D.R. Perry's Blog, page 7

Friendly Neighborhood Friday with Keri Rozansky

Today's interview is with Keri Rozansky, who knows exactly what to do when your draft hands you melons that look like this one. She's the woman behind Blank Page Writing, an editing company. Here's a bit about her.

Keri Rozansky tailors her services to the client’s needs. 

She has a rich and varied experience in writing and editing English language pieces. For over 20 years she has been writing everything from short stories to blog posts and news articles, to full-length manuscripts. As an editor she has worked on blog posts, news articles, and both fiction and non-fiction full-length manuscripts.

Keri holds a Bachelor’s degree in English Literature and Language from Grand Valley State University in Allendale, MI. She currently lives in Scottsdale, AZ with her husband and their son.

Check out Keri's favorite song while reading her interview, where you can find out why she loves this one. D.R.- Dogs or cats?
K.R.- Definitely dogs. I've had one at various times throughout my life.

D.R.- Cake or pie?
K.R.- Both please. If it's cake I like yellow cake. If it's pie I'll take a slice of apple.

D.R.- What is your quest?
K.R.- My quest? To be a published author someday. I've been working on my WIP for about 5 years now whenever I get the chance. Family, school, work - the traditional stumbling blocks always seem to get in the way.

D.R.- What is your favorite color?
K.R.- Purple! It has just the right mix of red and blue, two of my other preferred colors.

D.R.- What is your favorite song and why?
K.R.- "Letter To Me" by Brad Paisley. Yes, it's country, but it's more about the content than the genre. It's a song about a man looking back at his younger self while he writes a letter to that younger self telling him that the things he gets so obsessed about (bad grades, breakups, etc.) are nothing compared to the success he'll find in his later years. I see it as a reflection of my own life.

D.R.- Why do you love/hate winter?
K.R.- This is difficult since I live in Phoenix, Arizona. Winter there is the best because the temperatures are in the 60s and 70s most of the time - springtime temperatures for most other places. I hate it because it's mostly like any other time of the year, just cooler. Cooler temps, but no bare trees or snow or any of the traditional signs of winter.

D.R.- Where'd you get the idea for your business?
K.R.- I've always loved writing and editing and manipulating the written word to deliver a particular message. I went to a few networking meetings when I was new to the area and found that many people complained of not having the time or talent to put into blogs or other written text. I formed my company based on my skills and the needs of clients.

D.R.- What genres do you feel comfortable supporting?
K.R.- I'm always up for a challenge. My favorite reads are romance, mystery, and after some recent exposure - fantasy. Non-fiction too. So those are what I'm particularly interested in editing.

D.R.- What do you have to offer authors?
K.R.- Both writing and editing services. I can create content for blogs and website pages or I can edit for content, grammar, etc. My services can be tailored to the client's needs.

D.R.- Where can we find your services on the Internet?
K.R.- At my official business webpage. I'm also on Facebook with a business page and a writing page. 

Autumn Authors Interview with Shiv Ramdas

It's time for another interview! This time, I've got the chance to ask Shiv Ramdas some questions he wrote Domechild and is finishing up the sequel, Wrathchild. Here's a little bit about him.

Shiv Ramdas is a speculative fiction writer and Clarion West graduate based out of India. He has written short stories, radio scripts and plays,  advertisements and in between all of these, numerous resignation letters. He has also written a cyberpunk novel, Domechild, published by Penguin India. 

Scroll on down to read the interview and be sure to check out the slideshow at the end. 
The author in his natural habitat, signing a book. D.R.- Who is your favorite animated character (comic, anime, manga, graphic novel) and why?
S.R.- Ok this is a really hard one. So many. I’m a huge fan of most Alan More characters- he does these wonderfully grey ones like Roscharch, or V or Dr Manhattan or V or Alan Quatermain-  I love deeply layered and inherently conflicted characters and he does them so well. Which is why I can’t end this list without mentioning Dr Doom from the Fantastic 4 franchise- sorcerer and scientist, ruthless yet ultimately very principled, a tyrant who overthrew a tyrant, and probably the one great Roma character in all comicdom. Such depth.  It genuinely bothers me how Marvel can be so blind as to tone and dumb down the most fascinating character in the stable every time they make a F4 film. It’s a sad mistreatment of the greatest character Lee and Kirby ever created. 

D.R.- What's your best writer's block buster?
S.R.- Brooding. I take a walk and think and play with options and alternate story plans. And drink a lot of coffee. Maybe read a book or play a game. But mostly, I brood. It serves the dual purpose of getting things done while not feeling like I’m getting things done and keeps both my conscience and my laziness happy. 

D.R.- Tell me about the biggest surprise your own character, story, or setting has given you.
S.R.- Well, existing. Take Marcus from Domechild. He wasn’t in the outline, was created for a one scene bit, refused to go away, survived about 5 attempts to kill him and in a lot of ways, hijacked Domechild. And he seems to be the favourite character from the book of so many readers. I guess he’s doing something right, even if it means I an always on edge when he’s in a scene because 9 times out of 10- no 10 times out of 10, bye bye outline and plans. He’s an incredibly fun character to write, and I’ve grown attached to him, but there was a time I was tearing my hair out and screaming “why won’t you die??” at the page. I guess we’ve come a long way and learnt to live with each other now. Maybe.

D.R.- Share a guilty pleasure with us. Cake or pie? 
S.R.- All the sweet things all the time every time. Cake and pie both.  

D.R.- Breakfast, brunch, or lunch?
S.R.- Dinner, actually, A large part of my process is carrot and stick, and food is usually my go to reward for meeting word count. I usually grab a quick bite when I get up and then don’t eat till I finish wording for the day. Coffee is my friend. 
 
D.R.- How do you get ideas for stories?
S.R.- I’m not sure. I think I subscribe to a certain misinterpretation of Plato’s theory of ideas. They're entities with existences of their own. Every so often they choose a medium, this person or that. This may not be a very scientific theory, but I like the idea, if you’ll pardon the expression.
Which explains why some people get great ideas so often but also why some of the most amazing creative works have come from the most unlikely sources. La Marseillaise for one. De Lisle was one of the most mediocre composers alive and out of the blue came up with this work of genius- genius he never exhibited in any form ever again.  In that sense, its not so much about me getting ideas but that certain ideas get me. And I’m glad they chose me. 

D.R.- What's the best advice you've gotten about writing?
S.R.- That would probably be something Michael Swanwick once told me, which was, “never be afraid to be terrible. I could name you dozens of promising writers who weren’t willing to be, but their names would mean nothing to you because they never sold anything.” It makes a lot of sense to me. Fear is the mind-killer, Frank Herbert wrote. And he was right- its what ruins us as writers.  Never doubt that you may suck, but never let sucking be the reason you don’t write or submit. The only way to fail as a writer is to fail to write. 

D.R.- Tell us about your plans or ideas for a new-to-you genre in the future
S.R.- Well, I’ve actually been experimenting with new formats over the last year- I’ve done short stories, novelettes and am currently working on a novella and a few more shorts as well as wrapping up Wrathchild. As far as genre goes, I’m pretty excited about my next project- high fantasy based squarely on Indian mythology. I’m with everyone who says we’re tired of high fantasy that’s basically Tolkien Ver. 2636671890. There’s so many more traditions out there. Indian ones especially are woefully underdone and underrepresented. I’m actually really excited about this one. 

D.R.- What's your favorite song for writing?
S.R.- Silence. Always silence. I hate writing to music. 

D.R.- Do you have a writing routine?
S.R.- ​Well, it usually involves pacing, typing and talking to myself in varying doses. But usually, I set up coffee, light a smoke and pace till I work myself up enough to go smash at keys. And then I usually sort of have this wait what happened moment a while later and realise I’ve got 3 or 5k down. Its kinda spooky each time it happens because I never know if it’ll ever work again, but so far, it always has. 

Friendly Neighborhood Friday: Edited By Ellie Mack

Yes, my friends. When writers draft, we need to do the above. Not only that, but we need more people to look at our words and edit. All. The. Words. But editors only have so much time, and none of those blue boxes which are bigger on the inside (although if you know of a Timelord Editors, I would love to interview them).

Anyway, because of the limitations on the time-space continuum, it's a good thing multiple people have decided to offer editing services. Especially people like Ellie Mack, who I just interviewed! Here's a little bit about Ellie. 

Ellie Mack received her BS in cartography from Southeast Missouri State University. After leaving the corporate world for the title of MOM, she has pursued her writing dreams. Nowadays Ellie charts unmapped territory through her fiction and humor writing. She lives near St. Louis with her husband of 30 years and their two teen daughters. When she's not writing, she can be found scrapbooking, crocheting, or cooking. You can find her musings on her blog Quotidiandose.
Castiel + Pie = Happy Ellie D.R.- Coffee or tea?
E.M.- Coffee.

D.R.- Marvel or DC?
E.M.- DC Villains, Marvel heroes!

D.R.- Castiel or Crowley?
E.M.- Castiel.

D.R.- Cake or pie?
E.M.- Pie.

D.R.- Dogs or cats?
E.M.- Dogs.

D.R.- Darts or billiards?
E.M.- Darts.

D.R.- What is your favorite color?
E.M.- Red

D.R.- ​What is your favorite song and why?
E.M.- This changes nearly as often as the Billboard charts because there is always a cool new song. Currently, my favorite is “Try Everything” by Shakira. My second favorite right now is Trust You by Rob Thomas, and then Smooth  by Rob Thomas and Carlos Santana.
(Here, have some music, courtesy of Ellie) D.R.- Why do you love/hate winter?  
E.M.- I love winter because of the cooler weather. I love snow, absolutely love snow. I hate the bitter cold temperatures we get in January. I think when I get older, I will become a snowbird and flee to Florida. Yes, I will be one of those cranky old women walking around with funky sunglasses on. 

D.R.- Where'd you get the idea for your services?
E.M.- This probably is going to sound really mean. I’m not really a mean person, truly I’m not. My idea came from reading Indy books that were atrocious. The story would be fine, but oh my gosh the grammatical errors, tense shifts, ever changing POV’s, all telling and no showing -  it was a natural fit for me being a grammar Nazi.

D.R.- What genres do you feel comfortable supporting?  
E.M.- Romance, paranormal fantasy, science fiction, mystery, suspense. I’ve supported others as well, but those are the ones I feel the most comfortable with. 

D.R.- What do you have to offer authors?
E.M.- As an editor - different levels of editing services. The basic package is grammatical, context, and story arc. The master level is a line edit, sentence structure evaluation as well as grammatical, context, and story arc. There are other levels between the two.  My prices are very reasonable. Right now with my Penned Con sale,  it’s 16% off all services. As a blogger I try to host at least one author, writing professional a month. Sometimes I do more. Over the summer, I had a guest scheduled for every Wednesday. For a guest spot, pm me on Facebook or email me. 

D.R.- Do you have any goods/services that might benefit readers or other artists?
E.M.- Absolutely! Every writer needs an editor. I am an editor and I need someone else to edit my work. I can revise a story ten times, practically have it memorized word for word, but I become blind to my own issues. These can be simple things like overused phrases, repetitious words, incorrect words like irregardless, or massive plot holes that you could drive a semi-truck through.
​
D.R.- Where can we find your goods/services on the Internet?  
E.M.- Right here!

D.R.- Do you do live events?
E.M.- Yes! As a matter of fact, I am doing Penned Con next week, September 23, and 24 at St. Louis City Center Hotel; 400 South 14th Street; ST. Louis, MO 63103. There are going to be over 950 people there.  

Click through the slideshow to find links to Ellie's work and social media. And if you're in St. Louis, check out Penned Con. It's for a great cause!

Autumn Authors Interview with E.A. Copen!

Summer Splash is over. Long Live the Summer Splash!  Now it's time for Autumn Authors! We're still interviewing every Monday, but with prettier foliage. Our first Autumn Author is E.A. Copen. She writes some engaging stories, not the kind where some dude puts a ring on it. I'm talking about books you will stay up reading because you can't sleep, plots will eat you. Here's a little bit about the author:

E.A. Copen is the author of the Judah Black novels and the forthcoming space opera, Broken Empire. She’s an avid reader of science fiction, fantasy and other genre fiction. When she’s not chained to her keyboard, she may be found time traveling on the weekends with her SCA friends. She lives in beautiful southeast Ohio with her husband and two kids, at least until she saves up enough to leave the shire and become a Jedi. 

Now, here's the interview with this fellow font of geekitude! 

D.R.- Who is your favorite TV or movie character and why?
E.A.- Beatrix Kiddo/The Bride from Kill Bill 1 and 2. She’s partially the inspiration for Judah Black. Kill Bill is a very violent, revenge-driven love story. It’s Romeo and Juliet on steroids. Beatrix is such a badass…And she’s a mom!

D.R.- Who is your favorite animated character and why?
E.A.- John Constantine, demonologist and master of the dark arts. He’s the epitome of the snarky urban wizard in a gritty setting and the reason I picked up my first comic book recently. The art is beautiful, the stories are layered and the world is a perfect mix of darkness with a sliver of hope thrown in in. He’s human and makes mistakes. That’s what I love.

D.R.- What book do you recommend the most?
E.A.- The Fantasy Fiction Formula by Deborah Chester. It’s more than just another how-to book on writing. It’s what I wish I’d learned before I wrote! More informative than the five years I spent as an undergrad studying fiction. If you write fantasy and don’t have this book on your shelf, you’re missing out.

D.R.- How do you get ideas for stories?
E.A.- Everything I’ve ever written started with the words, “What if…” What if werewolves and vampires were real? How would the government respond if they suddenly came out to the public? There are some book and TV series that already deal with that (True Blood has vampires out, the Mercy Thompson series has the werewolves and fae out to the public). Neither scenario satisfied me with a plausible answer so I decided to write my own.

D.R.- Which genres do you write and what's your favorite one?
E.A.- The Judah Black novels are urban fantasy thrillers and I have another one of those coming out in October, though it’s a spin-off novella from the main series. I also have a science fiction novel coming out in late November called Broken Empire. It’s more of a space opera. Think Game of Thrones meets Star Wars. My favorite? I have a particular weakness for magic. But then, Arthur C. Clarke’s third law says any sufficiently advanced technology is indistinguishable from magic. I love it when two genres mash together to make something new.   

D.R.- What do you do if you see your idea has already been done?
E.A.- Write it anyway. Everything has already been done at one point or another. Characters and the relationships they form are what make a story unique, not a plot. Even Shakespeare borrowed ideas from his predecessors. If one of the greatest English-speaking writers of all time can do it, why not us? Take the idea and make it your own with the details.  

D.R.- What's the most unexpected thing that's ever inspired you?
E.A.- I get inspiration from all kinds of weird places. The latest was when my husband jokingly suggested that a vampire character of mine might be suffering from vampire diabetes because of how grumpy he was. I turned it into a major plot point and, surprisingly, it worked flawlessly.

D.R.- What's the best advice you've gotten about writing?
E.A.- There’s no such thing as a free lunch. Jim Butcher said that but it probably came from somewhere else before that. You’re the only one standing in the way of achieving your goals. And if you want something, you have to go get it, no matter how much it scares you. That was part of what finally pushed me to stop obsessively editing and publish. I wanted to be a published author and to make an income from my writing. It took a lot of work but it was worth it.

D.R.- Tell me about the biggest surprise your own character, story, or setting has given you.
E.A.- In the Judah Black series, the town of Eden was a surprise. Paint Rock and Eden are real places in Concho County, Texas, but I’ve re-built them for the purpose of the story. Eden is a towering metropolis in the series when, in reality it’s a rather small town. There are no skyscrapers, no hospitals taking up city blocks and no pharmaceutical companies. I got to build a city from scratch and I’m always finding new corners to explore.

D.R.- Tell us about your plans or ideas for a new-to-you genre in the future.
E.A.- I’m in the early stages of writing a horror western/weird west novel called Beasts of Babylon. It re-imagines a world where, when we went west, we found more than Native Americans, open wilderness and gold waiting for us. There were monsters in them thar hills!
The main character, Anastasia Thorne, died and rose from her grave in search of vengeance after her son is murdered and her homestead burned to the ground. She teams up with notorious outlaw, Jesse Gallagher, (who’s gifted with six seconds of foresight) and Sheriff Christian Thorne (sharpshooter and Ana’s husband) to hunt the flesh-eating monsters stalking Horne Pass. 

This all sounds so exciting! I can't wait to see a Weird West genre book by E.A. Copen. Oh and by the way, you can find her on her website, Facebook, Goodreads, and Twitter. Click through the slideshow to get a look at her gorgeous covers and find links to her books. 

Friendly Neighborhood Friday with Michelle Dunbar!

Unleash the dragon on your manuscript! Michelle is an editor, providing meticulous and amazing editing. Here's a bit about her:

Michelle Dunbar is a writer, reader and developmental editor of science fiction and fantasy. She assists authors from the very first draft and up to (but not including) copyediting. She holds a BA (Hons) in English Literature and is an entry level member of the Society for Editors and Proofreaders (UK). She has been a freelance editor since August 2015, but editing since June 2014 (prior to which she worked (online) as an intern for an overseas (American) independent publisher for one year.

I know a few of her clients and they tell me she's like an editing superhero, rescuing manuscripts and plotlines from mistakes and holes.  This could totally be Michelle! Mmmm, tea.
Anyway, Here's her interview! The initials are fun, because together we are Dr. and MD. Crazy, right? And plenty of super heroes are doctors also. Hmm, maybe Michelle can teach me a thing or five...

D.R.- Coffee or tea? 
M.D.- I’m English, so it’s tea for me. Always tea. 

D.R.- Marvel or DC? 
M.D.- Star Wars! I’ve never been into Marvel or DC and only know Batman from Spiderman because the costumes give it away. I grew up on science fiction – Star Trek, Flash Gordon and Battlestar Galactica being my favourites. 

D.R.- Dogs or cats? 
M.D.- Dogs. I have two border collies to keep me on my toes.

D.R.- Cake or pie? 
M.D.- Oh, cake. Chocolate. Preferably with a nice cup of tea. 

D.R.- Where'd you get the idea for your business/goods/services? 
M.D.- Well, my business is developmental (and line) editing, which came about after I spent a year working as an intern for an independent publisher (online placement). I received excellent feedback from the publisher and by the time the internship came to an end, I’d already that I wanted to be an editor. I spent the following year beta reading and editing for free as I ‘practiced’ on many a manuscript, using the feedback I received from authors to fine tune the working practice and service I wanted to offer. In August last year, I took my first steps towards becoming a freelance editor, and haven’t stopped reading and editing since. 

D.R.- What genres do you feel comfortable supporting?
M.D.- I decided early on in my editing ‘career’ to specialise in science fiction and fantasy genres (and sub-genres thereof), to only do developmental and line editing, and to only work with independent authors. 

D.R.- What do you have to offer authors? 
M.D.- I’m particular about high standards as I believe indie authors need to aim high, to produce their very best work, and to never shrug their shoulders and say ‘well, it’s self-published, so it’s bound to have mistakes…’
I’d like to think that what I offer authors is a friendly, respectful, yet honest round of edits. It’s not in my nature to engage in a brutal, nasty, rip-it-to-shreds style edit, but that doesn’t mean I won’t turn a manuscript blood-red. I would much rather explain how specific effects can be achieved using a section of the author’s writing as an example and encourage discussion. It also brings me great job satisfaction to watch that writer’s craft strengthen and develop and know that I helped in some small way.  

D.R.- Do you have any goods/services that might benefit readers or other artists?
M.D.- In addition to editing, I also run a sort of book promotion site. I say sort of as I’m not a professional book promoter. Although I sell the occasion ad, most of what I do is free. Its purpose is to help independent and small press authors spread word of book releases and their achievements. Oh, and - surprise, surprise - it’s dedicated to books within science fiction and fantasy genres. 

D.R.- Where can we find your goods/services on the Internet?
M.D.- My editing website can be found here and my ‘sort-of’ book promotion website can be found here.

D.R.- Tell us about your partner/helper/staff/assistant.
M.D.- I don’t have any official partners or assistants, but I do have three new editors under my wings at the moment: two developmental editors, and one who will edit through all stages of the editing process. They have been assisting me with some of my work (for which I sought the authors’ permission), thus gaining experience, testimonials, but most importantly, I can vouch personally for each of them.

You can find Michelle on Facebook and Twitter as well as her websites listed above. I made her a slideshow with a few of her favorite things. As usual, click through the pictures to get to her links. 

The Last Splash: Interview With C.A. King

Well, this is the end of summer and today I have the last Summer Splash Author Interview. But don't worry, I'll be interviewing more authors all fall, too (if you're an author and want an interview, contact me). My guest today is C.A. King, author of the Portal Prophecies series. Here's a bit about her! 
​
C.A. King was born and raised in Halton County. She currently resides in Ontario, Canada with her two sons.
After the loss of her loving parents and husband, Ms. King was devastated. She decided to retire from the workforce for a year or two to do some soul searching. It was during this time that writing became her passion. She found she was able to redirect her emotions through her writing and in 2014 decided to publish some of her works.
Today her creation, The Portal Prophecies Series comes to life.
Book One, A Keeper’s Destiny, Book Two, A Halloween’s Curse, Book Three, Frost Bitten, Book Four, Sleeping Sands and Book Five, Deadly Perceptions are currently available for purchase. Book Six is scheduled for release this fall. What's your favorite song for writing?
Magic Power by Triumph. It is my feel good song.

Dancing or singing?
Singing, although I am not very good. I get the eye rolls from my kids all the time.

Coffee or tea or something else?
Both, as long as it is hot. I like herbal teas and hot chocolate too.

What's the food or drink you always tell other people to try?
Homemade turkey stuffed perogies. My family devours them in seconds.

What book do you recommend the most?
I like books that push the boundaries for what can be done through writing. I recommend Indie books to everyone I talk to. There are some really unique voices out there that should be heard.

Where is the one place you think everyone should go?
On a cruise. The gentle rocking of the ocean and light breezes are so relaxing. 

How do you get ideas for stories?
Daydreaming. It's like watching a movie on the backs of my eyelids.

Which genres do you write and what's your favorite one?
Fantasy is my writing genre. I like reading anything paranormal with a touch of romance. 

What's the best advice you've gotten about writing?
Don't listen to anyone else, just tell your story the way you want it to be told.

You can find C.A. King on Facebook, Goodreads, her blog, and Author Central. Check out the slideshow to see book covers, fan pictures, and find her in more places! 

Friendly Neighborhood Friday!

On second thought, don't keep calm. The art under the cut is exciting! It's that time of week again! Friendly Friday, where I interview people who help authors get their books out where you awesome readers can see them. And today, I've got a cover designer! Cover designers rock because they give a face to our books. Without a cover, would you seriously be clicking over to check them out? Of course not! So, I'd like you to meet Lia Rees!

​​Lia Rees is a designer living in London. After several years bringing authors' books to life, she's finally publishing her own in January 2017. "But I'm Not Depressed" is about her ten-year battle with the beast of undiagnosed chronic illness. You'll find its haunting trailer below. The artist, surrounded by her creations.  She loves music, particularly prog rock, chillout and anything melancholy. Evocative language, open-source culture and wild places excite her, and she has a thing about light. It has to be admitted, she is easily bored. That's why she's dabbled in so many things: jewellery making, crochet, music, T-shirt design, and lately book formatting, covers and videos for authors and others. She spends all her time on the internet talking to friends who never grew up and taking care of her business, Free Your Words. She's been engaged for two years to an outspoken Mormon anarchist, and their ambition is to live in Latin America. Five books she formatted are currently in the running for the Summer Indie Book Awards. 

Take a look at some of her designs: I have. No words. For these. Awesomesauce covers. Seriously strategic, like woah.
But wait, there's more! You came here for an interview, so I asked Lia some questions. Check them out, and find even more in the slideshow below.

D.R.- Coffee or tea?
L.R.- Coffee clears my head in the morning, but tea is my default drink. I'm English after all.

D.R.- Marvel or DC?
L.R.- Neither. Hitchhiker's Guide, Red Dwarf and Babylon 5. :)

D.R.- Dogs or cats? 
L.R.- Cats. They have an independent streak I can identify with.

D.R.- What is your favorite color?
L.R.- Red, if I had to choose! More generally, I have an instinctive liking for bold, energetic colours and black. Lately I'm learning to like white and grey, but I have an allergy to pastels.

D.R.- Who or what is your biggest inspiration?
L.R.- My family are quite literary-oriented, so the books around me as a kid tended towards abstract, retro and symbolic covers. I'm also influenced by magazines, posters, album art and advertising. This has been quite useful in the new world of phone and Kindle reading: bold and simple design is particularly effective when the reader's first glimpse of your book is a tiny thumbnail. :)

D.R.- Where'd you get the idea for your business/goods/services?
L.R.- When my neurological symptoms started to bite, I was miserable and totally unemployable. My dad (also a writer) hired me to proofread and format his books. From there, I branched out into covers, then posters and publicity graphics, then trailers. The name Free Your Words stems from the idea that an author's words should be flying off into the blue, not stuck on a hard drive - but it's also a reference to the personal freedom I needed the business to bring me.

D.R.- What genres do you feel comfortable supporting?
L.R.- Everything! You're speaking to a person who has designed custom condom wrappers and banners with naked men and strategically placed roses.

​​What do you have to offer authors?
L.R.- My latest big thing is a premade cover site, CoverBliss.com . At the moment I'm offering an introductory offer where you get 50% off by referring a friend :) .

​I also create custom designs at FreeYourWords.com and book trailers at WaterBalloonMedia.com. My style is versatile, but I do have a taste for bold and abstract work. I try to strike a balance in my covers where there's enough detail and texture to look interesting at close range, but the basic outlines are well delineated for the thumbnail. I also take particular care in designing back covers. Some artists seem to see those as an afterthought. From the forest... To the city. Isn't this what all the introverted writers secretly wish people would ask? And finally, I have T-shirts for writers at TribeOfWrite.com









​Do you have any goods/services that might benefit readers or other artists? 
I've got the ambition to work out a collaboration with an illustrator. I see so many beautiful drawings and graphics out there with awful typography, or no typography. Talented illustrators are selling them to clients for peanuts, when they could make what they're worth by presenting them to authors as amazing book covers. I'd love to put my typography skills to work in a collaborative cover design project.

More generally, my video work at WaterBalloonMedia.com isn't restricted to book trailers! I worked on a music video last year, and I'm very open to branching out.

Where can we find your goods/services on the Internet?
Premade covers: www.CoverBliss.com
Custom work, book formatting, publicity graphics: www.FreeYourWords.com
Video work: www.WaterBalloonMedia.com
T-shirts for writers: TribeOfWrite.com
Me in general on Facebook. 

Special Announcements!

I'm here to tell you about Roundtable Redcap. It's just about done, but I'm waiting on my cover. I'm expecting it, still, by the end of the month, September 1 at the latest. 

So, because I don't have a beautiful, awesomesauce cover of my own to show you right now, Here's one from another author. Her name is Ellie Mack, and her book is called Quotidiandose: 30 Days of Sass, and it's high in freaking lariousness, which I know all of you like. Check out that smirk! Here's a bit more about Ellie's Nonfiction Humor book.  
This collection of daily musings combine edgy, funny, practical, everyday reality with a dose of personal sass. There are life-lessons in the words that are applicable for everyone. I hope they will put a smile on your face and brighten your day!

But wait! There's more! I am so excited about this because you all know I work on charity anthologies. Well, this book is awesome for yet another reason: a portion of proceeds from print copies of this book will go to Action for Autism. 

And here's a little something about Ellie herself, whose smiling face you can see right here.  Ellie Mack received her BS in cartography from Southeast Missouri State University. After leaving the corporate world for the title of MOM, she has pursued her writing dreams. Nowadays Ellie charts unmapped territory through her fiction and humor writing. She lives near St. Louis with her husband of 30 years and their two teen daughters. When she's not writing, she can be found scrapbooking, crocheting, or cooking. You can find her musings on her blog Quotidiandose. 

You can also follow Ellie on Facebook, Twitter, and Pinterest. 

​Thanks, Ellie, for letting me talk about your book!

Summer Splash Interview: Cat Banks

It's the second to last week in the Summer Splash set of interviews. For week eight, we have Cat Banks! Here's a bit about her.
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​Catherine Banks is the author of the Artemis Lupine Series, Little Death Bringer Series, Ciara Steele Novella Series, and the novel Daughter of Lions. She began writing fiction stories when she was only four years old and finished her first full length novel at the age of fifteen.
 
Catherine is a Northern California native and has lived within a twenty mile radius her entire life. She plans to travel to as many places as possible in her thirties to make up for her lack of traveling experience. She is married to her soulmate and best friend, Avery, who blessed her with two amazing children. After her full time job she reads books, plays video games, and watches a lot of anime shows and movies with her family to relax.
D.R.- Dancing or singing?
C.B.- I’m not good at either, but I would choose singing.

D.R.- Beach or woods?
C.B.- I like both, but for different reasons. I would visit the woods more and would definitely live in the woods and not the ocean.

D.R.- Coffee or tea or something else?
C.B.- Tea or water.

D.R.- What book do you recommend the most?
C.B.- Anything by Ilona Andrews.

D.R.- Where is the one place you think everyone should go?
C.B.- Pismo Beach, California. It’s beautiful.

D.R.- How do you get ideas for stories?
C.B.- There are lots of ways that I get ideas. Sometimes I get an idea from a song lyric, a piece of scenery as I’m driving, or a feeling.

D.R.- Which genres do you write and what's your favorite one?
C.B.- I write in fantasy, but have been dabbling in steampunk lately. Fantasy is my favorite to write in for sure.

D.R.- What do you do if you see your idea has already been done?
C.B.- Think of a different set of circumstances for my characters or scrap the idea.

D.R.- What's your best writer's block buster?
C.B.- Either work on a different story or make your characters go a random direction. 

D.R.- What's the best advice you've gotten about writing?
C.B.- ​If you’re stuck on a book, think of the most unlikely thing to happen to your characters, something that would never happen, and then make it happen to them and make them find a way out of it.

You can find Catherine on her website, at her blog, on Facebook, Twitter, and Goodreads. 

Introducing Friendly Neighborhood Friday!

No, I don't mean this guy. Hello! I'm trying something new for a while. 
You see, us authors have friends. We have friends who illustrate, friends who promote, friends who edit, friends who are just plain awesome. So, I'm going to use Friday as a way to introduce some friends to other friends. Like this guy right here. This is my friend, J.D. Cunegan. Yeah, okay, so us folks who go by initials flock together sometimes. Don't give us grief, or we'll initialize your names, okay? No, that's not okay? Eep! Okay, I won't do anything to your names, but I will initialize the rest of this post now.

Anyway, One awesome thing about J.D. is, even though he writes some amazing superhero fiction, he also helps other writers edit their work. Keep that in mind when you check out his links and such in the slideshow after the interview. Oh, I said there'd be an interview? Well, I'd better go ahead and post it, then!

D.R.- What's your favorite song for writing?
J.D.- I have a few playlists at the ready that I go to depending on what I’m writing. My generic writing playlist is full of hard rock and metal, because for some reason, having something hard and heavy to listen to gets my butt in gear. If I’m in the middle of writing an epic fight scene or something like that, I have an instrumental playlist I turn to. I know a lot of writers prefer to write in silence, but I find I need something in my ear… and a lot of times, it’s the same stuff I listen to when I’m not writing.
 
D.R.- Beach or woods?
J.D.- One might think that I would go with woods, since I live by the beach. But I’ll go with beach, because there’s no telling what lives in the woods, and I’d rather not inadvertently run afoul of a bear. At least on the beach, I’m relatively safe – especially if I stay out of the water.
 
D.R.- Coffee or tea or something else?
J.D.- In the morning, give me coffee. In the evening or late at night? A mug of hot tea is lovely – and it makes for a great writing partner.
 
D.R.- What book do you recommend the most?
J.D.- Lately, it’s either been Grave Beginnings or Grave Measures by R.R. Virdi, Untamed by Madeline Dyer, or the Daggers & Steele series from Alex P. Berg.
 
D.R.- How do you get ideas for stories?
J.D.- The majority of the stories I write center around the premise of “what if such-and-such happened to this character?” or “what if this character decided to do X?” I try to make every story character-centric, because to me, characters are more important than plot. As a reader, if I’m not emotionally invested in the characters, I won’t care what they do or what happens to them. That philosophy has carried over to my writing.
 
D.R.- Which genres do you write and what's your favorite one?
J.D.- My current series is a hybrid murder mystery/thriller/science fiction. One wouldn’t think those genres would go together, but they do. The juxtaposition of my main character being a homicide cop and a superhero is, ultimately, what makes that mashup work so well. Among the other books I’m writing, one is a fantasy/supernatural epic, another is a supernatural thriller, and the last is a political thriller. I’m kind of all over the place, it would seem.
 
D.R.- What do you do if you see your idea has already been done?
J.D.- Either find a twist that would differentiate mine from the other work, or focus my attention on making sure the characters are unique and can stand out on their own merits. I find that if readers are invested in the characters, they’ll overlook or forgive some of the other issues. It helps to know there’s nothing truly original anymore, understanding that everything derives from something.
 
D.R.- What's your best writer's block buster?
J.D.- Reading. I find that when I get blocked, it’s because I’ve been swimming around my own words for too long. Stepping back and letting myself get lost in someone else’s words for a while helps break up the cobwebs are recharge the batteries.
 
D.R.- What's the best advice you've gotten about writing?
J.D.- Don’t worry about being perfect right out of the gate. No one’s writing is publish-ready on the first draft. Even the millionaire bestsellers churn out relative crap when they sit down to write something for the first time. A bad sentence can be fixed; a sentence that’s never been written cannot.
 
D.R.- Tell me about the biggest surprise your own character, story, or setting has given you.
J.D.- To reveal all of the details would spoil the end of my most recent novel, Behind the Badge (which is the third book in my Jill Andersen series), but suffice to say, that book ends with my protagonist making two major, life-altering decisions that I never saw coming when I first sat down to write the book. She did two things I never expected her to do, but it ultimately worked out so well that I decided to keep it. Because if I’m surprised, then chances are, my readers will be surprised.

You can find J.D. on his website (that's where the editing magic happens), Facebook, Tumblr, Twitter, Goodreads and, of course, Author Central. 

​Okay, folks, it's slideshow time!