First Love Author Interviews: Sofi Laporte

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SofiToday’s interview with my fellow contributing authors on the romantic fantasy anthology First Love is with Sofi Laporte. Her short story can be pitched as “Bridget Jones meets Morgan Le Fay”, but I’ll let her tell you more.

What drew you to the First Love anthology?

Honestly? The cover! Isn’t it pretty? I totally choose books based on their covers. Then, of course, the challenge of writing a short romance story that includes elements of first love and fantasy. I enjoyed the challenge and had fun writing Chestnut Woman.First-Love-Kindle

Give us a little tease for your short story for First Love. 

Imagine falling in love at first sight in a really mundane place: the crowded, stuffy metro. What would you do? My heroine, shy, introverted Pamela, can’t muster up the courage to make the first move. At home she runs into her superbly aggravating, gossiping neighbour, Mrs Schmid. Who is not at all what she appears to be. Mrs Schmid gives her three roasted chestnuts that will change Pamela’s life forever. Is she going to have a second chance with the mysterious, smiling stranger in the subway?

Do you prefer your romantic fiction to end happily-ever-after, happy-for-now, tragically, or does it depend on the story?

It depends on my mood. Most of the time I prefer happily ever after, but if I’m in the right mood I don’t mind reading heavy, steamy tearjerkers.

What fantasy elements (if any) do you use in your First Love story?

A reference to Arthurian mythology and the sorceress Morgana Le Fay. Her cat Arthrapax who insists he’s in reality a dragon. Three magical chestnuts.

What major theme(s) are you exploring in this story? 

The main theme seems to be love, but actually it is loneliness. It can be excruciatingly lonely to live in a big anonymous city, not knowing what your life’s purpose is. Then there is the theme of self-fulfilment: having the courage to break out of the drudgery of every-day life and to follow your dreams. Then there is the theme of appearance versus reality: finding your true self and seeing the true self of others – neighbours, colleagues, your boss, even animals. What is fantasy? What is reality? Maybe there’s more to the aggravating gossipy old neighbour than meets the eye. What if she’s in reality a powerful sorceress? Deep stuff, this.

What inspired your story? 

Many little things. My cat as she looked at me with those green eyes of hers. A neighbour, when she gossiped in the hallway with an excruciatingly strident voice. A boring subway ride home where a man actually read a book instead of staring into his cell phone.

To what extent are your characters based on you or people you know?

Annoying Mrs Schmid is indeed based on a former neighbour of mine who liked to gossip to no end. Pamela, who may have been a younger version of myself. And the cat. I have a very arrogant black cat like Arthrapax so of course she had to be put into a story.

Do you know your ending when you write, or do you start and see where the story or characters take you?

Usually I have an idea of where I am going, but sometimes the ending is vague and reveals itself to me as I write.

What is the best thing about being a writer?

I like the pre-writing part when you get to daydream your story. When you just stare off into space and have this inner movie that unwinds. I love that moment.

What is the worst thing about being a writer?

When it doesn’t come out like your awesome daydream and you ask yourself for the gadzillionth time why you ever wanted to be a writer.

To what extent (if at all) do you agree with the statement “write what you know”? 

It is certainly possible to write about what I don’t exactly know. That’s why we utilise two things: imagination and research. On the other hand, if I do know certain things maybe it would add a layer of depth or a certain something that my work wouldn’t have had otherwise.

Are you promiscuous or monogamous with your genre of choice? 

I am all over the place! I write chicklit, YA, Romance, children’s, paranormal, historical, you name it. Except horror. But who knows, I might try that too, one day.

Which writers inspire you?

The one and only Astrid Lindgren has been my biggest inspiration since I was a child. I just read The Brothers Lionheart aloud to my younger son. It’s not just a children’s story.  I marvel at the language, the story, the voice. Every single word sits perfectly. The way she grips you and pulls you into the story just fascinates me. Maggie Stiefvater (vision, depth, fantasy and plain awesome writing), Julianne Donaldson (romance in its purest form), Viennese writer Ursula Poznanski (for some of the most gripping YA thrillers out there), Robin McKinley (best fairytale rewrites) and many, many more!

What other books or short stories have you written?

This is my debut as an author! Many more stories and novels to come.

What is your current work-in-progress?

I am working on a YA paranormal fantasy/fairy tale.

What advice would you give someone who tells you they want to be a writer?

Just listen to yourself and have faith in your stories and in your own voice. The stories you want to tell are deep inside you and only you can tell them the way they need to be told.

Please come visit me at my Facebook page: http://www.facebook.com/sofilaporteauthor

website: www.sofilaporte.com

twitter: @Sofi_Laporte

Thank you for this interesting interview, Simon!

To pick up a copy of First Love either in paperback or on Kindle, click here (in the UK) and here (in the US).

First Love Author Interviews: Galina Trefil

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Continuing this series of interviews with my fellow contributing authors on the romantic fantasy anthology First Love, we have Galina Trefil, whose fascinating short story The Rusalka of the Murashka delves into forgotten Ukrainian folklore.

What drew you to the First Love anthology?

A fellow author, V. P. Allasander, was kind enough to draw my attention to several upcoming Dragon Soul Press anthologies. I’m not generally a fantasy author, so the topics seemed a little difficult for me, but I do love a good challenge.

Give us a little tease for your short story for First Love.

The murder of an innocent spawns a seductive creature which stalks a Ukrainian village for centuries.

Do you prefer your romantic fiction to end happily-ever-after, happy-for-now, tragically, or does it depend on the story?

Overall, it depends on the story, but I am much more drawn to writing tear-jerkers with hard-hitting back themes.

What fantasy elements (if any) do you use in your First Love story?

In truth, I don’t consider my tale, The Rusalka of the Murashka, to be a pure-blood “fantasy” story. It’s based on authentic Ukrainian folklore, featuring a female monster/benevolent deity, the rusalka, whose origin predates Christianity. So much of the indigenous beliefs of Europe have been obliterated. As a Slavic writer, I enjoy showcasing what little managed to survive. The rusalka is especially fascinating as it is a creature that was once a human female. It evolved into something else, something immensely powerful, only as a result of being murdered. It then murders in turn as many men as possible. To my mind, this mythology existing at all is a tremendous reflection on the prevalence of gender-based violence that Slavic women in times of yore must have endured.

What major theme(s) are you exploring in this story?

Betrayal, lust, and vengeance are present throughout all, I would say, but the biggest theme is the loss of innocence.

What inspired your story?

I am a great fan of traditional costuming and hair wraps. I was researching Ukrainian wraps and jewelry and thought it would be nice to write a story which showcased the way they designated the different ethnic and economic groups. The concept of a korali necklace being so important, I knew, would ring true for Ukrainian readers and, I thought, might convey a part of the culture over to those without that heritage.  Furthermore, my adopted sister is from Shargorod, the village featured in the story.

To what extent are your characters based on you or people you know?

None of the characters in this particular story were life-inspired, thankfully. In some of my books, I’ve invested a great deal of myself and others, but not this time.

Do you know your ending when you write, or do you start and see where the story or characters take you?

Whenever I start a project, I always think that I know my ending. However, like a bunch of bullheaded teenagers, my characters tend to ignore my wishes and go haywire. For example: the twist in the end of The Rusalka of the Murashka was not intended. I was already writing a separate full-length book though, set in Shargorod.  The rusalka in this story does feature in that book.  I didn’t originally plan it that way.  It just happened.

What is the best thing about being a writer?

A lot of people have to turn on the TV for entertainment. For me, my keyboard is my TV. I may have to edit, but at least I don’t have to wade through commercials.

What is the worst thing about being a writer?

This is a field in which there is truly no justification for gender discrimination and yet female authors still have less chance of being published. It’s the world where J.K. Rowling had to use her initials, rather than first name, to get off the ground.  Personally, I’ve also been told to publish as a man before; been told that “no one would believe a woman could write this.” That does more than hurt my feelings or offend me. It directly impacts my future livelihood. As a female horror author, I see a lot of ways in which other female authors are struggling in this industry. The big-time publishing world should be held accountable for this trend, but currently that’s just not happening.

To what extent (if at all) do you agree with the statement “write what you know”?

In fiction, there is some validity to it.  If you’re portraying, say, a profession that you don’t know, what do you do? You research until you’re to the point where you can at least pass for knowledgeable. But, even then, there’s got to be a halfway point. If we wrote only what the things which are based on our personal experience or research, literature would be a good deal more boring than it is and the fantasy genre wouldn’t even exist. One of the keys of being a good writer is our ability to imagine other points of view, other time periods, and things impossible to the world of modern science. Innovation is every bit as important in fiction as knowledge.

Are you promiscuous or monogamous with your genre of choice?

Put that way, I suppose I’m a genre slut and come by it honestly. My main genre is horror, but I also like to do human rights themes. Whenever I do a human rights story though, it often involves quite graphic violence. I don’t believe in sugar-coating. The Rusalka of the Murashka is one of my more toned-down pieces.

Which writers inspire you?

Shakespeare, Edgar Allan Poe, Isabel Allende, Edith Wharton, Anne Rule.

What other books or short stories have you written?

I am rather a bit of a hermit. Most of my work hasn’t been made available publicly yet. Currently, my book The Incomplete Ones: A Tale of Slavery and A Cape for Kali are available on Amazon. My short stories and articles have appeared in Neurology Now, UnBound E-Magazine, The Guardian, Tikkun, Romea.CZ, Jewcy, Jewrotica, Telegram Magazine, Ink Drift Magazine, The Dissident Voice, and Open Road Review. I’ve also appeared in the anthologies Flock: The Journey and Suspense Unimagined.

What is your current work-in-progress?

I always tend to have several projects going at once.  At current, I am working on the second book of my series Don’t Say Gypsy. These books are feminist short story collections, showcasing the racial discrimination and violence perpetrated against the Romani people of Eastern Europe. Project two is a series exploring the human rights violations going on within California’s prison system, focusing largely on gladiator fighting. Project three, The Silent Tsar, which is currently five or six chapters from completion, is the tale of a medieval Russian vampire. Its first book ties in to the rusalka story featured in First Love.

What advice would you give someone who tells you they want to be a writer?

Learn to love the editing process. Until you learn to take pleasure out of it and see it as an opportunity, things are going to be heck.    

Find out more about Galina Trefil at her blog here.

To pick up a copy of First Love either in paperback or on Kindle, click here (in the UK) and here (in the US).

First Love Author Interviews: Melinda Kucsera

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613BEdnm4UL._US230_(1)Day five of this series of interviews with my fellow contributing authors on the romantic fantasy anthology First Love was supposed to feature an interview with Melinda Kucsera. Instead, someone called “Shade” answered questions on her behalf…

What drew you to the First Love anthology?

I’d been bugging my scribe, Melinda Kucsera, for years to write the story of how I met my best friend. (He’s also my first love.) Since Melinda’s not here right now to answer these questions, I’m answering them for her.

Don’t worry. She’s fine and currently working at her day job. In fact, she has no idea I’m answering these questions for her. But the cast of the Curse Breaker series, of which my story is but a small part, usually doesn’t let her answer these kinds of questions. We know the story better than she does because we’re living it.

Who am I? I’m called Shade. If you want to know more about me, you’ll have to read First Love. 😊

Give us a little tease for your short story for First Love.

First-Love-KindleOurs was a friendship for the ages–an abused mage just trying to raise his younger brother and a gray-clad enigma who hides beneath a cloak and veil. (That’s me, Shade, your narrator for this interview.)

We didn’t know it but the day Sarn and I met, we took the first step toward a perilous friendship that would unleash a demon and earn the ire of an angel.

From the mines under Mount Eredren to the Gray Between life and death, follow the twisted paths friendship takes. Only one will survive when adoration turns to obsession. But not even death can sever some bonds.

Do you prefer your romantic fiction to end happily-ever-after, happy-for-now, tragically, or does it depend on the story?

I prefer happy for now because that’s truer to real life. There is no such thing as happily ever after. Circumstances change. Life throws curve balls, and we must adapt to survive. Love takes work to keep it going strong.

I have no idea what Melinda prefers. Since she’s not here right now, I can’t ask her.

What fantasy elements (if any) do you use in your First Love story?

Oh boy, how do answer this without giving away too much? Since I fall madly in love with a mage, there’s definitely magic in there. After all, we do live under a mountain that’s surrounded by a ridiculous number of enchanted trees, and we mine magical rocks for a living. That’s all I can say without spoiling things.

What major theme(s) are you exploring in this story?

Our scribe, Melinda Kucsera, plays with friendship and love, innocence and lust. Opposites really do attract in this sweet tale of First Love.

What inspired your story?

I begged Melinda to tell the story of how Sarn and I met. I’d earned a rather bad rap in Curse Breaker: Enchanted because I’d made some poor decisions. Letting a demon possess me might not have been the best idea I’ve ever had. My passenger caused a fair amount of trouble for my beloved before all was said and done in that story.

But Curse Breaker: Enchanted only told part of the story of us. I wanted the rest on record because I was the best friend Sarn ever had before the demon incident, but you’d never know that if all you read was Curse Breaker: Enchanted.

First Love is my time to shine, and it just might net me a second chance to do right by my beloved if that angel is right. We’ll find out more about that in later stories. 

To what extent are your characters based on you or people you know?

Umm, I hate to break it to you, but I’m a real person. I might live in a fantastical world full of magic. But I assure you, I’m not fictional. My world exists somewhere beyond dreams. Somehow our scribe, Melinda, can see what goes on there and chronicle them. There’s a book coming out soon that explains all that and just how characters like me can cross over to your world. More about that later.

I might have borrowed her computer to type out this interview. Don’t tell her about that, okay? She gets upset if we drop in when she’s not home.

Do you know your ending when you write, or do you start and see where the story or characters take you?

Melinda writes our adventures in real-time as they happen. So, no, she has no idea how they end, and neither do we. We’re busy living the adventure-in-progress. But, according to other cast members, Melinda’s getting better at predicting what will happen from book-to-book. But we like to keep her guessing.

What is the best thing about being a writer?

Melinda gets to write about us and ride along on our fantastic adventures. What could be better than that?

What is the worst thing about being a writer?

That’s easy. Since Melinda is the only scribe who can see our world or interact with it, she’s the only one who can write down our stories. So, she’s besieged by requests on an hourly basis. Her inbox is a scary place.

To what extent (if at all) do you agree with the statement “write what you know”?

I’ll agree to that because I’ll get more stories if Melinda only writes what she knows. She knows me pretty well, and I now know how to reach her apartment from my world, so we can chat about anything she needs to know.

Are you promiscuous or monogamous with your genre of choice?

Melinda only writes epic fantasy. The characters from my world keep her too busy to finish that funny sci-fi story or that urban fantasy one gathering digital dust on her hard drive. But you never know. She might one day slip our creative leash and write something else. We might even let her. 😉

Which writers inspire you?

This is a tough one because Melinda reads like crazy and at the end of every book she says, “I wish I could write like that.”

I’m pretty sure she admires something about every book she’s ever read, and that’s a lot. She has over 2000 audio books on her phone, and she’s listened to 90% of them. The remaining 10% are on her TBR list. 😊

What other books or short stories have you written?

Besides contributing to First Love, Melinda has written:

Curse Breaker: Enchanted

His Angelic Keeper

Curse Breaker: Darkens

Curse Breaker: Faceted

Curse Breaker: Falls

Curse Breaker: Books 1-4 (Best value)

Curse Breaker: Sundered

What is your current work-in-progress?

Melinda is working on A Darker Shade of Love, the sequel to my story in First Love.

My tale takes a darker turn when a group of summoners set their sights on my beloved. I will do anything to stop them from stealing his magic and with it, his life.

Melinda is also working on Curse Breaker’s Companion: Catch the Scribe.

Catch the Scribe before she falls.

When grief threatens to overwhelm a lonely scribe, the fate of her fictional world hangs in the balance. If she doesn’t finish the book and get it into the hands of readers, all her characters will disappear forever.

Melinda’s also working on about four other books, but those two are the closest to being done. So I’ll stop there.

What advice would you give someone who tells you they want to be a writer?

Be careful. The stories you write could be real, so have a care with your characters. You never know when they might drop by for a visit. 😉 I’m sure Melinda would have something better to say, but she’s not here. I am, and I’m a character in a fantasy book series, so take my advice with a mountain-sized grain of salt.

This is Shade, one of the heroes of First Love signing off. Grab your copy of First Love now. I’d love to meet you in the pages.

Also from Melinda, sent before Shade decided to answer on her behalf:

“Melinda Kucsera writes fantastic short stories, novels, and books when not being kidnapped by dragons or chased by armies of fictional creatures. (We do, on occasion, rescue her.) She leaves the running of her newsletter to a cast of lovable characters who hog her inbox. Enough about her, it’s us you’re really interested in, her cast of characters. Join us every week for a new story.

Over 10,000 readers have already enjoyed our fight to survive and thrive as we straddle the often blurry line between fiction and reality. Because we do exist outside of the books Melinda writes for us. Let us take you on an adventure behind and between the scenes.  Sign up to experience our weekly shenanigans. Go where no book or newsletter has gone before!”

To pick up a copy of First Love either in paperback or on Kindle, click here (in the UK) and here (in the US).

First Love Author Interview: Edeline Wrigh

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Continuing this series of interviews with my fellow contributing authors on the romantic fantasy anthology First Love, here’s Edeline Wrigh, whose short story Of Seals and Storms delves into Celtic myth and selkies.

Give us a little tease for your short story for First Love.

When a storm threatens the lives of several local fishermen, Elizabeth’s best friend – a selkie and the girl she’s in love with – comes up with a plan to save them. But there’s one little caveat: she has to return to the ocean for the rest of eternity. Assuming they can find the skin her father hid from her before he drowns, of course. Of Seals and Storms is a love story about hard decisions, sacrifices, and trusting fate.

Do you prefer your romantic fiction to end happily-ever-after, happy-for-now, tragically, or does it depend on the story?

It depends on the story, but also my mood. I read (and write) all of them.

What fantasy elements (if any) do you use in your First Love story?

Selkies! That’s the most obvious/explicit one, but there’s also some anthropomorphizing of the natural world and allusions to at least one Celtic deity.

What major theme(s) are you exploring in this story?

Choices and identity.

To what extent are your characters based on you or people you know?

They aren’t. Not at all. Of course past experiences influenced it because they always do to some extent, but no one’s intentionally based on anyone.

Do you know your ending when you write, or do you start and see where the story or characters take you?

It depends on the project. Different ones develop differently. Sometimes I start with the ending and none of the lead up, sometimes I start with a vague idea, sometimes I start with a random middle scene. For Of Seals and Storms I think I knew what the ending was about 20% of the way through it.

What is the worst thing about being a writer?

Balancing writing with other life obligations.

To what extent (if at all) do you agree with the statement “write what you know”?

I agree with it, but find it’s often misinterpreted. As a fantasy writer, of course I’m not intimately familiar with unicorns or what-have-you, but the themes I’m writing about are always ones I “know” – loss, love, cruelty, solidarity, faith, etc. Also, there are moments in fiction that can parallel things we intimately know and we can pull on our experiences for those things. If the job our character is applying for is a wizard’s apprentice, many of us are still familiar with the anxiety surrounding interviewing for a job even if we were interviewing for an office gig.

Also, honestly, with the internet it’s really easy to research a subject and can draw on other people’s experiences too.

Are you promiscuous or monogamous with your genre of choice?

I’m devoted to fantasy and fantasy subgenres, but I don’t have a particular subgenre I’m “monogamous” with.

What is your current work-in-progress?

The first in a lesbian harem paranormal romance series – The Witch and the Werewolf. It comes out on March 21 and is available for preorder now.

What advice would you give someone who tells you they want to be a writer?

Just write.

It’s simple and it can be hard at first, but really… just write. Stop prewriting and get words on paper. Finish your drafts even if you hate them; it’s a hard habit to form and it’s important if you ever want to “get anywhere.” If you feel your project sucks, finish it and then write something else, and share it with someone who will be kind but also honest in the meantime. But also don’t get caught up on making your first project “perfect.” It won’t be. Neither will your fifth or your twentieth, and that doesn’t actually matter. Your readers largely won’t care and they’d rather have something to read. Promise.

To follow Edeline Wrigh, visit edelinewrites.com and check out her writing here.

To pick up a copy of First Love either in paperback or on Kindle, click here (in the UK) and here (in the US).

First Love Author Interviews: AD Carter

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51W4hbr-IWL._US230_Today’s interview with my fellow contributing authors on the romantic fantasy anthology First Love is with AD Carter. His short story explores concepts of leadership, as well as love at first sight.

What drew you to the First Love anthology?

I was working on my fantasy universe to see where my novel would go, and as I continued, I noticed a quick story I could tell about one of the characters. Originally, I was going to put it on my blog, but I was in the fantasy group ran by Jade Feldman herself, when she announced the anthology. I looked at it and said, “why the hell not?”

Give us a little tease for your short story for First Love.

First-Love-KindleWell, the story is about a young prince name Zander who sees a woman and instantly falls in love with her, but her fate is sealed. Now Zander must make a decision that could very well change the course of history for his kingdom as well as himself.

Do you prefer your romantic fiction to end happily-ever-after, happy-for-now, tragically, or does it depend on the story?

It really depends on the story, but mostly I like for them to be happy-for-now. The reason for that is because I believe that even though love conquers all, love also ends all.

What fantasy elements (if any) do you use in your First Love story?

For this story, I show a little bit of magic so people can get a small understanding of how the magic system. I’ll give you a hint, it was inspired by Harry Potter.

What major theme(s) are you exploring in this story?

The theme of the anthology is ‘love at first sight.’ But I also tried to show how making decision-based on emotions alone can either be a good thing or a bad thing. As well as what makes a good leader? As this is something Zander and his father discuss early in the story.

What inspired your story?

As I said earlier, I was working on my universe for my WIP, and I was becoming more interested in my main character’s parents, and I wanted to tell their story. So, I sat down for a couple of days and thought about their personality and how they met and BAM! I had a story about them.

What other Dragon Soul Press anthologies have you contributed to?

This will be my first one, and I’m excited about it. But after careful consideration, I’ll participate in future ones as well.

What romantic fiction do you like?

This might sound crazy, but I don’t like romantic fiction at all. They’re all the same to me. Guy meets girl, the guy wants to be with the girl. The guy must get past the jerk she’s dating. Guy confesses his love in the most melodramatic way possible, and they live happily-ever-after. Due to my life experience, I have a hard time believing a story like that.

Is romance something you would normally write? If so, what attracts you to the genre? If not, what challenges did you encounter in the writing process?

Well seeing that I don’t like it, due to them being so cliché, I thought maybe I should write a story that was more believable. Right now, I’m currently working on a series called “Love Chronicles,” where it tells a story of a guy looking for a woman he met at a carnival. I would say the challenge here is not to make it cliché and focus on the question I had for myself. “How long will you wait for the love of your life?”

What themes are you drawn to time and time again?

I would say abuse of power and different forms of government (sometimes in a negative light). Including racism, bigotry, misogynist, and/or human nature in general.

What do you prefer writing? Short stories? Novels? Novellas? Poetry?

I like writing short stories, to either create a back story for myself or fill in a minor plot for my audience. But my dream is to write a novel, which I’m currently doing right now. It won’t be easy, that much I know, but it will be worth it in the end. As for Novellas, never tried one, but I should. Poetry I tried my hand at it once and yeah, I quit. If you want to read them, you can find them on my blog as well.

What is your favourite work that you have written so far?

Well, there’s two. A short story series on my blog called Strangers in a Restaurant. I really loved how these two characters came together and tried to figure out why they drifted apart for so long.

The second would be a feature-length screenplay called Reaper’s Game. I really loved the story here, as you dive into the mind of a killer seeking redemption, while at the same time trying to stop a war. I took a lot of inspiration from movies like The Godfather, Sicario, and Blade Runner 2049. I have plans on sending out and hopefully, someone will pick it up to produce it into a film.

What is your current work-in-progress?

My current WIP is not a fantasy, but a coming of age story. It’s titled Exile, and it’s about a young black kid who goes on a ten-year journey trying to find his place in the world. While being ‘exiled’ by those he identifies with. He will make a lot of bad choices, and meet a lot of undeserving people, but it will shape him into the person he’s supposed to be.

What other writing plans do you have for the future?

The plan for this year is to work on two other short stories for future anthologies. As well as write a sequel to my other movie, and be more active on my blog and author page. But my goal is to finish my debut novel and hopefully get it published by next year.

Follow AD Carter on his Facebook page here, and on his blog here.

To pick up a copy of First Love either in paperback or on Kindle, click here (in the UK) and here (in the US).

First Love Author Interviews: Kathryn St John

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Today’s interview with my fellow contributing authors on the romantic fantasy anthology First Love is with Kathryn St John. Greek mythology is her forte, and her short story in this anthology deals with… Well, I’ll let her tell you more.

What drew you to the First Love anthology?

The cover. It was lovely. The moment I saw it, I knew I wanted to be in that anthology. I didn’t care what the genre was.

Give us a little tease for your short story for First Love.

Whilst on a summer visit with his grandparents, a young man meets a strange young woman in a nearby forest. Over the course of the season, their feelings blossom into love, but there’s an obstacle looming in the distance that threatens to separate them. Is their love doomed from the start, or will they manage to find a way around their difficulties and remain together?

Do you prefer your romantic fiction to end happily-ever-after, happy-for-now, tragically, or does it depend on the story?

It really depends on the story. Generally, I like my romances to have a Happy Ever After where it’s all butterflies and rainbows, and I feel warm and squishy on the inside. I get giggly and grin like an idiot and all’s right with the world. However, there are those stories that demand tragedy. I know the tragic ending is the only kind of ending they can really have. If either one of them lives, it’ll cause more problems and they won’t be happy. But if one or both of them die, while heartbreaking, it’s for the best. I probably won’t read that book again though.

What fantasy elements (if any) do you use in your First Love story?

A Season’s Time touches on Greek mythology. Leaf, the protagonist’s love interest, is a hamadryad, which is a special kind of dryad. Dryads are nature spirits bound to trees. In Leaf’s case, her life is entwined with an old fig tree.

What major theme(s) are you exploring in this story?

Love, obviously. A love that can bridge the gap between worlds. Not that Leaf is an alien or comes from another dimension or anything, but she doesn’t come from the mortal world that Bastian comes from. Her life is completely different. I also touch upon the need to compromise. If you love someone, you have to respect them enough to let some things go. You can’t demand they give up everything for you to fulfill your needs. That’s what I believe anyway.

What inspired your story?

When I was a child, I read…something…perhaps a fairy tale…of a man who finds a water spirit of some sort in a pond in the woods. He somehow gets her away from her pool (I think by tricking her, but it’s been decades, so I can’t be sure) and makes her his wife. Eventually, she goes home, leaving him heartbroken. I’ve always loved that story, but it’s already been done, so I searched for another kind of magical creature. A long and convoluted time later, I chanced upon dryads. I was finishing the second book in my Greek mythology series, so my creative brain was still steeped in that content. The idea of a dryad in love with a mortal intrigued me, so I ran with it.

What other Dragon Soul Press anthologies have you contributed to?

The only other one I’ve contributed too (and so far the only other one completed) is All Dark Places. I wrote that under my horror pen name – Anna Sinjin.

What romantic fiction do you like?

I like Regency romances, such as what Georgette Heyer wrote, where the book is all about the storyline and the dialogue. There’s no sex, no touching really, and probably a single kiss at the end along with marriage or the expectation that they will get married because they’re engaged. I also like some of Nora Roberts older romance books. They have a lot of steamy scenes, but I don’t care so much about those. My favourites are the ones that have magic involved and are trilogies. The trilogies give a lot of time and opportunity to really build the characters and their relationships, etc.

Is romance something you would normally write? If so, what attracts you to the genre? If not, what challenges did you encounter in the writing process?

Not so much, though I have written a fantasy with romance in it, and I always put romantic/lustful feelings in my work. I feel uncomfortable writing sex scenes and that seems to be what everyone wants in a romance – tons of sex. If a scene calls for it, I’ll step up to the plate, but the anxiety over what people think and how they take it (especially when my parents read it!) is so stressful. Writing clean romance is supremely difficult as well but for different reasons. I feel I need to write witty and charismatic dialogue, and I’m not a witty or charismatic person. A Season’s Time took me an entire month to write because I wanted the dialogue to take the place of sex. It was a tortuous experience trying to make them interesting people.

What do you prefer writing? Short stories? Novels? Novellas? Poetry?

I enjoy writing most things. I haven’t written poetry in over a decade, but I’ll have to brush up on my skills later this year if I want to hit another certain DSP anthology. Mainly, I write novels and short stories. Short stories are fun because they’re like writing exercises for me. I get to challenge myself at something new, or get a little idea out there in a short amount of time. Novels take a ton of work, but I really enjoy hashing everything out and being able to take the time to really build the story and the characters.

What is your favourite work that you have written so far?

My first book, Night’s Treasure. It took years to write. I wanted to find the perfect situations, the perfect gods, the perfect everything. It was the first time I tried to weave a story among stories already told. It’s so easy to change myths to suit your needs. So easy to change relationships and such. I wanted to write a story that could be woven into the myths, and I didn’t want to use only the main gods – the Olympians and other favorites. I wanted to explore the lesser known gods such as Icelus or Achlys.

What is your current work-in-progress?

I have a short story in the works as well as a novel. No title for the short story yet, but it’s an underwater thing. No mermaids. The book is still being outlined, and I may have to put it on hold if I can’t finish it before summer. It’s a retelling of Hans Christian Anderson’s Little Mermaid. Don’t expect Disney-esque.

What other writing plans do you have for the future?

I have lots of future plans. And I have the book covers for most of those plans already. They have a name for this – Cover Addict. Hello, my name is Kathryn St. John, and I’m a cover addict. At the end of last year, I planned out four books I wanted to publish in 2019. Then I mapped out the anthologies I would also submit to. There are 4-5. That fifth one is due in 2019 but won’t be published until 2020. Currently, I’ve covered the first anthology on my list – First Love – and am in the process of writing a short story for the second. If my story is accepted, I’ll announce the anthology. If not, nobody needs to know my failure and despair. However, as to the books, I’m supremely behind schedule. But that’s because my editing career is expanding and sucking up all my down time. If I can’t get any other books finished and published, I’m going to get my final Daughter of Nyx book done as well as the anthologies I’m striving for.

You can read more works from Kathryn St John here.

To pick up a copy of First Love either in paperback or on Kindle, click here (in the UK) and here (in the US).

First Love Author Interviews: AM Cummins

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Over the next few days, this blog is celebrating the release of the First Love romantic fantasy anthology by bringing daily interviews with the other contributors (ie the ones that aren’t me). First up we have AM Cummins, whose short story Savage delves into her Native American ancestry.

What drew you to the First Love anthology?

The challenge of writing a romance story. It’s something I’ve always wanted to do, so when I saw Dragon Soul Press had an anthology call out for a fantasy love story, I knew I just had to do it.

Give us a little tease for your short story for First Love.

My story is a dramatic recreation of a family legend that was told to me by my grandfather. He was proud of his Native American heritage.

Do you prefer your romantic fiction to end happily-ever-after, happy-for-now, tragically, or does it depend on the story?

It really depends on the story to be honest. It doesn’t matter the ending, if it can stir emotions when you read it – that’s a good story.

What fantasy elements (if any) do you use in your First Love story?

My story was based on facts I’ve gathered when doing my family tree. A lot of research went into it, but not much fantasy I’m afraid.

What major theme are you exploring in this story?

My overall theme is acceptance. Something we all need more in our lives.

What inspired your story?

My brother and I sometimes talk about our research we do with our family tree. We recalled our grandfather telling us the story that he came from a full-blooded Cherokee Indian when we were young. Now we have proof of it. I just wanted to honour my Native American bloodline in the only way I know how – to write about it.

What other Dragon Soul Press anthologies have you contributed to?

My story The Harrison Farm was featured in All Dark Places. I just submitted to the Sea of Secrets anthology. I’m super pumped about that one. Fingers crossed I get the golden email that says Congratulations!

What romantic fiction do you like?

I love romantic fantasies. (The Witch Hunter Series by J.E. Feldman, Throne of Glass by Sarah J. Maas, Sharing Knife by Lois McMaster Bujold, and The Tree of Ages series by Sara C Roethle.) But to be honest, I read all genres.

Is romance something would normally write? If so, what attracts you to the genre? If not, what challenges did you encounter in the writing process?

I’m far from a romance author. I love to write great adventures with less than perfect characters stumbling through to make it to the end. It was hard for me to interject a lot of the showing of feelings. When I write, I tend to show reactions. So, this was new for me and, I hope, the beginning of a new style.

What themes are you drawn to time and time again?

I’m a sucker for a great epic quest. Something that will take multiple books for the characters to accomplish. Dragonlance was one of my first fantasy reads. You know what they say, you compare everything to your first. This is so true.

What do you prefer writing? Short stories? Novels? Novellas? Poetry?

I prefer to write novels but have been writing a lot of short stories for anthology submissions. However, I’m taking a break from the little ones to focus on my next novel.

What is your favourite work that you have written so far?

If you are asking my favourite published work, that would be Seapod Seven in the Shadows of the Sea anthology. But unpublished, it’s a novel I keep touching every few months called Wildfire.

What is your current work-in-progress?

It’s untitled at the moment, which is odd for me. It’s a story about some competitive Gnome family houses trying to fulfill a prophecy.

What other writing plans do you have for the future?

I have plans to co-author a sci-fi novel. Not much I can tell you about it yet, but I promise it will be a huge surprise.

Discover more from AM Cummins here (on Goodreads) and here (on Amazon).

To pick up a copy of First Love either in paperback or on Kindle, click here (in the UK) and here (in the US).

First Love: Out Now!

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It’s finally here! First Love, the romantic fantasy anthology from Dragon Soul Press, is out now. This anthology features my short story Papercut.

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Those of you who normally give me a wide berth because of my horror writing needn’t be put off this time. Papercut is a poignant, heartfelt love story about a lonely teenage boy living with his ultra-strict Jehovah’s Witness mother. In his dreams, he is visited by a mysterious girl made entirely of paper, leading to a fantastical journey into… You’ll have to read the story to find out.

Also, don’t forget to join me today for the Facebook online launch of First Love. The event begins at 11am Eastern time (4pm UK time), and lasts for a whopping six hours, with each author in the anthology taking a 30 minute slot. My slot is at 12:30pm Eastern time (5:30pm UK time). Join me for a Q&A, games, giveaways and more by going to this link at the above time.

To get your copy of First Love click here (in the UK) and here (in the US).

First Love: Out Tomorrow

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First-Love-KindleIt’s almost here! First Love, the romantic fantasy anthology from Dragon Soul Press, is out tomorrow. My short story Papercut is a part of this anthology. It concerns a lonely teenage boy living with his ultra-strict Jehovah’s Witness mother, who keeps being visited in his dreams by a mysterious girl made entirely of paper.

Also tomorrow, you are all invited to the Facebook online launch of First Love. The event begins at 11am Eastern time (4pm UK time), and lasts for a whopping six hours, with each author in the anthology taking a 30 minute slot. My slot is at 12:30pm Eastern time (5:30pm UK time). Join me for a Q&A, games, giveaways and more by going to this link at the above time.

First Love also features stories from a bunch of other hugely talented authors. Whether you fancy reading about the dreamscapes of the religiously oppressed, or love stories involving forest nymphs, mages, selkies, Native American mythology, or, as one of my fellow writers pitched her story to me, “Bridget Jones meets Morgana Le Fay”, this is a must for those who like their romance with a fantastical twist.

To pre-order on Amazon Kindle or to get paperbacks in the UK click here.

To pre-order on Amazon Kindle or to get paperbacks in the US click here.

First Love Online Launch Event – You’re invited!

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52706456_10161336936145153_4550699170746335232_nThis Thursday, you are all invited to the Facebook online launch of First Love, the new romantic fantasy anthology from Dragon Soul Press.

The event begins at 11am Eastern time (4pm UK time), and lasts for a whopping six hours, with each author in the anthology taking a 30 minute slot. My slot is at 12:30pm Eastern time (5:30pm UK time). Join me for a Q&A, games, giveaways and more by going to this link at the above time.

My contribution to the First Love anthology is a short story entitled Papercut. It concerns a lonely teenage boy living with his ultra-strict Jehovah’s Witness mother. One night a mysterious girl made entirely of paper appears in his dreams, and… you’ll have to read the story to find out more. Just click the links below to pre-order on Amazon Kindle, or to order your paperback version.

First Love also features stories from a bunch of other hugely talented authors. Whether you fancy reading about the dreamscapes of the religiously oppressed, or love stories involving forest nymphs, mages, selkies, Native American mythology, or, as one of my fellow writers pitched her story to me, “Bridget Jones meets Morgana Le Fay”, this is a must for those who like their romance with a fantastical twist.

To pre-order in the UK click here.

To pre-order in the US click here.

Paperbacks can already be ordered.