I’m back with Cheap Reads!

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alisha costanzo, beta readers, blood phoenix, blood phoenix: imprinted, book boyfriend, Broken World, Celampresians, cheap reads, did you know, editing, fantasy, folklore, giveaway, humor, insta-love, Loving Red, myth, mythology, novel, paranormal, paranormal romance guild, readers, review, romance, Sale, Shapeshifter, Transmundane Press, urban fantasy, vampires, weres, werewolves, writing, YA novel

Hey, lovely readers!

I’ve been slacking. I know it, but this month has been CRAZY! Personal stuff, business stuff, writing stuff, teaching stuff. You don’t need the details, just know that I’m back, and I have new blog posts about the editing process, about BLOOD PHOENIX: IMPRINTED and beta reader opportunities, new giveaways, a new YA novel, and some new Did You Know posts. I’m also working on another newsletter and short stories.

But for now, my latest novel, LOVING RED, is on half off (on sale for $1.99) until June 6th.

Here’s the latest review:

“When I first started reading this story, I was afraid it was going to be one of those insta-love stories. However, although the book only spans about a week’s time, it doesn’t feel like insta-love.

Severins is a wolf shifter on leave from the army. His impeccable sense of smell picks up Kaia’s scent during a bus ride, and he knows he has to have her but not just for a one-night stand. He goes to her job and pretends to be a client to con her into going on a date with him. He is unaware that Kaia, a human, knows of his world, and that she is in danger.

It isn’t specifically stated, but I feel like Sev immediately thought she was destined to be his. He instantly has a drive to protect her and to claim her as his but, like the romantic he is, he wants her to be the one to decide about their relationship. Swoon.

The two have an immediate attraction, but Kaia is leery because of a past relationship with a shifter. As the danger gets closer and closer to Kaia, the two must go on the run from the Celampresians who follow them.

Sev is 100% book boyfriend material. I loved his character. He is so caring and protects Kaia and Shawna with every part of his being.

I’m not completely sure how I feel about Kaia. I originally thought she would be portrayed as a weak human who needed saving, but the only time she comes across as weak is when she is, for lack of a better word, possessed. Many times she shows mental and emotional strength, but she never becomes an active participant in physical fights.

This was a great read that I would recommend to my closest friends. I really enjoyed the story and most of all Severins!”

Review by Tina, Member of the Paranormal Romance Guild Review Team

Excerpt from UNDERWATER: “Beached” by M. Howard

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anthology, cpr, dolphins, dune, excerpt, gills, killer whales, m. howard, mermaids, myth, mythology, naked, nakedness, nipples, paranormal, plump, raven, Ruben, slavic, terrifying, Underwater

The dune circled a brackish pond where fresh water stream met the tide’s ebb and flow, and just breaking the rim, Sal saw hands.

He broke into a dead run, and as he reached the crest, hands became wrists, and wrists lengthened to arms. Incredibly broad shoulders curved into a graceful neck all but obscured by streaming black tresses. She lay face down, crusted with drying patches of sand. Her skin was black—a dull, flat black that shared more with killer whales and dolphins than any African or Negrito he’d ever encountered.

Ruben fluttered overhead, landed on the far side of the pool, and croaked, “Hello!”

Sal ignored his feathered buddy, and gingerly placed a hand between the girl’s shoulders. Her skin was cool and curiously firm to the touch.

“Well, Ruben, let’s have a look at her.” God, but she was heavy. He grasped her right elbow with both hands and applied all his weight to roll her over. He saw with a shock that if her back and arms were black, her front, from her upper lip to her chin and down her throat to her sandy tits, was ivory white. Indistinct nipples bulls eyed ivory aureoles without the slightest of color variation. His eyes involuntarily traced her nakedness down to an ivory “outee” of a navel. He stared dumbly at what should have been Venus Mons, but was instead a smooth plumpness which tapered down in curves unbroken by knees or feet, to curve out again into a largish ovoid paddle of a tail.

Ruben croaked “Ouch!” and fluttered his feathers.

“Ouch my ass, Ruben. It’s a…she’s a…” Sal was nothing if not a pragmatist. He straddled her waist and pressed an ear to her right breast. Nothing. He interlaced the fingers of his left hand into those of his right and tried to remember his emergency first aid training. He looked over at Ruben. “What’s the count? Was it five?”

Ruben bobbed his beak. “Perfect.”

“One, two, three, four, five.” Sal unlocked his fingers and moved in to position for the next step.   He wasn’t sure what he might be liable to catch, but he was sure it wouldn’t be any of the terrifying viruses plaguing the single set nowadays. After all, how could a mermaid catch mono? Or any other human-transmitted disease? He examined her face. The black coloration painted her high forehead, broad and vaguely Slavic cheek bones, and fleshy button of a nose, which squeezed off tiny nostrils. Sal called over to Ruben. “Let’s see. Clear the airway; wait, what if she has gills?”

Rubin jerked his beak up and down. “God damn it!”

 

Mini-Author Interviews: Cape C. Capehart

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anthology, Axelrod, Beyond the Hell Cliffs, Blood Daughter, case c. capehart, crushed, dark, Death, folklore, influences, interview, lamia, mermaids, Mini-Author Interviews, Murina, myth, mythology, Nikki the Beast, odd girls, oddball, Oklahoma, predator, protagonist, rape victims, research, river, river mermaids, setting, She's All That, struggling with identity, troubled kids, Underwater, unwanted kids

Mini-Author Interview for UNDERWATER:

Case C. Capehart

What inspired your story?

She’s All That, and movies like it. We have a creepy abundance of stories about odd, young girls who have a hard time fitting in socially, but they solve all of their problems by losing their glasses and learning to do their make-up better. Whether the authors intend it or not, we’re sending a message with these stories to young girls that their value is tied solely to their appearance. I wanted to write a story for readers who had weird thoughts and weird hobbies as teens, because many oddball kids grew up to be very important figures in history. And they didn’t have to adopt a new hairstyle or get better at applying foundation to move mountains.

 

Did you have to do any research? If so, what kind? What did you learn?

My day job actually helped out with this story, because I deal with troubled and unwanted kids every day. I used some of my training and what I read about children from terrible families to form Murina’s background and psyche. At Alisha’s suggestion, I looked further into rape victims, for Tetra’s story. That was probably the most difficult part, because I don’t like to think about those things, but you can’t write well if you don’t have a clue what you’re writing about, and her retelling of the event is stronger due to my research.

 

Can you tell me a little bit about your protagonist?

Murina is an exaggerated reflection of foster kids. Her thoughts are extra dark due to her childhood trauma; she is literally a different creature than her sisters, and Lord Axelrod is taking a huge risk placing Murina among his daughters. As a Lamia, Murina is a natural predator, which boldly contrasts her natural urges with those of the civilized and amorous mermaids. The features that make her a better predator (bony body, muscular tail, dark colors) are a defect in the mermaid world; one that her sisters are compelled to correct to make her life better.

 

Tell be about the setting you chose and how it influences your work.

I kind of messed with the mermaid mythology out of necessity. Traditionally, mermaids dwell in the high seas, far away from land, but Lamias are snakes, even the most aquatic of which still need dry land in close vicinity. The only way I could reconcile this was to create “river mermaids.” That’s the great thing about fiction, though: you can create and change whatever you need, as long as the writing is done well. “Crushed” isn’t about the feasibility of freshwater mermaids or the logistics of dwelling within a moving current; it’s about a young girl struggling with her identity.

 

What would you like readers to know about “Crushed”?

I had to go to some dark places to write it, and I think the excursion paid off.

Also, it used to have a much more pretentious title that was total nonsense. Some writers can easily dream up an awesome title and then have trouble writing the coinciding story. I wrote the entire story, proofread it, and then stared at the screen for thirty minutes, knitting my eyebrows and sipping a beer to come up with something to title the thing so I could submit it.

 

Case C. Capehart is from a microscopic town in Northwest Oklahoma and currently works for the state. He served as an Infantryman in the U.S. Army for six years and is most proud of his Air Assault wings and Expert Infantry Badge. He is the author of BEYOND THE HELL CLIFFS and BLOOD DAUGHTER, as well as the short story, NIKKI THE BEAST, soon to be released by Cohesion Press. He has a supportive wife and hilarious son, as well as a demonic Xbox One that unceasingly beckons him away from his writing.

You can follow him on facebook, twitter, or visit his website.

Writer’s Chatroom Interview, Part I

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alisha costanzo, anthology, author, blood phoenix, Boden, bosex, Broken World, Celampresians, character development, Dev, editing, editor, faeries, fantasy, folklore, horror, inspiration, interview, kaia, kiss, leprachaun, leprechaun, life, lore, love, Loving Red, magick, mermaids, myth, mythical race, mythology, myths, NaNoWriMo, new release, novel, paranormal, paranormal romance, published, publishing, queen, Recipe, Roleplay, roleplaying, romance, satire, Sev, Shapeshifter, shapeshifters, shifters, students, teaching, Transmundane Press, Untamed, urban fantasy, vampire, vampires, vampyr, war, Watertown NY, were-creatures, werebears, weres, Werewolf, werewolves, wolves, writing, writing tips

Chatroom: Welcome, Alisha! Let’s start with your latest project, the urban fantasy novel in your Broken World Series, LOVING RED. How did Facebook play into the creation of this novel?

Alisha: Well, I am a former role-player addict with over 30 active profiles on facebook for a time. Severins Bouvier was literally made for Kaia, and he was based off of a Sherrilyn Kenyon character, Dev Peltier.

See, Kaia and Dev fell in love off screen, and that wasn’t allowed. So to fix it, I made Sev, hence the similar names, personas, and physical appearance.

The book doesn’t follow the post on facebook yet. Most of them are love-posts or snuggle-scenes. (I’ve been watching too much Simpsons).

But playing them on facebook first allowed me to dig deeper into their personalities before I wrote the novel. And well, it was fun.

 

Chatroom: So they both had profiles, run by you, and you played them like real people? Sorry, but I want to make sure I’m understanding this. 🙂

Alisha: Yes and no. I played Sev like he was a real person, and my friend, who I actually call Kaia even though her name is Laura, played Kaia in the same fashion.

It was interesting when time to write the novel.

Chatroom: Please introduce us to your heroine, Kaia.

Alisha: Kaia is a spunky red head that’s had her share of male attention, but she’s wanted none of it. Instead, Kaia craves adventure, bored sick of her accounting job and repeated conversations with her father about marriage and children.

Essentially, she perpetuates my ideals for strength: smart, resourceful, witty, and sensitive. She’s not afraid to cry, and she won’t break easy. Finally, her faith powers her through torture, a violent chase, and control over her own mind.

I envy her that, but she’s also a bit naive, sheltered by her Swedish heritage, customs, and wealth. Yet, exposure to Severins and his world (as a wolf)–his past–improves her keen awareness and clever mind.

Chatroom: Thank you. I probably should have started with this question, but better late than never! Please give us some background on your Broken World Series. What is it about, and what can we expect to find in your books?

Alisha: Well, the first two in the series are Urban Fantasy novels, and this third is a Paranormal Romance (different characters in the same world). Their world is one run by a vampire queen.

Her army is called the Celampresians. But there is another group, the Assetato, who oppose her. The first two novel follow a newborn’s entrance into this world with her human best friend and her maker.

I love playing the mythology and pop culture, so I make a lot of internal references to Buffy, Twilight, Dark Hunters, and others.

So there are a lot of laughs, but also, a lot of snark, dark times, and sex.

For LOVING RED, Sev is a member of the Assetato, so they drop into an on-going war at the start of the novel.

 

Chatroom: How did you research for your characters? Your descriptions are pretty detailed. You must have been thinking about them for a while before applying a pen to paper, so to speak.

Alisha: For Kaia and Sev, I had facebook for. (And I may have used facebook a bit for my other characters). However, I’ve been playing in this world for the past fifteen years before I put serious effort into their stories.

This was after graduate school as there were no vamps allowed in writing classes.

For Kaia, I asked a lot questions of my friend before I finally felt comfortable writing her on my own.

And Sev is partially based off of my husband, an Army Sgt.

He even makes a cameo in the novel.

Chatroom: Did you say Sev was a wolf? I almost missed that earlier. 🙂

Alisha: Yes, he is.

I call them bosex instead of weres or shifters.

Kaia is human.

 

Chatroom: Lines you will not cross as a writer?

Alisha: At this moment, I’m not sure that I have a clearly defined line. I can say I don’t like rape for titillation, although it has been a major part of one of my storylines. I enjoy writing death, torture, and sex with varying detail.

But my characters have done some heinous things in my novels—both on screen and off.

 

Chatroom: You have a lot of fun with character interviews – is it fair to say you have a LOT of voices bouncing around your head? 😀 How do you keep all your various character details straight?

Alisha: I have SOO many voices. Sometimes, they can be overwhelming and keep me from grading papers. But I’m often able to satisfy them all by giving them a few minutes during my week to show me things they feel the need to before I get back the grind.

Also, a character book helps.

Chatroom: On your blog, you’ve published a recipe related to the novel – do you actually have recipes listed in the book?

Alisha: I do not, which is why I posted it on my blog to share. My editor did suggest creating a cookbook for Sev, who is a trained cook.

I’m meddling with the idea.

 

Chatroom: Do your English students realize that their teacher has a dark side?

Alisha: Usually. I’m very open with them, some say I might share too much, but I enjoy connecting with them as people and adults rather than keeping that barrier between teacher and pupil.

So, I’ve mentioned my books and some of the material I’ve written, but I’m sure they don’t know just how dark it is inside my head.

 

Chatroom: Must be an interesting class.

Alisha: I try.

 

Chatroom: Do you think your interest in roleplay helps in creating characters? How so?

Alisha: I t does. That’s why I have so many. Kaia would often send me pictures of models that would spark a character’s voice for me. So, we’d set them up, give them lives, and explore them via interaction with each other on the page.

Most of them have ended as romances because that’s the type of writing chemistry we have.

But when we introduce new characters, they have secondary characters, and thus, we create more and more.

Since my character has to respond to hers, I find that I learn more about them than if I pushed them myself.

It’s strange, but a fun way to develop, and then I don’t have to make them all up myself. (It kind of feels like cheating).

 

Chatroom: So half the profiles on Facebook are really your fictional characters?

Alisha: Yes, they are! And my friends. I’ve made a lot of real life friends that way. By the way, I’m trying hard not to be a tangent queen, but sometimes I can’t help it.

And I can show you guys some profiles if you’re interested. They’re all inactive at the moment.

Severins.   Kaia.   Ria.

Alexandria (Ria) is my newbie vamp in the first two novels, but there are Sev’s and Kaia’s. And there are spoilers, so beware. 🙂

 

Chatroom: Do all the FB friends know that they are “friending” a fictional character?

Alisha: That I can’t be too sure about, but when I was in a big group, ran by a moderator with a heck of a lot more people, the majority of them knew because they’d read the books.

I wound up creating my own because I’m a control freak.

So, I’d say most of them knew.

I wish I could keep up with them as much as I’d like.

 

Come back for Part II in January 2016!

Did You Know About…The Icelandic Christmas Trolls and Their Yule Cat?

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Beast, Bjúgnakrækir, candy, canonized, children, christmas, christmas eve, creatures, criminals, Death, devouring, did you know, eat children, folklore, giantess, Gryla, homicidal, horror, hunger, Hurðaskellir, iceland, icelandic, Kertasníkir, life, misbehave, mythology, myths, ogress, pranksters, santa claus, stories, thieves, thirteen, traditions, trolls, yule, yule cat, Yule Lads

An Icelandic monster, the Yule Cat is a giant, ferocious cat that lurks in the snowy countryside around the Christmas season and eats people who did not receive new clothes to swear before Christmas Eve.

Farmers used the Yule Cat as a threat to scare their workers into finishing their wool-work before Christmas. Those who processed the autumn wool were rewarded with new clothes, and those who did not take part received nothing, thus falling prey to the gruesome cat. Other versions focus the Yule Cat’s victimization of children who do not work hard enough.

The Yule Cat is connected to the giantess Grýla and her sons, the Yule Lads. The three create an awful grouping. The Grýla is a mythical troll or ogress who is as ugly as she is ravenous. Stories of her are meant to frighten children who misbehave year round as she can detect them. During Christmas, she comes from the mountains, from her caves, to hunt for children as they’re her favorite snack. And she was always hungry.

Folklore says she’s been married three times, and her third husband lives in their cave in the Dimmuborgir lave fields, with the Yule Cat and their sons.

The Yule Lads are the modern versions of Santa Claus. Unknown in number, they place rewards or punishments into childrens’ shoes set on window sills during the last thirteen nights before Christmas Eve. Many versions of the Yule Lads exist in Icelandic lore, ranging from mere pranksters to homicidal mosters who eat children, like their mother.

Their original portrayal showed them as mischievous, or criminal, pranksters who stole from and harassed the population—mostly rule farmers—and are now canonized as the thirteen Yule Lads. Some include: Hurðaskellir, or Door-slammer, who likes to slam doors, especially at night; Bjúgnakrækir, or Suasage-Swiper, who hides in the rafters to snatch sausages as they smoked; and Kertasníkir, or Candle-Stealer, who follows children to steal their candies.

Want to learn more about these Icelandic Christmas Creatures? Check out these links: this one, and this one, ooo a video, don’t forget this one, and another video.

Authoring & Editing, July Edition

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alisha costanzo, anthology, atlantis, author, blood, blood phoenix: rebirth, book, Boot Camp, Broken World, Celampresians, claimed, cock, Dirty, distorted, dryad, editing, fantasy, heavy petting, horror, humor, hunger, likable characters, love, Loving Red, Marketing, mythology, NaNoWriMo, novel, odd character, orgasm, paranormal, paranormal romance, penis size, process, publishing, romance, sex, sexual tension, Shapeshifter, torture, Transmundane Press, Underwater, Untamed, urban fantasy, vampire, victims, war, werebears, weres, Werewolf, werewolves, writing

So, I’ve been absent from my social media outlets more than I would have liked this month, which means you get an odd post about the busy life of an author and editor.

July is NaNoWriMo Camp, or Writing Boot Camp as I like to call it. I’ve written 32,000 words thus far this month, and I’m still going. I won’t reach my 75,000 word goal by the end of July, but I’m still pushing, which means I’m still absent – mostly.

July also means marketing footwork for my up-coming novel, LOVING RED, which will be published on September 9th.  And after 100 or so review/promo request, I’ve received close to thirty confirmations for my release day efforts. Whoo! Who knew I could be such a marketing fool?

It also means editing. I’ve been hard at work editing the submissions for my new anthology with Transmundane Press, UNDERWATER, co-edited by Anthony S. Buoni. I’m struggling to get through the last three stories – not because they’re bad, but because I’m working so hard at writing 2,000 words a day, self-promotion, and having the kids here for the summer.

But I’m also finalizing my edits for LOVING RED. I’m on my last leg, the proof for my final read through after my editor gets his hands on it. And, well, he makes me laugh my way through it, which makes it such a better experience.

So, I wanted to highlight some of my favorite comments he left me. All highlighted in GREEN! (That’s not a book title; I just like green that much.)

Fun with torture! My poor characters get their fair share of violent treatment when they’re captured by the Celampresians. Apparently, I do some good work with evil dialogue. Woot!

Sexual Tension… This isn’t the first time the two throw pheromones at each other, but I love when a scene ramps up the heat without any actual sex.

Heavy Petting Award! What better way to distract characters from their impending doom? Besides, as Sev points out, better to feed the heart than feed the body in dire circumstances.

Getting Down & Dirty! Finally, the characters get into some nasty business with each other, and not the violent kind. He mentions softening the language because the rest of the novel has a softer tone, but we can have an easy-going perspective and still get real in the bedroom, can’t we?

BONUS ROUND, the “Penis Size Notes: Chart A.” Do I really need to explain this one? I have a penchant for the word, “cock.”

Odd Character Alert! My dryad is too likable! I suppose something evil must happen to him. We can’t have him getting away scott free. No. No, we can’t.

FINSIH LINE! Yes, this is a new series, but it’s also intertwined with Ria’s story line, and I plan to have the two merge at some point. I’m glad he saw the connections I made.

I hope you can see those connections, too!

Add LOVING RED to your goodreads bookshelves, and check out the other Broken World stories so you don’t miss out on all of those links I’ve made, and you’ll be ready for Ari’s short story, “Untamed,” a fun bonus story at the back of the book.

BLOOD PHOENIX: REBIRTH (Book One)

BLOOD PHOENIX: CLAIMED (Book Two)

DISTORTED (Contains Phea’s Novella, “Maiden of the Underworld”)

Time to hit the keys again. 2,000 words, here I come. Much love, y’all.

Kickstarter Launched

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alisha costanzo, anthony s. buoni, author, blood, blood phoenix, blood phoenix: rebirth, book, bosex, Broken World, claimed, Death, drawing, dryad, editing, fantasy, folklore, gypsies, kickstarter, love, Loving Red, magick, miami, myth, mythology, novel, paranormal, paranormal romance, power, publishing, roleplaying, romance, self-publish, sex, Shapeshifter, sneak peek, tree nymph, urban fantasy, vampire, vampires, werebears, weres, Werewolf, werewolves, writing

LOVING RED

For Sergeant Severins Bouvier, silence means tactical planning and a large death toll, and he can’t shake how danger threatens him on the beaches of Miami, especially after seeing one of his associates in a local sandwich shop. Worse, the enemy seems fascinated with the woman he can’t stop thinking about—a woman determined not to trust him.

Everything about Sev crashes through Kaia’s carefully placed boundaries, traps, and avoidances. Regardless of her lack of interest in the majority of men, the ones that did catch her off guard left a lot of collateral damage. Who better than a soldier to understand that?

The problem is that she trusts him. Just not with her heart.

Initial Goal: $1,500.00

What your donations support:

Professional Editing

Personalized Swag

Kick Ass Month Long Tour with Giveaways

Full Rights to the Cover

Check out the full campaign and fun swag here!

Did You Know…About Atlantis? (Part One)

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alisha costanzo, anthology, anthony s. buoni, atlantis, atlas, Broken World, crystals, Death, distorted, fantasy, folklore, gods, horror, Legend, magick, mermaids, myth, mythology, plato, Poseidon, power, war, writing

Once the home to an advanced, ancient civilization, the lost continent of Atlantis has become an iconic myth that has inspired philosophers, like Plato, and writers, such as Jules Verne. Often, we imagine Atlantis as crumbling columned ruins in the thick of seaweed and moss or a pristine sunken city, still inhabited by a mysteriously intelligent and hardy race. Yet, no matter the depiction, the majority of the world reveres the lost city as a reality.

Hundreds of books have reconstructed the image of Atlantis drawing from mythology, archaeology, and geology and conclude that the Atlantean civilization was completely destroyed by a colossal catastrophe about 12,000 years ago, perhaps via a natural cataclysm, such as an asteroid impact or the Earth’s crust opening to swallow them. But perhaps they destroyed themselves through their mad experiments. Either way they are theorized as an advanced civilization, likely more advanced than our own society, through their use of crystals, which could be the force that wiped them out.

According to Plato, the Athenians led a successful resistance of the Europeans against the Atlantean forces, which were ruled by group of kings descended from Poseidon. The chief king descended from Atlas, Poseidon’s eldest son. The people were viewed as godlike for their pure hearts, but due to their divine blood, they faded into corruption and greed—much like the advanced civilizations of the twenty-first century. After the Atlanteans were defeated, the gods decided to punish them for their pride. Plato writes, “There were earthquakes and floods of extraordinary violence, and in a single day and night…the island of Atlantis disappeared into the depth of the sea.” When the earth swallowed up the island, it also took with it the people and the campaigning army.

To learn more about Plato’s Atlantis, click here or here.

For a more in depth look at the theory of Atlantis (specifically as a lost continent in the Java Sea between India and Australia), click here.

To learn more about my rendition of the Atlantean myth, click here.

Interview with Phea Celampresian: the Queen of Darkness

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alisha costanzo, atlantean, bitch, blood, blood phoenix, blood phoenix: claimed, blood phoenix: rebirth, book, Broken World, character sketch, creation, Death, distorted, fangs, fantasy, folklore, god, goddess, horror, interview, intimidating, James, jydios, love, maiden of the underworld, mercy, monster, mother, myth, mythology, paranormal, phea, power, queen, regret, reincarnation, renegade, Ria, ruler, underworld, urban fantasy, vampires, warrior

<I sit with Phea opposite me, doing my best to sit straight. For such a small woman, she exudes an intimidating breadth of power. I can’t bring myself to speak as she waits for us to begin.>

It wouldn’t do for you to cower from me if you are meant to interview me, now would it?

True enough. I certainly appreciate it. With the recent revelation about your past, readers still want to know why after all of these years, you’re still such a bitch?

<She laughs.> It is always the woman who is a bitch, isn’t it? A forceful man is merely a warrior, a ruler, or a god. Well, I am all of those things. I merely have ovaries.

What do you consider the most overrated virtue?

Temperance is overrated in all of its forms, but most directly—mercy. If someone must ask for mercy, they do not deserve it.

Which talent would you most like to have?

Compassion.

I don’t think compassion is considered a talent.

Oh, believe me, it’s almost an art form. And I have no natural talent for it.

What is your most treasured possession?

My son.

What is your greatest regret?

Acting on love.

Do you have anything to say to those who view you as a home wrecker?

Yes. Xander’s soul was first mine, as I believed when he was Jydios. Physical forms have no meaning to me, and I merely claimed what was mine.

So you believe James is the reincarnated Jydios?

I despise the use of that name formed from the mouth of an insolent renegade. But belief has nothing to do with it.

Interesting. I hadn’t known that. It sure would explain some things.

I would say that I’m happy to oblige, but I am not.

Okay. Moving on then. What do you consider risky behavior?

Allowing my offspring to grow to uncontrollable levels.

Have they? Grown uncontrollable?

When the queen must fight to gain knowledge about those born from her blood, I would say so.

Where do you most feel at home?

I don’t.

Okay, well, let’s wrap this up, shall we? I’m sure you’ve got places to be and people to kill. Thanks, Phea, from taking some time out to answer my questions.

To learn more about Phea, check out her new story, “Maiden of the Underworld,” here. And of course, her unruly introduction in Blood Phoenix: Rebirth and Blood Phoenix: Claimed. Also, check out her Facebook page!

Guest Post: Author Rebecca Lynch talks Apotheosis

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apotheosis, asura, author, book, cyclic nature, distorted, fantasy, folklore, horror, humor, myth, mythology, natural paradox, novel, paranormal, process, publishing, reading, rebecca lynch, rome, urban fantasy, writing

Apotheosis literally popped into my head one day while I was in the shower. I’m not normally one to actually get my ideas past the brainstorming sessions. mostly because I don’t have the patience for applying the details to paper. The compulsion I felt with this idea, however, was strong enough for me to take the time to write it out.

A large part of my drive to write this story revolved around two factors that I hold to be true in the world around me, and the universe at large: namely, a cyclic nature and natural paradox. Cyclic nature is represented in Apotheosis by the cycle between the characters, and the flow from fiction to truth as each character’s life is revealed. Dom writes fiction about Tessa, who sculpts the fictitious Tristan, who dreams of the long dead Aurelia. There is a bit more to it than that, but in the interest of anticipation and avoiding spoilers, I’ll leave it at that. Natural cycles are found all around us: the food chain, the change in seasons, the change between night and day, the spinning of the planets and solar systems. I could wax rhetoric about cycles all day long, but I’m sure you’d be bored to tears before my next paragraph, so I’ll move on. I felt the need to express my fascination with cycles and symbiotic relationships through the connection of creator and created. That’s how the story wound up with fiction and fact being married. This leads me to my next drive.

The second pressing urge to write Apotheosis is founded, for me, in natural paradox. Many of the examples I could give are the same as those for cyclic nature. Night and day, winter and summer, etc. But I find so much truth in paradox. You can’t appreciate beauty if nothing is ugly. All sunshine makes a desert. Life without death is meaningless. These form the cornerstones upon which my story is built. I chose to symbolize paradox not just among the characters themselves, but through historical and geographical fact and the fiction. Dom and his wife, Tessa and Olivia, Tristan and Drustan, Aurelia and the twins are all fictional characters of my own design. The layout of Manhattan, however, along with Treasure Island in Austin (my favorite bar), the MacDougall clan and their castle, the Vercovicium, Hadrian’s wall, the last Roman emperor and his family, the desertion of the Wall by the Roman Legion, all of these are fact and as accurate as I could make them to suit the story. I absolutely love fictional with strong roots in fact because it makes the story far richer than when the places, dates, and people are all creations of the writer and his or her imagination. My hope was to bring that richness to my readers, and hey, y’all just might learn something. Happy reading!

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