In men: I refuse to answer. I’m already happy having my dear OH by my side.
In food: Anything I can’t have on my diet.
In clothes: Actually, believe it not, I’m happy just wearing simple jeans and a top.
What is your greatest weakness (example: buying shoes)? Going on a cruise.
If you could have any kind of car, what would it be? A Maybach !!!
Your dream home – mountains or ocean? A home in the mountains, in a moderate climate, close to a good medical facility
What inspired you to become a writer? I had been writing items for a community newspaper and figured why not try fulfilling my dream of fictional author, and luckily I finally wound up writing romance.
Do you have a daily writing routine? If so, please share.
I do my best writing before 9 AM and after 9 PM.
And when I’m not doing anything else I’m reading/reviewing books, answering my emails/tweets/blogging/etc
What is your favorite book? I don’t really have any. Before I retired I didn’t have time to read any. Now that I’ve become a Book Reviewer and have reviewed over 360 books in the past two years it’s rather difficult to say which one, but being a romance author, I’m biased toward my own genre.
What is your favorite movie? I love musicals, especially family oriented ones like Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory.
Who is your favorite historical figure? In high school, being an A+ student in History it would have to be FDR.
In your books, who is your favorite hero and please introduce him?
Who is your favorite heroine and please introduce her?
In the two books I’ve written I can’t say I actually have either a hero or heroine.
What do you have out now? [Excerpt, blurb, book trailers]
My debut novel is a sweet MG/YA Paranormal romance novel entitled, “I Kissed a Ghost.”
Here are several UNEDITED SNIPPETS from the book as I wrote it:
My second book is a collection of 100 Flash Fictions, many of which I wrote while writing my debut romance novel around a prompt word I’d gotten from a now defunct website; they all had a limitation of only 5 sentences. The remaining items in this book are responses to the same website’s prompt words which I hadn’t responded to previously, without the 5 sentence limitation, and the longest of which is only about 390 words. To get a sense of what this book is like, just check out the preview pages:
New releases anytime soon? I don’t have any releases coming out soon at the present time, but I do have several WIPs
My first WIP is an adult Contemporary, which has a paranormal element running through the storyline entitled, “His Darkest Secret.” The second WIP I’m working on is a MG/YA Urban Fantasy novella, which is a stand-alone sequel to my first novel, entitled “The Secret of the Well.” For my third WIP, I’m stepping out of my comfort zone, and I’m writing an Erotic/Shape Shifting/GLBT novelette with a working title of “The Transformation.”
Where can eager fans find you? The best place for any eager fan to go to find my buy links and all my other links with some more information about me, is to go to http://www.about.me/rlmorgan51
Greetings, Kenneth! You have very interesting answers to your interview questions, not the least of which, by any means, is your publishing history. Welcome to the Chateau.
Tell us a little about yourself:
I am a multifaceted creative person whose mind is always working. I am a web designer by trade, a writer, play guitar, drums, and sing. I am also working on an Andriod app and an epic RPG in Unity3d.
NOW FOR SOME QUESTIONS
What is your favorite book? Don’t really have a favorite book, but really enjoy the collected works of CS Lewis.
What is your favorite movie?
For me, it’s a toss up between Back to the Future and Bill and Ted’s Excellent Adventure.
Who is your favorite historical figure?
Jesus Christ
What is your greatest temptation:
In women: I’m very happy with my wife.
In food: I do have a sweet tooth.
In clothes: To want what I don’t have money for.
What is your greatest weakness (example: Mine is cars)?
PC hardware.
If you could have any kind of car, what would it be?
Right now, I really want an Avalon. If I can have anything, I’d want a Tesla.
Your dream home – mountains or ocean?
Mountains.
ABOUT YOUR NEW NOVEL
What inspired you to become a writer? To write this book?
I find inspiration in the most unlikely places. I had always been a storyteller but I didn’t realize it. Mostly I told stories through making adventure games with Adventure Construction Set on my old Commodore 64. I took creative writing in college and started writing on Sunday afternoons. After a failed attempt at a book, I didn’t write for a long time. Then I saw a show that really inspired me to write again. The result was my first novel.
Dark City was inspired by a short article talking about the darkness of people’s hearts and how that might be viewed by an Artificial Intelligence.
Do you have a daily writing routine? Please share.
Get up, have breakfast, get ready for the day. Do some Facebooking, check email, then write until lunchtime. After lunch write until its time to get dinner started or the creative juices wane.
Tell us about your hero.
In Dark City, his name is Jeremiah Xidorn. He is a mobile tech working for a smart house tech company. He quickly discovers that everything he thought was real for the past six months was only a simulation and he was being tested by a group of Sentient AI called the Builders.
Is there a heroine in your novel? Tell us about her.
Not in this one.
What do you have out now? I have Harmonic Differential, Cadre of Vampires, and now Dark City.
What else do you have planned, writing-wise?
I’ve written a fourth entitled In My Blood; there is a plague on an alien world and emissaries have been sent out to find the Chosen One. They find him on Earth in Thomas Anderson. He is whisked away to the Whirlpool Galaxy where he must find a cure to scourge. The cure is found in his own blood, but he must decide if he will sacrifice himself to a people not his own, and a planet that is not his.
I’ve nearly finished with a rough draft for Dinus Sonus. A newspaper reporter goes out early in the morning and hears all the children on the block vomiting all at the same time. He must find out the cause. The answer and the cause both come from another universe.
Also I’ve started a yet-to-be-titled work about a young man taken from his bed and signed into a covert space Marine program for 20 years. He is then returned back in time to when he was taken.
“I’ve been promoted. I am now in my boss’ position.” Joe flailed his arms with glee.
“That’s great. Congratulations!” they all said in unison.
“Where’s Joe?”
“I don’t know. He just left. An appointment I guess,” Sarah responded.
“The ’droids are settin’ things up, so I’ll stay out of their hair for a bit.” Jeremiah spun around as if to show off to his friends. . Something was off, but he couldn’t pin it down. Joe had disappeared, and no one seemed to know where he went.
“I’ll find him,” he told himself and bolted for his new office.
The androids had done their work quicker than expected, and Jeremiah’s office was quiet when he got there. He had to use the scanner to get in. Immediately, he was taken aback. On his desk were pictures of his family that he didn’t put there. Setting that thought aside for the moment, he jacked into the phone system and sent the sequence to dial.
He called Joe’s office. No answer. A moment later, he called the central office to see if Joe could be located.
The automated attendant replied, “We are sorry, that person is no longer employed at this company.”
A sense of panic raised the hair on the back of his neck. Immediately, he ran with every ounce of strength to his friend’s office. It was empty. No trace that Joe worked there or had ever worked there was found. It was swept clean.
“Maybe I went to the wrong place,” he thought. “All these offices look the same.”
To his own chagrin, he knew too well the location of his friend’s office. The paranoia built to a steady state when, upon finding his other compatriots, they had no knowledge
that Joe had ever been part of their group. Jeremiah’s heart sank. He even checked the payroll office and no trace of his friend could be found.
“I think I’ll go home. I’m not feeling well,” he said out loud.
The security desk saw him approach. “We’re sorry you aren’t feeling well. Go home.”
Even in his emotional state, he couldn’t detect any emotion coming from the people behind the desk. It was as if they had been replaced by replicants. “Yeah, thanks. I will.”
Jeremiah made his way to a CAB, slid in and told it where to go. He was going over to Joe’s house. The place where he lived was no longer a single family dwelling, but a high rise multi-unit condo style building. There was no trace that Joe ever existed.
Jeremiah checked the street sign to make sure the CAB didn’t take him to the wrong place.
There was no mistake. Joe had been intentionally erased.
Welcome Jeremy! My guest today has graciously agreed to answer some introductory interview questions and to share an excerpt from his debut novel from Class Act Books, The Son of the Dark.
Jeremy, please introduce yourself.
If you are what you eat, I’m an apple. I’ve eaten an apple a day for as long as I can remember. I just love apples!
Jokes aside, my best conversation starter is to tell people about my colorblindness. It’s funny to me how this simple fact always brings out the same questions in people. Yes, I was born colorblind. I found out in kindergarten, when I couldn’t properly fill out a color-by-number sheet. No, it’s actually an extreme form of red-green colorblindness known as protanopia, or protoanomaly, that leaves me seeing only grays, yellows, and blues. Nope, nothing else. I’ve memorized the appropriate colors to most things, but I do get tripped up sometimes. I haven’t tried the Enchroma glasses, but the test on their website says they only have a 25% chance of working for me, so I’m waiting until I have $400 just lying around.
NOW FOR SOME QUESTIONS
What is your favorite book?
Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix. I’m not even going to apologize for this. Harry Potter is, quite simply, the literary classic of our time. I have a number of reasons for choosing #5 in the series, but I’ll mention just one: it’s the longest.
What is your favorite movie?
Happiest Millionaire, that old feel-good Disney movie that no one’s heard of.
Who is your favorite historical figure?
Joseph Smith. The modern world has been shaped in so many ways by the explorers, the inventors, and the politicians that sometimes I think we forget the amazing influence a prophet can have.
What is your greatest temptation?
In women: A sincere, soul-striking compliment. Gets me every time.
In food: Oreos. It is so hard to share Oreos. I’m more likely to offer you an engagement ring than an Oreo, no matter how much I like you.
In clothes: It is so tempting to never buy new clothes, and rely only on birthday gifts and Christmas presents to replenish my wardrobe twice a year. You wouldn’t believe how much I dislike clothes shopping. Yes, I’m that boring.
What is your greatest weakness (example: Mine is cars)?
My heart. My heart is such a gloppy, dripping mess that I leave bits of it wherever I go.
If you could have any kind of car, what would it be?
A white one.
Your dream home – mountains or ocean?
Definitely mountains. With trees, running water, and plenty of wildlife. Caves would be a nice bonus.
ABOUT YOUR NEW NOVEL
What inspired you to become a writer? To write this book?
When I was fourteen I started writing a book about a troop of Boy Scouts who get kidnapped by aliens. I made up so many intergalactic adventures for that poor group of teenage boys, and I had so much fun with the whole thing that I actually wrote a screenplay of the story for a college assignment much later on. Someday, when I’ve matured a bit as a writer and can approach the story with more finesse, I hope to come back to my childhood fantasy and breathe new life into it. Someday.
As for The Son of Dark, the inspiration was long in coming. My parents introduced me to David Eddings’ The Belgariad when I was a child, and I loved his straightforward approach to fantasy. The quest, the hero, the team, the MacGuffin…he had such a simple formula, and yet it worked so well! Toward the end of my undergraduate career I decided that my first book should be an experiment with that formula, but because it was my experiment, I would have to tweak the formula a bit. Of course.
Do you have a daily writing routine? Please share.
Unless the previous day’s writing was exactly what I hoped it would be, I tend to start every writing session by erasing half of what I wrote the day before. Sometimes I erase all of it. Of the three years it took to write The Son of Dark, the first two years of writing no longer exist. And good riddance, I say! Hopefully the next book in the series goes more smoothly.
Tell us about your hero.
Have you ever felt like you’re only the main character of your life story by default? That’s Skel in a nutshell. Many main characters seem to understand they are the hero of their story, as if it’s normal to have all that attention and responsibility, or even exciting. Skel is not like that at all. He escapes to the sidelines whenever he gets the chance, and it’s frustrating to him that he can never stay there for long. He isn’t afraid to step up when something needs to be done, because he has a deep desire to make things right. That’s what makes him the hero. Unlike other heroes you might have read, however, Skel despises conflict, avoids taking control when he can, and would much rather take on the role of a supporting character if he could.
Is there a heroine in your novel? Tell us about her.
It’s easy to interpret Smyra as Skel’s foil, but I see her as much more than that. Smyra’s rash confidence and abrasive personality contradict Skel at every turn, but they also tell the story of a deep insecurity that has nothing to do with Skel, and everything to do with trying to prove herself in a world of authoritarian figures who simply don’t understand her. It might seem like her power goes to her head, and perhaps it does, but let’s face it: Smyra is not the sort of woman you want as an enemy.
What do you have out now?
Just the one book. Tales of the Darksome Thorn: The Son of Dark is the first part in a fantasy adventure series that I promise is only going to get bigger and more exciting as it goes along. Duskain is a big world, and there’s so much more in it that I want to share.
What else do you have planned, writing-wise?
The next book in the Darksome Thorn series is tentatively titled Dead Forsworn. I’m only a few chapters in, but I am already very excited with where it is going. It picks up right where Son of Dark left off.
I’m trying not to think too much about other books. I am so close to finishing my master’s degree. Still, someday I plan to write a story about a child whose imagination is actually his superpower, with one caveat: his power is limited by the beliefs of the people around him.
I also have a standing promise to myself that I will someday return to my childhood fantasies of Boy Scouts and aliens. Someday.
Where can we find you? (Social media, web site, etc.)
Please give an excerpt from your novel. (cover, trailer, links, etc.)
Sitting in the wagon next to Marga was awkward. The space was cramped, stuffy, and not only did Marga talk in her sleep, she talked a lot in her sleep. To distract himself, Skel decided to read from the Dun Ko’s book. He caught light from the opening in the back of the wagon and anchored the book against his leg so the wagon’s jostling movement wouldn’t make him lose his place.
“Wake up, stone-head,” he heard Smyra say from outside. He looked up through the small opening to see her sitting on the shoulders of a phagim. She was holding a long chain to trail across the ground while she traveled so she could keep channeling the earth’s power. Morkin had suggested the idea a couple of mornings ago.
“I’m listening.” Skel put a finger on the open page to mark his spot.
“Have you found anything in that evil book yet?”
“Anything useful, you mean?”
“Don’t be thick,” Smyra snarled.
“It’s mostly propaganda,” Skel explained. “Reassurances for the victim’s family, vague promises about a new age when the Dun Ko will—”
“It’s a yes or no question, dung-tongue,” Smyra said.
Skel took a deep breath and released it. “No.”
Without another word, Smyra steered her phagim to the left, out of Skel’s line of sight. He sighed and returned to his reading.
Skel shook his head to clear it. Was Marga getting louder?
“Zhans klis. Zhans klis,” she muttered again.
Skel turned to face her. Perhaps she really was babbling, and these were all nonsense words instead of the dragon’s thoughts. Maybe the Wyvern was trying to intimidate them.
Skel turned away and tried to ignore her, skimming through a section on the Dun Ko’s eating habits. He stopped when he realized the way they ate was actually very different from most humans. He tried to focus.
“Bakarasa klin torm,” Marga raised her voice even louder.
Skel paused in his reading. Should he get Zar?
Something was definitely happening.
“Torm. Zhans klis. Bakarasa torm.”
Now she was shouting. Zar would be here any moment to check on her. The wagon stopped. Skel could hear Zar dismounting from his horse nearby.
“Zhans klis bakarasa klin torm,” she shrieked.
Skel couldn’t look away. Her face was contorting, her jaws forced apart by the power of the unearthly screams. What was the Wyvern doing to her?
Before the interview, I want to thank Linda for helping me celebrate my new release, That Monroe Girl, which is out today.
And Ilona has been kind enough to bare it all today!
What is your greatest temptation…
In men: Anyone with a sense of humor who can make me laugh.
In food: Gooey chocolate anything!
In clothes: I tend to wear casual clothes most of the time.
What is your greatest weakness? Well, besides chocolate, puppies and kittens tend to make me into mush. Yes, I’m one of the rare ones who likes both dogs and cats.
If you could have any kind of car, what would it be? I would say either a late fifties Thunderbird, or a mid-sixties Mustang. I think those were two of the coolest cars ever made.
Your dream home-mountains or ocean? That’s a hard one. I love both, but if I had to choose, I’d take the ocean. There’s nothing that can relax me faster than the surf coming in.
What inspired you to become a writer? I think I always wanted to write. When I was a child, I made books with stories I made up. My first book was about a snowman who melted on the last page. Funny, because I lived in Los Angeles at the time. In school, the teachers complimented me on my creative writing.
Do you have a daily writing routine? If so, please share. Morning is taken up with marketing and personal business. If I have time, I’ll work on my wip. After lunch, I get chores finished then work on writing for the rest of the afternoon. Evenings are a time I spend with Mark, my husband.
What is your favorite book? Little Women by Louisa Alcott. I’ve re-read it many times.
What is your favorite movie? Hands down, it’s Casablanca. Seen that many times.
Who is your favorite historical figure? For some reason, since I saw the movie Gettysburg, I’ve been drawn to Joshua Chamberlain. I’ve read about him both in the war and after. He seemed like such a brave but compassionate man.
In your books, who is your favorite hero and please introduce him? Even though I’ve loved every one of them, that includes bad boy Tim Olson in Iris Rainbow, I guess it’s true that the new one is always your favorite. Jake Spencer in That Monroe Girl, rejected the ranch life to become a news reporter in 1880s Tombstone. He’s tough, but he only uses his gun as a last resort.
Who is your favorite heroine and please introduce her? Ditto on the answer to the last question. Cat Monroe has been raised as a proper lady in Virginia, but finds life dismaying in the rough Arizona Territory. Deep down, she has more grit than even she realizes.
What do you have out now? That Monroe Girl is being officially released today.
Blurb:
Cat Monroe arrives in Tombstone, Arizona searching for her father and brothers, who left Virginia for the West right after the Civil War. With the help of newspaper reporter Jake Spencer, she finds her family and a whole peck of trouble. She’s falling for the newspaperman, but she discovers his family and hers are feuding over water rights. When her father finally accepts that she is his daughter, he wants to marry her off to a rich neighbor who has a dark past.
Excerpt:
“I told you this wasn’t finished, Spencer!” And
he tried to land a fist on Jake’s jaw, an attempt which
was deflected. Jake grabbed him by the shoulders and
threw him to the floor. Henderson tripped Jake, and
they rolled over, trading blows.
As the crowd gathered to watch the two
combatants, Sheriff Cortland and one of his deputies
pulled them apart. “What is going on here?”
Henderson pointed at Jake. “He was interfering
with my intended.”
Cat, who was watching with horror from the
sidelines, belted out, “I’m not your intended!”
The sheriff thought for a moment. “Mr. Henderson,
since you are who you are, I’m going to let you two sort
this out peacefully. If you can’t do it peacefully, I’m
putting you both in jail.”
By that time, Albert and John had joined them.
Henderson turned to Albert and pointed at Cat. “I wish
you would control your daughter.”
Cat felt her whole body tense with a desire to get a
gun and blow Henderson to kingdom come. “I can’t
take this any more!” she exploded. “Father, I told you
how I feel. If you insist on Mr. Henderson courting me,
I will have to move out.”
“Cat, listen—” Albert moved to put a hand on her
shoulder, but she shook him off.
“Leave me alone! Why can’t everybody leave me
alone!” She ran out the side door and into the carriage
lot, where she untied her mask, leaned on one of the
hitching posts, and burst into tears full of hurt, anger,
and frustration.
New releases anytime soon? I have a short mystery coming out. No release date yet. It’s with my characters from Prime Catch, Amos and Sarah Darcy.
About the Author: Ilona Fridl was born in sunny California where she spent the first twenty years of her life. Dreaming up stories took up a lot of her time. She then followed her parents to Wisconsin where she met her husband, Mark. They started a locksmithing business, but there were still stories in her head. Finally, she started putting them on paper―actually, a computer. The rest is history. She has an adult daughter and a granddaughter.