Twice Upon A Time Blog Tour: Interview with Diana Murdock

CONTRARY to the title of this anthology, working with such a talented cast of writers is an opportunity that usually comes once in a lifetime. From best-selling to greenhorn, independent or traditionally-published, the authors in this anthology span all ranges in addition to spanning the globe—from England to Australia and all over the United States. I've had the privilege of getting to know each and every one of them, and they have become a part of my extended family. I've even caught a glimpse of a secret side of them that only another writer...editor...is privy to witness through their words.

Through this series of posts, I plan on introducing you to my new family through a mini-interview of each. You may not get a chance to see their secret side, but you'll get a sneak-peek into their minds, their passions and inspirations, and what made them the writers they are today.

..The Mini Interview..

1. At what age did you start writing?

Thirteen.

2. Which book introduced you to Speculative Fiction?

Although I learned a lot from my mother (who was psychic), once I read Seth Speaks, a whole new world opened up, like parallel universes. I couldn't wait to write about it.

3. Do you have an all-time favorite book? What about it makes it your favorite?

My favorite is the War of the Roses trilogy by R. Garcia y Robertson, which begins with Knight Errant. It's about time travel, and I love stories like that.

4. Which author and/or book inspired you to start writing?

A variery of authors inspired me. Hard to choose just one.

5. What would you say is the most important lesson all writers should learn?

Believe in yourself and never lose sight of what you want.

6. Of the entire publishing process, which would you say is the most difficult aspect to endure?

Time or lack thereof. There's a lot that goes into publishing a book. A lot that has nothing to do with writing.

7. If applicable, did you have a favorite character (to write) from your story? If so, what sets them apart from the others?

In another novel I wrote, titled Again, my favorite character is Eryn, a woman who dreams of a past life and is bold enough to recognize and break the destructive pattern that has continued into her current life. Very empowering.

8. On what projects are you currently working?

I'm working on the sequel to—as well as finalizing the screenplay of—Souled, a YA paranormal. I have several books and screenplays I'm anxious to get down on paper.

Read Diana's story, A Prophecy Untamed, in your very own copy of Twice Upon A Time today!

..About the Author..

DIANA MURDOCK, from a very young age, has always dabbled with stories and poems and shared them only with family and friends. It wasn’t until she had a very powerful and dream, a dream that became her first novel, that she took her writing seriously. With many stories now lining up, waiting to be written, Diana is committed to penning each and every one. To add more variety, she’s adapted the first in her trilogy into a screenplay and is a partner in an independent film production company. A single mother of two boys, she’ll take on the world, one story at a time.

..Connect with the Author..

The TUAT Blog Tour Resumes! Interview with Bo Balder

CONTRARY to the title of this anthology, working with such a talented cast of writers is an opportunity that usually comes once in a lifetime. From best-selling to greenhorn, independent or traditionally-published, the authors in this anthology span all ranges in addition to spanning the globe—from England to Australia and all over the United States. I've had the privilege of getting to know each and every one of them, and they have become a part of my extended family. I've even caught a glimpse of a secret side of them that only another writer...editor...is privy to witness through their words.

Through this series of posts, I plan on introducing you to my new family through a mini-interview of each. You may not get a chance to see their secret side, but you'll get a sneak-peek into their minds, their passions and inspirations, and what made them the writers they are today.

..The Mini Interview..

1. At what age did you start writing?

As soon as I could—6 or 7?

2. Which book introduced you to Speculative Fiction?

John Christopher's Tripod series. I was stunned to realize people could think about exciting stuff like that. I wanted more...

3. Do you have an all-time favorite book? What about it makes it your favorite?

The Crown of Stars by Kate Elliott. Not only does it depict a greatly realistic, detailed early Middle Ages, it has a kickass heroine, a wide scope, mythic creatures, love, wars, magic...
I can keep rereading it, it's too complex to keep in your head so there's never any boredom.

4. Which author and/or book inspired you to start writing?

Jack Vance. I just loved his ironic details and grotesque imagination. I wanted to be just like him...all my teenage work is one big Vance pastiche.

5. What would you say is the most important lesson all writers should learn?

You have to find a way to show yourself through your words.

6. Of the entire publishing process, which would you say is the most difficult aspect to endure?

The waiting. Months, sometimes even years, to get an answer from a publisher or a magazine.

7. From where did the inspiration for your submission arise?

The Yde Girl was an actual bog corpse found in my country.

8. If applicable, did you have a favorite character (to write) from your story? If so, what sets them apart from the others?

My protagonist, because she tries so hard to fit in and to be loyal, and she has to make a choice to leave her family.

9. On what projects are you currently working?

A near-future, optimistic sf novel/series of shorts. I took up the challenge to write utopian instead of dystopian for a change....

Read Bo's story, Bog Trade, in your very own copy of Twice Upon A Time today!

..About the Author..

Bo is a freelance writer who lives and works in the ancient Dutch city of Utrecht, close to Amsterdam. When she isn't writing, you can find her madly designing knitwear, painting, or reading anything and everything from Kate Elliott to Iain M. Banks or Jared Diamond.
Her fiction has appeared in Penumbra, Electric Spec and quite a few anthologies. Her sf novel, The Wan, will be published in 2015 by Pink Narcissus Press.

..Connect with the Author..

Twice Upon a Time Blog Tour: Interview with Rose Blackthorn

CONTRARY to the title of this anthology, working with such a talented cast of writers is an opportunity that usually comes once in a lifetime. From best-selling to greenhorn, independent or traditionally-published, the authors in this anthology span all ranges in addition to spanning the globe—from England to Australia and all over the United States. I've had the privilege of getting to know each and every one of them, and they have become a part of my extended family. I've even caught a glimpse of a secret side of them that only another writer...editor...is privy to witness through their words.

Through this series of posts, I plan on introducing you to my new family through a mini-interview of each. You may not get a chance to see their secret side, but you'll get a sneak-peek into their minds, their passions and inspirations, and what made them the writers they are today.

..The Mini Interview..

1. At what age did you start writing?

I began "telling" myself stories at 12 or 13. When I was a few years older, maybe 16 it occurred to me that if I wrote them down, then I would be able to go back and re-read them later.

2. Which book introduced you to Speculative Fiction?

Firestarter by Stephen King

3. Do you have an all-time favorite book? What about it makes it your favorite?

I have favorites in several genres, so I don't know that I'd be able to chose just one. The one that I've probably gone back and re-read the most times is The Forgotten Beasts of Eld by Patricia A. McKillip. (And it makes me cry, every single time.)

4. Which author and/or book inspired you to start writing?

No specific author or book. I have read things that were so wonderful, they made me aspire to write something that would have that kind of impact on someone else. I have also read things that were so bad, I felt there was no reason I couldn't do better :)

5. What would you say is the most important lesson all writers should learn?

Be true to yourself. You can take classes, listen to and apply advice from others, outline every bit of your story or go from the seat of your pants - but regardless, don't lose your own voice. No one can write what you can.

6. Of the entire publishing process, which would you say is the most difficult aspect to endure?

Probably rejection. It is difficult to spend long hours writing something, putting a part of yourself in it, and sending it out to another person only to have them say they don't want it, don't like it, etc. Publishing is a business, and tastes are subjective—but it still stings to get that rejection.

7. From where did the inspiration for your submission arise?

My story is based on The Selkie Bride. I have always been fascinated by stories of shape-changers from the sea who could live among people and then return to the ocean. There is a bittersweet condition in so many of those old legends that the selkie is held in human form against their will because their seal-skin has been stolen from them. Inevitably, when the seal-skin is recovered, the selkie will return to the ocean, even if there is true love between she and her human mate.
I also have a passion for post-apocalyptic fiction, and I was curious to explore what might happen to a diminishing population of selkies after human beings have poisoned the world in some great final war.

8. If applicable, did you have a favorite character (to write) from your story? If so, what sets them apart from the others?

Naia is the main character of my story, and definitely my favorite. I enjoyed exploring what's left of the human world through her eyes, and the fact that although she has come out of the sea for a specific purpose, she could still come to love the people she meets.

9. On what projects are you currently working?

I have a novella (another post-apocalyptic piece, sort of) that I've been working on over the last few months between other projects. Also, the first of a trilogy of "epic" fantasy novels which includes shapeshifters, war against an evil that is apparently unkillable, and the unexpected relationships that can thrive between people who are so disparate. Between all that is the real life stuff, that so often takes precedence—even when I'd rather be writing :)

Read Rose's story, Before the First Day of Winter, in your very own copy of Twice Upon A Time today!

Choose a format... Amazon|Kindle Amazon|Paperback

..About the Author..

ROSE BLACKTHORN lives in the high mountain desert of Eastern Utah with her boyfriend and two dogs, Boo and Shadow. She spends her time writing, reading, being crafty, and photographing the surrounding wilderness. An only child, she was lucky to have a mother who loved books, and has been surrounded by them her entire life. Thus instead of squabbling with siblings, she learned to be friends with her imagination and the voices in her head are still very much present.

She is a member of the HWA and has been published online and in print with Necon E-Books, Stupefying Stories, Buzzy Mag, Interstellar Fiction, SpeckLit, Jamais Vu, and the anthologies The Ghost IS the Machine, A Quick Bite of Flesh, Fear the Abyss, The Best of the Horror Society 2013, Enter at Your Own Risk: The End is the Beginning, FEAR: Of the Dark, and Equilibrium Overturned, among others.

..Connect with the Author..

Interview: Devon Winterson, author of The Perfect Player

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Recap of The Perfect Player:

“A forbidden tryst exposes a threat and sets a secret plan in motion, and twenty-year-old Marisa of Mynae discovers her life is all a lie. But even as a cryptic journal reveals her true purpose and a trail of hoofprints leads her to a demon renegade, Marisa balks at fate's course until evil devours her people and imperils her father's life. Only then does she learn what it takes to play—and win—a deadly game of predator versus prey.” – Imagination Ether Press

Meet the Author:

Two weeks ago, I posted a review of The Perfect Player, the upcoming dark fantasy novel of Connecticut author Devon Winterson. Currently Devon has several novels in the works, most of which take place in the world of Caendoria. Other projects include co-writing a middle-grade novel with her son, editing for a small publishing company, and moderating at Writer’s Beat, a growing online community for writers, for which she contributes to the quarterly e-zine. She also happens to have a passion for golden retrievers.

This week Devon graces us with a brief interview. While reading The Perfect Player, two questions kept springing to mind. Where did this come from, and where is it going? I suppose I’m fascinated with the mysterious, vibrant labyrinths of other writers’ minds. Read on for Devon’s crackerjack replies:

The Interview:

Court: The whole time I was reading The Perfect Player, I kept wondering what initially inspired this world and the story. So can you tell us a little about how this world came to be and how these characters sprang out of it?

Devon: Initially, this all started with a short about a young woman who severely injures someone after driving home drunk. She consequently dies in the crash, and is sent straight to the underworld to “pay her dues,” where she meets a sympathetic demon who hears her plight, reasons things out, and sends her back so she can set things right.

The Perfect Player and its subsequent stories kind of just morphed from there, I suppose, into what it is now: Nothing like the original short story—at all. Except for the demon and the young woman, who eventually turned into Locrian (the demon) and Marisa of Mynae.

See, my muse led me down a totally different direction with those two, and from there, everyone else took shape. I planned nothing at the outset—neither the world, nor the people. I just sat down and wrote, and story events simply started to materialize. So I wrote them all down as I saw them pop into my imagination. Of course they were all jumbled and stupid at first, with half the events completely illogical and my writing skills at basically zero. But over the span of a decade I learned, listened, and practiced, then honed the first story into what it currently is.

In fact, starting on November 9th, I’m hoping to post up a successive trio of blog posts leading to the November 11th release of The Perfect Player, wherein I tell the (not-so-true) story of how everything came about, muse included. It’s a humorous take on it all, and it kind of shows my crazy side.

Court: *laughs* I’m looking forward to reading those posts. Now, The Perfect Player ends with full resolution, yet it's open-ended too. Without giving away any spoilers, can you tell us where you see the world and these characters headed in the future?

Devon: Honestly, I see them all going backwards. Throughout my entire series, I work with a retrograde timeline where The Perfect Player (first book) is actually the finale to an overarching set of events; the middle trio of tales take place numerous years before the various happenings in The Perfect Player and all occur at the same time, told through different points of view (the reader meets these characters in The Perfect Player); and book five, the last tale, is what starts it all, sets everything into motion, told through the viewpoint of the world’s creator, wherein various scenes from the previous books are revisited with a fresh understanding and interwoven through the creator’s own story. The last one I project will be one huge, huge book, probably a handful of volumes, I suspect, if not more, and very hard to construct as that particular main character is horribly cryptic and difficult to figure out.

Conclusion:

So it seems we readers have a lot more to look forward to. The vibrant world of Caendoria is about to flood the Indie market with magic, darkness, and adventure. Look for The Perfect Player on November 11 at Amazon, both for e-readers and in print. In the meantime, keep an eye on Devon’s blog at The Ether of My Imagination for those upcoming posts about her novel, and find collections of her short fiction at Imagination Ether Press, Goodreads, and Smashwords.
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I'm such a slacker...

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 ...when it comes to writing during the holidays. November and December wreak havoc on my routines, so eventually I just stop trying and wait for January to roll around. Roll around it has, so here we are, back to blogging.

How were your holidays? I hope they were filled with chaotic joy and so many blessings your hands are too full to hold them all.

Ours started out with a bang. For Thanksgiving, my husband and I had the opportunity to break every beloved tradition and take a road trip with friends. We ended up in Moab, Utah, in a gorgeous rental house. The weather was ideal, cool air with a warm sun to bask in while we ate turkey sandwiches atop the slickrock formation. Then while our friends challenged themselves on mountain- and road bikes, my husband and I hiked around the arches. This is one of our favorite places on planet Earth.

La Sals from Slickrock

Double Arches, Arches National Park

In other news, one of my dearest acquaintances from the online writing world flattered me to pieces when she asked to interview me for her new blog The Ether of My Imagination. Kimberly's posts will be focusing on writing instruction and Indie authors, and her delightful sense of humor is not to be missed. The interview is now available, so head on over and check it out.

Happy 2013! I wish you all the best in the coming months.
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Interviewed!

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A few weeks ago LegendFire received a new member who called himself by the mysterious username "The Bearded Scribe." Because it is my job to keep an eye on new members, mildly stalking them, if you will, until they prove themselves benevolent, I checked out the links that the Bearded Scribe posted and engaged him in conversation (it may sound creepy, but I'm Momma Bear where our members are concerned). Lo, and behold! Who would have guessed that my investigation would lead to a valuable network with a fellow fantasy author and an interview and guest bloggerhood?

The Bearded Scribe is a relatively new blog at Blogger that will focus on speculative fiction, writing it and reviewing it. If you're curious, check out my interview there. It's lengthy, but it provides a thorough overview. A little about writing, a little about administrating LF.

About that guest bloggerhood bit. I'm flattered and astonished. I always wondered how that happened, and now I know. Not sure when I'll be posting there, or about what, but I'll let you know how it goes.

Cheers!

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