizabeth Noble and I were chatting one day and she mentioned she had a character who is a vampire that she wanted to do more with too. We figured why not combine our ideas, and so The Sleepless City was born.
Although we had several main characters already, we tweaked them a bit to fit the shared universe, and then set to work out who and want we wanted for the other characters. Simon and Ben are mine, Forge and Blair are Elizabeth’s, and Lucas and Declan are shared characters. There was a lot of discussion about not just the mythology of the universe, but the plot. As the four books form a single story arc, we needed to know what was going to happen in book 4 before book 1 was written.
What are your thoughts on writing a book series –the perils and pitfalls?
I tend to write in series, and can’t write a one shot to save myself. Even my so-called stand alone stories morph into being a part of a wider universe. If they’re not part of a series, they’re like a prologue to one.
One of the reasons I’m drawn to series is the bigger canvas. I have more room to explore characters and the world they inhabit. My writing is very character driven, with the stories I tell a glimpse of characters’ lives. Writing in series brings the chance to let them tell more of their story, as well as their history and background.
I think it’s important to go into a series with an idea of where I want to go with it. Do I want to tell a finite story with each book being part of that ‘arc’? Or tell separate stories that take place in one universe? Most of the series I’ve written so far have a definite beginning, middle and end, but some of the new ones I’ll be starting when my current WIPs are finished will be the latter. For example The Sleepless City is a finite story told over four books, but the spinoff I will writing—Opus (https://annebarwell.wordpress.com/series/opus/)—will be ongoing, and telling different stories within that universe.
Continuity is also important when writing a series. It’s one of the reasons I write my series in a ‘circle’—book 1 of series one, then book 1 of series two, then book 2 of series one etc. It’s easier to check continuity in previous books when I have a copy to flip through. I also have notebooks for every series I’m working on or planning to write. It takes time to do all the checking, but I think it’s worth it.
I know you’ve co-written the series with Elizabeth Noble. What are the pros and cons of having a writing partner? Go on… dish the dirt!
One of the things I enjoy about writing with a partner is having someone to bounce ideas off. We’ve had some animated discussions about our guys and their universe. It’s also surreal to read my characters being written by someone else, and to know that the story I started with Book 1—Shades of Sepia—of the series will be continued in part by someone else.
Elizabeth and I have very different writing styles, and she writes faster than I do. Because of this, we had to have all books plotted out in far more detail than I normally would. We gave each other lists of stuff we wanted in each other’s books. They were specific points that needed to be set up for the next book, plus spoilers that had to be avoided. It wasn’t just plot that needed to be checked for continuity, but the characters too. Although we were writing each other’s characters, they needed to feel like the characters from the previous book, and sound the same to the reader who are following the series from beginning to end.
Tell us something we don’t know about Lucas and Declan. What makes them tick, what attracts you to them to write their story?
I’d tell you what Declan’s real name is, but then… it’s never a good idea to upset a vampire.
In The Sleepless City universe vampires and werewolves have a long history of animosity. The truce they have now is an uneasy one, and it wouldn’t take much to upset it. Werewolves have been raised to mistrust vampires, and it takes a lot to go against societal expectations.
One of the reasons I wanted to write Lucas and Declan’s story is that Lucas is a werewolf and Declan a vampire. Lucas, however, is an atypical werewolf in many ways, and has close friends who are vampires. It doesn’t go down well with his pack alpha—who also happens to be his father. While the previous books in the series were more focused on vampires, writing Lucas’s story, shifts—no pun intended—the story more onto werewolves. It gave me the opportunity to explore more about their society and by extension Lucas’s family. Having Declan’s perspective in there too gave an outside view of both of those.
Declan has known the Supernatural Council for many years, and knew Lucas’s father when he was a boy. Declan has been a vampire for nearly two hundred and sixty years, so his view of life is a little different from that of the younger characters. One of the reasons he enjoys a good con is the challenge that goes with it. Perish the thought he might start getting bored, although I doubt that will happen with Lucas in his life.
If I were a Hollywood producer about to put your book on the big screen, who would you want me to cast as the leads? Why? And can we have pictures to drool over?
I’ll link to IMDB rather than share pictures because of copyright, but the ‘casting’ process was something Elizabeth and I did very early on in the planning of this series. With both of us writing each other’s characters it was important we were on the same page with descriptions etc.
Lucas – Noah Wylie
I loved him in The Librarian movies, and series, and in ER. He has that wonderful mix of brilliance and geek. I still need to play catch up with watching Falling Skies.
Declan – Sasha Roiz
I blame Grimm for this choice. Every time I see him in that I think hmm, that’s Declan. He’s got the height, build, and presence for Declan, not to mention the looks.
What secondary character would you like to explore more? Tell me about him or her.
I’d like to explore more of The Supernatural Council and its members. They’re an interesting mix of personalities and species. There are hints of their histories in this series, but I’m planning to learn more about them as individuals and the inner working of the council in my spin off series Opus.
In Shades of Sepia, Ben keeps in contact with his friend Ange in New Zealand. In Family and Reflection she comes to Flint to visit him, and there’s a small but interesting reveal about her character. It was fun having someone in the mix who isn’t a supernatural or soul bonded to one. Ange is going to be one of the characters in Outliers, a series about guys with psi powers, set in Wellington, which I want to write. I’m looking forward to exploring more about her in that.
What was one of the most surprising things you’ve learned in writing your books?The differences between living in the US and NZ continuously surprises me. It’s the little things I don’t think of. One example is if there’s a gunshot here everyone presumes it’s a car backfiring and doesn’t pay any attention until the Armed Offenders Squad turns up. Another is that using creamer in coffee and tea isn’t common here. We prefer milk. The differences in slang I expected. When Ange mentions finding a park, she’s talking about a parking spot. We wouldn’t say parking spot here.
If you could change ONE thing about your novel, what would it be? Why?
I’m happy with the novel itself but if I could have a do-over, I’d try not to have such a tight writing deadline. But as the saying goes hindsight is 20/20 and I had no way of knowing that last year would bring with it major family health issues although everything worked out in the end.
Family and Reflection
Book 3 of The Sleepless City, Sequel to Electric Candle
For as long as Lucas Coate can remember, werewolves have been taught to mistrust vampires. Lucas is an exception—he has close friends who are vampires. The werewolf pack in Flint—and their leader, Jacob Coate—have made it clear that Lucas’s association with vampires is barely tolerated, and another transgression will be his last. When Lucas finds out about the plague of werewolf deaths in the area, he wants to help even though his own life may already be in danger.
Declan has been away from Flint for ten years, but he isn’t surprised to learn that the internal politics of the Supernatural Council haven’t changed for the better. When a series of burglaries hit close to home soon after he arrives, Declan—a vampire and professional thief—is their prime suspect, although for once, he isn’t responsible. With the council keeping secrets, no one is safe. Time is running out, and for Lucas and Declan, everything is about to change.
eBook: http://www.dreamspinnerpress.com/store/product_info.php?products_id=6464
Paperback: http://www.dreamspinnerpress.com/store/product_info.php?products_id=6465
Declan turned the page of his book, read the first paragraph, then shook his head. He wasn’t sure why he’d bothered, as he couldn’t for the life of him remember what had happened on the previous page, let alone in the last few chapters. He closed the book with a thump, got up from the table, went over to the fridge, and opened it.
He wasn’t hungry, but if he had been, the mold-covered plate on one of the shelves would have put him off whatever else had taken his fancy. Someone really needed to have a word with Lucas about leaving his science experiments to breed. Declan lifted the plate somewhat cautiously and sniffed it, then wished he hadn’t. City coroner or not, this wasn’t… normal. Normal people cleaned out their leftovers before they got the chance to become strange new life forms.
Even if, in this case, his definition of normal was a werewolf.
But, despite his reaction, Declan couldn’t bring himself to throw the—whatever it was—away. To him it was disgusting, but to Lucas it might be some new discovery crucial to whatever he was currently working on. And Declan didn’t want to upset Lucas. In the short time they’d known each other, he’d become quite fond of Lucas, and enjoyed the time they spent together.
Declan sighed. He returned the offending thing to its previous resting place, ignoring the visions of reanimated zombie leftovers creeping up the stairs to attack him in the middle of the night, and instead got a wineglass out of the cupboard. He poured himself a decent-sized portion of his favorite red beverage and settled back down on the chair he’d recently vacated. As much as he enjoyed a good vintage wine, there were times when one had to quench one’s other thirsts. He sniffed the glass and savored the aroma before swallowing.
Hmm, not bad. It was amazing the standard of blood available to purchase through the right sources. It made it so much easier to feed than it used to be, and less messy too.
He heard the light step on the stairs and human heartbeat long before Ben reached the kitchen and stood awkwardly in the doorway.
“Hello, Ben,” Declan said. “Don’t worry, you’re not disturbing me.”
“If you’re sure?” Ben Leyton ran one hand through his thick dark hair. He looked tired. “I couldn’t sleep, so I thought I’d make a Milo and see if that helps.”
“I heard Simon having a nightmare earlier. He never did sleep well on anniversaries.” He’d known Simon Hawthorne a long time; Jonas Forge had introduced them shortly after Simon had been turned. Declan had also helped Simon through a dark part of his life, triggered by the events he suspected had prompted this particular nightmare, given the time of year. “I also don’t mind if you turn on the light.”
Although Declan didn’t need much light to see, especially with the full moon casting its glow into the room, Ben would appreciate more illumination.
“Yeah, well, they’re the worst times for most people, I guess.” Ben flicked on the light switch before walking across the kitchen. He filled the kettle and put it on to boil before reaching into the cupboard and bringing down a green can. “Do you want some? It’s a chocolate drink.”
“Thank you but no.” Declan indicated the glass in front of him.
The loud howl almost made him jump, and only years of practiced self-control stopped him. Even so, Declan’s hairs stood on end on the back of his neck, and the howl sent a shiver through him.
Lucas howled again. Frustration, anger, and loss all rolled into a sound that was pure wolf.
Declan knocked his glass over, spilling its contents. Without thinking, he moved at vampire speed, catching what was left of the blood in his palm and drinking deeply.
The glass fell to the floor, smashing into tiny pieces. He ignored it and finished the blood, then wiped the back of his hand across his mouth. A low growl escaped his lips. He knew his eyes were completely green. They tended to do that when his fangs extended.
When he looked up, Ben was staring at him, his eyes wide. “I’ll clean up the mess, shall I?” Ben said hurriedly, already heading for the broom.
“Don’t worry,” Declan said. “I’ll do it. Make your chocolate drink, mon ami. It’s my mess, so my responsibility, yes?”
Anne Barwell lives in Wellington, New Zealand. She shares her home with two cats who are convinced that the house is run to suit them; this is an ongoing “discussion,” and to date it appears as though the cats may be winning.
In 2008 she completed her conjoint BA in English Literature and Music/Bachelor of Teaching. She has worked as a music teacher, a primary school teacher, and now works in a library. She is a member of the Upper Hutt Science Fiction Club and plays violin for Hutt Valley Orchestra.
She is an avid reader across a wide range of genres and a watcher of far too many TV series and movies, although it can be argued that there is no such thing as “too many.” These, of course, are best enjoyed with a decent cup of tea and further the continuing argument that the concept of “spare time” is really just a myth.
Anne’s books have twice received honorable mentions and twice reached the finals in the Rainbow Awards.
Blog: http://anne-barwell.livejournal.com/
Website: http://annebarwell.wordpress.com/
Coffee Unicorns: http://coffeeunicorns.wordpress.com/
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/anne.barwell.1
Google+: https://plus.google.com/u/0/115084832208481414034/posts
Goodreads: http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/4862410.Anne_Barwell
Dreamspinner Press Author Page: http://www.dreamspinnerpress.com/AuthorArcade/anne-barwell
Finding Flynn. At last.
I don’t know about you, but I like to have images of my characters, pictures I can look at when inspiration runs dry and I need a reminder or a little kickstart to the creative juices.
I found Bennet months ago. More than a year ago. Matt Bomer is Bennet for me, with those piercing eyes and the strong, squared off jaw. Perfect Bennet.
Finding Flynn, though has been *hard*. Very hard. Flynn’s described as golden: gilded brown curly hair, golden skin, green eyes. He’s mixed race: half Macedonian, half he doesn’t know what, since he doesn’t know anything about his father. Sensual. Good looking. Sexy.
I was beginning to think I was never going to find him. And now I have.
This is Bollywood actor Hrithik Roshan.
No. Not really. This is Fleet Lieutenant Flynn.
No wonder Bennet is besotted.
July 9, 2015
Discovery… QSF’s Second Annual Flashfiction Anthology
Writing a sci-fi story about ‘discovery’ in 300 words that involves LGBT characters or has an LGBT vibe… well, believe me, that is hard. I’m a verbose kinda girl. I never say something in 300 words when I can use 3000.
But I had a go when J. Scott Coatsworth, owner of the Queer SciFi site and Facebook group, decided to host a flashfic competition to create the second QSF anthology. More than a hundred other writers gave it a try too, with some amazing results collected here for your reading pleasure.
And it’s published TODAY!!!
Scott says: “Each year, we ask authors of queer speculative fiction to submit a story to us around a central theme. The rules are simple. The story must be 300 words or less, not including the title. It must embrace the theme— in this case, “Discovery”. And it must have either an LGBTQI protagonist or an LGBT sensibility.
We also ask for cover designers to submit a cover that embraces the theme.
We are thrilled with this year’s responses—including stories from gay, lesbian, bisexual, transgender and asexual perspectives that run the gamut from sci fi to fantasy, and from paranormal to horror.
Within the covers of this book, you’ll find a platypus shifter, a trans- affirming leprechaun, a pissed off unicorn, a green pick-up with another world in its glove compartment, and a bunch of other miniature adventures—each only 300 words long.
At Queer Sci Fi, we’re building a community of writers and readers who want a little rainbow in their speculative fiction. We hope you’ll join us, and maybe submit a story of your own next time!”
Well if I did, you should!
Discovery: QSF’s Second Annual Flash Fiction Contest
Publisher: Mischief Corner Books
Author: Various
Cover Artist: Bey Deckard
Zero G Corn Pie by Astrid Amara
With a loud thump, the Cressida’s gravitation system
finally died.
It didn’t surprise anyone. Last week the air conditioning broke, and now all one hundred twenty researchers onboard walked the hallways in their underwear. And while this was a sexually attractive side effect of the ship’s impending doom, the subsequent failing of the automatic chef system was less sexy. The autochef now only produced corn pies, which was particularly alarming since “corn pie” had never been a menu option in the first place.
Oren drifted upwards and gently hit the hallway ceiling. As his head was softly embraced by a floating sock, he realized it was all at an end.
And if they were going to die, there was someone he needed to see one last time.
Oren floated through the vessel trying to avoid the years of detritus that had spontaneously taken flight. He couldn’t go five feet without being smacked by something offensive. Still-wet toothbrushes, partially full condoms, toenails, all that had slumbered on the floors of each cabin now drifted about the crews’ faces.
He met the gorgeous communication officer Tavi in the maintenance shaft.
Tavi inserted a light pin into an open circuit slot. He was in his underwear. He stared at Oren.
“We’re doomed,” Oren said, hoping it sounded as good as he imagined it could sound. “And I know I’m not that attractive right now. I slept through ‘shaving in zero G’ and corn pies make me bloated. But I’ve been in love with you for a year now. So before we’re reduced to cannibalism, I thought I’d ask if I could kiss you.”
Tavi said, “I finally made contact. Our vessel’s been discovered. We’re going to be rescued.”
Oren cursed his rotten luck. “So no kiss then?”
Tavi put down the light circuit and leaned in.
ABOUT QUEER SCI FI
Scott describes the site: “We started QueerSciFi.com in early 2014 as a place for writers and readers of LGBTQI speculative fiction—sci fi, fantasy, paranormal and the like—to meet to talk about their favorite books, share writing and publication tips, and help increase queer representation in both the romance and mainstream genre markets.
QSF now includes a blog full of book announcements, calls for submission and much more, a critique group with more than 100 members, a vibrant discussion group on Facebook that tackles daily discussion topics and provides a safe space for authors to talk to each other and for fans and authors to meet, and an annual flash fiction contest that resulted in this book.”
Queer Sci Fi Website
Queer Sci Fi Facebook Discussion Group
Queer Sci Fi Facebook Promo/News Page
July 7, 2015
In The Middle Of Somewhere with Roan Parrish
I’m delighted to welcome Roan Parrish here today, with some info and an excerpt from In The Middle of Somewhere, published by Dreamspinner Press in TWO DAYS TIME! Mark it in your diaries. In the meantime, drool over this cover…
DANIEL MULLIGAN is tough, snarky, and tattooed, hiding his self-consciousness behind sarcasm. Daniel has never fit in—not at home with his auto mechanic father and brothers, and not at school where his Ivy League classmates look down on him. Now, Daniel’s relieved to have a job at a small college in Northern Michigan, but, a city boy through and through, when Daniel arrives in Holiday, Michigan, it’s clear that this small town is one more place he just won’t fit in.
REX VALE clings to routine to keep loneliness at bay: honing his large, muscular body until it can handle anything, perfecting his recipes, and making custom furniture. Rex has lived in Holiday for years, but his shyness and imposing size have kept him from connecting with people. Though he loves the quiet and solitude of his little cabin in the woods, Rex can’t help but want someone to share it with.
When Daniel arrives in Holiday, they are smitten with each other, but though the sex is intense and explosive, Rex fears that Daniel will be one more in a long line of people to leave him, and Daniel has learned that letting anyone in could be a fatal weakness. Just as they begin to break down the walls that have been keeping them apart, Daniel is called home to Philadelphia where a secret is revealed that changes the way he understands everything.
Can a scrappy professor, an intense carpenter, and a stray dog make a go of it in their cabin in the woods? Sometimes, you have to go to the middle of nowhere to end up exactly where you want to be.
Title: In the Middle of Somewhere (In the Middle of Somewhere, #1)
Author: Roan Parrish
Publisher: Dreamspinner Press
Publication Date: July 10, 2015
Word Count: 138,000 words
“What was it of?” Rex asks, yanking me back to the present.
“Huh?”
“That first tattoo. The one Ginger gave you that day.”
“Oh,” I say, embarrassed. “It’s silly.”
“Tell me,” Rex says gently.
I unbutton my shirt, pull my left arm out of the sleeve, and roll up the sleeve of my T-shirt to expose the flowers among the other tattoos on my left biceps.
“They’re Irish primroses. They were my mom’s favorite flower. It was all I could really think to get when Ginger put me on the spot. She said to pick something small, since she was doing it for free.”
Rex’s head jerked up when I said they were my mom’s favorite. He rubs his thumb over the little flowers and smiles at me.
“Of course, my brother, Colin, saw it when he walked in on me in the shower about a month later and gave me hell for being a fairy with a flower tattoo.” I shrug. “Anyway, Ginger and I’ve been friends ever since.”
Rex’s hand is still on my shoulder.
“Um, I should—here, let me do the dishes since you cooked. Thanks again for dinner. It was amazing.”
“Leave it,” he says softly, still looking at my skin.
Rex traces the exposed tattoos with curious fingers, his hands warm and rough. Birds and a memento mori skull and some designs Ginger was obsessed with for a while. Rex reaches for the other sleeve of my button-down.
“Can I? May I, I mean?” he asks, and when I nod, he pulls my shirt off. He rolls the other sleeve of my T-shirt up, exposing the Philadelphia skyline, a wolf, and, running down my arm, the Ben Franklin Bridge.
Rex traces the line of the bridge down my arm and his touch makes me shiver.
“You cold?” he says. “Here, let me make a fire.”
I follow him into the living room where Marilyn is lying in front of the fireplace, just like she was all those months ago when we first brought her here. Rex kindles the fire quickly and the flickering light illuminates the strong planes of his face. Only this time, instead of staring at the television, all his attention is on me.
“Can I look at you?” he asks again. I start to pull my T-shirt off, but his hands are right there, sliding underneath the hem and lifting the shirt over my head.
Rex is looking at me so intently that I can’t quite meet his gaze, and I stare into the fire instead as he looks over my tattoos. He doesn’t touch me, just looks at me in the firelight. I feel like he’s reading me, reading the story on my skin. Of course, the downside to having a best friend who’ll give you tattoos for free is that you end up with a few you wish you could erase.
Rex moves behind me to look at the ones on my back and I can feel his breath touch the nape of my neck. His big hands curve around my hips and he presses a kiss to my neck. I gasp at the sudden touch.
“You’re so beautiful,” he says, low.
“I guess I’m lucky you’re not turned off by tattoos,” I say.
I turn to face him. I don’t know why, but suddenly I feel very exposed. I reach for his shirt and he lets me pull it off him. God, he’s gorgeous.
“I feel like that skinny kid I was in high school next to you,” I say, immediately cursing myself for speaking out loud. Ginger always says confidence is the most attractive quality. Guess I blew it with that one.
Rex grabs me by the wrists and pulls me into the warmth of his body. His eyes are blazing but he looks at me tenderly.
“No,” he says. “You’re so—” He shakes his head and leans in to kiss me slow and sweet, like his kiss can reassure. It’s a good kiss. A great kiss. I wrap my arms around his waist to tug him closer and then somehow his mouth is gone and I’m just hugging him. Am I supposed to be hugging him? I don’t think so, but I can’t make myself stop. His heart is pounding under my ear like I’ve startled him. Then he wraps his arms around me and his heartbeat slows. The fire is crackling and the smell of wood smoke combined with Rex’s scent is heady. He runs his hands up and down my back and then cups my ass and pulls my hips forward to meet the firm bulge in his jeans.
“Mmm,” I mumble. Rex tips my head back and kisses me again, smiling now.
“I bet you were cute when you were a skinny kid,” he says. “I can picture you looking pissed off at the world, glaring at people, only they thought it was cute because your eyes are so damn pretty.”
“Um, my rage at the world was not cute,” I insist, winking. He squeezes my ass and my knees go a little weak.
“Right there,” he says. “Your eyelids flutter and your eyes go all sleepy.” He runs a rough thumb over my mouth. “You go from mad to liquid so easy.” His voice must be hypnotizing me or something because my eyes do not go all sleepy. Do they?
“I bet you ran your hands through your hair until it stuck straight up, just like you do now,” he says, smoothing my hair back. “Right? You probably leaned back against the school with a cigarette in your mouth like James Dean and closed your eyes. I bet there was some guy you drove crazy.”
“Like you?” I ask.
“Nah,” he says, shaking his head. “You wouldn’t have even looked at me twice in high school.”
“I bet I would have,” I say.
He looks at my face, runs fingertips over my eyebrows, my cheekbones, the bridge of my nose, mapping my features like a blind man.
“I was so shy I wouldn’t have known even if you had,” he murmurs. “Never talked to anyone.” His accent comes out a little when he’s not paying attention.
“No one?” I ask, my breath coming a little quicker as his hand drifts down to my chest and finds my nipples, his rough finger pads tracing them lightly.
“No one,” he says.
ROAN PARRISH grew up in Michigan and lives in Philadelphia, but is always a few minutes away from deciding to move. A former academic, she’s used to writing things that no one reads. She still loves to geek out about books, movies, TV, and music—now, though, she’s excited to be writing the kind of romantic, angsty stories that she loves to escape into.
When not writing, she can usually be found cutting her friends’ hair, wandering through whatever city she’s in while listening to torch songs and melodic death metal, or cooking overly elaborate meals. One time she may or may not have baked a six-layer chocolate cake and then thrown it out the window in a fit of pique. She loves bonfires, winter beaches, minor chord harmonies, and cheese. But mostly cheese.
Find Roan:
