The Weird, the Wacky and the Wonderful!
#B2BCyCon Fantasy Authors’ Fun Facts!
Their childhood career choices ranged from spy to palaeontologist. Now they bring you fab fantasy stories to escape in. Find out: Are they all addicted to sweets? How many were told they were “possessed” as children?
Who owns the Zombie Cat?
A. F. Stewart
Favourite Film? Star Wars
Favourite Book? Hard to choose, but I’ll go with Sailing to Sarantium (The Sarantine Mosaic, #1) by Guy Gavriel Kay
Favourite food? Chocolate.
Worst book you’ve ever read? A terrible incomprehensible mess called Holy Autism. I read it as part of an online book group, and it was indescribably bad.
What job did you think would be cool to have as a child? Spy, or alternatively, assassin. I was a strange child.
What is your hidden talent? Figuring out how to fix things (especially computer things) without having a clue about what I’m doing.
What would you name your autobiography? My Boring Life: Why Are You Reading This?
What songs would be included in the soundtrack of your life? Don’t Fear the Reaper by Blue Oyster Cult, I Don’t Like Mondays by the Boomtown Rats, and Monster Mash.
If you could meet anyone living or dead, who would it be? Either Joan of Arc, or Robert the Bruce. Both intriguing historical figures
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What’s your current WIP? I have several, but the one currently on deck is The Duke’s Assassin (although that title will probably change). It’s an alternate history/steampunk/horror novel about vampires, humans and anarchists, set in 19th century Nova Scotia, Canada. It’s the first in a planned series.
Most important question! Are you a dog or cat person? Perhaps horses, lions, tigers and bears? I’m a cat person, though currently without cats.
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Favourite Film? Disney’s The Lion King, it’s been years since I watched it, yet I can still quote so much of it.
Favourite Film? Possibly Hitchock’s Rear Window – the dialogue is sharp and the use of sound is brilliant too, all of it ‘natural’ and of course there’s that superb set too…I could go on!
Favourite Film? GAH. Gladiator, 50 First Dates, The Matrix…
Favourite Film? I’m a terrible geek for films. I love the Hobbit and LotR movies. I have a thing for the Godfather movies as well including #3. Rocky and Rambo. And anything John Wayne. I’ve figured that every story is just a western transported into space, a fantasy realm, etc.
Favourite Film? Interstellar/Interpreter
Most important question! Are you a dog or cat person? Perhaps horses, lions, tigers and bears? I grew up with dogs, but my husband and I recently acquired a cat, Cricket, (though we call her the Majestic Fat) and she’s quite wonderful. We also just became puppy-parents to a yellow lab mutt called Rory.
Aldrea Alien
Favourite Film? Disney’s The Lion King, it’s been years since I watched it, yet I can still quote so much of it.Favourite Book? Oh… a tough one. There’s so many, but I’ll have to go with The Year of the Unicorn by Andre Norton.
Favourite food? Chocolate, hands down. Preferably the good stuff.
What job did you think would be cool to have as a child?Palaeontology! I wanted to discover dinosaurs so bad.
What is your guilty pleasure? Gaming. Bit of a geek answer, but I tend to sneak off and play whenever I get writer’s block (and sometimes when I don’t).
If you knew the world was ending in 2017 what would you do? Write faster. And maybe highjack a plane to Egypt.
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If you could go back in time and change something about your life what would it be?Probably avoiding being in the way of the guy who crashed into my first car and totalled it back when I was eighteen. I really liked that car and it was almost paid off!
What’s your current WIP? I’ve several, but the one I’m working on is In Pain and Blood, which is a fantasy story about a cocky magic-wielding guy who, after believing he’s found his place in the world, becomes collateral damage after winning the right to join the king’s army and uncovers a strange responsible for the destruction of his troop, part of the king’s army and his old home before they can endanger the kingdom… interspersed with some rather racy scenes.
Are you a pantser or planner? A bit of both, but leaning more towards the pantster side of things.
Most important question! Are you a dog or cat person? Perhaps horses, lions, tigers and bears? Cat person, mostly. Especially the bigger kitties.
Ashley Capes
Favourite Film? Possibly Hitchock’s Rear Window – the dialogue is sharp and the use of sound is brilliant too, all of it ‘natural’ and of course there’s that superb set too…I could go on!Favourite Book? Tough question! For me the answer always seems to change but The Hobbit is nearly perfect to me.
Favourite food? Ice cream – english toffee or maybe pana cotta.
What music do you listen to when writing? I try and aim for whatever fits the mood of a given scene, but you can expect to hear anything from Cool Jazz to Progressive Metal or OSTs courtesy of Studio Ghibli or even sometimes Sega Megadrive OSTs.
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If you knew the world was ending in 2017 what would you do? Run around in circles for a while and be pretty angry. I have a lot of things I want to do – maybe I’d try and visit Italy again and record a few songs for fun, mostly spend time with my wife and my family.
If you could go back in time and change something about your life what would it be?
I’d start piano lessons as a kid instead of not taking music at all – then I’d have a head start on where I am now 🙂
If you could meet anyone living or dead, who would it be?
Another tough question! I think one would be Leonardo Da Vinci – his mind was just miles ahead of everyone, it seemed.
Another tough question! I think one would be Leonardo Da Vinci – his mind was just miles ahead of everyone, it seemed.
What’s your current WIP? My current work is Greatmask, Book Three of the Bone Mask Trilogy – I’m trying to finish another draft and send it back to the publisher for an August release!
Are you a pantser or planner? Definitely a hybrid – I tend to outline a rough frame then pants within that until I find that the outline is no longer useful. Then I adjust and keep going.
Most important question! Are you a dog or cat person? Due to allergies, definitely a dog person 😀
Adam Dreece
Favourite Film? GAH. Gladiator, 50 First Dates, The Matrix…Favourite Book? Good Omens by Terry Pratchett and Neil Gaiman.
Worst thing your English teacher / school report said about you in school?
You’re nothing
What music do you listen to when writing? A wide, wide range. From 30 seconds to Mars to Lorenna McKinett to Metallica to Enya to the Cranberries. I use the different music to stir different emotions and ideas in me.
What is your hidden talent? I can both choose colours AND paint (house painting).
What is your guilty pleasure? It was playing video games, but I haven’t allowed myself to do that in a long, long time.
What would you name your autobiography? I actually have a memoir written, which started this real author journey I’m on. I’ll revisit it one day, it’s called Refusing to Stay Down, and I wouldn’t change the title.
What’s your current WIP? The Man of Cloud 9, my first science fiction thriller in the not too distant future.
Are you a pantser or planner? I’ve found I am 65% Pantser, 35% Planner. I can plan a scene, roughly, but then it improves from there and often I have to go back and change the plan. I use the plan to give me a proposed direction but I’m not bound to it. It helps keep me from wandering aimlessly though, and sometimes scenes are thrown out because they would do exactly that!
Most important question! Are you a dog or cat person? Perhaps horses, lions, tigers and bears? I’ve had a cat, I discovered I wasn’t a cat person. We have a dog, and I’m not really a dog person.
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Ed Ireland
Favourite Film? I’m a terrible geek for films. I love the Hobbit and LotR movies. I have a thing for the Godfather movies as well including #3. Rocky and Rambo. And anything John Wayne. I’ve figured that every story is just a western transported into space, a fantasy realm, etc.Favourite Book? “The Life and Times of the Witch of the West”. Gregory Maguire’s starter Oz book that was somehow turned into “Wicked”.
Favourite food? Italian. Anything Italian.
Worst book you’ve ever read? I can’t say. Every writer thinks their book is good, including me. Let’s just say that I’ve put a few down after just a couple of pages.
Worst thing your English teacher / school report said about you in school?
I had nuns. Old school nuns. I can’t repeat things they said in mixed company about me. I can however tell you that the pastor visited my home and explained to my mother that he was quite sure I was possessed and that I needed to be sent to the seminary for prayer.
What job did you think would be cool to have as a child? I wanted to be a lion tamer.
What music do you listen to when writing? None. I’m one of those weirdo writers that has a TV on when I write. When I do listen to music though, it’s 80% dinosaur rock and 20% everything else. I actually love broadway music.
What is your hidden talent? I haven’t found it yet. It’s very well hidden…
What is your guilty pleasure? Blueberry pie. In fact, I’m eating some while I do this.
If you knew the world was ending in 2017 what would you do? Get in a whole lot of trouble.
If you could go back in time and change something about your life what would it be?
Absolutely nothing. Had a bad first marriage, but a great son from it. I got no convictions on my record. Great second wife and beautiful daughter…nope, I’m good.
What would you name your autobiography? “Is he still alive?”
What songs would be included in the soundtrack of your life? Oh boy…OK, 2 Beatles songs right off the bat. In My Life and The Two Of Us. One Bourbon, One Scotch and One Beer, Dazed and Confused, Good Times Bad Times and for the final send-off, Mull of Kyntire and Into the West.
If you could meet anyone living or dead, who would it be? Paul McCartney & John Lennon
Who would you choose as your mentor? J.R.R. Tolkien.
What’s your current WIP? Book 3 of my Huntress series, an Italian Cookbook, a re-write of my book “Crime Scene” and maybe another crime novel about narcissism at its best.
Are you a pantser or planner? Pantser all the way. I have a general idea, but by the 4th chapter the characters are doing the storytelling. I like to say I’m more of a stenographer than a writer.
Most important question! Are you a dog or cat person? Perhaps horses, lions, tigers and bears? I have both. We have a very old cat named Bebe that I swear has died and resurrected. I call her zombie-cat. Then we have a fat muffin-maker named Mookie who loves to jump in the bed at 5AM and start making muffins. Finally, there’s Noob the wonder dog. We named him Anubis, but once we found him upside down in the corner chewing on his leg, that kind of regal name flew right out the window.
V.S. Holmes
Favourite Film? Interstellar/InterpreterFavourite Book? Oof, that’s a hard one. The Blue Sword, Crown/Court Duel, or Black Blade Blues
What music do you listen to when writing? Instrumental stuff. Current favs are Two Steps From Hell, Thomas Bergersen, Peter Roe, and Clint Mansell.
If you knew the world was ending in 2017 what would you do? Travel. Meet people. See, taste, smell everything. So, pretty much what I do now.
If you could go back in time and change something about your life what would it be? I wouldn’t, since I like where I am now. My choices led me here, so I wouldn’t want to change it. There are a few people who I would reach out to, hug more, listen to more, knowing what I know now.
What would you name your autobiography? If it wasn’t trademarked, “Fear is the Mind Killer.” or “If It Makes a Good Story.” Those are two mantras by which I live my life.
What songs would be included in the soundtrack of your life? “Here’s To Us,” by Halestorm, “Drinking Class,” by Lee Brice, “Ill Mind of Hopsin 7” by Hopsin, “Holy Horseshit, Batman,” by Gym Class Heroes, “Highwayman,” by White Buffalo, and “Battle Cry” by Angel Haze
If you could meet anyone living or dead, who would it be? Ada Lovelace. Or Sally Ride
What’s your current WIP? Madness and Gods (Reforged III) and Drifters (Nel Bently Book Two)
Most important question! Are you a dog or cat person? Perhaps horses, lions, tigers and bears? I grew up with dogs, but my husband and I recently acquired a cat, Cricket, (though we call her the Majestic Fat) and she’s quite wonderful. We also just became puppy-parents to a yellow lab mutt called Rory.
Angela B. Chrysler
Favourite Book? The Phantom of the Opera by Gaston Leroux and Les Miserables by Victor Hugo. No books changed me more than these two.
Favourite food? Cookies! And Candy. My homemade cranberry sauce. A recipe for a salad I’ve been throwing together lately. Romaine lettuce with chopped walnuts, gala apples, and strawberries, lathered in Panera’s Fuji Apple dressing. YUM!
Worst book you’ve ever read? The one that was so bad, I wrote Dolor and Shadow in retaliation. I will never reveal the name or book title of that book. It is a romance.
Worst thing your English teacher / school report said about you in school?
LOL… They told me I couldn’t write. She looked right at me and said, “Your [report] was particularly bad.”
What is your hidden talent? My hidden talents are my guilty pleasures. And my guilty pleasures are many. Cookies! I not only bake cookies. I pulled a “Monica.” I once made 16 batches of sugar cookies in one day. I make my own cookie recipes. I’ve created my own raisin and clove cookie recipe and… get this… the healthiest cookie in the world, my pumpkin-oat cookie with wheat germ and bran! Yum! All these recipes and more are available on my site.
I have eight green fingers and two green thumbs that have birthed over ten gardens that surround my home. Okay… one of those gardens in the green house in my home. I converted the living room into a greenhouse… literally. Pictures are all over Instagram. I compose my own ballads and sing. You can hear these on my site. I also dance, cross-stitch, and sew gowns for LARPing. I can not draw.
I am an avid bird watcher. My favourites are the black-capped chickadee, the mourning Dove (Turtle Dove)—which we have a coven of in our gardens—and the cardinal.
What is your guilty pleasure? Cookies. I can not say no to cookies. Especially the Chips Ahoy and Oreo. Candy! OMG! I am a candy fiend. And marketing. I know! I’m an author AND I love marketing! It’s a sickness really. I should get help.
What would you name your autobiography?
And Death it calls as the stone crow breaks. Streaks of blood malform its face. Death becomes its withered eyes and the shadows whisper, “Lies.”
When a young journalist, William D. Shaw, seeks out Elizabeth, an acclaimed author, in hopes to write her biography, the recluse grants him twenty-four hours to hear her story. What unfolds are events that teeter on the edge of macabre and a psychological thriller.
While toggling the lines of insanity, Elizabeth examines her past filled with neglect, rape, abuse, torture, and pedophilia. The more Elizabeth delves into her psyche, the more William witnesses the multiple mental conditions Elizabeth developed to cope with a life without love, comfort, protection, trust, physical human contact, affection, therapy, or medication.
With the use of existentialism, I wrote Broken in an attempt to philosophical determine what I had become and why. Instead, I found the awareness I needed to seek help. Broken is the road map I took to arrive at “Awareness” and seek medical attention.
Unbreaking Me: Online Therapy Journal and sequel to Broken is the sequel and is available on my website.
If you could meet anyone living or dead, who would it be? H.G. Wells. I am dying to ask him why he never named any of his characters, except Griffin… the one with the invisible face!
And J.K. Rowling. “What memory does Dudley relive when he sees a dementor?” Please, Rowling! Let me know!
What’s your current WIP? My fantasy series, Tales of the Drui. Dolor and Shadow (Book #1) is out now. Fire and Lies (Book #2) is due out 1 July 2016. Winter and Ash (Book #3) is due out 2017.
Most important question! Are you a dog or cat person? Perhaps horses, lions, tigers and bears?
I want to begin by saying I love all animals. The fuzzier, the better. I love dogs, rabbits, wild birds (Black capped chickadee), fish, horses, lions, tigers all the wild cats… I love animals, but…
I am a cat person! And yes… another guilty pleasure. I have the makings of a cat hoarder. I have three! My Cookie, Colby, and Peach. My husband and finances are the only thing keeping my passion at bay. But I assure you! As soon as I have money, I am turning my house into a cat shelter and hiring a live-in cat staff!
Website Facebook Twitter Google+ Amazon Goodreads Storytime/Youtube Pinterest Dolor and Shadow Fire and Lies Broken
Marco Marek
Favourite Film? Indiana Jones
Favourite Book? Harry Potter and the sorcerer stone
Favourite food? Pasta, fried squid, chocolate.
What job did you think would be cool to have as a child? Thought to do car mechanic
What music do you listen to when writing? I don’t listen music when writing because I can’t concentrate.
What is your hidden talent? I paint, some say I’m good.
What songs would be included in the soundtrack of your life? Guns ‘n Roses, Motley Crue, U2, Oasis.
Who would you choose as your mentor? Dalai Lama
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What’s your current WIP? I’m working at my last book, Amstel Girl is the title, I almost finish it. It’s a story of a young man that was locked in a psychiatric hospital with not valid reasons, and once out he will into a international intrigue with a mysterious and wild girl he met by chance.
Are you a pantser or planner? Planner definitely
