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“I
speak in earnest, Renate.” Adiana’s words were slurred by drink.
“Borten would be an excellent suitor for Eolyn. He’s good man, a
considerate lover—”
Wine escaped Renate’s lips in a sputtering laugh. “How would you know Borten’s a considerate lover?”
Adiana shrugged. “I can see it in his face.”
Renate
let go a high pitched cackle and shook her head. “See it in his face?
I’ll wager you’ve seen more than his face. You’ve been restless as a
lynx in heat since Eostar.”
Adiana
gave a mock cry of protest and struck Renate playfully on the shoulder.
“How dare you! One does not have to be a maga to see into the hearts of
men. I learned a few things working the taverns in Selkynsen, you know.
I can read a man as surely as Eolyn reads her books.”
“As surely as Eolyn reads her books in bed,” Renate replied in crisp tones.
Adiana
flopped back on the blanket with an indignant harrumph. They had
settled in the courtyard for an evening of wine and companionship, after
having tucked the girls into bed. Days had passed since Eolyn departed
for the South Woods, and the week would likely see its end before she
returned.
“And
you accuse me of inventing stories and gossip!” Adiana complained.
“Even if I had ‘read Borten in bed’, what would it matter? The magas
always had untamed teachings with respect to that sort of thing. Isn’t aen-lasati the source of a woman’s greatest magic? I swear to the Gods, Renate, sometimes you seem too much of a prude to be a maga.”
A
prude. Renate rolled the word over her tongue as she swirled the wine
in her cup. Yes, that’s what she was. Tight inside, dry as autumn leaves
underfoot. Forever bound by the failures and disillusions of her past.
“The Magas of the Old Orders were disciplined women, not harlots at a
summer festival. To lay claim to their understanding ofaen-lasati while
ignoring all their other teachings does their memory a disservice. It’s
precisely that sort of myth that led us to the pyres in the first
place.”
“Oh,
Renate.” Adiana groaned, sat up, and reached for the wine skin. “Why
must you take everything so seriously? It’s finished, remember? The war,
the purges, the rebellion, the prohibition. We’re free now. The magas
have been restored to their rightful place in Moisehén. We’ve got a
proper Aekelahr, aspiring young magas, the protection of the Mage
King, and a nice little regiment of handsome guards. Even you could
have some fun, you know.”
The
thought of her tired old body wrapped around one of the King’s men made
Renate giggle until the giddiness shook her ribs and broke upon her
lips.
“That’s the spirit!” said Adiana. “Here, have some more wine. And tell me, which one of the guards do you like the most?”
“Oh,
for the love of the Gods, Adiana!” Renate was laughing uncontrollably
now, tears streaming down her cheeks. “I am an old woman.”
“Age is meaningless for a true maga. That’s what Eolyn says.” Adiana rested her head on Renate’s shoulder.
The
older woman returned her warm embrace, inhaling the sweet smells of
night mingled with Adiana’s vibrant aroma, of primrose and summer winds,
of the riverside city that had once been her home. She envied her
friend in that moment, not so much for her youth and beauty, but for her
continued faith in the possibility that anything could be finished.
Someday time and experience would break that faith. Desire and loss,
terror and death, treachery and abandonment, all of it stayed with a
person until the end of her days, animating the shadows at night,
invading dreams, stealing away tranquility in the lonely hours before
dawn.
“I
love this moment.” Adiana sighed and lifted her cup to the sky. “When
the wine makes the stars shine brighter than ever. Gods bless the
vineyards of Selkynsen!”
Lands Ravaged. Dreams destroyed. Demons set loose upon the earth.
War
strikes at the heart of women’s magic in Moisehén. Eolyn’s fledgling
community of magas is destroyed; its members killed, captured or
scattered.
Devastated
yet undaunted, Eolyn seeks to escape the occupied province and deliver
to King Akmael a weapon that might secure their victory. But even a High
Maga cannot survive this enemy alone. Aided by the enigmatic Mage
Corey, Eolyn battles the darkest forces of the Underworld, only to
discover she is a mere path to the magic that most ignites their hunger.
What
can stop this tide of terror and vengeance? The answer lies in Eolyn’s
forgotten love, and in its power to engender seeds of renewed hope.
HIGH MAGA is the companion novel to EOLYN, also available from Hadley Rille Books.
Genre – Epic Fantasy
Rating – PG-13
Make Your Editing Sing: Read Your Writing Aloud
You’ve spent weeks, months, maybe even years drafting your novel. That’s great! You’ve overcome one of the biggest hurdles to publishing – getting your thoughts on paper. Now you’re faced with an even more immense task. You have to turn those raw thoughts into a cohesive narrative, a strong story that propels readers from one sentence to another with such force that they can’t stop. It’s time to edit.
If you’re like a lot of writers, the very idea of editing makes you cringe. You put your thoughts down the first time. Why go back and mess with that artistic expression? Like it or not, though, writing is about communicating, and odds are, your first draft won’t communicate your ideas as well as it could. Good authors follow the mantra of William Zinsser, one of America’s preeminent writing instructors: rewriting is the essence of writing.
But how do you do that? Part of it, of course, is knowing the rules of grammar and applying them to your manuscript. Search out those incorrect “theirs” and misplaced commas.
Those rules, however, are only part of the task. Correct grammar is vital, but it won’t make your book a page-turner. For that, you need flow. You need to turn your writing into music.
Don’t worry; you don’t have to become a composer to write a novel. Still, it helps to think of your writing like a piece of music. Music has a rhythm, a cadence that draws in the listener and propels them through the piece. Good conversation also has this quality. If you want readers to keep reading, your writing needs it too.
When we pick up a piece of writing, even if we read silently, we still “hear” the words in our head. If you want to know how readers will hear your writing, read your work aloud.
Reading aloud during editing gains you some key advantages over reading silently. First, reading aloud forces you to slow down, so you’re better able to spot misspelled words and other typos. Second, you’ll be able to see if the pauses you’ve built in through punctuation make sense. Third, and most important, if your writing has any awkward sentences or poor transitions, you’ll pick up on them. They’ll sound wrong, like a missing note in a symphony.
Don’t just whisper your words either. Say them like you were talking to someone on the other side of the room. If you’re embarrassed that others might hear you, go to a room by yourself and shut the door, or read at night when everyone’s asleep. Whatever you have to do, find a way to hear your words, and then edit them relentlessly. You’ll know you’re done when you forget that the writing is yours and when, like your readers, you’re swept along on the music of your words.
From
fantasy author Josh VanBrakle comes an epic new trilogy of friendship,
betrayal, and explosive magic. Lefthanded teenager Iren Saitosan must
uncover a forgotten history, confront monsters inspired by Japanese
mythology, and master a serpentine dragon imprisoned inside a katana to
stop a revenge one thousand years in the making.
Lodian
culture declares lefthanded people dangerous and devil-spawned, and for
Iren, the kingdom's only known Left, that's meant a life of social
isolation. To pass the time and get a little attention, he plays pranks
on the residents of Haldessa Castle. It's harmless fun, until one of his
stunts nearly kills Lodia's charismatic heir to the throne. Now to
avoid execution for his crime, Iren must join a covert team and
assassinate a bandit lord. It's a suicide mission, and Iren's chances
aren't helped when he learns that his new katana contains a dragon's
spirit, one with a magic so powerful it can sink continents and
transform Iren into a raging beast.
Adding
to his problems, someone on Iren's team is plotting treason. When a
former ally launches a brutal plan to avenge the Lefts, Iren finds
himself trapped between competing loyalties. He needs to figure out who -
and how - to trust, and the fates of two nations depend on his choice.
"A fast-paced adventure...led by a compelling cast of characters. Josh VanBrakle keeps the mysteries going." - ForeWord Reviews
Genre – YA epic fantasy
Rating – PG-13
Connect with Josh VanBrakle on Twitter
There are four keys to a successful novel, and while one or more of these might be stressed over the others in any given book, their combination makes for something a reader will find difficult to put down.
Key 1: The Story
If you don’t have a good story, nothing will save the book. Generally speaking a writer needs one gripping concept that asks the reader a question, and then answers itself through the unfolding of the novel—or gives the reader the ability to answer the question him or herself by the end.
For example, what if the line between animals, humans, and androids was significantly blurred? This is one of the big questions posed in Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep, Philip K. Dick’s classic science fiction piece that became Blade Runner on the big screen. In fact, even the very title of the book (sadly lost in the film) asks a profound question that drives the story, and thus the reader, forward.
The reason the story is focused on a question is because mystery and intrigue are what pull most readers in, and keep them turning the page. It is that desire to find the answer that makes it impossible to put a book down, and is, indeed, the reason why the mystery and thriller genres are so popular, and why the likes of Sherlock Holmes continues to inspire to this day.
Humanity is questioning by nature, and it is largely our curiosity about ourselves and the world around us that has driven civilisation forward.
Key 2: The Character/s
You might encounter the notion of “story-driven” or “character-driven.” Sometimes a story is so good that it almost doesn’t matter who the character is—it’s the concept that matters. Other stories are less engaging, but the characters are so real and interesting that we just have to take a peek into their lives.
A good character not only propels the story forward, taking on a life of his or her own, but invites the possibility of numerous sequels. Think of, for example, the character of James Bond. While the various situations he gets into (in both the books and films) are interesting, it is largely the character itself that people are interested in. It almost doesn’t matter who the bad guy is, so long as we know that the martini-drinking and smooth-talking hero is along for the ride (preferably in an Aston Martin).
A well-developed character will not need to be prodded on by the writer, but will actively react to story elements as he or she encounters them. The most engaging characters, with the most interesting personalities, will stay with a reader long after the book is closed.
In fact, the fictional nature of the character may even be questioned by some readers, for whom such characters can seem more real than the people around them. We see this with some people who obsess with characters in soap operas, for example, and begin to warn the actor of situations in the show as if it were real life.
Key 3: The Suspense
A truly engaging story has risk. If Frodo could get on the back of an eagle and fly all the way to Mount Doom to destroy the Ring, we would stop caring about the characters. It is their struggle, and the possibility of failure, that excites the reader into rooting for the hero, and investing emotionally in the journey.
Many great stories not only have the central quest that must be achieved, and the major risk associated with that, but a series of smaller hurdles that must be crossed. Sometimes these throw the entire endeavour into jeopardy, further engaging the reader.
Plot twists, cliff-hangers, and surprises are all tools designed to heighten the tension. Some of them answer questions, while others pose new ones. Will a certain popular character die? (Or, in the case of George R.R. Martin, will any of the characters live?) Can the hero cross the new hurdle unscathed, and will success in this minor battle affect the bigger war?
Tension can also be worked into a story in more subtle ways, by hinting to the reader that all is not quite right. We are familiar with this from horror movies, in particular, where lighting and music will be used to suggest danger.
Writers can do the same in fiction by associating key words or phrases, or a particular style of writing, with intense events. When this literary “score” resurfaces, it instantly communicates the same emotions to the reader.
Key 4: The Conflict
Conflict is the driving force behind most stories, with many of the risks and hurdles characters face coming from other characters, or situations created by those characters.
There is external conflict, such as the various forces of Sauron in The Lord of the Rings, more immediate conflict, such as Boromir turning on the Fellowship, and internal conflict, such as Frodo’s struggle with temptation, amplified by showing just how far that internal struggle can go in the dual-natured Gollum.
Popular soap operas thrive on conflict. Whether it’s family disputes, martial cheating, backstabbing friends, or just plain old shouting matches, it is this kind of thing that makes people watch. The same is true for any novel, because a story without conflict is boring.
Imagine for a moment if the central question of a story was answered by all of the characters in the same way. With no disagreement, a major source of interest is lost. We stop caring about the characters, because there is no battle to win, and thus no real side to root for.
When a good story is populated by strong characters, and when that story is underlined by tension and those characters driven by conflict, the reader is in for a treat.
THE DYING BREATH. THE DYING WILL. THE DYING HOPE.
After the catastrophe of the Call of Agon, Ifferon and his companions find themselves in the unenviable situation of witnessing, and partaking in, the death of another god—this time Corrias, the ruler of the Overworld.
With Corrias locked inside the corpse of the boy Théos, he suffers a fate worse than the bonds of the Beast Agon. Yet hope is kindled when the company find a way to restore the boy, and possibly the god, back to life.
The road to rebirth has many pitfalls, and there are some who consider such meddling with the afterlife a grave risk. The prize might be life anew—but the price might also be a second death.
Genre - Epic Fantasy
Rating – PG
In this excerpt, due to a catastrophic disaster, the people of Galatians Bunker have been forced the surface of the Earth centuries ahead of schedule. Sixteen-year-old Josie has escaped with her mother and young niece. The fate of her other family members is unknown:
The acid air was beginning to burn Josie’s eyes. The cold invaded her like an army intent on conquering every bit of flesh and bone. It was like nothing she had ever felt before, making her muscles cramp and sending violent shivers deep through her body. She pulled the collar of one of her layered shirts over her nose, but it didn’t do much good. Bad luck to emerge in what surely must be the dead of winter. Families huddled together in groups, but she could barely make them out through the thick mists. If she lived a thousand lifetimes, the sounds of her people’s wailing would never leave her head.
Coughing spasms wracked her frame. Her head felt all woozy. She sidled up to her mother, and they sheltered Shasta between them. Speaking was becoming difficult. Josie, Shasta and Josie’s mother clung together amid the swirling fumes.
They were cheek to cheek.
“I love you, little Shasta,” mother said, voice quaking. “You too, sweet Josie.”
“I love you too, Mom.” Josie’s chest felt constricted. Through a fit of coughing she asked, “Do you think Feenie and Jo made it?”
“Shhh,” Mom said, her legs slowly crumpling beneath her weight, but Josie held her up. “We’re all going to be fine—just fine.”
Josie felt the poisoned air weakening her as well. In her despair, fear turned to sadness. I’m not ready to die, she sobbed inside, thinking of Shasta, who was only a little girl, and Nicholas, so innocent and sweet, who had been swallowed up by the crowd. Josie wasn’t sure which religion had it right about God, if any, but she shook a fist at Him or Her for good measure. “This is so unfair!”
Then, up on a hill, a bright light burned away the fog. The tainted mists parted to reveal a barren wasteland. There were no trees, no vegetation of any kind, or any life whatsoever. And there on the summit, a lone figure stood above the world, glowing as if illuminated from within.
“Is that the mayor?” someone asked.
“Red Wakeland, Junior,” her mother whispered. “What are you up to?”
“Is it some kind of super charisma?” Josie gasped.
Surely, there was no reason to expect salvation, but seeing him like that planted the seed of hope.
They watched him reach the summit, where he turned in a circle, and stretched his hands toward the sky. The blaze emanating from him grew brighter. In a voice like thunder, he called out to the heavens, “In the name of my father!”
A burst of energy radiated from his body like ripples from a stone thrown into a pond. He dissipated the tainted green mists and the mustard-colored clouds engulfing the land. The pulse went right through Josie, setting her nerve endings on fire. Intense white burned her eyes through her closed lids. Then came a boom, so deep and vibrato she thought that her veins would explode.
Sure that she was being incinerated, Josie wanted her final words to be lofty ones, but all she could muster up was, “Here we go!”
The last survivors of the human race are riding out nuclear winter in an underground bunker when disaster strikes. Forced to the surface centuries ahead of schedule, what they find blows their minds. Who can explain it? Two social misfits work together to unravel the mystery.
After living in a posh underground shelter his entire life, Lars Steelsun is plunged headfirst into a mind-blowing adventure on the surface of the Earth. As Lars and his displaced bunker mates are led across the grasslands by Mayor Wakeland, a man of questionable sanity who claims to talk with God, they discover a primitive world where human beings are no longer welcome. Even more mystifying is the emergence of new senses and abilities from within. Learning to use them has become a priority, but his biggest challenge comes from the vivacious Josie Albright. Her lust for glory is going to get them both into trouble. Sparks fly when her gung ho ways clash with his cautious personality. Can they overcome their differences to find love and a homeland for their people?
May not be suitable for younger readers. Contains mild profanity, sexual situations (infrequent), and violence.
Genre - Epic Fantasy
Rating – R
Everyone in the room leaned forward, desperate to hear Amroth’s strategy. The Quodivar were the greatest threat to Lodia’s economy in more than a century, and the vast majority of the nobles gathered here had strong ownership in at least one merchant company. Amroth provided hope not only for peace, but for fat wallets as well.
“My plan requires great risk, but it is the only hope we have. Large armies do not work against the Quodivar. My last mission proved this. Instead, I will assemble a small team, an elite force of Haldessa’s finest. With this team we shall seek out the Quodivar and battle them the way they battle us: with stealth and cunning. I come here tonight to name the two men with whom I intend to enter battle. I will trust these two with my life, and with the fate of Lodia itself.”
A young boy near the front cried excitedly, “Who? Who will save us along with you, Captain Angustion?”
Amroth smiled kindly at the child, apparently not begrudging the interruption at all. “The first is a man whom you all know as a fine swordsman, a capable leader, and a loyal companion: Sergeant Balear Platarch!”
The crowd cheered heartily, and Balear, seated about midway between Amroth and the back of the room, stood and waved his hand with an embarrassed gesture. He bore the vacant expression of someone who had clearly drunk too much. Amroth motioned for him to come to the platform and stand beside him. Balear tripped more than once, but in the end he reached his beloved commander.
Across the room, Iren arrived at the chandelier’s cord. He spun the knife in his hand expectantly. He would time it just as Amroth finished his speech. The moment they stepped off the stage, he would cut the cord and drop the chandelier. It would crash horrendously behind them, everyone would gasp, and he would have the pleasure of watching both Amroth and Balear pick themselves off the floor.
When the cheers calmed, Amroth became contemplative as he said, “The second person I have chosen you all know well, and yet, I would guess, also do not know at all. I have thought long and hard on this choice. I do not make it lightly. I make it for the sake of Lodia, for we must have the best to succeed in this endeavor. For the final of my group I have chosen Iren Saitosan!”
The shouts of praise died in the crowd’s throats. Iren whipped his head up, utterly shocked, and then it happened. As his body jerked to face the captain, his hand swung downward. The sharpened carving knife sliced through the chandelier’s rope without pause.
From fantasy author Josh VanBrakle comes an epic new trilogy of friendship, betrayal, and explosive magic. Lefthanded teenager Iren Saitosan must uncover a forgotten history, confront monsters inspired by Japanese mythology, and master a serpentine dragon imprisoned inside a katana to stop a revenge one thousand years in the making.
Lodian culture declares lefthanded people dangerous and devil-spawned, and for Iren, the kingdom's only known Left, that's meant a life of social isolation. To pass the time and get a little attention, he plays pranks on the residents of Haldessa Castle. It's harmless fun, until one of his stunts nearly kills Lodia's charismatic heir to the throne. Now to avoid execution for his crime, Iren must join a covert team and assassinate a bandit lord. It's a suicide mission, and Iren's chances aren't helped when he learns that his new katana contains a dragon's spirit, one with a magic so powerful it can sink continents and transform Iren into a raging beast.
Adding to his problems, someone on Iren's team is plotting treason. When a former ally launches a brutal plan to avenge the Lefts, Iren finds himself trapped between competing loyalties. He needs to figure out who - and how - to trust, and the fates of two nations depend on his choice.
"A fast-paced adventure...led by a compelling cast of characters. Josh VanBrakle keeps the mysteries going." - ForeWord Reviews
Genre – YA epic fantasy
Rating – PG-13
Connect with Josh VanBrakle on Twitter
Chapter Eight
PROPELLED
BY SHEER WILL, BREN GRABBED his saddlebags and made it to the top of the
stairs. His blood pounded in his temples. The scar on his face burned like a
glowing chunk of coal.
Eleanor
had a way of stirring his angry blood into a rapid boil. He was tired of
listening to her complaints. No matter how much he allotted to Tolone, it was
never enough.
Even
so, he was used to enduring her gripes. It was her daring that perturbed him
most. She should be smart enough to refrain from tempting him, but she had
always been even bolder than all of her audacious ancestors put together. If it
would have been in his power, he would have released her from her obligations
years ago.
He
shouldn’t have come, but a man was entitled to a dry bed and a warm meal,
especially if he was paying generously for it. The rainy season had made a mess
of his camps and his men deserved a proper roof and a dry pallet every once in
a while.
There
was also the matter of the woman. She shouldn’t have to spend her last days on
a wet horse and her last nights on the soggy ground. She didn’t deserve to be
murdered coldly in a back alley among paupers and whores or in the forgotten
wilderness of a wind-swept ridge.
There
he went again, trying to justify the absurd delay. But he was done delaying.
Eleanor’s lewd dance had stirred up his wrath. Wrath was good, the ultimate
motivator. A stoked up man was the most efficient killer, a hunter worthy of
Laonia and the house of Uras.
He
had to do it, now, before he changed his mind.
He
entered the room he kept at the seed house of Tolone and dropped his saddlebags
by the door. The chamber was still warm, but the fire had died down into a pile
of glowing embers. The chamber’s gloom matched his bleakness.
Not
for the first time, Bren wondered what type of weakness had earned his father
the curse that plagued his house. He might never know, because his father was
dead and so was the rest of his line.
He
wasn’t feeling very merciful tonight, a change that was bound to help. He came
upon the bed in two strides. There was no point in explaining, no benefit to
warning, coaxing or compelling. He was angry—at himself, at his fate. He
clutched the hilt of his sword and ripped off the blankets from the bed.
The
woman was gone.
He
stared at the empty mattress in disbelief. A most improbable line was neatly
written on the sheet, a flowing trail of ink on white linen.
Whether
it was kindness, courage or charity, I thank you, my lord. Farewell. L.
Award-Winning Finalist in the fantasy category of The 2013 USA Best Book Awards, sponsored by USA Book News
Genre – Fantasy/Dark Fantasy
Rating – PG-18
How has your upbringing influenced your writing? In lots of ways. I grew up in the Caribbean, in the Dominican Republican, where the tropical sun makes colors more brilliant and textures more pronounced. The island taught me about settings, characters, conflict and plot twists. Anything could happen any day, and even the implausible seemed routine. Dominicans are artists at heart and inspiration was easy to find. Their beliefs, stories and even their music, has influenced my style. How would you describe your creative process while writing The Curse Giver? My initial creative process is subconscious at first and then tied by a very loose outline to my writing journey, which entails equal measures of disciplined plotting and stream-of-consciousness writing. Most of the time my creative process is sparked by a scene, a vivid image that fuels an intricate plot. I hate to repeat this because literature snobs everywhere frown upon it, but it’s the truth: Both the Stonewiser series and The Curse Giver were born in my dreams. In the case of The Curse Giver, I dreamed about this wretched man, bitter and angry, who had been cursed to live in fear and die in agony and was desperately searching for a way to defeat his curse. The image was very powerful and unforgettable. It got me thinking. What type of curse ailed him? Something very dark, I told myself, something shocking, something that forced him to straddle the boundaries between good and evil, duty and crime. From then on, the story took off, acquiring a life of its own, with the outline as a guide but the plot twists and the characters in charge. That’s how I wrote The Curse Giver. When did you first know you could be a writer? I think I’ve known it all along. It was just a matter of finding the right time in my life to go for it. What is the most rewarding part of being an author? The readers, definitively the readers. What genre are you most comfortable writing? I’m most comfortable writing fantasy, romance and historical fiction. I really like to mix all of these elements. I often use medieval history to validate the details in my fantasy stories just as I use romance to deepen, enrich and authenticate my characters. My latest novel, The Curse Giver, is all of that plus mystery and intrigue. When or where do you get your best writing ideas? The shower, definitively the shower. Maybe it’s because I can’t sing, so instead, I think. Seriously, I think that after a long night writing, a hot shower relaxes the body, clears the mind and allows the stories to flow. I also get a lot of ideas in my dreams when I’m asleep. Driving is good too. In fact, I have a pen and pad always ready in my car. The scribbles are really hard to read, and so that you know, I only update my notes during long red lights. Have you ever used anyone from your real life encounters in any of your books? I’ve never consciously set out to model one of my characters after anyone in particular. On the other hand, I’m sure I’ve used all of my life experiences and observations to construct my worlds and conceive my characters. In that sense, everything I do, every place I go and everyone I’ve met has somehow contributed to my stories. What is a regular writing day like for you? I sit down to write sometime between eight or nine in the evening and write through the night. I go to bed anywhere between three and six and sleep the morning away. I get up around ten or eleven and spend the afternoon editing what I did the night before and taking care of the business aspects of writing. The best part: It’s my schedule and I get to choose my office’s dress code, which, by the way, is a notch below casual, super comfy. The biggest challenge: Talk about not being a morning person! When you were published for the first time, which route did you go – mainstream, small press, vanity published, or self-published and why or how did you choose this route? I went with a small press, a micro press really, mostly because I knew that, as a new author, I was going to have a hard time getting picked up by a larger press, but also because the small press offered me an incredible opportunity and lots of involvement in the process of publishing my book. For The Curse Giver, I went with Twilight Times Books, a really great independent press that publishes in critically acclaimed books. If you could give one book promotion tip to new authors, what would that be? I think that word of mouth continues to be the best and most reliable way of promoting a book and therefore any and all situations where people are blogging, tweeting, posting, reviewing, and talking about your book to their friends, readers and colleagues are very helpful to a book’s promotion. If you could be anywhere in the world other than where you are right now, where would that place be? Sitting in my writing chair, writing. What’s the best advice you can give to aspiring authors? If you are truly a writer, write! Write like the wind—this is actually the title of a writing series by my friend Aaron Paul Lazar—write as much as you can, whenever you can, however you can. Only by writing will you perfect your skills, polish your stories and develop the grit necessary to pursuit a path towards publication. And only by writing can you fulfill the need to tell your stories. What can we expect from you in the future? More books of the same genre? Books of a different genre? You can expect more stories from me in the future, more fantasy, a dark contemporary fantasy with a Latin twist, and more about the world of The Curse Giver in its companion novel, The Soul Chaser. Thanks for stopping by! It was a pleasure to have you here! Thank you for having me. I had a lot of fun visiting with you and your readers 
Lusielle’s bleak but orderly life as a remedy mixer is shattered when she is sentenced to die for a crime she didn’t commit. She’s on the pyre, about to be burned, when a stranger breaks through the crowd and rescues her from the flames. Brennus, Lord of Laonia is the last of his line. He is caught in the grip of a mysterious curse that has murdered his kin, doomed his people and embittered his life. To defeat the curse, he must hunt a birthmark and kill the woman who bears it in the foulest of ways. Lusielle bears such a mark. Stalked by intrigue and confounded by the forbidden passion flaring between them, predator and prey must come together to defeat not only the vile curse, but also the curse giver who has already conjured their demise. Award-Winning Finalist in the fantasy category of The 2013 USA Best Book Awards, sponsored by USA Book News Buy Now @ Amazon Genre – Fantasy/Dark Fantasy Rating – PG-18 More details about the author
Connect with Dora Machado on Facebook & Twitter Website http://www.doramachado.com/
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