Madilynn Dale

 Interview with Madilynn Dale

Author of

The Ember Series, and more

Please tell me a little about your current work in progress.

My current work in progress is the second book in the Ember series. My working title is called Blue Flames. Black Flames, the first book in the series, dropped in January. The books follow Ember as she discovers her true form and that she’s heir to the throne of Hell. She finds love, experiences loss, and has a grand adventure all to balance out hell and claim her place in the realms.

Where did you get the idea for this book or series?

This idea came from a dream I had that slowly developed into more. I love creating strong female characters and Ember’s story came to me as I was binge watching Lucifer on Netflix.

Do you write in more than one genre?

Yes, I write really in a mix. I write paranormal, fantasy, erotica, romance, adventure, coming of age, and dark fantasy. I like to say that I write outside of the box.

Tell me about something that you believe makes your writing unique or worthy of attention.

My stories are fast paced and cinematic. I love to engage the readers imagination as if the story were playing out in front of their eyes.

 Is there anything about your personal history or personality that manifests strongly in your writing?

I feel like a lot of my personality slips into my characters with the way they think through thing or in some of the expressions they have. I’ve had readers point out more of me in various ones that I didn’t realize. For example, one pointed out that Ember’s sass is a lot of me.

What else would be helpful for readers to know about you?

I’m an avid reader myself and enjoy various genres. I do find myself leaning toward fantasy romance, shifter romance, Fae type books, or similar though. I’m also very outdoorsy, have rescue pets, love horses, grew up in the country, and enjoy a good glass of wine or cup of coffee.

Excluding your own work, what underrated author or book would you recommend that more people read? Why?

There are so many authors I could recommend. Several that I have read as of late include Joe Compton’s book series The Duality of Truth, Harriet Everend and her horror novels, specifically her most recent release, The Summoning, J. T. Moriarty’s series The Full Life of a Robot, Joshua Pantalleresco’s Alice Pandemic series, and really there are so many more. I try to read more Indie published books than traditionally published books and these books are amazing and addictive.

Which of your books do you most highly recommend? Why?

I recommend both my series starters, Releasing Her Power Within, Fae Shifters 1, and Black Flames, Ember 1. They feature strong female characters with empowering story lines that takes readers into a world of magic and danger as well as romance.

Which break, event, decision, or fortuitous circumstance has helped you or your writing career the most?

Honestly, the Pandemic itself. It forced me to accept the inner me. I had to deal with my shadow self, step out into an uncomfortable place, break off negative relationships, and embrace my creativity. The start of the Pandemic started it all for me and it’s been a journey ever since. I’m learning every day how to love myself and utilize my creativity to live a life of joy that I thought was only a dream. If I hadn’t been forced to stay home and accept that the world was going through a crisis, I would never have published my first piece.

What question do you wish you would get asked more often?

A question I wish I would get asked more often is what type of self-care do I practice to keep myself motivated and writing. Self-care is an important thing to us all. I do my best to write each morning in a journal with a method called the morning pages. It’s something I picked up after reading a book about unblocking your creativity. It has helped a lot and even managed to help me organize my thoughts better. I also stay active and get outdoors. Staying active is important for mental health and physical health. I also take random trips to the store to buy crafting supplies or paint to engage my creative flow differently.

Do you have a catch-phrase or quote that you like? What is it? And why do you choose it?

Growing up I’ve always used the phrase, “go big or go home,” but now that I’m older and hopefully a bit wiser I like to say, “do what brings you joy.” 

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Thanks to Madilynn for participating.

"I have found out that there ain't no surer way to find out whether you like people or hate them than to travel with them."

"[T]he more you join in with people in their joys and their sorrows, the more nearer and dearer they come to be to you."

These quotes are from chapter 11 of Mark Twain's Tom Sawyer Abroad. He must have written the first one based on his extensive travels. Twain scores another bullseye on the target of human observations. Traveling together can create great friendships--or destroy them. I've always thought that a good two week trip in close company with someone would tell you just about everything you might want to know about them. The thistle in the pant leg being that you may have reached the limit of what you're interested in knowing well before the journey is complete.

As for the second quote, once again Huck Finn speaks truth in his unvarnished manner. The humor in this one is that the people with whom Huck had joined in joys and sorrows were in a caravan far below while Huck and his friends were in a balloon high above. He had never interacted, but had only viewed the people from afar--before they were buried in a sandstorm. Isn't that similar to the attachment we form for fictional television and literary characters? We don't interact. They know nothing about us. We simply invest ourselves in their stories and how we desire things to play out for them. We celebrate their victories and mourn their setbacks, losses, and deaths. 

Ultimately, fiction is indirect communication from one mind to another. One mind creates stories and characters; another mind comes to care about them.

Places in Books

 

 

"[T]here ain't anything that is so interesting to look at as a place that a book has talked about." - Mark Twain, Tom Sawyer Abroad

 

All of my books, with the exception of Smoke, talk about real places. One of those who have posted reviews for Smoke stated that it was set in Los Angeles, but that is incorrect--the city in the book is entirely fictional and remains unnamed. 

These are some of the real places that are featured in my books:

If the area east of Kuna, Idaho, intrigues you, try The Shrinking Zone. 

 

If old Boise and the early mining towns like Idaho City and Centerville whet you interest, try my two westerns, Justice in Season and Justice Resurgent.

Do revolutionary era Boston, New York, Philadelphia, Montreal, Quebec, the Caribbean, the Hudson River, and the Adirondacks whisper adventure to you? Get started on the Tomahawks and Dragon Fire series.

 

I make no secret of the fact that I do take liberties with some geographical elements when it suits the story, but you won't find me putting Tigers in Africa as Twain did in Tom Sawyer Abroad. Demon dogs in the Idaho desert is another matter.

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This week I submitted a short story for consideration in an anthology, and dusted off another one that I've never submitted anywhere to see if it might fit a different anthology request.

I expect to get back into Book 6 in the Tomahawks and Dragon Fire Series this week. I left Alex and Lucette with a couple of their friends at an exciting juncture. Akram and company are facing new challenges while Lee, Hugh, Bonnie, Jan, and Shannon deal with a familiar peril. A significant historical figure gained new importance at the end of Book 5, Truth in Flames, and I'm keen to get into that thread. Additionally, Nathan Hale may get some time on my stage.

If you've read any of the series, you'll know that I weave the threads together, moving between two or more threads in each chapter, rather than telling each story as a separate block. That doesn't mean that the scenes in any chapter occur simultaneously, but it's a possibility. Telling the story in this way allows me to regulate the pace to keep something figuratively on fire in every chapter and finally to bring the appropriate threads together for the book's thrilling climax. I also like the technique because the reader can never be certain when the narrative will switch to another thread--and most readers will have a thread or two that they prefer over the others--so it provides another point of anticipation in the story. Your mileage may vary, but I write it the way I would like to read it.

Check out all 10 of my titles here.

Don't forget, you can get the free prequel to the Tomahawks and Dragon Fire Series here.

An Author Interviews Stanley Wheeler

  After I interviewed Adam G. Fleming, he interviewed me and included the interview in his newsletter. I present it as it appeared in his newsletter -- with the addition of a picture:

AGF: Where are you located, and how long have you lived there? If you like to travel, what are 2-3 places you enjoyed visiting and what's tops on your bucket list? 

SW: I live in Idaho and have spent most of my life here with short intervals in Utah, Nevada, and France. My wife and I got back to France in 2017 and we would love to go again to spend more time in Normandy. Our visit to the American Cemetery near Omaha Beach was extremely moving. In fact, I wrote about it on the blog. Dead Horse Point near Moab, Utah is another favorite place. The views are spectacular, changing dramatically as you hike around the rim. There are a number of places I would like to visit if I had unlimited time and funds: Egypt, India, Europe, Australia--but my reach exceeds my grasp.

AGF: I never heard of this genre mashup before -- was it your idea or is this a fairly common thing, fantasy with flintlock era weapons? What would you call the genre? 

SW: I call the genre flintlock fantasy. Some call it historical fantasy or gunpowder fantasy. I think Brian McClellan may be the most popular writer in the genre with his Powder Mage trilogy. The authors that I've seen doing flintlock fantasy have taken the weapons and technology of the flintlock era and inserted them into fantasy settings. I made a list of some of these authors and books on my blog sometime back. I wanted to incorporate real history with fantasy elements--two great tastes that go great together.

AGF: I never heard of this genre mashup before -- was it your idea or is this a fairly common thing, fantasy with flintlock era weapons? What would you call the genre?

SW: I have written 10 books so far, or maybe 11. I'm working on number 11 or 12 now. My 1940's detective novel Smoke is among my favorites. My wife is after me to write a sequel. I absolutely love books 3, 4, and 5 of the flintlock fantasy series Tomahawks and Dragon Fire. The American War for Independence is a dear subject to me, and the fantasy elements inject additional excitement and tension to the story. Book 3, Clamorous Harbingers, wraps up the first block of the story--the payoff for the cliffhanger endings in the first two books. Book 4, Promise of Carnage and Flame, ramps up the action with a stunning development, and Book 5, Truth in Flames, is the absolute heart of the series with deep history and fantasy elements. Sorry, I know you asked for one or two--but you know how authors are about their books.

AGF: What's coming out next? Anything planned?

SW: Book 6, which will finish off 1776, in the Tomahawks and Dragon Fire Series is in progress and should come out in June this year. I did take a break from it to write another short story to meet a submission deadline. I hope to finish the short story today or tomorrow and spring back into the realm of magic, dragons, and revolution. I do have a young fan who loves my books and wants me to do a sequel to The Shrinking Zone, and I've also got a new stand-alone novel set in ancient America that I have to get out of my head and onto paper sometime soon. In fact, I had started the latter project, but got so excited about doing Book 6 in the series that I set it aside to battle dragons for liberty.

 

Nathan Hale

 

Fun Fact

Nathan Hale joined the patriot forces on July 6, 1775. Prior to that he had graduated from Yale University and was teaching at a private academy in New London, Connecticut. After Washington's forces were forced from Long Island, Hale volunteered as a spy. He landed on Long Island dressed as a school teacher -- which would seem to have been a pretty good choice for a school teacher. 

Hale's misfortune lay not with the stars or his choice of dress, but with his inability to discern a British agent pretending to be a patriot sympathizer. He confided in the agent and succeeded in infiltrating his way into British custody. Washington's army retreated. Hale found himself brought to General Howe's headquarters to determine the nature of the decoration he would receive for his efforts. Death was to be his reward.

 

On September 22, 1776, the award ceremony included a short climb up a ladder to receive a length of rope about his neck. He was allowed to keep the rope for the rest of his life, but the Brits insisted on the immediate return of the ladder. He said, "I only regret that I have but one ladder to give for my country." There's as much evidence that he said "ladder" as there is that he said "life."

This hero of the Revolutionary War failed every crucial throw he tried. He failed the discern British agent roll, the escape capture roll, the charm captor roll, the ladder's too short roll, and the rope breaks roll. Not to mention, he delivered zero intelligence to Washington. What makes him a hero? Propaganda? Or could it be that a school teacher who joined the cause and failed his mission but gave his life for the cause is reason enough to remember him? It is. He wasn't looking for a safe space; he was trying to make a difference. 

One must wonder, what if he had made some of those saving throws? Will Book 6 in the Tomahawks and Dragon Fire Series include a version of the brave Mr. Hale?

Adam Fleming

 

Interview with Adam G. Fleming 

Author of 

The Satchel Pong Chronicles

 

Please tell me a little about your current work in progress.

I recently wrapped up a five-book steampunk fantasy series called The Satchel Pong Chronicles. 

I have three or four WIP right now, plus 2 ghostwriting projects. I am working on “Old Roads, New Friends”, which is nonfiction, essays around the theme of friendship based on my recent experience on the Camino de Santiago, a massive alt-history fiction project with multiple books called Zeppelin Zeke, and I’m working on audio books for the Stetson Jeff Adventures as I prepare to release books 4-6 this year.

Where did you get the idea for this book or series?

The idea for the Satchel Pong Chronicles came from the work I was doing five years ago on Zeppelin Zeke; in this alt-history saga about a rock drummer from an odd Christian sect based on the book of Hosea. I wanted to have a fantasy book that the rock band’s lead guitarist/singer/songwriter was enchanted with, and so I wrote Satchel Pong and the Great Migration, beginning around 2016 and published it in 2018… then I moved to Egypt, then Covid… and in any case I finished the Satchel Pong project in late 2021 and now I’m back on Zeke.

 Do you write in more than one genre?

Yes, I have released regular fiction novels, action adventure comedies, steampunk, poetry, and nonfiction books on the topics of coaching and culture leadership. As a ghostwriter I’m working on challenging personal stories that my clients feel must be told and also business-oriented books.

Tell me about something that you believe makes your writing unique or worthy of attention.

The way I think of it is that I write like an acrobat along the tightrope stretching across the breadth of human experience. There is a fine line between the absurd and the sublime. Everything is at once hilarious and serious. People who enjoy satirical writers like Vonnegut, Twain and even Garrison Keillor will like my stuff. A friend of mine dropped by the house the other day and said he and another buddy were comparing me to Dave Barry. I’d like to think I’m a bit more highbrow, but hey, I’ll take that as a favorable comparison.

Is there anything about your personal history or personality that manifests strongly in your writing?

Yes, I’ve done a lot of travel. At age 13 I moved from the cornfields of Illinois where I grew up in a Mennonite hippie commune where we grew organic strawberries and our family spent 3 months in France learning language and then a year in Congo. I’ve also lived in Ivory Coast and Egypt. A lot of my characters travel throughout their world– fantasy or real world novels– and I bring a multi-cultural sense of humor to the process too.

What else would be helpful for readers to know about you?

My stuff isn’t real dark. I think the world is funny, beautiful and often random. There are typical patterns of writing that move the action along but I understand rules enough to break them, so you might be surprised now and then what happens in my books.

Excluding your own work, what underrated author or book would you recommend that more people read? Why?

Does this question imply that my own work is underrated? Haha. Thank you for that! I was inspired by the late Rich Foss. He only wrote one novel, called Jonas and Sally. Although it is out of print I have some copies on hand. I’m a fan of some philosophical books like Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance, and a lot of the work by Nassim Nicholas Taleb. 

Which of your books do you most highly recommend? Why?

Of course they’re all good, but I think when I got to book 4 in the Satchel Pong Chronicles, I think I really hit a grand slam. This one is called St. Kipstofer and the Miraculous Yarkarma, and it’s about a character who suffers a terrible defeat in book 3 and has a major change of focus, including changing his name, as a result of a miracle when he attempts to end his life. The thing is you’ve really got to read the first three books to get the context.

Which break, event, decision, or fortuitous circumstance has helped you or your writing career the most?

I decided to hike the Camino from Porto to Santiago de Compostela last November and although I had published 12 books I had not made writing my focus. As I walked that 200+ miles in 15 days, it came to me that yes, my writing really is that good and it was time to give that priority and build my next career. When I came home from that pilgrimage I followed my gut and to my surprise I had a ghostwriting project that paid pretty well within just a few weeks. Sometimes you take that break to examine your life and realize it’s time to shift and it works.

 What question do you wish you would get asked more often?

Yeah, I think that it’s possible to have a purpose as an author, so I wish people would ask more often how I articulate my purpose. I think that everyone ought to have one good friend, and I believe that a great book can be a good friend and offer you hope when you don’t have any. So I hope that my humor and worldview (that this life is absurd and sublime) can offer my readers that gift of friendship.

Do you have a catch-phrase or quote that you like? What is it? And why do you choose it? 

One of my favorites is from Tao Te Ching. “There is no calamity like not knowing what is enough.” I work really hard, but I try to be aware of the limit of how much to work and how much to consume as well.

I feel like this is a key to living a life that is both balanced and integrated. 

 

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Thanks to Adam for participating.

I attended a professional conference for most of the week and endeavored to complete a short story in my hotel room. Although I didn't finish the story, I did come up with something. I should say that I came down with something. I caught a cold. Notwithstanding the affliction, I'm close to finishing the tale. Meanwhile Book 6 in the Tomahawks and Dragon Fire Series is paused at chapter 5 until the short story reaches its end.

Perhaps my ailment was a result my unwitting participation in a French duel. Mark Twain had this to say about those perilous events:

"MUCH as the modern French duel is ridiculed by certain smart people, it is in reality one of the most dangerous institutions of our day. Since it is always fought in the open air, the combatants are nearly sure to catch cold. M. Paul de Cassagnac, the most inveterate of the French duellists, has suffered so often in this way that he is at last a confirmed invalid; and the best physician in Paris has expressed the opinion that if he goes on duelling for fifteen or twenty years more, unless he forms the habit of fighting in a comfortable room where damps and draughts cannot intrude he will eventually endanger his life."

From: "The Recent French Duel"