Silk Palace by Colin Harvey

Who causes friction in the story?

The plotters and the Royal Family that they’re plotting against – pretty much everyone is rubbing up against one another and getting up each other’s noses!

Do you prefer bad guys or bad gals?

Oh, bad girls every time! Oh, sorry, are we talking about writing here? Being serious, I don’t see any difference between the two. I’ll use bad guys or girls as the occasion arises.

How do you use your bad guys?

Often to provide a mirror to the hero, to highlight a view of him or her that we wouldn’t otherwise get.

Do you enjoy writing the bad guys or do you find it difficult?

I find it quite difficult, but I hope that I’m getting better at it. My first baddie was almost a mustache-twirling villain, but as I’ve gone along I’ve tried more and more to portray them as flawed, or as ordinary people who make bad choices.

Whether you enjoy writing them or hate writing them, we'd like to know why you feel that way?

Because one-dimensional villains are basically Hollywood ; they reduce the challenge to the hero, which reduces the effect of his or her victory. Without sacrifice, the victory is meaningless.

Who is your favorite bad guy in any of your books? Which bad guy and which book are they in?

Arial from The Silk Palace; his only real sin is to be over-ambitious, and to think that he can control an elemental force. But that lack of sin doesn’t mask the terrible consequences of what he does.

Who is your favorite fictional bad guy -- that's not in your books?

Alfred Bester’s Gulliver Foyle, from The Stars My Destination (I grew up knowing it as Tiger! Tiger!) – the ultimate anti-hero.

Please provide your website link.

http://www.geocities.com/colin_harvey/TheSilkPalace.html

What is the link to buy your book?

In the USA ; http://www.amazon.com/Silk-Palace-Colin-Harvey/dp/1934041424/ref=sr_1_1/103-3811783-1271041?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1193587154&sr=1-1

In the UK ; http://www.amazon.co.uk/Silk-Palace-Colin-Harvey/dp/1934041424/ref=sr_1_1/203-2993755-7182356?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1193586998&sr=8-1

Or electronically: http://www.fictionwise.com/eBooks/eBook51966.htm?cached