Fantastic Adventures

This Brilliant Darkness - Free Today

2012-03-04T14:58:00.000-08:00

The talented Red Tash is offering This Brilliant Darkness for free on March 4th only. I've reviewed this book before, and liked it a lot. It's well worth checking out, especially at the price. The link's below. If it's not still the 4th, just buy a copy. It's good stuff.

There are rumours of other giveaways coming up, there is a sequel in the works, and she's written some other stuff, so consider a visit to http://redtash.com/.

Guest Post - J. A. Beard

2012-02-29T20:49:00.000-08:00

You meet the most interesting people in this line of work - at least, for sufficiently broad definitions of "meet" and "work." Today I'm pleased to present J. A. Beard, who has just released The Emerald City, a young adult urban fantasy novel set in Seattle. It's clever, engaging, and thoroughly original, but it's also a fascinating re-framing of The Wizard of Oz.

Today's guest post is from Mr. Beard, who shares his insights into the changing nature of fantasy worlds. Take it away, J. A.:

Our World versus Their World

In the past, there was far less separation between the idea of “our” world and the world of the fantastical. Storytellers would spin tales about creatures traveling around the outskirts of humanity, distant lands, or even the past, but there typically was less a sense that the magical world was something discrete and forever disconnected from the mundane “real” world.

Some of this was because our worldview was different. The magical world, for many people in the past, was the real world. A story about creatures that eat children who stray too far from home may have served a useful social purpose, but many people did legitimately fear creatures in untamed lands bordering their villages and cities. A lack of understanding of the forces of nature in many societies often manifested in the elevation of practitioners of what we’d now consider mystical arts.

The government of ancient Heian Japan, for instance, had an entire government department staffed with onmyoji, a group of men we’d classify as mystics and diviners. These were not priests. The ancient Japanese had plenty of Shinto and Buddhist priests. Onmyoji were professional “magical” bureaucrats. Magic was their science.

Slowly, though, humanity’s understanding of the world advanced. The dragons of ignorance fell before the blades of science and controlled observation. Where many ancients worshipped the moon as a deity, we’ve walked upon it. Magic has been forced to mostly retreat from our daily existence. People may accept many elements of the supernatural, but in most places a more rational non-magical worldview has settled in. Most people no longer fear ogres in the woods, vampires, shape-shifting foxes, or other sorts of supernatural beings.

Concurrent with the retreat of magic from daily existence, we saw the rise of fantasy as a distinct genre with its stories of magic, monsters, and heroes. Unlike earlier tales that included such elements, these types of stories typically were often not set on Earth, or if they were, would define their setting as some lost mythical age totally divorced from the present. There were exceptions, but in general fantasy became something associated not just with magic, but with different worlds.

This persists to this day. The gritty politics and betrayals in Westeros may have been inspired partially by the War of the Roses of our own world, but no one would ever mistake anything in the A Song of Fire and Ice series for Earth-based fantasy.

Even many stories that did establish a link to our world would quickly shuffle their characters off to somewhere completely fantastical and separate from our mundane little blue planet. Whether they are gritty struggles of brawn, epic magical adventures, whimsical explorations, or something else entirely, these second world fantasies have formed the basis of a rich canon. They allow complete escape into an all-encompassing adventure: new world, new creatures, new rules.

In recent years, the rise of contemporary and urban fantasy has challenged the dominance of second world fantasy. Of course, ever since the rise of fantasy as a true separate genre, there have been stories that inserted magic into a modern milieu, but they’ve typically been overshadowed by their second world cousins. Now, though, when one goes to the bookstore, they’re as likely to find a fantasy story set in a major modern city as they are in some country set in a different world and time. Vampires again lurk in the darkness, faeries in the forest, and the occasional fox does change shape. Mages battle in secret (or out in the open) for control of Earth.

Unlike the second world fantasies, contemporary and urban fantasies don’t allow a total escape. Sure, they do have creatures and new magical rules, but can an adventure of someone adventuring around, for example, Chicago ever capture the same feeling that comes with visiting somewhere totally new?

In a sense, the very familiarity of the world in such books produces a sense of wonder of its own. The tweaking of the familiar sets up a different but still satisfying exploration into the unknown. Whether it is the shadow worlds of settings where the supernatural is hidden to the twists on the modern where the supernatural creatures walk openly among us, the mere inclusion of these elements in our rational and oh-so-scientific world produces a new setting every bit as rich in unexpected possibility as any distant land.

As humanity continues to advance, change, and adapt, it’ll be interesting to see how our age-old interest in the supernatural continues to infuse itself into our fiction. Perhaps in a few decades, we’ll have a whole genre of fantasy taking place in domed lunar cities.

J.A. Beard likes to describe himself as a restless soul married to an equally restless soul. His two children are too young yet to discuss whether or not they are restless souls, but he’s betting on it. He likes to call himself the Pie Master, yet is too cowardly to prove his skills in an actual baking competition.

While writing is one of his great passions, science is another, and when he’s not writing or worrying about baking, he’s working on the completion of his PhD in microbiology.

He blogs at riftwatcher.blogspot.com and is on Twitter as @jabeard_rf.

His current release, a young adult urban fantasy, THE EMERALD CITY, doesn’t take place in Chicago, but it does have a lot of mystical action in the fine modern city of Seattle. It’s available for sale at Amazon, Barnes and Noble, and Smashwords.

Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/The-Emerald-City-ebook/dp/B00761LCTY/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1330061232&sr=8-1

Barnes and Noble: http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/the-emerald-city-ja-beard/1108613536?ean=2940014100717&itm=1&usri=the+emerald+city+beard

Smashwords: http://www.smashwords.com/books/view/130023

Author Interview - Craig Comer

2012-02-09T19:11:00.000-08:00

I've got something a bit unusual to tell you about today. The Roads to Baldairn Motte is not the typical fantasy novel. It is in fact three novellas in one volume, by three authors, telling linked, interwoven stories of the same war, especially one key battle. You can read more about it here: http://www.craigcomer.com/BaldairnMotte.htm

It's written in a gritty, authentic-feeling style, with a worm's eye view. This isn't the story of kings and princes, but rather of common men and women caught up in great events. Thralls of the Fairie, for instance, centers on a farmer deeply worried about his sons. He ends up marching off to battle in an attempt to keep his family together.

I interviewed Craig Comer, author of the third novella in the book. I'm going to let him tell you about the story and its genesis in his own words.

Tell me about The Roads to Baldairn Motte.

The Roads to Baldairn Motte is a mosaic fantasy novel centered around the conquest for an empty throne. The novel consists of three novellas, each written by a different author, and each telling a different point of view of the same battle.

The captain of the Black Wind is forced into the service of the powerful Earl of Gaulang. Ensnared in a tangle of bargains and betrayal, the captain and his crew fight for survival, finding allies in the unlikeliest of places.

To the north, the commander of the Titan Guard, the elite fighting force of Lord North, travels to the edge of civilization to enlist the help of barbarian giants known as the Marchers. But such aid comes at a cost, and the price of victory may spell doom for all.

From simple crofts, farms, and villages come the ranks of the engaging armies. A crofter hunts for his missing sons at the peril of his life and honor, while a miller follows his lord to battle, eager to rattle spears against enemy shields. Hungry and exhausted, both men will find they are but dander upon the wind in the great game of the Passions.

Yet struggle as they might, all roads will lead them to the ruins at Baldairn Motte.

What was it like working collaboratively with two other authors? How did it make the book stronger? What were the challenges?

Unlike traditional co-authored books, we wrote our stories independently so that each viewpoint came from a completely different creative genesis. We feel this created a unique overall story because the different factions are truly pursuing their own ends, they aren't pulled along by an overall plot thread. For example, Garrett Calcaterra's piece, On the Black Wind to Baldairn Motte, chronologically stops well short of the other two, yet it still gives a heavy dose of what is to come. It doesn't matter that his characters don't appear in the final novella, Thralls of the Fairie; their story has ended, and in a satisfying way.

That isn't to say we didn't call out each other's works once we were in revision mode. That's part of the fun of collaboration! Having your ideas rebutted when you're still writing drafts makes you think about why you're making certain choices, and what choices you'll risk an argument to defend versus what you're willing to let go. Plus, your collaborators may take your story to places you hadn't considered, which may spark better ideas of your own.

What is world building like when you have collaborators? How did it affect the development of your characters?

For continuity, we created a bible for the world with major characters, events, cultures, and even a lexicon of swear words. But it wasn't until we started kicking out drafts that we knew the more lush details like whether it was raining on a particular day, or what type of tree is common near a village. Through email, we were able to make quick decisions and revise as we wrote, changing the name of a river or the size of a town as our characters entered those places.

From a character development standpoint, one thing that really helped was our desire to keep our characters at a ground level. That is, we wanted to experience the war through the eyes of the common soldier, sailor, and farmer, not from the view of lords and the realm's powerplayers. This allowed us to grow our characters without worrying too much about how their decisions would impact each other's storylines. Our characters do cross paths (if you look close enough) but we didn't want them to dwell too long together. After all, swords are sharp, and something bad might've happened!

Review - My Sparkling Misfortune

2012-02-07T12:28:00.000-08:00

My rating: 4/5

Laura Lond has written an absolutely delightful novella about a villain who finds himself plagued with a goody-two-shoes helpful spirit who's determined to make him a better man. This is one of the most thoroughly charming stories I've read in a long time.

Lord Arkus is a sword-wielding villain with a castle in a pestilential swamp and a bloodthirsty army ready to do his bidding. He's doing his best to terrorize the local kingdoms, kidnapping royal heirs for ransom and generally being thoroughly evil. Then a series of misfortunes puts him on the run and ready to risk everything to capture a gormack, an evil spirit of great power.

It goes wrong, though, and he accidentally captures a sparkling. The sparkling, to Arkus's considerable embarrassment, thinks Arkus is a great guy, somewhere deep down inside. Most of the book is a hilarious battle of wills as Arkus tries to corrupt the sparkling, and the sparkling takes Arkus's every evil scheme and turns it into something noble and good. Arkus, determined to inspire dread and terror, instead finds himself showered with gratitude and admiration. Every gift, every thank-you, every banquet in his honour, just drives his blood pressure higher.

There is depth to the story as well. Arkus is forced on a difficult journey of self-discovery. Arkus, and several other characters, face excruciating choices. There are moral dilemmas with no easy solutions. Friendships are forged, tested, destroyed. It's powerful storytelling.

It's not a perfect tale. There are minor proofreading issues, and the book could really use a good editor. Nothing is seriously wrong, but there are sentences that are awkwardly phrased or that come out a bit clumsy. None of this detracts much from my enthusiasm for the story. It's such a terrific, fun, entertaining story that I forgive every minor technical issue.

As an added bonus, the book is illustrated by the highly gifted Alla Alekseyeva. Her beautiful black and white pictures are a great addition to the story.

My Sparkling Misfortune was great fun to read, and I will be picking up the sequel.

Buy it on Smashwords.

Demon Chains Released

2012-01-31T22:36:00.000-08:00

Kron Darkbow is at it again. The hero of City of Rogues and Road to Wrath is back in a brand-new book from Ty Johnston. It's apt to be months before I get around to reviewing it, but I'll be surprised if it isn't pretty damned good.

Goblins Wins an Aurora

2012-01-25T09:11:00.000-08:00

Goblins, the coolest web comic ever (possibly excluding Sluggy Freelance), has won an Aurora award for Best English Graphic Novel. Tarol Hunt, the creator, richly deserves it, too. The Auroras are given out by The Canadian Science Fiction & Fantasy Association (CSFFA), and they're Canada's most prestigious genre award.

Congratulations, Tarol. You make a fantastic web comic that's full of action and excitement and manages to be truly moving at times, and laugh-out-loud funny at others. I highly recommend it as one of the best sources of sword and sorcery adventure out there.

http://www.goblinscomic.com/

Buy One, Get One

2012-01-24T15:53:00.000-08:00

There isn't much time left on this, but for today only (Jan 24, 2012) if you buy a book from the talented L.C. Evans, you can take a free book from one of 22 other authors. It's all part of a tribute to Evans, who passed away recently. Some very good authors are participating. I encourage you to check it out. Here's a link:

http://davidgaughran.wordpress.com/

Review - Road to Wrath

2012-01-23T20:41:00.000-08:00

My rating: 4/5

Ty Johnston's Kobalos trilogy continues with book 2, Road to Wrath. At the end of City of Rogues, revenge-obsessed Kron Darkbow transferred his rage from Belgad the Liar to a fantastically powerful wizard named Verkain. Now he's on the road to Verkain's kingdom of Kobalos, accompanied by Adara, master swordswoman, and Randall, Verkain's son who has become a healer.

The action never stops. Kron thinks he's done with Belgad for now, but Belgad isn't done with Kron. Along the road they'll meet savage mountain tribes, superstitious villagers out to murder Randall for using magic, and a tribe of cannibals who've escaped from prison.

Then there's Verkain. He has summoned indestructible war demons and sent them out to find Randall. If Kron and his companions can somehow survive this gauntlet of enemies, they'll have to face Verkain himself, a wizard of such mind-boggling power he could swat them all like insects.

My reaction to this book was similar to my reaction to City of Rogues. The story is irresistible. It drew me in completely. There was no question that I would keep reading, and I'll be reading the third book, Dark King of the North, as well.
The writing is flawed. Things are phrased in clumsy ways. And the number of typos is distressing. Yet the power of the storytelling trumps all of that. It's irresistibly entertaining.

The emphasis in these books is on action. The world-building is moderate at best, as is the characterization. Kron himself is almost ridiculously wooden at times. None of the characters are especially complex. Still, there are some interesting relationships and some tricky moral dilemmas that give the book some depth.

The wealth of action is one of the book's strong points, although it leads to one of my minor complaints. There is an appalling body count among the bystanders, in this book and in City of Rogues. Sometimes I almost wished the heroes would be killed, because they kept escaping at such a dreadful cost to the local population.

Overall this is an excellent adventure story with loads of action, and definitely recommended.

Read Road to Wrath on Smashwords

Featured on the Indie Spotlight

2012-01-10T08:13:00.000-08:00

Bert the Barbarian is today's feature on The Indie Spotlight.

http://www.theindiespotlight.com/

Same Six Questions, Different Response

2011-12-30T17:57:00.000-08:00

I've won a minor award from Andy Rane's blog for directing the most traffic to his "Same Six Questions" interview. Andy's a fellow indie novelist and he's got a pretty neat blog concept. It's an interesting, quick way to find some new authors you might not have encountered otherwise. I suggest you check him out.
http://andyrane.blogspot.com/

eFiction December Issue is Live

2011-11-30T21:40:00.000-08:00

eFiction Magazine is back with a shiny new December issue. Buy it from Amazon or read it free online. http://www.efictionmag.com/

Guest Post by Jerry Hanel

2011-11-28T13:51:00.000-08:00

Getting bored while you wait for me to hurry up and post another review? I've got some Jerry Hanel to tide you over. Jerry's the author of Death Has a Name and Thaloc Has a Body, two titles that may sound vaguely familiar to readers of this blog. He brings a welcome breath of originality to the urban fantasy genre, and today he's here to tell you a bit about the stories behind the stories. Take it away, Jerry:

Adventures NOT in writing

(or 'How my hobbies influence my stories')

In order to write compelling stories, they have to have some basis in the real world. Even paranormal stories have to be grounded, at some level, to a world that the reader can relate to. Items in that plane of existence have to translate into something the reader can recall in their mind so that the item or situation you describe can have the illusion of reality.

While writing is a great outlet for expressing our creativity, we need "inlets" to be able to translate those creative moments into expressions that other humans can interpret and understand.

This is why it is imperative that we, as authors, do more than just write. We need to get out of our shells and do something crazy every now and then. Go hang-gliding so that you can recall the feeling of freefall. Or travel the world so that you can describe the emotion of being completely awestruck by a something you've never seen before.

For me, I have three main "inlets" for creativity. I love to play role-playing games, I am in love with an eighty-six year-old woman, and I have a day job that keeps me very busy.

For the most part, the day job is like anyone else's. I sit at a desk, filing papers, and working on projects. I attend meetings and give presentations. These may not seem like the pinnacle of writing fodder, but they are immeasurably helpful. I can recall getting up to give a presentation to the CEO of a Fortune-500 company -- the fear, sweaty palms and verbal constipation. I'm a competent, well-educated man. I'm confident and usually very well-spoken. But in that moment, nerves had me so bound up that I couldn't form a valid sentence to save my life. It took me five minutes to just get started, and when I was finished, I prayed he wouldn't fire me for incompetence. Side note: I'm still employed there. Those kinds of experiences are the foundations that I use to build every-day scenarios into my stories.

The eighty-six year old woman is a resident of one of the elderly centers where I volunteer to help distribute food. Her name is Miss Zenobia, and she is the most selfless, loving caring woman I've ever met. Week after week, I go there, and each time I visit Miss Z does something else that just blows me away. I'm happily married to a wonderful wife, but Miss Z has a special place in my heart for being caring and compassionate. I love her like my grandmother even though we aren't related except through those brief ten-minute encounters.

Sure, I can write a sappy love scene about a man and woman, keeping my relationship with my wife in mind. But it is through uncommon relationships like serving Miss Z a meal, then watching her give that meal to someone else because she's "just not that hungry today and Terrence could sure use a good bite to eat, bless his soul" that really help me to know what true love and compassion are all about. They help me define my characters in full, 3-D, living color.

And when I get stressed out from writing, my day job is unfulfilling, my wife is on my nerves and the senior centers are closed up for the night, what can I do? I kill something. Violently. With a big sword, or a flaming ball of fire. Am I a murderer or arsonist? No, I am Bartholomew Bladeslinger, Tiefling Paladin.

Most people use role-playing games as an expression of creativity and a means to just be goofy teenagers, even for a few minutes a week. I'm nearly forty years old, and didn't really get into role-playing games until a few years ago, but through these sessions, I've been paired up with people I wouldn't normally hang out with otherwise. I embrace my inner geek and roll dice, count points and march across some campaign or other to attack the creatures of someone else's imagination.

These games not only help me blow off steam, they teach me so much in the process. I've encountered situations that -- while I would have handled them differently in my own mind -- I've had to resolve as a team from several other points of view. It has helped me to not only have a social release, but to better understand social dynamics. I've learned how to describe my paranormal craziness in ways that relate to the common world, and I've had a great time in the process.

All-in-all, whether you are a reader or a writer, there's one thing I have to say: Books are awesome, and we need to never give up the fight for reading. Novels and stories will never be replaced by Hollywood special effects, no matter how much they spend, because books are read with the heart, not the eyes and ears.

But when even your latest book comes to an end, there's only one thing that matters: Who have you connected with in your life? Not only will that help you be a better writer, it will help you be a better all-around person.

Book Review - In Our House

2011-11-14T20:55:00.000-08:00

In Our House is a captivating, fascinating, thought-provoking and thoroughly entertaining collection of eight short stories from award-winning author Peter Balaskas. If you had to assign a genre to the collection it would be horror, but the collection is much too complex to classify easily.

If there is a recurring theme running through In Our House, it's an exploration of the nature of a man, the choices we must make, for better or for worse, because of what we are, and the consequences we may face as a result.

Duet begins the collection, the least-spooky story in the collection. The narrator is a writer. His art is fundamental to who he is. But in order to create, he may have to destroy the most precious relationship in his life. She will not thank him if he keeps her around at the cost of his life's work. He must make an impossible decision, and the results are... unexpected.

Auld Acquaintances, Id, and Wash Cycle are more ordinary. In these three straightforward horror tales a thoroughly bad person gets his comeuppance. Each story involves a man trapped in some way by his own nature. One man can no longer keep his darker nature suppressed. Another man, after a long life of cruelty and corruption, must finally pay a terrible price. They are entertaining, if not deep, and if I had stopped reading there I might have been disappointed in the collection.

The stories veer into deeper waters, though, with Crossing the Styx. Martin is a healer. It's what he does; it's who he is. He helps the living cope with the aftermath of tragedy. Then he finds a very special victim, one only he can help. How can he refuse, when the price he must pay is so small? But others come. Their need is great. The price is rising, but how can he turn them away? Martin is going to find out just exactly how much one man can give.

WIth In His House, the collection veers into allegory. An artist is trapped in a house, surrounded by a tempest, afflicted by some very strange housemates. It's all real... in a way. Only a profound journey of self-discovery can set him free. It's a tense and deftly-written story, and it packs a tremendous emotional wallop.

These stories will stay with you long after you're done reading them. Don't miss In Our House.

Immortals is Out

2011-11-11T09:41:00.000-08:00

Immortals has been released in theatres. Just my $.02, but it's nothing brilliant. It's awfully pretty to look at, and I had fun watching it, but it was instantly forgettable. Very "300 meets Clash of the Titans." Some parts made more sense than others, but there is sure plenty of excitement.

Guest Blogger - Ty Johnston

2011-11-08T20:12:00.000-08:00

Today I have a guest post from an author I respect and whose work I enjoy, Ty Johnston. Take it away, Ty:

Fantasy author Ty Johnston’s blog tour 2011 is running from November 1 through November 30. His novels include City of Rogues, Bayne’s Climb and More than Kin, all of which are available for the Kindle (http://www.amazon.com/Ty-Johnston/e/B002MCBQRU/ ), the Nook (http://www.barnesandnoble.com/c/ty-johnston ) and online at Smashwords (http://www.smashwords.com/profile/view/darkbow). His latest novel, Ghosts of the Asylum, will be available for e-books on November 21. To find out more, follow him at his blog tyjohnston.blogspot.com.

As a writer, lots of different authors have influenced my own interests, writing style and favorite genres. From Alexandre Dumas to Stephen King, Leo Tolstoy to Max Brooks, Homer to Ed McBain, my list of favorite authors could be quite extensive.

But for the most part, I write fantasy, usually epic fantasy. This brings up the question, which fantasy authors have influenced me the most?

Like many youngsters who were readers growing up in the 1970s, I took my first bite of fantasy literature with J.R.R. Tolkien’s The Hobbit, following it up soon after with The Lord of the Rings. For my generation, many got their start with Tolkien and his tales of Bilbo and Frodo.

Growing up, I did not have much access to fantasy, so discovering Tolkien was eye opening. I was transported away to a land where even the least among us could at least try to accomplish great good. For the 7-year-old me, that was heady stuff.

Soon after, as I neared my teen years, I discovered Sword and Sorcery literature through the Thieves’ World anthologies of short stories, edited by Robert Asprin and later co-edited with his then-wife, Lynn Abbey. Again, my eyes were opened, this time to a much more gritty version of fantasy, one that seemed much more adult to the young me.

At this point, I was thirsty for more fantasy fiction, but there just wasn’t that much available in the town where I lived. That changed in 1983 when a local book store began carrying the Dungeons & Dragons games. The games were popular, and right away the store started selling more and more fantasy literature. This is how I discovered Fred Saberhagen and The First Book of Swords, and soon after Margaret Weis and Tracy Hickman’s Dragons of Autumn Twilight. These two novels were each the beginning of a separate series, so I had my reading cut out for me for some little while.

One element I’ve always enjoyed about Saberhagen’s writing, and that of Weis and Hickman, is the prose was not overly flowery. They told their stories with lots of characters and lots of action, and they didn’t take a thousand pages to do so. I strive for much of that in my own writing to this day.

So far I’ve outlined the majority of my early fantasy reading. I left out a handful of authors, some of whom I quite enjoy, because I’ve never felt they had a major influence upon myself as a writer. But I have to mention Michael Moorcock and Fritz Leiber, two astounding authors who kept my interest in fantasy going strong.

As I grew older, I began to read less fantasy. Actually, I began to read less in general, though I never stopped completely. For most of the 1980s and 1990s, my interests were drawn to horror, with the likes of Stephen King and Robert McCammon holding sway over much of my reading during this era. Also during this time, I became a huge fan of The Sandman graphic novels, written by Neil Gaiman, and found them an excellent mixture of fantasy and horror. To this day I consider it some of Gaiman’s strongest writing.

By the late 1990s, I was burning myself out on horror. I began to turn back to fantasy more and more.

I found I had a lot of catching up to do, as I had missed a lot of the newer fantasy authors who had come along during my dry spell.

When I dipped back into fantasy, I started with R.A. Salvatore, mainly because he was such a popular writer. The first book of his I read was Homeland, and I still enjoy that novel. Since then I’ve read about a dozen of Salvatore’s books, some I like and some not so much, but I still like much of his writing style.

More recently, in the last few years I’ve been turned onto Steven Erikson and his Malazan Books of the Fallen. I’ve read the first 9 books in this 10-book series, and I’ve found much to love about each and every one of them. I think Erikson is overly long-winded and could use a strong editor, but he’s the only fantasy author who raises such strong emotions within me.

Also, over the last few years I’ve found myself turning more and more back to Robert E. Howard, the creator of Conan the Cimmerian, and the father of Sword and Sorcery literature. I read a fair amount of Howard when I was younger, but it was not until I was in my late 30s that I truly appreciated how gifted a writer he was. I wish there was more material by the man, as I’ve read just about everything of his I can find, and that includes a lot of short stories outside the fantasy genres.

Stephen King continues to hold my interest, though I think his novels are a little more hit-and-miss than they were a couple of decades ago. While I don’t find it perfect, I did quite enjoy his series The Dark Tower and its mixture of epic fantasy, horror and even science fiction.

That about wraps my list for fantasy authors who have had a major influence upon me. You might be surprised at some names that are missing. George R.R. Martin comes to mind, as does Brian Jacques. To be honest, I’ve yet to read those authors. I have several of their books, but I keep putting them off because there is so much out there to read, within and outside of the fantasy genres.

But I’ll get to them. I promise. I’m always looking to discover great authors.

Review - Grease is the Word

2011-11-06T18:09:00.000-08:00

My rating: 4.5/5

George Berger's brain doesn't work like yours and mine. He's one of those people who makes you glad the Internet and indie publishing have caught on, because his work is totally unpublishable and yet so completely worthwhile. You simply have to check out one of the most unconventional, quirky, and irresistible voices out there, and this short story is an excellent place to start. First, it's short. Very short. Not much time investment. And the fiduciary investment is even less. It's free.

Grease is the Word is a thrilling tale of ex-special forces operatives working in the private sector, on a covert mission with stakes that are - well, exaggerated, frankly, but certainly unexpected. This will be one of the funnier things you'll read this month. Check it out.

Watch for George's ground-breaking epistolary novel, as yet untitled, coming out some time in 2012.

Grease Is The Word, Free at Smashwords

Author Interview - Erin Lale

2011-11-03T08:28:00.000-07:00

Today's bonus treat is an interview with Erin Lale, author of the Punch novels, bigger-than-life science fiction set in a shared universe called Time Yarns. Take it away, Erin...

You've taken your writing in some innovative directions with Time Yarns. Tell us a little bit about how the Time Yarns shared universe works.

Time Yarns is a different kind of shared world; instead of sharing characters or settings, what all the different stories have in common is the way physics and magic work. The core idea of Time Yarns is that time travelers have gone back to change history and have created many parallel universes, and that these time travelers use the power of the mind to travel in time because human beings cannot actually invent time machines.

When someone tries to invent a time machine, what they get is a machine like The Timelessness Machine, which is the title of a short story I published in the first issue of Sterling Web long ago and have recently reprinted in my collection of my short fiction, Universal Genius.

There is a story about a timelessness machine in each of the two upcoming Time Yarns multi-author anthologies, Cassandra's Time Yarns and Anarchy Zone Time Yarns, by New Zealander and aglal biofuel inventor Ian Miller and by Canary Islands resident Tony Thorne MBE, who was awarded a chivalric order by the Queen of England for advances in cryosurgery tools and carbon fiber furnaces. They each came up with the idea of the physics of timelessness independently, without having read my classic of hard sf. Great minds think alike.

The Punch books are a series of transmedia novels. Tell us how that works. What are the transmedia elements? Do you see multimedia as the future of ebooks?

The Punch books are packed with pictures, video clips, sound, and art. I imagine a future in which what sort of creative a person is has become disconnected from the medium because all creative works are on the same electronic platform. People will no longer define their work as being on cellulose or celluloid, sound waves or light waves, because everything is on the net and on ebook readers that double as computers and smart phones. People will no longer call themselves writers, filmmakers, game designers, musicians, photographers, composers, graphic designers, or animators; everyone will be a transmedia artist.

One of the other Time Yarns authors, Humberto Sachs, believes so much in my vision of the future of transmedia that he set up a project within his company, TeknoX, to bring it about. Sachs is an aerospace engineer from Brazil, co-designer of the F-18 and the International Space Station, but now he has started a company to design an open source integrated hardware / software design and production platform, and he's using the transmedia project to test the platform.

If an edition of Punch can be published as one long book with all its transmedia elements intact and fully imbedded instead of having to link the videos from host sites, that will prove the platform superior to today's platforms. It's been really exciting to set out to publish sf anthologies and happen to connect with a writer who is also working on bringing about the next technical revolution.

Carla Punch's story is one wild ride. Marine, knight, captain, saint... How did you dream up this incredible journey that she's on?

Her story is Life 2.0, my own life re-imagined. I started writing the first draft of Punch 10 years ago, shortly after completing my memoir of Life 1.0, my nonfiction book Greater Than the Sum of My Parts: My Triumph Over Dissociative Identity Disorder. The autobiography is raw life, and Punch is life whipped up into a feast. Some people give their problems to a higher power; I gave mine to an action hero.

The Punch books deal with a lot of the same issues I deal with in my memoir, such as recovery from PTSD, gender and sexual orientation issues, issues around career as identity, religious conversion experiences, disability issues, cultural assimilation, infertility and substitute child-figures, and how a person reinvents herself and achieves personal growth, all re-envisioned as a hero's journey.

Humour is an important element of the Punch books. How do you juggle so many elements, high adventure and epic plot scope, and still keep things fun and funny?

That's just the way my mind works. I see humor in so many things. Even the name of the universe, Time Yarns, is a kind of pun, because a yarn is a story and it also refers to string theory and to the classical fates or wyrd sisters spinning the threads of time and weaving the fabric of the universe.

In fact, that's an image I use in the Time Yarns Universe trailer that recently wrapped filming and is now being edited, and which I hope to have ready in January for the release of the multi-author anthologies. There's even an element of humor in the trailer, when the voiceover says, "What if thousands of individuals who did not agree with each other all went back in time to change history for the better? What if, among the many resultant parallel universes, was the one we live in?" And then the image cuts to a Chevy hood being thumped open with a literal ba-da-boom sound. That's just the sort of thing that bubbles up in my brain.

What's it like to craft a seven-volume epic? What have you learned about storytelling from working on such a large canvas?

The first draft of Punch was originally shown to fellow writers years ago as it was written, chapter by chapter, so it was actually a serial from the very beginning. In fact, some of the plot elements were crowdsourced, as a reader suggested the Nelonn / Khunnir pairing and the whole subplot of Nelonn's apprenticeship to Brinonn was created just to set up the scene in the tent a dozen chapters later. Working on the second draft after deciding to unify Punch with other stories into a shared world really made me focus on what was essential to the story.

I also realized that Punch naturally broke into 7 pieces of novella size, like acts in a play. But I learned the most when I tried to write a description of book 1 to put on the book's Amazon page. I couldn't wrap my mind around a short description of book 1 until I read a voluminous tome called The Seven Basic Plots, and realized I had inadvertantly written a comedy. Book 1: The Loribond has the same plot structure as a classical Greek comedy.

What do you want people to take away from the Punch stories? What impact do you want to have on your readers?

I want readers to experience Punch the same way I experience it: as a healing journey. Every time I re-read it to edit it, I start in rags along with Carla in book 1, and by book 7 I've experienced spiritual riches.

Read Loribond, Book 1 of the Punch series.

eFiction Magazine November

2011-11-01T16:08:00.000-07:00

EFiction magazine is back with a shiny new issue. The November issue is live. Read for free online at http://www.efictionmag.com/, or subscribe at the link below. The usual quality selection of indie fiction awaits.

Subscribe on Amazon

Review - The Weight of Blood (The Half-Orcs)

2011-10-29T16:05:00.000-07:00

My rating: 4/5

I have mixed feelings about this book. It contains some of the most powerful storytelling I've seen in a long time. The story has fantastic impact, and I can't wait to learn what happens next in the series. It's a deeply affecting story that will get right under your skin.

Yet it's hampered by writing that's a bit clumsy and by a need for decent proofreading. The story overall, the big picture, is mind-blowingly good. Line by line, sentence by sentence, it is reasonably okay, and that's all. Now, if I had to choose between a lame story told with consummate skill and a brilliant story told in an unpolished way, there is no question which I'd choose. And despite my misgivings, this is certainly a book I recommend.

Harruq and Qurrah Tun are half-orcs living in a human city. They're the ultimate outsiders, abused and distrusted by everyone around them. They only have each other, and the bond between them is tremendously strong. Then Qurrah meets a powerful magician, a necromancer, who can elevate him beyond his wildest dreams using some very dark magic. Harruq is where he's always been, at his brother's side, disturbed by the unpleasant things he must do to support his brother's magic, but unwavering in his support.

The tension mounts when Harruq meets an elven woman who is as decent and kind as the necromancer is dark and twisted. He would choose his brother over his enchanting new friend without hesitation, if not for the growing rumbles of his conscience...

The Weight of Blood is a complex tale full of action, moral ambiguity, and gut-wrenchingly tough choices. Harruq is a surprisingly charming, likeable protagonist, despite the ugly things he does to support his brother. It's a very dark story of complicated people trying to find the right path in the most difficult circumstances imaginable.

The orcs, elves, and humans are to a large extent lifted straight from Tolkien. The book is fairly light on world-building, with most of the author's attention going to the exploration of characters and relationships, and to plenty of sword-swinging action. The book is bursting with adventure.

Did I mention that David Dalglish is a very bad man? He gives the book away for free, knowing that you will become hooked (you will, trust me) and have to buy the rest of the series. You can save a buck or two, though, by buying the first three books in an omnibus.

The Half-Orcs is a five-novel series. Watch this blog for reviews of the remaining titles.

Check it out on Smashwords.

Review - eFiction Magazine October Issue

2011-10-28T21:30:00.000-07:00

I've been trying to get to this all month. It's too good not to recommend, but it's nearly time for the November issue and I give up. Not that the magazine is hard to read; far from it. I was out of the country for two weeks and hideously busy the rest of the time and I've only had time to read about three stories so far, so here is my unofficial review based on what I've seen.

October was the Halloween-themed issue, and it's a good deal spookier than the usual eFiction fare. Marcin Wrona's #Baphomet is worth the price of admission all by itself. It's a compulsively readable, indescribably creepy story about a teenage boy getting himself in WAY over his head. It's a really excellent piece of writing, and it's enough all by itself to make a subscription to eFiction totally worthwhile.

I read a few more stories. Quality levels varied, but each story was worthwhile in its way. eFiction Magazine is a non-professional magazine, with corresponding weaknesses and strengths. I don't mean it's unprofessional or sloppy or lacks standards, just that not a lot of money changes hands. There are stories that wouldn't quite cut it in a pro magazine, but they're still quite meticulously written and edited. There are also stories like #Baphomet, which is as good as anything you'll find online or in print.

eFiction is put together by writers and staff who clearly love what they're doing, and they've created something that's well worth your time. Some of the writing is a little rough around the edges, but there are unpolished gems you just wouldn't find in a shinier, more expensive magazine. I would be proud to have my own writing in eFiction, and I'm planning to submit some stories.

I'm looking forward to the November issue. Read it online for free at eFictionMag.com or subscribe on your Kindle.

Win a Kindle - Time is Running Out

2011-10-10T19:31:00.000-07:00

Only a few days are left in Red Tash's Halloween Bash. Win a Kindle pre-loaded with dozens of books, including This Brilliant Darkness (reviewed below) and Lord of Fire, by me. See redtash.com/bash for details.

Review - This Brilliant Darkness

2011-10-07T18:32:00.000-07:00

My Score: 3.5/5

This Brilliant Darkness by Red Tash is a dark, pretty scary, quite original, and wholly unpredictable horror novel. It's so chock-full of unconventional characters and truly weird plot elements that it's almost impossible to summarize, but I'll try.

Christine Grace is an American college professor. A whole batch of weird things happens to her in short order. A strange unmoving star appears in the sky, and it's only visible over Bloomington, Indiana. A dark immortal creature is hunting her. A man she's never met but has long felt connected with has come to Bloomington. A mysterious young religious pilgrim is seeing her in visions. And one of her students is exhibiting strange powers. It's all connected, and somehow Grace is at the heart of it.

I liked the complete absence of familiar tropes. I couldn't tell you what book this book compares to. It's startlingly original. It's also pretty well-written. There is mystery, romance, rising tension, complex and compelling characters, and an ever-present sense of dread.

Some things I didn't like. It's almost too weird at times. Two of the characters are so deeply odd that the scenes written from their point of view are nearly incomprehensible. Also, I must warn you - this book has some pretty gross imagery. It's not TOO bad, but there is a scene early on, I'll just say that it involves a blood clot and leave it at that. Not really a problem, but you should know that this book is not for the squeamish.

There is brilliance in This Brilliant Darkness. If you're tired of the same old paranormal cliches, this will knock your socks off.

Read This Brilliant Darkness on Amazon.

Read This Brilliant Darkness on Smashwords.

SHHH!

2011-09-30T18:08:00.000-07:00

Don't tell anyone, but the October issue of eFiction Magazine is live at http://www.efictionmag.com/. Marcin Wrona, whom you may have read about here, heads up the short stories with #Baphomet, and there is lots more. Check it out.

Win A Kindle

2011-09-17T08:26:00.000-07:00

Already got one? There are Amazon gift cards, too. It's all at the Red Tash Halloween Bash. Discover new books, new blogs, and win swag. Enter as many times as you'd like up until October 16.

The Kindle comes with a pile of free books, including one of mine. Check out the details at:

http://redtash.com/bash is the site, which may be down. http://redtash.wordpress.com/red-tash-trick-or-treat-bash/ is the mirror site.

Nathan Lowell Wins Parsec Award

2011-09-16T09:26:00.000-07:00

I'd like to congratulate Nathan Lowell on winning a 2011 Parsec Award for his podcast of Owner's Share, latest novel in his series The Golden Age of the Solar Clipper. The Parsec awards recognize excellence in speculative ficition podcasts.

You can also find Nathan's work in e-book form. It's understated, beautifully-written, captivating stuff about ordinary men and women behind the scenes in interstellar spaceships. I've blogged before about Quarter Share, the first book in the series. Check it out if you get the chance.

I've got me an ad!

2011-09-13T18:38:00.000-07:00

I was so pleased with this I had to share it. I'd like to mention my cover artist and eFiction Magazine, where I hope the ad will appear in the rockin' October issue.

Interview with Phoebe Wray

2011-09-12T07:12:00.000-07:00

In the Plowshare, the crew and the civilians were in the galley, watching the live feed from the cameras in Renn’s helmet. No one talked. Her voice was piped in, but she wasn’t doing much talking, either. Leaving the sled for a careening object was one of the most dangerous steps, and she concentrated on it.

“Okay, there’s something here...” They could hear her breathing a little faster but they couldn’t see what she was doing.

“Renn?” Harry’s voice was quiet. “Talk to us.”

She scoffed and everyone relaxed a little. “I’m busy! It’s a—I dunno what—a control box, I think.”

Today's special treat is an interview with Phoebe Wray, who has a short story in an anthology of military SF by all female authors. Take it away, Wray:

Tell us a little bit about Trashing.

It’s a short story in the anthology “No Man’s Land” from Dark Quest Books; Volume 4 of the “Defending the Future” series edited by Mike McPhail. They are futurist, military science fiction tales, all written by women. I’m very proud to have a story in it. They’re whopping good yarns.

Trashing has an unusual premise. How did you come up with the idea?

It was a story sitting half-done when I heard about “No Man’s Land.” I dug it out and polished it up. My heroine is a Lieutenant in the Targus Navy, a specialist identifying, assessing and retrieving the debris and odds and ends of satellites, booster rockets and the like, tumbling around in her galaxy. She makes a splendid find just as the Bad Guys show up.

I’ve been collecting news stories and NASA reports about space junk for a long time. That stuff, and there’s a lot of it up there, is a navigation hazard, among other things. Even a paint chip traveling 17,000 mph can do a lot of damage. And then, of course, there’s the glove that a Gemini10 crew member lost, still orbiting.

Oddly, the week after the book was released this past May, the International Space Station was on alert because a piece of junk was heading straight for it. Fortunately, it missed; but the crew had already identified their “Safe places,” in case it didn’t.

By the way, I got the planet name “Targus” from the online NASA list of named space objects. There are a gazillion of them!

You're the president of Broad Universe. Tell us about the organization.

Broad Universe is a support and information organization for women who write genre fiction. It was founded in 1999 at the Feminist Convention, WisCon. I’m one of the “mothers” and have served on the Boards from the beginning.

We ask: Why don’t women get more genre fiction published? Why don’t we get as many reviews as the boys do? Why do some stick-in-muds still say we can’t write those tales? Just read what’s out there and your mind will change.

BU is supports and encourages, and through our website (www.broaduniverse.org) and several online lists, we provide a sounding board/tip board/information. We’re a non-profit and all-volunteer group, with members around the world. It’s an amazingly congenial place. There hasn't been a flame war ever, since the beginning.

I stepped down as the Prez in August, having served on the Motherboard for a number of years. It was time to pass the torch. I remain on the Advisory Board.

There was a time when science fiction seemed mostly like a club for boys. You're challenging that notion by writing successfully in the genre, and you create characters who fly in the face of conventional genre stereotypes. Has it been an extra challenge to be a woman writing military science fiction?

It’s getting better. Women still aren’t taken as seriously as men in some of the subgenres, military sci fi being one. The sheer number of women who are willing to put their thoughts out there helps. For new writers, it’s challenging. And, trust me, there are still men—writers, reviewers, editors—who scoff and/or sneer.

It’s a slippery fish to land. Right now, Broad Universe has two members who are professional number-crunchers, and they are undertaking a systematic (scientific) look at the stats so we will have more meaningful data. I’ve been working on that particular issue for years. Their findings are starting to go up on our website. They are sobering.

I normally blog about indie e-books, but I have a soft spot for Edge Publishing, since they're here in Calgary, my home town. Tell us a bit about Jemma7729.

That’s my first novel, and it was a delight to work with the genial Brian Hades at EDGE. He’s a savvy, enthusiastic person, and very encouraging. EDGE continues to grow and is publishing excellent work.

The “elevator” on Jemma is that it’s “a futurist, feminist, dystopian, action-adventure novel.” Whew! It continues to get great reviews. Jemma is a rebel in North America in the 23rd century. She’s a skilled saboteur (saboteuse?), who joins with an underground movement to bring a constitutional government back to the Northern continent. She’s smart and compassionate, and the odds are totally stacked against her. She fights for freedom—for herself and everyone—no matter what.

There is a sequel—called J2—which will be out this fall from Dark Quest. It’s a bit odd, perhaps, because the heroine is Jemma’s clone. She looks like Jemma, and there are certain personality quirks that they share, but J2’s a lab rat and a thinking machine. It was fun to write.

It can be tough for a writer, sitting safely in a comfortable chair, to write credibly about the terror inherent in an action scene. You have an advantage, though. You've done things that would scare a veteran soldier green. What did you find more terrifying: standup comedy or live theatre? Do you draw on those experiences when you write?

Oh, yeah! Stand-up can be very daunting. Especially if the jokes don’t work. I loved, especially, acting Shakespeare. He never misses, if you trust him, for one thing. If you tell the truth. You have to do that in stand-up, too. Audiences know when you’re faking.

I DO use my theatre background, mainly in two places: character development and dialogue. My stories and books are loaded with dialogue. Jemma is written in first-person, so it’s one long monologue. J2 is not first person, and that allows me more character development of secondary characters. There are some people from the first book in the second. I have to be extra aware of their voices.

eFiction Magazine

2011-09-09T21:06:00.000-07:00

Someone besides me is bringing you the best of indie fiction. Check out eFiction Magazine, The premier indie fiction magazine, at http://www.efictionmag.com/.

Quality short fiction from indie authors, book reviews, and more, at eFiction Magazine they "push the boundaries of fiction on a monthly basis." The September issue is currently live.

Barbaric Fun

2011-08-26T16:43:00.000-07:00

Yes, I'm boosting my own book. It's my blog; I'm allowed to. Besides, it's a good book. You'll like it. Here's my new synopsis, hot off of the keyboard:

It all started when he tried to end it all.

Bert Hoover jumps from a bridge, only to be rudely rescued by a flying saucer. The aliens aren't doing him any favours, though. They take him to the backward planet of Mardalu, where he is captured and enslaved by the brutal alien Morans. His only friend, Janice, has been sold into slavery as well.

Escape won’t be easy, especially for a chronic under-achiever. But Bert, tormented by memories of a time he failed a friend, knows he must do better this time. He breaks out of the pit, the vast underground prison where human slaves are held.

Once outside, he's deep in Moran territory, pursued by Rath, the implacable slave master. Harried and hunted, Bert makes it to human territory. He's done the impossible, but now he has to do the unthinkable: sneak back into Moran territory to find Janice.

Janice, meanwhile, is battling for her life in a dungeon beneath the Moran palace. A sadistic slave gets to choose who is sacrificed each month to the monstrous Gooal. Janice can only survive by seeing others die in her place. When the price becomes too high, it is Janice who is slated for death.

Aided by Garron, a Moran orphan, Bert is a refugee on the fringes of Moran society, always searching for clues of Janice. With time running out and Rath drawing closer, Bert finds the courage to face his enemies and attempt a daring rescue. Now all he needs to do is pluck Janice from the jaws of death, escape from Rath, and maybe even find a way back to Earth.

Interview With the Vampire Author

2011-08-24T17:07:00.000-07:00

Today I have a special treat for you, an interview with Julie Dawson of Bards and Sages Publishing. Julie has written a dark and riveting vampire novel called A Game of Blood.

A Game of Blood includes a quotation from HP Lovecraft, and themes that would be familiar to any Lovecraft fan. Your protagonist, Detective Grogan, grapples with unspeakable horror, and his very sanity is at risk. Are you influenced by Lovecraft? How has this impacted the writing of this novel?

I have always felt that the thing that made Lovecraft’s work so terrifying was the fact that these insanely powerful entities were not engaging humanity as rivals or adversaries or even useful pawns in some cosmic game, but just didn’t care about us. We humans have this tendency to think we are the center of the cosmos. And yet here was Lovecraft presenting these beings who honestly thought no more about humans than we think about ants. Most of Lovecraft’s work isn’t about some monster going out to cause chaos and destroy humanity. It isn’t some epic struggle between good and evil. No, it is usually about some human accidentally stumbling upon something they should never have seen, and the entity suddenly thinking “Oh, a human” kind of like we would think “Oh, a mosquito.”

There is also the underlying theme in Lovecraft’s work that we are not nearly as smart as we think we are, and that there are all sorts of things going on around us that we are oblivious to. Whether it is actual ignorance of our surroundings or wilful ignorance to shut out unpleasant thoughts, there is the notion that the world we think we know is not what we think it is. That was one of the things I wanted to examine. In the book, Mitch is less horrified by the reality that vampires exist than by the fact that they have been able to function, in complete secret, for so many centuries. And the more he digs, the more he sees, and the more it terrifies him.

Vampires get a lot of different treatments these days. Comedic, romantic, dramatic, we've even seen vampires as private detectives. But you've taken the vampire story back to its roots. A Game of Blood is horror, and your vampire is a monster. How did you choose this portrayal of vampires? I know that Stephen King's 'Salem's Lot was an early influence for you as a writer. What else inspired you in your vision of the vampire Darius Hawthorne?

The novel actually started off as a short story. I call it my “Anti-Twilight” tale. What would a “real” vampire do with a love struck girl with a romantic interest in vampires? I’ve often joked that the whole “vampire as love interest” thing is actually a vampire plot to make it easier to feed. So that was part of the direction of the original short story. When I was finished with the story, however, I realized Darius needed a bigger stage.

What I tried to do is look at the vampire from both a folklore level and a psychological level. People who read the book are going to recognize the vampires are close to a lot of the Eastern European lore. Some can turn into mist form. Some have animalistic features. They don’t cast reflections. In terms of their powers, they very much reflect the type of vampire more often associated with 19^th century gothic literature than modern portrayals.

But there is also the psychological aspect of vampirism. What impact would that actually have on a person’s psyche? One day you are human, and then next the only way to survive is to drain the blood from people? Nobody comes out of that mentally unscathed. And I think this is the part a lot of modern vampire authors gloss over, or outright ignore.

Survival instincts take over. Predatory instincts emerge. Empathy for your prey diminishes. You can’t be friends with your food, after all. And other vampires aren’t your friends, either. They are competition for hunting grounds, because a territory can only support so many apex predators.

So you start to do things to secure your territory. You accumulate wealth and resources. You manipulate institutions in order to mask your existence. Darius, for all of his charm and wit and humor, is a sociopath. He has to be in order to survive.

So much has been written about vampires that it's a challenge to make a vampire character who is fresh and original. How did you make Darius stand out from the literary legions of the undead?

I think what makes Darius stand out is not that he is something new on the vampire scene, but rather a very traditional vampire concept. On the vampire family tree, he is much closer to Polidori’s Lord Ruthven than Meyers’ Edward. One reviewer called him “The new Lestat,” but while it’s flattering to be put in the same category as Rice, I don’t think that is accurate. Lestat at least struggled at times with his morality. He lost that struggle more often than not, but at least he was somewhat aware that his behavior was inherently wrong. Darius doesn’t suffer from any moral struggle. He sees nothing wrong with his behavior.

In fact, he considers humanity’s empathy to be out of sync with the natural world and actively rants against it. There is a scene in the book in which Mitch confronts Darius concerning the rivalry between Darius and his sire. At one point, Mitch tries to make Darius feel some sort of guilt for his crimes by mentioning the death of a woman he was engaged to marry when mortal. Instead, it reinforces Darius’ position.

“You can’t even compare the two!” Hawthorne jumped out of his seat and started pacing like a caged beast. “This…this is the problem with this modern age! Political correctness run amok! All humans are not created equal! In your attempts to value all lives equally you devalue those that actually matter! You coddle your weak and invalid at the expense of the strong! You throw resources at deformities that should not even have been born, while allowing the healthy to do without! No other creature wastes so much to protect the worthless among them!”

Tell me a bit about your hero, Mitch Grogan, and how you created him.

Mitch suffers from what can be called a case of chronic empathy. At the beginning of the book, he’s separated from his wife, who is going through her own personal crisis after having a miscarriage and developing breast cancer. He wants to be there to support her, but she keeps pushing him away and it is eating him up inside. Though he’s a bit rough around the edges and curses like a sailor, he has a big heart and wants to do the right thing.

The concept behind Mitch was that he is someone who is Darius’ polar opposite, and yet they are more alike than Mitch would ever want to admit. Both are competitive, and that competitive nature is what drives a lot of the one-upmanship in the story.

Both are also pragmatists. For Darius, that simply means doing what is necessary to protect himself. For Mitch, that means weighing the lesser of two evils and trying to mitigate the damage being done. Mitch knows his hands are tied in a lot of ways. He can’t challenge Darius physically. He can’t compete against him in terms of resources. He can’t even employ the full support of the police department without endangering his partner’s family. And he can’t go public with information about vampires without either being branded insane or causing a panic that could lead to even more deaths. So he is forced to play this game by vampire rules, and he is willing to do that because it is the only way to protect the most people.

What were your goals with this novel? What impact do you want to have on your readers?

The first goal was to bring the literary vampire back to its roots and remind people why the motif has remained so alluring for so long. Secondly, I hope readers can form a connection with the characters and feel a bond with them. A story like this only works if the readers can care about the characters and what happens to them. I like to think I’ve given readers characters they can care about. Even the minor characters have their own distinct personalities and you can relate to them.

You have a background in designing role-playing games. How has this affected your writing?

I think what having a background in RPGs does is force you to think through your world building. Even when you are setting stories in the real world, you are presenting your version of the world. That means you have to make sure that all of the pieces fit together. In RPGs, we call it game balance. Game balance doesn’t mean all powers are created equal. It means that no one power is so powerful that it fundamentally changes the world. So if you think of the traditional fantasy world, you have mages that can throw fireballs from a hundred yards away. That is a hugely powerful ability if left unchecked. So it gets balanced out by the fact that there are usually some sort of restrictions on how many spells a mage can cast, either because they can only memorize X number of spells per day or because those spells pull from the mage’s own life force. If you have priests that can cast resurrection on the dead, how does that impact the world? Without something to restrict the use of the spell, death becomes a nuisance and nothing more. So you require expensive components for the spell or say it has to be cast in a certain time period.

So you take those thought processes and you apply them to what you are writing. In the modern world, if vampires existed, how would they keep their existence secret? Why would they need to? What entities or institutions would exist to challenge them? What powers would they need to survive? How would those powers give them an advantage, and how does one mitigate those advantages? What are their weaknesses? Do those weaknesses make sense within the lore you have established for the story? If you put everything together right, you have a world full of supernatural creatures that still feels organic and believable.

Zombies, Mummies, Werewolves, and More

2011-08-23T17:26:00.000-07:00

A towering shape emerged from the dried corn stalks on the roadside. Chev didn’t take his eyes off the two men; in his peripheral, a half dozen more old men filed out of the fields. Like the first two, they were unclothed and unkempt, filthy creatures with wild eyes and uneven grins.

Chev back-pedaled to the open door of the cab. They lunged towards him, teeth gnashing. He pulled himself inside and slammed the door. The old men chattered and circled the cab, laughing and snorting, plainly amused by his panic.

Today's recommendation is for author Lorne Dixon. He's been mentioned here before, for Eternal Unrest, his mummy novel. He's taking a bit of an authorial tour of horror classics, with Snarl, A Werewolf Thriller, and The Lifeless: A Zombie Thriller. He's even taken on Sherlock Holmes at his creepiest with Hound: The Curse of the Baskervilles.

Dixon's a skillful writer with a fresh take on the classics. His books are fun to read while being genuinely frightening. His characters are real and vivid and impossible not to care for. Try him out. He's horrifically good.

God's Holy Socks

2011-08-15T18:33:00.000-07:00

I've been scouring the interweb tubes for you, my loyal readers, and frankly wading through some astonishingly bad novels in my search for gems to recommend. Today it's all been made worthwhile.

Mendacities, by George Berger. Catchy title, right? He could win Worst Title Ever contests with that one. After that one poorly-chosen word, though, the suck comes screeching to a halt and the coolness begins. Well, you also have to get past the cover, which screams "Arty-farty pretentious literature." Bear, however, with me. The actual novel rocks.

It's a very difficult book to describe. We'll see if I'm equal to the task. It's a book that thumbs its nose at the genre system, the kind of thing a traditional publisher would never touch because it has no pigeonhole. It's cool in so many different ways, you can't classify it.

The main characters are in High School, but is sure ain't your typical YA novel. There is a conspiracy theory so preposterous Fox Mulder would't buy it, but it happens to be true. There is mystery and murder, dark secrets and danger. There are secret societies controlling the media, the military, the government. And not just any secret societies. Cool ones! The Order of the Silver Badger. The Order of the Golden Shark. How awesome is that?

And the whole thing is couched in prose that is both beautiful and endlessly surprising. The simplest scene may cause you to spray coffee on your Kindle, or just sit back and stare in sheer disbelief at the originality of it all. Here's an example, as the narrator copes with the aftermath of his teacher's untimely (and highly suspicious) demise:

Why do we grieve, I wondered, or at least pretend to?

Is it a coping mechanism? Or a cynical social ploy to show others how sensitive, emotional, and caring we are?

When I die, I decided, I’m going to come back as a zombie and beat the heck out of all the complete strangers who make the mistake of pretending they cared.

Yeah, so I guess my grieving lasted all of a minute or two, at most.

Does that make me a bad person?

Here's another, as his mother gives her perspective on a conspiracy theory:

“Maybe they’re not telling us the whole truth,” Nat said.

“Who is they?” I asked.

“Who is them?” my mother suggested.

Anyway, check it out, and let the agreeable boggling of your mind begin.

Mendacities on Smashwords

Interviewed Again

2011-08-11T06:10:00.001-07:00

I've been interviewed by Andy Rane at http://andyrane.blogspot.com/2011/08/same-six-questions-brent-nichols.html. Thanks, Andy!

Only Indie E-Books at Amazon

2011-08-10T19:18:00.000-07:00

This is kind of cool. Amazon has created a bookstore for indie e-books. Check it out at www.amazon.com/kindleindiebooks.

Brand Spanking New!

2011-08-02T15:00:00.000-07:00

Joe Vasicek made an impressive debut with Genesis Earth. Since that time he hasn't been resting on his laurels. No, apparently he's been typing like a mad fool. Bashing those keys like he's shaking down a bunch of fifth-graders for their lunch money. But in a good way, you understand.

He's just released Bringing Stella Home, and you could be the first on your block to read it. This is space opera the way we like it here at Fantastic Adventures. The body count is astronomical, if you'll pardon the pun. Those who aren't killed suffer fates worse than death. It's mayhem among the stars. Remember, in space, no one can hear you say "Wow, that's cool!"

It's not all action and adventure, of course. Not if it's going to get a recommendation at an upscale blog like this. No, there is a serious core to this tale, a teenage boy coming of age, facing his fears, becoming a man, and doing whatever it takes to save his sister.

Meanwhile, the book is crammed full of all the radical stuff I don't get to have in my real life. Shock troopers! Concubines! Spaceships! Daring rescues! Narrow escapes! Some adult content including sexual themes! Did I mention concubines?

Grab it. Enjoy it. Then come back here and leave me a comment thanking me for steering you straight.

Twenty-seven newly arrived ships showed up on the scanners, not fifty thousand kilometres from the night side of the planet. How many more were waiting in the blind spot opposite their current orbital position, he had no way of knowing--but he wouldn't be surprised if it was twice that number.

"James? Son? Can you hear me?"

A cold sweat broke out across the back of James's neck. The people of Kardunash IV didn't have a chance.

Everyone on that world was going to die.

Book Launch - Thaloc Has a Body

2011-07-31T20:49:00.000-07:00

Read Thaloc Has a Body

He knew the legend, but didn't believe it until it threatened to swallow his soul. If his theories were correct, he had one chance. Only one shot to save his life. He crawled forward grabbing Brandon by the ankles, pulling him back into the room

"I've changed my mind. I need you." His voice sounded hollow, as though speaking into a large barrel. It reverberated through his head and the sensation made him pause.

Bill felt Brandon roll onto his back as he spun in his grasp.

"No! No, let me go. Please!" Brandon's screams echoed in the stone chamber. "I won't tell anyone you were down here. I promise! Please! Please, let me get out of here before we both die. Let me go!"

Thaloc Has a Body, second book in the Brodie Wade series, has now been officially launched. It's available from Amazon, Barnes and Noble, and Smashwords, and it's well worth checking out.

We first met Brodie Wade in Death Has a Name. He's a paranormal investigator who gets hints and information from a mysterious entity known as the Truth.

This time around, the Truth has some bad news. Brodie is going to die. His friend Phil is in terrible danger. Meanwhile, a series of murders has been happening at the Granspire Museum, and it just may involve a demon from ancient Egypt.

If you like your paranormal thrillers with real originality, engaging characters, plenty of action, and a dark edge, you won't go wrong with the Brodie Wade series. Check out both books.

Death Has a Name - Thaloc Has a Body

When Words Collide Writer's Conference

2011-07-29T11:56:00.000-07:00

I'm going to a writer's conference in August. If you're a writer in the greater Calgary area you should check out When Words Collide. It looks as if it's going to be pretty cool.

Blog Tour Character Interview

2011-07-19T19:58:00.000-07:00

An interview with Bert Hoover, protagonist of Bert the Barbarian, is live at Bards and Sages: http://bardsandsages.com/blog/2011/07/19/the-sith-witch-interviews-bert-the-barbarian/

My Blog Tour Begins Today

2011-07-18T17:41:00.000-07:00

First stop: John Hartness at http://johnhartness.com/. Tomorrow I'm at Bards and Sages.

Looking for Fantastic Bargains

2011-07-11T11:24:00.000-07:00

If you're an author with a book that's fantastical or adventurous, I'd like to write about it in this space. The book has to be good enough for me to recommend, and it has to be more or less in keeping with the theme of the blog. Any branch of the fantasy genre is welcome, and anything with science fiction or lots of adventure. Ninjas, pirates, anything with a cool pulp vibe works for me.

It also needs to be discounted, preferably with a Smashwords coupon.

I want to be able to sincerely recommend every book I blog about, so I can't promise to list every submission.

Put the basic info and a Smashwords discount coupon code into the comments below, or email me at brentn at netscape dot net.

Book Giveaway

2011-07-11T10:01:00.000-07:00

There is a fantastic indie book giveaway going on right now at coffeeMugged.net. You can score a free copy of Lord of Fire, several books I've recommended, or several dozen other titles. Check it out. The giveaway runs until the end of July.

Get a Free Book

2011-07-05T18:56:00.000-07:00

Buy Lord of Fire and choose another title for free! There's a pretty good selection, too. Check it out at Phillip Thomas Duck's "Excuse Me Miss." Look for the "Buy One, Get One" link when you get there.

Back to the book recommendations tomorrow.

It's Canada Day

2011-07-01T18:56:00.001-07:00

Happy national holiday to my fellow Canadians.

I've been interviewed

2011-06-25T22:05:00.000-07:00

Check it out. I talk about Bert the Barbarian and this wacky writing game at http://www.1stauthorinterviews.com/2011/06/interview-with-brent-nichols-author-of.html.

I feel like some sort of nerdy rock star.

Featured on Indie Snippets

2011-06-22T13:16:00.000-07:00

I'm practically a rock star. See an excerpt from Lord of Fire (and a bunch of other cool books) at Indie Snippets.

I've Been Interviewed

2011-06-12T20:02:00.000-07:00

My interview with Jerry Hanel goes live on Monday, June 13, at http://www.jerryandcheryl.net/writing .

The excitement around here never stops. We resume our regular book recommendations and author interviews shortly.

The Great INDIE Summer Read Giveaway

2011-06-11T13:30:00.000-07:00

CoffeeMugged.net is giving away a hundred books over the course of the summer, including my very own Lord of Fire. Check it out. Lots of great books will be available, including some that I've profiled here.

The giveaway starts on June 15 and runs until the end of July. Kudos to Katja Rinne for putting it together and making it happen.

Author Interview - Talia Jager

2011-06-09T16:37:00.000-07:00

Read The Ultimate Sacrifice

"All of the students here at Glendale Institute had gifts. Some gifts – like mine – were only supposed to be used in emergencies. However, being that I have a short temper, I don’t think the gods planned that one out real well."

The Ultimate Sacrifice is a young-adult paranormal novel with a kick-ass premise. The Glendale Institute is a bit like boarding school, but the students have "gifts." Paranormal abilities. They have varying levels of control, and some of their powers are downright dangerous.

16-year-old Kassia is the protagonist. She can hurt people with her mind. Her life is a constant challenge with self-control, until her best friend is attacked. Kassia saves her friend, but attracts the attention of demons and finds herself on the run.

The book starts out a bit slowly, with lots of details that only a teenage girl would find interesting. Before long, though, things begin to pop. There is mystery, mortal peril, and romance.

Talia Jager is the author of The Ultimate Sacrifice and several other novels. Take it away, Talia:

What genre do you write?I write young adult. So far, three of my books have been YA dramas and one is a YA paranormal/fantasy.

When did you realize you wanted to be a writer?
I’ve always known I wanted to be a writer. I remember writing stories in elementary schools. I would hide notebooks under my classwork in high school and hide under the covers at night with a flashlight so I could write my stories.

What do you most enjoy about writing?
Creating characters readers will care about. Bringing a story to life and telling that story in a way that the reader won’t forget.

When do you get your best ideas? When do you write the most?
Having a family makes writing whenever I want to or whenever a great idea hits me difficult. I tend to get ideas in the shower, when in bed, or while driving. I can't tell you how often I've had to get out of bed to write something down. Maybe it's because my house is so noisy, that when it's quiet, my brain gets busier. I find the best time to write is at night, after everybody else is asleep. This usually means I'm up until one or two in the morning. Sometimes an idea comes to me and I write it down, but I don't anything with it for months or even years sometimes.

What was one of the most surprising things you learned while creating your books?
Story lines don’t always go the way you want them to and characters can surprise you.

Do you have a specific writing style?
I usually write in first person, past tense. However, that doesn't mean I'll never do anything else.

How long does it take you to write a book?
Anywhere from a month to a year.

Do you have any advice to aspiring writers?
I tell people three things. Write as much as you can as often as you can. Write for yourself, not anybody else. Believe in yourself and never give up.

What do you have planned for the future?
I have three ideas brewing right now. The first is a new YA paranormal, the second will be a sequel to The Ultimate Sacrifice, and the third is an edgy YA drama.

Tell us three random things about yourself.
I have five daughters. I love chocolate. I had purple hair in high school.

What does your family think of your writing?
They are very supportive. As long as I feed them, clean them, dress them, entertain them, support them and make sure they’re happy, they are fine with me writing.

Do you have a website, fan site, or Blog that we can visit?
My blog is http://taliajager.blogspot.com/
My Facebook fan page is http://www.facebook.com/taliajager
My Twitter page is http://www.twitter.com/taliajager

Read The Ultimate Sacrifice

Recommeded Reading - Pale Queen's Courtyard

2011-06-08T19:05:00.000-07:00

Read Pale Queen's Courtyard

He gathered the beaded strings hanging from the archway, and pulled them slowly aside, careful not to let the strands jingle. There was no wind this night, and he did not want to test the guards’ talents. His heart began to pound, his breath shallow. Fear was delicious, in a way, like sex and sorcery.

Here is a book that does everything right. At a superficial level it's an exciting story about a thief who gets in over his head, a soldier on the wrong path seeking redemption, and a beautiful woman in deadly peril. There's adventure, mystery, suspense, and humour.

The book is also beautifully written. It's almost poetry. I found myself torn between wanting to go back to savour the beautiful, evocative phrases, and wanting to tear ahead to find out what happens next.

It is extraordinarily difficult to match beautiful writing with really effective storytelling. Usually a reader must choose one or the other. Beautiful sentences tend to go with gloomy, plodding plots about people who think endlessly about their feelings and never do anything. If you want snappy storytelling with lots of action, you generally have to accept plain, workmanlike writing. Sometimes I'm willing to put up with crude, amateurish prose if the story is sufficiently compelling.

There is no compromise required with Pale Queen's Courtyard. The plot will appeal to your inner 10-year-old boy. It's exciting, effective, and fun to read. It kicks butt. And yet each paragraph is a masterpiece. Marcin Wrona, I salute you.

This might be the best book I recommend all year. It's priced at a buck. It's worth far more. Buy it, and thank me later.

Read Pale Queen's Courtyard

Author Interview - Nigel Slater

2011-06-07T10:08:00.000-07:00

Read An Agent of the King

In a heartbeat the quiet sub-Saharan night was ripped apart by the noise and vicious hatred of a fight to the death. Three men in local garb lunged at them with long curved sabres. Reeling back as a sword sliced the air, Dexter saw in horror the head of one of the sailors all but cleaved from his body and heard the sickening thud, as the lifeless corpse fell to the ground.

Today's interview is with Nigel Slater, author of a two-fisted story of adventure in the Napoleonic wars. An Agent of the King is the story of Archie Dexter, gentleman, patriot, scoundrel, and government agent. Sent to Egypt to rally support against the French, he is caught up in the fighting when Napoleon invades. He survives the Battle of the Nile and goes on to Spain, then London, where he must thwart a plot to assassinate King George.

Slater's prose has the same mix of charm, elegant refinement, and rough edges as his hero, Archie Dexter. At times the writing is almost poetically beautiful, but his high school English teacher would throw up her hands in dismay at Slater's devil-may-care approach to grammar and punctuation. You will be so swept up in an exciting story of mayhem and geopolitical intrigue that you won't mind.

Here's Slater to tell you about it in his own words:

Is this your first published novel?
It is my first published work of any kind.

What inspired you commit to writing this novel?
I was an avid reader of Bernard Cornwell’s Sharpe series of Napoleonic Wars novels. These books inspired me to write my own thriller set in this amazingly rich and diverse period in world history. It is fast paced, exciting with bursts of violence common in this age and lets be honest the odd bawdy moment!

What sets your book aside from previous novels of this period?
I have tried to create a different breed of heroes but ensured that they have traits that people of this period exhibited. It is a fact that there were gentlemen adventurers in these times who risked their lives in the fight against Napoleon. In public they were respected members of the elite community but like so many people they had secret, dangerous and often quite naughty lives.

Will this be the start of a series?
It certainly will and the sequel is underway right now.

Author Interview - J. R. Tomlin

2011-06-06T19:59:00.000-07:00

Read Freedom's Sword

Sir Waltir mac Donchie glared toward the center, half a mile away, where John Comyn's troops were in a writhing mass of disorder. Their own troops were eager for glory, shouting as they ranged themselves into lines. "I've done what I can, my lord," he said, "but they're still green as a spring meadow."

I blogged yesterday about A Kingdom's Cost, a terrific historical novel about Robert the Bruce and the fight for Scottish independence. Freedom's Sword is a prequel, another stirring story of historical adventure. Today I have an interview with the author, J. R. Tomlin.

Do you have a writing process? If so can you please describe it?
Mainly just Butt-in-Chair. I don’t outline. Characters are generally lurking in the corner of my mind somewhere or stomping around demanding a story. If they’re fictional characters, I dump them into trouble and see what happens. If they are historical characters, I let them tell me their story.

Do you edit as you go or wait until you’ve finished?
I edit as I go. I tend to get into the story again by going over what I wrote the day before.

Do you hire a professional editor?
Yes, I have my novels edited and critiqued by beta readers.

Do you listen to music while you write? If yes, what gets the fingers tapping?
Depends on what I’m writing. I can’t listen to anything with lyrics while I write, but I listen to a wide variety, everything from the LotR soundtracks to Scottish folk music, Chopin to Tchaikovsky. It’s hard for me to write without music playing.

Did you submit your work to agents and publishers?
Yes. I went through the whole miserable, humiliating process. For a while, I was represented by an agent, as a matter of fact. I had a couple of novels published by small publishers as well.

Why did you go Indie?
I published several novels with small publishers, and then I signed with an agent who pitched one of my novels for a year. It didn’t sell, and in the meantime, the whole indie thing started with the use of the Kindle and Nook burgeoning. I had these novels on my hard drive. I had to make a choice. I’d read what Joe Konrath was saying on his blog, read as Kris Rusch changed her mind, and watched Vicki Lieske have a tremendous success. Eventually, I felt it was the only logical step for me.

Did you get your book covers professionally done?
I have some professionally done. JT Lindroos did it for me and I am extremely pleased with how it came out. My co-author on the fantasies, C. R. Daems, does the very covers on those and we're very pleased with them.

Any advice that you would like to give to others about becoming indie authors?
Read what Joe Konrath and Kris Rusch have to say. Talk to some indie writers at places like Kindleboards. Going indie isn’t for everyone. It is a lot of work. It’s not going down the easy road. But it is one of the most satisfying things I’ve ever done.

Read Freedom's Sword

Author Interview - Brenda McCreight

2011-06-01T16:14:00.000-07:00

Check out this book

“Does everything down here eat people? Haven’t they ever heard of turnips?”

Cleah: The Lost Fury Chronicles The Otherworld is a fantasy adventure set in ancient Ireland. It involves a plucky orphan slave girl who finds herself in the Otherworld with fairies and trolls. The story is full of action and wonder and a strong undercurrent of romance as two young heroes explore a magical realm. However, I think I'll let Brenda tell you about it in her own words.

Can you tell us about your background?

I’ve been a mom and a therapist for many years and I have worked with youth who are trying to navigate their way through life without a parent or family to help them and I thought it would be interesting to write about this issue in a different kind of setting.

Have you always wanted to write?

I have always written in one form or another. I wrote newsletters for groups I belonged to and I think one of the reasons I went after so many academic degrees was because I loved the writing part of the course work – even though it wasn’t fiction.

Why were you attracted to an ancient setting for Cleah?

I wanted to write about a time when there were fewer choices for women and yet still be able to demonstrate the strength and resilience it takes to create a life without a family to help you.

Are your characters based on people you really know?

Not really, but Cleah’s perseverance and her ability to become what she needs to in order to survive is a common trait among youth I’ve worked with.

Do you work out your stories ahead of time?

I know the basic plot and what the theme is but the rest grows as I write. I’m not the type of writer who sits down and plots it scene by scene although I do have a structure and method to make sure it comes out smoothly and with all the loose ends tied up.

What made you decide that the Lost Fury Chronicles was a series instead of a standalone book?

Right from my first thoughts of Cleah I knew that there were three stories (at least) that could be told. I wanted to have her grow up and to experience different kinds of adventures. I also wanted to complete the circle and answer the questions about her origins and that will take more than one book.

Your books have magic and battles in them. Are these your interests?

I’m not so interested in battles but I have 6 sons so I have lived years and years of video games that are full of wars and battles and it’s become an area I hear about every day. As for magic, yes I like magic, but I don’t like it to be a plot device or a distraction to the story and the characters.

What do you like to read?

I like just about anything. I love some horror, some mystery, some historical fiction. Basically, a good book is a good read no matter what the topic.

Do you have a writing schedule?

I work full time and I have 7 children still at home so I am up before them and write till they awake. I also write whenever a client cancels at the last minute and I try to put aside one writing day a week. I would love to write full time.

What do you do when you aren’t writing?

Well, as I said, I have a full time clinical practice and I have 7 kids still to raise as well as chickens and dogs and gardens to tend to. Life is busy.

What are you working on now?

I’m half way through the next Lost Fury book and then I’ll write the sequel to the Shay James Mysteries.

Check out this book

An Interview with David Dalglish

2011-05-26T14:44:00.000-07:00

Try A Dance of Cloaks

I recently had the privilege of interviewing David Dalglish, author of the Shadowdance series (reviewed a couple of days ago), the Half-Orcs series, and more. David is not only a superb practitioner of his craft with a high degree of professionalism, he's also an excellent fellow who's generous with his time and insights. Even if he was a jerk I would still feature his books here, because they're really good. The fact that he's a nice guy with interesting things to say is an added bonus.

Your heroes tend to be the characters that other writers use as villains. The Shadowdance series is about an assassin. The Half-Orcs series is about, of course, half-orcs. How you choose your protagonists? What draws you to these darker characters?

When I look at an overall story arc, there's usually a couple larger themes I like to incorporate. One is a David Gemmell style "us vs the world" conflict, a brave few making a potentially pointless stand against many. The second, and what tends to have heroes like that, is that I like taking a hero and rising them up above their background, their birth, their race, their training, their beliefs, and having them become something special. Forget regular farmboys who start out perfect and end the book still perfect, but now also carrying a magical sword and a talking pet. I want the lowly, the ragamuffins, to succeed, to find redemption.

You've written short stories, stand-alone novels, the Shadowdance series, and the Half-Orcs series, which is at five books so far. What is your process like for writing short stories versus longer works? How do you design a multi-volume epic?

I love short stories, though I don't write them too often, and never in fantasy. With them, you've got a little snippet of time, usually a single character or two, and a razor-sharp focus on those events. With stand alones, you just have to make sure the ending is solid so people don't yell at you. Dance of Cloaks was originally a stand alone, but there was clearly so much that could happen, reviews started griping about it. Well, heck, I'm happy to oblige. For a series, this is just the easiest for me. I read so much of the Dragonlance and Drizzt series that telling a story this way is just second nature. You just keep adding in new villains, or redefining the old ones. Shift people around, introduce new heroes, and then throw 'em in a big battle and see who lives. I can do it for years.

What are your goals as a writer? What do you want readers to take away from your stories?

As dark and grim as my works are, I've always wanted them to be positive. I try not to be preachy, and with how much blood and death people may think I'm insane, but when you step back, the good guys won, the bad guys lost, and characters that could have chosen a darker path instead chose forgiveness, or were themselves forgiven. There just may have been some casualties along the way. Other than that, my main goal is to entertain. A reader may get ticked off at me, or think I'm an idiot, but as long as you're not bored, I'm fine with that.

I know you've been asked about your cover art before, but let's face it, it's fantastic. How did you choose your cover artist? How do the two of you work together to create your cover images?

I found Peter Ortiz after several hours of scouring deviantart.com. I sent him a message, asking for a price, and it was waaaaaaaaay lower than I expected. Working with him is great. I describe a scene, the characters, what they look like, but intentionally leave things vague. I trust Peter's artistic skill, and his overall visual sense, to know when something won't work. Most of the time, when he sends me a rough and something is wrong, it is because he's trying to accommodate something I requested. Once you find someone who knows how to draw, how to tell stories with images, then trust them to know what they're doing...that's why you contacted them in the first place.

The Shadowdance series takes place in a wonderfully rich world. How did you create that culture? How did you build the world?

Well, as I said above, it was supposed to be a stand alone. I wanted to detail some of the history of one of my more popular characters. Of course, what was supposed to be a simple, 80k novel ended up approximately 240k words so far, with a third book to go. Stupid assassins. As for the culture and world, it is pretty basic. I read Game of Thrones, followed by Night Angel Trilogy, and felt freaking pathetic. I looked at my own world and it seemed so...shallow. So Dance of Cloaks was my first real attempt to develop families, places, politics, etc. As with all experiments, there's plenty of places where it just simply doesn't work, or gets over-complicated. I learned plenty, and I feel Dance of Blades is a significant step up in that department. Other than that, I tried to lessen the magic that ran rampant in my Half-Orc series. Hard to make an assassin feel special when an elf's standing beside him hurling ice boulders, you know?

Try A Dance of Cloaks

Great spot to browse for cheap reads

2011-05-14T10:58:00.000-07:00

"Excuse Me, Miss" has a nice selection of $.99 ebooks. Check it out at http://excusememissptd.blogspot.com/p/99-cent-ebooks.html.

Author Interview: Bryan Healey

2011-05-09T20:46:00.000-07:00

I'm going to digress briefly from things fantastical and adventurous to introduce indie author Bryan Healey. Bryan is promoting "Shattered Wings," a pretty powerful novel about addiction, homophobia, and family. I'm going to let Brian tell you about it, and him, in his own words:

Buy Shattered Wings

Bryan says: "Shattered Wings," the story about a man named John who is struggling to reconcile an unexpected unemployment with his recollected troubles with discrimination, addiction and family issues, has recently been released and is now for sale! It is available for purchase on Amazon.com, BN.com, or directly from the author at shatteredwingsbook.com."

Tell me a little bit about the book:
"John has the life he wants: A man he loves, a beautiful little girl and a decent white-collar job. But a sudden layoff brings about financial and emotional struggle. In his inability to secure new work and a growing sense of despair, he relapses into alcoholism and faces his demons of addiction, discrimination, and regret as he tries desperately to regain the life he had."

How about you, Bryan? Tell me a little bit about yourself:
I've been writing since I was old enough to hold a pencil, participating in poetry slams all through my younger years. When it came time to choose my college learnin', I opted for a secondary interest that seemed more lucrative: Computer Science. I went to Northeastern University, and now work full-time as a Senior Web Engineer. But that passion for literature has never subsided, and I am working diligently to turn my lust for English into a modest side career.

I'm a closet computer programmer myself. Don't tell anybody. This isn't your first novel, is it?
My first self-published book was called "A Line Blurred." It was about an unhappy couple that find unexpected comfort in the grips of an affair. It deals with issues of rationalization and the consequence of justified action.

What's next for you as a writer? Any works in progress?
I am about half way through my third book, entitled "No Where." In it, we follow a man as he is fleeing with his biological son after the grisly murder of his mother and her husband, trying to escape from an unknown and undeniably dangerous adversary. Seeking the help of his brother, who uses his political influence to launch a probing investigation, he sets off across the country. But as his brother digs deeper into the man's past, some troubling revelations come to light...

Tell me what you do for fun:
I read a lot. I watch a lot of sports, mostly baseball and football. I enjoy evenings out with my wife and a coffee and a book at Barnes and Noble. I like taking photographs and eating fruit. I also play baseball, although my vision of my talent far exceeds reality. And I enjoy computers, developing web sites and playing video games.

Buy Shattered Wings

New Covers

2011-05-08T10:20:00.000-07:00

I've punched up the covers for all three titles currently available. Here are the old and new versions. What do you think? Leave me a comment!

And now the full-size versions:

Interviewed on Indie eBooks

2011-05-07T09:32:00.001-07:00

My interview is now up at http://indieebooks.blogspot.com/2011/05/bert-barbarian-by-brent-nichols.html.

I feel like a celebrity.

Writing Advice - Even Better with a Grain of Salt

2011-05-06T17:34:00.000-07:00

I encountered one of the best pieces of writing advice I ever received quite early on in my "career." When I was still in my teens I read a book called "the Novel from Plot to Print" by Robert Bloch. He talked about when he had started out as a novelist, and a book he had read to learn how to write a novel. This book apparently told him to fill out an endless array of index cards with details about characters, locations, and scenes. He realized intuitively that this was the wrong approach for him, and he wrote his first novel without sullying a single index card, but he felt vaguely guilty the whole time for not doing what he was "supposed" to do.

Reading writing advice is like birdwatching. You encounter wondrous variety and apparent contradictions. Birds that run. Birds that swim. Birds with camouflage and birds with plumage bright enough to hurt your eyes. You learn quickly that it is difficult to make generalisations.

The key point that I got from Robert Bloch is that every writer has his own method, and you must do what works for you. There is a vast amount of excellent writing advice out there, and you can learn a tremendous amount. Always take it with a grain of salt. Never believe a writer who uses words like "always" and "never." Except for me, of course.

There are some fundamental pieces of advice that you will hear over and over again, and which you should probably heed. You should read a lot. You should write a lot. You should do a lot of rewriting.

Not everyone follows that last piece of advice. Robert Heinlein, a truly awesome science-fiction writer, wrote some "commandments" for new writers. One of them is "Thou shalt not rewrite." Apparently that worked for him. In the audio book of Fahrenheit 451, Ray Bradbury talks about meeting Robert Heinlein and confessing to him that he does very little revising. Apparently Bradbury did only minor line edits. Heinlein's comment was, "Why don't you write it correctly the first time?"

You are not Robert Heinlein. You're not even Ray Bradbury. If you're not a legend in your own time, you can safely assume that you will need to do plenty of revising.

Buy One Indie Book, Get One Free

2011-05-03T21:09:00.000-07:00

Surf over to Thomas Duck's blog at http://excusememissptd.blogspot.com/p/99-cent-ebooks.html and check out a very neat promotion. He's got a huge selection of indie books listed, and he's putting together a "buy one, get one" promo. I'm going to try to get Bert the Barbarian and Lord of Fire added to the mix, but you should check him out anyway.

Feedback to Heed and Ignore

2011-05-02T21:38:00.000-07:00

As a writer, there are two things you need to understand about feedback. First, it is absolutely essential. You must heed it. Second, you must ignore most of it.

You can't be objective about your own work. Not really. And it's very difficult to see your work with a fresh eye. One problem is that you know all the characters, all the plot events. Everything makes sense to you. If you insert a character who hasn't been introduced yet, or get plot points out of order, it will look right to you. There will be problems that will be glaringly obvious to every reader on the planet EXCEPT you. You absolutely must show your work to beta readers.

And yet you must take what they say with a grain of salt. Every book, no matter how fantastic, has its detractors. I read timeless literary classics and find them unspeakably pretentious and boring. The literary types find my work trite or confusing. They don't get my jokes, and they aren't impressed by the action and suspense.

To some extent, the most relevant reviewers are your fans. People who like your work at least understand what you're trying to do. My fans will tell me that an action scene is confusing, or a joke fell flat, or a conversation felt stilted. This is stuff I can use.

On the other hand, you also need to have your work shredded from time to time by someone who doesn't like it at all. Trust me, the problems are there in your manuscript, waiting to be discovered. Your fans will be oblivious to them, or will overlook them. Your potential fans, though, people who might download a sample from Amazon and look it over, deciding whether to buy, those people will notice the flaws and be put off. A good critique group will contain people who dislike your work but are still willing to slog through it. More about that later.

Feedback from other writers can be precious. Writers see things regular readers don't. A reader might say that the book just didn't work for him. A writer will be able to tell you in concrete terms WHY it didn't work.

Be wary of writerly feedback, though. We writers are a compulsive, nit-picky lot, and sometimes we pounce on what seem to be violations of the rules we've so painfully learned. Passive voice! Adverbs! POV shift! I think we sometimes see problems that aren't there. We fixate on a lumpy spot on a tree trunk and don't see that it's perfectly appropriate to the beautiful forest around it.

Successful writing requires a schizophrenic mixture of hubris and humbleness. You need a certain amount of ego. You must believe that the words you write are going to be of interest to thousands of strangers. Yet at the same time you have to be open to feedback or you will never grow. Learning to pick out the useful feedback from the crap is a skill you may spend your life honing.

I have a small circle of friends I use as beta readers. They are reasonably gentle with their feedback, but they are willing to tell me when something sucks. If your friends are too nice, they're no use to you.

I get the rest of my feedback online. There are many, many online writers' groups out there. I like critters.org. The overall attitude is reasonably professional. No one is posting fan fiction or journal entries. The quality of the feedback is highly variable, but some of it is great, and the volume is high enough that you can find something worthwhile. Your mileage, of course, may vary. Find the group that's right for you.

There is another value to critique groups. Most of us only encounter reasonably good writing. Professional stuff that's been vetted by agents and editors, and polished up by an editor. You can learn a lot from good writing, but you can learn a lot from hacks, as well.

Every writer needs to see the mistakes the amateurs make. Once you've been through a few really bad manuscripts, or a few stories that are reasonably good but not really up to scratch, all sorts of things begin to come clear. You gain a whole new understanding of how a story can go wrong. Once you learn to spot the problems, you start seeing them in your own work. You can't fix them until you can find them.

Bert the Barbarian Released

2011-04-23T09:01:00.000-07:00

Bert the Barbarian is now live on Amazon and Smashwords.

It all started when he tried to end it all.

Bert Hoover jumped from a bridge, only to be rudely rescued by a flying saucer. Now he’s on the backward planet of Mardalu, enslaved by the brutal Morans. His only friend is Janice, but she’s been sold into slavery as well.

Escape will be difficult, especially for a chronic under-achiever. After that, all Bert has to do is the impossible: find Janice, rescue her, and somehow find a way back to Earth.

I'm proud of this novel, which is why I've priced it at the extortionate level of $2.99, instead of the $.99 of Lord of Fire. Check out the link on the right to see a sample.

I would love any feedback about the cover, the description, the sample pages, or the whole novel, if you've read it. If you didn't like it, why not? Leave me a comment.

Welcome

2011-04-03T08:30:00.000-07:00

Welcome to Fantastic Adventures, the blogosphere home of novelist Brent Nichols. I'll be posting updates about my books and writing about indie publishing in the fantasy genre. I'm the author of Lord of Fire, a novel of high adventure and low comedy, and Cinderella's Blues, a novella that re-tells the Cinderella story with a bit more butt-kicking than the original. Look for Bert the Barbarian, a fantasy novel, and Spirit of Adventure, a collection of short stories, coming soon.

Fantastic Adventures

This Brilliant Darkness - Free Today

Guest Post - J. A. Beard

Author Interview - Craig Comer

Review - My Sparkling Misfortune

Demon Chains Released

Goblins Wins an Aurora

Buy One, Get One

Review - Road to Wrath

Featured on the Indie Spotlight

Same Six Questions, Different Response

eFiction December Issue is Live

Guest Post by Jerry Hanel

Book Review - In Our House

Immortals is Out

Guest Blogger - Ty Johnston

Review - Grease is the Word

Author Interview - Erin Lale

eFiction Magazine November

Review - The Weight of Blood (The Half-Orcs)

Review - eFiction Magazine October Issue

Win a Kindle - Time is Running Out

Review - This Brilliant Darkness

SHHH!

Win A Kindle

Nathan Lowell Wins Parsec Award

I've got me an ad!

Interview with Phoebe Wray

eFiction Magazine

Recommended Reading - Golden Feathers Falling

Recommended Reading - Rex Rising

Barbaric Fun

Interview With the Vampire Author

Zombies, Mummies, Werewolves, and More

God's Holy Socks

Interviewed Again

Only Indie E-Books at Amazon

Brand Spanking New!

Book Launch - Thaloc Has a Body

When Words Collide Writer's Conference

Recommended Reading - The Adventures of Jecosan Tarres

Recommended Reading - The Adventures of Miss Upton and the Sky Pirate

Recommended Reading - Death Has a Name

Recommended Reading - The Jade Owl

Blog Tour Character Interview

Recommended Reading - An Exercise in Futility

My Blog Tour Begins Today

Recommended Reading - Rogue Hunter

Recommended Reading - Blue Bells of Scotland

Recommended Reading - Tales of the Dim Knight

Recommended Reading - Catch an Honest Thief

Looking for Fantastic Bargains

Book Giveaway

Recommended Reading - Courtesan

Recommended Reading - Bayne's Climb

Get a Free Book

Recommended Reading - Kissed by Darkness

Recommended Reading - Hard Day's Knight

It's Canada Day

Recommended Reading - Jak Phoenix

Recommended Reading - Eternal Unrest: A Novel of Mummy Terror

Recommended Reading - Wrath of the White Tigress

I've been interviewed

Recommended Reading - Genesis Earth

Featured on Indie Snippets

Recommended Reading - City of Rogues

Recommended Reading - Quarter Share

Recommended Reading - The Half-Orcs

I've Been Interviewed

The Great INDIE Summer Read Giveaway

Author Interview - Talia Jager

Recommeded Reading - Pale Queen's Courtyard

Author Interview - Nigel Slater

Author Interview - J. R. Tomlin

Recommended Reading - A Kingdom's Cost

Recommended Reading - Trouble with Trinkets

Author Interview - Brenda McCreight

Recommended Reading - Tesania - Trannyth's Keep

Recommended Reading - The Morcyth Saga

An Interview with David Dalglish