Sunday, February 17, 2008

Nimrod Rising - A Novel By Steven Clark Bradley

1 - Tell us a bit about your book. - Nimrod Rising is a book that seeks to answer where the terrorist scourge that currently plagues the world came from. The premise of the book is that the evil hitting the world is more than just a political phenomenon. I paint the picture that starts actually more than 4000 years ago when the first organized Satan worshipper, Nimrod, the first king of Babylon, is born resulting from a pact made with Lucifer by Nimrod's father Cush. The material used for this is all true historical facts. I spent 12 years researching this novel and was able to find several ancient texts such as the Book of Adam and Eve, the Cave of Treasures and the Book of Enoch. Of course, the actual events in Nimrod Rising are fiction, based on prophecies from the Bible and extra-biblical materials. Whether one is a believer in such things and future events said to be awaiting the world, the story is riveting and exciting and will touch the reader in so many different ways. I consider it a book of hope and faith in the midst of evil so pervasive that there is no where to turn but to the divine. As I say on the back of the book, ride the storm of Nimrod Rising.

2 - Tell us about the best friend - gender, age, appearance, how they came to be with the hero or heroine and anything else we need to know about them. - The Heroine is difficult to choose since there are three major female characters. The first two are Sally Michael, Shepard's mother. She was kidnapped as a believer in God and forced to have Manassa Dormin's child. She is really such a strong character and strong in faith.

Also, there is Elif Michael (Karaoglu) the Turkish wife of Shepard Michael who worked for Manassa Dormin but finds faith and turns her life and family around. She too is large in meaning in the story.

Yet, I have to say that the most powerful figure in the story is the six year old child of Shepard and Elif, Jesse. She possesses the powers of her daddy and grandfather, but the heart of the child shines through so powerfully how she reaches out to the grandfather and finds the miniscule residue of humanity left in Manassa Dormin. She can bring tears to the reader's eyes and truly wins the day through the wisdom of a child.

3 - Who does the "best friend" help in the book? - My main hero of the novel has to be the character, Shepard Michael. Shepard is the son of Manassa Dormin who is the villain in the story. He is abused and used by his father to bring about the final destruction, but he remembers the principles that his mother, Sally Michael, taught him and resists his natural inclination for evil. I think we can all relate to him in that we have all had to resist doing wrong, and the wrong has often been an easier decision for us than the good. He is a really powerful figure in the story and very profound in his outlook.

4 - Does the best friend have a specific purpose in the book? - Sure, he is the one who will either stop Manassa Dormin or open the door to complete power for the forces of darkness. He is a young, somewhat confused and very smart man who is torn terribly by forces inside his mind. He loves his daughter and wants his wife back and is ready to lay down his life to save them. He is vital to the story of Nimrod Rising.

5 - How does your hero or heroine feel about the best friend? - Shepard and his daughter Jesse both have special gifts and are both sought out by evil, but even from afar, Shepard is able to save his little girl and Jesse has tremendous love for her daddy.

6 - How would your hero or heroine handle their problems or difficulties with the best friend? - Jesse confronts so many problems and sees her daddy being torn in two directions and reminds him as only a father's little girl can, with tender innocence. They are close and depend greatly on each other.

7 - Are there problems between the best friend and your main characters? - Only stresses of the moment and fear of losing each other. Nimrod Rising truly demonstrates a lovely relationship between a father and his daughter.

8 - Do you see the best friend ever having their own story? - I can imagine anything, so perhaps.

9 - Was the best friend inspired by anyone you know? - Well, Shepard is a good man, touched by evil and tempted by it. He has undergone a tremendous amount of abuse from his evil father, Manassa Dormin, but his faith and his mother Sally has helped him continue. Yet, his love for his little girl Jesse and his wife Elif truly pushes him forward into correct decision, but the rest I'll just let you read. I can't say any one person inspired his character, but I will say, he represents someone I'd like to be like, not that I am at all, but would like to be.

10 - Is there anything else about the best friend that we need to know? Feel free to share. - The two other very important characters in Nimrod Rising are Mike Wakely and Gabriel. Mike Wakely is an archeologist who knew Dormin in Pakistan where they both were missionaries at the beginning of the book. Mike plays a vital role as the brains of the opposition against Dormin and is British. He is witty and smart and has a large role in part two of the novel. Gabriel is the founder of the movement called the MESSE, Messianic Servants of Elyon. He is a quiet soldier who shows lots of courage and intelligence and devotion to God and country.

11 - Please provide your website link. - www.stevenbradley.net

12 - What is the link to buy your book?

amazon.com
booksamillion.com
powells.com
bordersstores.com
barnesandnoble.com
copperfields.booksense.com

For much more information about Steven Clark Bradley and Nimrod Rising visit - http://www.inspiredauthor.com/promotion/steven-clark-bradley-author-nimrod-rising

Wednesday, February 13, 2008

When I'm You by LaConnie Taylor Jones

Tell us about your heroine --- the female lead in your book.

What's her name? Caitlyn Thompson

Why did you pick that name?

I've always like the name Caitlyn. Since I didn't get the chance to name my only girl child (my husband did the honors), I decided to use the name for my first fictional female character.

Give us a brief description of how she looks.

Caitlyn is only four feet, eleven inches and weighs roughly a hundred pounds. She has ebony skin that's the same shade as dark chocolate.

Is there anything unusual about her appearance?

Yes, she has beautiful slant, brown eyes.

Who does she love? Why?

Although she's been on the run from a stalking ex-boyfriend for the past three years, she meets and falls deeply in-love with Marcel Baptiste. At first, she was extremely gun-shy of becoming involved with him, despite their instantaneous attraction. However, as the weeks past, she becomes better acquainted with Marcel and is further captivated by his genuineness and willingness to earn her trust as well as erase the demons from her past.

Does this person love her?

Oh, absolutely!! Marcel is a man who's use to getting his way. It took him by surprise that Caitlyn told him the one word he never accepts - no. Also, Caitlyn's fear of another relationship makes him even more determine to win not only her trust, but her heart.

Tell us about her family.

Caitlyn was placed in foster care after the death of her mother at the age of five. She bounced through the system for twelve years until she was placed with the woman she considers as her mother, Ms. Ruby.

Where is she from?

Newark, New Jersey

Does her hometown affect her behavior, thoughts and attitude?

Yes, they do. Caitlyn grew up in inner city of New Jersey and spent a great deal of time at a neighborhood youth center. She eventually becomes the director of a youth center in East Oakland.

What does she want out of life?
To find the father she never knew.

What's her biggest secret? (Only share if it isn't a spoiler in the story.)

It would be a spoiler to the story!!

Did you write more than one story about her?

No

How would she describe you?

As the one person who truly understands her fears, strength and determination to get her life back on the right track after a disastrous relationship involving domestic abuse.

Is there anything else about your heroine that we need to know? Feel free to share.

Caitlyn admits she was vulnerable to the attention and gifts her ex-boyfriend lavished on her because she grew up without anyone to depend on other than herself. However, once she realized their relationship escalated to violence, she had the courage to leave.


Please provide your website link.

http://www.laconnietaylorjones.com/

What is the link to buy your book?

http://www.amazon.com/When-Im-You-LaConnie-Taylor-Jones/dp/1585712507/


It was wonderful to meet her. Thank you for bringing her to meet us.

Check out LaConnie's website at http://www.laconnietaylorjones.com/ to see how you can win a $100 gift certificate to Amazon.com!

Sunday, January 27, 2008

In the Arms of the Enemy by Patricia A. Guthrie



In the Arms of the Enemy
Heroine interview

Tell us about your heroine --- the female lead in your book.

What's her name? Maggie McGregor (Margaret, but nobody calls her that

Why did you pick that name? I didn't. Maggie picked it for herself. Nothing else fit. She was a Maggie.

Give us a brief description of how she looks. Maggie's about five foot three-four inches. She has red hair, light skin that sunburns and freckles if she isn't careful, blue eyes like the Caribbean, fit from riding horses and doing barn chores. Wears mainly jeans, tank tops and over shirts, but "cleans up well."

Is there anything unusual about her appearance? Her hair. Curly, shoulder length and the color, as described by Adam, of a fire framing her face. (well, maybe he didn't exactly say that, but I'm in a poetic mood.)

Who does she love? She was engaged to Ricki Lane the owner of Lane Training Stables because he taught her to be a successful trainer. She was young and fell in love with not only his looks and manners, but what she thought he stood for. (Boy was she wrong)

Through the course of the story she falls in love with Adam Blakely a horse owner who brings his horse into her father's barn. Something about him moves her, he's there when he needs her, and something about his is like a Greek tragedy."

Does this person love her? Ricky Lane was more involved with himself and promoting himself and didn't mind screwing Maggie at the right opportunity. So, I'd say no to him. But he's not important, because he's murdered in the beginning.

Adam Blakely, despite a huge amount of misgivings falls in love with Maggie. He's smitten with her caring and fun-loving nature, her love of horses his attraction to her. But Adam has a secret. (see hero interview) and his secret makes it dangerous for him to fall in love with whom he thinks Maggie is.

Tell us about her family. The only family Maggie has left is her father Cullum McGreggor. He's very protective about his daughter especially with what happened before the story began. The community has also taken an interest and everyone interacts, has gone to school together and will protect "their own." They're like extended family. what happens to one of them, happens to all of them.

Where is she from? Michigan

Does her hometown affect her behavior, thoughts and attitude?
Yes they do. they've always come together in friendship and trouble. You can see that with the keen interest the sheriff has in stranger, when an elderly horsewoman cross-examinated Adams intent toward Maggie on the trails and the threatening way the farmer questioned Adam at the hospital. Asking him if he was her boyfriend trainer and if he'd beaten her up. Fortunately, Adam was able to say no on both counts (Maggie fell off an intentionally broken ladder at the barn)

What does she want out of life? Maggie wants a career as a horse trainer. She's a loving woman who needs to be loved in return, and she won't settle for being second best.

What's her biggest secret? (Only share if it isn't a spoiler in the story.) Maggie thinks Ricky Lane killed Black Autumn and whoever killed Ricky might be after her too. There are forces at work who would destroy her.

Did you write more than one story about her? No.

How would she describe you? I think she'd like to put me in a straight jacket and deposit me someplace where I can't take over her life and give her all those problems. She sees me coming and wants to run and hide.

Is there anything else about your heroine that we need to know? Feel free to share. Maggie is naive about a lot of things, but she's had to grown up fast between the prologue and the first chapter. She's wary of people and, although basically being outgoing, now she wants to shrink away. She feels guilty about leaving Black Autumn, a horse she'd loved and trained, to a man (Ricky Lane) she thinks might have killed him. Now, she's scared that someone might be after her.

Please provide your website link. www.patriciaanneguthrie.com www.paguthrie.blogspot.com

What is the link to buy your book? www.lightswordpublishing.com www.patriciaanneguthrie.com www.amazon.com, www.borders.com



It was wonderful to meet her. Thank you for bringing her to meet us. Maggie says as soon as things are back to normal, she would love to go out for lunch. Her treat. And--she'll even invite her author-mommy. (that's me.) That is if I haven't put her in the middle of another murder. In the

Sunday, January 13, 2008

Mystick Moon by Terry L White



Tell us about your heroine --- the female lead in your book.

What's her name?
Rebecca

Why did you pick that name?
It was a commonly used name for the times.

Give us a brief description of how she looks.
Rebecca is a child of wealth who has journeyed to New England where she lives a hard life taking care of her mother and raising herself against all odds. Her stepfather abuses her and leaves her alone much of the time. She has a pretty face with worried eyes and wears her dead mother’s cut-down clothing and the skins of animals she and her servant catch to eat.

Is there anything unusual about her appearance?
Rebecca looks like she had to grow up far before her time.

Who does she love? Why?
Rebecca loves her mother. She loves the Pequot woman, Squirrel because Squirrel teaches her how to survive. She also loves Adam, a young boy who befriends and helps her, and his mother Anneke.

Does this person love her?
These people all love Rebecca. Adam loves her as a boy and returns from a time at sea to love her as a man.

Tell us about her family.
Rebecca is alone in the world. Her mother died in childbed and her stepfather abandoned her. Her servant Squirrel is the closest thing to a family member she has.

Where is she from?
She is originally from London and lives in colonial Mystic Connecticut.

Does her hometown affect her behavior, thoughts and attitude?
The people of Mystick want Rebecca to go to church and school as they do, but she is much too concerned with survival. She is only befriended and loved by people who are as different as she. The townspeople call her a witch and accuse her wrongly.

What does she want out of life?
Rebecca wants a home and to be loved.

What's her biggest secret?
Rebecca has developed more than one personality and the other persons inside her help her survive.

Did you write more than one story about her?
No. One was it.

How would she describe you?
I don’t think Rebecca would know what to make of me. Our worlds are too different. She would probably think I am a witch!

Is there anything else about your heroine that we need to know? Feel free to share.
Rebecca doesn’t give up, even when facing death, and she never stops believing in love.

Please provide your website link.
What is the link to buy your book?

Thursday, January 10, 2008

Silk Palace by Colin Harvey


1 - Tell us a bit about your book.
I'll let the Library Journal do it for me, because I'm so proud of this review!
"The city-state of Whiterock, with its Silk Palace formed from nearly indestructible spiderwebs, is perched atop a high mountain between two rival empires. Here, changing one's name is tantamount to heresy, and the gods themselves sometimes take a direct interest in the world. Into this volatile situation arrives a young woman named Bluestocking, ostensibly to translate some rare and puzzling scrolls, but the secret she bears may rescue or undo the world. Harvey (Lightning Days) brings to life a compelling world of flying machines, wizardry, and divine magic."

2 - Tell us about the best friend - gender, age, appearance, how they came to be with the hero or heroine and anything else we need to know about them.
The princess Lexi is the middle child of the King and Queen of Whiterock. She's a plump blonde in her early twenties, pampered and spoilt, a captive of circumstance due to be married to a fat foreign ruler and is bored to the point where she could scream. But she is lonely too, and recognizes a kindred spirit in Bluestocking, for all that the latter is an intellectual and Lexi barely knows which way up to hold a scroll, and has a kind heart as long as she is indulged.

3 - Who does the "best friend" help in the book?
She helps Bluestocking by providing friendship and support at a time when the heroine is very lonely.

4 - Does the best friend have a specific purpose in the book?
She is the catalyst for the falling out between Bluestocking and at least one of the other princesses, inadvertantly placing her friend in mortal peril.

5 - How does your hero or heroine feel about the best friend?
Bluestocking likes her, but is aware of the precariousness of their friendship; Lexi can turn on her at any time having absolute command over anyone in the country with a few exceptions, such as her mother and father.

6 - How would your hero or heroine handle their problems or difficulties with the best friend?
Discreetly! Bluestocking knows that she cannot afford to alienate a third member of the Royal Family, but must instead humour her as best she can.

7 - Are there problems between the best friend and your main characters?
Oh, yes; She's owner to Kyr, Bluestocking's slave lover, she falls out with her two sisters and falls obsessively in love with a visiting prince, and clashes regularly with her fiancee's representative.

8 - Do you see the best friend ever having their own story?
Possibly -- but there are too many other stories to tell first....

9 - Was the best friend inspired by anyone you know?
In the best traditions of fiction, she is a composite of many spoilt, beautiful young women.

10 - Is there anything else about the best friend that we need to know? Feel free to share.
Like almost everyone else in the book, she has a dark and terrible secret that has a major impact on the course of The Silk Palace, and which (of course) I cannot reveal.

11 - Please provide your website link.


Novels from Swimming Kangaroo Books:
Lightning Days -- SF, Finalist for the USA Book News Awards
The Silk Palace -- "compelling" Library Journal
"Intrigues, betrayals, murders, love affairs, transformations, and
revelations," Bruce Boston, author of The Guardener's Tale

Friday, December 28, 2007

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.

What is the link to buy your book?
Or electronically: http://www.fictionwise.com/eBooks/eBook51966.htm?cached

Sunday, December 16, 2007

Nimrod Rising with Stephen Bradley


1 - Tell us a bit about your book. - Nimrod Rising is a book that seeks to answer where the terrorist scourge that currently plagues the world came from. The premise of the book is that the evil hitting the world is more than just a political phenomenon. I paint the picture that starts actually more than 4000 years ago when the first organized Satan worshipper, Nimrod, the first king of Babylon, is born resulting from a pact made with Lucifer by Nimrod's father Cush. The material used for this is all true historical facts. I spent 12 years researching this novel and was able to find several ancient texts such as the Book of Adam and Eve, the Cave of Treasures and the Book of Enoch. Of course, the actual events in Nimrod Rising are fiction, based on prophecies from the Bible and extra-biblical materials. Whether one is a believer in such things and future events said to be awaiting the world, the story is riveting and exciting and will touch the reader in so many different ways. I consider it a book of hope and faith in the midst of evil so pervasive that there is no where to turn but to the divine. As I say on the back of the book, ride the storm of Nimrod Rising.

2 - Tell us about the best friend - gender, age, appearance, how they came to be with the hero or heroine and anything else we need to know about them. - The Heroine is difficult to choose since there are three major female characters. The first two are Sally Michael, Shepard's mother. She was kidnapped as a believer in God and forced to have Manassa Dormin's child. She is really such a strong character and strong in faith.

Also, there is Elif Michael (Karaoglu) the Turkish wife of Shepard Michael who worked for Manassa Dormin but finds faith and turns her life and family around. She too is large in meaning in the story.

Yet, I have to say that the most powerful figure in the story is the six year old child of Shepard and Elif, Jesse. She possesses the powers of her daddy and grandfather, but the heart of the child shines through so powerfully how she reaches out to the grandfather and finds the miniscule residue of humanity left in Manassa Dormin. She can bring tears to the reader's eyes and truly wins the day through the wisdom of a child.

3 - Who does the "best friend" help in the book? - My main hero of the novel has to be the character, Shepard Michael. Shepard is the son of Manassa Dormin who is the villain in the story. He is abused and used by his father to bring about the final destruction, but he remembers the principles that his mother, Sally Michael, taught him and resists his natural inclination for evil. I think we can all relate to him in that we have all had to resist doing wrong, and the wrong has often been an easier decision for us than the good. He is a really powerful figure in the story and very profound in his outlook.

4 - Does the best friend have a specific purpose in the book? - Sure, he is the one who will either stop Manassa Dormin or open the door to complete power for the forces of darkness. He is a young, somewhat confused and very smart man who is torn terribly by forces inside his mind. He loves his daughter and wants his wife back and is ready to lay down his life to save them. He is vital to the story of Nimrod Rising.

5 - How does your hero or heroine feel about the best friend? - Shepard and his daughter Jesse both have special gifts and are both sought out by evil, but even from afar, Shepard is able to save his little girl and Jesse has tremendous love for her daddy.

6 - How would your hero or heroine handle their problems or difficulties with the best friend? - Jesse confronts so many problems and sees her daddy being torn in two directions and reminds him as only a father's little girl can, with tender innocence. They are close and depend greatly on each other.

7 - Are there problems between the best friend and your main characters? - Only stresses of the moment and fear of losing each other. Nimrod Rising truly demonstrates a lovely relationship between a father and his daughter.

8 - Do you see the best friend ever having their own story? - I can imagine anything, so perhaps.

9 - Was the best friend inspired by anyone you know? - Well, Shepard is a good man, touched by evil and tempted by it. He has undergone a tremendous amount of abuse from his evil father, Manassa Dormin, but his faith and his mother Sally has helped him continue. Yet, his love for his little girl Jesse and his wife Elif truly pushes him forward into correct decision, but the rest I'll just let you read. I can't say any one person inspired his character, but I will say, he represents someone I'd like to be like, not that I am at all, but would like to be.

10 - Is there anything else about the best friend that we need to know? Feel free to share. - The two other very important characters in Nimrod Rising are Mike Wakely and Gabriel. Mike Wakely is an archeologist who knew Dormin in Pakistan where they both were missionaries at the beginning of the book. Mike plays a vital role as the brains of the opposition against Dormin and is British. He is witty and smart and has a large role in part two of the novel. Gabriel is the founder of the movement called the MESSE, Messianic Servants of Elyon. He is a quiet soldier who shows lots of courage and intelligence and devotion to God and country.
11 - Please provide your website link. - www.stevenbradley.net

12 - What is the link to buy your book?

publishamerica.com

amazon.com
booksamillion.com
powells.com
bordersstores.com
barnesandnoble.com
copperfields.booksense.com

Stephen invites you to visit him in January at www.inspiredauthor.com/promotion. He will be available all month to talk with you about his books.