Character Creation by Victor Arteaga – Guest Blog and Giveaway

This post is part of a virtual book tour organized by Goddess Fish Promotions. Victor Arteaga will be awarding a $15 Amazon or Barnes and Noble GC to a randomly drawn winner via rafflecopter during the tour. Click on the tour banner to see the other stops on the tour.

Character Creation

Coming up with, fleshing out, and developing a character is one of my favorite parts of writing fiction because I love character-driven narrative. I’m going to illustrate my process by breaking down how I created the main character of Unrest, Aless.

Appearance

I’m a visual learner, so it helps when I have a good sense of what my character might look like. I start with a broad idea like hair color, skin color, eyes, body shape, height, and so on. I get narrower once I have the big picture. I knew I wanted Aless to be South American, so I went with curly black hair, dark tan skin, dark brown eyes, and she’s pretty short. I googled some images of Peruvian women and created an amalgamation of those images in my head. Once I had a good grasp on what she looked like and where she was from, I was already developing some great ideas for her backstory. Which brings us to…

Personality

This is where I think a lot of people fall into a black hole and focus on minor quirks like, “What does your character like for breakfast on Sundays when they’ve already had coffee but not food?” and they take over what I believe should be the focus of making a living character. This is also where the practice of writing what you know is the most important. Because Aless was the first character I created, I used a lot of myself in her. That doesn’t mean I gave her my story, but I infused a lot of my own faults, drives, and wants into her. What’s that look like? I’m telling on myself a bit but she’s passionate to a fault, emotional, driven, and stubborn. Now that I’ve told you that, I’m willing to bet you’ve got a better feel for who she is. The quirks my characters have tend to come through more in editing phases when I can start to add more detail to create a full mental picture for my readers and after I’ve put them through the paces of the story. A lot of habits are borne when people are young, and so it is with my characters.

Backstory

Spending an exorbitant amount of time on Aless’ backstory is another pitfall that I fell into early on. I researched everything. I knew she was going to be from Peru because I used to live in Lima when I was a kid. But she’s from Chiclayo. So, I google mapped the city to get a feel for what it looked like, and even talked about it with an old friend who still lives in Lima. The truth is, though, it didn’t wind up mattering all that much. What did matter were the more intimate parts of her backstory. Where were her parents, who was she close to, what happened to her? How did her personality play out with those around her? I drew from my own experiences here again. When I was a kid, I was close to my cousins when we moved to Florida after having lived in Peru. So, I created Grisela, who is her polar opposite best friend. Aless’s aunt raised them both but was resentful for having to do so. How did that play out? We know Aless is passionate, emotional, and stubborn. I know from experience that resentful authority figures don’t handle strong-willed children well. So, we have someone who grew up in an unhappy home, had a cousin who allowed her to feel love, had an authority figure but no parents, and has a strong, fiery, passionate will. The only thing missing was, Who does she love romantically? For Aless, that’s other women et voila. Once I got all of this sorted out it was easy to place her in the world I built. Her personality and how she feels at any given time gave me a lot of different avenues to pursue her path to the main story. It also built a template for answering other questions about how she might interact with other characters.

Final Thoughts

It’s important to remember that not every character will start out the same and you might not have the exact process I do – which is great! However, I am of the firm belief that the fundamental part to writing a well-rounded character is to home in on the biggest questions of what makes them who they are and answer them. I didn’t plan out every character in my stories in the same way, but I can tell you the biggest things that make them tick. I can tell you why Nate joined the military, why Evelyn wanted to be a cop, and why Barrett chose to be the leader of The Daybreakers. Given what you know about Aless, I think you could likely figure out why she was drawn to a group of misfit rebels. Once I know what makes them tick, the rest comes easily.

Fun Tip

If you’re bored or stuck on a certain part of character creation, try having a character interview another! I did that with one of my characters and even though the scene didn’t make it into any book (I tried, but shoehorning it in just wasn’t working) it helped me iron out one of my villains quite well and practice some other writing techniques. Give it a shot!

Remembrance Day is just an excuse for vampires and humans to throw themselves a parade. They like to pretend they did us werewolves a favor. But I guess it’s not all bad. I do get cheap booze, live in an underground lunar city, which some would find cool, and I am employed. Sejanus Industries isn’t a benevolent corporate ruler, but they’re the devil I made a deal with. My life is quiet and mostly non-violent but one message from my cousin could cause me to lose everything I’ve sacrificed for my peaceful life.

Enjoy an Excerpt

Abandoned hope thickened the air as people streamed between polished stone pillars that fronted this house of false promises. Equity and justice for all were laughable concepts the powerful wielded to fit their will and whim. The sky drizzled and misted enough to be cold, damp and miserable. Its gray cloud cover blunted the vibrant colors of the sparse, yet immaculate landscaping, and the wet air smothered the flowers’ sweet fragrance. I trekked past the throngs of caged miscreants as a lone wolf would pass through a swarm of rodents. The weight of my misdeeds forced my shoulders low, lined my mouth, and left my gaze fierce and steady. Guilt over leaving the cousin who called me sister slowed my steps. Betrayal of my chosen family left the bitter taste of regret on my tongue. Lady Justice, the sullen patron saint of my temporary home, was painted and carved on every available surface. We were told the cloth around her eyes meant Justice was blind and fair. But I know now she didn’t mask her eyes to symbolize the blindness of her virtue. Justice wasn’t blind. She just couldn’t bear to see the truth.

About the Author:Victor Arteaga is a writer of science fiction, fantasy, and paranormal stories. Though he’s always been an avid reader, his dream to be a writer was jump-started when he got sober in March of 2015. What began as an exercise to keep his sobriety billowed into a deep and unbridled passion to create. His experiences with addiction and being a first-generation American from immigrant parents inject a flavor of unique authenticity to his characters and worlds that he creates. His imagination is given free rein to conjure worlds and experiences on the page which enthralls and captivates readers.

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Ten Things You Probably Don’t Know About Me and My Books By Gail Z. Martin

This post is part of a virtual book tour organized by Goddess Fish Promotions. Gail Z. Martin will be awarding a $25 Amazon or Barnes and Noble GC to a randomly drawn winner via rafflecopter during the tour. Click on the tour banner to see the other stops on the tour.

Ten Things You Probably Don’t Know About Me and My Books

I’ve been writing epic and urban fantasy for over a decade, and I’ve been a guest at a lot of conventions, logged a lot of panel time, posted a lot out on social media, and I’m pretty active in fandom. But I’m betting there are at least a few things you might not know.

#10 I can play the piano. Not as well as one might expect given how long I took lessons, but tolerably so.

#9 My day job before I started writing full-time was running marketing departments.

#8 I have an MBA in Marketing, which also explains why I’ve always been very involved with helping to get my books into the world.

#7 My first paying job was as a graveyard-shift DJ at a local radio station.

#6 I like roller coasters and theme parks.

#5 I love Chinese food.

#4 I also write urban fantasy MM paranormal romance as Morgan Brice

#3 All of my urban fantasy, as Gail or Morgan, crosses over, so the characters all know each other.

#2 Assassins of Landria is my fourth epic fantasy series, and it’s designed to be different with shorter books and more humor for a ‘buddy flick’ feel!

#1 I can promise there will be six books in the Assassins of Landria series, since the audio contracts have already been signed!

Buddy flick epic fantasy! The second in the Assassins of Landria series from the award-winning, bestselling author of Scourge: A Novel of Darkhurst and The Chronicles Of The Necromancer books!

Wandering mystic Yefim Makary, known to his followers as the ‘Witch Lord’, disappeared before he could be accused of inciting dissent against King Kristoph. His supporters among the disenchanted aristocrats who weren’t arrested have fled or died by their own hand. The king is happy to put the matter behind him. Yet Burke, the commander of the elite King’s Shadows, doesn’t believe the threat is over, and he assigns his two most troublesome, rule-breaking—and successful—assassins to ferret out the real threat and put a stop to Makary’s plots.

Joel “Ridge” Breckinridge and Garrett “Rett” Kennard rose through the ranks of the Landrian army together, from teenaged conscripts to seasoned fighters. Together, they became the most feared team of assassins in Landria, surviving longer that most in their profession by virtue of excellent fighting skills, legendary bravado, peerless strategy, and an uncanny synchronicity.

As the threads of a new plot come together revealing disloyalty among the priests and generals, Ridge and Rett once again find themselves on the run, hoping they and their allies can figure out the Witch Lord’s latest scheme before it costs them their lives—and the king his throne.

Enjoy an Excerpt

The trick, when setting off gunpowder, was to be far enough away.
Ridge had never been good at that part.
He’d almost reached the embankment when he heard the shot from Rett’s matchlock. Knowing what was about to happen next, Ridge dove into the ravine, taking his chances with brambles and thickets over flying rocks and shattered glass.

Behind him, the country manor exploded in a fireball as Rett’s shot touched off the barrels of gunpowder on its roof. That would bring down the ceiling and blow the bombers on the roof sky high while trapping the traitors inside, where they’d either be killed by the blast or buried in the rubble for the king’s guards to collect.

Ridge grunted as he tumbled over roots and rocks, tucking his arms over his face and trusting his leather cuirass to take the brunt of the hits. Even so, rock dust settled like snow over the whole area, and small bits of stone pelted like hail.

To keep it all official, Ridge had nailed the letter of marque to a tree in front of the manor, after he had ensured that no one but the smugglers were inside the abandoned country house. The smugglers—and their rivals on the roof—were already in the process of setting explosives when Ridge and Rett arrived to carry out the assassination. That was a bonus, killing two sets of troublemakers in one swoop and without the personal danger of getting close enough to throw a knife or slit a throat.

He trusted Rett to stay in position, where he would be able to pick off stragglers from his vantage point high in a sturdy tree. Ridge dragged himself to his feet, brushed off the worst of the dirt, and climbed back up the slope. Once he got to the top of the embankment, he would have a good view to spot anyone who might have escaped the explosion and eluded Rett’s aim.

“Damn,” he muttered when he reached the top and saw the results.

About the Author: Gail Z. Martin writes epic fantasy, urban fantasy and steampunk for Solaris Books, Orbit Books, SOL Publishing, Darkwind Press, and Falstaff Books. Recent books include Witch of the Woods, Sellsword’s Oath, Inheritance, and Night Moves. With Larry N. Martin, she is the co-author of the Spells Salt & Steel, Wasteland Marshals, Joe Mack and Jake Desmet series. As Morgan Brice, she writes urban fantasy MM paranormal romance including the Witchbane, Badlands and Treasure Trail series. Recent books include Loose Ends and Unholy.

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Carson of Venus: The Edge of All Worlds by Matt Betts – Spotlight and Giveaway

This post is part of a virtual book tour organized by Goddess Fish Promotions. Enter to win a physical copy of the paperback of Carson of Venus: The Edge of All Worlds (continental US only). Click on the tour banner to see the other stops on the tour.

Carson of Venus is back in the first novel of groundbreaking Edgar Rice Burroughs Universe series!

When a mysterious enemy attacks his adopted nation of Korva, Earthman Carson Napier discovers his own arrival on Venus years ago may have unknowingly triggered the strike. The invaders’ trail of death and destruction leads Carson and his beloved princess Duare headlong into battle against a seemingly invincible, primordial race. But that is not Carson’s only challenge, for an uncanny phenomenon has entangled him with two strange individuals from beyond spacetime. Will Carson be able to solve the mysteries of his past and the enigmatic visitors before the entire planet descends into chaos?

Also includes the bonus novelette “Pellucidar: Dark of the Sun” by Christopher Paul Carey, introducing Victory Harben, the ERB Universe’s newest heroine:

The very principle of physics behind the Gridley Wave has mysteriously failed, cutting off all communication between the hollow world of Pellucidar and the outer crust, and now inventor Jason Gridley must seek help from his brilliant young protégé, Victory Harben. Together they recover timeworn records from deep in the ruins of a dead Mahar city, hoping to use knowledge of Pellucidar’s former reptilian overlords to jumpstart the Gridley Wave. But when their experiment goes terribly wrong, Jason and Victory suddenly find themselves drawn into the inscrutable machinations of an ancient evil.

THE FIRST UNIVERSE OF ITS KIND

A century before the term “crossover” became a buzzword in popular culture, Edgar Rice Burroughs created the first expansive, fully cohesive literary universe. Coexisting in this vast cosmos was a pantheon of immortal heroes and heroines–Tarzan of the Apes, Jane Clayton, John Carter, Dejah Thoris, Carson Napier, and David Innes being only the best known among them. In Burroughs’ 80-plus novels, their epic adventures transported them to the strange and exotic worlds of Barsoom, Amtor, Pellucidar, Caspak, and Va-nah, as well as the lost civilizations of Earth and even realms beyond the farthest star. Now the Edgar Rice Burroughs Universe expands in an all-new series of canonical novels written by today’s talented authors!

Enjoy an Excerpt

“My liege, let us take you to your quarters,” Lisant Or said, moving to the jong’s side. “If one of our nearby towns is under attack, there may be a danger to Sanara as well. We must get you to safety.”

Taman was having none of it. “Nonsense,” he said. “Carson, can you get us to Jovita swiftly?”

“Absolutely,” I said. Jovita was one of the closest settlements to Sanara, but it still lay nestled near a valley some half an hour away by air. “The anotar we arrived in should still be flight-ready out on the landing strip,” I went on, “and my personal craft is waiting inside the hangar near that. We could take a few people with us, but not many.” My anotar was designed to hold only a pilot and one passenger, though I knew we could squeeze in one more safely. The other anotar was a little more forgiving; meant to hold four in comfort, it might allow for another two or three passengers before the added weight would be a detriment to lift and velocity.

The jong said, “I will go with you and Duare.”

“Very well,” I replied. Unlike Lisant Or, I knew better than to suggest that the jong remain behind in safety.

Copyright © Edgar Rice Burroughs, Inc. All rights reserved. All logos, characters, names, and the distinctive likenesses thereof are trademarks or registered trademarks of Edgar Rice Burroughs, Inc. Used by permission.

About the Author:

Matt Betts worked for years in radio as an on-air personality, anchor and reporter. His fiction and poetry have appeared in numerous journals and anthologies. His work includes the steampunk novel, Odd Men Out, urban fantasy crime novel Indelible Ink, and his recent cryptid/horror novel White Anvil: Sasquatch Onslaught. His current release Carson of Venus: The Edge of all Worlds continues a series begun by Edgar Rice Burroughs.

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Buy the book at the publisher or Amazon.


A look behind VENGEANCE OF GRIMBALD by Richard Hacker – Guest Blog and Giveaway


This post is part of a virtual book tour organized by Goddess Fish Promotions. Richard Hacker will be awarding a $25 Amazon or Barnes and Noble GC to a randomly drawn winner via rafflecopter during the tour. Click on the tour banner to see the other stops on the tour.

A look behind VENGEANCE OF GRIMBALD

Battling evil through time and death.

Six hundred years after a fifteenth century scryer gains the alchemical knowledge to create a dark future in his own image, Addison Shaw inherits a destiny: to fight this ancient war that threatens all he loves with extinction. Using an alchemical pen, he writes himself into past lives, leaving his body in the present. Upon completion of his mission, he must die in order to break the link and return home. Addison, and his inking partner, Jules, are members of the League, a secret alchemist society of Inkers who protect the time continuum. They believe they defeated their enemy, Cuthbert Grimwald, known to them as Kairos. When he resurfaces filled with vengeance, intent on destroying the League, and acquiring the Alchimeia, a book of such power the League has hidden it for millennia, Grimwald leaves a path of destruction across centuries. As he quests for absolute control of reality, Addison and Jules pursue him through time and death in a desperate struggle to save the world from his vengeance.

You might wonder where a story like this comes from. People who know me would say a twisted mind. LOL. But actually, it started with a fountain pen. I was holding a fountain pen one day and my mind wandered to the power of words. Human beings have been naming things since the beginnings of language. It’s how we find our place in the world and in some cases I think, gives us a sense of control. Or at least the illusion of control. So, what would happen if a character had a pen filled with alchemical ink that when he wrote the name and a date for someone living in the past, his consciousness would be transported into that person? What would he do with that astounding capability? And as with most technology, what if someone decided to use the alchemy to acquire power and control time itself? How would the protagonist fend off this attack on the time continuum and reality as he knows it? And then I put the fountain pen down, pulled out the laptop, and started writing.

The story goes all over the world, past, present, and future such as ancient Egypt; 19th century Alexandria; WWII Belgium; an altered present day Seattle and Tokelau Atoll in the Pacific; 1940’s Padang, West Sumatra; 17th century Delft, Dutch Republic; and Cromwell’s England. As the story in Book 2 unfolds the time continuum once again shifts, sometimes with subtle changes and sometimes with radical shifts in culture and technology. And my characters have to play on this multi-dimensional chessboard. So, I’m sure you can imagine, I had to be structured to the point of working from an outline and making notes to myself at the end of each writing session to keep me oriented.

But what drives a story are characters. I think you’ll find the protagonist, Addison Shaw, to be both an interesting and a complicated guy. He has a deep guilt and sense of responsibility for the death of a girlfriend when he rolled their car on a mountain road in a snowstorm. He carries the scars of that night, emotionally and physically with a damaged knee requiring him to use a cane to walk. He went from school athlete to disabled loner. As the story progresses, he will face even greater challenges and will have to find a way to heal himself enough to move forward. He’s also a bit of a smart ass, a little compulsive, more shy than he’d like you to think, and willing to act even when he’s terrified.

His partner, Jules, takes more center-stage in VENGEANCE OF GRIMBALD. She is a strong character, well-grounded, with a burning desire to seek justice for the murder of her parents, who were also inkers in the League, by Kairos. Unknown to her, she has died in one continuum, to exist in another. Given that a relationship can be challenging in one-time dimension, her relationship to Addison, who has known her in each, becomes complicated.

In in the fantasy world, many of the books lean toward fantastical world building far from our own reality. The Alchimeia Series has its feet on the ground, anchored in the actual. There’s a sense that, even though the story is fantasy, the speculative and historical elements feel very possible. I once heard Ken Burns say the attraction of professional baseball is that you can watch in the stands and think you can actually play the game. But of course, it takes tremendous skill to hit a 95 mph fastball. But it sure is fun imagining the possibility! In VENGEANCE OF GRIMBALD, readers can realistically imagine they could do the things these characters are doing. It seems possible. Which I think is an important message in our day and time. When life looks hopeless, when everything seems to be turned upside, the people who make a difference are not superheroes, but people like you and me, people who persevere in spite of the odds and do the best we can.

Thanks for having me on the blog and thanks readers for dropping in today.

BTW, I don’t have a trailer for Vengeance of Grimbald, but I do for Die Back and it’s a good visual introduction to the series. You can find it here.

Addison and Jules, members of the League, a secret alchemist society of Inkers who protect the time continuum, believe they defeated their enemy, Cuthbert Grimwald, known to them as Kairos. When he resurfaces filled with vengeance, intent on destroying the League, and acquiring the Alchimeia, a book of such power the League has hidden it for millennia, Grimwald leaves a path of destruction across centuries. As he quests for absolute control of reality, Addison and Jules pursue him through time and death in a desperate struggle to save the world from his vengeance.

Enjoy an Excerpt

“You’ve done well my friends. A bit of a shaky start, but in the end, I am pleased with the result.”

Jules glanced to Addison, who was also pulling himself up to stand. “What are you talking about? You could have killed us.”

“If I wanted you dead, we wouldn’t be talking.” Boggy raised his hands as if to parry their blows. “Today’s lesson is partnership. Do you see?”

Addison slowly rotated an arm with a grimace. “Keep talking.”

“Inking is a dangerous enterprise. You find yourself in a foreign world in an earlier time, often fighting to survive long enough to complete your mission. But the physical dangers of inking do not hold a candle to the emotional and psychological dangers. Your consciousness, the essence of your being, occupies the mind of another. With each passing moment, a small part of who you are slips out of your grasp unless you master the relationship between Inker and host. You must die to live, right? But all living creatures naturally gravitate toward life and away from death. The world of an Inker is therefore a paradox of conflicting realities. Without a partner, you struggle alone against insurmountable odds. Partners have each other’s backs, keeping the hosts alive and the mission viable. And upon completion, partners ensure their hosts die. Because we never leave an Inker behind. Never.”

About the Author:Richard Hacker, lives and writes in Seattle, Washington after living many years in Austin, Texas. In addition to the science fiction/fantasy novels of The Alchimeía Series, his crime novels ride the thin line between fact and fiction in Texas. Along the way, his writing has been recognized by the Writer’s League of Texas and the Pacific Northwest Writers Association. As a judge in literary contests shuch as PNWA and ChicLit, and as a freelance development editor, he enjoys the opportunity to work with other writers. In addition, he is the Sci-Fi/Fantasy editor for the Del Sol Review. DIE BACK was his first novel in the Alchimeia series.

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Books by Richard Hacker are available at Amazon

The Alchimeía Series

DIEBACK: Book One

VENGEANCE OF GRIMBALD: Book Two

Other books by Richard Hacker:

Nick Sibelius Crime Series

KILL’T DEAD OR WORSE
BUZZARD BAIT
ALL HAT AND NO CATTLE



The Making of an Epic Fantasy Writer by Paddy Tyrrell – Guest Blog and Giveaway

This post is part of a virtual book tour organized by Goddess Fish Promotions. Paddy Tyrrell will be awarding a $20 Amazon or Barnes and Noble GC to a randomly drawn winner via rafflecopter during the tour. Click on the tour banner to see the other stops on the tour.  The book is only $0.99! Buy it at the links at the end of this post.

The Making of an Epic Fantasy Writer
Writing an epic fantasy is not for the faint hearted! Your first challenge is the length, with each book the equivalent of 1 ½ to 2 books in other genres. That doesn’t just mean it takes longer to write, but it is more unwieldy to edit and costs considerably more for any external services.

The next challenge is the complexity of the plot, the characters, and the world they live in, but this is also the fun part. Let’s take a look at some of the key elements involved in this type of fantasy writing:

Firstly, there has to be some imaginary system that does not exist in real life. That can be magic and sorcery but also could be fantastical creatures, or perhaps characters, animals, or objects with special powers. For example, in Lumina there are snow-wolves and dragons, a light-star and a golden race created by sorcery. When I created monsters like the Slitherns, I used inspiration from nature. I researched the ugliest fish in the sea, the strangest insects, and the most deadly reptiles in the hope that a few of these would spark ideas for my own fantastical creatures.
Another challenge is building the setting for your story: how the world looks, what the inhabitants are like, how the society and power structure works. The latter is particularly important for upping the stakes and giving depth to the story. There are two conflicting powers and societies in Lumina. One, Lumina itself, is sophisticated and civilised, governed by reason not magic; the other, Kuhla, is brutal, barbaric and controlled through tyranny and sorcery. Some fantasy authors love the other aspects of world-building – what people wear, the flora and fauna, the buildings and so on, but I find this less appealing, partly because I don’t want to slow down the pace of the adventure with too much description.

Of course adventure is key and, like all genres, conflict on many levels is essential to create that adventure and to ensure enough complexity in the plot. Epic fantasies like Lumina normally involve a series, with each book a great read on its own but with a large-scale overarching conflict that runs through the series.

And what about characters? To create an epic you need a large cast of characters and you will normally want to write from multiple points of view. Managing to interweave plot lines and different character viewpoints without confusing the reader is essential. There are three main ‘good’ characters and three ‘evil’ ones in Lumina, but each with their own weaknesses and strengths, as well as minor characters on either side of the equation.

So to be a fantasy writer you need to be comfortable with complexity, to love adventure and to have a strong visual imagination to bring your fantasy world alive.

A generation designed by sorcery to destroy your people. Two races mired in conflict. Can a pair of outcasts unite them against an enemy who would enslave them all?

The birth of ‘bronzite’ babies in Lumina heralds the onset of war. The people take fright at the golden children and banish them from the land. A dangerous move. King Zheldar, commander of the black dragon, is attacking Luman borders. If he wins bronzite support for his army of monsters, Lumina is lost.

Davron Berates cannot share his people’s hatred of the children and, on discovering he has a bronzite brother, sets out to find him. At his side travels Chrystala. A bronzite, she has twice his strength and three times his determination.

When the black dragon kidnaps Chrystala, Davron is faced with a terrible choice: save his friend or save his nation.

Enjoy an Excerpt

Jaldeen strode towards an ancient font at the far side of the tower and opened wooden shutters in the wall behind it. Leaning out, he checked the platform outside for any decay. It looked solid enough and he stepped over the windowsill and walked to the center. He cupped his hands around his mouth and spelled a summons, his voice a rasp of vowels that floated on the damp air. He ducked back inside. There was a thrash of wings and the tower shuddered. Xeralith, black dragon of Kuhla, had answered his call.

Any fleeting sense of power deserted him in the terror of her presence. She was as old as the moss that ate the castle walls. Evil had putrefied her beauty, her once crimson scales stained black by Rach’s corruption. She thrust her head through the opening in the wall. Bony nodules covered her upper jaw and the dark armor plating of her head. Steam belched from her nostrils.

Jaldeen ran and hid behind the font, clinging to the carvings of the demons that served his god, as though they could protect him. He averted his face from the scalding droplets. Xeralith’s breath, heavy with malevolence, contaminated the air with the stench of burning metal and rotten meat. Stomach heaving, Jaldeen forgot to maintain his shield. Her eyes swirled and she locked her gaze on his. Trickles of flame erupted through teeth that could rip him in two. He lost control of his limbs and fell. She lunged at him and he scrambled back, his heels banging on the stone floor. The horns on her sinewy neck snagged against the outer wall and pulled her short. She screeched in frustration.

About the Author:I was raised in Kent, the garden of England, and lived in an Oast House whose round rooms were once used for drying hops. Must be why I’ve enjoyed a drink ever since!

At university, I fell in love with medieval French writing, discovered The Gormenghast Trilogy, and became hooked on fantasy.

I have sailed down the Yangste, survived an earthquake in Cairo, and picnicked in the Serengeti. My travels for work and pleasure have inspired my fantasy world. I now live in France with a naughty Australian Labradoodle, a jealous cat and a squash mad husband. Our two huskies, Ice and Sapphire, are sadly now gone but are transformed into wolves and immortalised in my book. Lumina is my debut novel and the first in a trilogy.

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Buy the book for only $0.99 at Amazon, Amazon UK, or Amazon FR.


FEED YOUR READER – Spotlight and Giveaway

Staying home to stay healthy? Looking for things to do?  Reading is always one of our favorite ways to pass the time, so let us help you keep busy.

Here’s a great way to fill up your eReader and save money, too!

Click on this link: http://www.goddessfish.com/promo/feed-your-reader-bargain-books/ to find books in your favorite genres that are currently only $0.99 or maybe even FREE and feed your reader!!!

Do you like romance?
We have it!
Do you like mysteries?
Yep, we have that too!

There’s also a chance for you to win a $25 Amazon/BN GC – check out the Rafflecopter at the end of the post.


Making a Make-Believe World Believable by Jamie Marchant – Guest Blog and Giveaway


This post is part of a virtual book tour organized by Goddess Fish Promotions. Jamie Marchant will be awarding a $25 Amazon/BN GC to a randomly drawn winner via rafflecopter during the tour. Click on the tour banner to see the other stops on the tour.

Making a Make-Believe World Believable

Fantasy literature transports you from the mundane world into the strange and the magical. How does it do this? By making that world believable, in its setting, its use of magic, and in its characters. To transport you, the fantasy world must be as complex and rich as reality. While I don’t like works that give long lectures on the history and geography, a sense of both must be present in the fantasy world—this sense preferably arising naturally from the needs of the plot and unfolding bit by bit. For example, in The Goddess’s Choice the way we learn about the longstanding animosity and history of warfare between Korth and Lundia is through the king’s pressure on the crown princess Samantha to marry. King Solar believes her marriage is necessary to maintain the fragile peace between the joined kingdoms. The history and culture of the joined kingdoms flow from and enhance the story’s central conflict.

Magic is an essential element of fantasy; yet to be believable, any system of magic must be both consistent and limited in scope. When the limitations on the wizard or sorcerer are clearly established, tension builds as he or she must work within those limits. The existence of magic doesn’t allow the writer to cheat. My hero’s Robbie’s magic lies in the ability to connect to the mind and body of another. It only works on living things. He can’t suddenly have the ability to warp metal even though that would be convenient. The use of his magic also depletes him physically, so he must be wise in its use. His strength is also his vulnerability.

For me, the most important element in creating a believable fantasy world lies in the characters. A believable world must be peopled with believable characters. In reality, few people are without flaws, but few are so bad that they have no redeeming qualities. Fantasy characters must be equally complex. Heroes must not be completely virtuous, and villains at least need sound motives for their villainy. Robbie is burdened with anger, and Samantha is headstrong and somewhat insensitive. On the other hand, Argblutal believes (with some justification) the throne is rightfully his and that he’d be a better king than a eighteen-year-old girl. When I read a novel, if I can believe a writer’s characters, I can forgive other inconsistencies with the work, but if I cannot believe the characters, nothing else the writer does can redeem the story. Depth of character is the key to believability in the make-believe world of fantasy.

“Magic, love, hate, torture, heroes, and a story that will never stop blowing your mind!” Cheree~For Love of Books

The three volumes of The Kronicles of Korthlundia plus The Ghost in Exile: A Korthlundian Kronicle brought together for one low price. In addition to the novels, the collection features several bonus short stories, previously available only to members of my readers’ club.

The Goddess’s Choice–In a world where the corrupt church hides the truth about magic, the fate of the joined kingdom falls on the shoulders of two young people from opposite ends of the social hierarchy.

Crown Princess Samantha’s life begins to fall apart when she starts seeing strange colors around her potential suitors. She fears that she’s going insane–or worse that she’s defying the Goddess’s will. Robrek is a lowly farm boy with incredible magical powers. He has been biding his time waiting to get revenge on those who call him a demon.

Thrown together by chance, they must overcome their differences to fight their common enemy Duke Argblutal, who, with dark magic, is slowly poisoning the king’s mind and turning him against his own daughter. Time is running out for those chosen by the Goddess to prevent the power mad duke from usurping the throne and plunging the joined kingdoms into civil war.

The Soul Stone– A match made by the goddess is threatened by an Ancient Evil.

As Samantha and Robrek prepare for their marriage and coronation, they are met with opposition on all sides. Not all believe that the peasant sorcerer is worthy to be king, and the young couple must perform delicate political maneuvers to prevent the joined kingdoms from breaking apart.

As the church splits over opposition to their union, an unseen force is poised to release an ancient evil that was last defeated a thousand years ago. When the Soul Stone is broken free of its bonds, all life in its path succumbs to its power. How much will the new royal couple have to sacrifice to free the joined kingdoms of its evil?

The Ghost in Exile—A special Kronicle outside of the series that tells the story of Darhour. The novel takes place at the same time as The Soul Stone. The Ghost is going to hell. Not even the goddess can forgive his sins: assassin, oath-breaker, traitor (an affair with the queen earned him that title). No one can ever learn the princess is his daughter. To keep this secret, he flees to the land that turned him from a simple stable groom into an infamous killer.

His mission now? To find evildoers and take them to hell with him. But when an impulsive act of heroism saddles him with a damsel who refuses to be distressed, her resilience forces him to question why he really ran from his daughter.

The Shattered Throne– Queen Samantha’s spirit brightens as the festival of renewal approaches. The Ancient Evil that drained life from the land has been destroyed, and life is returning to the joined kingdoms. The birth of her heir gives her even more reason to celebrate. But a coup orchestrated by the unlikely alliance between a freedom-loving count and a fanatical church shatters both her plans and the ancient throne itself.

With her infant daughter missing and death and destruction spreading, Samantha finds herself faced with an impossible choice: save her daughter or her people. Already torn between a mother’s love and her duties as a queen, Samantha learns that an even greater danger threatens: the goddess herself is fading. What sacrifices will Samantha have to make to stop an evil god from taking Sulis’s place?

Enjoy an Excerpt

He returned to the horses, loaded the supplies on Wild Thing, and rode in silence to the abandoned stable. Robbie led the horse inside. When he lit the lantern he kept there, he let out a whistle of amazement. The horse was a bronze-colored mare that looked more like it was forged out of metal than living flesh! But the horse’s impossible color wasn’t the only thing that struck Robbie. Sores spotted the beast’s body; puss and blood oozed from under the saddle. The horse’s coat was matted with dried blood. Her ribs stood out in stark detail. How could anyone neglect a horse so badly? “Where could you have come from, girl?” Robbie could feel a wail building up inside the horse, so he hurried to take the armor and other equipment off her back, unsaddled her, and removed her harness.

“I don’t think you’re a demon. But I don’t know what you are. By the look of the armor you must have been some knight’s lady. But what happened to him? Sores like these don’t form overnight. If he’s still alive, he obviously doesn’t deserve a lady like you. So how about it? Will you be my lady?” He paused at the sound of his own words. Milady. “I had a lady once. For one day, that is. My brother didn’t approve—I’m sure he wouldn’t approve of you, either.”

About the Author:Jamie began writing stories about the man from Mars when she was six, and she never remembers wanting to be anything other than a writer. Everyone told her she needed a back up plan, so she pursued a Ph.D. in American literature, which she received in 1998. She started teaching writing and literature at Auburn University. One day in the midst of writing a piece of literary criticism, she realized she’d put her true passion on the backburner and neglected her muse. The literary article went into the trash, and she began the book that was to become The Goddess’s Choice, which was published in April 2012. Her other novels include The Soul Stone, The Ghost in Exile, The Shattered Throne, and The Bull Riding Witch. In addition, she has published a novella, Demons in the Big Easy, and a collection of short stories, Blood Cursed and Other Tales of the Fantastic. Her short fiction has also appeared in the anthologies Urban Fantasy, Of Dragons & Magic: Tales of the Lost Worlds, and Waiting for a Kiss. She claims she writes about the fantastic . . . and the tortured soul. Her poor characters have hard lives. She lives in Auburn, Alabama, with her husband and five cats, which (or so she’s been told) officially makes her a cat lady. She still teaches writing and literature at Auburn University. She is the mother of a grown son.

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The Portal to Thenitiwan by Ada Stone – Spotlight and Giveaway

This post is part of a virtual book tour organized by Goddess Fish Promotions. Ada Stone will be awarding a $10 Amazon or B/N GC to a randomly drawn winner via rafflecopter during the tour. Click on the tour banner to see the other stops on the tour.

Over 9,000 years ago, an ancient spiritual energy leaks through a link in time entering Thenitiwan, destroying the barrier between the past and future. The spirit enters a host or Hawopas to block the portals spiritual gravity through carnal energy of a living body to survive.

Over the centuries, a powerful civilization called Sagerowa emerges knowing that history favors the rise and death of great nations throughout time. Sagerowa eventually gained control of the gateway and entered future eras and destroyed them to weaken them and sought to freeze their era in time forever.

Many years later in the midst of the tension of the nation’s most recent war, Joie tries to return home with the assistance of Xuca who escorted her to safety. Xuca however is unable to look after her and be loyal to his goals and let her go as a priority. She soon finds comfort and resolve in a stranger named Keogx from the pain of missing the soldier she felt had her back and unknowingly more parts of her heart.

Enjoy an Excerpt from Book One:

Joie walks off the bus and stands on the sidewalk and watches as the bus takes off. It was a nice ride but she knew it was time to stop somewhere—even if in a remote, unfamiliar area. Then she turns away from the road and stared at the open terrain. She didn’t know where she was headed but knew she did not want to return. “I have no friends to leave behind,” she also thought to herself. Now that she was all alone, the tears came down her face that were quickly wiped away into the wind. She looks up at the bright blue sky. She wanted to be free and leave everything behind her. “Who have I become?” she asked. She guess it does not matter. At least she knew how she felt.

She drops her backpack as she walked to release the weight on her back and the bondage of the school. She walked slowly almost aimlessly but with peace of mind and a sense of tranquility. She did not know where she was going but felt silence in her troubled mind for the first time in a while. “When was the last time…,” she thought and smiled slightly feeling relieved from her trouble back in her hometown. Though it would be long before another summer with the season turning into fall, she knew it would come.

She looked down at her hand and takes off her watch and drops it while walking. Joie thought she didn’t need a watch to tell time and it did not matter anymore.

Her troubles from time to time were appearing in her mind between each thought of the beautiful surroundings. After several minutes, her negative thoughts were forced out by the positive feeling in her mind. She was cold and frozen but knew ice can melt. It was her hope. The sun glared harder in her face and eyes as the morning light turned more into the afternoon. She would rather spend her morning staring at the sun, than face her troubles that are now far away.

Joie stood still and closed her eyes feeling the breeze and reached her hands outward to the bright leaves ascending in the wind. She exhales and opens her eyes and saw a shabby store shop that stood behind trees in the woods.

About the Author: I am Ada Stone and have been writing since high school and interested in societal problems and of course, fiction. The ability to make up a world and share it means a great deal as the real world is what it is.

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Buy Book One and Book Two at Amazon.



Haunting the Haunted by E.C. Bell – Spotlight and Giveaway

This post is part of a virtual book tour organized by Goddess Fish Promotions. E.C. Bell will be awarding a $20 Amazon/BN GC to a randomly drawn winner via rafflecopter during the tour. Click on the tour banner to see the other stops on the tour.

In the sixth book in the Marie Jenner Mystery series, life is finally starting to look up for Marie. Her brand-new business—moving on ghosts for actual money—is taking off. Her relationship with James Lavall is rock solid. All she has to do is find the last two poltergeists from the ball diamond and move them on to the next plane of existence and, as far as she’s concerned, life will be perfect.

The problem is, life has a way of kicking Marie in the teeth. Patrick Whitecroft, professional psychic debunker, shows up at the Jimmy Lavall Detective agency. He’s out to prove that she’s a fake—live, on TV—and he doesn’t care who he hurts to do it. Even worse, he has over a hundred desperate spirits bound to him, and they want something completely different. They want to be saved.

As Marie tries to help the spirits and keep Patrick from dismantling her life, she finally finds the poltergeists. But they’re not interested in moving on. They want Patrick Whitecroft’s spirits for themselves. If Marie can’t figure out a way to move all the spirits on to the next plane of existence, the poltergeists will happily take them, so they can create an army bent on revenge.

Looks like Marie’s life is going to get interesting. Again.

Enjoy an Excerpt

I heard footsteps out in the hallway outside the office. “Looks like we’re going to get more work,” I said.

“Oh, for heaven’s sake!” Karen snapped. “Blow them off. You have to take care of business. My business.”

“This is my day job,” I said. “Get over it.”

I went back to my desk and slapped my receptionist smile on my face as the footsteps stopped in front of our door. The doorknob slowly turned, and through the frosted glass of the door, I could see glowing. It got so bright I couldn’t look without squinting.

“You see this?” I asked Karen, and pointed. “Do those look like ghosts to you?”

She gasped. “Maybe it’s Rita and Joanne, the poltergeists,” she said. “How would they have found you? Found us?”

“It can’t be them,” I said. “They don’t know where the office is.”

The door opened, and a man walked into the office. He was surrounded by ghosts, so many of them I couldn’t even begin to count. I did not recognize him. Heck, it was hard to even see him through the writhing spirit mass.

“What is going on here?” Karen asked.

A fair question, to my mind. I’d never seen anything like this before in my life and I felt my receptionist smile fade. Something told me that he was not here to see James Lavall.

He was here to see me.

About the Author:

E.C. Bell is the author of the award winning paranormal Marie Jenner Mystery series. She lives in Alberta, Canada, and when she’s not writing, she’s scouting out new locations for her upcoming novels or renovating her round house where she lives with her husband and their two rescue dogs.

That’s right. Her house is round.

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Marie Jenner Mystery series books, in order:

Seeing the Light
Drowning in Amber
Stalking the Dead
Dying on Second
Hearing Voices
Haunting the Haunted

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NASA – What’s new in the last ten minutes? by Hawk MacKenney – Guest Blog and Giveaway


This post is part of a virtual book tour organized by Goddess Fish Promotions. Hawk MacKinney will be awarding a $20 Amazon or Barnes and Noble GC to a randomly drawn winner via rafflecopter during the tour. Click on the tour banner to see the other stops on the tour.

NASA – What’s new in the last ten minutes?

We sci-fi nerds are eclectic readers. With one foot firmly in unlimited black hole fantasies and the other shoe rooted in the almost-real-but-feasible that is NOT fantasy.

“- beam me up.” That fictional dialogue is but one instance where sci-fi fiction & quantum behaviors, i.e. quantum entanglement, meet. “Spooky action at a distance” juxtaposes sci-fiction suggesting that fantasy & magic are labels for fundamental laws we’ve yet to discover – much less understand. And this quaint System Solaris is by no means finished with the surprises for the 4-limbed space-species known as “man”.

Beyond our wondrous blue marbled cosmic dot of a planet, NASA’s discoveries across unimaginable distances as well as right on our proverbial doorstep are changing by the hour – or faster. Old concepts of aborning new stars and aged long-extinct galaxies revealing fantasy-become-fact are discarding established rules, changing fundamental laws, and introducing writers/readers to the unexpected, the unforeseen and the surprising in the realms of sci-fi fiction-become-fact.

Many sci-fi readers enjoy the technical, the specs, and system requirements along with the tools to not only manipulate spooky action at a distance but to learn the rules & how to make them work for us as well. We – writers of science fiction – got no choice. Goin’ a’venturing and explorin’ is almost part of our DNA obsessions.

Many prefer action and let their fantasies fill in the pieces. It’s reader’s choice. But a writer involved in the changing realms of what we thought we knew MUST do the research and stay up to date. The mind with all of its realms is the greatest show in the world(s)! The cosmos is a violent arena, and to step into it we’d better be ready, or nobody is gonna hear much of us once we’re done went & gone.

3D illustration. Sci-Fi futuristic abstract gradient blue violet pink neon. A glowing corridor on the reflection of the concrete floor. A dark interior room.

The threat of rift invasions seem long passed. Plentiful harvests abound. The Murian first-contact Terato Outpost has grown into the sprawling Terato-Murian Terminus Terato with a hub of relay portals reaching across the vast uncharted galactic expanses and connecting with its eon-extinct Lantaraan prehistory.

An exploratory Terato-Murian Jupiterr outpost is established on the gas giant seventh planet, and its quantum and gravitational energies are used to power outpost portals for an archeological survey of the fourth planet, Eorthe.

The Lantaraan database aboard Terato’s ancient Downday moon shows that one or more planets of the Solaris planets have apparently been lost. Expanded archeological records on other Lantaraan orbital bodies in the Solaris system show the fourth planet from the star—Eorthe—to be a sterile wasteland. Except it is not. Eorthe’s civilization is not to the level of the Murian Empire, but it is far advanced to those of a pastoral Terato. Terato and Eorthe form the confederated United Terran League under the nominal figurehead leader of League High Judikarr Eklam a’Qoc.

Jupiterr outpost expands into a major League stronghold, Jupiterr Base, when civil unrest erupts in the League, the unexpected return of rift intrusions threatens, and the Murian Emperor Klarvko Celo is assassinated.

As they prepare for confrontations with an unknown ancient enemy, the internal tensions on Myr and Eorthe push Murians and Teratoans to dangerous discords.

Enjoy an Excerpt

The first anomalies were logged by remote nanoparticle quantum-field sensor arrays positioned on uninhabited dwarf planets, moons and long-orbit asteroids of the star systems of the League. The inconsistencies were short sub-fracture durations and were seismically unremarkable. Across the League’s far-flung frontier systems, seasoned operators monitored the encoded decryption of the scan-logs. Through decades of use, the linknet had become indispensable; supplanting the slower interstellar particle entanglement-based trans-light travel. Linknet protocols established allowances for such random background fluctuations with standard deviations measured against system parameters. The diverse configurations of the link systems were accepted as fail-safe.

Senior specialists assigned to Terminus Terra II protocol-consoles maintained continuous scans for minor time-sync misaligns. Scan records were stored in Murian-designed crystals in tiered sublevels of mantle crust beneath Terminus and in Myraa City. Link schedules of freight shipments, personnel, and communications remained on tight schedules.

The erratic anomalous spacetime oscillations data was logged. The ruse was almost perfect. Except star-core substrate logs registered converter power for the unsanctioned personnel requisition of translinks coordinates for specific network portals. It was a simple oversight but one that had sa s’Blikova’at consequences. Besides, waiting one more day wouldn’t matter.

The following morning Marleen and her three sons would be alone.

About the Author:Hawk has authored several works of fiction including a historical romance Moccasin Trace which was nominated for both the prestigious Michael Shaara Award for Excellence in Civil War Fiction and the Writers Notes Book Award. His Cairns of Sainctuarie Science Fiction Series and his Moccasin Hollow Mystery Series have received national and international attention.

With postgraduate degrees and faculty positions in several medical universities, Hawk MacKinney has taught graduate courses in both the United States and Jerusalem. His professional writing includes articles on chordate neuroembryology, and aerospace research on muscle metabolic behavior in multi-orbital environments.

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