The Story Behind Curse of the Sea by Joni Parker

I was first inspired to begin writing when I developed a character I loved. Her name was Alex and she was part Elf, part mortal, and part Titan. Her roots extend from J.R.R. Tolkien and the movie adaptation of his book, Lord of the Rings, done by Peter Jackson as well as a little Star Trek. Along The Seaward Isle Saga with three books, The Black Elf of Seaward Isle, Tangled Omens, and Blood Mission. The second series, The Chronicles of Eledon, had four books, Spell Breaker, The Blue Witch, Gossamer, and Noble Magic. The initial seven books seemed to flow out of my head although some good editing helped make them good enough for primetime.

with my character’s appearance came a number of stories, which became the basis for my first two series,

To follow those two series, I began to ask myself, what if Alex goes to the mortal world (Earth)? Would she adjust? After all, her real father was mortal and she was raised by a former U.S. Army ranger, Colonel Penser, from the age of 13. She also lived among mortals for most of her life, so the transition should be easy, right? Not so fast.

I combined her experience with mine. I served 22 years in the U.S. Navy and was once stationed at a NATO base. So, I used a NATO training exercise in the Atlantic with dozens of ships, submarines, and aircraft, in the opening of my book to set the stage. Once that was done, I asked another series of ‘what if’ questions. What if the NATO ships disappeared without a trace? What if they ended up somewhere in space? How would they get home?

That’s where my heroine comes in. Alex saves the day, or sort of, but she ends up in a mess, thanks to her good deed. She has no idea what modern life on Earth is about and doesn’t know how to cope with it. Her solution is to run away and go home. And so, my book developed. As well as the two follow-on books, by the way. Have fun reading it. I had a lot of fun writing it.

About the Author

Joni was born in Chicago, moved to Japan, and returned to live in Phoenix, Arizona. After joining the Navy, she lived in Lakehurst, New Jersey where she met her husband, a career sailor. They moved to Jacksonville, Florida, from there to Pensacola, Florida where Joni attended the university. Upon graduation, she returned to the Navy and was stationed in Naples, Italy. From there, the Navy sent her to live in a number of U.S. cities and even spent a year with the U.S. Army at their Command and General Staff College obtaining a Master of Military Arts and Sciences. Upon her retirement, she traveled the country in an RV with her husband until he passed away. She returned to the workforce living in Dallas until she discovered a passion for writing fantasy novels. She retired for a second time and now lives in Tucson, Arizona.

Website Address: http://www.joni-parker.com

Twitter Address: @ParkerJoni

Facebook Address: https://www.facebook.com/AuthorJoniParker

About the Book:

A NATO training exercise goes terribly wrong when five warships from different countries are mysteriously transported to Eledon, the Realm of the Elves. The warrior Lady Alexin is charged to escort the troops back home to London in the year 2031 with the aid of the Wizard Ecstasy and a magic shrinking potion. Yet, when the authorities question her story, Alex is detained and imprisoned under suspicion of terrorism. Caught in a web of politics, betrayal and bungling bureaucracy, the confusing world of the future will push her magical gifts to their limit, and her own future will hang in the balance, caught between “justice” and the place she calls home.

                                                                                               

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The Story Behind Tandem Demise by Duffy Brown

To me a story is only as good as the setting. Writing Tandem Demise, third book in the Cycle Path Mystery series, came from loving Mackinac Island and loving bikes, my first real adventure on my own and probably the same for most people. 

As for Mackinac Island there is so much to love. The biggie of course is the no car factor and only horses and bikes and foot-power to get around. You cannot imagine how quiet a place is without cars!

My daughter who went with me on my first trip to Mackinac is from NYC. When we got off the boat she said…do you think we died and went to heaven? It feels that way especially if you’ve gone from Time Square to the island in less than twenty-four hours.

Without traffic lights, gas stations, honking and the like life shows down. You actually have time to appreciate the beauty around you and carry on a real conversation. I love setting a series here! It takes the readers out of their hectic life and makes for a real get away. Life at a slower pace. And there is something about being surrounded by water on a little island that makes for its own little world. The perfect place to set a book.

As for biking that is probably our first adventure by ourselves, at least it was for me. Before that life on my own took me as far as I could walk but a bike! Wow, I could go miles. I think most of us relate to bikes being an adventure and on Mackinac biking is a way of life. People do own horses of course but the bike is the main mode of transport and everyone has one. There are bike shops that rent on the island and this gives tourists a chance to explore on their own. 

Bikes truly add to the mystery setting, no one goes anywhere fast. And to add to the drama, cell phone service sucks! Calling to warn of danger can’t be counted on and people have to actually write notes. Old school!

As you can see Mackinac Island is an inspiration for a murder mystery all in itself. It’s the perfect getaway. Toss in a body or two and it allows the readers to get completely immersed in the story. 

 About the Author

Duffy Brown loves anything with a mystery. While others girls dreamed of dating Brad Pitt, Duffy longed to take Sherlock Holmes to the prom. She is a National Bestselling author and now conjures up who-done-it stories of her very own. She has two series the Consignment Shop Mysteries set in Savannah along with rescue pup Bruce Willis and the Cycle Path Mysteries set on Mackinac Island with judgmental cats Cleveland and Bambino. 

Her latest book is the cozy mystery, Tandem Demise.

Website Address: www.DuffyBrown.com

  

Facebook Address: https://www.facebook.com/authorduffybrown

The Story Behind The Kinfolk: Cult of Sex and Cheese by Josh Hickman

It all started as I was making one of my early morning, soul-searching walks up and down the hills of my Hollywood neighborhood, threatening myself with bodily harm if I didn’t come up with a good idea for my next comic novel. My third such book Five Slices Of Fear: A Connoisseur’s Hoagie Of Horror, which had sent up the horror fiction genre was about to be published, and I was wracking my brain to come up with a worthy (and funny) follow-up. Just as I was about to give up for the moment, it suddenly hit me: a comedy about cults. Just that morning I had done my usual internet checking on the activities of Scientology and further downfall of the dark NXIVM cult, as I did almost every day. The more I thought about it, the more it made sense. I had been fascinated with the subject and had been studying various cults off and on since college—the Manson Family, the Peoples Temple, Scientology, the Process Church of the Final Judgement, and others. But I had to somehow find humor amongst the terror and tragedy, distill it, and bring to the surface. I went back to my original fascination: what is it in us that makes us all susceptible to this religious or cult impulse? What is it in our wiring that gives us that weakness that allows the possibility that we might give so much away—even everything—for a sense of belonging, for quick enlightenment, to be accepted, for some sort of “salvation”? And therein lay the central pathos. Freud, in The Future of An Illusion, theorized, more or less, that the religious impulse would never go away, that it could merely be tamed and reined in. To laugh at a person involved in a cult—which is at times all too easy to do—is ultimately merely laughing at ourselves. After all, self-deception, tragic as it can be, is very human, and can be very revealing and very funny. And so, I researched cults with renewed vigor—the Source Family, Synanon, the Center for Feeling Therapy, est, and many others. I also read at least portions of Without Conscience by Dr. Robert D. Hare, Cialdini’s Influence: The Psychology of Persuasion, and Snapping: America’s Epidemic of Sudden Personality Change by Flo Conway, among several other excellent books. I also found lectures on youtube easy, helpful, and concentrated, such as those on cult thinking and mind control by Robert Jay Lifton and Margaret Singer. Though the book is total fiction and borne from my humble imagination, I weaved in countless details and anecdotes which reference—directly or obliquely—actual events, as I find this deeply adds resonance and even added entertainment for those more informed on the subject as well as those who wish to be. But, in the end, it doesn’t matter if one is familiar with or even interested in cults. We all lie to ourselves and each other. We are all familiar with the power of personality, be it accumulating it or giving it away. We all hold out false hope from time to time, and, surely, we all get fooled. This publisher for The Kinfolk: Cult of Sex & Cheese is the same as for my three previous comic novels, Through Tick & Tinn: The True Story Of The Greatest Unknown Comedy Team Ever Known, Ambergris, and Five Slices Of Fear: A Connoisseur’s Hoagie Of Horror, the small Los Angeles imprint Polyester Press. We work very closely and very well together on the editing, the design, and the covers. I’m very happy with them, and we have rarely if ever butted heads on anything. I am given great creative control, and I benefit from their judgement and experience.

About the Author

Equally fascinated with horror movies, comedians, and true crime since early childhood, Josh Hickman spent equal time wading in the heady waters of Famous Monsters of Filmland magazine, the Three Stooges comedy shorts, and Helter Skelter while growing up in various parts of Texas. When he became a writer, Hickman incorporated his comedic sensibility and lifelong love of the horror and true crime genres into his satiric writings. His past comic novels also include the fictional comedy bio THROUGH TICK & TINN: THE TRUE STORY OF THE GREATEST UNKNOWN COMEDY TEAM EVER KNOWN and the illustrated surreal, cautionary high-seas treasure-hunt saga AMBERGRIS. Hickman lives and works in Hollywood.

His latest book is the satirical fantasy, The Kinfolk: Cult of Sex and Cheese.

Visit his website at http://www.joshhickmanbooks.com.

WEBSITE & SOCIAL LINKS:

WEBSITE | TWITTER | FACEBOOK

 

About the Book:

Title: THE KINFOLK: CULT OF SEX AND CHEESE
Author: Josh Hickman
Publisher: Polyester Press
Pages: 299
Genre: Satirical Fantasy

BOOK BLURB:

Hollywood Author Josh Hickman will release his latest brand of satirical, humorous books in mid-November. In the author’s new book, THE KINFOLK: CULT OF SEX AND CHEESE  he explores the maddening world of cults.  Mr. Hickman’s new novel follows his last satirical fantasy book, FIVE SLICES OF FEAR, that has received much critical praise from book reviewers.

Hollywood writer Mr. Hickman releases his new book as the fourth in a fantasy book series he has created and published.  In THE KINFOLK: CULT OF SEX AND CHEESE he chronicles the rise and fall of a “seductive, fanatical cult” led by the enigmatic Dillman “Papa Dilly” Bradford.

With THE KINFOLK: CULT OF SEX AND CHEESE once again fact meets fiction in the funny fantasy worlds author Josh Hickman creates. This time his fascination with cults has produced a fresh, yet familiar cast of charlatans, rubes, losers, and lucky fools, finding laughs in the cult impulse, religious fervor, and the common pathos of the average person who will do anything to find solace and belonging. Once more, author Hickman focuses his gaze on tragic comedy that is human existence--with all its fears, pitfalls, trials, and triumphs--and again he speaks hilarious truth to power in his latest entry THE KINFOLK: CULT OF SEX AND CHEESE.

“For as long as I’ve read books I’ve always been a huge fan of comedic novels,” Hickman asserted. “It was time I decided to start expressing my own comedic side of creative writing.”

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