Fantasy in a Time of Crisis: Guest Post by Suzanna J. Linton

I left Twitter earlier this year but before I did, I noticed many writers talking about using their writing as a form of activism. This isn’t exactly a new concept. Many novels have been written in reaction to the times in which writers find themselves. Neither is this a bad thing. The written word can bring a society to its knees, not because there’s actual magic there but because of the force of the ideas contained therein.

Fantasy makes a good vehicle for activist writing because of its flexibility and the broadness of its audience. Some of the highest grossing films right now are some form of fantasy or science fiction. However, in times where it seems like a new crisis emerges every other day and you’re the living manifestation of that meme of the dog in the burning room (“This is fine.”), is there still a place for fantasy whose goal is not activism?

This question reminds me of an interview involving Brie Larson and Jeremy Renner, who were promoting Avengers: Endgame. The interviewer asked, essentially, if they felt any responsibility as actors. Larson responded that she definitely saw her acting as a platform to spread her ideals. Renner, on the other hand, responded that there was nothing better than seeing the joy on children’s faces. Both responses were perfectly valid. As actors, they do have the ability to reach a wide audience and influence people. Whether they do or not is up to them and it’s a very personal choice that relates to their overall goal as an actor.

For writers, it’s no different. We could go into writing a novel with a specific message or theme in mind. We could build a fantasy world so that we can examine a value or belief we hold dear. In fact, I wrote the novel Clara to answer a highly personal question. When I couldn’t answer my question, I continued the series. In a way, the series Stories of Lorst is a manifestation of an ongoing conversation I’m having with myself about fate and knowledge of the future. It’s not activism but it is writing for a specific end.

Cover of Clara by Suzanna J. Linton

However, maybe someone else is having the same conversation with themselves. Or, perhaps they see another theme or value in my series my subconscious placed there but which calls to the reader. Or, maybe they enjoy being sucked into another world, one that does catch on fire but the good guys ride in to put out the flames. 

Writing a novel where good triumphs over evil is valid. We need hope in a world that seems a mess, where everything is complicated and simply going to the store feels like a colossal quest full of dangers of one sort or another. 

Writing a novel where questions are posed and values are examined is valid. We need honest conversation and thought in a world full of people screaming at each other and no one listening.

Writing a novel where the greatest goal is entertainment is valid. Sometimes, we just need to slip into a different world where everything has to make sense.

Using writing as a platform for activism is a perfectly valid reason to be a writer. But it is still perfectly valid to write if all you want to see is the joy on people’s faces when they pick up your book. Whether you do or don’t depends on your goal as a writer and your choice is not one for which you should be ashamed.

Picture of Author Suzanna J. Linton!

More about Suzanna J. Linton

Website: https://suzannalinton.com/

Social Media: Goodreads, Instagram, and Books2Read

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Guest Post by Wendy L. Anderson, Author of Ulrik

Hello, I’m Wendy L. Anderson. I am a fantasy author! I will also reveal that my fantasy writing has a bit of romance thrown in. There is action, adventure, magic, danger, and intrigue in all of my books. 

My first foray into the world of writing was my five book Kingdom of Jior epic fantasy series. I have created an entire world full of fantastic and noble beings and it all begins with book one Of Demon Kind. Most of my reviewers have found this book series surprises them with its uniqueness.

One thing I love about writing fantasy is world creating. Would it be bad of me to admit that I love to escape into the worlds I make up rather than face the one I’m in?

I am a pantser which means I write by the seat of my pants and do not use a formal outline, process, or formula to write. I just sit down and start typing an idea I have or a scene that pops into my head and I just go from there. I also use many themes in my writing because they are my favorite things and places and they just happen. Being born in Colorado, it should not come as a surprise, that I love the mountains. I also love winter, forests, waterfalls, hot springs, crystals and jewels, prisms, and anything medieval. Knights, chivalry, swords, and honorable quests inspire me to write these fantasy adventures. Those favorites appear often in many of my stories, but I am always pushing the boundaries and I do try to expand my writing horizons.

In addition to my five book fantasy series, I have written a stand-alone Viking story titled, A Cut Twice as Deep. This is a beautiful tale I saw in a dream and is about twin sisters who only have each other in a world where women are not particularly valued. They have grown up serving their tyrant of a father when suddenly they find out that they have been given in marriage to the highest bidders. Forced to separate and travel great distances they are parted so that their father may increase his wealth and power. This story has everything danger, intrigue, and romance, and did I mention Vikings? I test the waters of historical fiction with my special brand of fantasy thrown in. A Cut Twice as Deep is an emotional tale of sisterly bonds and finding love in a land where blood and ice reign.

I once read, and perhaps you have heard the saying, that a true writer needs to write it is in their nature just like a painter needs to paint or a sculptor needs to sculpt. That is me. When it comes to writing, I live by Winston Churchill’s wise words, “Never, never, never, never give up.”

 I hope you have enjoyed this ramble. You can learn more about my books and my writing on my website www.wendylanderson.com. Be sure to subscribe and feel free to contact me about anything you’d like to know about me and my fantasy writing.

Until then… Enjoy the fantasy!

Banner for the Ulrik blog tour! Find the Rafflecopter giveaway here!

Death was the beginning of their adventure.

Drowning when his ship went down in a vicious storm, Ulrik the Viking thought it was the end. Instead, he awakens on a new and brutal Earth. Believing he was banished to this strange land by the gods as punishment, he faces the mountainous wilderness alone.

Tessa, a lonely and broken-hearted woman, dies in her sleep on her 85th birthday. She too awakens surrounded by the frightful and the unknown. Both are mysteriously thrown into new bodies facing new lives, new hopes, new dangers, and new desires.

Cast through time and other dimensions, fate has given Ulrik and Tessa a second chance at life and love. They must survive in a ruthless new world against a brutal warrior race determined to use them to conquer extinction and enter into the age of metal.  All that stands against them is ULRIK.

Book Cover: Ulrik by Wendy L. Anderson

Excerpt

Ulrik sat on the bank of a cool stream that ran down the mountain where he usually hunted. He watched as the water trickled over smooth rocks and sprayed the moss-lined bank. Down the mountainside, the stream narrowed and was eventually joined by another river, widening to become a rushing, roaring froth of cold, crystal blue water flowing swiftly over rapids. His gaze followed the stream as it meandered off into the distance and gently widened into a deep slow-moving river. He listened to the different sounds the water made. The roar, as it cascaded down the waterfall further uphill, to the trickle of the stream over moss-covered rocks, and finally the faint pounding of distant rapids. The forest was raucous with sound and full of breath-taking sights.

The forest’s majesty was lost on him today. Ulrik was bored. He reached for a stone and tossed it into the stream then stood, grabbed his spear, and walked up the hill toward the lake at the bottom of the waterfall. He decided he had better find something for his supper and thought fish sounded as good as anything else.

Memories swamped him as he recalled all the times he had fished with his brothers as a young man. Those thoughts led him to contemplate, for the hundred thousandth time, his current solitary situation. By his count, it had been around two years that he lived alone in these mountains in this strange place. Being banished by the Gods he knew, enraged him and his loneliness made him feel like less of a man. Two years without speaking to another soul or without seeing another human’s face made him angry. He cursed, kicking at a stone in his path. The stone shot forward, struck a tree, and fell uselessly to the ground.

“By Odin and all the gods! I wish I had a woman!”

He cursed out loud and continued stomping up the path until he came to his usual fishing spot at the lakeside. He hefted his spear and waded into the lake, not even bothering to remove his boots.

The warm spring wind blew across his face. As he had a hundred times before, Ulrik stood still, slowed his breathing, and searched the deep emerald depths for the flicker of a silvery tail. Quick as lightning he stabbed down and, wrenching his arm back, pulled an impaled fish out of the water. He grasped the wriggling tail, pulled it from the spear blade, and threw it to the bank of the lake where it flopped, struggling to breathe as its life leached away.

Wendy L. Anderson, author of Ulrik

About the Author

Wendy L. Anderson is a Colorado native and mother of two boys. She has an English Degree from Regis University and writes books, short stories and poetry. Wendy is a devout reader of the classics, fantasy, sci-fi and historical fiction. She has decided it is time to write down the fantasies from her own mind. Writing about everything from fantastical worlds to the stuff of her dreams she takes her stories along interesting paths while portraying characters and worlds she sees in her mind’s eye. Her goal is to deviate from common themes, write in original directions and transport her reader to the worlds of her creation.

Website: https://www.wendylanderson.com/

Social Media: Facebook, Instagram, and Goodreads

Win a free copy of Ulrik here!

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How Irish Legends Inspired a Sci-fi Trilogy about Getting Younger: Guest Post by Byddi Lee

As I was growing up, the  Irish legends that captured my imagination most were not the daring-does of Cuchulainn – The Hound of Ulster nor the stories of Macha – the queen who gave her name to my home town Armagh. In fact, the ancient warriors and royalty didn’t interest me at all, but those stories that involved distorted ageing and extended longevity did. It was an indulgence of sorts to weave the essence of these stories into The Rejuvenation Trilogy. 

Rejuvenation is set in a dystopian future. There are matter streamers to provide food, hovercrafts for transportation, and carebots to tend to the frail. Against this backdrop of technology, we see a society that is top-heavy with an aged population. People still yearn to be and stay young.

The Irish fairy tales have stood the test of time and inspire the children of that era, such as our main characters, Bobbie and Gracie, fraternal twins. Gracie suffers from a rapid ageing disease called Progeria and is particularly drawn to the stories of  Tír na nÓg, the Land of the Forever Young that’s far across the waves and can only be reached by a magic horse as she explains to Bobbie…

‘“I’m no angel,” Gracie said, grinning. “I’m one of the little people, a leprechaun! And I’m going to escape to Tír na nÓg.”

“To where?” Bobbie asked.

“The land of everlasting youth. Everyone is beautiful and young there, and when I go there, I’ll look just like you,” Gracie said. “But with black hair, like Daddy.” 

“How do you know all this?”

“I read about it on the Internet.”

“Can I come?” Bobbie couldn’t imagine being anywhere without Gracie.

“Yes, but you’ll have to wait until when you’re old. Like me.” Gracie’s fuchsia pink dress reflected off her skin, giving her bare, veined scalp an ethereal glow.

“But you’re only nine. We’re the same age.”

“Yes, but I’m the one who’s a fairy, remember? I’ll watch over you from Tír na nÓg. Time passes slower there than it does in Armagh, so it will only feel like ten minutes to me before you’re there, too.”’

Excerpt from Rejuvenation Book 1

The Children of Lir is another example of a legend that tells of excessive ageing and longevity. Lir’s children are turned into swans by their stepmother and sent into exile for three hundred years. They returned to their home in Ireland and resumed human form – as three-hundred-year-old humans – then they died. I’m grossly paraphrasing, but nonetheless, it’s a tragic tale. 

We find out early in Rejuvenation Book 1 that Gracie died at the age of 13 from her condition. Her death left a lasting effect on her twin sister Bobbie who, feeling she had acquired a special understanding of ageing because of Gracie, went on to become a geriatrician. In Rejuvenation Book 2, Bobbie uses the fairy tale of the Children of Lir to try to make sense of ageing and death in the real world, a challenge for her since she sees both daily in her job.

Other Irish fairy tales hold more promise, like the one about Fionn Mc Cool being tricked by the old witch, the Calliagh Berra on top of Slieve Gullion, the highest mountain in County Armagh. As the story goes, one day Fionn found a young woman crying by the lake at the top of the mountain. When he asked her why she said she’d dropped her gold ring into the lake. Being the hero he was, he jumped in after it. But the girl was the old witch who was jealous of her sister for being in love with Fionn. The witch had put a spell on the lake so that when Fionn came out, he had aged to become a withered old man with white hair. But Fionn’s followers made the witch reverse the spell, and he became young again. 

The Rejuvenation Trilogy is all about regaining lost youth and its consequences. Bobbie’s most elderly patients contract a strange disease which proves fatal to some but others, including her Granny, survive and become younger, fitter and psychopathic!

I was drawn to the idea that eternal youth wasn’t exactly the be-all and end-all and wanted to explore the gifts that come with age. In a society that values the beauty of youth, that’s quite a challenge, but even the Irish legends will have us realise that the beauty of youth is only skin deep as in the story of Oisin, Fionn Mc Cool’s son.

As the story goes, Oisín falls in love with Niamh, a woman of the Otherworld. She takes him across the waves on a magic horse to Tír na nÓg. After what feels like three years to Oisín, he becomes homesick and wants to return to Ireland. Niamh warns him to stay on the magic horse and never to touch the ground. But when Oisín returns, he discovers that 300 years have passed in Ireland. He falls from the horse and instantly ages. As the years catch up with him, he quickly dies.

In Rejuvenation Book 1 this same legend is reflected in several instances of age catching up quickly on a youthful body and although this legend is not actually recounted, it forms the basis of some of Bobbie’s nightmares.

‘By the time Death carried Gracie to Tír na nÓg four years later, Bobbie had read scores of legends about the Land of the Forever Young. Alone in the bedroom, Bobbie had once shared with Gracie, she’d jolt awake after dreaming of her twin sister returning for her on a white horse, young and beautiful, her black hair billowing out behind her. Bobbie would reach for Gracie, but as their hands touched, Gracie’s hair would turn white, her skin would wrinkle, her body crumple as she died all over again from old age.’

Excerpt from Rejuvenation Book 1

I think ultimately the idea of folding the old fairly tales into a high-tech dystopian future is a metaphor for life – we can’t forge ahead and embrace the new and the vivacious unless we can carry with us and learn from the stories and wisdom from years gone by. 

Cover of Byddi Lee’s Rejuvenation

About Rejuvenation by Byddi Lee

Synopsis:

The Melter War has left the Earth’s surface devastated, leaving humanity to survive on what little land is left between the Scorch Zones and the rising oceans, where towering scubscrapers dot the dystopian shorelines.

Bobbie Chan is a doctor caring for the ultra-elderly in one such subscraper when she notices a mysterious, new disease afflicting her patients; some show signs of age reversal before a catastrophic, and often fatal, cardiac arrest strikes.

Bobbie begins to wonder if she is witnessing a bio weapon in full force. A Melter attack? Are they destined to finish the war they started?

Bobbie begins a race against time to rescue the Rejuvenees and uncover their true enemy

Picture of Byddi Lee, author of Rejuvenation

More about Byddi Lee, author of Rejuvenation

Byddi Lee grew up in Armagh and moved to Belfast to study at Queen’s University. She has since lived in South Africa, Canada, California and Paris before returning to live in her hometown, Armagh.

Her Rejuvenation Trilogy, is published by Castrum Press and Rejuvenation Book One, Book Two and Book Three all available now. Book One is also out in audiobook.

She has published flash fiction, short stories and, in 2014, her novel, March to November.  Byddi has also co-written the play IMPACT – Armagh’s Train Disaster with Malachi Kelly and Tim Hanna. IMPACT was directed by Margey Quinn and staged by the Armagh Theatre Group in the Abbey Lane Theatre June 2019.

During the COVID 19 pandemic when all theatres were closed, Byddi teamed up with Malachi and Tim to write Zoomeo & Juliet and Social Bubble Toil & Trouble suitable for live performance delivered through Zoom, produced by Margery Quinn and performed by the Armagh Theatre Group.

Byddi is a co-founder of the spoken word event Flash Fiction Armagh and is co-editor of The Bramley – An Anthology of Flash Fiction Armagh.

Author Links

Book links: Rejuvenation, Rejuvenation 2, and Rejuvenation 3

Social Media: Newsletter, Facebook, and Twitter

Website: https://www.byddilee.com/

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Writing and ADHD, a Guest Post by Sarah Lampkin

Congrats to author Sarah Lampkin on the release of the third installment in her Dead Dreamer series, To Reap the Spirit! Read on for Lampkin’s guest post ad an excerpt from her new book. And don’t forget to sign up for the Giveaway!

Writing and ADHD

Around the age of 14, my mom took me to a behavior therapist for the first time and that was when I was officially diagnosed with ADHD. After many fights and arguments over grades and studying, we finally had an answer as to why I couldn’t do things the same way as my older sister. It also explained my day dreaming.

Being a young teenage girl, daydreaming is a common occurrence and not something that would raise alarm. But my ability to be so completely lost in thought and in my own world happened far too often and during situations that got me into trouble. For instance, I was constantly lost while in school, as my brain believed my own world was more interesting. 

While using my sketch book as my outlet, I started to describe to my parents the stories behind my terribly drawn people…but I wouldn’t stop. There were times when I would start telling a story and no matter what my parents did to change the subject or stop me, I had no control over my own voice. 

That’s when a suggestion was made: Write your stories. 

I don’t remember who suggested it. I just know that I was never motivated to finish anything until I started writing. It became the perfect outlet for the ideas that were always in the forefront of my mind, distracting me from everything else. That’s when my life began to change for the better. I was finally learning how to live a healthy and productive life with ADHD without medication. 

With each new story, I was able to hyper focus on my writing. So, when the time came to go to school or work on homework, I was suddenly able to focus on the work at hand without getting easily distracted by everything else going on. Somehow, writing became the therapy I needed to be successful at everything in my life. Of course, I still struggle with some things, but not as much as I did before as a young teen or child. 

Writing was my life saver.

Sanguis daretur. Ignis invocavit.

To Reap the Spirit is the third installment in the haunting Dead Dreamer series.

About the Book:

Somehow Brenna Whit has survived to her junior year at Nephesburg College. Despite all odds, she’s fought against the Gatekeepers and lived. But the battle for the Fade has only just begun.

New pieces have been added to the board.

The Fade opens to the Veil.

And a Shade from the past returns.

With Brenna’s secret out, everyone is after her: dead and living alike. Those from across the sea have come and they’re determined to regain control of their broken faction.

Questions will be answered.

Fires will be lit.

Chaos will reign.

Excerpt:

“You’ve been reckless,” said a voice. 

Looking next to me, I saw another one of those things—Reapers. It was the same who had rescued me from George. Her native skin glowed in the night, her long dark hair sitting gently over her shoulders. 

“Are you Catori?” I asked, remembering the name from George’s journals. 

She shook her head. “Spirit Walkers cannot become one of us. I was her sister. But in all of the time I have been collecting souls, I have never seen this happen.” 

Staring down at my body, I asked, “Seeing a Dead Dr—Spirit Walker die?” 

The woman placed her hand gently onto my body’s chest. Watching her, I realized what she was talking about. My chest was still rising and falling—breathing. 

The woman chuckled, “Your soul is quite perturbed.” I joined her in a dry laugh. 

“I’d imagine so. This is all she’s ever wanted.” 

Shaking her head, the woman stepped back. “I cannot take this soul. You must fix this.” 

“Brenna?” 

Will approached my body. “What are you doing? Aren’t you freezing?”

The woman was gone when he called. I could only stand there as Will began to worry. 

Amidst his panic, there was only one place I wanted to go. I couldn’t explain it, but it felt as though something was calling to me, beckoning me home. In the blink of an eye, I was no longer standing next to my body.

About the Author:

A native of Richmond, Virginia, Sarah Lampkin is a 2015 graduate from Lynchburg College [University of Lynchburg] with a master’s degree in English. Since graduation, Sarah now lives in Northern Virginia working in the IT field as a Technical Writer while continuing her research for her graduate school thesis. When she isn’t working, Sarah continues her Celtic mythology research and Gaelic studies, while working on the Dead Dreamer series.

Find out More About Sarah Lampkin:

Website: https://dead-dreamer.com/about/

Social Media: Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram

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Guest Post, an Interview, and two Reviews

I’ve been busy promoting both my books, Sapience and Saints and Curses, and I’m happy with how that’s going! Today, my friend Sarah Mensinga and I had out first book signing at a local Half Price Bookstore in Plano, TX! We’ll be doing a mini tour of bookstores (find our schedule here). In addition to in-person events, I’ve done another guest post, an interview, and I’ve had two more reviews, including my first by a booktuber!

Me (Alexis Lantgen) holding a copy of my book, Saints and Curses: A Collection of Fantasy Short Stories, at my table at Half Price Books.

You can find my latest guest post at the Sorcerer of Tea’s website. I wrote “5 Tips for First Time Book Convention Vendors,” and I’m happy with how it turned out. If you’re a writer interested in potentially getting a table at a Comicon, or if you just love Comicons, check it out!

I knew as soon as I decided to publish my first book, Sapience, that I’d love to get a table at a local book convention. I’d been to cons before, and there are always tons of science fiction/fantasy fans roaming about, enjoying the finely polished dice and the hilarious T-shirt slogans.

My most recent interview is with Pond’s Press, which is website about Video Games, Movies, and Netflix shows. I appreciate Chase Pond for contacting me!

My next interview is about a leader in a science fiction writing organization here in DFW. Let’s hear more about it from Alexis Lantgen.

I’m also happy to have a new review of Saints and Curses from writer and book blogger Laura Elizabeth. She has some really beautiful things to say about my book, and it’s always wonderful to hear how much someone enjoyed your stories (honestly, I even enjoy reading a thoughtful critique—it’s nice when someone thinks deeply about your work as well).

I enjoyed the variety in these stories, and Lantgen does well to give each one a completely distinct feel. Moving from story to story we’re treated to some vivid and surprisingly detailed characters, a real strength of the collection, and completely different narrative tones.

Last but not least, I got my first review by a booktuber, April Grace. She gives a very thoughtful description of the stories in Saints and Curses in the video below. She’s agreed to read Sapience as well, and I’m looking forward to hearing what she has to say about my science fiction short stories too.

If you’d like to hear more about my author events, don’t forget to subscribe to my newsletter!

Guest Post on Reads and Reels, an Author Interview on Altered Instinct, and a Giveaway!

This has been a busy month, but I’m really happy that I managed to write as much as I did (with the kids on summer vacation, no less!). In particular, I’m really proud of the guest post I wrote for Reads and Reels on “Religious Allegory in Netflix’s I Am Mother.” I watched the movie with my husband, and like the best type of scifi, it really stayed with me. I was turning it over and over in my head, trying to figure it out and find more meaning. I found I had to write about it to help myself understand it on a deeper level. So watch the movie, then read the review and let me know what you think!

Netflix’s “I Am Mother” is a thought-provoking science fiction thriller about AI and the human survival after an apocalypse. It’s a tense movie, full of uncomfortable juxtapositions and difficult questions about AI, our relationship to technology, and perhaps about the nature of Mother-Daughter relationships everywhere. What’s more, on a closer look, it offers haunting religious imagery and a disturbing allegory.

I’m also happy that I was able to do an interview with a blogger and writer I really respect, Leo McBride from Altered Instincts! Check it out, and while you’re there scoop out Altered Instincts, which is a really interesting blog about scifi and fantasy. In fact, he may not remember, but one of my first ever reviews was on Altered Instincts, for my short story “Earth is for Earthers” which first appeared in Red Sun Magazine and is now also in my book Sapience! So double thanks, Leo!

Twitter is a wonderful place. Okay, okay, it can get a little crazy at times. But it's through Twitter that I met Alexis Lantgen. She's a science fiction and fantasy writer of short stories - so she's kind of following the same path as me.

I’m also happy to announce that I’m running an Amazon giveaway for my newest book, Saints and Curses! Sign up for a chance to win a free book! It’s going until July 4th, so hurry!

My books are also listed on the Book of the Day website now! Here’s the links for Sapience and Saints and Curses.

Thank you for reading, and remember, if you like my books or my writing, sign up for my newsletter below!

News, Events, and a Guest Post!

I’m very excited for June because my newest book, Saints and Curses, will be coming out this month on June 5, 2019! It is available in ebook and paperback, and it will be free on Kindle Unlimited. Here’s the blurb and the cover:

“Explore worlds of light and dark, where magical whimsy and grim tidings alike are painted across the tapestry of human experience.
Indulge in tales of the fantastical where enchantments are bought and sold at the local corner store, your morning latte gives you special abilities, and you might just adopt a murderous, vampiric cat. Your child might be stolen away in the night and replaced with an ancient, evil creature of the fae, waves of plague-ridden vermin consume everything, and only a saint could hope to turn the tide.
These stories and more await you, if you dare to turn the page...”

I’ll also have a table at ArlingCon 2019, on June 15, 2019 from 10am to 6pm. I’ll have copies of both my books to sign and sell. I had a great time at Dallas Fan Expo this year, and I’m looking forward to attending ArlingCon as well! You can find out more information about the event here, and I’ll be posting plenty of pictures and video from the Con on my Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter accounts.

In more exciting news, one of my short stories is in the May issue of Kzine (#24). It’s one of my favorite stories, and I’d highly recommend you check it out!

Last but not least, you can read a flash fiction horror story I wrote on K. T. Rose’s blog as a guest post!

My Most Recent Author Interviews!

I’ve been doing lots of author interviews and guest posts over the last few days! I’m thankful people have been interested in me and my books.

Dove Winters asks some very interesting questions for my “Questions That Matter” interview with her.

I believe that there is likely to be life on other planets, or even in our solar system in the deep sea vents of Jupiter’s moon Europa or Saturn’s moon Enceladus.

Where would I go on my ideal family vacation and other interesting questions? See what I tell Teresa Keefer in my interview with her.

I think I’d go an a walking tour of the Rhine with my family. We’d stop at lovely castles, quaint little inns, and beautiful scenes along the river. At night, we’d stay in lovely inns that serve authentic German food.

Alice de Sampaio Kalkuhl asked about my world building in Sapience for my interview with her.

I think that the stories in Sapience are about big questions about our future. What kind of life will we find on other planets or moons? What kind of life will we allow an AI with human level intelligence? Can we overcome the old conflicts and hatreds of Earth?

I did an interview for Stephen Pearl’s blog on the Greatest Gadget in Sapience.

One of my favorite stories in Sapience is “Husk.” The main character, John, is a scientist who’s been tasked with creating an AI that won’t go mad or try to kill its creators (which has clearly happened during previous projects).

While this may not count as an interview, I’m also thankful to Kristina Kelly, who collected a wish list of tons of books using the #IndieApril hashtag, including Sapience!

Guest Post and Review of Sapience

I’m happy to say that Sapience got another lovely review, this time on Killian Wolf’s blog!

I gotta say, WOW! Thanks to Alexis Lantgen this will not be the last science fiction I pick up. I really enjoyed reading these. 

Check out the rest of the review on KillianWolf.com!

I also have a guest post on Mrs. Average Evaluates on being a mother and a writer, so check it out!

Becoming a mother is a beautiful but difficult transition. You’re so exhausted, so overwhelmed, that it’s hard to find the mental energy for the complex thinking required to write well.

I’m happy to write more guest post for other blogs or website, so if you’re interested in having me write for you, use the contact form below!

Exciting News: ArlingCon, Interviews, and More

ArlingCon 2019

I’m excited to announce that in addition to Dallas Fan Expo, I’ll also be having a table at the Arlington Public Library’s ArlingCon on June 15, 2019, from 10am to 6pm. The event is free and open to the public! I’ll be signing and selling books, and I’d be happy to meet any readers and fellow science fiction fans in Arlington, TX.

Interviews

I’m also happy to share that I had an Author Spotlight Interview on Timothy Bateson’s blog, which you can read here. In addition to being a book blogger and a writer, Timothy is also one of the brains behind OWS CyCon and the Fantasy and Science Fiction Reader’s Lounge on Facebook.

I also did a recent interview with book blogger Fiona Mcvie. Check it out!

Guest Blog

Finally, I wrote a guest blog for book blogger Katrina Marie, on my favorite quotes. I love quotes, and when I saw that Karina had a post on her favorite ones, I thought I’d write about some of the quotes I love best (hint: one of them is a famous line from “Dune”).