Today, here's an author I've been lucky to work with on the Stardust, Always anthology. It's Debbie Manber Kupfer! Debbie grew up in the UK in the East London suburb of Barking. She has lived in Israel, New York and North Carolina and somehow ended up in St. Louis, where she works as a writer and a freelance puzzle constructor of word puzzles and logic problems. She lives with her husband, two children and a very opinionated feline. Her first novel, P.A.W.S., was published originally in June 2013 and her second book in the series, Argentum, was released in October 2014. In addition she has stories in several anthologies including Fauxpocalypse, Shades of Fear, Winter Wishes, Sins of The Past, Sins of the Future, and Stardust, Always. In February 2015 she published a book of logic puzzles, Paws 4 Logic, with her son Joey. She believes that with enough tea and dark chocolate you can achieve anything! D.R.- Do you have a writing routine? D.M.K.- Only during NaNoWriMo months. In November (and April and July if I’m doing CampNaNo) I set myself a daily target of 2K words and don’t let myself go on the internet until I’ve finished my daily quota. It works well for me. Both my two published works started as NaNo novels. The rest of the year I try to do something creative each day, whether it’s writing a little, editing or creating one of my puzzles. D.R.- Dancing or singing? D.M.K.- Both – much to the chagrin of my daughter! I get very enthusiastic when we go to concerts. D.R.- Coffee or tea or something else? D.M.K.- Tea – gallons and gallons of hot tea with milk each day. D.R.- Breakfast, brunch, or lunch? D.M.K.- Breakfast – I love breakfast foods. At home I’m most likely to have a bowl of Weetabix, but out and about I adore pancakes, waffles and anything eggy. Plus I enjoy most breakfasts when I travel. In England they have these amazing veggie breakfast platters with eggs, beans, veggie sausage, toast and of course tea. And in Israel I love Israeli breakfasts which are a whole cornucopia of cheeses, salads, fruits, eggs, breads and practically anything you can think of! D.R.- What's the scariest thing your villain of choice has done? D.M.K.- That would be my own villain – Alistair – who is a very scary werewolf dude. In his own words: “I ate my own father once and it was the best meal I ever had!” D.R.- What's the funniest book you've read and why? D.M.K.- The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy, by Douglas Adams. Adore this book (and pretty much all Adams’ books). I have read it a gazillion times and have encouraged many of my friends over the years to read the books, just so that they get all my weird references. What book do you recommend the most? Apart from the Hitchhiker’s Guide, I think everyone should read The Book Thief by Marcus Zusak. There are also a bunch of indie authors that more folk need to know about, Michelle Proulx, M.A. Ray, Misha Burnett and George Sirois to name a few. I always get excited when I discover a new author. D.R.- How do you get ideas for stories? D.M.K.- From the “go for a walk fairy” and the “take a shower fairy”. Any time in fact when I don’t have a paper and pencil to write them down. I adore people watching and listening in to snippets of conversation and often times those odd snippets make it into my stories. Which genres do you write and what's your favorite one? My main series is Fantasy – and that’s my favorite to write. I love magic and being able to delve deep into my imagination. I also experiment in other genres in my short stories including so far, horror, humor, sci-fi and contemporary. I like using short stories to explore other genres. D.R.- What's the best advice you've gotten about writing? D.M.K.- Just get the story down. Editing comes later. Also sometimes it’s good to take a short break between writing drafts so that you can look at them with fresh eyes. Often times when I’m writing I believe everything I write is bad, but when I put it away for a few days and read it back I usually discover that’s it not so awful after all. D.R.- Tell me about the biggest surprise your own character, story, or setting has given you. D.M.K.- A couple of things: When writing P.A.W.S. my villain, Alistair, wasn’t even in my original idea for the story. But a few chapters in he emerged and made the story all about him! Also I’m currently working on book 3 of my series and have discovered a whole shadow world, Umbrae, hidden beneath the surface of our own. Who knew? D.R.- Tell us about your plans or ideas for a new-to-you genre in the future. D.M.K.- I’m currently working with a local artist to produce a children’s picture book, Cecilia’s Tale – a little kitty story dedicated to my cat, Cecilia, who found me while I was living in Israel. It’s wonderful watching her story come to life. And I look forward to having a picture book I can share in school
2 Comments
Today, we have a designer, Theodore Ashford! Theodore is a visual artist whose work helps authors promote their books in a number of ways. He's an award-winning author himself, so he knows what an author needs. Theodore Ashford is a writer and designer who is obsessed with the art of words. That love has led him into a path of typography and design, where he has a blast doing cover design and book photoshoots for other authors. The nice thing about book photoshoots is that books don’t get uncomfortable posing for a camera for long hours and don’t need a buffet. Theo has also worked as an editor for the literary magazine Alchemy, and has stared at computers contemplating font spacing for longer than even a robot could stand. Aside from writing and design, you’ll usually find Theo playing with his cats, drinking tea, or (if he’s feeling ambitious) failing at something he saw that one time on Pinterest. He lives with his spouse in Portland, Oregon. D.R.- Coffee or tea? T.A.- Okay, this is maybe a little bit sacrilege considering I live in the pacific northwest, but I’m going to have to say tea. Almost everyone here is into coffee, (and I grant that it’s some of the best coffee around) but my spouse is really into tea. I learned about all the health benefits of tea, so I really can’t argue with it now. D.R.- Dogs or cats? T.A.- I grew up a dog person, but then I fell in love with my little black kitty. Now I’m a cat person. The fact that I don’t have to wake up at two in the morning to take them on a walk is a huge benefit for me. D.R.- Who or what is your biggest inspiration? T.A.- When I was a teenager, I was pretty much obsessed with this anime/manga called Fullmetal Alchemist. It was because of FMA that I’ve grown into the kind and compassionate person I am today, mostly because I’m always striving to be more like my favorite characters. D.R.- What's your Patronus? T.A.- I would probably be one of those people who has a patronus influenced by the person I love. Probably a tiger, since that’s usually the way I think of my spouse. They’re my big protective floof. D.R.- Why do you love winter? T.A.- I love the prettiness of winter. Christmas is one of my favorite times of year with magical lights in the trees and quiet snowfalls. I love winter despite the cold. It’s a magical time of year. D.R.- Where'd you get the idea for your business/goods/services? T.A.- It mostly just started out with a love for books and words. I had a librarian for a grandmother, so I was raised around shelves and shelves of books everywhere. I grew up loving not just the way the words on the pages looked, but also the covers. As I got older, I kept experimenting with making my own covers, and eventually took classes at school on design and photography. I didn’t really think much about the skill I had cultivated until someone offered to pay me to make promotional materials for their books, and said they would promote me to all their friends if I gave them a link. D.R.- What genres do you feel comfortable supporting? T.A.- I’m most comfortable with Young Adult books, especially ones with a magical twist. I’m also a fan of anything with heavy typography, since that’s a big interest of mine. I honestly just enjoy challenging myself as often as I can manage. D.R.- What do you have to offer authors? T.A.- I do custom and pre-made covers for books, as well as design for marketing materials, logo design and book photography—that is, taking promotional pictures of books. D.R.- Do you have any goods/services that might benefit readers or other artists? T.A.- Yes! I’m also working on co-authoring a coloring book with my spouse that we’re hoping to have out later this year. D.R.- Where can we find your goods/services on the Internet? T.A.- The most information is currently on my website, though I also post lots of pictures to my Facebook page, Ashwords Design. Comicon! In Rhode Island! I will be there! So, I guess I'd better show you all what I'll have and how to find me. I'll have all the books in the gallery below, plus handy links for you to get ebooks, other volumes, or anything I run out of. There will be some PPC swag as well as the Island of Misprint Books at a discount. I should also mention that I'm going in costume. I won't say much more about that because some Rivers shouldn't be crossed. I'll be there with other Rhode Island authors. Check them out, because they're a great bunch of writers. Worried about how to find me? Worry no more! Simply check out the handy map and graphic below to see our table numbers and location inside the Convention Center. You can also stay updated and see my pictures from ComiCon on my Instagram, Twitter, and Author Facebook page. Today, I'm interviewing the lady who interviews other authors and even their characters. This isn't madness. This. Is. Kelly Blanchard! Known as The Muse within her writing circle, Kelly Blanchard first became serious about writing at age twelve and worked hard to learn and fully comprehend the numerous elements of writing. She tutored and assisted teaching in college while she studied for her degree in English. After graduation she continued tutoring children and even taught several classes. Now she’s established an online community to assist fellow writers in understanding their craft. Outside of writing, Kelly enjoys baking her world famous chocolate chip cookies, and she takes great pleasure in the company of her two cats and her Doberman Pinscher. From a family of five sisters and four brothers, she uses her experience with the family dynamic in her writing. She also practices Martial Arts, fencing, and archery—all important knowledge to have in order to write more accurately. Writing and stories are important to Kelly. Stories are a reflection of reality, and she tries to capture that reflection in a way that sparks the imagination even if it means bending a few rules and blending several genres. D.R.- Who is your favorite TV or movie character and why? K.B.- I’d have to say John Reese from Person of Interest because he’s a soft-spoken individual but still has this dry sense of humor. I hope to write a character like him one day. D.R.- What's the food or drink you always tell other people to try? K.B.- Food: my homemade chocolate chip cookies! Drink? Promise Land chocolate milk. Honestly, they’re the best. D.R.- Who is one person you'd like to meet from any point in history and why? K.B.- I’d like to meet King Baldwin IV of Jerusalem. He was the Leper King during the Crusades and became king when he was just thirteen. He inherited a kingdom at war. Although his leprosy spread throughout his body, he still went out and faced Saladin in the battlefield. He faced odds other men would run from. He knew his reign would be short and that he would suffer greatly due to his illness, but still he did everything in his power to rule well and provide a future for the kingdom. It would be interesting to have a chat with him. D.R.- How do you get ideas for stories? K.B.- I get my ideas from Anywhere and everywhere. Sometimes it’s a song. Other times it’s a line someone said. Sometimes merely paying attention to what is happening in the world around us, questions arise, and I ask ‘what if?’. D.R.- Which genres do you write and what's your favorite one? K.B.- I’ve written historical fiction, but my favorite genres to write are fantasy and science fiction. D.R.- What do you do if you see your idea has already been done? K.B.- It depends on how much I like the story. If it’s already done, sometimes I dismiss the idea and move on to another one. Otherwise, if I REALLY love the idea and think I can do something different, I twist it to make it unique. D.R.- What's your best writer's block buster? K.B.- Have a buddy to brainstorm with, so you can talk out all the different possibilities and get encouraged to either press on through it or alter it a bit. D.R.- What's the best advice you've gotten about writing? K.B.- You can always go back and fix the mistakes...even after you’ve published the book. That’s reassuring because once you publish a book, if you or a reader finds an error, you might feel like, “It’s going to be stuck that way FOREVER!” but that’s not the case, and it’s a huge relief. D.R.- Tell me about the biggest surprise your own character, story, or setting has given you. K.B.- See, I can’t tell you because that would be major spoilers for my series...but let’s just say, my reaction was definitely eyes widening, then a smile crept across my face, and then I started laughing because the idea was just awesome and unexpected. D.R.- Tell us about your plans or ideas for a new-to-you genre in the future. K.B.- My plans for writing is to try to publish four books a year—two of my own series and two from series I’ve co-written. At the same time, I plan to keep writing to stay ahead of myself, and I would love to teach some workshops about writing and self-publishing, but that opportunity hasn’t come up yet. We’ll see if that ever happens, but for now, I plan to write, write, write, and publish! I got 0 words written on any project yesterday, but it was for a good reason. Preparing for Rhode Island ComiCon. I unpacked all my books, got my cards into them, took inventory, tested swag setup. But then, I hit a hiccup. Every single copy of Better Off Undead looks like MissingNo Pokemon. Gotta catch em all some time, I guess.
Apparently, the file got corrupted going from the CreateSpace website to the printer, and green for that last third didn't get printed. I called them and the tech team is quadruple checking the file in order to make sure the 15 replacement copies they send print correctly. Will they get here in time for ComiCon on Friday? I've got no idea. They're awesome for replacing these, though! Looks like I have 15 new souls for the Island of Discounted Misprint Books. Poor Lane. It's just his luck for something like this to happen with the book he stars in. |
Archives
August 2022
D.R. Perry's books on Goodreads
Fangs for the Memories (Providence Paranormal College, #2)
reviews: 17
ratings: 41 (avg rating 4.20)
A Change In Crime: A Supernatural Depression-Era Thriller (La Famiglia di Mostri, #1)
reviews: 9
ratings: 15 (avg rating 4.27) |