In an interview with Linda Nightingale you mentioned you’re satisfied with the final result of Embers Drift, more so than past works. What are you most proud of in this book?
Probably that I was able to work on a complex concept and difficult ideas and present them in a way that (I’ve been told) explains just enough without drifting off into nebulous philosophy at the expense of the story. So I was somehow able to give it a straightforward structure and work with a limited cast of characters. As some of your readers will know, the Aona books are more richly complex- which is fine as they were meant to be, but I knew early on that Embers Drift had to have a simpler structure even though it stirs up all manner of ideas and concepts.

On a conceptual level, how do you use narrative tools to communicate the ideas you work with in this book? To what extent do you prefer the reader to fill in the gaps?
I like to present scenes and dialogue and rather than continue them exhaustively, bring them to a conclusion with some things unsaid, some deeds undone- which kind of answers the second question. I’m the sort of reader who likes to fill in the gaps where needed, and I guess I’m the sort of writer who assumes a certain level of intelligence in his readers. I don’t believe in spoon-feeding my readers absolutely everything- far from it. For me it’s about the characters and the scenes, and if you can make them evocative enough then you certainly don’t need to relate every little thing. In this way I feel it also makes the journey unique for each reader.

After working on the Aona series and having experience writing standalones do you have a preference in writing one over the other?
They both have advantages and disadvantages. A standalone book can be easier to market than a Book 1 (not that I’m an expert in marketing- far from it). But writing a Book 1, though often difficult and convoluted, can sometimes result in an easier run when one comes to the following books in the series. For example, I’m about 100,000 words into a new series I’m writing, and I’m sure at least a third of those will end up in the second book. Quite apart from that, you become more familiar with the characters and they become easier to write- I guess I slip into their skin much more easily as I get to know them. They begin as ghosts; they end as fully fledged people.

From your first book, Summer’s Dark Waters (published in 2014), and this year’s release, how have you grown as a writer?
Well, my first was Oblivion’s Forge (2011) but that aside, I guess the main change is that I’ve honed my author’s “voice” – in other words I now know the style that fits me best, I know how to write with it and it feels “just right.” It’s difficult to explain but I think every writer has to find their best style and way of expressing their work, andhone it as best they can. In other words, don’t try to be something you’re not.

Is there anything else you’d like readers to know?
I guess this would be a good point for mentioning my works in progress.

I’m part of the way through writing the first in a new dark fantasy series which will probably seen as more “traditional” fantasy but which will have a number of unique features to it. It explores the nature of magic and of conflict and there isn’t going to be a clear-cut “good vs evil” thing going on- I’m not a fan of such absolutes, I want to explore characters’ motivations, whether or not most people think of them as acceptable. What made them this way? Are they able to change- either for the better, or worse? It’s that aspect that interests me.

I also have another standalone book in progress- this is more a sort of cosmic horror about three demonic beings who have existed in a vast city for hundreds of years, weaving mischief and woe wherever they go, and a young man from an ancient family of magicians and thieves, who is the only one to suspect their existence.

Lastly, I’m also working on a somewhat leftfield YA magical realism novella- I’m not entirely certain how this one will turn out but I’m pleased with some of the concepts involved so this may see the light of day shortly.


Embers Drift on Amazon US: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B088WF28QN/
Embers Drift on Amazon UK: https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B088WF28QN/
Author’s website: https://www.simonwilliamsauthor.com
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/simonwilliamsauthor/
​Twitter: https://twitter.com/SWilliamsAuthor

Photo credit to the author.

Geoffrey Gordon is a mixed media painter focused on the styles of Expressionism, Impressionism, and Abstraction. He uses these styles to “arrive at a place of open minds” where we can “commune and connect.”

How did you learn your craft?
How I learned my craft is a long and interesting story, but what I can say is I will always be learning. Throughout my experience with worldly dichotomies such as politics, economics, religion, and general processing of new and often contradicting information or feelings, I developed a visual expression to map these conversations out and represent different rebuttals and supports to each side. How I came to represent color as opportunity and possibility, compared to stark contrasting lines and complimentary colors as more representational, is always a work in progress, and to achieve balance and movement in my art.

Traditionally, I taught under Joyce Werwie Perry and Claire Hardy of Pittsburgh. I had taken Drawing I in college and a few Art History courses for my classical training, but it wasn’t until I quite whimsically picked up and spent 80$ at an art supply store and watched hundreds of hours on youtube to hone my skills. Having a degree in psychology, it was fate that I ended up expressing the minutia of behavior in politics, religions, and norms in some fashion or another. I chose visual expression.

In your work you emphasize finding middle ground and reaching “a point to converge and discuss” within a system of black and white thinking. How did you develop your artistic voice? Has it evolved since you started painting?
My artistic voice began to be expressed after I learned how to make the marks I wanted to make. I suppose the need to achieve balance has always been there, but expressing such balance began when I had entertained different ways to create different effects. As part of my art, I believe it is important to investigate different possibilities to get the greater picture. I often leave “room for interpretation” when adding detail to a picture. For example an object could be seen as more than one thing, allowing the viewer to see things differently. Perspective is another tool I use in my work to again, promote seeing from different angles and viewpoints.

What do you hope viewers take away from your art?
I want viewers to take away with them firstly visual entertainment. My work is not to be glanced at, but can be studied and will show new possibilities as the subjects are discussed (if only in the mind or to another viewer). I hope the audience takes away from my art the ability to entertain a new perspective without feeling the need to accept it.

As a mixed media artist, do you find yourself planning a project around the materials you have on hand/want to work in and/or technique you're currently interested in, or do you just go with the flow?
I plan very little with my paintings, but rarely materials. I have an arsenal of mixed media tools that I use for my work. The flow is very important during the painting of a picture and rough drafts are difficult and even rarer. Just as in life, you cannot erase things but you can go over them again to make it clearer or more accurate. There is often thinck paint and texture in my work to represent such tuning.

Are you experimenting with any new techniques, materials, or concepts in your work right now?
I am always experimenting with new techniques and concepts. “To be an artist is to be an explorer” – Henri Matisse

Do you encounter any challenges in rendering your ideas on the canvas? If so, how do you overcome them?
I find it challenging to wrap up a piece and call it finished. For me, my work is an echo of my experiences and responses to daily life. Finishing how I think or feel about something can be expressed but is never finished.

Do you find yourself starting a project over? How do you know when you've reached that point?
I do not start a project over. I do not erase nor do I throw away. I feel that life is a journey and being dissatisfied with your work and giving up is not an option. Correcting, amending and going over a piece of art is very common and speaks to my steadfast nature.

Aside from art, do you have other passions? Do they ever influence your art and if so, how?
I have many passions, but none are expressed so thoroughly as my visual art. My passion of philosophy and critical thinking are paramount and well captured in my drive to balance an image or dichotomy or debate. I have a love for cooking which also promotes balance and mixing of “ideas.”

Is there anything else you'd like us to know?
As a visual artist I strive to gather people in thinking differently and avoiding the all or nothing mentality. These dichotomies are so commonly pronounced in daily life that we have lost the ability to entertain another opinion without disliking them for it. I aim to offer a point to converge and discuss so that we can hear another perspective without feeling forced to support it. Whether it is knowing oneself or appreciating how others live, understanding is important to balance and fairness, and allowing for a better future.


Check out Geoffrey’s website here.

Follow him on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter.

Photo credit: Geoffrey Gordon

​Is there anything else you’d like readers to know?
For me, writing has always been something I enjoy doing. I’ve been drawn to it for as long as I can remember. When I sat down to write Behind the Glass, I did it for me. I set out to write the book that I wanted to read, and I honestly didn’t think beyond that. I figured, if someone else likes my book, wonderful, if not, I was still fulfilled simply by writing it and accomplishing that personal goal. But I’ll admit…. hearing someone tell me how they connected with my book, or how it helped them in their life somehow, or that my book is now their favorite book….. it blows me away. It’s something I never expected and the feeling it gives me is indescribable. It has made this “hobby” of mine into a serious second career and something I never want to stop doing. So, thank you to each and every reader who has taken the time to read and review my book, it means more to me than anything!

Pick up your copy of Behind the Glass here.
​Follow Kristen on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.
Check out her website while you're at it!

Taylor Pannell is an artist, designer, storyteller, and baker. She is the author of several collections including My Bible, Notes to Self, and The Traveller. Paired with her own vivid art, her writing captivates the imagination, revives your sense of wonder, and dares to ask out loud the questions on everybody's mind. ​

​As an artist, how do you determine which medium you would like to work in for a particular piece? How does this choice help execute your ideas for the piece?
With probably too much testing. I enjoy trying out different media until I find one that I think suits it best, and sometimes along the way the idea adjusts or becomes more developed, but often I have my plan solidified beforehand.

Outside of art and poetry, how do you fuel your imagination?
I read fiction; lately I'm in love with Murakami and J.D. Salinger. I obsess over music: Mitski and Car Seat Headrest are constantly on my playlists right now. Or I go on walks around my neighborhood.

Is there anything else you'd like readers to know?
Exploring your interests is fun and necessary, but it is not wrong to decide upon a specific profession. You don't have to be a Da Vinci; I think this is an idea that can be harbored at art school, and that I've come to realize is an unhelpful misconception.

Find Taylor's work here and follow her on Instagram. 
Check out her Atomic Flyswatter Online poems. 
Stop by her blog.

Photo Credit: Taylor Pannell

Janine Caroline is a contemporary romance and women's fiction writer with a background in film. She is the author of novel I Look at You and Smile released in 2018. She also gives great interviews, like the one below.

Tyler Nichols is a fiction writer, screenwriter, and Spider-Man super fan. He also runs YouTube channel Zombievictim, which you should check out after reading this interview:

​What are you working on right now? 
I’m about halfway through the sequel to The Crimson Summer titled, Crimson High. While the first book was essentially my own version of “Friday the 13th,” this second one is more my version of “Scream.” So, while it’s been a lot of fun to write, I also feel like it needs to be smart and logical, which can be tough since it’s set in an active town, not some camp in the middle of nowhere. 

Cellphones are currently the bane of my existence.

When writing a slasher-style book like The Crimson Summer where no one is safe, were there any characters you still found yourself becoming attached to/rooting for? 
Going into any slasher, there’s a certain expectation that most of the characters are going to die, so I didn’t have much of a problem offing campers in the first one. Although, I will say that I called an audible on the death of one of the counselors, mainly because I felt it would affect the overall story too much. Plus I really liked her. 

And in Crimson High, there’s a character death that was really tough for me to write because I like the character so much, and had grown so attached to them. But, their death helps propel the story forward, so it felt essential. Because once you start killing off characters just to do it, you lose any impact.

​With the remakes and reboots of movies like Child's Play and Halloween, what impact do you think these new installments have on their respective franchises? On the horror genre?
I think they’re great because they bring more people into the franchise that wouldn’t have otherwise. As much as I love some older horror films, I understand younger people not understanding them because they don’t understand the context for the era they were made in. The original Halloween may not illicit anything from a teen, but the new one just might because it’s more relatable to them. And honestly, I’ve never been someone against reboots/remakes. As long as it’s good, then I’m all for it.

Is there anything else you'd like readers to know?
It’s been three years since Crimson Summer and I’m always being asked about a sequel so I guess I should touch on that. I’ve written half of the book and hope to have the rest of it done by the Spring. I’m shooting for a Fall 2020 release. It follows our survivors from the first book, Chase and Liz, as they enter their Senior Year of High School, one year after the events at Camp Watanka. 
And my Youtube channel “Zombievictim” has a new video every Friday so if you love horror content, be sure to check it out.

Pick up a copy of The Crimson Summer here. 
Follow Tyler on Instagram and Twitter and check out his site. 

Photo Credit: Tyler Nichols

Are you experimenting with any techniques, materials, or concepts right now?
I've recently took a dive back into oil painting. It's been a few years since I had really worked in this medium. I'm kinda bumbling my way through right now. I do have a plan to adjust my work flow to speed things up and come out with a better end product. I jumped right into painting quite a bit lately without fully fleshing out the ideas. This has lead to some frustration. My plan for future works is to fully flush out a drawing at the size of the intended final product and mount a copy to a board. This will allow me to paint directly over my drawing and not have find the proportions or have to render everything completely over again.

Outside of drawing, how do you fuel your imagination?
The easiest way to fuel the imagination is to experience life and what others have to offer. I step away from the art. Travel, hiking, rock climbing(my other love in life) or experiencing new things is the only way I know to inform my art better.

Is there anything else you'd like readers to know?
I'd just like to reiterate that if you spend all of your time working and not experiencing what life has to offer then your art will suffer for it. As an artists we are typically the more introverted types and would rather sit at home or in the studio and just work. But getting out and meeting people that have similar interests or very different ones can help a lot. Art is a form of communicating our experiences and emotions for the world to interpret in a visual way. If you don't have those experiences you can't communicate effectively. ​
​

Photo credit to the artist.

Arly Carmack is a fiction writer and author of novel Nineteen. She's an author to keep an eye on with more books to come.

Your site hints that you have a follow-up to Nineteen in the works called Twenty-One set to be released this December. How has this been going?
Thanks for asking! Twenty-One is complete and I’ve edited it twice. Now I’m working on a final edit and sending it off to a beta reader. Editing is an odd thing for me. I will procrastinate for a while, then I’ll get a huge chunk done. When you are so close to something, especially something that has taken five years to make, it’s hard to look at it objectively and slice out things that don’t bring any value to the characters or the story. But with Nineteen, I found that process to be satisfying when I got the end result, so I need to keep that in mind while I’m editing Twenty-One.

As you've been working on this project, has the current version changed much since you've first started? Has anything surprised you about it as you've been writing it?
In the original version of Nineteen, there were a few dumped storylines that delved more into Cameron’s connection to music and being a musician. The main purpose for my final edit of Twenty-One is to make sure I didn’t miss any references to things I ended up cutting. I also added a new character who was meant to be miserable, annoying, and a bit of an antagonist, but it took a turn and I ended up enjoying him tremendously. I’m hoping the readers will embrace him, too. He’s going to be a major player when the series wraps up.

In addition to Twenty-One, you have several other projects in the works—including a novel, novella, and an untitled project. What helps you keep your momentum? Do you find yourself balancing several projects at once, or do you prefer to complete one before starting another?
Being able to choose what you work on is the lovely thing about being an independent author. I can put something to bed for a while and work on whatever I’m feeling passionate about at that moment, or start something new. If I get bored with my writing, I just open another project and see if I’m feeling it. If I were a traditionally-published writer, I’d probably adopt a process of making outlines, creating timelines, and setting goals. I would have to be more efficient and methodical because I'd be answering to a publisher. For now, writing is my escape, so I don’t want to turn it into another thing to check off my to-do list. My violin teacher always tells me, “It’s a marathon, not a sprint,” so that’s going to be my motto for writing as well. It’s a journey and I don’t know exactly where I will end up.

What is your experience writing first drafts like? Do you have any advice for fellow writers working through round one?
I try to write the first draft like it’s going to be the final draft. The less I have to change later, the better. My first drafts seem to be about twenty to thirty thousand words heavier than they need to be, so most of the editing I do is eliminating redundancy, dropping dead plots, and making sure the voice of the project stays consistent. I think writing is like almost anything else. Do it your way, do what works for you, and if something doesn’t work for you don’t be afraid to change the process. Writing is an art and there is no right or wrong in art.

When you have a story idea, at what point do you know what form it will take on?
I’ll admit it – I’m a pantser! I don’t outline anything. For me, a story is like a little plant in my head. I water it, wait to see if it grows. Some ideas take a much longer time to grow than others. The story itself isn’t my main focus. Once I have a solid character, I can usually take off from there. My stories aren’t plot-driven, rather character and dialogue-driven, so it flows fairly well because I know what my characters are going to say and do. I just have to put them in situations. Then the characters and dialogue are driven by the situation, and it all works together. I start every project by getting to know the main character. For everything else, I fly by the seat of my pants.

What appeals to you most about writing fiction?
Satisfying my inherent need to understand people. I have an obsession with wanting to know what motivates people, and most of what I write is born from that. 

When you aren't writing, what are you up to?
We have a great park system where I live, and I enjoy walking around and taking pictures with my vintage cameras. I like to develop some of my own film. I’ve been slowly purchasing darkroom equipment and am hoping to get that going soon. Aside from that, I like to go to thrift shops. That’s always fun. I’ve also been studying the violin for a little over a year. I have a wonderful teacher.

Is there anything else you'd like readers to know?
I appreciate their support and that they’ve taken the time to read my book. It means the world to me when I hear that someone has enjoyed it. There will definitely be more to come and I welcome their feedback.

Pick up a copy of Nineteen here. 
Find Arly on Instagram and check out her website. 
Photo Credit: Arly Carmack