Hello fellow readers! CC here, letting you know that it’s that time of year again…
Gail Z. Martin’s Hawthorn Moon Sneak Peek Event !!!!
We are thrilled that Gail chose to make WeGeekGirls one of the stops on her blog tour.
Fresh off of several new releases, we could only think of one thing to ask her and here is what she had to say…
Straddling Worlds
by
Gail Z. Martin
So We Geek Girls asked me: What’s it like writing six series in four genres?
The short answer is: My brain is a noisy place.
I have two series of epic fantasy novels currently available (The Chronicles of the Necromancer/Fallen Kings Cycle and The Ascendant Kingdoms Saga). There’s a third new epic fantasy series starting in 2017 from Solaris Books which I’m not currently allowed to talk about (much), but I can tell you that I’m finishing up the first book and soon to start on the second, and that it’s a whole new world and completely new characters from the other two series.
I also write the Deadly Curiosities dark urban fantasy series, set in modern-day Charleston, SC. And I co-write two series with my husband, Larry N. Martin–the Iron & Blood Steampunk series, and a new space series that so far has been glimpsed only in three anthologies for Origins Gaming Fair.
Three different medieval worlds with completely different systems of magic and religious constructions. A modern-day setting filled with supernatural, paranormal and occult elements plus another magical system that draws on real-world beliefs and lore. A future space setting where technology runs up against human greed and ruthlessness and science imitates magic. And a Victorian setting in an alternative history Pittsburgh in 1898 where science and magic vie for power as old ways and new ways seek dominance.
All six of the series are active, with new books, short stories or novellas being written. That means that we’re often switching between series that are in different stages of development, outlining a book in one series while writing a book or story in another series while proofreading the galley for a book in yet another series.
And for now, let’s not even talk about the other three completely different series in various stages of proposal.
Oddly enough, it’s usually not too hard to keep things straight, even though a lot of characters are crammed into the space between my ears. Switching between series is kind of like getting together with separate friend groups. You know what I mean–you might have your old friends from high school or college, but they don’t know your gaming friends, who might not know all of your convention friends, who probably don’t know your friends from work or from the neighborhood. You move among those groups seamlessly, even though you’re the only common factor, and you usually get the names right and remember what you’ve said to whom.
Occasionally, I slip up. That’s what good beta readers and proof readers are for–finding the times when I’ve accidentally mentioned the wrong kingdom or king, or unintentionally done something that’s a little too reminiscent of something done before in another world. (I blame it on typing while tired.) Fortunately, none of those slips made it into print. I knew the difference, but the fingers don’t always play nice when they’re typing.
I try very hard to make the characters in the series unique, so that readers won’t feel like they’ve read about these same people before in different clothing and another location. Heroes come in all types, and so part of the fun for me is developing characters who speak to me and who capture my interest and yet are very different from each other. If it’s true that there’s a little bit of the author’s soul in every character we create, then I’ve got more fragments than a horcrux.
In order to write a character, I need to connect with him/her on an emotional level and be able to identify strongly with his/her circumstances and decisions, to feel their pain. That sense of connection doesn’t differ regardless of the genre, because in the end, all of the characters–even the immortals–are human or share a basic humanity that makes them relatable.
In terms of mechanics, it helps a lot that my husband and co-author, Larry N. Martin, is great at making lists of characters so we spell names consistently and get details like hair color right. And yes, I’m as bad about things like remembering hair color and eye color on people I actually know in real life.
Maybe the best part about inhabiting so many series, worlds and characters is that I get the chance to live a lot of lives vicariously. I’m glad it’s vicarious, because I doubt I’d survive what I put my characters through in real life. So it’s probably just better for everyone if I keep typing, and leave the kick-ass stuff to the real heroes.
Check out The Shadowed Path, my newest epic fantasy collection of Jonmarc Vahanian short stories in paperback and ebook from Solaris Books. And be sure to also look for Modern Magic: Twelve Tales of Urban Fantasy, a 12 book, 13 author ebook boxed set including Trifles and Folly, the first-ever collection of 10 Deadly Curiosities Adventures short stories!
From June 21-June 30 I’ll be doing my annual Hawthorn Moon Sneak Peek Event blog tour, and I hope readers will stop over to my website, find out what all is going on and where to find the posts, giveaways, contests and fun events. And of course, please look for The Shadowed Path at your favorite bookseller!
The Hawthorn Moon Sneak Peek Event includes book giveaways, free excerpts, all-new guest blog posts and author Q&A on 22 awesome partner sites around the globe. I’ll also be hosting many of my Modern Magic co-authors guest posting on my DisquietingVisions.com blog during the tour. For a full list of where to go to get the goodies, visit http://www.AscendantKingdoms.com.
About the Author
Gail Z. Martin is the author of The Shadowed Path (Solaris Books), Vendetta: A Deadly Curiosities Novel in her urban fantasy series set in Charleston, SC (Solaris Books); Shadow and Flame the fourth and final book in the Ascendant Kingdoms Saga (Orbit Books); and Iron and Blood a new Steampunk series (Solaris Books) co-authored with Larry N. Martin.
She is also author of Ice Forged, Reign of Ash and War of Shadows in The Ascendant Kingdoms Saga, The Chronicles of The Necromancer series (The Summoner, The Blood King, Dark Haven, Dark Lady’s Chosen); The Fallen Kings Cycle (The Sworn, The Dread) and the urban fantasy novel Deadly Curiosities. Gail writes three ebook series: The Jonmarc Vahanian Adventures, The Deadly Curiosities Adventures and The Blaine McFadden Adventures. The Storm and Fury Adventures, steampunk stories set in the Iron & Blood world, are co-authored with Larry N. Martin.
Her work has appeared in over 30 US/UK anthologies. Newest anthologies include: Robots, The Big Bad 2, Athena’s Daughters, Heroes, Space, Contact Light, With Great Power, The Weird Wild West, The Side of Good/The Side of Evil, Alien Artifacts, Cinched: Imagination Unbound, Realms of Imagination, Gaslight and Grimm, Baker Street Irregulars, Clockwork Universe: Steampunk vs. Aliens.
Find her at www.AscendantKingdoms.com, on Twitter @GailZMartin, on Facebook.com/WinterKingdoms, at DisquietingVisions.com blog and GhostInTheMachinePodcast.com, on Goodreads https://www.goodreads.com/GailZMartin and free excerpts on Wattpad http://wattpad.com/GailZMartin.
**********
As I am sure I have mentioned before, my first introduction to Gail’s work was The Chronicles of the Necromancer series. Jonmarc Vahanian was a favorite character from that series and I have really enjoyed reading more of his story in The Shadowed Path!
I have written reviews for both books in the Deadly Curiosities world look forward to entering Trifles & Folly to continue the adventures of Cassidy and gang!
Whatever you may like to read, I am certain that Gail Z. Martin has something you will enjoy. And if you happen to be like me, you will like ALL OF IT!
I am going to echo the above encouragement to check our her work for yourself 😉
We have a few more goodies this week so stay tuned!
~CC
We Geek Girls 