Category: Guest Bloggers

February’s Guest Storyteller, Ana Spoke

AnaSpokeAna Spoke is a self-published author and an unbridled enthusiast. She currently calls Australia home, but you can always find her on anaspoke.com

FINAL COVER September 5

Sarah says: I’m delighted to welcome Ana as this month’s guest storyteller to share with us a snippet from her hilarious chic-lit novel, Shizzle, Inc.

Here are a few comments from my review of her book on Goodreads and Amazon, where I awarded it five stars.

This  humour novel is quite different from my normal reading material, but then that’s probably because it is quite different, full stop! …Initially, I decided to read it because the author connected with me via blogging and I admired her sense of direction re Indie publishing. …This début novel is the first in an intended series and I fully confess to looking forward to the next of Isa Maxwell’s escapades. …Shizzle, Inc kept me so fully engaged for a long train journey, that my fellow passengers failed to annoy me with their mobile phones and loud talking. Normally, I get very easily distracted and tense under such circumstances. Instead, I ended up smiling … a lot. 

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Fifteen minutes of fame is all Isa needs to win back her boyfriend and pay her debts. She might just get it. It might just kill her.
 
Extract from Shizzle, Inc

 

That should’ve been the end of this story, but God bestowed me with a third miracle that day. This one came in the form of a huge trash pile.

That particular stretch of the highway shoulder happened to be the city’s most popular illegal dumping spot. Over the years, it had become a landmark, with locals giving direction to their homes as “the first exit after The Tip”. The Tip was enormous. Its humble beginnings were in just one man’s refusal to pay for municipal services, but it grew quickly, as others used the excuse of “everyone’s doing it”.

At first, the city council kept trying to clean up the mess, but this only encouraged residents to dump again. Fines didn’t work either, as the officers trying to issue them were regularly assaulted, pelleted by rotten tomatoes, or even thrown into the trash pile. The city tried to organize a volunteer clean-up program, but nobody volunteered. The problem was exacerbated by the homeless, who took up residence in the valleys of The Tip and adamantly protected their territory.

On the day when I flew head-first into the sprawling landscape of mattresses and garbage bags, the city was trying out a new “zero tolerance” policy. The idea was that after a few weeks of living with a stinking fly- and rat-infested pile, the locals would come to their senses and start using dedicated bins. The exercise proved yet again how out of touch the government was with their constituents. The locals objected, staged protests, signed petitions and condemned the council officers as ‘dirty pigs’, but did not stop dumping. In the end, I owed those council pigs and stubborn citizens my life. Thanks to the extra layer of freshly deposited garbage, I did not break my neck and got away with just a concussion and severe blood poisoning.

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You can find the links to previous guest storyteller posts at 

Interview: Jamie Noble Frier, Science Fiction & Fantasy Artist

Desiccation ebook_image(300 pixels)
Today, I’m thrilled to welcome the super-talented artist Jamie Noble Frier to my blog. Many of you have already expressed admiration for the front cover he created for my novel Desiccation. It’s my belief that unless Indie authors are blessed with artistic talent, it’s a worthwhile investment to commission professionals to produce their book covers for them.

Jamie was such a delight to work with throughout the creative process: always communicative, courteous, and with a wonderful sense of humour. Armed with an excerpt from my novel, plus the request that he design a cover in the style of Amazing Stories Magazine in the 1960’s, he worked with impressive speed, completing the commission two weeks early to an exceptional standard.

Anyway, enough preamble from me. It’s interview time!

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SP: What age were you when the Muse of arts captured you in her thrall, or were you just born brilliant?

JNF: I have always been interested in art. My grandfather painted landscapes with oils, my mum was very creative, and my brother would spend hours sketching his favourite characters from video games and TV shows. He still is very talented and needs to find time to do it (if you’re reading this Bro!)… Mum is retired now and has found time to paint and sketch and has even started an art club with her friends. So I would say I had a lot of creative influence when I was younger… I used to obsess over fantasy illustrations in books and quite often try to sketch them, so I would say that was my first venture into art. Born brilliant? I think only Mum would answer “yes” to that.

SP: When did you decide to make a career out of your art and how did people around you respond to your choice?

JNF: I think I decided I would be a monster drawer when I was about 3… then life got in the way and you get to a point and think that’s not a real job, not for me anyway — you have to be pretty lucky to get a job like that. You don’t. To get there, you just have to work really really hard with what you do. It’s the same with anything, football, music, whatever — you need to get obsessed with doing it, learning it, enjoying it. I’m not sure if natural talent is a thing to be honest, I’ve always thought you’re just born with a certain level of tolerance/patience for making mistakes and if you enjoy the subject enough, you’ll work through to get better. That’s the only difference in people, I feel like you could do anything; you just need to work really hard. So after managing a restaurant for several years I thought painting pizzas on chalk boards just wasn’t cutting it and I had to aim for what I wanted to do and got back into art in a big way. I quit my job and did a course in video game production, but pretty much spent the whole year drawing and learning digital art programs. My girlfriend (now wife) was super supportive. She could see my frustration in my day job and, considering she hadn’t seen much of my drawing, had incredible faith in me. I wouldn’t have had the guts to do it without the support network that quickly formed around me. In that respect I was really lucky.

SP: Why did you decide to specialise in science fiction and fantasy art?

JNF: I specialised in sci-fi/fantasy because I was desperate to do it. It had been my obsession since I was a kid, so everything I did forced its way towards that genre. Whenever I had to try a new technique, instead of drawing a regular landscape, I’d make sure there was a dragon flying overhead. If it was a portrait, the guy would probably be wearing armour… In that way it worked pretty well for learning, too, as you had to extend your imagination a little, as well as have pictorial references to help. I can’t think of the first image I saw that switched me onto the sci-fi/fantasy genre, but I do remember carrying several wargaming books around everywhere with me that were illustrated by Geoff Taylor and Ian Miller among other folks.

SP: What else do you illustrate other than book covers?

JNF: As well as book covers, I illustrate board games, album covers, articles for magazines and I cut my teeth in the video game industry when I started. I also do a lot of stuff for personal enjoyment or commissions people want for their walls/desks, I’m pretty much happy as long as I’m busy!

SP: Do you feel a constant urge to sketch and paint outside of your working day and, if so, do you use this time to diversify in your art?

JNF: I do find the urge, yes! As any 30 something year old, I might have a mild video game problem, but since I’ve been working creatively the battle for my spare time has been consistently won by painting (digitally). Sometimes I’ll have a free day and think, awesome, time to nerd out and play some games, then I switch off after 5 minutes and end up drawing a portrait… There always feels like there’s so much to do/try/experience with art, I don’t think I’ll ever feel satisfied. That’s why I love fantasy and sci-fi. You can just launch Photoshop and see where your imagination takes you. In terms of diversifying, I do a lot of regular portraits of people, which is something quite unlikely to pop up at work. I find it relaxing and comforting. It’s also so useful to get more and more experience with the human form.

SP: Are you good at organising your time, or do you need reminding to eat, sleep, take the pup for a walk, or do your paperwork?

JNF: The pup is a creature of routine, so she keeps me in check. It’s a perfect bond really. She always comes and gives me a nudge and gets me up, which is great. I worked for about a year on my own before we got her and it starts to wear a bit on the soul. So it’s great to have company, although I think she’s bored of me. Everyone else gets a better reception when they see her! I forget to do the necessaries a lot — I have to make sure I drink water as I might start the day with a coffee and then forget anything after that.

SP: Who or what have been the main inspirations behind your art in the past, or continue to inspire you in the present?

JNF: As for artists, the names I mentioned before as well as some real digital masters like Daarken and Dave Rapoza have been really inspiring. I Feng Zhu runs an awesome series of tutorial on YouTube, he’s inspiring both artistically and in terms of what he’s given back to the art community for free. If I ever have time, I’m flying out to his school of design in Singapore. I think my family — and now extended family since I’ve been married — are inspirations in life. It’s much easier when you have a whole load of people rooting for you.

SP: What interests do you have outside of art?

JNF: Outside of art, my time is consumed by a hungry, playful puppy, binge watching TV-series with my wife and playing board games. I’ve become a real addict in the past few years and it’s been really awesome to fall into working on board games, too. I would say that is my main “hobby” these days.

SP: This question is a bit of a cliché, but where do you see yourself in ten years from now?

JNF: Ten years from now I imagine I’ll be trying to force my children to play board games with me that are far too complex for their age. I hope that I will have given a little back of what I have taken from the online arts community; I’ve just started to try and record some of my own tutorials of me working. I’m not fussed about being particularly rich. I just want to be comfortable and enjoy every day like I do right now. I hope to have some recognition. I guess, I’d value that over a skyscraper and a private plane…

SP: Thank you so much, Jamie, for guesting on my blog. Fabulous answers to the questions and, I’m sure that everyone will agree, you’re an inspiration and a real star!
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  Here are the links to Jamie’s Website and Facebook Page, where you’ll find a samples of his work, as well as his contact details.

Contemplating a #New Year #Book Blog Tour

Desiccation ebook_image(300 pixels)Publication Day for my Urban fantasy novel Desiccation in mid-December came and went without much panoply on my part. This was mainly because I was suffering from post-flu exhaustion and felt in no mood to uncork the champagne, let alone shout from the rooftops. Despite this, a modest number of wonderful people — some of them my fellow bloggers — purchased my book and, to my absolute surprise, I’ve sold paperback and kindle editions in equal quantities.

So a big thank you to all you early birds. And an especially huge thank you to Dave Farmer, who read my book over a course of a few evenings and found the time to review it on Amazon and on Goodreads before Christmas, giving it 5 stars.

Indeed, most of the world seemed distracted by the pre-Christmas rush, followed by post-Christmas malaise, plus the stagger on into New Year with no time for reading and little money left for buying books. And would you believe it, about a week before Christmas I caught a cold on top of the flu? — albeit not a bad one, but enough to drain me of any energy to market my book and enough to make me lose my singing voice just when I needed it most.

Anyway, enough of that. I’m feeling like my old self today and raring to jump into the driving seat of my virtual convertible to vroom around the blogosphere on a tour.

All invitations most welcome!

As a little post script, I’d like to add that Jamie Noble Frier, the super-talented artist who produced my book cover, now has his blog interview questions to hand and should be guesting here soon.

And yet another post script — I’ve just revised my Publication Updates page to include links to all the places around the world that my book is available to buy!

January’s #Guest Storyteller — Dale Rogerson

Dale

From office worker to caterer to … writer?

Since she could remember, Dale has been an avid reader, a lover of the written word. She finally decided to try her hand at writing, feeling there was a story inside of her.  A blog was born, but, would she find an audience?

Sarah says: Well, I think the answer to that is a resounding “yes”. Her blog A Delectable Life is aptly named, with the words delightful and pleasing describing it best. She never moans and always looks at life in a positive way, which is hugely inspiring in a world full of negative reportage.  As for her creative writing, it seems my suggestion that she try writing a 100-word story for Friday Fictioneers has resulted in her contributions there becoming part of her weekly routine. So seeing as she is now addicted to the art of flash fiction, I thought who better to kick off the New Year as my guest storyteller?

Thank you, Dale, for being a champ and accepting my invitation … and now I’ll shut up and let you get on with your tale.

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The Trek

The Trek

She was given very specific instructions:   Walk for one kilometre from the start point, direction north-west, until she reached the edge of the woods.  There she would find a small path, barely discernible, to the right of the blue, flat rock.  She was to take the path, taking care not disturb anything.

Petrified, heart pounding, she moved forward, branches pulling her hair, scratching her face and arms.  The ground seemed to want to suck her in but still she plowed forward, determined to reach her goal.

This was her once-in-a-lifetime chance to get exactly what she wanted, what she deserved!  She must keep on.  “I can so do this,” she whispered to herself, courage and confidence growing with each step.

Finally, she glimpsed the orange light in the clearing.  She was almost there!

As she struggled forward, thoughts began creeping in.  “Why was she here?    What did she want?  What was the purpose of this trek?”

She finally burst through into the clearing to find him standing there.

“You made it!” he cried. “You’ve earned my love and adoration, and we can be together forever!”

She tilted her head and looked at him.  “Funny thing happened to me on my way to you,” she replied.  “I came to the realisation that YOU have not earned ME.  I am strong enough to make my own decisions.  All this time, I thought I had to be worthy of you, when in reality, I had to be worthy of me.  For this, I must thank you.  I have discovered my own strength and I couldn’t have done it without you.”

With that, she turned around and walked back into the woods, ready to take on the world on her terms and hers alone.

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You can find the links to previous guest storyteller posts at 

September’s Guest Storyteller, Joshua Munns

JoshuaGreySkyTo my delight, this month’s guest storyteller is my son, Joshua,  who’s going to spook you all with some dark fantasy.

Joshua has always loved monsters, myths, legends, and the fantastical. At his primary school, in English classes, they despaired that he’d ever write about anything else but then they relented one year and awarded him the school Creative Writing Prize for a story about … yes, you’ve guessed it right … about monsters! At University, he earned himself a BA in History, English, and Creative Writing.

Presently, he’s working on a piece of short fiction for self-publishing on Kindle. After this, he hopes to write his first novel. He is also exploring the idea of creating online serialised fantasy role-playing games, as well as doing a collaboration on a graphic novel with one of his friends from university.

As you can see, a love of the written word runs in the family, not that the relatives are into fantasy!

The Mountain Road

“You must never stray into the snow. Only ghosts and madmen would wander the mountains in the winter,” the man told them.

The pair had listened with indulgent smiles. Rustic superstitions had their basis in practicality as often as not, and threats of dark spirits was as fine a way as any to keep the foolish from wandering out into the wilderness to an icy death.

Sullen as he was, they were glad to have found the man. Sitting on an old bench, he had the look of a seasoned traveller about him, the sort who could save them from a long and dreary winter spent holed up in a ramshackle village. His price was reasonable, a coin from each for the journey. He too wished to travel the mountain path, and he cared more for the company than for gold, he told them.

The older of the pair joked with the younger, after their first day out on the path. What a shame it was that they couldn’t see the ghosts and madmen from the mountain road. Perhaps they were shy, crouched out of sight behind rocks and snowdrifts. They had seen a man, a woodcutter by the look of him. Maybe he was a ghost or a madman. He was peculiar at the very least, responding to the younger man’s greeting with a leery look as he trudged through the waist-deep snows.

The guide was affable, his mood lifting with every day in company. They spent the nights camped by the roadside where rocks and trees offered cover from the mountain winds. He asked many questions, where they had come from, where they were going, family, friends. He himself was a simple man, he explained, bound up between the villages of the mountain road by familial obligations. Sharing words with travellers was one of his simple pleasures in a life without much excitement. He told them many stories of others he had guided through, men and women of ambition and purpose, aimless vagrants and wanderers.

The older man chuckled, an awkward eye to his friend, as the guide thanked them so sincerely for travelling the mountain road with him, for accepting his company and heeding his advice. Tomorrow, the guide told the pair, they would be beyond the mountains, and in the next village. The younger man smiled, it would be a relief, he said, to put the ghosts and madmen behind them.

The younger man trudged down the mountain path. The snows had lifted, and the village loomed in the distance. He was not in a mood for celebration however. In the night, his friend and the guide had broken camp, walked on ahead without a word. A familiar face glowered at him from the trees, the woodcutter resting against his axe, watching him in silence.

The younger man called out to him, asked the woodcutter if he had seen his friend or the guide. The woodcutter shook his head, told the younger man in a coarse voice that no-one had been down the road all morning. The younger man made to turn back, but the woodcutter called after him, calling the younger man a fool. After all, the woodcutter said, only ghosts and madmen walk the mountain road in winter.

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You can find the links to previous guest storyteller posts at