Interviews

Black Howl Blog Tour and Giveaway!

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Christina Henry stops by SciFiChick.com today to talk about her latest book on her Black Howl Blog Tour!

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Can you tell us a bit about Black Howl and where we are in Madeline Black’s story?

In BLACK HOWL, Maddy’s got problems on top of problems, as usual. There are ghosts popping up all over Chicago whose deaths have not been foreseen by the Agency prophets. This means that these deaths are outside of the natural order, and it’s up to Maddy to find out who’s behind it all.

Of course, Maddy’s love life hasn’t gotten any easier either. Gabriel is now her thrall, and their happily ever after looks like it’s more out of reach than ever.

Urban fantasy/paranormal novels are popular and widespread right now. What different about the Black Wings series that sets it apart from the others?

The genre has just exploded in the last few years, and it’s amazing for fans of the paranormal. It means there’s something out there for pretty much everyone. I think BLACK WINGS and its sequels are a little bit different because the books are a real mash-up of genres – there’s action, comedy, romance, more action! Plus, while there are more books featuring angels than there were when I first wrote BLACK WINGS, angels remain a fairly small subset of the overall genre.

How many books do you have planned for the Black Wings series?

Right now there are at least six books planned for the series. After that, we will see how much more story there is to tell.

What’s next for you, after Black Howl? Any other stories on the horizon?

I do have an idea for a stand-alone novel and another series, but they are both in the planning stage. I’ve got two books in the BLACK WINGS series scheduled for this year and I’m not sure I’ll have time to do much else!

Tell us a bit about yourself and your experience in writing.

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Tobias Buckell Interview and Giveaway!

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Could you tell us a bit about Arctic Rising?

Anika Duncan is an airship pilot for the United Nations Polar Guard, tasked with keeping the now ice-free Arctic Ocean safe. But she uncovers a multinational plot to roll back the effects of global warming in the north while hunting a nuclear device, one that might have tremendous side effects.

What is happening with global warming in your story?

I was reading some declassified stuff from the US Navy (the US military are always interested in green technology and global warming, hippies that they are) while writing some short fiction about the idea of an ice-free north pole. And in the couple of years I was doing this research, the estimates kept getting more and more dramatic from the normally cautious military side. When I saw ice-free summers beginning to be considered a very real future they were tackling with, I thought it was worth using a novel to explore the conflicts that might engender. We’re already seeing some of those as oil and gas companies rush to get early rights to islands currently under ice up there, and as shipping companies talk to nations about shipping rights, lanes, etc. There are also plans now for some northern deep water harbors.

I read that you had to do some major rewrites to change the point of view to one character. How was that process? How long did it take to rewrite?

I spent half a year or more going down that path, and ripped it all up to restart anew after showing it to some writers I trusted. It’s hard to quantify how long the rewrite was, I was recovering from a heart defect at the time, so I wrote this book over a two and a half year time span. It’s a bit long for me, but I was dealing with a number of other things all at the same time.

Tell us a bit about yourself and your experience in writing.

I grew up in the Caribbean on a boat. I’ve been writing since I was fifteen, and have a number of novels out, a short story collection, and roughly 50 short stories have been printed in various anthologies and magazines.

What’s next for you? What other stories are on the horizon?

I’m working on a handful of YA science fiction adventure novels. A sequel to my 2008 novel Sly Mongoose. And always new short stories. There’s lots of info up on my blog at www.TobiasBuckell.com about current projects and what all I’ve published.

What inspires you?

So much. That’s why I’m a writer. I could never pick and choose just one thing. So I get to engage with lots of different things. I read about and follow closely private space initiatives, alternative technology, travel blogs, futurism, and anything else that catches my eye and is shiny.

Who are some of your favorite authors? What books do you love?

Vernor Vinge, William Gibson, Bruce Sterling, Alastair Reynolds, Ian M. Banks tend to be automatic buys. Arthur C. Clarke had the biggest impact on me as a kid and sort of got me hooked on science fiction and this whole journey into becoming a writer.

What do you do when you’re not writing? In your spare time?

I play videogames, hang out with my twin daughters, annoy the dog. A hobby sounds great in theory, but it would eat up writing time right now.

Courtesy of Tor Books, I have a copy of Arctic Rising by Tobias Buckell for one (1) lucky winner!

Contest is open to US only. Please no PO Boxes. To enter, just fill out the form below. Contest ends March 9. I’ll draw a name on March 10, and notify winner via email.

Good luck!

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Marjorie M. Liu Q&A and Giveaway!

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Within the Flames

WITHIN THE FLAMES is your eleventh installment of the Dirk & Steele series. How many more can fans expect?

It’s difficult to say. I’m launching a brand new paranormal romance series next year – set in a dystopian world filled with werewolf gypsy gladiators, vampire historians, zombie armies, and desert road gangs. It’s been a lot of fun to write.

You have also co-written the Dark Wolverine series for Marvel, are the ongoing writer of the X-23 series, authored Black Widow: The Name of the Rose, NYX: No Way Home, and X-Men: Dark Mirror. How did you get involved with comic books? Were you interested in them as a child?

I didn’t start reading comic books until college. I just didn’t have access to them, and without access it’s difficult to generate interest. I did, however, watch the X-Men cartoon that aired on Fox – and that provided the motivation to check out some actual comics when I realized there was a little comic book store just down the street from my dorm. I fell in love within the first few pages. Beautiful art, combined with great storytelling? What’s not to love?

As for how I got involved, that happened after writing X-Men: Dark Mirror, a prose marvel that was released in 2005 from Pocket Books. Folks at Marvel had to approve the story, and I was told they enjoyed it very much. That gave me the courage to introduce myself at New York Comic Con, and after three years of back-and-forth, they assigned me my first project: NYX: No Way Home. I worked with a wonderful editor, John Barber, who gave me another opportunity to stretch my writing skills with Dark Wolverine (co-written with Daniel Way). Since then, I’ve been offered some fantastic projects, including Black Widow and X-23.

In WITHIN THE FLAMES your pyrokinetic protagonist, Eddie, is sent to protect Lyssa, a shape-shifting dragon with fire as her weapon; a far cry from a typical damsel in distress. Who is the real hero in this book?

I think both characters are heroic. Lyssa and Eddie suffered severe childhood traumas, which have affected them well into adulthood. Yet, they manage to overcome their vulnerabilities and fears in order to trust one another – and trust does not come easy for either of them.

Your first Dirk & Steele novel, TIGER EYE, was made into an interactive game by PassionFruit Games in 2010. Can you tell us about the process and what it was like to see your book take a new form?

The process seemed to run along two tracks: developing the script for “cut scenes” and then designing the actual game play. I wrote the script with some very useful direction from one of the studio leaders, and from there we went on to choose voice actors to read the various roles: Hari, Dela, and Long Nu, specifically. As for seeing my book turned into a game, though…it was fun, but surreal!

If you could have one super-natural power what would it be, and why?

I would love a healing factor. Or the ability to heal others.

What other projects are you working on now?

Again, that new paranormal romance series being released from Avon next year – along with more comic book work. Big announcements from Marvel about my new project with them should be coming soon.

What’s your supernatural alter ego? Are you a Gargoyle, Cruor Venator Witch, Pyrokinetic, or a Shape-Shifter? You can take the quiz here.

Courtesy of Avon Books, I have a review copy of Within the Flames by Marjorie M. Liu for one (1) lucky winner!

Contest is open to US and Canada only. To enter, just fill out the form below. Contest ends January 6. I’ll draw a name on January 7, and notify winner via email.

Good luck!

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