Jesse Teller is mentally disabled. He suffers from PTSD from an abusive childhood. He is bipolar, suffers from daily to hourly hallucinations, and has DID (multiple personality disorder).
He has been a member of the self-published fantasy community for four and a half years now, has published fourteen books, with plans to publish countless more.
Jesse Teller is not a sane man. He has been declared mentally unfit and is a certified madman. This blog series is a glimpse into the way he sees a small handful of his peers and a look into his own mind. This is an excerpt from the third volume of his autobiography yet to be published.
He has been a member of the self-published fantasy community for four and a half years now, has published fourteen books, with plans to publish countless more.
Jesse Teller is not a sane man. He has been declared mentally unfit and is a certified madman. This blog series is a glimpse into the way he sees a small handful of his peers and a look into his own mind. This is an excerpt from the third volume of his autobiography yet to be published.
The Judge
She came into my life during the SPFBO contest. I have entered it two times, this year will be three. The blogger has Legends of the Exiles now. I have no idea what she thinks of it. She might love it. Might hate it.
Legends of the Exiles was the book that was never meant to be. See, there is a huge aggressive movement right now against men writing women. A lot of male writers have a big problem writing women. It is obvious from what they write. And those who are rabid about this topic are lumping all men into that group. The idea is that no men write female characters correctly. That idea is ludicrous. But when you are a male writer and someone says this and corrals you in with misogynistic writers you have to prove them wrong. I felt like I needed to defend myself. The only way I know how to do that is with my writing.
There was a bigger reason for the book’s creation of course. I loved the characters. The book is a collection of four novellas that all cross over each other. These four women had either not been touched on or had barely been touched on in the seven-book epic series they belonged in. They had been side characters. Other female characters had been more important to the story at large. So I desperately wanted to know the story of these four women.
I wrote Exiles as a cool down book after finishing the first act. After the attack on my sanity that The Great Hall gave me, I needed a fun book to write. This did not end up being fun.
Exiles dealt with issues women have to deal with every day. Sexual assault, dick pics, molestation, patriarchal society ruling over their freedoms. The intelligence of women being down played. The sacrifices a woman is forced to make for her family. All of these things and more are discussed and serve as themes for Legends of the Exiles. Every woman who has read it but one thought it was brilliant. Every man had issues with it. So, I call it a win.
I only mention Exiles when I talk about The Judge because she is a strong female and a bastion of women writers of fantasy. She is also a source of hope to me and a source of judgment. She is inspirational in her power and devastating in her ability.
I met The Judge through my wife’s reading of her book. She liked what she read and told me that this was one of “us.”
Us is the word I use for the writers who take their work very seriously. The ones who put money and time into the creation of the product they put out, and The Judge is that.
Her covers are amazing. Her books perfect quality. They are edited, beta read, edited again, read and reread to get them just right, because The Judge has been working on this project for a long time.
When she was young she started creating the world that she writes in. It took her decades to get the first book finished. See life gets in the way. It always does. Kids, work, marriage, schooling. Everything in your life will get in the way of your writing. Plus there is The Wall that you hit.
It happens at about page eighty for me. I am excited about the book and talking about it all the time. I have been waiting to write it for years and when I finally get to start it and leap head first into it, I am so psyched. But at around page eighty it becomes work. I am not as excited. I am far from finished, far from my trophy, far from any sort of accomplishment, and it becomes a chore to write for a long time. The words don’t come, the scenes seem to stretch on forever, and no matter how good a scene you have written you know there are still so many more to go.
The epic books I write have over eighty scenes. Over sixty chapters. There comes a point where I feel they will never be finished. But I have the time, I have the support. I have been given all the tools, and if I need more, I can always find them. I have every advantage. No job. Big slabs of time during the day.
The Judge had none of these things. So, chapter after chapter, page after page, over decades of time she pounded out this book. It never left her. She thought of it constantly. And she had to watch it bubble and hiss in her mind as she did the other things life expected of her and she ached for the time to pound it out.
Legends of the Exiles was the book that was never meant to be. See, there is a huge aggressive movement right now against men writing women. A lot of male writers have a big problem writing women. It is obvious from what they write. And those who are rabid about this topic are lumping all men into that group. The idea is that no men write female characters correctly. That idea is ludicrous. But when you are a male writer and someone says this and corrals you in with misogynistic writers you have to prove them wrong. I felt like I needed to defend myself. The only way I know how to do that is with my writing.
There was a bigger reason for the book’s creation of course. I loved the characters. The book is a collection of four novellas that all cross over each other. These four women had either not been touched on or had barely been touched on in the seven-book epic series they belonged in. They had been side characters. Other female characters had been more important to the story at large. So I desperately wanted to know the story of these four women.
I wrote Exiles as a cool down book after finishing the first act. After the attack on my sanity that The Great Hall gave me, I needed a fun book to write. This did not end up being fun.
Exiles dealt with issues women have to deal with every day. Sexual assault, dick pics, molestation, patriarchal society ruling over their freedoms. The intelligence of women being down played. The sacrifices a woman is forced to make for her family. All of these things and more are discussed and serve as themes for Legends of the Exiles. Every woman who has read it but one thought it was brilliant. Every man had issues with it. So, I call it a win.
I only mention Exiles when I talk about The Judge because she is a strong female and a bastion of women writers of fantasy. She is also a source of hope to me and a source of judgment. She is inspirational in her power and devastating in her ability.
I met The Judge through my wife’s reading of her book. She liked what she read and told me that this was one of “us.”
Us is the word I use for the writers who take their work very seriously. The ones who put money and time into the creation of the product they put out, and The Judge is that.
Her covers are amazing. Her books perfect quality. They are edited, beta read, edited again, read and reread to get them just right, because The Judge has been working on this project for a long time.
When she was young she started creating the world that she writes in. It took her decades to get the first book finished. See life gets in the way. It always does. Kids, work, marriage, schooling. Everything in your life will get in the way of your writing. Plus there is The Wall that you hit.
It happens at about page eighty for me. I am excited about the book and talking about it all the time. I have been waiting to write it for years and when I finally get to start it and leap head first into it, I am so psyched. But at around page eighty it becomes work. I am not as excited. I am far from finished, far from my trophy, far from any sort of accomplishment, and it becomes a chore to write for a long time. The words don’t come, the scenes seem to stretch on forever, and no matter how good a scene you have written you know there are still so many more to go.
The epic books I write have over eighty scenes. Over sixty chapters. There comes a point where I feel they will never be finished. But I have the time, I have the support. I have been given all the tools, and if I need more, I can always find them. I have every advantage. No job. Big slabs of time during the day.
The Judge had none of these things. So, chapter after chapter, page after page, over decades of time she pounded out this book. It never left her. She thought of it constantly. And she had to watch it bubble and hiss in her mind as she did the other things life expected of her and she ached for the time to pound it out.
Races and magic systems. Fantasy with a sci-fi element. More and more, the book showed her over the years, and more and more she waited and chipped away at that first book. She kept writing and she kept waiting and dreaming of the day she would finish it.
But no matter how many years she worked on it; she never gave up. She kept slicing and building, shaping and forming until she had her first novel done. She called it Blade of Amber. It was how she wanted it. It was ready. Now was the time to start the second.
But as she looked at the first and what she had done with it she was not happy. She did not like the final product.
This is where a writer will either pull the book and stuff it in a trunk or just let it fizzle out and become forgettable. This is where a writer pulls their book and slinks off. They give up. Every one of them does. Their writing career was a failed experiment. It is over.
But The Judge would not give up. The Judge does not know how to quit. She does not know how to drop the project she has been working on for so long. So she rewrote it. Reworked it. Jerked out everything she didn’t like about it, and when she had it perfect she rereleased it under the name A Wizard’s Forge.
More years of waiting and aching to get back to the keyboard as the next book boiled and hissed.
She wrote the second book in the series, A Wizard’s Lot and put that out too. Soon after its release she decided she wasn’t happy with it. So again she pulled it. She worked on it for years. Rewriting. Betas. Rewriting. Editors. Rewriting. More Betas. And after many years had gone by, she had a new book for a waiting world.
But this is not the end of the Woern Saga. So back at it. Chipping. Never given enough time to pound it out. She is working on it every chance she gets. Keeping her focus. Keeping her dream alive. Getting it out to beta readers. Fighting through their comments. Rewriting, polishing again, out to the editor, rewriting. The job never ends and The Judge never quits.
Encouraged by the reviews she is getting, encouraged by the things people say about her books, and more shaping and chopping. No one I have ever met has worked harder on a series. No one I have ever met has wanted it more.
A few lines here. A chapter there before life pulls her away again. The anticipation of the next writing session sits on her chest. The chores that need to be done to put out a great product never ending. And yet she loves her story so much, and she is so dedicated that she pushes it on. She works through days of compliments and encouragement. She works through days of silence when no one talks about her work. Nothing curves her love of her world and her character. Nothing dulls the need she feels to get the book out, the series finished. More when she can. She is the never-ending wave that slowly eats away the shore. She is the constant drip of water that cuts through the mountain.
The Judge does not stop. The Judge does not know how to stop. And my respect for her is higher than anyone else in the game. Anyone else in the community of self-published writers. Because there are so many things I cannot count on in my life. My mood, my alters, my bipolar, my hallucinations. So many things are wavering and inconstant. I have a few people to hold on to. And when I begin to lose my footing, I know that The Woern Saga will be finished.
It’s an odd thing to be encouraged by. But when your career starts off as slow as mine has, and you wrote for twelve years without any kind of recognition, then things like the constant of this sort of determination bring you peace and strength.
The Judge does not know that there are times when I feel the need to walk away. And she does not know how frustrated I get when the readers pass by my book. And she does not know that the reason I have not lost hope is because A Wizard’s Forge is out there. And after so many years of work the rewrite of the second book, now called A Wizard’s Sacrifice had broken free. Book two is out again. So much better and so much stronger than ever before.
That is all I need to know sometimes to come back to this board at page eighty-four. And keep typing.
But no matter how many years she worked on it; she never gave up. She kept slicing and building, shaping and forming until she had her first novel done. She called it Blade of Amber. It was how she wanted it. It was ready. Now was the time to start the second.
But as she looked at the first and what she had done with it she was not happy. She did not like the final product.
This is where a writer will either pull the book and stuff it in a trunk or just let it fizzle out and become forgettable. This is where a writer pulls their book and slinks off. They give up. Every one of them does. Their writing career was a failed experiment. It is over.
But The Judge would not give up. The Judge does not know how to quit. She does not know how to drop the project she has been working on for so long. So she rewrote it. Reworked it. Jerked out everything she didn’t like about it, and when she had it perfect she rereleased it under the name A Wizard’s Forge.
More years of waiting and aching to get back to the keyboard as the next book boiled and hissed.
She wrote the second book in the series, A Wizard’s Lot and put that out too. Soon after its release she decided she wasn’t happy with it. So again she pulled it. She worked on it for years. Rewriting. Betas. Rewriting. Editors. Rewriting. More Betas. And after many years had gone by, she had a new book for a waiting world.
But this is not the end of the Woern Saga. So back at it. Chipping. Never given enough time to pound it out. She is working on it every chance she gets. Keeping her focus. Keeping her dream alive. Getting it out to beta readers. Fighting through their comments. Rewriting, polishing again, out to the editor, rewriting. The job never ends and The Judge never quits.
Encouraged by the reviews she is getting, encouraged by the things people say about her books, and more shaping and chopping. No one I have ever met has worked harder on a series. No one I have ever met has wanted it more.
A few lines here. A chapter there before life pulls her away again. The anticipation of the next writing session sits on her chest. The chores that need to be done to put out a great product never ending. And yet she loves her story so much, and she is so dedicated that she pushes it on. She works through days of compliments and encouragement. She works through days of silence when no one talks about her work. Nothing curves her love of her world and her character. Nothing dulls the need she feels to get the book out, the series finished. More when she can. She is the never-ending wave that slowly eats away the shore. She is the constant drip of water that cuts through the mountain.
The Judge does not stop. The Judge does not know how to stop. And my respect for her is higher than anyone else in the game. Anyone else in the community of self-published writers. Because there are so many things I cannot count on in my life. My mood, my alters, my bipolar, my hallucinations. So many things are wavering and inconstant. I have a few people to hold on to. And when I begin to lose my footing, I know that The Woern Saga will be finished.
It’s an odd thing to be encouraged by. But when your career starts off as slow as mine has, and you wrote for twelve years without any kind of recognition, then things like the constant of this sort of determination bring you peace and strength.
The Judge does not know that there are times when I feel the need to walk away. And she does not know how frustrated I get when the readers pass by my book. And she does not know that the reason I have not lost hope is because A Wizard’s Forge is out there. And after so many years of work the rewrite of the second book, now called A Wizard’s Sacrifice had broken free. Book two is out again. So much better and so much stronger than ever before.
That is all I need to know sometimes to come back to this board at page eighty-four. And keep typing.
Author Bio: Jesse Teller fell in love with fantasy when he was five years old and played his first game of Dungeons & Dragons. The game gave him the ability to create stories and characters from a young age. He started consuming fantasy in every form and, by nine, was obsessed with the genre. As a young adult, he knew he wanted to make his life about fantasy. From exploring the relationship between man and woman, to understanding the qualities of a leader or a tyrant, Jesse Teller uses his stories and settings to study real-world themes and issues.
We are thrilled to be part of the #BardsAndScribes blog tour and you can read the previous stops over here:
19th October - The Druid over at Fantasy Faction
24th October - The Panda over at Grimmedian
26th October - The Gunslinger over at Lynn's Books
27th October - The Swashbucker over at Booknest
28th October - The Cannibal over at Fantasy Book Review
29th October - The Alchemist over at The Fantasy Hive
31st October - The Lunatic over at Weatherwax Report
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Order Sixteen Ways to Defend a Walled City over HERE
AUTHOR INFORMATION: K.J. Parker is a pseudonym for Tom Holt. According to the biographical notes in some of Parker's books, Parker has previously worked in law, journalism, and numismatics, and now writes and makes things out of wood and metal. It is also claimed that Parker is married to a solicitor and now lives in southern England. According to an autobiographical note, Parker was raised in rural Vermont, a lifestyle which influenced Parker's work.
FORMAT: Orbit published How to Rule an Empire and Get Away with It in August 2020 as a second book of The Siege series. It works as a standalone. The book is written in the first-person POV (via Notker) and counts 354 pages.
OVERVIEW: I don’t have to convince Parker’s fans to buy his books; they’ll do it anyway - even his weaker books beat most of the low fantasy published nowadays. How to Rule the Empire and Get Away With It is a loose sequel to Sixteen Ways to Defend a Walled City, but it works as a standalone. And it’s great.
Notker, a cynic, actor, and playwright has a knack for impersonating influential people. His acting skills and physique allow him to win the audience and make a living. Things get complicated when the enemy’s trebuchet kills Lysimachus, a venerated war hero. Without him, the city is doomed. It turns out Notker resembles him. A bit. He doesn’t have scars, and he dislikes blood and violence, but who cares. Definitely not the conspirators who coerce him into impersonating the hero.
Notker’s ex-girlfriend, Hodda, gets caught up in intrigue as well. To make matters more interesting, she used to date the real Lysimachus. Not to mention other influential figures. The pair gets tangled in a web of lies, and things escalate quickly. The Senate appoints Notker as Emperor and wants him to lead the war against King Ogus and his ruthless warriors. While Hodda plays an important role in the story, we stay in Notker’s head and POV. Like most of Parker’s protagonists, he’s no hero:
Me, I don’t care about the bad guys, so long as they keep the hell away from me. When they get too close in my face, I tell lies and run away. That means I’ll never be a hero, but I don’t mind that. I do character parts and impersonations.
Notker’s sardonic voice, and his cynically philosophical asides about life, love, and politics, charmed me. Despite his shortcomings, Notker makes do. He uses his wit and resources to ensure an exciting and surprising finale. I love Parker's use of tight first-person narration. It always makes me laugh, think, and brood over the condition of humanity.
Ah, the people. My countrymen, my fellow citizens, my brothers. Mind you, some of them are all right, when you get to know them. But a lot of them aren’t; and here’s a funny thing, because when you mix them together, the ones that are all right and the ones that aren’t, as often as not the resulting blend is far worse than the sum of its parts. Greedier, more cowardly, more stupid.
Parker conveys backstories through instant immersion into the everyday life of Notker, an actor turned Emperor trying to save the day against impossible odds. He has no illusions about his countrymen, but he’ll try to help them, anyway.
Nothing changes more often, more rapidly or more radically than the past. Yesterday’s heroes are today’s villains. Yesterday’s eternal truths are today’s exploded myths. Yesterday’s right is today’s wrong, yesterday’s good is today’s evil. And tomorrow it’ll all be one hundred and eighty degrees different, on that you can rely.
Much as I enjoyed Sixteen Ways to Defend The Walled City, I liked How to Rule an Empire and Get Away with It more. It feels tighter and Notker is easier to like than Orhan, even if there are a few moments where pacing could be improved. Still, this is a fantastic novel. Parker provides an immersive story with clever twists and uncomfortable truths about human nature and society in elegant yet utterly unpretentious prose.
One could argue that whole of Parker's oeuvre has the same general feel. That he writes only one character with the same fatalistic but humorous outlook on life. And yet, as a writer, he gets away with it because he does it so well and he always offers unexpected twists. How to Rule an Empire and Get Away with It is darkly funny and cheerfully horrific and I had a great time reading it.
I love epic fantasy with all its sword and sorcery, magic, castles and intrigue. As much as I enjoy the classic series I grew up with, I realize that the world changes and the way we tell tales should change with it. So as I continue writing my fourth epic fantasy series (Assassins of Landria), here are some things that I try to keep in mind.
Many readers don’t have the time or inclination to dive into massively-thick novels. While they’re home during the pandemic, they may be juggling working remotely, having more family at home all the time than usual, remote learning for children, or just the stressed-out attention span limitations of these trying times.
While some readers welcome immersing themselves in a really long book, others can’t muster the focus and concentration. That’s why my newest series, Assassins of Landria has books that are about half the size of my traditional epic novels. They’re lighter, funnier, with fewer points of view and interbraiding plotlines, and a smaller cast of characters. They’re also buddy-flick style, with a lot of banter. My goal was to provide epic feels without the epic length.
I also try to approach the cast of characters with a fresh eye. A lot of classic epic fantasy limits women to roles as wife, mother, servant, and paid companion. Yet the historical record shows that many women went to war, took up arms to protect their villages, and carved out roles for themselves beyond home and family. The same is true with LGBTQ and non-binary characters. Once again, history provides many examples of real people through the ages, figures who have been too often overlooked in the most familiar retelling but who existed and from whom we can draw ideas.
Since my study as a history major was Western European Medieval history and my own ancestry comes from that part of the world, my books’ fictional settings tend to resemble that area in topography, economics, political systems, technology, etc. But the historical record is clear that throughout history there were travelers, merchants, and others of many ethnicities present in Northwestern Europe, so the Middle Ages weren’t nearly as ‘white’ as our movies and TV shows tend to present. An ethnically varied cast of characters is actually more historically accurate.
At every age in history, there were people who held a range of views about social, cultural and political beliefs and actions that were common in their time. That includes topics like slavery, persecuting witches, forcing religious conformity, and abusing the power of a title, position or office. Showing characters who oppose such things, even if they are in the minority, is not retconning the past, but rather acknowledging that humanity has never been in full agreement on anything.
By diving deeper into real history and going beyond the broad-brush overview, we can find a much richer, varied and more interesting—and historically accurate/representative—source of inspiration than in turns keeps epic fantasy fresh and appeals to a broader group of readers.
What’s new? Plenty! Sons of Darkness (Night Vigil Book 1) and Inheritance (Deadly Curiosities Book 4) are now on audiobook. Monster Mash and Creature Feature are the newest Spells Salt and Steel books. Witch of the Woods and Ghosts of the Past are the newest in the Wasteland Marshals series, and Black Sun is the latest Joe Mack Adventure. Coming soon: Fugitive’s Vow (Assassins of Landria Book 3) and Reckoning (Darkhurst Book 3).
My Days of the Dead blog tour runs through October 31 with brand new guest blog posts, giveaways and more! You’ve got to visit the participating sites to get the goodies, just like Trick or Treat! Get all the details about my Days of the Dead blog tour at www.GailZMartin.com
Many readers don’t have the time or inclination to dive into massively-thick novels. While they’re home during the pandemic, they may be juggling working remotely, having more family at home all the time than usual, remote learning for children, or just the stressed-out attention span limitations of these trying times.
While some readers welcome immersing themselves in a really long book, others can’t muster the focus and concentration. That’s why my newest series, Assassins of Landria has books that are about half the size of my traditional epic novels. They’re lighter, funnier, with fewer points of view and interbraiding plotlines, and a smaller cast of characters. They’re also buddy-flick style, with a lot of banter. My goal was to provide epic feels without the epic length.
I also try to approach the cast of characters with a fresh eye. A lot of classic epic fantasy limits women to roles as wife, mother, servant, and paid companion. Yet the historical record shows that many women went to war, took up arms to protect their villages, and carved out roles for themselves beyond home and family. The same is true with LGBTQ and non-binary characters. Once again, history provides many examples of real people through the ages, figures who have been too often overlooked in the most familiar retelling but who existed and from whom we can draw ideas.
Since my study as a history major was Western European Medieval history and my own ancestry comes from that part of the world, my books’ fictional settings tend to resemble that area in topography, economics, political systems, technology, etc. But the historical record is clear that throughout history there were travelers, merchants, and others of many ethnicities present in Northwestern Europe, so the Middle Ages weren’t nearly as ‘white’ as our movies and TV shows tend to present. An ethnically varied cast of characters is actually more historically accurate.
At every age in history, there were people who held a range of views about social, cultural and political beliefs and actions that were common in their time. That includes topics like slavery, persecuting witches, forcing religious conformity, and abusing the power of a title, position or office. Showing characters who oppose such things, even if they are in the minority, is not retconning the past, but rather acknowledging that humanity has never been in full agreement on anything.
By diving deeper into real history and going beyond the broad-brush overview, we can find a much richer, varied and more interesting—and historically accurate/representative—source of inspiration than in turns keeps epic fantasy fresh and appeals to a broader group of readers.
What’s new? Plenty! Sons of Darkness (Night Vigil Book 1) and Inheritance (Deadly Curiosities Book 4) are now on audiobook. Monster Mash and Creature Feature are the newest Spells Salt and Steel books. Witch of the Woods and Ghosts of the Past are the newest in the Wasteland Marshals series, and Black Sun is the latest Joe Mack Adventure. Coming soon: Fugitive’s Vow (Assassins of Landria Book 3) and Reckoning (Darkhurst Book 3).
My Days of the Dead blog tour runs through October 31 with brand new guest blog posts, giveaways and more! You’ve got to visit the participating sites to get the goodies, just like Trick or Treat! Get all the details about my Days of the Dead blog tour at www.GailZMartin.com
Official Author Website
Order Blood & Honey over HERE
Read Caitlin’s review of Serpent & Dove
OFFICIAL AUTHOR WEBSITE: Shelby Mahurin
Order Blood & Honey over HERE
Read Caitlin’s review of Serpent & Dove
OFFICIAL AUTHOR WEBSITE: Shelby Mahurin
Official Author Website
Order After Sundown over HERE(USA) or HERE(UK)
AUTHOR INFORMATION: Mark Morris (editor) has written and edited almost forty novels, novellas, short story collections, and anthologies. His script work includes audio dramas for Doctor Who, Jago & Litefoot and the Hammer Chillers series.
FORMAT: After Sundown is 304 pages long and it contains twenty short stories. Published on October 20, 2020 by Flame Tree Press (a division of Simon & Schuster) it's available in an e-book and paperback format from most retailers.
Order After Sundown over HERE(USA) or HERE(UK)
AUTHOR INFORMATION: Mark Morris (editor) has written and edited almost forty novels, novellas, short story collections, and anthologies. His script work includes audio dramas for Doctor Who, Jago & Litefoot and the Hammer Chillers series.
FORMAT: After Sundown is 304 pages long and it contains twenty short stories. Published on October 20, 2020 by Flame Tree Press (a division of Simon & Schuster) it's available in an e-book and paperback format from most retailers.
With this anthology, Morris proves he has an eye for quality and his finger on the pulse of the horror genre. He has assembled a stellar line-up of some of the top names in the genre, as well as four new authors. After Sundown contains 20 original horror stories. While, officially, there's no common theme to the stories, I've found one. Most of them are gripping from the get-go.
I especially liked the opening story Butterfly Island by C.J. Tudor – it's fast, furious, and uncompromising. Set in the near future, it follows a rag-tag group of survivors looking for a haven on a seemingly deserted island. It's a horror anthology so it won't come as a surprise that things go wrong and people end up being blown up, sacrificed, and eaten. All in 19 pages! I loved the idea and the execution. And I want more.
Most of the stories are good reads in a disturbing way. Some dive deep into terror, some contain the supernatural and uncanny to further raise the stakes. Take Grady Hendrix, for example. In Murder Board, he plays with the Ouija Board theme. What if the board messes with people sitting over it and trying to send a subconscious message to the other? Expect unexpected.
Other standouts for me included Sarah Lotz’s That's The Spirit about a fake psychic who may not be so fake after all, and Ramsey Campbell’s creepy Wherever You Look that defies categorization.
After Sundown is a fine horror anthology. Filled with spine-chilling stories, it'll make your heart race nonstop. It proves horror has no boundaries. You can find it in both supernatural and non-supernatural stories. Highly recommended.
Official Author Website
Order Doctor Rat over here: USA/UK
OFFICIAL AUTHOR INFO: American novelist William Kotzwinkle is a two-time recipient of the National Magazine Award for Fiction, a Book Critics Circle award nominee, a winner of the World Fantasy Award, the Prix Litteraire des Bouquinistes des Quais de Paris, the PETA Award for Children's Fiction, and he wrote the narration for Michael Jackson's E.T. record which won a special children's Grammy.
FORMAT: Originally published in 1976, Doctor Rat won World Fantasy Award for Best Novel in 1977. It's 220 pages long.
OVERVIEW: I love animals. I've been vegetarian for twenty years, more than half of my life. I can easily enjoy epic battles and stories, in which humans suffer and die. But if you hurt a dog or a cat a rage ignites in me. I can't help it.
This book contains extensive and visceral scenes of animal experimentation and it pulls no punches. Whole species are destroyed. Despite using grotesque aesthetic and containing hilarious moments, it was a difficult read for me.
Kotzwinkle's imaginative fable features Doctor Rat, friend to man, and foe to all other species. Doctor Rat is an insane lab rat who revels in the despair and brutality of animal experiments. He's even composing songs in honor of gruesome experiments.
When animals start to prepare rebellion, Doc wants to squash it.
There's plenty of shifting perspectives in the book. The plot revolves around Doc Rat fighting against the rebellion, but we see parts of the plot told through the eyes of other animals and species. The ones near the end of the novel are heart-breaking and lyrical. Sentimental? Probably yes.
Obviously, there are oversimplifications and shortcuts in this book. Animals are beautiful, humans cruel and sadistic. The balance is off and the perspective is strongly biased. But it does deliver a message that can be interpreted in many ways.
Is it a life-changing book? I don't know. I've made plenty of adjustments to my life years ago and I do my best to minimize my negative impact on the environment. I guess, I still can improve in certain areas.
It's definitely a book that got more than one visceral reaction from me. It's devastating and powerfully written. It's a book that made me want to shout "To hell with Pacifism!" and build a bomb or, even better, hack a Death Star and wipe out all laboratories that experiment with animals from the face of the earth.
It's a brutal and maniacal satire. It's terrifying, heart-wrenching, grotesque, and sad. Usually, I plow through books like Duracell bunny on speed, but in this case, I had to make frequent pauses because it was a bit too much for me.
Official author website
Preorder Infernal over here: USA / UK
Thank you for agreeing to this interview. Before we start, tell us a little bit about yourself. Feel free to brag.
Well, when I’m not at work or writing (yes, writing is work but I meant the day job kind) I’m usually out walking, reading, gaming online, or eating. Food and drink bring me great joy and I might well have been a hobbit in a previous life. I live in southeast London with my wife Liz.
When and why have you decided to become an author?
The idea that maybe I could actually write something that someone else would like to read only really took hold about eight years ago. I’ve always been a big fan of the fantasy genre and helped run a book review blog for a few years which helped demystify the process.
How old were you when you first sat down to write a fantasy story or novel?
About eight years younger that I am now! I’d dabbled with stuff before then, but mostly as background fluff for D&D and similar games that I was playing. The first time I sat down with the idea to write an actual continuous novel length story was late 2012ish, and it took me just over a year to finish it. That first attempt was a mess, but an invaluable learning experience.
Tell us a little bit about your writing process. When and where do you write? Do you start with a character, an image, or an idea? Talk a little bit about how a novel “grows” for you.
I work full time, so I had to make a conscious decision to carve out a time for myself. When it comes to writing, I start with the seed of the idea and try to expand on it. More often and not what I think is a cool idea is more like a cool scene. It has to be able to stand up to what I call the ‘And then?’ test. If it survives that, I’ll do a rough outline and start fleshing out the main character until I can get a sense of their ‘voice’.
How often do you write? Do you have a set schedule for writing, or are you one of those who write only when they feel inspired? Do you aim to complete a set number of pages or words each day?
I discovered that I prefer writing early in the day, so I get up that bit earlier and park myself in the (incredibly supportive) Costa near my office for at least 45 mins before office hours, every weekday and with a target of 500 words. I know I should be saying ‘every day’, but life does intrude! Having that routine does help and I try and stick to it no matter what, but if I can’t, I try and make it up another time to hit my 500. It’s an achievable target, so never feels too daunting, and I get a buzz out of beating it.
What’s the hardest thing for you during the whole “writing experience”?
The self-doubt/impostor syndrome. No matter who you are, there’s a point where you just look at the manuscript and convince yourself it’s utter rubbish and destined only for the recycle bin. It’s like a runner hitting ‘the wall’ mid-race.
What did you find easy, difficult, or surprising about the publishing process?
Firstly, that the people within the industry are generally a great bunch. However, I found the pace that things move at a bit hard to understand at first, which may just be a by-product of the nature of my day job. The wheels turn, but at their own inexorable pace!
What was your initial inspiration for The Chronicles of Stratus series?
A Youtube clip of a family at a zoo. They were clearly on a day out and were at the tiger enclosure, trying to get it to react. The tiger wanted to get to them so badly, and they just stood there eating snacks and laughing at it, and I just really felt bad for it.
You originally published Infernal in 2016. Is the republished version exactly the same or was the story tweaked in any meaningful way?
It’s largely the same manuscript, except that this time it’ll be followed by the rest of his story.
What unique challenges did this book pose for you, if any?
It’s written in a first-person point of view, which has its own challenges. I could only tell the story from Stratus’ perspective, which meant that I had to be well and truly inside his headspace, which was a bit of a rollercoaster given his inhuman nature.
If you had to describe Infernal in 3 adjectives, which would you choose?
Fresh, gory, and darkly humorous.
Could you briefly tell us a little about your main characters? Do they have any cool quirks or habits, or any reason why readers will sympathize with them?
Stratus is a conflicted character- he knows he isn’t human, and he knows he’s being hunted, but he doesn’t know what he is, who’s chasing him, or why. The world that it’s set in isn’t a friendly one, and despite his strengths, he’s actually quite vulnerable.
A tricky question - the main characters in any book are commonly considered a reflection of the author. Is this true in Infernal?
I reserve my right to remain silent on that one!
Infernal is dark and violent but also darkly hilarious. I loved your grim humor and Stratus’ lack of social graces as it added levity to the narrative. In your opinion, what’s the place of humor in dark fantasy? How exactly would you describe the tone of Infernal?
I’m glad to hear that! I think that humour definitely has a place in fantasy, and beyond. It’s always been part of the human coping mechanism, even if it’s sometimes very subjective and a product of the circumstances people find themselves in. The real difficulty comes in striking the right balance and keeping it true to the setting. Stratus was a great foil simply because he is so utterly different to whose sensibilities he offends.
Would you say that the Chronicles of Stratus series follows tropes or kicks them?
I like to think it gives them a bit of a kicking. Nothing too serious, maybe a bruised rib or two. Tropes should like a good glass of wine, complimenting the meal but not overpowering it.
Alright, we need the details on the awesome cover. Who's the artist/designer, and can you give us a little insight into the process for coming up with it? How does it tie to the book?
I like that Rebellion have used the same studio, Head Design, that did the original cover so they had the original notes and background to the story to hand. There are a number of factors they had to take into account, but I think they really knocked it out of the park. Each element ties into something within the story and brings it all back to Stratus and his struggle to understand himself.
What’s your publishing Schedule for 2020/2021?
As at today’s date, Infernal is on schedule for publication in November, with Firesky to follow in Spring 2021. If you like the cover for Infernal, you’re going to love Firesky’s!
Do you have any other authorial goals that you are striving towards that you want to talk about?
Up to now, getting Firesky into print and telling the rest of Stratus’ story was my number one goal. I’m currently working on another project for Rebellion but also have a few really fun ideas I’d like to tackle, including venturing into Horror territory.
Can you name three books you adore as a reader, but that make you feel inadequate as a writer/in awe of the craft?
I’m a big fan of Tolkien and his vision first and foremost so I’ll put Lord of the Rings down as one. Raymond E Feist’s Magician blew my mind the first time I read it, and I read it again last year and it did it again.
David Gemmell’s Druss the Legend definitely takes pride of place alongside them.
Can you please provide an out-of-context quote from the book to get readers pumped to read Infernal?
“How in god’s name do you accidentally eat someone?”
Finally, can you tell us a couple of fun facts about yourself that are not already available on the internet?
I make my own sausages, and am terrified of karaoke.
Thank you so much for agreeing to this conversation, Mark! We greatly appreciate your time and thoughts.
No problem, it was a pleasure!
Monday, October 12, 2020
The Invisible Life Of Addie LaRue by V. E. Schwab (reviewed by Caitlin Grieve)
Read Lukasz's review of The Invisible Life Of Addie LaRue
OFFICIAL AUTHOR WEBSITE.: Victoria “V.E.” Schwab
OFFICIAL AUTHOR WEBSITE.: Victoria “V.E.” Schwab
Official author info: After leaving his ball and chain at the workplace, Yaroslav Barsukov goes on to write stories that deal with things he himself, thankfully, doesn’t have to deal with. He's a software engineer and a connoisseur of strong alcoholic beverages—but also, surprisingly, a member of SFWA and Codex (how did that happen?). At some point in his life, he’s left one former empire only to settle in another.
Format: Tower of Mud and Straw is a serialized novella published by Metaphorosis (read or listen to part 1 here, for free). The book will be available in e-book and paperback editions in February 2021.
Overview: Minister Shea Ashcroft had a good, successful life. If only he were a spineless careerist, he could enjoy it for a long time. And we wouldn’t read about his adventures. Refusing his queen’s order to gas a crowd of protesters got him banished to oversee the construction of the biggest anti-airship tower in history.
To make the progress and keep the tower stable, its builders use mysterious Drakiri technology. Some have no issue with it, others are afraid of it. Shea’s queen sees the tower as her legacy while Drakiri believe it’ll end the world. Shea’s assignment gets dangerous and emotionally taxing. Someone wants him dead. His love life gets complicated. Everyone around has secrets. Memories he’d rather erase hunt him. He has to travel to the origin of the species. All of that in four acts.
The characterization here is superb, with all the players distinct and well-written. The story, divided into four acts, feels complete and well thought out. Sure, fans of detailed world-building will crave more context, but we get more than enough to enjoy the story, anyway. Barsukov finds a good balance of plot and subplot and weaves a few storylines in the narrative. We learn a lot about Shea’s past, his current situation, and motivations of secondary characters without having to get through their excessive backstories. I found relationships between characters engaging, although I also found the romance lacking in the build-up and emotional truth.
The story tackles themes of discrimination, cultural differences, and destructive politics and does it with sensitivity. The narrative alternates between introspective moments, revelatory of character and place, and dramatic action and intrigue. It doesn’t strike a perfect balance, but it’s close to it. Barsukov’s prose is elegant and restrained without being fussy or lifeless. I found his action sequences suspenseful, and Shea’s introspection deep and convincing.
Tower of Mud and Straw is a fine example of a novella format - it tells a complete, well thought out story, in less than 200 pages. I wouldn’t mind learning more about Drakiri and their technology or getting more insight into cultural differences, but I’m satisfied with what I got.
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