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27 July 2012

Welcome special guest: author Katherine Wyvern ( @evernightpub #FF )

Today we have author Katherine Wyvern visiting. She says, "I am the eternal dreamer who always wanted to be somewhere else, so I ended up moving around several European countries. I am now settled (for a while) in SW France but I am still escaping into fantasy universes all the time."

So, Katherine, what inspired you to become a writer?
I can’t say. I have been writing, on and off, pretty much since I can remember. One day I had a story that seemed good enough, and it seemed just natural to look for a publisher.

When did you attempt your first story? What length was it? What's become of it?
The first complete story that I can clearly remember was written when I was 15, I think. It was a fantasy story, perhaps five or six handwritten pages, and I suppose it is now rotting in a box of old papers in my family’s cellar. Curiously enough though, I still think the idea at the core of it was good, and it may still resurface in some future writing.

How many stories did you complete before you sold your first?
I am not a particularly prolific writer, although I did begin lots of stories which I then abandoned; I’d say I completed perhaps a dozen short to short-ish stories and one novella before submitting Black Carnival to Evernight.

What genre(s) do you write in? What drew you to write in it/them? What’s your favorite genre of all to write in?
Mostly fantasy, sci/fi, poetry and Erotica. I write what I like to read, mostly. Sometimes two or more genres overlap, and those tend to be my favorite stories.

What are the best and worst pieces of writing advice you ever received?
I can’t say I ever asked for or received much advice, being the stubborn, independent kind, but once someone remarked on my long, intricate period structure and suggested to write in shorter, choppier sentences. I think that may have been both the worse and best advice I received. I did need to make things easier for the reader, but the sample “reworked” page that this person sent back to me was awful, as if she had no ‘ear’ at all for the rhythm of the sentence. Scary!

How do you celebrate/deal with acceptance/rejection letters?
Not much fuss either way these days. My first acceptance letter got a fizzy bottle though. Rejections will generally bring on some hours of brooding and listening to much-too-loud music. Then life goes on.

In regard to the book you’re promoting, which actor and actress do you envision playing the roles of your hero and heroine? If there’s a villain or other characters who are pertinent to the story, who would play those parts?
It is MM story. One of the characters I see very much as Colin Ferguson. The other one I can’t easily identify as any particular actor; he has the face (and body!) of a stunningly beautiful black model I spotted last year on Flickr :)

The book you’re promoting, is it a stand-alone story or part of a series? If it’s part of a series, please list the order the books need to be read in for maximum reading enjoyment.
~ Head Shy is the prequel to Black Carnival, the first novel in my Cydonian Tales series. The natural order would be Head Shy, Black Carnival, White Sands, but Head Shy can be read as a stand-alone, as can Black Carnival.
~ The series was sparked by my interest for Venice and its beautiful carnival masks, and then it developed into different directions as the Cydonian world expanded outside the city of NeuVenedig.

*** Now for some fun info… ***
What’s your favorite color?
Jade green, and any accent color that goes well with it.

Are you a cat, dog or both kind of person?
I have a dog, a horse and two cats, but I must confess I am more of a cat and horse person.

Would you/have you own(ed) a snake or some other exotic pet?
I never owned a snake, but I am very fond of them. That said the exotic pet I really crave for, is a peacock. I just love all those pure, iridescent colors. I would go out every morning and be happy just by looking at it.

*** About Katherine’s book/series… ***
Head Shy came about because the heroine of Black Carnival had so many unanswered questions about the hero and his male lover. I was curious too, so I began to think about them, and how they had met, and what was their story. It was written in a very short time (for me) because the characters were very much alive in my imagination at the time, and they really did most of the work.
Blurb ~
~ On the desert planet Cydonia, where the Sand Riders work for the colonists’ scientific Institute, Lune, a naturalist and explorer, is assigned a new trainee, a young Rider supposed to follow him everywhere to learn the skills of his trade.
~ Lune would gladly be spared the trouble, especially when informed that the boy has been formerly apprenticed to a vicious and abusive Rider, and likely to be difficult and traumatized. But when Laz’law, a stunningly beautiful, fiercely touchy creature as wary as a three month’s foal enters his life, Lune has no choice other than to employ his horse-whisperer’s patience to earn his trust and win his love.
Warning: MM

***Find Katherine & where to buy her books here...***
Evernight Publishing
Blog
Amazon
Facebook
Head Shy at Evernight Publishing
Head Shy at Amazon

Thank you for joining us here today, Katherine! It was a pleasure getting to know you and your work. Would you like to have a contest?

Giveaway, yes. I will choose a winner on July 30th. Readers, just leave a comment with an email or other easy contact. The prize is a PDF copy of Head Shy.

1 comment:

Siobhan Muir said...

Wow, this sounds like a great story, Katherine. We have neighbors who have peacocks and you can hear them calling in the morning. Very cool. CR, thanks so much for hosting.

Siobhan
nevadafoxATgmailDOTcom