Terry "Kings and Queens" Tyler Returns - Around The Cauldron

Popular contemporary dramatist, Terry Tyler, needs no introduction to Wizardwatchers. 

Interviewed around the Cauldron as recently as February, she proved so popular that, when I discovered that she planned to release a new work, I wasted no opportunity in reaching for the Wizphone and inviting her back. 

Always great value for money and a deep thinker about writing, Terry talks to us about her latest work, her love of chase drama "24" and - in a tremendous Scoop - she tells us how old she is. Well, sort of. I interrupted her in the middle of a marathon writing session to chat and here's what she had to say...

Original Cauldron Interview with Terry Tyler

Hi Terry!
Hi Wiz! Lovely to be back.

Great to see you back on the show. Describe yourself in fifty words or less. 
Describe myself? Okay….I am the sort of person who finds it impossible to describe herself, other than to say that I am five feet five inches tall and have badly greying brown hair that is artfully made blonde by some nice ladies up the road!  There – 43 words!!

Tell us about your new release, Kings and Queens.
Kings and Queens is the 7th novel I have published on Amazon, and is my most ambitious work to date.  It tells the story of Harry Lanchester, a charismatic property developer, and six women with whom he becomes involved, over a period of 35 years.  It just happens to mirror the story of Henry VIII and his six wives, but you do not have to know anything about that period in history to enjoy it, as it is, essentially, a contemporary novel in the romantic suspense/drama genre.  

For any ‘Tudor virgins’ who would like a brief outline of the life of Henry VIII, I have supplied a link at the beginning of the book to a short bio, posted on my blog.  A couple of the reviews so far have said that it’s been very helpful, and they’ve kept flicking back to it, which has increased their enjoyment of the book.

The alluring, ill-fated Ann Boleyn

There are references to the Tudor court both serious and amusing; for instance, Annette Hever, whose historical counterpart is Anne Boleyn, does lose her head, but not at the hands of a French executioner…!  Oh, and a rock band called Traitors’ Gate…

Traitor's Gate on the banks of the Thames

What was your main reference work? And did you enjoy the research? 
I already knew a lot about the basic story, but needed to know so much more, mostly about the women themselves.  My main reference work was David Starkey’s book ‘Six Wives’.  I also re-read a couple of Phillipa Gregory’s Tudor novels, and watched a few of Starkey’s documentaries.  Did I enjoy it?  Oh, yes!  I read that sort of thing for pleasure anyway. 

In Kings and Queens, did you worry that there were too many characters for Indie?
I am not sure what you mean by ‘for Indie’ – are people who read ‘indie’ books less able to cope with large casts???!!  There is not a particularly large number, I don’t think; you can’t write a novel that spans 35 years and involves a large nationwide company and many relationships, with only six characters!  Some are only mentioned once or twice; they are referred to, rather than becoming a part of the story; I do know what you mean, but you don’t have to remember the names of the ‘walk-on parts’ anyway.   

Tolstoy classic; metaphoric, boundary-jumping
cipher for anything long and complex, particularly reports at
work and essays at school.
(e.g "Don't spend too long on it, Gerald- I'm not looking
for War and Peace.")
500 speaking characters to remember.

And was it a risk to write a 120,000 word novel in today’s dumbed down chocolate chunk bite-sized literary environment?  Were you trying to make a point? 
I don’t think 120K words is that long, and, dear Mr Wizard, I wouldn’t spend months writing a novel to ‘make a point’. Now, stop stirring your cauldron in that ‘pardon me for breathing’ sort of manner!  It’s the size it needs to be to tell the story, that’s all.  One review said that there is no padding and (hurrah) no dull bits.  In other words, it’s all relevant and there are no long descriptions.  I divided the book into six parts and there is plenty of variation, as it is told from various points of view.  

"But people who can only cope with soundbites probably wouldn’t read my books anyway!"

 Amen, Terry.  

Now, would you have written Kings and Queens had the TV series The Tudors - with the “hot” young Henry VIII as a muse - never existed?
Totally lush though Jonathan Rhys-Meyers is, he was not my muse!!!!  I’ve always loved the story, and been fascinated by how different the six wives were.  I will admit, however, that the idea popped into my head whilst I was watching an episode of the show on Netflix, last summer…  

Who is your favourite character in the book? And why?
I can’t pick just one.  I liked Hannah (the latter day Anne of Cleves); she seems to be most people’s favourite.  I like her just because she’s a nice lady!! I also like Erin, who will become Queen Elizabeth I in the sequel, because she is wild and not ‘girly’.  I was fond of the mysterious Luke Bromwell, alias Thomas Cromwell, who at first seems to be just a ghastly upstart.   

The Guardian Reviews Hilary Mantel's Play about Thomas Cromwell

And I had a certain affection for Annette, the 20th century Anne Boleyn, always the most fascinating of Henry VIII’s wives, I think.  And dear old Tom Morley (aka Sir Thomas More) and Kate Latimer (aka Catherine Parr) … darn, that’s six already!

So come on. Are you converting Kings and Queens to paperback? I hear the old school are hammering down the doors of your house with crazed eagerness? If not…why not?
Yes, I will, when I get round to it.  I’ve never been one of those ‘I must see myself in print’ writers, but I am proud of Kings and Queens, and I think it kinda merits the bother.  But I need to get… round to it…!

Are you influenced by the blockbuster novels of the seventies – Robbins, Collins, Conran’s Lace etc – long books that grabbed a reader and never let go for a second?
No.

Ooops, er,okay. Sack the researcher again...
Oh, sorry, you want a more detailed answer?!  As I said earlier, 120K isn’t that long.  The average novel is about 95K, I think, and there are plenty longer.  I’ve never read a Harold Robbins, love some by Jackie Collins (in particular ‘Chances’), and skip-read much of Lace.  I don’t have any preference for books that are of a certain length; that’s never a consideration when I choose reading matter.

If you were forced at gunpoint to write in another genre:
a) What genre would you choose?
b) Would you find it easy?
I’d write historical fiction, which I plan to do at some point in the future anyway, as I’ve rehashed (in my head!) an idea I had over 10 years ago but knew I wasn’t up to writing, then.  I now feel ready to do it, and I hope to make a start on it after I’ve written the sequel to Kings and Queens, which will, I think, be called Last Child, and will, cross fingers and touch wood, be ready by about March/April next year.  Um, I haven’t started it yet!  

You are known as a relentless marketeer who works incredibly hard to promote your work. Many writers find the fifty hours a week on Twitter and FB an unbearable grind with limited reward. Are there any short cuts to marketing success?
a) Am I really?  b) If anyone is spending fifty hours a week on Facebook and Twitter I’d suggest a cold shower and a walk in the park, and c) It’s all about whether or not what you do is effective, and identifying what is and what isn’t.  

Some people manage to sell without much marketing, and good luck to them.  Some people do loads of marketing with no success.  Some do an average amount of the first with an average amount of the second.  I’m in the third group so am perhaps not the person from whom you might obtain a satisfactory answer to this question.  It also depends on your definition of success.  Someone who sells 10 books and gets two new reviews a month might consider me very successful. 

"However, the authors who rake in enormous royalities from  books entitled ‘Pink Sparkly High Heeled Christmas Bake-Off at the Feel-Good Cupcake Café”, “Madcap Secretary in Jimmy Choos Meets Handsome Rich Bloke Who Thinks She’s A Bit Of An Idiot At First But Admits His Love For Her In The Penultimate Chapter”,  and “Virgin Housewife Discovers Previously Unsuspected Fetish For Lesbian S&M” probably regard me with pity".  

Hahahahahahahah...love it...oh well, its always been the same. Anyway, what job would you do if publishing opportunities ceased to exist and everyone stopped reading?
I’d like to be a female Jack Bauer, but without the torture in the Chinese prison.  I’d probably have to sort me knees out, first, though.  And organise some portable hair straighteners.

How old are you?
Come on, you’re possessed of magic powers, you should be able to tell me!  If I drink some of the soup in your cauldron, will it make me regain my youth, whilst still retaining the wisdom of my years?

I think the ladies behind me are waiting for your services...

Ah! This batch is custom made...I'll make some more later...

Hey… I’m feeling different…. d’you know, I think my arthritis has gone… and my saggy jowls… quick, pass me a mirror!
It’s worked!  I’m 18 again!

Haha, love it when a plan comes together! So, what:

a) TV series have you been watching recently?
Just watched the last series of ‘Vikings’.  Top stuff!  Currently into Game of Thrones and 24, as should any right thinking person be.  I’ve also re-watched Trailer Park Boys, always a goodie!

b) Music have you been listening to?
Very little.  Odd bits of Miles Davis, Billie Holliday and Nat King Cole that husband puts on.  I’m usually writing, and I have to write in silence.

c) Books have you been reading? 
Little time for this, lately, too, alas!  After I’ve finished The Night Porter by this bloke called Mark Barry (which is terrific), next on my list is a novella called Mantequero 2, by Jenny Twist, because I read the prequel, a short story, which was extremely good, then A Single Step, by Georgia Rose.

Good choice. I've just started talking to Georgia and this is on my TBR list. Switching media, are you going to Download to see the ‘smith? 
Nah.  I’ve seen Aerosmith about ten times in my life already, and I’ve kinda done travelling miles and miles to sit on the grass and get pissed while watching some tiny little matchstick men miles away on a stage.  

Who is your favourite character on Breaking Bad and why?
Walt, of course.  Why?  I’ve just got this thing about Bryan Cranston.  That hat, that hat…

The current female Jack Bauer - Renee Walker 

Breaking Bad or 24?
A hard one, but I have to go for 24.  They are, in my opinion, the best two TV series ever made, but 24 just gets the top spot.







I've never seen 24, but I agree with you on BB. And finally, what do fans of Terry Tyler have to look forward to in the coming year?
I am currently writing a novella called Round and Round, which I hope to release some time in July.  It’s about a third of the length of one of my usual novels, and is on the ‘Sliding Doors’ theme; my character Sophie is at a difficult time in her life, and looks back 15 years to a time when she had a big decision to make.  She had four choices; four men, four different lifestyles, and she can’t help wondering what if….  Talking of other genres, this actually has a paranormal edge to it, which is new territory for me.  I’m not that confident about it, actually.  The paranormal bit, I mean.  Angels, and that.

Terry, once again, its been an absolute pleasure to see you around the Cauldron and I know that Wizardwatchers reading this will wish you all the best with this epic novel.

Many thanks, Wiz, for inviting me to your Cauldron once again.  

Could you go a bit easier on the eye of newt next time, though?  That soup was a bit… chewy…

Contact - see original interview for Terry's Social Media

Buy Kings and Queens Here

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Kings-Queens-Terry-Tyler-ebook/dp/B00JX5ZU30/ref=la_B00693EGKM_1_8?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1398424104&sr=1-8


http://www.amazon.com/Kings-Queens-Terry-Tyler-ebook/dp/B00JX5ZU30/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1398406340&sr=1-1&keywords=kings+and+queens+terry+tyler

Rejuvenation Potion For Sale (but not the Cauldron - one went on
Bargain Hunt for £300!)

Ann Of A Thousand Days

Cast of brilliant moral twisting crime drama, Breaking Bad, celebrate their EMMY.
Also won a BAFTA on
Monday night. 

A Trip Down The Timeline - Mary Ann Bernal...around the Cauldron!

Throw around the concept of a consummate professional too often and everything about the phrase begins to lose its lustre, but in this case, I offer no apologies: believe me, Mary Ann Bernal IS the consummate professional. 

As my editor at Green Wizard, I have watched her work for the past year and a half and she is relentless. Any author, Indie or Trad, who wishes to make it pay in this most frenetic of capers, would do well to follow Mary Ann's lead.

For five years, she has slugged it out working seven days a week, twelve hours at a stretch. Even illness fails to stop her - as they said about Keith Richards, people like Mary Ann cannot be killed by conventional weapons. 

Author, marketeer, editor, pimp, tweeter, all-round advisor, font-of-indie knowledge and now would-be player in the Hollywood Indie leagues, Mary Ann is a role model for us all. 

I caught up with her on the Wizphone, as she hunkered down to avoid the shock and awe of the Polar Vortex currently afflicting America, to talk about the latest instalment in her acclaimed The Briton and The Dane franchise, Timeline.  

A regular guest and commentator on The Wizard's Cauldron, you can find her previous interview here.

http://greenwizard62.blogspot.co.uk/2012/08/an-interview-with-mary-ann-bernal.html

Remind the Wizardwatchers who you are, Mary Ann, and what you do.

Hi Wizzy, as regular readers of the Cauldron will know, I am a historical fiction author, and writer of The Briton and The Dane series of historical novels. I specialise in Anglo-Saxon history, particularly the time of Alfred The Great. I m from New York and am currently living in the wilds of Omaha, Nebraska.

How have Nebraskans coped with the crazy weather this year?

Omaha has been pretty lucky this winter with snow fall totals, or lack thereof.  However, we’ve had a brutal spell with the Polar Vortex earlier this month, and as we speak on the Wizphone, Omaha is having a heat wave, 55 degrees and climbing.  As most people, we take these things in stride, not allowing the weather to interfere with getting to work and social activities.  Thankfully, the sporting events through February are all inside - just have to love basketball for that very reason.

Tell us about your latest work.

My latest book is The Briton and the Dane: Timeline. While it continues the franchise, it is a definite diversion and adds something new to the piece. There is much more of a focus on romance here and I've added an element of time travel too, which is something new. Here's what it says on the back cover!

Dr. Gwyneth Franger is a renowned expert in early medieval England who is set upon learning the truth about the death of Lord Erik, the last descendant of the powerful House of Wareham.  Her quest becomes an obsession, a condition that began with the discovery of a portrait of the tall and valiant warrior with which she forms an extraordinary and inexplicable bond. 

Digesting troves of mildewed scrolls and source documentation only enhances her belief that Lord Erik was brutally assassinated by a cabal of traitors in the pay of William the Bastard, shortly before the onslaught of the Norman Invasion.

On an archeological dig in Southern England, her team unearths an Anglo-Saxon fortress, a vast citadel built during the reign of Alfred the Great, which she believes was Lord Erik’s stronghold.  In the midst of her excitement, she is awakened one night from her slumbers by a disconcerting anomaly emerging from the site.

Dr. Franger finds herself transported back to the Dark Ages and at the side of the noble Lord Erik who commands an army of elite Saxon warriors, a swift and mobile force able to deploy quickly throughout the kingdom to ward off invaders.

Witnessing the unrest firsthand, Gwyneth senses that her instincts had been right all along, and she is determined to learn the identities of the treacherous blackguards hiding in the shadows, villains who may well be posing as Lord Erik’s friends and counselors.
Will Gwyneth stop the assassins?  Is she strong enough to walk away and watch her beloved Erik die?  Or will she intervene, change the course of history and wipe out an entire timeline to save the man she loves with all her heart?

How is it related to your long running The Briton and The Dane series? 

While Gwyneth and Erik are the main characters in this novel, they are not the same Gwyneth and Erik referenced in the trilogy.  This novel begins in 2066, but most of the story takes place in 1062-1066, prior to the Norman invasion.  The other novels take place during the reign of Alfred the Great in the ninth century.

Why did you decide on Timeline?

When I first started writing The Briton and the Dane, the storyline was about Gwyneth and Erik’s relationship, and the problems they faced in a land ravaged by war and conquest.  However, as the story evolved, the ancillary characters started demanding more representation, wishing to have to have additional “screen time.”  

To me, Gwyneth and Erik shared the stage with too many players, and I do believe they felt cheated.  I was toying with the idea of a standalone novel dedicated to Gwyneth and Erik, but what if fate had kept them apart, centuries apart?

How would a 21st century Gwyneth fare in 11th century England?

Science Fiction and Anglo-Saxon England, two of my favorite topics in one novel.  It doesn't get better than this

Classic sci-fi meets medieval comic, The Mighty Thor

When is it released?

Am awaiting the proof copy as we speak.  If everything goes according to plan, the book launch will be within a fortnight - just love that word.

You are known as extremely professional. Phil Naessens, on a recent radio interview with you, said: “Mary Ann Bernal is one of the few authors that I would bring on my daily show no matter what the subject”.  Have you had training? 

Click Here For Mary Ann's Excellent Radio Interview with Phil Naessens

Phil Naessens is an excellent host, and his questions are interesting and different.   My latest interview on The Writers Showcase is my third appearance, and I do look forward to speaking again with Phil later this year.

How to speak on the radio

The only training I had was a public speaking course in college, too many years ago to count.  However, I have over twenty years experience as a Lector (Roman Catholic ministry for lay people).  Additionally, I have given presentations to various groups on the publishing business, especially in the digital age, which has added to my skill set.

Do you think authors should spend less time writing and spend more time doing marketing training? 

Writers need to research every aspect of their craft.  Once a book is published, an author cannot sit back on his laurels and expect the reading public to know of his/her work without name awareness.  And how is that done, you ask?  

In my opinion, the most important site for an inspiring author is his/her webpage.  If you type my name on Bing - yes, Bing - ok, for the rest of you, Google - my official website if the first item that appears in the search results.  My page has links to the various social media sites such as facebook, twitter, Google plus, pinterest, etc.  However, it is difficult to interact proficiently with the overabundance of available sites, so I would recommend selecting the sites that work best for you.  Another thing to remember is that what works this year may not work next year, and there’s always a new kid on the block, which means, be selective.   

Once you’ve created your profiles, which is quite time consuming, you can maintain the sites on a schedule.  You should be able to split you time between marketing and writing.  Remember, even if your manuscript has been picked up by an established publishing house, the author is still expected to do a hefty chunk of marketing.  These houses expect to see your followers purchasing your novels - and yes, they do want to see numbers, even though it has yet to be proven that 10K twitter followers will buy your books.

Now that you’ve set up your system, you can get back to what you love doing - writing.  Of course, you could always hire someone to do the marketing aspect of the business while you are locked away in your office, or wherever you write, away from the distractions.

Unfortunately, writing time needs to be shared with marketing efforts, until you make it in the business.  Then, you’ll have people!

Crazed fan - at least she buys books!!

If a crazed Indie author forced you at gunpoint (or hammerpoint!) to offer ONE proven strategy to get her novel out there, what would you say?

Consider the Amazon Kindle Select Program.  I have had excellent results with the exclusive listing for ebooks.  Print editions are available at all line book sellers.

You also write short stories. Where can readers find some of your other work?

There is a tab on my webpage entitled short stories, which lists the title of the work and where you can purchase the anthology where the story is included.

www.maryannbernal.com

In addition to the titles listed, seven more stories have been accepted for publication and should be available later this year.

Available on Amazon:   

Deadly Secrets featured in the Independent Author Index Short Story Compilation, volume 3

Out of the Depths featured in Green Wizard Publishing’s Reality Bites

The Ritual featured in the Independent Author Index Short Story Compilation, volume 2

Murder in the First featured in the Independent Author Index Short Story Compilation, volume 1

The Hourglass featured in Time, a Literary Underground Anthology

Forever Lost featured in Unearthed, a Literary Underground Anthology

I’m a big fan of the book Concordia. Are there any plans for a sequel?

Unfortunately, I haven’t any plans for a sequel in the foreseeable future.

Boo...that is a GREAT book... 

Sorry, Wiz.

Nice review of the underrrated Concordia - an excellent read


Never mind. What films, TV, books and CDs have you enjoyed since the last time you were around the Cauldron

 Star Trek Into Darkness

Vikings (on the History Channel)

Alba:  The Gaelic Kingdom of Scotland AD 800-1124” by Stephen Driscoll

Verdi - Requiem Dies Irae

And finally, what do fans of Mary Ann Bernal have to look forward to in 2014?

My next project is very exciting.  I have been working with Colin K. Stewart, who is an award winning film and theater director,  award winning film producer and screenwriter.  He has recently completed the screenplay for The Briton and the Dane, keeping the novel storyline intact during the process.  The screenplay has also been accepted for consideration in the screenplay competition category at the upcoming Beverly Hills Film Festival (April), the Las Vegas Film Festival (July), and the Hollywood Film Festival (October).

"We are looking for producers / investors for this project.  If there are interested parties in the audience, please visit my webpage - maryannbernal.com for contact information". 

Mary Ann, once again, it's been a great pleasure to have you on the show and I wish you the best of luck with Timeline and your march on Hollywood

Thanks for having me, great Wizard.  Look for me on the red carpet - will be waving!

Film links:

http://maryannbernal18.wix.com/britonanddanefilm

http://www.imdb.com/name/nm5991790/?ref_=fn_al_nm_1

Webpage and purchase info:

www.maryannbernal.com



________________________________________________________________________________

Stop Press:

Mary Ann entered the Author Database Cover Competition recently and while she struggled against the might of young people's colossal and widespread social networks in the voting stages, when it reached the judges, the cover of The Complete Trilogy, designed by Steven Novak, won a Bronze Medal.

Well done, MAB

An Interview with Val-Rae Christensen

A relaxed Val-Rae Christensen

Val-Rae Christensen is a writer's writer. 

That is, a writer liked and respected by other writers. Undiscovered she may be, but the right people have been whispering her name in all the right circles. Some shrewd judges have said on more than one occasion that Val-Rae could be a name to watch. 

Last year, Val-Rae wrote the highly regarded piece of work, Of Moths and Butterflies  and even I, over in the cold, misty, foggy, bereft, socially challenged and economically destroyed UK, began to hear how good this book was. Nip onto Amazon and have a read of the first chapter. Proper writing.  

Serious Indielit isn't very fashionable - unless you write erotica, romance or vampire fiction, you aren't going to be invited to too many fashionable Indie parties - but that's changing. It will change - and I'll lay good odds that Val-Rae will be leading the charge. 

In order to get her thoughts, I picked up the Wizphone  and interrupted Val-Rae  in her writer's garret somewhere deep in leafy, arborial, rural Virginia.  Here's what she had to say about matters Val-Rae, writing, and her many, many influences...

Tell us about yourself, Val? Whereabouts in the US are you from.

I'm from a small town in western Washington state. I grew up on the coast, spent a few years in the Seattle area, went away for college and then moved to the South. I'm presently in Virginia, and hope to remain here for some time. I've always wanted to live in the UK, and whenever I have the time and money (sometimes hard to have those two things at once) I travel to England and do research and just absorb the culture and atmosphere. I hope (and think it does) seep into the books I write.

A snapshot of

British culture to infil future 

novels - from Plan B, London's new Dickens, 

only with music (of sorts).

Describe your publishing history? What genre do you work in?
I write Historical Fiction, sometimes with some Steampunk and paranormal thrown in for fun. 

But I love history, and I am constantly fascinated by the lessons that can be learned from studying the people of past eras. 

To be honest, I didn't shop Moths around too much before I decided to go independent with it. 

I did have a publisher in the UK, but their verbal agreements were tentative, and after a year or two of waiting, I just decided to see what I could make of it. 

My soon to be released novel Cry of the Peacock, actually has been seriously considered by several agents and publishers, but it was my first book and still needed a lot of work at that time. With the success of Moths, I'm fairly confident Peacock will do well. It will certainly appeal to Downton Abbey fans.

Downton Abbey Cast 

on Chat Show

But though I'll publish it independently, I am planning on looking for representation to give it the publicity it deserves.

Were you heartened by the critical reaction to "Of Moths and Butterflies"? 

I really worried about Moths, as it's written for a specific audience, namely women who've experienced some kind of emotional/physical/sexual trauma in their lives. 

It's fairly evident from the reviews which readers got it and which did not. For the most part, I'm very happy. It's done far better than I had expected. And with the growing popularity in Historical Fiction, it's never been a better time for me to have my works out there and available to readers. 

 I've heard so many people say it's a beautiful work. I wish you luck with it's promotion - more people need to read quality books. That way Indie becomes respected.

I agree with you Wiz.

Val-Rae features prominently in the Independent 

Paperback Gift Shop Catalogue - see top left for a free download.

What's your latest project?
I'm just finishing up the last edits on Cry of the Peacock. It's another Historical Fiction work that explores pride and greed, money and inheritance, family secrets and scandals. It isn't as dark as Moths was, and I think it will appeal to a wider audience.

Peacocks:Much lighter and 

frothier than Moths

What are the primary influences on your writing? History? People? Environment?

Mostly it's literature. Dickens, George Eliot, George Meredith, Thomas Hardy. 

"It's the books and the authors who wrote them who had something to say about life and the times in which they lived, and who effected change, or at least provoked their readers to think. I try not to be too moralistic, but I think there are some valuable lessons that can be learned by comparing history. In many ways our lives are much better. In many ways they are not. What drives us as people, now and then, remains remarkably similar. Our struggles, our sorrows and joys, are very much the same, and I find that really intriguing."

Is there a market for serious fiction in Indielit? Or are we condemned to be strictly amateurs in a shallow marketplace?

I think it's changing. I think there yet remains a bit of a stigma, but nothing like there was five years ago. 

Even a year ago, really. Indie books are being turned into movies, they're being snatched up by publishers and agents. 

The dust hasn't settled, as far as the publishing revolution goes. What will the future look like, I dare not hazard a guess. 

But I think the indie movement is here to stay, in one form or another. I think eventually there will be ways to sort the wheat from the chaff, and it will likely be through sales venues like Amazon, and through the readers who review these books. 

I've read some really amazing stuff that's been published independently. And I've read some stuff that has no business being published. 

But those books don't become bestsellers, they don't rise to the top, and they don't make money. 

I think Fifty Shades, Ryan Winfield's book and quite a bit of vampire fiction prove us wrong there, Val-Rae. It sometimes seems as if the more OMG's and irrelevant interconnectives there are in a paragraph, the more money you make. 

I hope you are wrong Wiz. Eventually even the most naive writer has to learn to write and how to tell a story. Validation doesn't come from the publisher or the agent who tells us we're worthy. It comes from the readers themselves, and that's how it should be.

That's really admirable, Val-Rae. I am impressed.

Thank you Wiz.

Okay - from the sublime to the ridiculous:  You become lost on a field trip in the dinosaur fields of South Dakota. You fall into a cave and you are trapped. However, you have running water and a supply of fish and fruit. You are convinced that help will come but it could be some time. Prepared for the worst, you have taken three books, two CDs and a DVD. What are they?

Daniel Deronda by George Eliot

Daniel Deronda - George Eliot's 1876 elegant bodice ripper.

Our Mutual Friend by Charles Dickens 

Using up the last remaining starch and whalebone
corsets - the cast of BBC's "Our Mutual Friend", a lesser
known Dickens.

Wives and Daughters by Elizabeth Gaskell

Classic dramatic montage

Hot Fuss by The Killers 

New Order - Substance 

True Faith by New Order. I've got mates who saw these

when they were Joy Division.

and for the DVD.

BBC's 1995 adaptation of Pride and Prejudice 

Swoonmeister General, Colin Firth

A High Quality survival collection if I ever saw one, Val-Rae.

That's very kind of you to say so, Wiz. 

What do you do to relax away from work and from writing?

Read, mostly. I like to hang out with my kids, spend time with my animals (seven cats and two dogs), watch a good movie, listen to music.

Seven cats?

Yes, seven cats. Like the dwarves, only with four legs and whiskers.

Classic seventies horror film 

"The Uncanny" - three sinister, creepy 

stories about CATS!

Hi Ho. It's off to eat we go! Okay, for fans of Val-Rae Christensen, what does 2013 hold.
Cry of the Peacock should be released in April. At least that is presently the plan. I'm toying with the idea of doing a pre-release abridged eBook in February, but I'm not sure yet. I will be buying a house, becoming a landlord (not sure how I really feel about that, yet) and doing a good bit of traveling.

Val-Rae, it really has been a pleasure to talk to you this evening and I wish you every success in the future.

Thank you Wiz - its been a fun interview!

Contact Val-Rae HERE!!

http://vrchristensen.com/