Authors Are People Too! - Steven Savile

Good Mon... Tuesday everyone. It's routine =)>. I hope all you USA folks had a great Memorial Day and devoted some time to thanking our fallen heroes, to yourself or with others.

In this edition of Authors, our guest is Steven Savile, a UK Bestseller. His newest, Silver, is going through edits as we speak... so keep your eyes open for development news!



Q. What are your 10 desert island discs?
A. In no particular order:

Aztec Camera: High Land Hard Rain
Love and Money: Strange Kind of Love
The Alarm: Strength
Counting Crows: August and Everything After
Pearl Jam: Ten
Dave Matthews Band: Under the Table and Dreaming
Rush: Hold Your Fire
Aimee Mann: Whatever
Gin Blossoms: New Miserable Experience
Hue and Cry: Seduced and Abandoned


Q. What are your 10 desert island books?
A. Again, order be damned, these are all books I love.

Clive Barker: Weaveworld
Jonathan Carroll: Sleeping in Flame
Stephen Gallagher: NIghtmare, with Angel
Stephen Lawhead: The Paradise War
Jay McInerney: Last of the Savages
Tim Powers: The Anubis Gates
Michael Chabon: The Adventures of Kavilier and Clay Glen
David Gold: Carter the Great
Salman Rushdie: The Satanic Verses
Paul Auster: The New York Trilogy

Eclectic to say the least. I am not sure what this says about me.

Q. As readers, what do you think we need to know about you as a writer?
A. Nothing. Actually. Honestly. It isn't (or at least shouldn't be about the wizard behind the curtain. Oz is a lot less magical when you get to know the Wizard). I don't like the modern thing that says writers need to blog and share their laundry lists and talk about the minutia of their lives. I am not interested in their politics, their sports teams or much else. I have found it harder and harder to enjoy writers who I see splashed over every message board on the internet getting into arguments of this thing or that other thing. I want to be entertained, that's it, the top and bottom of it, so as a reader I want the wizard hidden behind that curtain. But, if you are so inclined, I love music, have a bad sense of humor and like to hide in jokes in my work, I support Tottenham Hotspur and turned Jurgen Klinsmann into a character once... I have a degree in politics and a masters in comparative religions, work in coffee shops most days and am addicted to technology. That's the nutshell.

Q. Of your other work, what would you recommend we try out to get a feel of what's to come with Silver?
A. None of it. Silver's a huge departure for me. I've done game stuff, like Warhammer, tv stuff like Doctor Who and Stargate, Primeval and Torchwood, and adapted comic with Slaine, horror, fantasy, short stories and even a western... I think I'd recommend a book that hasn't got a name and isn't out yet, from Dark Regions Press, which is a collection of my favourite short stories and novellas from about 15 years worth of stuff. It'll be out around October in hardcover and paperback, but like I said, has no name right now...

Q. So, what do you REALLY think of Stan?
A. Stan's the man.


HA! Thanks Steve. That would have put you in my Fav 5 if you were here in America! There you have it fans, Steve Savile and his nutshell. Keep this blog dialed in for the final cover (which should be in our hands soon)... but if you want your fix now, be sure to check out the Silver book page to read the first 2 chapters! Also, visit SteveSavile.com to see what he's been a part of.

Next week's guest, Jeremy Robinson!

More Good News! Rogue Threat Cover

Good Wednesday, Zealots!



It sure has been a busy week... but I hope you take the time to look over this cover. It came out simply amazing! ROGUE THREAT, the second book of the THREAT series by AJ Tata, has been sent out to the printers for ARC manufacturing, and to meet the demands Larry Rostant pulled through yet again with a blazing scene. Book two picks back up where SUDDEN THREAT left off... to get a taste, check out the ROGUE THREAT sample. ROGUE is due out this October.

We'd love to hear what you think! Please, send us your thoughts, critiques, and the like. For more on Tata, go to his website, and check out this past Monday's edition of Authors Are People Too! Have a great rest of your week.

MEG: Hell's Aquarium - Officially RELEASED Today!

Deja Vu? Not so much. Today, May 19, is the official release date for MEG: Hell's Aquarium. Don't hesitate to go out and get your limited edition copy (or copies) of this dual-covered deep sea thriller! Let's make this the first NYT Bestseller of the summer. By the way, don't forget... sharks only need a few feet of water to be their silent-killer selves - beach readers beware =)>.



In related news, the MEG: Hell's Aquarium Shark Bite Contest is doing simply amazing! With a combination of fans, friends, and word of mouth, we're creeping towards the 40,000 view mark. Keep it up everyone! And if you are a contestant, be sure to go to the contest page and check your ranking (updated every Friday!).

Authors Are People Too! - AJ Tata

Good Monday, everyone!

Here's to another Author installment - this week's guest is AJ Tata, author of Sudden Threat, and the soon to be released Rogue Threat.



Q: What is your favorite question people have asked you?
A: "Who is your favorite character in your books", to which I respond, my favorite characters vary from book to book, but of course Matt and Zach Garrett are my heroes, literally and figuratively, and I enjoy putting them into difficult situations only to have them help me figure a way out. It is not unlike acting. As an author, once I develop a character, I have to get into the mindset of that character, think like them, in order to proceed writing through that character's point of view. So I become quite attached to all of the heroes and villains in my books. Even the bad guys have a certain appeal to them. My favorite good guy other than my main protagonists? Abe, the Japanese engineer in Sudden Threat. His story arc is one of the best I've written and I get lots of email about what an interesting character he is. My favorite bad guy? Ballantine in Rogue Threat, hands down. He's a complex, conflicted man bent on killing Matt Garrett and destroying US infrastructure. Though, Del Dangurs in Hidden Threat is a sinister villain also.

Q: Can you tell us a bit about your career?
A: I served for 28 years in the U.S. Army and am retiring this summer as a brigadier general. I have had 15 different duty assignments, each requiring a move-in and a move-out, with 6 combat or operational missions overseas in foreign lands, each requiring a deployment into and out of the country. So, if you do the math, that's a lot of moving, a lot of turbulence, uprooting and planting, making friends along the way. The military is a fantastic career if you have the resiliency to withstand the constant change. Some people thrive on that lifestyle. I always come back to the nobility of a career in service whether that's military, state department, education, etc. I'm always drawn toward those that choose to have a component of their life contribute to the greater good. That's how I've viewed my life in the military. It has been more about peace making and peacekeeping than about war. Sure, I've done my share of combat, but I also know that a Soldier's heart lay in resolution of conflict as opposed to its emergence.

Q: Do you want to talk about any of the current events based on this?
A: Sure, here are a few of my thoughts.

Afghanistan:
I've probably done about 30 radio interviews and 10 TV shows in the last few months and I always get asked about current events, especially in Afghanistan. For the record I think we're making the right steps in Afghanistan, but without a commensurate effort in Pakistan, our progress will be limited. Our decision after 9-11 to not put boots on the ground in Pakistan was shortsighted, in my view. There is enemy sanctuary in Pakistan now and they are threatening us strategically as a nation and operationally in Afghanistan. So the troop surge in Afghanistan must have a parallel diplomatic and economic effort in Pakistan.

Pirates:
Pirates are transnational terrorists just like Al Qaeda and other associated movements. How our nation confronts piracy should be consistent with how we confront other terrorists. Pirates threaten our shipping lanes, which are a vital interest of the United States. It's really a pretty straightforward issue. Determine from the pirates operate; destroy their means of operation whether it be vessels or vehicles; and then isolate those afloat and kill or capture them. Make piracy untenable to those who wish to practice it; something we did not do with respect to the terrorists in Afghanistan and Pakistan, yet.

There you have it folks. Thanks to BG Tata. If you're into military thrillers, get out and pick up Sudden Threat. It's a boots-on-the-ground style look into what happens on the battle field. And to see more of Tony, be sure to visit the book page, there are videos there to see from a few of those interviews he talked about above.

Next weeks guest, Steven Savile!

Authors Are People Too! - Michael Cornelius

Happy Monday, Zealots!

I hope you had a great weekend and were looking forward to today's Author's installment on Michael Cornelius, author of The Ascension. What type of thrills and chills does this horror author have in store for us this week...?



Q. What question do you wish people would ask you, but never have?
A. How did you conceive of your villains? It was actually quite simple. I took two things that truly freak me out—cultists and snakes—and merged them together. Thankfully, I’ve not run into a lot of scary cult members in my life (unless one includes Brownies—kidding, kidding!) However, growing up in a swampy area near a wildlife refuge in New York State, I remember occasionally coming across eight-foot-long water snakes near the local watering hole, and almost always disturbed a garter snake or two while mowing the lawn (who would then inevitably crawl over my foot to escape!) So somehow combining the two made perfect sense to me. I feel that death by snakebite is a very invasive, horrible way to go, since before one feels the actual pain of the bite there is the initial fear of seeing the snake itself… (and no, I’ve never been able to make it through the film Snakes on a Plane! Not once!)

Q. What is the best response you've given to the question everyone asks you?
A. Inevitably, when giving media interviews or just talking to people who are interested in the book, I hear one question over and over: what actually scares you? During one television interview I gave a very thoughtful response. I said that while we often hear of events from natural disasters to horrible attacks worldwide, or sometimes even in our own communities, these are so often regarded as something tragic, not frightening. We lament the losses and pray for the people involved—but we rarely feel fear from reading about them or seeing them on the local news. On the other hand, lying in bed at night, drifting off to sleep, and hearing a loud thud that sounds like it may or may not be coming from your own backyard—now that’s scary. So the reality is, it’s those things in our own backyards that are the most frightening to us.

Q. What is the one question you hear a lot but change your answer to constantly?
A. Is there a sequel to The Ascension in the works? That question always gets a “yes” and “no” from me! I have a sequel outlined, using the same major characters—though one of the main characters dies in the first chapter! Though it features new and even badder antagonists, it does continue the adventures of the original gang (minus one) as they again battle Biblical baddies and deal with otherworldly forces. But I’ve been so distracted by other projects that I’ve not yet had the time to write it. Perhaps if I knew a lot of folks were waiting for it, I’d be more inspired to get working on it!

Q. Are there any funny stories about writing the text?
A. One sunny Sunday afternoon I started writing the section where the Methodist minister is killed. I decided to set the scene in a building that looked remarkably like the apartment I lived in at the time. I wrote the entire scene in one sitting—starting with the minister arriving at her home, parking behind her garage, nervously walking up the steps to her second-floor apartment, all the while feeling that someone or something is watching her…she hears a noise, she starts to run, finally to make it inside only to discover…well, if you want to know, read the book! The first version of the scene turned out very well, and I was quite pleased with it. However, by the time I was finished, it was after dark, and I realized I had to take out the garbage for the next morning’s pick-up! So here I am, walking down the steps my character had just run up…walking down the path to my dark, unlit garage...fumbling nervously for the garbage can…I had honestly scared myself so much in writing the scene that I barely jammed the lid of the can back on before I ran back up the path and into my house, taking the steps two at a time and locking the door behind me! I realized then that the scene worked well (whenever I am called upon to give a reading, it’s that scene I read from,) but from then on, I remembered to take my garbage out before writing any more spooky scenes!

Great job, Mike! Shall we say 'Cult Classic'? Come on now, how many of you have spooked yourself? Show of hands... =)> Any who, I hope you enjoyed this weeks view into another Variance author. If you did, show your support and buy The Ascension!

Next week's blog-isode is on Brigadier General Anthony "AJ" Tata. See you then!

MEG: Hell's Aquarium - RELEASED!

Good Wednesday, Zealots.



You see that right, Hell's Aquarium was released two and a half weeks early, for you, our fans! Go to your local book seller and request it if they don't have it. Or order it online from B&N or Amazon. And don't miss out on the collector's dual covers!



For all you book stores, I hope you got enough copies of the limited edition dual covers to satiate the beast that is a MEG fan... if not, contact your local supplier and request more!



In related news, don't forget to check your rankings in the MEG: Hell's Aquarium Contest which is updated every Friday. Be one of the top 50 contestants to get your signed copy of Hell's Aquarium, along with your name immortalized in MEG 5: Night Stalkers.

Have a great rest of your week, and happy reading!

Authors Are People Too! - Paul Byers

Good Monday to you!

Welcome to week 3 of our Authors series, where this week we focus on Paul Byers, author of the World War II historical thriller, Catalyst.



Q. Now that you’re published, what do you like the most?
A. I really enjoy doing book signings. I love talking with the people, listening to their stories and how a lot of folks tell me they’ve always wanted to write about something. I tell them we all have our own stories to tell, whether it’s in the form of a journal, poetry or in book form. Be like Nike and just do it!

Q. What do you like the least?
A. The book signings. I get nervous when I start writing in their book. I’m always afraid I will mess it up and you can’t exactly scratch it out and start over. I try to personalize the signing when ever I can. It may sound funny but I want to give them their money’s worth, after all, they have taken time out of their day to come down and spend their hard earn cash on my book, I just don’t want to disappoint them.

Q. Did you find it difficult to write the book?
A. Writing the book was the easy part, the hard part is marketing it. Unlike Field of Dreams, just because your wrote it doesn’t mean they will come and read it. You brought this creation into the world, now it’s your job to make sure every one knows about it. I would much rather write than promote, but it doesn’t do you much good if no one buys it. I’ll talk more about marketing later.

Q. What one single piece of advice would you give to those would be writers out there?
A. First off, start, just start writing. You’ll never get anywhere until you put that first word down on the paper. Okay, you get two for the price of one here. The second thing I would say is don’t be afraid to edit and cut things out. Yes, you are bearing you soul but I hate to tell you that everything you put on paper is not going to further the story. Be your own hardest critic. For CATALYST, I cut out over 60 pages as I followed the bomber crew. It was great stuff but it just didn’t help tell the story. Don’t worry though, I saved it for the sequel!

Q. How much of your characters are based on yourself or others you know?
A. None of my characters are “me” so to speak or really anyone I know. I have however taken real life events that have happened to me or people I know; for instance, in CATALYST, the “out of this world sandwich” that Lt. Lincoln talked about is really my own experience of what my own Dad would fix when my mom was gone.

Q. How much do you plan out your stories in advance?
A. I know some authors who write a detailed outline of how their story is going to go. I have a general direction I’m heading but I found that for me, the book writes itself. As I’m going along, a thought comes up and I use it, and that is something I could never have outlined. However, having said that, for my next book, ARCTIC FIRE (a working title) I have made a 4 page synopsis/outline. It gives me a good sense of where I’m going but plenty of wiggle room for those ideas that come out of left field.

Q. How do you come up with your story ideas?
A. Sorry, that’s a trade secret…just kidding! That’s a tough one really. I keep a file where I put down all my story ideas so I can look at them later. I’ve gotten ideas from television shows, conversations, even reading the newspaper. I saw a headline that said something to the effect that all the bees are mysteriously dying and no one knows why? You could run with something like that in several different directions; a government plot, aliens, corporate takeover, nature fighting back, a good experiment gone bad…you name it! It’s hard to say what goes on in the mind of a madman or genius…I’ll let you decide which?


Do you have more questions for Paul? These topics did cover a bunch of bases (bases, planes, get it? ... Tough crowd!) but there must be more inquires out there. Don't hesitate to leave a comment and he will be sure to get back to you as soon as he can. And if you're in the market for a great WWII thriller, give Catalyst a try. All inspired by true events, historical thriller fans will be wanting more.

Thanks for stopping by! Next weeks guest author is Michael Cornelius.