Meet Jesamine James!

I first met Jes in April 2013, on the authonomy website. One of the first to welcome me there, she took the time to read (and enjoy) Ratpaths, even though she's not into fantasy.
I read her book, Scrag - Up the Hill Backwards, in turn. Or maybe it was the other way round. What the hell, it doesn't matter. What matters is her book.
With carefully chosen words, Jes lets you experience a part of her life - a life none of us would wish for, and few would have survived. Jes lived to tell the tale: gritty, gripping and brutally honest, but still filled with hope and an unyielding love for life. The result is one of those rare books everyone should read at least once.
Thank you, Jes.





That's her, or as much of her as she wants the world to see: 




I went and asked her a few questions. She answered. Here's what she had to say:

Who are you?

Jesamine James. Author of Scrag – Up the Hill Backwards and a few other tales that haven't been published yet.

Where are you?

I am currently in the real world, as I've been banned from much of Cyberworld recently.

How are you?

“I'm fine, but I always say that.” - And clever enough to throw in a quote from my book.

Why did you write Scrag – Up the Hill Backwards?

This is a tricky question, as there are at least three answers that immediately jump to mind.

Firstly, I wanted to bring awareness to teachers, parents and other child carers of some of the signs of child abuse. Not the usual stereotypical signs, but the more extreme reactions that some children display. My hope was that someone will recognise a problem and intervene in some way.

Secondly, I wanted to warn potential paedophiles and child abusers of a few things they might want to consider before embarking on a grooming campaign. Such as, the anger and retribution the child will carry for all their life, the fact that the child will grow up one day and be out of their control, that the abuser will spend his life looking over one shoulder with the knowledge that the child/adult could, at any time, walk into a police station and be believed.

Thirdly, to get it all out of my head. Now it's in a book, I can put it on a high shelf, leave it there and have a clear mind.

Is there a song you would associate with your book?

It has to be David Bowie's Up The Hill Backwards. Well it's in the title, after all.

All the chapters are David Bowie song titles, so you could listen to a wide variety of tunes while reading the book.

What are you currently working on?

I've got a lot of first drafts and unfinished stories. I haven't found my genre yet. I like to write what can best be described as weird, shocking and thought provoking fiction. I can fit into most genres, Sci fi, comedy, crime, psychological, even children's fiction. I mix genres too, which makes me very hard to label. I don't care to be labelled though.

I avoid writing and reading Erotica and Romance. I'm too cynical and they make me pukey.

My next book is a novella and I can't tell you much about it without spoiling the plot.

Why are you a writer?

I've always written articles, letters and read and reviewed other people's work.

The turning point was while I was the Landlady of a pub. A customer asked me why I worked so hard and whether I really enjoyed the long hours and the brawls. I said I did, but I think he could tell by my face that it was wearing me down.

A few days later he brought me in a book called The Dice Man by Luke Rhinehart which I read, taking on board what it was subliminally telling me.

Then the guy asked me what I really wanted to do.

I told him I wanted to be a writer.

Soon after, I received a fountain pen as a present and the rest is history.

So at this point I would like to thank both Luke Rhinehart and the very attractive Irish fella who changed my life.

What is your favorite book of all time?

It has to be Hero of the Underworld by Jimmy Boyle.

I read this book at a bad time in my life when I was contemplating going to the police.

I loved the story, but the ending made me mad. I was so disappointed with it, but realised that I was going to spend my life feeling the same disappointment about myself.

Within a day or two of finishing that book, I walked into a police station and my own Biographical novel will tell you the rest.

Who is your favourite author?

That'll be Roald Dahl and I'm not talking about his children's books.

He's written many adult books, short stories and those that were used for The Tales of the Unexpected TV series.

Some of his stories are so clever and you don't see the ending coming. Others you can dwell on for hours afterwards before you hit on a deeper meaning.

Isaac Asimov is another favourite. I love all old science-fiction. Those written in the '40s and '50s fascinate me with their foresight. It's only nowadays that they can really, truly be appreciated.

What is the stupidest question you've ever been asked?

Would you like a drink?

Click here for more information about Scrag - Up the Hill Backwards

Meet Kyra Halland!

That's her:

Well, no. Obviously not. Kyra is a real human being. This is just her cartoon self. Let's take it as a clue that she's rather cute but wants to stay incognito.





That's the book Kyra wants to talk to us about:

                                             Looks like fantasy romance, doesn't it?
                                                  That's because that's what it is.


Now, Kyra...tell us all your secrets...

Who are you?

I am Kyra Halland, author of dark-edged tales of fantasy and romance.

Where are you?

I live in southern Arizona with my husband, younger son (our older son has been out on his own for several years now), and two cats.

How are you?

I'm really happy to be featured here! I'm also working hard on a couple of different novels: The Lost Book of Anggird, which I'll be releasing later this month, and the sixth book of my fantasy-western series, Daughter of the Wildings, and having lots of fun with them.

Which book do you want to talk about? Tell us briefly what it is about.

My current novel is Chosen of Azara. It's a cross-generation tale of the destruction of the beautiful land of Savaru and the quest to restore it to life. It's also a romance between Sevry, the last king of Savaru, and Lucie, the woman who unknowingly holds the key to bringing Savaru back to life.

Why did you write it?

I usually get my story ideas as images of characters that appear in my mind. For this story, I got an image of a young woman alone in the forest who sees a vision of a man she doesn't know. Then, some time later, the man appears at her home, looking for her. I put this idea into a world I was building, where magic comes from Sources, or various natural features such as caves, rivers, ocean coves, mountains, etc. I thought it was a very tragic and romantic story, set in this really cool world, and I loved writing it.

Tell us about your main character. What does he/she look like, love, hate, dream of? What qualities/flaws/principles does he/she have?

There are actually three main characters in Chosen of Azara. 

Juzeva is a princess of Savaru who is married to a prince of the enemy Madrinan Empire in an effort to ensure peace between their lands. But she is betrayed, her land is destroyed, and she disappears, taking the secret of Savaru's survival with her. She is young, and like all Savarunans, black-haired, blue-eyed, and fair-skinned. She is dedicated to the service of the magical Source Azara, and it breaks her heart to have to leave her Source to marry the foreign prince. She is entrusted with the key to renewing the land and Sources of Savaru, and her entire purpose becomes to protect that secret and her daughter, who will inherit the secret after her.

Sevry is Juzeva's nephew. After the royal family is mostly destroyed, he becomes king of Savaru, but he is unable to save his land and people. He is twenty-three at the time his people are destroyed, and with the aid of magic he sets out on a quest that lasts for centuries to find one of his aunt Juzeva's descendants, who can restore the land.

Lucie is a sheltered young noblewoman, the daughter of a baron in Ceryria. She has curly red hair and is very pretty. She freckles easily, which she doesn't like! She loves to be outdoors in the woods, where she can sense the magic that lives there. She is looking forward to her marriage to a young baron, Estefan, and to the beautiful home that will be hers. When a strange man appears, telling her she has to come away with him to help him restore a land that was destroyed centuries ago, she doesn't want to go. She has to go through a very difficult struggle to choose between what she wants, what her family wants for her, and what she knows is the right thing to do.

If you could make up your own genre for this book, what would it be?

Epic fantasy romance, or epic romantic fantasy. It's fantasy and romance in equal measure, and you couldn't take either of those out of the book and still have it work.

Is there a message in your book? Do you want your readers to take something home?

I think a message in all my books is the importance of honor, of doing what's right even though it's hard, and also the importance of family, and how love can make you into a stronger and better person.

What are you currently working on?

Like I mentioned above, I'm working on a few different projects right now. 

The Lost Book of Anggird, which will be released later this month, is an epic fantasy with a strong romantic storyline. It's the story of a professor of magic who is searching for a solution to why the magical power in the land where he lives is deteriorating. He goes too far in his research and causes a terrible magical disaster, and discovers that everything that's been taught about magic for centuries is a lie. He and the woman he hired to translate ancient books for him embark on both a romantic relationship and a quest to discover the true origins of magic and restore magic to its original, unbroken state.

A second novel, Sarya's Song, is out with my beta readers right now. It's set in a world where magic is worked through music. Sarya is a skilled musician who is in disgrace after a musical wedding ritual she wrote went terribly wrong. The world is falling apart, and Sarya finds herself torn between the man she's had a love-hate relationship with since they were teenagers and a beautiful but dangerous man in chains who appears to her in her dreams, telling her that if she will sing him free he can stop the disasters that are threatening to tear the world apart. Right now I've got it scheduled for release in February of 2014.

Finally, I'm writing the 6th and final book in a fantasy-western series, Daughter of the Wildings. Non-magical people have fled from the mage-dominated land of Granadaia to the unsettled Wildings to escape from the oppression they suffered in Granadaia. Silas Vendine, mage and bounty hunter, has come to the Wildings to hunt for renegade mages. Lainie Banfrey is a young woman born in the Wildings who is both terrified of and fascinated by her developing magical powers. Silas and Lainie team up to stop a renegade mage who has driven Lainie's hometown nearly to the brink of war and end up falling in love. Through the rest of the series, their relationship grows as they hunt down other renegades and uncover an evil conspiracy that threatens the freedom of the Wildings and everyone who lives there. The world is inspired by the American Old West of the late 1800s, but it's also definitely a fantasy world. Right now, the plan is to start releasing the Daughter of the Wildings series in the spring of 2014.

Which target audience do you write for? What do you think makes your book especially appealing for that audience?

I write for adults who love a good fantasy and a good love story, where the characters have to face lots of trauma and difficulty and hardship, that looks into the dark corners of life and human nature, but that has an uplifting overall message about the importance of honor and doing the right thing and the power of love, and a happy ending.

Want to find out more about Kyra? Go visit her on Facebook, her own website and Goodreads, or buy her book on Amazon.

Meet Margo Bond Collins!

Why? Because she writes books. And from what I've seen of them, they're pretty hilarious.

That's her latest release:
When Dallas resident Callie Taylor died young, she expected to go to Heaven, or maybe Hell. Instead, she met her fate early thanks to a creep with a knife and a mommy complex. Now she's witnessed another murder, and she's not about to let this one go. She's determined to help solve it before an innocent man goes to prison. And to answer the biggest question of all: why the hell did she wake up in Alabama?

And that's Margo: 

Now, let's see what she has to say...Hello Margo!

Who are you?

Margo Bond Collins, an author of paranormal mysteries and urban fantasy. In my other life, I’m a college professor; I teach English courses online.

Where are you?

In Texas, with my husband, my daughter, and several silly pets.

How are you?

I’m doing especially well today; my first novel, Waking Up Dead, was just released by Solstice Shadows Publishing!

Which book do you want to talk about? Tell us briefly what it is about.

My new release is Waking Up Dead. When Callie Taylor died, she expected to go to heaven—or maybe hell. Instead, when she was murdered in Dallas by some jerk with a knife and a bad-mommy complex, she went to Alabama. Now she’s seen another murder, and she can’t just let it go; she must find a way to make sure the police figure out who really killed Molly McClatchy before an innocent man goes to prison, all the while trying to determine how and why she woke up dead in Alabama.

Tell us about your main character. What does he/she look like, love, hate, dream of? What qualities/flaws/principles does he/she have?

Physically, Callie, the ghostly protagonist of Waking Up Dead, describes herself like this:

When I looked down at myself, I saw just me, wearing the clothes I’d worn the day I died. Black slacks, gray button-down shirt, black leather jacket, medium-heel black boots. Casual professional. When I’d managed to cast a reflection in the mirror, I’d still looked like me. Medium-toned skin, green eyes, dark wavy hair to my shoulders.

She’s basically a light-hearted person, despite being in a terribly strange situation and having experienced pretty much the worst things possible. She befriends Ashara, a young African-American woman who is one of the few people who can see and hear Callie. Ashara’s outspoken grandmother Maw-Maw encourages the two of them to work together to solve the mystery of a local woman’s death.

If you could make up your own genre for this book, what would it be?

It’s a paranormal mystery—there’s no other term for it!

Is there a message in your book? Do you want your readers to take something home?

I didn’t realize until after I had finished writing the book that it was so very much about the continuing effects of racism in our world. The Deep South setting made that issue easy to address, but it’s certainly not an issue that is limited to the South. I don’t know if there’s a take-away “message,” precisely, but I do hope the book reminds readers that we’re all just people.

What are you currently working on?

I’m currently working on sequels to Waking Up Dead and Legally Undead and I’m writing a paranormal romance novel. I’m also editing collections of academic essays on the television shows Farscape, Teen Wolf, The Vampire Diaries, and Supernatural.

Why are you a writer? Were you born to be one, did it just happen, was there some moment of epiphany...?

I’ve always wanted to write. For as long as I can remember, I have made up stories. When I’m driving (which I find immensely dull), I amuse myself by making up characters and figuring out ways to make their lives difficult. The first story I remember writing was basically fan-fiction of The Wizard of Oz. I wrote it in long-hand in a yellow legal pad. I’ve been writing ever since.

Do parts of you shine through? Are some characters like you, or friends, or family?

Absolutely! The feisty grandmother Maw-Maw in Waking Up Dead is actually largely based on a combination of my own grandmother and great-grandmother--the only real difference is that they were white and from Texas rather than black and from Alabama. Otherwise, she talks like them and acts like them. It's my great-grandmother's voice I hear in my head when I write her dialogue, my grandmother's movements I see when I picture her walking around. Physically, I imagine her looking a bit like Ruby Dee in the television movie version of The Stand. But her attitude? That's straight from my own family!

The rest of the characters are something like that, too—a combination of various people I’ve known or met or seen, all mashed together into something as close to a real person as I can get.

Who is your favorite author?

There are too many to list! I tend to have lists of favorite authors according to genre and to time period. But at the moment, here are a few: I love books by Neil Gaiman, Lois McMaster Bujold, Faith Hunter, Stephen Graham Jones, Ilona Andrews, Carrie Vaughn, Richelle Mead, Rachel Vincent, Holly Black, Janny Wurts, Jennifer Estep, Rachel Caine, Patricia Briggs, Janet Evanovich . . . and those are just the ones who come to mind immediately!

If you could have a superpower, which one would you choose?

I’d have the ability to slow time down, so maybe I could get everything done!

Now, if you want to find out more about Margo, you can visit her on Facebook, Goodreads, her own website, Twitter or Google +. Or simply go and buy her book on Amazon.