FEATURED AUTHOR: JENNIFER OTT

ABOUT THE BOOK

A thought-provoking take on the vampire mythos that makes you consider how the natural-spiritual and scientific worlds might intersect.



Countess Katerina Vaduva roams Eastern Europe as a vampire for nearly six hundred years experiencing the horrors of mortal man - wars, plagues, genocide and torture. For centuries, she seeks shelter and security in the castles of counts and sultans.



When her husband the Count of Slovakia passes, she pursues a new life with a colonel in the Prussian military. While her husband quests victory at battle, Katerina desires a Naturalist scientists who seduces her with knowledge and a greater understanding of herself, for this she will risk everything for the one thing she never had - immortal love and the pursuit of progress.

INTERVIEW WITH JENNIFER OTT

Jennifer, how did you get started writing and when did you become an “author?”
I started my first novel at age twelve. In my twenties I studied screenwriting and I guess would be considered a screenwriter. I’d say I became an “author” when I published my first fiction novel Wild Horses.

What's your favorite thing about the writing process?
Being able to live in the lives of my characters. I experience and learn so much.

You have a day job . . . how do you find time to write?
My day job is in the fashion industry as a product developer. I go to a coffee shop about an hour before work and write and often times at lunchtime.

If you could only watch one television station for a year, what would it be?
The history channel.

How often do you tweet?A couple times during the day.

How do you feel about Facebook?
I like it.

For what would you like to be remembered?
For my books.

What scares you the most?
Ghosts.

YouTube is . . .
Addicting.

Who would you want to narrate a film about your life?
Emma Stone or Jennifer Lawrence.

If you had a swear jar, would it be full?
All of them would be full.

Are you an introvert or an extrovert?
I’m an extroverted introvert. I’m social, but often I’d rather be by myself.

What's your relationship with your TV remote?
We have our differences. Sometimes, we have communication issues.

Do you spend more on clothes or food?
Food.

What's your favorite treat for movie night?
Nachos.

What is the most daring thing you've done?
Went to a professional football charity event by myself.

What is the stupidest thing you've ever done?
Went to a professional football charity event by myself.

What is your most embarrassing moment?
Went to a professional football charity event by myself.

What choices in life would you like to have a redo on?
I think all the choices I made were the right at the moment, even if they didn’t turn out as planned, because I learned from them.

What’s one of your favorite quotes?
“Unless I have something of my own to say, and a way of my own to say it in, I have no business to publish; unless I can look beyond the greatest Masters, and study Nature herself, I have no right to paint; unless I can have the courage to use the language of Truth in preference to the jargon of Conventionality, I ought to be silent.” ~ Charlotte Bronte

What would your main character say about you?
Delicious. Like a bold madeira wine.

What’s the hardest thing you’ve ever had to write?
I wrote a book The Insurrectionist which was through the eyes of a terrorist. Hard to put yourself in those shoes, but I wanted to understand how someone could through their life away in a violent act.

Have you ever been to a fortune teller? What did she tell you?
Yes. I have several times, and I have several friends who are psychics. The one thing I can say is the future is not absolute. It changes with the choices we make.

Who would you invite to a dinner party if you could invite anyone in the world?
Justin Trudeau, the new prime minister of Canada.

How many hours of sleep do you get a night?
Eight to nine. I like sleeping.

Do you have a favorite book?
Life is Elsewhere, by Milan Kundera.


How about a favorite book that was turned into a movie? Did the movie stink?
As a screenwriter, I have to say movies and books are two different mediums. It’s not always easy taking a 400-page book and turning it into a 120-page script. It is up to the discretion of the screenwriter what is kept and what is cut. But to answer the question, I would have to say The Color Purple. Both book and movie were amazing.


Do you sweat the small stuff?
Yes, but I handle the big stuff like a pro. Go figure.

If you had to choose a cliche about life, what would it be?
Don’t worry. Be Happy.

Lightning round:
Cake or frosting? Frosting
Laptop or desktop? Laptop
Chevy Chase or Bill Murray? Bill Murray
Emailing or texting? Emailing
Indoors or outdoors? Outdoors
Tea: sweet or unsweet? Unsweet
Plane, train, or automobile? Plane

EXCERPT FROM DESPERATE MOON

Siegfried was still awake scouring over his texts when a knock sounded on his door. He checked the clock and grinned—just in time. He closed his books and strolled to the door. Upon opening it, he saw a dark face shrouded under the hood of a large cloak.


“Irena,” he said with a widening smile.


She stepped inside lowering her hood. “Here for my appointment, Doctor,” she said letting her cloak drop to the floor and exposing her nakedness to him.


He had met her during one of his house calls. She offered nanny services to one the elites who lived in the hills surrounding Prague. Siegfried always wondered why such a beautiful girl would give herself up to servitude when she could find a rich husband.


“Servitude would be marrying a rich man,” Irena once said to him, “freedom is being his servant. Mistresses gain a lot more than married women.”


Irena was greedy as such. Siegfried was only too happy to find himself tasty to her, yet he too shared her same philosophy. He offered his service in providing healing and care and once he left their front door, he was again a free man to his own mind and mission.

Not being able to resist the sight of her supple body, he pulled her close and kissed her face.


She pushed him away. “Doctor, you are still dressed.”


With haste, he removed his clothes starting with his pants that constrained him and his shirt which he struggled to remove. She laughed helping him tug the sleeves over his wrists. Once both were naked, he carried her to his bed where he rested her down on the feather mattress.


He lowered his face between the plump yet firm breasts of his nubile nightly visitor, traveled upward to the nape of her neck, and paused. Curiously, he nibbled and tasted her skin.


“That feels good,” she said with a sigh.


He lowered his body onto hers and pressed himself inside her continuing to thrust rhythmically as her head gently hit the headboard. She dug her nails into his back scratching his skin and drawing blood. He grunted pushing harder and faster.


Within a black swirl, Katerina appeared in the doorway. She watched Siegfried's blood run down the curve of his back as he made love to Irena. She moved toward him, elevating her palm just above him to feel his sexual energy.


He rolled over pulling Irena on top of him. She laughed, gyrating above. She too lowered herself nibbling on his neck. “Feel good?”


Siegfried widened his eyes suddenly seeing Katerina. He sat upright with fright. “Kat—!”
Katerina disappeared instantly.


Irena rotated her head in the direction of Siegfried's gaze and saw no one. ”Kat?”


Siegfried collapsed on the bed, the moment ruined.


Irena crawled off his body. “Who is Kat?”


“No one,” he said hoping she would believe.


She threw her cloak over her shoulders. “If you have another woman, Siegfried that is fine with me. Just refrain from screaming out her name while with me.”


He pulled on his pants. “No. It is not that. It was nothing. Just an illusion.”


“Maybe you are working too hard, too much stress,” she said gathering her stuff to leave.

“It is late. Stay,” he begged.


Irena grinned and kissed his chin. “It is a short walk. I will be fine.” She blew him a kiss at the door.


Outside the wind howled and Irena held her hood tighter around her neck. She spun around and saw another cloaked shadow. “Hello!” she called and received no response. “Hello, is someone there?” She looked around fearful back-stepping to Siegfried’s door.


The shadow neared her with the force of a howling storm. Irena had no time to react when Katerina pierced her teeth into her neck. Irena’s life evaporated into Katerina. She vanished with Irena still in her embrace.

OTHER BOOKS BY JENNIFER OTT

Wild Horses
The Tourist
Saying Goodbye
The Insurrectionist
One with the Wind
A Soul to Shine
Edge of Civilization
Serendipidus
A Soul to Shine
Searching Civilization
Rays of Civilization
Time of Useful Consciousness

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Inspiration comes from watching way too much Monty Python. The abstract and the absurd way of looking at normal life, not only offers humor, but questions many problems in society in a light-hearted manner. If we can laugh at ourselves, if we can laugh at life, problems do not seem quite so difficult to tackle. In fact, problems are not as complicated as they seem; everything is very simple. If you can laugh at it, write about it and read about it, most likely one would think about it.



Author Jennifer Ott has written several satire fiction, Wild Horses, The Tourist and two non-fiction books Love and Handicapping and Ooh Baby Compound Me! She recently published, Serenidipidus and Edge of Civilization. She also is the host of the SuperJenius Internet Radio show on Artist First radio Network.



Jennifer Ott lives in Long Beach, California, enjoys the sun, the sand, the surf and lots of Mexican food.

Jennifer’s latest book is the Victorian era historical romance, Desperate Moon.

Connect with Jennifer:
Website  |  Blog  |  Facebook  | 
Twitter

Buy the book:
Amazon    

Discuss the book:
Goodreads

FEATURED AUTHOR: LARISSA REINHART

ABOUT THE BOOK

When Cherry Tucker’s invited to paint the winning portrait for Big Rack Lodge’s Hogzilla hunt contest, it seems like a paid vacation. Back in Halo, Georgia, a Hatfield-McCoy-style standoff builds, forcing Luke and Cherry to keep their relationship secret. She’s ready for a weekend away, hobnobbing with the rich and famous of hunting.
But as the Georgia sunshine turns to bleak December rain, Cherry’s R&R goes MIA when she finds a body. While the police believe the town drunk took an accidental spill, Cherry has her doubts, particularly when a series of malicious pranks are targeted at the rifle toting contestants and she’s warned off investigating. With loyal companions at her side — sort-of-ex-husband Todd and a championship bayer named Buckshot— Cherry tracks suspects through a forest of pitfalls and perils. And all the while, a killer’s stalking the hunt party with Cherry and the contestants in their crosshairs.

INTERVIEW WITH LARISSA REINHART

Larissa, what's your favorite thing about the writing process?
Coming up with stories. I’ve always planned stories in my head as cheap entertainment. I still love to do that. The real work comes when applying those thoughts to paper. I’ve got so many stories waiting to write, it’ll probably take me through retirement to get to them all. Which is a good way to keep me off the streets. That and chocolate.

How long is your to-be-read list?
So long, I can’t even count that high. I stopped marking “Want To Read” on Goodreads because it just got ridiculous. Luckily, my mother and I share a Kindle account, so all the books that are waiting on me to read, she can work on. I’ve got a problem with trying a new author or book in a series, then dropping everything else to read the complete series. Then I’ll reread my favorites. I’m a big re-reader, which doesn’t do my TBR pile much good. And that pile is in print and digital.

What books do you currently have published?
The Body in the Landscape is my fifth Cherry Tucker book but sixth publication. The Cherry Tucker Mysteries: Portrait of a Dead Guy, Still Life in Brunswick Stew, Hijack in Abstract, Death in Perspective, and the prequel novella, “Quick Sketch” in Heartache Motel.

If you could only watch one television station for a year, what would it be?
Does Netflix count as a TV station? I’m in Japan now, so I can’t get anything other than Netflix, although we do get HBO Now. That’s pretty sweet because I can watch all the old miniseries. Right now, I’m watching Benedict Cumberbatch in Parade’s End. But I’m a Netflix junkie. I love to binge watch series. Just like I love to binge read series. And all my guilty pleasure viewing is done on Netflix. You don’t even want to know, but if it involves teenage vampires, I probably watch it.

How do you feel about Facebook?
I love Facebook, despite its obvious flaws. I think the world is becoming a lonelier place, and Facebook is a great way to reach out and touch people’s lives, let them know they are not alone.

I’m living in Japan now and able to keep up with friends and family best through Facebook. I actually began Facebook the last time I lived in Japan. I meet new people all the time, people I’ve grown to consider friends although I’ve never met them in person. My street team, The Mystery Minions, are on Facebook and they’re like family to me. When I travel, I always get postcards to send to them. My girls love to help me pick out postcards for the Minions!

YouTube is . . .
Great for funny cat videos and . . . what else is on Youtube?

Who would you want to narrate a film about your life?
Morgan Freeman. He could make the phone book sound interesting. Which would be a similar reading.

What's your favorite treat for movie night?
I make popcorn on the stove. Just oil and kernels. It’s the best and the stove does all the work. I never touch the microwave stuff. If I wanted to go nuts, I’d add M&Ms to the popcorn. That’s my favorite childhood treat. They melt in the hot popcorn and get all gooey on your fingers. Salt and sugar. Sooooo goood.

Here’s my recipe: use a heavy bottom pot, cover the bottom in kernels, pour cooking (vegetable) oil to just cover the kernels. Put on a lid and turn the heat to medium high. Start your movie. When you start to hear popping, get out a bowl. When you haven’t heard a pop in three seconds, turn off the stove. Pour it in a bowl. Salt. Toss in M&Ms. My kind of cooking.

Yum! You can be any fictional character for one day. Who would you be?
Lucy from The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe. I named a daughter for her. Wouldn’t everyone love to meet Aslan and save Mr. Tumnus? Lucy’s such a spitfire and so wonderfully brave, despite her age and naiveté. Plus her love conquers all and isn’t that heart of the best stories?

Do you sweat the small stuff?
The small stuff is what drives my deodorant shopping. TMI?

What are you working on now?
Cherry Tucker #6, which is still untitled. However, it’s set back in Halo at an independent living home, Halo House. Cherry’s trying real hard to stay out of trouble, but the ninety-year-old CEO of Meemaw’s Tea likes Cherry’s suspicious way of thinking so much, she confides in Cherry that she’s afraid she’ll be murdered. Then has a heart attack. What’s Cherry to do but suspect Belvia Brakeman’s been murdered?

Lightning round:
Cake or frosting? Cake.
Laptop or desktop? Laptop.
Chevy Chase or Bill Murray? Bill Murray
Emailing or texting? Emailing.
Indoors or outdoors? Indoors with a window. And a couch. And some books. And coffee. And chocolate.
Plane, train, or automobile? Train!

Books in the Cherry Tucker Humorous Mystery Series:

• QUICK SKETCH (Novella prequel to PORTRAIT in HEARTACHE MOTEL)
• PORTRAIT OF A DEAD GUY (#1)
• STILL LIFE IN BRUNSWICK STEW (#2)
• HIJACK IN ABSTRACT (#3)
• DEATH IN PERSPECTIVE (#4)
• THE BODY IN THE LANDSCAPE (#5)

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

A 2015 Georgia Author of the Year Best Mystery finalist, Larissa writes the Cherry Tucker Mystery series. The first in the series, Portrait of a Dead Guy (2012), is a 2012 Daphne du Maurier finalist, 2012 The Emily finalist, and 2011 Dixie Kane Memorial winner. The fifth mystery, The Body in the Landscape, released December 2015. Her family and Cairn Terrier, Biscuit, now live in Nagoya, Japan, but still call Georgia home. Visit her website, find her chatting on Facebook, Twitter, and Goodreads, or join her Facebook street team, The Mystery Minions.

Buy the book:Amazon  |  Barnes & Noble  |  iTunes  |  KOBO
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FEATURED AUTHOR: STEVE MYERS

ABOUT THE BOOK

Dreaming .400, like baseball itself, exists outside of time. Its 11 short stories are infused with the magic of the game — in the seductive swing of a girl who turns tinsel into gold; in the passion of an orphan on a quest to reach the Astrodome; in a vision of the future in which players are made, not born.

Dreaming .400 spawns pen pal love between friends that grows into poetry; it shrinks the gap between the head and heart of a Brewers’ fan; provides a way out for a teenager stuck in the shadows; inspires a vagabond to an impossible dream to be lived out between the white lines.

INTERVIEW WITH STEVE MYERS

Steve, how did you get started writing and when did you become an “author?” I was a sportswriter in high school, mostly game summaries and a few editorials. I remember a massive letter writing explosion with friends when exiled from my childhood home, to attend University. We asked and discussed the typical existential questions. I kept writing. I traveled. I wrote poetry, short stories and a few reached novel length. I applied for a one year graduate diploma program in journalism. I learned a lot about being precise and focused, but fiction and poetry would not leave me alone. Dreaming .400: Tales of Baseball Redemption is my first book to be published.  

What's your favorite thing about the writing process?
Discovering what I'm trying to say. It's very much a psycho-analytical experience, as my own life and motivations, emotions get splintered into the characters I create, plots weaved and lessons learned.

Can you share some of your marketing strategies with us?

Word of mouth, Amazon, and my wordpress blog.

You have a day job . . . how do you find time to write?
It finds me.

If you could only watch one television station for a year, what would it be?

Hmmmm, good question. A year is a long time. Whatever station offers movies, sports, and historic/music documentaries at different times. Did I just squiggle out of answering your question?

Yes, pretty sure you did! That's okay. 
How often do you tweet?
Never.


How do you feel about Facebook?
I think it's a brillant and wonderful idea, but it makes me paranoid and self-, I avoid it like an old lover, but all of my wordpress posts get automatically uploaded to my Facebook page, and I did announce my book on Facebook, but I treat it like a shop selling little glass and ceramic chotchkies. I get in and out of there in a hurry.

For what would you like to be remembered?
Integrity.

What scares you the most?
The 12 hours leading up to any surgery.

YouTube is . . . Heaven with a few beers.

What five things would you never want to live without?
My girlfriend, my parents, my brother, baseball, music.

Who would you want to narrate a film about your life?
God.

Are you an introvert or an extrovert?
I think I'm addicted to the moon, so both.

Do you spend more on clothes or food?
Food for sure.

What’s the worst thing someone has said about your writing? How did you deal with it?
That I tended to be long-winded. I made a conscious effort to be more concise.

Who would you invite to a dinner party if you could invite anyone in the world?
My girlfriend.



What's your relationship with your cell phone?
I don't have one.



Gasp! How many hours of sleep do you get a night?
Six or seven.

What is your favorite movie?
One of them is The Hustler. Such a great redemption story and the absence of color and special effects almost forces the dialogue to be elemental and it is.

Do you have a favorite book?
In order for a book to be my favorite, I would have to read it more than once. That's the only way I would get caught using superlatives. So let's see. I read Aldous Huxley's Island two times as well as Kerouac's Dharma Bums and also George Plimpton's One for the Record. Did I just squiggle out of a question again?


You're a good squiggler. How about a favorite book that was turned into a movie? Did the movie stink?
One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest. I loved both the book and the movie. It seems silly to me to compare books and movies. It's like walking or riding in a car. When I'm in a car, pedestrians have no respect for us drivers and when I'm walking, “Those damn cars!”

Do you sweat the small stuff?
Absolutely, I'm very uptight.


If you had to choose a cliche about life, what would it be?
Sing, dance, scream. Do whatever it takes, but get yourself feeling good and happy.


What are you working on now?
A new set of short stories, a book of poems, and paintings with my girlfriend, and a novel based on a blog I kept in the summer of 2014.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Steve Myers grew up in Milwaukee, walking distance from Lake Michigan. There was no other side, not visible anyway. The water went on and on. The cliffs were savage. The trees left to die. The abandoned boat houses not bothered.



Steve attended the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee and earned an honers degree in history. He studied in southern Spain, lived in San Francisco, Brooklyn, and for the last eight years Montreal, Canada.



He recently completed a Graduate Diploma in Journalism. He is the author of two blogs. Brewers Baseball and Things is where Steve experiments with baseball and fiction. Broken Bats is home to his poetry.



Connect with Steve:
Website  |  Blog  |  Facebook  

GUEST POST BY BOURNE MORRIS

ABOUT THE BOOK

A beautiful journalism student is abducted by a man with unusual and frightening expectations. While searching for her missing student, Red Solaris must contend with a university committee quarreling over the rights of the victims and those accused in sexual assault cases. And, in the midst of all this, a journalism professor brings a gun to school and shoots a colleague. Will Red’s ambition to become dean be destroyed by scandal around her? Will she and Detective Joe Morgan ever acknowledge their true feelings for each other?

GUEST POST BY BOURNE MORRIS

American Universities and sexual assault

This past year, I’ve been doing research on the subject of campus sexual assault because it has been such a hot topic in the media, especially the academic press where I get many of my ideas for the Red Queen series of mysteries.
  
One thing is abundantly clear: no one institution has come up with the perfect policy although many have made valiant efforts. The main problem seems to be one of how to be fair and just to both parties. The survivor needs understanding and comfort, and in the view of many, guaranteed privacy. The accused needs a fair hearing that often conflicts with the survivor’s need for privacy.
   
In my latest academic mystery novel, The Rise of the Red Queen, I try to illustrate the the kind of debates academics are having about this problem. My protagonist Dr. Red Solaris, is an active participant  at her fictional western university and she and the other female members of the committee have a tough time with some of the male committee members who seem to think that sexual assault is just a college fraternity version of rough sex. The women see it as violence.

One argument comes from a male faculty member whose brother was falsely accused and sent to jail. Another view comes from a woman who counsels victims.

Of course, the lawyers on all sides of the issue have a field day and a few unexpected parents show up just to make everything even more complicated than it was before.  While, I’ve endeavored to make the debate lively and dramatic, I also hope to illuminate some dark corners on this subject.

When I was an executive in the New York advertising business in the 1960s, harassment was truly troublesome, but I never expected to see matters reach the stage I read about now in The Chronicle of Higher Education and the general media.

When I was a college professor, harassment seemed to be a major worry among my women colleagues and students. Now, binge drinking has helped bring a whole new set of problems to campuses. And sexual assault is a topic we read about in every other newspaper. Even the federal Government is engaged in telling universities what to do.

Not a cozy topic you might say, but relevant to all of us who have daughters and granddaughters who are in college or plan to go.

I hasten to add, it’s not the only issue I like to write about. I’m still addicted to murder and betrayals of various sorts. I still want my heroines to go through hell to get where they want to be. And, I still have a handsome detective on the scene to provide my Red Queen with some occasional romance.

In ‘The Rise of the Red Queen,” I also included a mystery surrounding the disappearance of a beautiful student and the disturbing man who kidnaps her and presents her with a grim agenda. Red has to balance her tie between arguing with the campus committee and going on a dangerous search for the missing girl.

Writing fiction is my third career and I am having a terrific time inventing my fictional university in northern Nevada and populating it with the vicious, the merely scurrilous and the brave and noble, plus a beautiful Golden Retriever to comfort the occasional lonely lady and generally keep the good guys safe.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

After Bennington College, Bourne worked at McCall’s Magazine and then went to Ogilvy&Mather, New York during the Mad Men  era. David Ogilvy and his colleagues treated her wonderfully, promoted her several times and then sent her west to become head of their agency in Los Angeles. She had a splendid run in advertising.

In 1983, she joined the University of Nevada Reno as a full professor in Journalism where she taught until 2009. She learned about campus politics when she served as chair of the faculty senate. She retired to write mysteries in 2009 after a wonderful teaching career.

Bourne lives with her husband of 34 years in a ranch house with a view of tall trees and mountains. They have four children and eight grandchildren. Life is good.

Connect with Bourne:
Website  |  Facebook  |  Twitter  |  Goodreads

Buy the book:
Amazon  |  Barnes & Noble

FEATURED AUTHOR: RICHARD AUDRY

ABOUT THE KARMA OF KING HARALD

When springtime arrives in picturesque New Bergen, so do the tourists and antiquers. This year, though, there are some unwelcome visitors. Extortion. Arson. And murder.

After his business tanks and his wife leaves him for a Pilates coach, Andy Skyberg flees the big city for the peace and quiet of his hometown. All he wants is a decent job, a steady girlfriend, a flat screen TV with a hundred-plus channels, and one loyal dog. But fate has something else in store for Andy, when his big mutt King Harald starts sniffing out crime.

It’s clear that someone has it in for the town’s New Age retailer, Trudi Bock. And it’s also clear that Trudi wants to rekindle the steamy romance she and Andy enjoyed back in college. Andy has to fend her off, while placating his fiery girlfriend, Deputy Sheriff Cass Conlin. Meanwhile, Harald keeps digging up more mayhem. And it falls to Andy to channel his inner sleuth and make sense of it all.

Throw into this mix one legendary (but lost) ebelskiver recipe . . . a gimlet-eyed church lady…a van full of federal agents . . . a crusty socialist…a beloved iguana . . . and an overabundance of rosemaling . . . And you have all the makings for The Karma of King Harald.

ABOUT KING HARALD'S HEIST

As the leaves begin to change color in New Bergen, Andy Skyberg wants to turn his full attention to his sister’s new café and art gallery—and to the beautiful Finnish architect who’s managing the project.

But the good-natured, go-to guy can’t seem to catch a moment’s peace. His next-door neighbors—two elderly sisters—want him to fend off a pushy historian who thinks they had a scandalous past. His parents enlist him to entertain a narcissistic, boring couple they would like to ditch. And his ever-scheming Aunt Bev tricks Andy into seeking an improbable new gig that could land him in the hot seat. 

Even Andy’s big ol’ mutt King Harald has a kennel full of trouble in store for him, beginning with a pilfered thousand-dollar bill and a naughty garden gnome. Before long, New Bergen’s favorite crime-sniffing pooch finds even more deep doo-doo to toss his boss into. 

Havoc and hilarity ensue, as Andy and his happy hound get to the bottom of King Harald’s Heist.

INTERVIEW WITH RICHARD AUDRY

Richard, how did you get started writing and when did you become an “author?”
I planned to become a photojournalist, but got engrossed in writing for the college newspaper. After that, I developed my career as a journalist and later a copywriter. I became an “author,” IMO, when I finished my first novel — an epic fantasy called The Queen of Thrones. This was several years before George R.R. Martin published A Game of Thrones.

How do you feel about Facebook?
Until recently, I hadn’t much use for it. But as I learn its ins and outs, I have to admit that it has a certainly utility for keeping tabs on old friends and new. I’m just now beginning to explore its capacity to help get word out about my books. I’ve set up a Richard Audry author page, and I’m slowly starting to develop it.

For what would you like to be remembered?
As a teller of good tales. After I’m gone, I’d like my books to live on as long as there are online vendors selling ebooks. I’d like to think that a hundred years from now someone will discover a King Harald mystery and be entertained by it.

What five things would you never want to live without?
1. Above all, my wife. I can’t imagine my world without her in it.
2. Good food. It’s not only nutrition, but comfort and pleasure. A nice meal can make a perfect day.
3. A Kindle full of great reads.
4. A nice, fast internet connection.
5. My big library of DVDs and Blu-Ray movies and TV shows. Who needs cable TV or streaming?

True. If you had a swear jar, would it be full?
If it were in my car, definitely. I live in a big city, so I see stupid driver tricks all the time. It seems every time I sally forth in the Toyota, I’m dodging idiots running stop signs or failing to yield or cutting in close or what have you. And then the air in my Camry turns blue and words beginning with “a” and “f” and “s” burst out of my mouth.

Do you spend more on clothes or food?
Definitely on food. My wife and I are pretty capable cooks. We’re constantly making dishes for the freezer and trying out new recipes. I think we both regard clothes as a necessary evil, buying things only when the old items wear out. No one would accuse me of being a fashion plate.

What is the most daring thing you've done?
Investing thousands of hours of my time and not a little money in this venture of writing and publishing fiction. It is easily the most risky thing I have done in my life. But it’s always been my dream over the years. And if I don’t pursue it now, when will I?

What’s one of your favorite quotes?
"It is not the critic who counts; not the man who points out how the strong man stumbles, or where the doer of deeds could have done them better. The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena, whose face is marred by dust and sweat and blood; who strives valiantly; who errs, who comes short again and again, because there is no effort without error and shortcoming; but who does actually strive to do the deeds; who knows great enthusiasms, the great devotions; who spends himself in a worthy cause; who at the best knows in the end the triumph of high achievement, and who at the worst, if he fails, at least fails while daring greatly, so that his place shall never be with those cold and timid souls who neither know victory nor defeat." —Theodore Roosevelt

What would your main character say about you?
“Why does this guy keep sticking me in situations where people are pointing guns at me? I’m just trying to live an ordinary life. And what’s so hard about finding me a nice, steady girlfriend?”

What’s the hardest thing you’ve ever had to write?
I’ve written many hundreds of newspaper and magazine articles, and just as many pieces of marketing and corporate communications. But by far the toughest project was the first book in my middle-grade fantasy series, Johnny Graphic and the Etheric Bomb. I had to create an alternate history of the world, make ghosts real and material, wrangle dozens of characters and complicated plot devices, and make it all believable. I worked on it for six years, off and on. It was brutal, but I’m proud of the book it became. In fact, I think it’s the best book I’ve written so far. Sales have been disappointing, but I’m determined to finish the trilogy. I owe it especially to the ghosts, who are the best characters I’ve created. I’ve left them trapped in the ether and I need to free them in the final book.

You can be any fictional character for one day. Who would you be?
My favorite fictional character? Travis McGee. He lived on a houseboat in Ft. Lauderdale starting in the mid-‘60s and sallied forth twenty-one times to solve mysteries and right wrongs. I would love to be as smart as him for a day, as tough, as resourceful, as thoughtful. But I don’t think my wife would want me cavorting with the nubile young things in bikinis that populated his boat, the Busted Flush. I even have a blog devoted to McGee.

Who would you invite to a dinner party if you could invite anyone in the world?
I would invite two English actors who have a very long history together — Hugh Laurie and Stephen Fry. Laurie, of course, is known in these parts as Dr. House. But before that he was Bertie Wooster and Fry’s partner on a classic sketch comedy show. For his part, Fry played Bertie’s valet Jeeves. He is also a marvelous writer and raconteur, and a maker of travel documentaries, not to mention a prolific actor. As soon as we all sat down at the table, I would simply sit back and shut up, and let these two launch into a brilliant and witty dialog.


How many hours of sleep do you get at night?
I’ve been a poor sleeper since high school. I consider five hours to be adequate and six hours luxurious. I am not sure when the last time was that I slept eight hours. Maybe in 1996.

Do you have a favorite book?
It’s a novel I first read when I was twelve, and I love it as much today as then. It’s Kenneth Grahame’s The Wind in the Willows. While it was written for children, its depiction of the friendship between Rat and Mole and Toad speaks volumes to the nature of human friendship. I can read passages now that still move me. For example, I read the “Dolce Domum” (“Home Sweet Home”) chapter aloud to my wife every Christmas, and I still get a lump in my throat as poor little Mole smells the scent of his abandoned home in the midst of a snowstorm. He has to see it again. Rat desperately wants to get back to their new digs, but — being a true and good friend — goes with Mole to his old habitation. And as a writer, I am still blown away by Grahame’s flawless prose.

What are you working on now?
I’m just in the process of wrapping up the third book in my Mary MacDougall historical mystery series. It should be out sometime this winter. The first two tales were novellas, but the third installment is full-length. In it, Mary MacDougall — a young heiress of 1902 — takes on her first paying case. She thinks she has the craft of detecting figured out. But discovering the fate of her client’s mother turns out to be far more challenging and dangerous than she ever thought it would be. Complicating things further, she goes sleuthing with her handsome companion Edmond Roy, whom she thinks she hasn’t fallen in love with. For a detective, she’s not very good at uncovering her own emotions.

Lightning round:
Cake or frosting? Cake
Laptop or desktop? Desktop
Chevy Chase or Bill Murray? Bill Murray
Emailing or texting? Emailing
Indoors or outdoors? Indoors (in winter); outdoors (in summer)
Tea: sweet or unsweet? Unsweet
Plane, train, or automobile? Automobile

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Richard Audry (D. R. Martin) grew up in Duluth, Minnesota, and began his writing career as an arts journalist in Minneapolis. He has specialized in topics ranging from consumer electronics and healthcare to travel and classical music. For many years, he reviewed science fiction and fantasy books for the Minneapolis Star Tribune. He is the author of the Johnny Graphic ghost adventure series for kids; the contemporary PI mystery Smoking Ruin; the Mary MacDougall historical mysteries (A Pretty Little Plot, The Stolen Star, and A Mary MacDougall Mystery Duet); and the canine cozy mysteries The Karma of King Harald and King Harald’s Heist.



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FEATURED AUTHOR: THOMAS M.D. BROOKE

ABOUT THE BOOK

Rome AD 9

Augustus Caesar rules Imperial Rome at the height of its power, as the Roman Empire stretches across the known world. Cassius, son of one of her most powerful families, is the personification of Rome's imperial strength: wealthy, popular, a war hero with a decorated military career - none of Rome's fashionable parties are complete without him - except, he hides a secret.


After his nerve is broken in Germany, the thought of genuine armed combat is enough to send him into a cold sweat of fear and shame. But this doesn't dissuade him from living off a false reputation so he can continue a life of casual affairs, wine, and parties, as he is seduced by the many vices of Rome.


However his scandalous life is soon upset by a summons from the Emperor's wife. It ends his happy decadent life and returns him to Germany to assist the Roman legions in their greatest ever trial, and the events that will resound down in history, in the dark forests of the Teutoburg . . .

GUEST POST BY THOMAS BROOKE

Process of building a character

If you want to write a novel, you will need well rounded and believable characters to pull your readers along with the story. For readers to care what happens at the end of a book, you will need to forge a connection between them and your characters.

Different authors will have a variety of different approaches to constructing characters for their novels. Some will take a more ad-hoc approach, and develop them along the way. But for myself, if I am going to create realistic characters, it is important to map out their characteristics at the planning stage of a novel – after all, you wouldn’t start writing a book without knowing what your plot is going to be, so why should the characters be any different? They are just as vital to your novel so it is worthwhile spending some time on character development before you start writing. These are the stages I go through when putting my characters together – you can play around with the order, nothing here is set in stone.
Appearance: Okay, let’s start off with an easy one. I imagine you already have an idea in your mind’s eye what your character looks like, but try and describe him/her in writing now. This will make it easier later on, when you will need to describe them in the novel. Also include as many details as you can, such as colour of eyes, skin complexion, height, and timbre of voice. You might not need all these details for your novel, but it’s good to have them there now to help you imagine them in scenes later on.

Traits and oddities: This can be a limp, lisp, or a simple mannerism of your character, such as their general turn of phrase, or the particular way they might flick their hair, or any distinguishing trait. However, be warned, you don’t need to do this section for all your characters! Don’t give all your characters an odd mannerism for the sake of it, or your novel could end up becoming a very strange book indeed!

Strengths and weaknesses: A lot of authors are very good at the first part of this, and can reel off all their main characters strengths – good with a sword or gun, charming and funny, clever and quick-witted. What they are less good at is defining their weaknesses, but it is just as important to concentrate on this aspect as we are all flawed in someway. A large ego, a fear of confrontation, a tendency   to become maudlin when deep in their cups, or an inability to admit when they’re wrong, all can add depth to your character.  If you want to create somebody who appears realistic, you will need to spend just as much time on the darker side of their personality. It will also give your novel so much more scope to develop if you know both sides of their character.

For example, in my novel Roman Mask, I started off by highlighting my main characters weaknesses. Then as the story progresses, and he grows with the story, I could slowly draw more from the strengths of his personality. This means that you can see a progression in his personality, as he slowly recovers from the tragic events that put him in a lowly state.

This can easily work the other way round. For example, you could have a well-meaning politician who starts the book full of idealism and great ideas as his vision and intelligence gives him\her the desire to help people. Later on, their arrogance in thinking that only they are capable of doing the right thing can lead to them being corrupted by the power and prestige of their position. Either way it shows a progression as the character develops and is a useful tool.

Back-story: It is one thing to invent the type of character you need for your novel, but how did they get there?  For example, you may have constructed a taciturn male detective who excels at deductions and visualizing crime scenes, but what made him so adept at this skill? Was it something from his school years?  What was his family background?  Why did he become a detective? Was there a personal tragedy that led him down this path? The more detail you can add at this
stage, the more you will be able to relate to the character as a real person as you write your novel, as well as giving yourself an invaluable pool of information to draw upon when you need inspiration for a sub-plot. One point of warning however, remember that at this stage your readers will not know of this back-story yet as they won’t read the character profiles, so don’t forget to incorporate them into your novel at some point.

Overall impression: No matter how well you define your characters strengths and weaknesses, and their back-story, you will still need to remember why you created this character in the first place. For example, if you originally brought them into your novel to act as a light relief from the seriousness of your main character, you will need to make sure that you are sticking to this trait through your novel, and that they’re not just morphing into a lesser version of your main-lead. Of course your characters can develop in their own direction once you start writing, but be aware that if you originally wanted a cheerful, friendly character who laughs a lot, that you don’t forget this all together.

You may disagree with this entire process, that is completely your prerogative, but it’s good to at least know what works for you and what doesn’t. At the very least, have a method of your own that you use when you create a character. Characters are, for me, the bedrock of great writing, so they deserve as much time and effort you can give them.


Pictures from sheknows.com, imgur.com, cliparthut.com, samsabel.com, operationrainfall.com.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Thomas Brooke lives in London where he works in the exciting, and sometimes crazy, fashion world.

He is also a committed writer, and he spends as much time as he can in his beloved Northumbrian hills, where up until recently could be seen walking with his black Labrador Fergus, who sadly passed in January 2015. Fergus was a constant companion to the writing of the novel and prevented many writers’ tantrums.

As well as writing novels, he also writes a blog on both historical and fantasy genre novels. For more information on Thomas M D Brooke, visit www.thomasmdbrooke.com.


Connect with Thomas:
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FEATURED AUTHOR: R. BREUER STEARNS

ABOUT THE BOOK

The Question invites readers to consider this premise:

If you could have the answer to one question, and only one question, what would you ask . . . and who would try to stop you from asking it?

To what extremes would they go?

The Question is a thriller that explores a new way of thinking, a method powerful enough to answer very complex questions . . . perhaps powerful enough to solve the universe's most fundamental mysteries . . . perhaps powerful enough to resolve religions' most beguiling unknowns.

The Question is an adventure story . . . fiction that you may wish, may believe, may know, is true. The narrative occurs in the present, with scenes in California, Washington, D.C., Paris, Shanghai, New York, and Afghanistan.
 
The story is aimed at high-school and older readers and contains some graphic violence and occasional sexual allusions. The plot is action-oriented with an element of scientific fantasy, similar to Jack Finney's "Time and Again." The prose is crisply written, professionally edited, and organized into movie-scene chapters.

The Question is ideal reading for anyone who is curious . . . for those who gaze into the cosmos at night and wonder . . . for those who look into the mirror and imagine . . . for those whose hearts beat faster when confronting the unknown . . . for readers who enjoy a fast paced, contemporary thriller that inspires them to think.

INTERVIEW WITH R. BREUER STEARNS

How did you get started writing and when did you become an “author?”
I started writing stories as a teenager. The term “author” sounds very highfalutin, perhaps worthy of significant readership applause. Right now, I consider myself a “writer” . . .  a person who tries to tell a story, convey a message, stimulate an emotional and cerebral response . . . using just the right word at just the right time.
 
What's your favorite thing about the writing process?
I enjoy knowing that  readers’ “get” my work. I try to give readers intense feelings and thoughts . . . and am tremendously gratified and appreciative when my words reward readers for reading my words.

How long is your to-be-read list?
Very long . . . and growing. I do not read fiction when I am writing fiction because I do not want another author’s “voice” to infiltrate, inadvertently, my own. My To-Read List is comprised mostly of biographies, history, and science-related books.

You have a day job . . . how do you find time to write?
Writing is a compulsion. I write when I feel or think that I have something worth writing. I type on my computer . . . or write on scraps of paper, occasionally on napkins . . .   Sometimes, a concept or snippet bubbles up so quickly that I hurry to write it down before I forget it. Other times, I will think and think about an idea or concept and fail to find the right words or the right flow. Writing is sometimes very easy and sometimes excruciatingly difficult.

If you could only watch one television station for a year, what would it be?
Animal Planet . . . or a channel focused on Science and Nature.

How do you feel about Facebook? 
Facebook is brilliant, conceptually and technologically. It is a wonderful communications and marketing tool because it is simple to use and addictive.

What scares you the most?
Intolerance combined with ignorance. In today’s world, a minuscule number of people with access to highly destructive weaponry can do tremendous harm. My biggest fear is that an intolerant and ignorant few people destroy or injure many innocent lives.

If you had a swear jar, would it be full?
No.  But, it would be a very large jar.

Great answer! What's your favorite treat for movie night?
Popcorn with real butter and salt.

What’s one of your favorite quotes?
Mark Twain (paraphrased): It's not what you don’t know that hurts you . . . it’s what you know for sure . . . that just isn’t true.

Who would you invite to a dinner party if you could invite anyone in the world?
I would invite Abraham Lincoln to have dinner with my family and closest friends.

What is your favorite movie?
Any of these movies: Big, Field of Dreams, The Producers (original version), E.T.

Do you sweat the small stuff?
Yes, particularly in writing. Nuance, details . . . the right word . . . are important.  Inattentiveness to the “small stuff” almost always results in problems with the “big stuff.”

How long is your to-do list?
Long, eternally long. Curiosity produces long to-do lists.


Lightning round:

Cake or frosting? Frosting
Laptop or desktop? Laptop
Chevy Chase or Bill Murray? Chevy Chase
Emailing or texting? Emailing
Indoors or outdoors? Outdoors
Tea: sweet or unsweet? Unsweet
Plane, train, or automobile? Plane

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

R. Breuer Stearns is an investor and author.

Mr. Stearns graduated from Phillips Academy, Andover (1970), Harvard University (AB, 1974), University of Chicago (MBA, 1977), and DePaul University College of Law (JD, 1979). He rapidly ascended on Wall Street in the 1980’s, serving as Managing Director, Mergers & Acquisitions at Lehman Brothers and Head of Investment Banking (North America) at UBS Securities. While living in New York, he founded “Terrific Teachers, Inc.,” a foundation dedicated to identifying and rewarding the best of the best of the city’s public high school teachers.

Shortly after the fall of the Berlin Wall, Mr. Stearns launched a private investment bank in the former Soviet Union. He spent the early 1990’s seeking to marry emerging science, primarily emanating from Russia’s Defense sector, with Western capital.  During this period, Mr. Stearns made a small fortune, albeit from a larger one. The venture provided a remarkable lesson in hubris, a tremendous reservoir of internal strength, and first-hand source material for Mr. Stearns’ first book, Winning Smart After Losing Big (Encounter Books, Beijing University Press).

Subsequently, Mr. Stearns served as Chief Financial Officer of The Dial Corporation, Chief Financial Officer of Columbia/HCA Corporation, Chief Financial Officer of PacifiCare, Inc., President and Chief Operating Officer of Vascular Genetics, Inc., and Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Quepasa Corporation (QPSA:Amex).

Mr. Stearns is a Founder of VestaPoint Capital LLC, a family of investment funds focused on real estate development. He lives in Arizona with his wife, two dogs, two cats, and a horse. He travels extensively and is intensely curious.

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