Interview with Katee Robert, author of Queen of Swords

1. I'm so excited to welcome another sci fi romance author! Tell me: how is Queen of Swords like a typical Space Opera, and how is it different?

Queen of Swords is, at its heart, a character-driven story and Ophelia and Boone jump in and out of trouble in their pursuit of their goals. There's also an evil dictator to overthrow and an equally despicable hate-group who's trying to wipe out all evidence of Diviners in the universe.

And the Diviners are one of the things that make my books different. They are a species who use their tarot cards to commune with their goddess, the Lady. Since Ophelia (and her mother) are Diviners, the readings figure very heavily into the plot and introduce an aspect of paranormal into the sci fi world.

2. What are some of you favorite sci fi movies?

I absolutely am obsessed with Serenity. OBSESSED. River is one of my favorite characters of all time (and Mal, of course... *gusty sigh*). I also really love Aliens -- Ripley is so beautifully damaged and such a complete badass.

3. What do you think of the prequel to Alien, being released this spring called Promethius? (It stars one of our favorite actors: Michael Fassbender as the cyborg-Yay, I can't wait)!!!

You nailed it right on the head. Fassbender. That man can do no wrong as far as I'm concerned. I really, REALLY hope that it lives up to my expectations. And him as a cyborg? *bounces* Bishop was AWESOME in Aliens, so I'm hoping to re-up my cyborg love.

4. Is this your first foray into sci fi? If so, what have you written before?

The third book I wrote was sci fi, and it's actually the universe I used for Queen of Swords, though the characters are all different. The main heroine of that fiasco, Wrath, will actually make an appearance in Sanctify Book 3.

5. If you could be a sci fi character, who would you be? (cyborg, human, alien, space pirate, spaceship commander?)

I'd be a space pirate for sure! They have the coolest clothes (and a delicious tendency to ignore the universal laws at will).

6. Can you tell us a little bit about the other books in the series?

I have a novella out this month that's a prequel for Queen of Swords called The High Priestess. It's basically an origin story of the entire series-- How Ophelia's parents got together, why they hate Sanctify so much (beyond the obvious), and who the Big Bad is.

The next two books, Queen of Wands and Queen of Pentacles, tell the stories of Jenny and Sadie, respectively (both of whom are in the first book). Jenny is completely nuts and her book reflects that -- lots of running and fighting and shenanigans. Sadie is ice cold and on the path for vengeance, which is the driving force behind her book.



When the cards tell Ophelia Leoni she’s supposed to marry the Prince of Hansarda, the gunrunner grits her teeth and boards the starship that comes for her. It doesn’t matter if the ship’s captain is the gorgeous stranger whose bed she just spent a wild, drunken night in. As a Diviner, she’s painfully aware the cards don’t lie. Ever.

Boone O’Keirna knows Ophelia is trouble the second he sees the way she moves. Not about to let the deadly little hellact marry his sadistic half-brother, Boone pretends to be the Prince’s emissary and kidnaps Ophelia. Too bad they can’t be in the same room without him wanting to throw her out an airlock—or into bed.

Even as they fight each other—and their explosive attraction—Ophelia and Boone sense something is wrong. Too much is going their way. Soon, they realize while the cards may never lie, the truth is sometimes hidden between them…and the future king of Hansarda is not one to take defeat lying down.

Amazon
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Interview with Lindsey Duncan, Author of Flow

Lindsey and I have been blogger friends and critique partners for a long time! We also share a love for music, and we both do the professional musician thing as well. She's stopped by today to answer some of my questions about her new release, Flow.

1. Tell us about how your two careers (music and writing) go together/or don't go together. How do you make them work together?

I’ve always thought that music and writing require different kinds of energy. I don’t find the one interferes with the other – well, maybe if I’ve played for seven hours and my fingers are too sore to type, but other than that. Because the harp provides both melody and accompaniment, and because I play predominantly traditional music – where there isn’t a single set way to play tunes – I get to spend a lot of time creating arrangements. It’s a similar process to the way I write: I let the tune brew in my head, play around a bit, and when it’s ready, the arrangement comes out of my hands.

Bizarrely, I don’t compose new tunes. This has always bothered me as something I ought to be able to do. I can and have written lyrics to existing music. (In fact, the English lyrics for Winder Wie Ist on my CD, Rolling of the Stone, are my own composition … and when I finally found a translation for the original German, the theme is eerily similar.)

I don’t tend to directly include the harp in my writing – although there are some exceptions, such as Three Great Loyalties (recently printed in Niteblade). I feel as if I enjoy the technicalities of it too much and am concerned about lecturing a reader. However, the soul of music pervades my writing, and it makes frequent guest appearances.

2. Tell us about your book! Why did you name it "Flow?"

Flow is a contemporary fantasy story – I call that distinct from urban fantasy because the term seems to be most commonly applied to a certain type of dark, first-person-centric story. Flow stems from two perspectives: teenaged Kit, bitter in the wake of the death of her mother and unable to control her budding powers; and Chailyn, a water-witch raised in the underwater Vale and only now sent to the surface for her first mission. The pair team up to uncover her mother’s killer and find more than they bargained for: predatory fairies, a rival organization to the water-witches known as the Borderwatch, and secrets buried in both their pasts. They also find Hadrian, a bizarre young man with hyper-accelerated perceptions who invites himself along on the journey.

I’ve written – and hope to see published – several other stories in this setting, some of which take the Borderwatch “side” of the matter.

The title “Flow” derives from the centrality and pervasiveness of water in the novel. Chailyn is a water-witch; the Vale has connections to Atlantis; fairies are the Unwashed, children of Eve who were never bathed in Eden; and even Kit has a connection to water in her past as a figure-skater. It can also be taken in the sense of “going with the flow” – something which is a struggle for the characters throughout.

3. Where can readers find you on the web?

I can be found online at http://www.lindseyduncan.com/writing.htm and http://lindseyduncan.blogspot.com.

(Shameless plug: two of my other stories can be found for purchase here:

Fatecraft

http://www.gudmagazine.com/vault/6/The+Naming+Braid

Taming the Weald


These are both lengthy stories – which is what I trend to! I am a novelist at heart and squeezing myself into the short form has always been an exercise.)

4. What other genres have you tried to write?


I have always added a dash of magic (or occasionally, future science) to everything I write, so it all falls under the umbrella of speculative fiction. That said, I am particularly fascinated by the mystery genre and one of my long-term goals is to meld the two. The rules of fair play for mystery writers have had a huge influence on how I write, whether there is a mystery in the story or not. When applied to foreshadowing and twists, these rules make for strong build-up and avoid a reader feeling cheated. I have a novella sitting in my unsubmitted pile that’s best described as a fantasy mystery romance courtroom drama …


That Flow is contemporary fantasy is somewhat out of my usual vein. I tend to write secondary world fantasy – that is, fantasy set in a world other than our own. There are definite advantages to both. Extrapolating from mythology within our world has strong appeal for me. I also feel that it’s much easier to incorporate humor without reducing the story itself to the ridiculous – easy pop culture references and the like. Of course, a big disadvantage is how quickly everything becomes dated. Flow was originally written in (and is still set in) 2007, and you’ll notice the lack of texting, Twitter, Facebook … that practically makes it historical fiction!

And now for her gorgeous cover:



Kit Morgan has always known there’s more to the world than she sees – it’s hard not to, when her emotions cause objects to shift and glass to shatter. Then she encounters water-witch Chailyn, who reveals to her the existence of fairies, old and treacherous. Chailyn knows as little of surface life as Kit does of the supernatural – but both have to learn quickly, for Kit’s powers are surfacing.

Joined by Hadrian, whose hypersensitive perceptions have left him jaded, they rouse a hornet’s nest. They must also evade the Borderwatch – a supernatural agency that believes fairies are too dangerous to live and takes issue with Kit’s rogue abilities. Unable to take shelter with the water-witches, but with some unexpected allies, the three are forced to make a stand.

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My New Contract with Inkspell Publishing!!!

Finally, I get to share my big announcement!

I'm so excited to announce my new contract with Inkspell Publishing for my sci fi YA series (which ties in to The New Dawn series). Not only does Inkspell have a gorgeous website and eye catching covers, their focus on sweet romance and fantasy fiction is perfect for this series.

Colonization: Paradise 21, will be coming out in Nov/Dec 2012 in ebook and print. It tells the tale of the New Dawn as it reaches Paradise 21 through the eyes of Commander Barliss's and Tiff's great granddaughter, Andromeda.

Here's the working blurb:

Finding a new home has never been so dangerous...

Andromeda has spent all seventeen years of her life aboard a deep space transport vessel destined for a paradise planet. Her safe cocoon is about to break open as Paradise 21 looms one month away, and she must take aptitude tests to determine her role on the new world and her computer assigned lifemate. As a great granddaughter of the Commander of the ship, she wants to live up to her family name. But her forbidden love for her childhood friend Sirius distracts her and she fails the tests. The results place her in a menial role in the new colony and pair her with Corvus, “the oaf”.

When Andromeda steps foot on Paradise 21, her predestined future is the least of her worries. Alien ghosts from a failed colonization warn her of a coming cycle of events threatening to obliterate her colony. Heeding their advice, she asks Sirius to detour his scout mission and investigate uncharted territory. When his ship crashes on the far ridge, she journeys after him with Corvus. They find Sirius and discover a planetary defense mechanism designed to wipe out foreign species. While battling her own inner feelings between Sirius and Corvus, Andromeda must convince the authorities of the imminent danger to save the colony from extinction.

There are two more books in the series, each one told from a different character's perspective following the further colonization efforts: Reconnaissance and Alliance. These will be released five months apart after the initial release of Colonization!

Cover Reveal: Pretty Amy by Lisa Burstein

I'm so excited to share an Entangled Publishing cover reveal with you today!!!

Amy is fine living in the shadows of beautiful Lila and uber-cool Cassie, because at least she’s somewhat beautiful and uber-cool by association. But when their dates stand them up for prom, and the girls take matters into their own hands—earning them a night in jail outfitted in satin, stilettos, and Spanx—Amy discovers even a prom spent in handcuffs might be better than the humiliating “rehabilitation techniques” now filling up her summer. Worse, with Lila and Cassie parentally banned, Amy feels like she has nothing—like she is nothing.


Navigating unlikely alliances with her new coworker, two very different boys, and possibly even her parents, Amy struggles to decide if it’s worth being a best friend when it makes you a public enemy. Bringing readers along on an often hilarious and heartwarming journey, Amy finds that maybe getting a life only happens once you think your life is over.



PRETTY AMY Links:

Goodreads

Amazon pre-order

Barnes and Noble pre-order


About the Author:



Lisa Burstein is a tea seller by day and a writer by night. She received her MFA in Creative Writing from the Inland Northwest Center for Writers at Eastern Washington University and is glad to finally have it be worth more than the paper it was printed on. She lives in Portland, Oregon with her very patient husband, a neurotic dog and two cats. Pretty Amy is her first novel. She never went to her senior prom.

She wrote her first story when she was in second grade. It was a Thanksgiving tale from the point of view of the turkey from freezer to oven to plate. It was scandalous.

She was a lot like Amy when she was in high school.

She is still a lot like Amy.

Lisa's Prom Picture from High School:



Where you can find Lisa on the web:

Twitter

Facebook
Website

Writing Update: Big Announcement Coming!

1.First of all, a big announcement is in the works:

I can't share anything yet, because my agent is working on the details, but I'm excited about it. Stay tuned later in the week.

2. I'm almost finished first round edits for Haven 6! I've added 4k, and filled in a lot of the question marks that my eagle eyed editors found. Good thing there was no major rewrites, but still, these edits have been taking forever! I'll be excited to hand them in at the beginning of the week.

3. Reviews are coming in for Tundra 37 and A Hero Rising, and they are fantastic! The two new releases are still on tour, and have been selling well on Amazon and Barnes and Noble.

4. Just passed in my secret project to my agent, and she's going to read through the brand shiny new manuscript this month. This is another sci fi YA. But, this time it takes place hundreds of years BEFORE the colony ships leave. A girl from 2012 is crycogenically frozen, and wakes up three hundred years later, in the height of the High Rises-2314, about a hundred years before A Hero Rising- year 2446. You heard it here first!

What's new with you for this month?

Promo and Excerpt: A Sliver of Shadow by Allison Pang

Allison Pang is visiting today courtesy of Bewitching Book Tours. She's given me a great excerpt to share with you! Let's first take a look at her aweomse cover!

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A Sliver of Shadow
Book 2 Abby Sinclair Series
By Allison Pang

A Sliver of Shadow Blurb:

Just when her new life as a TouchStone – a mortal bound to help OtherFolk cross between Faery and human worlds – seems to be settling down, Abby Sinclair is left in charge when the Protectorate, Moira, leaves for the Faery Court. And when the Protectorate’s away…let’s just say things spiral out of control when a spell on Abby backfires and the Faery Queen declares the Doors between their worlds officially closed.

The results are disastrous for both sides: OtherFolk trapped in the mortal world are beginning to fade, while Faerie is on the brink of war with the daemons of Hell. Along with her brooding eleven prince Talivar and sexy incubus Brystion, Abby ventures to the CrossRoads in an attempt to override the Queen’s magic. But nothing in this beautiful, dangerous realm will compare to the discoveries she’s making about her past, her destiny, and what she will sacrifice for those she loves.


A Sliver of Shadow Excerpt
Copyright 2012 ~~ Allison Pang

Chapter 1

“Run, Abby.”

Sonja’s warning slid around me with a wash of power. Startled, I shot up from where I huddled beneath a cluster of fallen logs, decayed bark scattering as a set of claws shredded my hiding place. I ducked, the sharpened talons slicing the air with a deadly whistle.

Grinding my teeth, I narrowed my eyes and concentrated, letting my own form shift. Small, furry, fast . . .

Hare.

The Dreaming rippled. I bounded away, sleek and long, haunches bunching and then springing forward to propel me into the darkness. Sonja’s low growl of frustration echoed behind me. I didn’t know exactly what form she’d taken, but my rapidly twitching nose instantly recognized the acrid scent of something feline.

The urge to go to ground vibrated through my little body, but I pushed forward, leaves sliding beneath my paws. All around me were shadows as my nails dug into the moist earth. The scenery blurred past in a haze of ragweed and pine trees, needles brushing my fur. I couldn’t hear Sonja anymore and I paused, my ears rotating to cup the darkness.

The faintest breeze caught my attention, and I instinctively flattened against the grass as Sonja swooped past, this time in the shape of a barred owl.

She wheeled, but I bolted, aiming for the tinkling stream nearby. Shedding the last vestige of the hare, I leapt toward the surface, my skin sluicing into scales as I slithered into the depths. My gills opened to shunt out the water, gravel scraping my pink salmon belly.

“Good! Very good.” Sonja applauded from the banks. The succubus had shifted into her more human form, the bloodred feathers of her wings shining in the moonlight of the Dreaming. Her skin had an alabaster purity that could never be matched by anything mortal. Between the hidden depths of her dark eyes and the scarlet wings, she seemed more fallen angel waif than daemon seductress. “You can come out now, Abby. I think that’s enough for tonight.”

My tail flicked me through the current as I changed again, pulling together the part of what made me, me. Emerging from the water, I squeezed the drops from my hair and pushed it from my face. “I’m getting better.” I wrapped the Dreaming around me until I was dressed in a pair of jeans and a shirt.

Sonja nodded cautiously, smoothing out the wrinkles of her own tank dress. “You are, but you’re still barely tapping your potential.” She gestured around us with a hint of irritation. “These are your Dreams. You limit yourself to your own sense of physics. Becoming a rabbit was fine and you’ve certainly improved your shifting ability—but why not change the ground, or the trees?” She yanked on a damp ringlet of my hair. “Why waste time with this when you could instantly dry it? If you’re ever going to really, truly defeat your nightmares, you’re going to need more than just a few parlor tricks.”

About the Author:

A marine biologist in a former life, Allison Pang turned to a life of crime to finance her wild spending habits and need to collect Faberge eggs. A cat thief of notable repute, she spends her days sleeping and nights scaling walls and wooing dancing boys….Well, at least the marine biology part is true. But she was taloned by a hawk once. She also loves Hello Kitty, sparkly shoes, and gorgeous violinists.

She spends her days in Northern Virginia working as a cube grunt and her nights waiting on her kids and cats, punctuated by the occasional husbandly serenade. Sometimes she even manages to write. Mostly she just makes it up as she goes.



Author Links:

Official site: http://www.heartofthedreaming.com
Borrowing Heaven, Subletting Hell Blog: http://mynfel.blogspot.com
Word Whores Blog: http://word-whores.blogspot.com
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/apang
Facebook Author page: http://www.facebook.com/pages/Allison-Pang/154530877925333
Twitter: @allison_pang (also @phintheunicorn)
Tumblr: http://ionsfolly.tumblr.com

Giveaway:

My Poor Car

So today we got over ten inches of snow. This picture was taken during the storm, so it doesn't even show the total amount!

NH usually gets storms like this three or four times a year, but we lucked out with just one in October, and this one. (Hopefully it will be the last one!)

Guess what I used to get the snow off my car....a broom.

LOL- I'm ready for spring!