Song of the Wren-Falcon Trailer Now Live!

So, I know it's unbelievably late in coming, but after way too many technical struggles and complications, the official Song of the Wren-Falcon trailer is live!

Enjoy! And of course, be sure to let me know what you think!

The Song of the Wren-Falcon Now Available on Kindle!

Well, it's Day 3 of The Song of the Wren-Falcon's existence as a published book, and it's a special day because it's now available as an e-book as well as in print!
I know some of you awesome people out there have already ordered your own print copies, and may I just say - you rock. But for those of you who prefer the e-book format (or who just can't wait for the print copy to arrive in the mail), the e-book is here!

Click Here to download the Kindle format.

Click Here for other e-book formats.

And of course, no matter what format you read The Song of the Wren-Falcon in, don't forget to write a review and post it on Amazon, GoodReads, and blogs. I'm looking forward to hearing what you think! :D

It's Here!

That's right, everybody. After seven-and-a-half years, eight drafts, countless revisions, and a title change, my first novel is now published and available.

Don't take this as bragging on my part (I didn't design the cover, after all) but...isn't it gorgeous? And really, I don't just mean the cover art. I mean the whole thing--the fact that it's finally--finally!--after all these years, 100% complete and out there on the market for real.
I've had the goal of becoming a published novelist since I was fourteen years old. Twelve years of struggling and striving. One hour ago, my book went live and that goal was achieved. Just like that I passed an incredible milestone and entered a whole new chapter of this wildly amazing adventure that God has dragged me along on.
And He's the reason for it all. Without Him, I never would have been able to see this novel through to the end. He is the One who gave me the endurance I needed, the One who held me up when I wanted to fall, the One who saw fit to plant a tiny little seed of an idea in my imagination, when He could so easily have chosen someone else, and so patiently helped me nurture and raise it into the amazing story it is today. I can say that without bragging too, because in a lot of ways I don't feel like I wrote this story at all. It was all God, and I was just the pen He chose to use.
I'm not a perfect pen; I know that I've made mistakes along the way, and that the book isn't perfect in all the ways it could be; but I can still say with absolute confidence that this is God's story. I have witnessed the transformation He has performed, from "tiny story seed", through "Mary's rather shallow interpretation thereof", to the story it is today. I know what God has used this story to teach me about Himself, and that is what gives me the assurance that He can use it to bless the lives of others as well, whether that blessing comes in the form of challenging someone to think about honor and loyalty and forgiveness in new and deeper ways, giving someone a new perspective of God's sovereignty, or simply letting someone enjoy an adventure.

I'm a writer; it's my job to tell a great story that readers will love. My livelihood depends on people buying and enjoying my book, so naturally I have to encourage you to hop on over and order your copy of Song of the Wren-Falcon. I want you to read it, love it, post reviews, put it in your local library, keep it on your bookshelf, share it, and recommend it. I want to hear your feedback and learn what you thought of it. I want you to be blessed by it.
But more importantly, I would love for each and every one of you to join me in thanking and praising God. Thank Him for allowing me to write this story. Thank Him for helping me see it through. Praise Him for the awesome aspects of His character that shine through this story. Thank Him for letting me achieve the dream He gave me twelve years ago.
Meanwhile, I'll be thanking Him for those same things, and also for all of you who have been so encouraging and inspiring to me. I'll be thanking Him for the wonderful adventure that my writing journey has been so far, and looking forward to following Him through this brand-new chapter that He opened up in my life when one little book popped up and went live online.
I know I've said it before--it seems like I've been saying it a lot lately--but God is good, my friends. That's just all there is to it.

It's Coming...

If you read my last post, you'll remember me talking about how God apparently likes changing all my plans of what I think I'm going to do. And then I said "I plan on doing NaNoWriMo this year". Should've seen that one coming, I guess. More than two-thirds of the way through the month, I've got a grand total of about 3,000 words written. Yeah, NaNo has been thrown out the window. For future reference, in case you were wondering: Don't attempt NaNoWriMo in the month your first novel is scheduled to release.

But that does bring me to a piece of big news: My novel is about to be released! "About to be," as in two days from now!
Well...that's the plan, anyway. And by now I think we should all be catching on to what happens to plans. But if all goes well, Song of the Wren-Falcon should be available for sale either Sunday or Monday, the 23rd or 24th!

Don't worry, I'll let you all know the minute it's live and available. You'll be able to find it here at the Lair, at Splashdown's website, or on Amazon. (And by the way, if you haven't checked out my Amazon Author page, Click Here.)

Since several of you have emailed or otherwise contacted me to ask how I've been doing through all of this, I suppose now is as good a time as any to share an update.
The simple answer is: AWESOME!!!
The more complex answer is: Exhausted, stressed out, panicking, giddy, distracted, sleep-deprived...and loving it.
I know, I know, that doesn't make any sense. But it's the truth. My publisher Grace and I are cramming to get five million last-minute things done for the book and I'm busy arranging book signings and interviews, on top of the normal work that Grace and I both still have to do. It's crazy and overwhelming, but I'm truly enjoying it. This is brand-new territory for me, after all. You only publish your first novel once, you know? And in my humble (though, I will admit, slightly biased) opinion, I don't think I could dream up or ask for anything to make the situation better. Sure, it's stressful. Sure, I don't remember the last time I got eight hours of sleep all together. Sure, I'm still miffed at my mother and best friend for forcing me to read an excerpt of my book aloud at the launch party on the 30th.
But if I'm honest...how many people get an opportunity like this in their lifetimes? What did I ever do to deserve any of this? The answer is "not many" and "nothing".
Everything that's happening right now is a blessing and a gift, completely undeserved, and I don't want to miss or take for granted one tiny bit of it.
The fact is, God is good. Understatement? Yes. There is no word that could even come close to capturing the immense goodness of our King. But at the same time, no. "God is good" is not an understatement. Reality is just that profoundly simple.

So on that note, I'm off to get back into my reality--because we're not out of the woods yet, and a lot still has to happen before the 23rd. Stick around!

New from Splashdown Books: Aquasynthesis Again

Aquasynthesis Again, Volume II of the short story anthology from the authors at Splashdown Books, is now available to order via Amazon!

And yes, since I'm now officially a Splashdown author, I'm one of the lineup! I am very excited that my short story, "Steel Gray," gets to be a part of this unique project.
So Click Here to order your copy of Aquasynthesis Again! We're selling them at cost--only $5 apiece for a novel-length collection of short stories, woven together into a unified body with the skillful narration of author Fred Warren.
There are some cool stories in here, guys. You won't want to miss it.

Summer is Over...

... or at least, very nearly. It's been an amazing summer, I don't mind telling you. Great weather, plenty of rain (the Ozarks are a rainforest right now, compared to this time last year), exciting events - no complaints!
I won't bore you with the details of my entire summer, but I will take a few moments to talk about Realm Makers, which was definitely the highlighting event!
If you didn't hear about it beforehand, Realm Makers was the first-ever writers conference specifically designed for Christian writers of speculative fiction. And it. Was. Awesome. I met some amazing people, had the privilege of shaking the hands of people I'd previously only met online, and had a great time enjoying the company of a whole troop of people just as crazy and creative and nerdy as me!

We were able to get all three of the Lost Scribes together, which is a rare treat these days. Elyn (far right) rode up to St. Louis with me (second from left) and my friend Michaela (second from right), and Heather (far left) came all the way down from Michigan. In this picture we're hanging out at the Friday night costume dinner with Becky Minor, the reason we even had such a thing as a Realm Makers conference. So a huge thank-you to her for an awesome weekend!

You may have noticed in the first picture a bit of a steampunk theme - at least on the part of Michaela, Elyn, and myself. That wasn't entirely intentional, but it ended up being pretty cool. Pictured here is the pile of weaponry and other steampunk accoutrements we brought along. Michaela made the ray gun herself - yeah, she's cool that way. And for the record: you should have seen the looks she got when she waltzed through Steak & Shake on Saturday still wearing the sabre, ray gun, and bowie knives - with Elyn and me tagging along, acting like this is perfectly normal. We laughed about it for most of the trip home.

Oh, the people we met! In this picture with me is none other than Kathy Tyers! I was so excited to meet her Friday night at the costume dinner/awards banquet (yes, I was there when they announced this year's winner of the Parable Award and the Clive Staples Award, which was awesome), but the coolest part was on Saturday, when I walked down to the lobby to find the Kathy Tyers sitting at a table talking to my mother. Seriously - can it get any cooler than that? (Mom was our chauffeur for the weekend, in case you're wondering why she was there. She said she wasn't going to turn us loose in St. Louis, so apparently she either doesn't trust us, was worried we would be so overloaded with excitement that we couldn't find our way home, or suspected we might just choose not to come back.) So Saturday I got to enjoy a long lunch break with my mom, two of my best friends, and one of my favorite authors.
Among other personages with whom I made acquaintance over the weekend were L.B. Graham, author of The Binding of the Blade series; Brian Davis, author of the Dragons of Starlight series (and with whom I sat down and had a lovely chat about my novel The Sword Masters of St. George's Academy); Jeff Gerke, commander-in-chief of Marcher Lord Press; and of course Becky Minor, author of the Windrider Saga.
Best of all, I got to see Grace Bridges, leading lady of Splashdown Books, again - this time officially as "my publisher"! Yep, she made the trek all the way from New Zealand to be at Realm Makers. I also got to meet a lot of the other Splashdown and Avenir Eclectia authors too - Deborah Cullins-Smith, Kat Heckenbach, Travis Perry, and Robbyn Tolbert. I'll admit, I was a little intimidated about meeting Robbyn. She's the one currently working on Song of the Wren-Falcon, helping me get it ready for publication, and for some reason that just really, really freaked me out. But with the help of my friend Heather ("Help" in this instance indicating Heather dragging Robbyn over to me by the hand, shoving me towards her, and saying "Now talk to each other!"), we broke the ice and started getting to know one another.
Let me just say that, having met and talked to Robbyn, I feel totally at peace entrusting her and all the rest of the Splashdown crew with my manuscript. Don't get me wrong - I wouldn't have submitted my novel to Splashdown at all if I was worried they might mess it up - but still, it's my baby, you know?
Now though, I have every confidence in the world that by the time it's done, Song of the Wren-Falcon is going to be absolutely the best novel that it can possibly be. And it's going to be good for me as a writer, as well as for the novel itself. I'm not going to be allowed to get away with any cheap tricks or short cuts (which, I confess, I did use here and there in SotS - yes, I know it's not SotS anymore but that's way simpler an abbreviation than SotW-F).
But more on that in another post. For now, back to Realm Makers.

So, we three Lost Scribes (say - someone should write a song about that!) were milling around at the costume banquet, and all of a sudden who should we spot but a man with a cybernetic left arm?! Naturally, we had to tell him about our character Skylar, and get a picture with him.

Here we are, being epic - because it's Realm Makers and we can do that. ; ) Later, as the three of us were geeking out about the fact that we'd found Skylar, we realized that Ben Wolf (the cyborg gentleman who graced us with his presence in these pictures) doesn't look at all like Skylar in the face... but he does look a lot like our character Hezekiah in the face. And, were Hez a decent human being in any basic capacity, we decided that we could easily imagine his personality being similar to Mr. Wolf's. So we got to met two of the characters from our shared novel, rolled into one master of writing conference ceremonies/magazine editor.
Which brings me to another highlight of the weekend! On Friday, Ben Wolf and Andrew Winch, the executive and senior editors of Splickety Magazine, respectively, gave a talk on what flash fiction is, and how to write it. (Flash fiction is what Splickety Magazine publishes.)
At the end of the talk, they announced a contest: write a story of 500 or fewer words and turn it in to them by noon on Saturday. The winner would get published in the first edition of Havok, a new imprint of Splickety coming in January.
So, instead of sleeping like we should have done Friday night, Elyn, Michaela, and I all stayed up most of the night, woke up abominably early Saturday morning, and spent most of the time during the morning lectures scribbling stories instead of taking notes. We all got them turned in, and settled down to wait eagerly for the announcement of the winner, set to take place at 5:00 pm.
It finally rolled around, and they started announcing the runners-up. Elyn made the finals, with her story Wolf Myth!
I didn't make the finals, but I was just glad that I would be able to say I entered the flash fiction contest at the first-ever Realm Makers conference.
But then they announced the winner... and it was me!!! I literally almost fell over. I had no expectation whatsoever of winning, so hearing my name blindsided me completely. Which turned out to be a problem, since they then asked me to read my story aloud to the entire assembly of conference attendees. Elyn says I read it a little too fast. I imagine that to mean something along the lines of Twitchy from Hoodwinked. But oh well.
So, that means that if you subscribe to Havok, you can expect to see my story, The Mermaid's Pocketwatch, in the inaugural issue!
It was a great way to wrap up an utterly fantastic weekend. I'm so glad I got to enjoy it with so many of my closest friends, authors I've loved for years, my publisher and new colleagues, and new friends made.
Come to think of it, it made a pretty nice finale to the summer. Here's to next time!

If you've actually made it to this point in the post, you're amazing. I know, it was insanely long. I should have done a three-part series or something.
I still don't have internet at home (another one of those ridiculous details about my summer that I won't bore you with), but I've got things arranged so that I should be able to get to wi-fi at least a couple of time a week now. Most of the posts this fall will probably be scheduled as a result, but I'll try to still reply to comments and post at least every week or so.

I hope everyone's summer was wonderful, and I'm looking forward to this fall. God's doing some cool things, and I'm excited to watch them unfold.

How was your summer?

Life and Writing Updates

No, I haven't died suddenly, or been stranded off-world due to a DHD malfunction, or kidnapped by goblins, or incarcerated by the FBI, CIA, DHS, IRS, ICE, KGB, or any other organization with the capability of making someone vanish for an extended period of time.
Well then, you may ask, where exactly have I been?
Well, for the entire second and third week of May, I was flat on my back with a massive respiratory infection. Not exactly how I wanted to get my spring started off. The last time I was sick for that long at once was when I was six years old and had pneumonia. Thankfully I'm well now. Unfortunately, I passed the joy on to my family, who have been passing it around ever since. (When your family is the size of mine, it takes a while for sicknesses to go through everyone.) We're down to the last two of us, though, so hopefully we're almost done! ; )
And then there was the internet...
We live in what many people refer to as "the sticks", so internet service is difficult to get, but we've been quite happy with the provider we were using. Unfortunately, during my convalescence, the company whose tower our provider used de-programmed our bandwidth, leaving us with no internet whatsoever. We've talked to other providers, but most of them want to chop down trees or dig trenches or charge a king's ransom just to get it out to us, let alone the monthly fees. We've found another wireless provider who can get service to us without any such drastic measures, but they're still building the tower that will be serving our area, and it won't be finished for another few weeks.

So in a nutshell, that's where I've been for the last month. (I know, only a Pursselley would have an explanation that complicated, but it's the truth.)
Then, of course, there were the wiener dogs, and the snow storm, and the tornadoes... yeah, it's been a circus.

If you're interested in an update on my writing, here's the scoop:
Son of the Shield is in the editing phase as we speak! Splashdown Books has a really unique editing system that consists of all the writers in the "family" working together on different projects. Right now, one of the other authors who writes the same genre is going over my manuscript, making corrections and suggestions. Once she's finished the ball will be in my court for a while. I'll be sure to keep you all updated when that happens!
We've already made a few changes right off the bat:

I was thoroughly embarrassed to realize that every time I thought I was using the noun "Prophecy", I was actually using the verb "Prophesy". And in Son of the Shield, that's a word that gets used pretty frequently, so there were a lot of instances of that mistake. *head-desk, head-desk*

We also added in a scene or two with Ryker Verone, one of the secondary characters, to flesh out his subplot a little bit. I certainly didn't mind that! Captain Verone is a fantastic character who I love working with, so any chance to do more with his story is A-okay with me!

We've also added a little bit of shading and layering with the main character so far, but I am not at liberty to disclose the details of that at this time. (Mwa-ha-ha-ha!) Just let me assure you that it's going to make the story even better.

The biggest change we've made so far, though, is to change the story's title. (*pauses to wait for collective gasps to die down*) Yes, I know, you've all been hearing about Son of the Shield this and Son of the Shield that for a long time - some of you for years. Trust me, it's hard for me to get used to, too. But believe me when I say it's for the best.
The truth is, I was about two years into the writing/rewriting/editing process when I realized that the title Son of the Shield didn't really fit closely with the story anymore. It was, after all, the title I had chosen literally on Day 1, the day I first had the idea for the story, and long before I really knew what the story was about. The more it grew, and the more I learned about it, the less SotS really fit. But by that time, the story was two years old and SotS was what I was used to calling it. Plus, the title could work, albeit loosely. So I just left it alone. Honestly, when I first sent it off to Splashdown for consideration, I suspected they might ask me to change the title.
And, sure enough, it was one of the first things Grace suggested after she accepted it. Unfortunately, by that time I had been living with the story for six years, so asking me to change the title was something like asking a mother to re-name her six-year-old child. I had absolutely no idea where to start. So, armed with some suggestions from Grace, I sent a query to all of my friends who have already read the book, asking them for suggestions.
They sent me quite a few, but even staring at a list I drew nothing but blanks. The story simply was SotS in my mind, and I couldn't get past that. In desperation, I sent the list off to Grace, and she made the choice. Ready to hear it?

SotS's new title is:

Song of the Wren-Falcon

Different, I know. Trust me, it doesn't sound weirder to any of you than it does to me. But I'm getting used to it. In fact, I'm even starting to really like it.

Now, that doesn't mean that I don't still draw a blank when someone hears that I'm getting a novel published and asks me what the title is. (My best friend has had to jump into multiple conversations to remember it for me, while I'm standing there blinking, saying "Um...") Really professional, I know. But I'll have the hang of it eventually... I hope.

 

So there's what's happening in my life these days. I don't often have the chance to use public Wi-fi, so I'll probably be pretty quiet for a little bit longer, until I get my internet back at home. But in the meantime, I hope everyone's spring is turning out to be as beautiful and exciting as mine is!

P.S. I'd love to hear what you all think of SotS's new title, so be sure and leave a comment to let me know!

A Very... VERY... Exciting Announcement

I'm tempted to go into a long, drawn-out and dramatic introduction to delay delivering the punchline for as long as possible... but, I'm too excited so I'm just going to say it:

Son of the Shield, my first novel, the one you've all been hearing since I first started this blog, has been accepted for publication by Splashdown Books!

You can visit their website by clicking Here. Last October I had the privilege of meeting Grace Bridges, the head of Splashdown Books. Most of you probably remember seeing my pictures and reading my post about that - if not, you can do so Here. Well, the heap-big secret I didn't mention at the time was that by then, Grace already had a copy of Son of the Shield, which I had finished up in July, and I was waiting for her answer. *sneaky laugh* Believe me, it was extremely hard not to say anything!
A week or so ago I spoke with Grace, and she told me I could expect an answer, one way or the other, after the weekend. This morning I woke up to find an invitation to join the Splashdown team waiting for me in my inbox. What a way to start off my day and my week! Oh - and in case you're wondering, I said yes!  ; )

There is still some work to be done before SotS is completely ready to publish, but we're already getting started on that. I'll be sure to keep y'all updated on the progress as we get closer to actual publication. Oddly enough, instead of dreading another round of editing, I'm actually excited about it. I didn't realize until now how much I've missed working on Son of the Shield. I guess after all this time (SotS turned six in February) it's just become a part of me.
So all of you, eat some ice cream or drink some ginger ale for me in celebration. This is probably the coolest day of my entire life so far, so I hope you all have a great day too!

~Mary

Author Interview - H.A. Titus

Back once again, with one last interview with an author from the Avenir Eclectia anthology. Today we're talking with H.A. (Heather) Titus, whom I've been blessed to have as a personal friend, cohort, and co-author on multiple projects, for several years now.

HA: Hey Mary! Thanks for inviting me over to your cyberspace home. :)

MRP: You know you’re always welcome. ; ) Let’s get started: What first brought you to the world of Avenir Eclectia and got you interested in the project?

HA: I ran across it while browsing the Splashdown Books sites. I thought it sounded like a cool Christian version of the Star Wars universe set-up, where authors all worked together to create a really cool world. Plus, I have a tendency to be wordy, and when I saw that the preferred wordcount was below 400 words, I thought it would be cool to challenge myself.

MRP: What do you consider your unique 'trademark' as a writer, and how does that come through in your Avenir Eclectia stories?

HA: I'd say my unique trademark is bringing characters out of a dark past and into an at least semi-hopeful future. Even if I don't always showcase my beliefs, I always try to bring characters to a place of hope at the end of the story arc. A lot of that comes through Pieter's past as a smuggler/his future as a flight teacher, and the orphans' future in being able to have good jobs. With Reeder, it's in his fear of the supernatural forces that his brother is a part of, and how eventually overcomes that fear.

MRP: I've had so much fun watching you explore the unique way a smuggler and a group of orphans relate to each other. Can you tell us a bit about that (your inspiration, goals, etc.)?

HA: My inspiration for Pieter was, basically, I've always wanted to write a character that is a former smuggler. Cara was inspired by the other orphans I saw in the stories. I didn't intend for them to last for longer than two or three stories, but as I figured out more about them, their story kept expanding.

I really didn't have specific goals in mind as I started writing them. I have noticed, though, that Pieter especially has expanded as a character. He goes from bored, spoiled rich kid to infamous smuggler to flight school teacher. Teaching was the last thing he ever thought he would be doing, yet he finds the most satisfaction from it. (Of course, his story doesn't end with becoming a teacher...but if I said anything more, it would be a spoiler. Can't have that!) ;) So I think my goal with him is illustrating how satisfying a simple life can be.

MRP: What do you see as the biggest advantage of a multi-author project like Avenir Eclectia?

HA: The inspiration. I always joke that I should've worked for Pixar, because the team that works on a story together always meets every morning to bat ideas around. I work the best when I get a chance to brainstorm with other creative types, and I always come away from an AE story or discussion inspired to write, whether it be for Avenir Eclectia or on one of my own projects.

MRP: The biggest disadvantage or challenge?

HA: The continuity. It's like the old saying, "Too many cooks spoil the stew." Not that I'm saying that there could be too many people involved in Avenir Eclectia. But sometimes, with multiple people writing about the same locations, it can get a little off-kilter since everyone kind of has their own perspective on things. But so far I think everyone has done a really good job at working together to keep stuff consistent.

MRP: Do you have a favorite memory or experience from the Avenir Eclectia project so far?

HA: I really, really loved reading everything that Walt Staples wrote. He had a great wit and a talent that I envied. He was one of my favorite Avenir Eclectia authors and I really miss him.

Besides that, my next favorite memory would be seeing my first fiction piece published, and seeing the first book in print with my name on the cover.

MRP: Seeing my name on the cover was a big thrill for me too, and getting to share that exciting first with a close friend just made it that much cooler! 

Can you give us any kind of hint at where your story/character arc is going from here?

HA: Pieter, Cara, Cog, and Clock will be involved with some of the creepy-crawly happenings on Avenir. Reeder, my messenger in Zirconia, actually has a lot of his story plot to go, and his story will be tied into some of the demonic-plot storylines.

MRP: Thanks again for joining us, Heather! It's always fun talking to another author, especially one who shares interest in a project I've been blessed to be a part of. ; )

HA: Thanks for having me Mary! 

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Well, that about wraps up the Avenir Eclectia interviews for me. It makes me kind of sad. But, work on the shared project continues with some exciting plans for the future, and of course, the first volume is available in print on Amazon at an amazing price. So if you haven't read it by now, you've got no excuse. : P

Have a great weekend, everybody!

Author Interview - Pauline Creeden

Hello, all! I'm back again, with another interview with one of the Avenir Eclectia authors. Today we're talking with author Pauline Creeden. Thanks so much for joining us today, Pauline!

PC: Thank you for having me here Mary!

MRP: What first brought you to the world of Avenir Eclectia and got you interested in the project?

PC: My first introduction to AE was through a link posted on Facebook by fellow writer friend, H. A. Titus. She posted a story and I followed the link. After reading the short piece about a wizard making deliveries, I was intrigued by the site as a whole. I spent hours perusing the stories and history of the shared world. As can happen sometimes, a character popped in my head. She wouldn’t let me go until I’d written her first scene.

MRP: What do you consider your unique 'trademark' as a writer, and how does that come through in your Avenir Eclectia stories?

PC: Hmmm. My trademark? I like for my stories to have the feeling of both the familiar and the strange with a twist that I hope makes it original and lasts in the reader’s mind. That’s my goal anyway.

MRP: I've loved following your story arc and your character, Zana Black. Can you share a little bit about that for those who haven't read it yet?

PC: Zana Black is, of course, the character who grabbed me after reading the history of Avenir. After being grotesquely injured in a bug hunting accident, teenage Zana lost her brother as well as her left arm and leg. A scientist (Dr. Lee) found her and engineered parts to allow her to have some semblance of a normal life. The make-up of Avenir’s judicial system is that most bug hunters are criminals or low-lifes. Zana’s father was both. She grew up hating the father who left her and her brother for dead, and became a bounty hunter specifically to find and kill her father.

MRP: You've got me intrigued, and I've already read it! That must be a good sign. ; )  I'm looking forward to reading more!

What do you see as the biggest advantage of a multi-author project like Avenir Eclectia?

PC: I can take my time with the story arc and not worry about whether readers have something to read in the mean time. It’s also fun to read the way other authors are building on to the world. My favorite stories to follow so far have been Ernsto and Dressler’s arcs.

MRP: The biggest disadvantage or challenge?

PC: Because the world has so many authors working in it, an author has to keep track of the other stories in order to keep from clashing with someone else’s story line. It can be time consuming, even if it is fun.

MRP: Do you have a favorite memory or experience from the Avenir Eclectia project so far?

PC: Travis Perry has offered to collaborate with me on a story arc for Zana that includes a meet up with his character Ernsto. I’m looking forward to it, and am sure it will be an interesting learning experience.

MRP: (You can read up on Travis Perry and Ernsto in my interview with Travis, Here.)

Can you give us any kind of little hint at where your story arc is going from here?

PC: Of course, Zana will have to deal with her daddy issues. I’m hoping that there might be some sort of forgiveness in her future, and maybe she’ll learn that it’s okay to let herself be loved. She’s got a hard crust right now. I’m hoping she’ll soften up.

MRP: Thanks again so much for being with us. It's been fun!

PC: Thanks again for having me here, I hope to meet up again!

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Author Interview - Jeff Chapman

As I mentioned yesterday, I'm back with some more great interviews with authors of Avenir Eclectia Volume 1, the newly-released science fiction anthology from Splashdown Books.

This time around we're chatting with author Jeff Chapman. Thanks so much for joining us today, Jeff!

JC: Thanks for inviting me, Mary.

MRP: What first brought you to the world of Avenir Eclectia and got you interested in the project?

JC: I'm friends with some of the Splashdown authors. I learned about the project when I followed links to their stories. I don't usually read much science fiction but the stories were fascinating and the world so varied and full of potential.

MRP: What do you consider your unique 'trademark' as a writer, and how does that show itself in your Avenir Eclectia stories?

JC: I like to write about characters who aren't certain about their beliefs or the decisions they make. The consequences of those decisions likely won't play out as they hope or expect. I also love tragedy, so while a few of my stories will end happily, most will have a more ambiguous ending. 

MRP: The stories you've written for Avenir Eclectia often deal with complicated issues of right versus wrong. Can you tell us a bit about that?

JC: When Elihu discovers the hermit's cache of coins, he has to decide between honoring the dying man's property or the good that Elihu could do for his impoverished community with the money. He's not happy with his decision, but the right choice doesn't always bring us immediate joy.

"A Creature of Words" comes down to a moral decision on the part of the fish. She decides to abort her attack on the human diver not because she's having trouble sawing through his dive suit armor but because she realizes he has language like the angels. Her morality forbids eating a creature with words.

MRP: What do you see as the biggest advantage of a multi-author project like Avenir Eclectia?

JC: I particularly like the sharing of characters between multiple authors that allow various story arcs to interact. We see familiar characters from a new perspective and the stories no longer appear as single threads going off in their own directions but as different colored threads woven together. I've consciously tried to tie my story arcs into those of other writers. My stories "A Fortuitous Stumble," "Shelter from the Storm," and "The Hermit's Cache," for instance, borrow the character Elihu Simmons--a bug-hunter and pastor--from stories that Travis Perry wrote. Of course it's polite to ask permission to borrow characters and let the other writer see what you're doing with them. This is great for building friendships and relations with other writers.

The stories from others are expanding and filling in the Avenir Eclectia world and each addition can spark your imagination in a new direction.

MRP: The biggest disadvantage or challenge?

JC: The flip side is that it can be hard to keep up with what's happening in the story world. You don't want to be caught writing about something that can no longer happen. I think Grace is doing an admirable job keeping a watchful eye on all the story threads.

MRP: Do you have a favorite memory or experience from the Avenir Eclectia project so far?

JC: My first story "A Creature of Words" is from the point of view of a fish, albeit an intelligent fish. I wasn't sure if this would fly, so I was elated when Grace accepted it.

MRP: Can you give us any kind of hint at where your story/character arc is going from here?

JC: The stories about the hermit that Elihu discovered in a cave will follow the hermit to the The Abbey of Francis and Lazarus House located on the asteroid Assisi. We'll find out who the hermit is and what's in his cryptic book. The contents of that book will create a profound personal crisis for one of the monks

MRP: Is there anything else you'd like to add or share?

JC: I'm looking forward to writing more Avenir Eclectia stories. I have the hermit thread which I see going on for quite some time and a new thread about a couple bug hunters. I hope to get back to the fish as well.

Thanks so much for hanging out with us here at the Writer's Lair, Jeff!

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Remember, the AE anthology is available on Amazon for $5.98, plus it's eligible for Amazon's 4-for-3 promotion. So don't just order one for yourself; it would make a perfect gift for the sci-fi reader on your Christmas list, too. ; ) Click Here to order it from Amazon.