Tag Archives: Interviews

[Vampire Month] Angela Lockwood interview

03 Thursday Mar 2016

Posted by in Musings, Vampire Month

≈ 1 Comment

Tags

, , , , , , , , , , ,


YesterdayYesterday you were introduced to Angela and her books. Here we get a deeper insight into her as we subject her to the gruelling Vampire Month interview…vampire cat

1) What is the earliest memory you have of writing? What did you write about?

Unfortunately, my earliest memories of writing weren’t good ones. I remember getting very excited about writing a short story in primary school and then getting it back covered in red pen corrections. I was eventually diagnosed with mild dyslexia. It took me a long time to start writing again, but with my husband’s encouragement, a computer that spellchecks and a great editor, I’m once again enjoying writing. I’m still a little bitter about the lack of encouragement by my teachers who must have spotted that I enjoyed reading and writing.

2) When did you decide to become a professional writer? Why did you take this step?

I’m not a professional writer. I would like to be, but at the moment I have to work to pay the bills.

3) What would you consider to be your greatest strength as a writer? What about your greatest weakness? How do you overcome this weakness?

I think I’m a strong story teller with a dark sense of humour. I can see the ridiculousness in all situations and I don’t take life or myself too seriously. I think that not taking myself seriously is also my greatest weakness. I feel uncomfortable about self-promotion. Taking part in Vampire Month is a nice bit of therapy; I’m here promoting my books! I’ve had some great reviews so I know my books are worth reading, so expect to see more of me.

4) Tell us about the place where you live. Have you ever derived any inspiration from your home or from anywhere you have visited?

I’m very lucky to live in the south of France, but unlike a lot of ex-pats I’m not of retirement age. Work is seasonal and in the winter of 2013 I found myself unemployed and very frustrated by an unusually wet January. To stop me from climbing the walls, my husband suggested I write him a horror story. The tale got rather out of hand and grew into a two-book series – Language in the Blood. It’s a comedy about a young Scotsman, Cameron Blair, who goes off to fight in the First World War. Lying wounded on the battlefield, he is discovered by a vampire… with inevitable consequences. The story follows Cameron as he comes to terms with his new ‘life’, from his first days as a hapless vampire in war-torn France to the glamorous modern day setting of the Côte d’Azur. Along the way, he develops a distinctive taste for the finer things in life: jewels, yachts, small dogs and champagne-infused human. I’m Dutch, but lived most of my adult live in Scotland. These places and my current abode are huge inspirations.Slide2

5) Which book, if any, would you consider to be your greatest influence and inspiration? 

It wasn’t a particular book, but I’m a big admirer of PG Wodehouse and his irreverent humour. I hope I created in Cameron Blair a vampire that in some small way captures some of his British wit and eccentricity.

6) What drove you to write about Vampires?

It all started with a friend telling me about the theft of a mirror from the lift in her building. My first thoughts were: it’s obviously a vampire setting a trap for his victim; he removes the mirror to avoid early detection. I used it as the scene that forms the turning point in the first book. Also my husband wanted me to write a zombie story, but we all know that vampires are way more interesting.

 

7) What do you think is the attraction for Vampire fiction? Why is it such a popular topic?

For a writer, it is a great genre as it gives you an enormous freedom to take the character anywhere you want. Readers enjoy being taken to a different world which can be dangerous, sexy, frightening or in my case amusing. The genre takes us away from our everyday lives and personalities. I think vampires appeal to our darker side.

 

8) In a fight between all the greatest Vampires of fiction, who do you think would come out on top?

I think Dracula. Bram Stoker’s masterpiece has been reworked so often for good reasons. Dracula is the daddy of them all.

 

9) What about in some other contest such as sexiness or dress sense? Who would win that one?

If I say anything other than Cameron here, he will come and bite me. He prides himself on his dress sense and sexual attractiveness. But I must say I’ve had a bit of a soft spot for Aidan Turner who played the vampire in Being Human.Slide1

 

10) How well do you think one of your characters would fare against the winner(s) of the above?

Again I have to declare Cameron the winner otherwise I’ll be in trouble. He and Aidan do share their dark, Celtic good looks.

 

11) Tell us the basic premise behind your latest novel.

Not about a vampire I’m afraid. My cat, Clicquot, is my main inspiration at the moment, but to be honest he is as much a hindrance as a muse. Despite his best efforts, I’m putting the final touches to my third book, a romantic novel for cat lovers called Conversations with Tom.

You can learn more about Angela on the links below. Next up is her guest post…

Blog: http://languageintheblood.blogspot.fr/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/CruftsloverAkaCameronBlair/?ref=hl

Twitter: @LitBCameronB

Webpage: http://www.cruftslover.adzl.com/

Ben Ireland interview

12 Friday Feb 2016

Posted by in Giveaway, Guest posts, Musings

≈ Leave a comment

Tags

, , , ,


Today we have an interview with Ben Ireland, author of Kingdom City: Revolt. You can also check out the Rafflecopter and other members of the blog tour on this link.

1. How did you come up with the concept of your story?

Before I wrote books, I thought to myself “I want to write something, but it needs to be KCRevolt_Webkit_Authorcool.” I decided that epic items, like swords, are cool. And then those epic items being needed for something completely unexpected. It was around the swords Fury and Serenity that the entire Kingdom City universe grew. Admittedly, it’s a much more manual thought process than i’ve had with most of my other story ideas; they usually just come to me. But I don’t think that Kingdom City is any less rich or exciting for that.

2. How did you come up with the title?

My little brother LOVES Dungeons & Dragons. Years before I called myself a writer, he was drawing a map for a campaign he was planning and I walked up behind him. He couldn’t think of a name for the capital city of the kingdom, so he called it Kingdom City. I thought that had an amazing ring to it so I stored it away for later use. Once you read the books, you’ll understand why they are subtitled Resurrection, and Revolt.

3. Please provide some insight into or a secret or two about your story.

Revolt is not just about the physical fight against what the Representative is trying to do to the population of Kingdom City, it’s also about the internal revolt of the characters against their internal natures. Paul is torn between leading the revolt and forsaking everything to save his family. There are also several characters that are dealing with internal conflicts that aren’t apparent at first. Through a careful reading, I think you’ll be able to figure out who is hiding something.

4. What was the most surprising part of writing this book?

I was most surprised by how dark it was. I was always fascinated by things that were a little dark and gritty, so I set out to create something edgy. Once I was done and I reread the book, I was taken aback by how dark it had actually become. Reading the first chapter again after not seeing it for several months made me think ‘oh gee, I wrote that?’ I think darkness in art is important to help us see the light and good in life. Though I believe some authors take that too far. RR Martin is a prime example. I feel that artists that write darkness simply because it’s “realistic” miss the point of art.

5. What was the hardest part of writing your book, and how did you overcome it?

Finding time! I love writing and I love telling stories. I haven’t experienced writer’s block, so to speak. My mind it brimming with stories and ideas and the fountain hasn’t run down, let alone run out. As a worker and a father I did the only thing I could do to find time. Sleep less. Some weeks I was going on three and a half hours a night when I had to.

6. What is your preferred writing genre?

I lean towards fantasy, especially urban fantasy. I get a rush when someone isn’t only smart enough to solve their problems, but they can also solve them with fire. Lots and lots of magically invoked fire.

7. Who is your favorite author? Who has most influenced your work?

Early on, I loved The Hobbit—it was the first big-kid book I read twice (One Fish, Two Fish, Red Fish, Blue Fish was the first little-kid book I read more than once). I read a lot of Azimov growing up, too. Just prior to my writing really taking off, I fell in love with Harry Potter. JK’s world is so colorful and engaging it’s hard to not fall in love. Today I’m an avid fan of Harry Dresden. The engrossing characters and thoroughly conceived world that Butcher has created is something I’m constantly trying to emulate.

8. When did you know you wanted to be a writer?

I’ve always loved creating. Probably the worst thing that happened to me is when I took a creative writing class in college. The professor told me that my story was the best thing he’d read “in a long time.” I’ve been spiralling since then. That story ended up being a scene of Kissed a Snake, in Xchyler’s A Dash of Madness short story anthology.

KCRevolt_Webkit_Blurb.jpg9. Given unlimited resources, what would be your ideal writing environment?

Somewhere close to my kids. A window with a view of the forest would be great, too.

10. Where do you actually write? Do you write on a schedule?

We recently moved and I managed to get an office in the new house. It’s actually a storage closet. But it has a map of Kingdom City on the wall and Slifer the Sky Dragon above my desk, so that’s all I need.

I don’t have a specific time to write. I’m still on the ‘wait until the kids fall to sleep and write until I fall to sleep’ schedule.

11. What is your writing drive? The power that keeps you going when your writing gets difficult?

My brain is full of story ideas and it hurts when I don’t let them out. Writing isn’t a choice, it’s a compulsion.

12. Name one entity that you feel supported your writing, outside of family members.

Tori. Tori supported my writing. Tori, you’re awesome!

And you know, Xchlyer. My publisher.

13. How does writing impact other parts of your life?

It makes me very, very tired. I love creating stories that talk to people that can relate to darkness. My mother doesn’t approve.

14. What activities best give your brain a break? How do you unwind?

Anime and X-files. Though i’m all caught on on X-Files.

15. What are some of your other published works?

Kingdom City: Resurrection (Kingdom City Book 1) http://amzn.to/202KFQE

And two short stories. Kissed a Snake in A Dash of Madness anthology http://amzn.to/23rKi1f, and Fairykin in Moments in Millennia http://amzn.to/23rKopB

16. What is your advice to writers?

Figure out who to listen to and who to ignore. If you don’t have people in your life who challenge your creative work, then you’re handicapping yourself. Peter Jackson and George Lucas stopped listening to people that challenged them, and the result is the Hobbit movies and Star Wars episode 1-3. No matter how successful you get, listen to your trusted critics.

17. What’s up next for you?

Kingdom City part3. Working title is Retribution. The original working title was Redemption, but that sounded way too optimistic for Kingdom City.

18. What is your favorite snack while writing?

Chocolate milk. Heaven help me. I drink too much of the stuff.

19. If you had three wishes, what would they be?

A happy, happy birthday to you from me, to earn enough from writing to support my family, and my kids to be healthy and happy. That’s it.

20. Is there anything else you’d like your readers to know about you?

I want my readers to get to know me through my work. Please pick up any of my stories and see what you find.

Just for fun nerd list:

Star Wars or Star Trek? Star Trek

Hunger Games or Divergent? Hunger Games

James Bond or Jack Ryan? Who is Jack Ryan? (Googles it…) I still don’t know who he is.

Sherlock: Robert Downey, Jr. or Benedict Cumberbatch? Downey.

Spock: Leonard Nimoy or Zachary Quinto? They’re both so good in different ways. Not a fair question.

X-Men or Avengers? I would have said X men up until the recent Avengers movies.

Aliens or Predators? Aliens. I mean, there is no escaping them. I don’t care how many wrist mounted bombs you have.

Minions or Penguins? I’m insulted by this question.

Batman or Superman? I’ll get back to you after I see the movie.

Harry Potter or Pirates of the Caribbean? Is it even a comparison? Harry Potter.

Beatles or Rolling Stones? Beatles.

Peter Jackson or James Cameron? James. Peter lost my respect with the Hobbit movies. Seriously, though, how could we not see that coming after he made King Kong?

Steven Spielberg or George Lucas? Steven. George lost my respect with episodes 1-3.Go watch the Red Letter Media review on Star Wars 1 -3 and get back to me.

Vampires or Werewolves? To fight with, against, or to kiss passionately?
LARP or MORPG? MMORPG.

[Vampire Month] Megan Cashman interview

11 Tuesday Mar 2014

Posted by in Vampire Month

≈ Leave a comment

Tags

, , , , , , , , , , ,


Our second Vampire month contributor is Megan Cashman, a New Yorker and former journalist turned author. She is the author of The Dark Proposal.

1)      What is the earliest memory you have of writing? What did you write about?

As a kid, I used to write about kids at school, and their everyday experiences. I was in first grade when I started doing all this, and I think I did it because even then I had fun creating characters. Image

2)      When did you decide to become a professional writer? Why did you take this step?

I wanted to write a book even as a young kid. It took a long time to take that step because I had other aspirations. But when I was one of many unemployed people in the world, I decided it was a good time to finally write that book.

3)      What would you consider to be your greatest strength as a writer? What about your greatest weakness? How do you overcome this weakness?

My strength is that I have good insight as to what makes people tick. I also think I write scenes that provide good visuals for my readers. My weakness is when I think I may be boring my readers, so I end up cutting parts out that may be necessary for them to understand something. I also tend to be very wordy, so I have to do a lot of editing. I try to overcome my weakness by crafting a paragraph or sentence in a way that doesn’t sound very wordy or boring to a reader. I have to keep my readers in mind when I consider cutting out words.

4)      Tell us about the place where you live. Have you ever derived any inspiration from your home or from anywhere you have visited?

I was born and raised on Staten Island, NY. It hasn’t inspired my work yet, but The Dark Proposal takes place a great deal on Staten Island. I have some future ideas that are inspired by other places I’ve lived or visited.

5)      Which book, if any, would you consider to be your greatest influence and inspiration?

That’s hard to tell because there have been so many. I do wish to write as well as Khaled Hosseini, because his two books The Kite Runner and A Thousand Splendid Suns are written so beautifully. They also draw you in from the very first sentence, so I hope to do the same with my books

TheDarkProposal_Final_small6)      What drove you to write about Vampires?

They are so appealing! Their immortality, their seduction, their longevity, their power, their arrogance and their fears. There’s something about a creature that lurks in the shadows that makes it more appealing than other paranormal creatures, even though they have their merit too.

 

7)      What do you think is the attraction for Vampire fiction? Why is it such a popular topic?

It depends because there are so many different kinds of vampire stories out there. For some, vampires are the most seductive creatures. For others, they are the most frightening. But others see vampire stories as an opportunity to tell other stories as well. The film, Byzantium, comes to mind.

8)      In a fight between all the greatest Vampires of fiction, who do you think would come out on top?

Oh boy, that’s tough. Dracula is what really brought the creature into the mainstream. Anne Rice’s Interview With The Vampire humanized it, and influenced vampire stories today. It’s so tough to decide.

9)      What about in some other contest such as sexiness or dress sense? Who would win that one?

I actually found Gary Oldman in Bram Stoker’s Dracula to be both sexy and well dressed. I think the accent helped. But hey, even Alexander Skarsgaard as Eric Northman is good competition for Oldman. Oh jeez, how can I forget Jonathan Rhys Myers as Dracula?jonathan-Rhys-Meyers-in-Dracula-nbc-ftr

10)   How well do you think one of your characters would fare against the winner(s) of the above?

I think Daniel Bertrand, the boyfriend to my main character, will be tough competition for all three. However, once his true nature is revealed, his sexiness plummets quickly.

11)   Tell us the basic premise behind your latest novel.

The Dark Proposal is about a college graduate named Claire McCormick who thought she had the perfect boyfriend in Daniel Bertrand, until he reveals that he is a bloodthirsty vampire with the intent on making her one too. Frightened, she desperately tries to rid herself of him, only to painfully learn that he is too malicious to defeat. She struggles to come to terms with reality as she discovers how unstable the vampire world is in the modern age, and how some of them don’t realize how cruel Daniel is even to them. It is the first book in a trilogy, called The End of Eternity. I am working on the sequel right now, and plan to have it out later this year.

Megan Cashman is a former freelance journalist living in New York City. Always asking, “what if?” she turning toward fiction writing in order to explore our world, and many other worlds. Always analyzing and daydreaming, Megan looks forward to sharing her worlds with many others.

Blog: megancashmanbooks.wordpress.com
Twitter: @MeganCashman
Facebook: Facebook.com/megancashmanbooks
Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/6519000.Megan_Cashman
Kindle: http://www.amazon.com/dp/B009AL4RKE
Smashwords: https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/276775

[Vampire Month] Interview with Isabella Favilli

08 Saturday Mar 2014

Posted by in Musings, Vampire Month

≈ Leave a comment

Tags

, , , , , , , , , , , , , ,


Here we have an interview with Isabella Favilli, a former graphic designer turned fine artist turned photography editor turned graphic novel artist…

1) What is the first thing you remember drawing or painting?
A horse, I was four and everyone was kinda impressed, my mom still has it.Isabella
2) When did you first think you might be able to make a living as an artist?
When I was choosing my high school at fourteen, the idea was to become a graphic designer but after graduating after 5 years I realized that it was not the kind of art I loved the most; Fine Art was more what I loved and althought I was not quite sure I could make a living out of it, I still loved to paint and draw, but it stayed as a hobby for a long time, there was not much work to be found back in Italy.

3) What would you consider to be your greatest strength as an artist? What about your greatest weakness? How do you overcome this weakness?
My greatest strength is something I have been told more than realized myself.
People often tell me that the people (fantasy or real) that I make a portrait of have eyes with a soul, they can communicate real emotions, which I think it is a good thing.
My weakness? I sometimes think I might not be anything special to stand out.
As for how I overcome my weakness, I try to listen to my heart and how it feels when I look at my art work, and I also listen to what other people feel about my work, see if they receive the message I was trying to put into it; sometimes we are our worse critic, but what’s more important to me is that my work makes someone feel something, even if it isn’t what I was trying to say, any interpretation is as valid.

Figurative Art is a bit like music, it can take people to their personal place and it does not matter if it is not the same as the one that inspired the artist, once it is out, it’s for everyone to see in it what they like. It’s not good to be stuck to your own interpretation.

Petrov

Petrov

4) Tell us about the places where you have lived. Have you ever derived any inspiration from your home or from anywhere you have visited?
I was born in Rome, Italy and lived there till i was twenty six, when I moved in Manchester, and after I had my daughter in 2009, I moved in Yorkshire.
I have visited many regions in Italy, Tuscany is one of my favourite and I spent a very long time in it, I found Prague very inspiring and Paris. I particularly enjoyed seeing The Impressionists in Jeux De Paume in Paris, because together with Caravaggio they are my favourite painters.
Being born in Rome has surely given me an input when it comes to the variety of Art I got to see live, but my favourite subjects are people more than places; I have however painted a scene which was inspired by ancient roman ruins, it is still one of my favourite paintings and my best friend has proudly hanged it in her living room, when I look at it I can almost smell the air of my home town.

5) What would you consider to be your greatest influence and inspiration?
I find my heart’s darkest places to be the greatest influence, pouring that darkness out has often helped me overcome the toughest times of my life.

6) What appeals to you about Vampires?
The are beautiful, immortal and merciless but some humanity still lingers in them. I like that battle behind their eyes: between their hunger and their feelings.

7) What do you think is the attraction for Vampires? Why are they such a popular topic?
I think there is something very erotic in them, and that battle I was talking about is often present in us humans. The instinct of our nature often battles against our feelings or our society conventions. I see my own struggles in them sometimes, I am sure many others do to.kiSS
And just imagine, being immortal and powerful, with great power of seduction, I think there is a lot to be attracted to.

8) In a fight between all the greatest Vampires of fiction, who do you think would come out on top?
Lestat: no one has killed him yet. He has been burnt, switched body, taken to Hell, taken to Heaven, loved, killed… he is around, as glorious as he has ever been.

9) What about in some other contest such as sexiness or dress sense? Who would win that one?
Dracula, from the movie Dracula 2000 by Wes Craven. I
have never seen a sexier vampire than the Dracula that walks in the Virgin
Store  in Dracula 2000. Gerard Butler totally got the sexiness of his character, even the Scottish accent suits him! Ok, I do have bias in this case tho…
Gary Oldman also did an amazing job as Dracula, the moment in the movie that he introduces himself to Mina is a total swoon, it is also my favourite Dracula movie, I have seen it more times that I can count and know it by heart.

 

10) How well do you think one of your characters would fare against the winner(s) of the above?
I am afraid my characters would not stand a chance between the most powerful and the most ancient vampire, but then again they would probably be willing victims. I think my characters secretly dream to be Lestat or Dracula’s eternal companion.

11) Tell us about your latest work.
It’s a vampire kiss, only the mouths are visible, are they gonna bite? Are they gonna kiss? There is a suspension there, open to everyone’s fantasy.

I also drew the characters from a novel called The Last Of The Blood, they don’t look particularly vampirish, but they are none the less vampires. I liked the story, written by Ninfa Hayes, and felt inspired.

Interview with Neelima Vinod

09 Sunday Jun 2013

Posted by in Guest posts

≈ 5 Comments

Tags

, , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,


Today we are back with Neelima Vinod, author of the recently released novella, Unsettled. Neelima was originally supposed to be contributing this interview to Vampire month but circumstances conspired and instead she sent us a piece of fiction. I promised her the chance to answer the Vampire month questions when her book finally came out and so here are her answers…70112929-019 copy

1) What is the earliest memory you have of writing? What did you write about?

I remember writing  letters to my grandparents on blue envelopes that doubled as writing paper. I wrote to them at great length about the things that I did and the books I was reading. I wrote poems a great deal as well. When did you decide to become a professional writer? Why did you take this step? After my sons were born. It’s been seven years since I made that decision. I had always chosen to do jobs that had a lot to do with language like editing, and literature, like teaching. But  it was not enough. I needed to write more. So I wrote for magazines and blogs. I worked on writing fiction and poetry that I would like.  I searched a long time for my voice. When I was presented with an opportunity to write a novella last year, it happened easily.

2) What would you consider to be your greatest strength as a writer? What about your greatest weakness? How do you overcome this weakness?

My strength has to be my love for poetry- that gives me a sense of rhythm when I write. The amazing part of the digital age is the immense access you have to poetry. Although poetry books are not flying off the shelves, there are archives and archives of good poems and readings. This ability to read almost any poem out there has opened my world.  My weakness is that I keep editing what I write. That slows my pace. What I try to do now is write continuously without being overburdened by the possibility of change. Yet I keep faltering….

3) Tell us about the place where you live. Have you ever derived any inspiration from your home or from anywhere you have visited?

Well my ebook ‘Unsettled’ is straight out of the place where my ancestors lived. The same hundred roomed house, no ghosts though! I’m romantically attached to Kerala in southern India,  especially my mother’s ancestral homeland. I visit Kerala often and  the images of the sunny green palm studded landscape seem to have seeped into my heart and mind.

4unsettled-200x300) Which book, if any, would you consider to be your greatest influence and inspiration?

Wuthering Heights is a book that I love- it’s the first book about haunted love that held my undivided attention.  The Victorian writers set the stage for the paranormal excesses that we see today.

5) What drove you to write about Vampires?

The story ‘Unsettled’ has a vampire seductress- what is called a yakshi in subcontinental literature. I grew up listening to stories about yakshis- my mother and grandmother are good story tellers. As they spoke about their lives, I lived those lives too and the idea of a yakshi appealed to me a great deal.  A yakshi is normally pictured as insensitive in stories and movies, though she is also worshipped in some parts. The female stereotype irked me a great deal- the idea seemed absurd that a beautiful woman would hang on a tree and devour innocent men who could not help being tempted by their delicious floral scent. The yakshi will make a night of it and then devour the innocent man and leave his nails and hair like trophies for all to see. Why is she so angry? I often wondered. So I decided that my yakshi would be less woman, though she is terribly attractive, and more human.

6) What do you think is the attraction for Vampire fiction? Why is it such a popular topic?

There are so many people in one person- a part of each of us is fascinated by negativity as it is as much a part of life as all things bright and beautiful. People read vampire fiction for thrills- it makes you feel terribly alive when you read it.

7) In a fight between all the greatest Vampires of fiction, who do you think would come out on top?

You can’t beat Count Dracula….he’s a precursor of all the fanged blood suckers that come after.

8) What about in some other contest such as sexiness or dress sense? Who would win that one?

I’m hoping Thathri, my yakshi would win that one Her kohl drenched eyes and lustrous hair give her a slight advantage.

9) How well do you think one of your characters would fare against the winner(s) of the above?

Well the Count may just get smitten by the yakshi…she’s far too seductive to ignore.

10) Tell us the basic premise behind your latest novel.

The story is about a search for love. When a couple who fall out of love go in search of the scrolls of love, they come face to face with a paranormal reality. A yakshi guards the scrolls at the hundred roomed house- she has been haunting the Big House for centuries. Although the book is about an outward search, it is a psychological drama of a seductress who is angry at the deck of cards called life she’s been given. The story goes back and forth in time- there is the present disillusioned Indian couple and there is a story that happened five centuries ago.  We all search for love but suppose our search is the very basis of the existence of someone else’s memory? What then? That’s what I wanted to talk about.

A few things here and there

05 Friday Apr 2013

Posted by in Musings

≈ Leave a comment

Tags

, , , , , , , , , , , ,


Well, Vampire Month is finally over and I have just got back from a brief holiday during which I had my birthday. It’s been a rather successful month with some great vampire writers contributing some really good articles on a range of subjects. In this first week of april, however, there have been a few things cropping up here and there which need to be shared.bookmarks

First of all, I was interviewed by Michael Brookes over at The Cult of Me blog. The interview went live yesterday and in it you can find out all sorts of things about me. Go over there and check it out. I talk about the first book I ever wrote which, thankfully, no longer exists save as a bad memory and a few other things.

Secondly, I have signed up for Authorgraph. This is a system which allows signatures to be added to ebooks. You can find Transitions on there by following this link: http://www.authorgraph.com/authors/areteus. Basically, you can click the ‘request authorgraph’ button and I will get a notification telling me you are wanting a signature. I can then choose to do this freehand (using a touchscreen or mousepad but be warned my ‘handwriting’ is terrible using a mouse…) or using a font. I can also add an inscription. You basically get a pdf of this with a picture of the book cover sent to you. This app seems to be a good way to fill a niche caused by the ebook revolution. I have heard many say that one thing you cannot do with an ebook is sign it. Now, I will not say that this is going to replace ‘signed copies’ in any way (I am not convinced, for example, that you will be able to sell the signed ebook copies for a greater value) but it is a step in that direction. It will be interesting to see how it works out over the next few years.

Scan this using your mobile phone and an appreopriate tagging app...

Scan this using your mobile phone and an appreopriate tagging app…

Finally, preparations for World Book Night are progressing. Myself, Ninfa Hayes (author of Bites), R.A Smith (author of Oblivion Storm), Ed Fortune (columnist for Starburst magazine) and Joy Phillips (upcoming debut novelist and organiser of innovative new LRP Fall of Vusoria) are getting together to give away free books to anyone in the Manchester area who wants to come and get them. We will be announcing a venue sometime soon (hopefully). It should be a good night and we have around 60 books between us to giveaway. As part of this I have decided to have some bookmarks made up and I have also sorted out a couple of QR tags so that people with mobile phones can scan them and quickly and easily buy a copy of my books in any ebook format. I am rather proud of the bookmarks, which I designed myself using elements of the cover for Transitions.

So, if you fancy meeting any one of us, getting any of our work signed or just want a free book, feel free to pop along on the 23rd of April and all of this will be possible…

[Guest Post] 5 Ways of Getting Good Information Cheaply

30 Wednesday Nov 2011

Posted by in Guest posts, Reaearch

≈ Leave a comment

Tags

, , , , , , , , , , , ,


This guest blog comes to us courtesy of Dan Clarke, who writes blog articles on how to do public speaking among other things. Here he talks about something which is close to my heart as a former scientist, a teacher and a writer – research and how to do it effectively without resorting to Wikipedia all the time.
5 Ways of Getting Good Information Cheaply
One big problem some writers have, is finding all the necessary details to make their story work. Most writers, I hope, have never been arrested, many can’t explain the newest computer programs in any great detail, and nuclear physics is beyond most peoples general retinue of skills.
So how can writers find the information for their stories or articles, without spending lots of money, taking a college course, or doing something illegal?
It’s actually fairly easy, if you use any of these 5 methods.
  1. Interview People
    Most people like talking about themselves, their jobs or their hobbies. When you need to know how something works, how a job gets done, or an interesting fact, look around your community and find people who can help.
    You’re planning a romance story involving firemen? Ask the fire department, if you can have an hour long tour and ask firemen how they do their jobs, what’s the most dangerous thing they’ve experienced and anything else you can think of.
    You want to learn about hacking into a computer for a mystery, go to the local high school or better yet, college or computer security firm, and ask for a basic idea of how to do it, along with any computer jargon you’ll need. They probably won’t give you step by step instructions, but it will be enough general information for most readers.
  2. Visit Museums, Schools, and Libraries
    If there is a museum nearby, consider visiting and asking the curators some questions. Museums are full of interesting facts and people that generally enjoy talking about them. When you have to know about ancient and not so ancient history, or technology and animals, call up the museum and ask if you can talk with an expert.
    Colleges and universities are like museums, although actually meeting the professors can be a bit harder. Either phone or send an email to the office that you need, be it history, sciences, math, etc, and politely ask if you could meet a professor. Be sure to explain what you need, and if its by email, provide a list of questions you will be asking.
    Reference libraries are another great resource, that are sadly underused. Most large libraries and all university libraries have reference librarians. These people, or computer systems in cheaper libraries, and point you in the right direction for various facts and statistics. All you have to do is ask.
  3. Volunteer, Learn By Doing
    If you live in a city or even a small town, you can learn a lot of useful things for your book by volunteering. You may just do it for a week, or you could do it on a full time basis, either way first hand experience can be vital to making a book seem real.
    If you want to know how an election is run, volunteer with a local political party you support, or at least like. You can watch how they plan meetings, get a bit of an insiders view of what is happening and its a good way to make new contacts.
    Want to know what its like to be homeless or a runaway, volunteer at a food bank or safe house. You can do some good for your community and learn how people survive on the street.
    For stories about actors, join a local acting group, even if you have no acting abilities you can see things from behind the scenes as you work the lights, make costumes or other things.
  4. Read Blogs and Forums
    Many people will post on blogs and forums about their trails and experiences at work, hobbies and life. If you spend a few days going over the various blogs and forums related to what you’re researching, you can find lots of useful information.
    Web forums can be even better than blogs, as you can ask questions directly, and often recieve useful answers.
    The important thing is to not just focus on one or two forums or blogs. You could easily get bad information, you need to back check and confirm through other forums, blogs and resources to make sure you have the right info. But simply knowing what to ask after reading a blog, is better than flailing around blindly.
  5. Table Top Role Playing Games
    Bear with me here.
    I’m a role player, I love table top games, and own many RPG books. Some of them, many of them actually, are inaccurate, unscientific and try for cool rather than accuracy.
    However there are a few RPG companies that focus on realism. Science fiction, military, and horror RPG companies often have a few books that deal with the realities of various era’s, sciences, tactics and groups.
    More importantly its done in an easy to read manner, that’s easily understood by laymen. So if you’re too shy, or unable to talk to experts, and don’t want to pay lots of money on thick reference books, buying a 10 or 20 dollar RPG book, that focuses on realism can be the answer.
If you’ve searched the internet, looked through the books on your shelves, and mined your family members for information, remember there are other sources of information. Get out and talk to people, do interviews, join groups and look in unexpected sources. Don’t rely entirely on easy research via Wikipedia and Google (use them at first then expand), do some footwork and get what you need.
Biography
Dan Clarke, is a teacher, freelance writer and occasional public speaker in Nanjing, with five years experience at finding information and faking being an expert. He currently blogs at Speaking in Public, providing information on public speaking from the very first step to the last.