Thursday, October 30, 2008

Interview with Author of Three Moon Station

Although author Toni V. Sweeney originally had a very large family (her great-great-great-grandfather had 36 children), recently it has been decimated to just herself, her son and grandchildren, and one cousin living in the Great White North. They are Alsatian in origin, Middle Georgian by region. Anyone wanting to know more about her family should read her short story "Second Interview with a Vampire." It sums us up pretty well.

Toni Sweeney's website: www.tonivsweeney.com
myspace site: www.myspace.com/tvsweeney

She can also be found on Facebook and book trailers of some of her books on YouTube.

Book Hookup sat down with Toni recently who wrote Three Moon Station under the pseudonym Icy Snow Blackstone and this is what she had to say:

When did you consider yourself a writer? You know what I mean? The time when you realized that you crossed the line from 'want to be a writer' to 'I am a writer'.

It was in the last century, around '88, if my memory is correct. Due to circumstances which I will pass over because my friends have heard the story so much, it's become tiresome, I was an impoverished single mother working as an insurance clerk in a Midwest clinic. (How poor were you?) I was so poor, I began writing books because I couldn't afford to buy any. Almost everyone at work was a reader, sneaking short "reads" during breaks, etc, so I took the manuscripts to work and shared them with my co-workers. One dared me to submit one to a publisher, and I did. The rest is history...sort of.

Do you feel you have more than one voice in your writing?

I guess I must because some of the things I write about I don't personally believe in, but I put it in because of character development or plot continuity or some other facet. The again, a good portion of my writing is just li'l ol' moi. IT would be interesting to have someone who knows me read one of my books and see if they can pick out which is which.

What kept you writing while getting rejection letters or struggling with writer's block?

Plain old stubbornness! And I'm gonna show them attitude. Of course, I rather doubt those editors I targeted will ever know that a story or book they rejected got published somewhere else--unless I become a front-page, best-selling author, that is--but I get a vicarious thrill out of seeing an acceptance and thinking, "There! What do you think of that?"

As for writer's block...I've only suffered from that twice, and both times, it came after the particularly violent death of someone I knew. One was someone very dear to me,

the other was a co-worker. The first time, my writer's block ran for two years; I'm just coming out of the second one now, after 5 months. Something like

that makes you think, what's the use...it can be gone in a second...and the ol' brain just refuses to indulge itself. Then, someone or something provides that little spark and the seed of a story plants itself and--whether you want it to or not--begins to grow...

Do you use certain tricks that help prevent you from straying from your goal?

I'm exceptionally singleminded--unless I see that what I'm doing is definitely a lost cause, as in the case of a recent manuscript. Two people read it for me, pointed out that I was extremely wrong in several places, and made me realize that I didn't know enough to write the book, so I scrapped it. Perhaps some time I'll do more research and pick it up again but for now, I'm setting it aside. Ordinarily, though, I just plunk m'self in front of the computer, keep a supply of drinkables nearby and start typing!

How did you come to set this goal?

I've always been one to finish what I start (except in certain cases, see above.) That's always been one of my strong points, whether I'm writing a book, doing a project at work, or helping out at a club function. Ol' Dependable, that's me!

Tell me about any workshops you offer?

I'm sorry to admit that I don't do workshops. I don't feel that's I'm worthy--or capable--of telling others how to do anything. I'm on a 3rd grad level in math and my son is a math teacher and is always asking me (since I'm so mathematically illiterate) to give him suggestions on how to help his students who have trouble. I told him if I knew that, I wouldn't be mathematically illiterate, would I? IT would be a case of the blind leading the blind!

What inspired you to write Three Moon Station?

Three Moon Station was written in the early 1990's. I had seen a made-for-TV movie called Murder by Moonlight in which a murderer hides out on the moon while the police are searching Earth for him. That got me to thinking...what if someone witnessed a murder and no place on Earth was safe? How about going to another planet? What if the hit men followed her? The first two chapters were the most difficult to write, however. I just couldn't seem to get them right...I rewrote them probably seven times, then threw all but one away, even though it wasn't the most satisfactory. In fact, in a fit of what I can only describe as--total madness--I actually destroyed the rest of the manuscript! Just tossed it into the trash. Last year, someone I hadn't heard from in 15 years, e-mailed me to tell me he had found a copy of Three Moon Station in his computer files, that I'd given him and wanted to know if I'd like it back? He e-mailed it to me. Except for the first two chapters, it was all there. I transcribed it, added the two chapters I still had, and submitted it to The Wild Rose Press, where it was accepted. We didn't part under exactly friendly circumstances and he could've just deleted it from his files, but didn't. Thanks for that, Brian!

I also have a Black Rose novelette ("Demon in Blue Jeans") with The Wild Rose Press, which was released October 29th. The source for this story was a Country/Western song that I'd heard back in the '80 while I was working as a Physician's Assistant. I think it was called "Somebody's Knockin'" and is about a woman who thinks the Devil—with blue eyes and blue jeans--is knocking at her door. The story has been in my head for 20 years but I only decided to break down and write it last year.

How long will we wait for the next book?

Sinbad's Wife, the sequel to Sinbad's Last Voyage, should be out in November. I'd always like the movie The 7th Voyage of Sinbad and decided to do my own take on the story. My Sinbad is a smuggler, half-human, half-feline--and sexy as all get-out! In the first book, he meets Andi Talltrees, an adopted Navajo, and they spend most of the novel fighting with each other and with various aliens before admitting they are madly in love. Sinbad's Wife puts a twist on the reluctant bridegroom theme with Andi being the one who refuses to marry Sin and tells how he "tricks" her into it and the repercussions of her marrying a man wanted on 5 planets by the United Terran Federation.

How do you develop your plots and characters? Do you use any set formula?

I probably do it all wrong. Either they just pop into my head or I'll see something--like that movie--and elaborate on a specific section of it.

How do you come up with ideas for your writings and why do you feel you choose some over others?

I write what I like to read, that's it plain and simple. Sometimes I have to change things as I go along but generally what I start with is what I end up with. There have been two exceptions to that rule--the heroes of Bloodseek and Blood Sin. In Bloodseek (published by Double Dragon Publications), the hero started out as a Boba Fett-like county hunter; he ended up a knight on a quest of vengeance. The main character in Blood Sin was originally a Mr. Spock-type character, with such a tight rein on his emotions, he was almost an android; he evolved into a hard-drinking, womanizing, Terran-hating alien. About the only thing he kept was his name and home planet!

How much time do you devote to marketing your book and what kind of marketing do you recommend?

Now that I'm out of a "day job," when I'm not sending out resumes and applications, I'm online at blogsites, entering contests, submitting manuscripts, and completing interviews like this one. I spend a great deal of "free" time doing that—early in the morning, late at night. I pass out my business card whenever I can, and a local comics store puts flyers in their sales bags--advertising my latest book--for me. I also take out ads in some of the Publishers magazines.

What are your current projects?

At the moment, I have contracts for three novels with Lyrical Press (one of which--Earthman's Bride--just won first in the 2008 Maryland Romance Writers contest Reveal Your Inner Vixen in the alternate paranormal division) and a conditional contract for Blood Sin with Leucrota Press, and am waiting for edits on those novels. Other than that, I'm editing the first book (Shadow Lord) in my vampire series, The Second Species.

Where do you hope to take your writing in the future?

Wherever it wants to go! It would be nice if I could snag a feature spot on the Science Fiction Book Club, or have one of my books made into a TV movie for the Sci-Fi channel, or--Hey! Have Shadow Lord optioned by Universal--that may all be a daydream, but stranger things have happened, haven't they?

What dreams have been realized as a result of your writing? Any special memories that you would like to share...please, oh, please?

Getting something published at all! When you consider the percentage of accepted manuscripts versus rejections...the odds are almost astronomical. Special memories? As the song says...I have a few... Seeing my very first book sitting on a bookshelf...having my son, who has refused steadfastly to read my stories,download two from Amazon Shorts...having an editor who has published several of my short stories in one of his magazines write me this line in his acceptance e-mail: What I ought to do is hire you to teach some of these (would-be writers) how to write a vampire romance. That really puffed up my ego, Big Time! ...and...as the song goes on...I did it my way!

How do your friends and family feel about your writing venture in general?

As far as I can tell, they're pretending it isn't happening. I have never had one communication from my family concerning my writing. I don't know, perhaps I'm an embarrassment to them, because I didn't just become a good little homemaker and have a bunch of kids and when the kids were grown, get a part time job to keep me busy. Hey, folks, it wasn't my fault! I tried the "Leave it to Beaver" lifestyle but it rejected me, not the other way around! With the exception of my son's endorsement, and one aunt who religiously buys my book though I believe she has yet to read one, that's it. (You're aware that a prophet is without honor in his own country, aren't you?) Thank you, everyone who isn't related to me and has bought something I've written! (And you know who you are!)

What do you do to unwind and relax?

Believe it or not, I read! And watch TV, although I generally fall asleep before the denouement! I have watched so many shows and never seen the ending and found out who done it! I'm grateful for On Demand which shows reruns of a lot of the series I watch. Now if I could only stay awake while watching that...

If you had to do it over again, would you do anything differently?

I sure would--if I could have the foreknowledge of what happened before. Doing it over again implies that you know how it happened last time, otherwise you're doomed to repeat the same mistake again and again. Oh yes, there are several points in my life where I'd very much do it differently, you better believe it!

What advice would you give to writers just starting out?

1. Be determined.

2. Develop a thick skin.

3. Be patient.

Doing # 2 will help you with #1, and vice versa; doing #3 ( combined with # 1 and 2) may just make you a successful author...someday!

Tuesday, October 28, 2008

Life Interrupted-It's not all about me


Life Interrupted-It's not all about me
148 pages - $11.99 (paperback)
eBook - $7.99 (download)
ISBN-10: 1606045633
ISBN-13: 9781606045633

Order Information Page

Diagnosed with multiple sclerosis at a young age, author M. Tatevosian's Life Interrupted: It's Not All About Me describes how self-destructive and negative behaviors destroyed his marriage and left him with a poor-me attitude. In writing this deeply personal account, Tatevosian says in his introduction, "My hope is that you draw from (my experiences), identify similarities and avoid making the same relationship destroying mistakes (I did)."

In his candid and humble self-help memoir, Chris Tatevosian shares with readers, his diagnosis of multiple sclerosis and how his poor me attitude cost him his marriage. Chris hopes that others might learn from his relationship destroying mistakes to communicate more effectively and avoid allowing disability and feelings of decreasing self-worth to destroy one’s relationship. The book has been featured in the MetroWest newspaper (Framingham MA) and other smaller, local papers as well as web sites of numerous MS organizations such as,MSworld.org, MSfocus and the MS foundation web sites. Chris, a member at First Congregational Church of Hopkinton (FCCH) has suffered from the devastating effects of multiple sclerosis for more than twenty-eight years. Back in 2005, Chris facilitated a class at FCCH similarly called “Life Interrupted “, which like his book helps individuals deal with the stress put on a relationship as a result of a family member having a chronic illness or disability requiring another family member to function as the caregiver.

Chris is also the co-host of a blogtalk radio program called "Winning life through pain" with reflex sympathetic dystrophy (RSD) coach Marla at 2 PM Eastern standard time on Tuesdays. The show is a call-in show for anyonesuffering from chronic illness.


Sunday, October 26, 2008

Beyond the Fifth Gate - Review


Those of you who own my creative writing book Pumping Your Muse may remember the flip side exercise that generated a new female character. That character grew to become the protagonist in my novel Beyond the Fifth Gate. Look what the latest review says about her:

Beyond the Fifth Gate has a strong female main character who reminded me of Xena without the long hair or possibly Seven-of-Nine without the spandex. Elita starts off a little weak in her fighting skills (but realistically, how hard would it be to practice when you live in a hive and are guarded day and night by big bugs?) but her first mystical gate provides two teachers who not only give her a crash course, but join her on her quest to freedom. There are plenty of plot twists along the way and the ending is a real shocker which truly caught me off guard just when I thought I had it all figured out.


You can read the entire review at Queen of Convolution.

Review written by:
Caprice Hokstad
Author of the fantasy novel, The Duke's Handmaid, and its sequel, Nor Iron Bars a Cage.

Saturday, October 18, 2008

The Devil Can Wait Review

Title: The Devil Can Wait
Author: Marta Stephens
ISBN 978-1-905202-86-7
Publisher: BeWrite Books

A flu outbreak leaves Detective Sam Harper short handed and over extended as he searches for a serial killer. The Devil Can Wait by Marta Stephens grabs you from the first chapter when a man and his dog discover the body of a young man washed up from the bay, the third victim of a serial killer and not a single clue. The local press and a pesky female reporter from the Chandler Times complicates his life further when she withholds evidence to get a story.

Stephens feeds threads of evidence throughout a multi-dimensional and intricate plot that spans two continents and leads to conclusions that increase the urgency to find a suspect before another young boy is murdered. This fast-paced thriller masterfully weaves mystery into the lives of believable characters and a well-crafted setting. Can the murder of a woman in a small Columbian pueblo, and the theft of her black pearl ring be related to the murder of the boys found in Chandler Bay? Or could the simpleton working in Dominick Ray's Garage actuality be the serial killer? The author creates solid leads raising suspicions that weave a web connecting to three possible suspects and then raises a new question. The death of each victim is different. Could this mean four different killers?

The Devil Can Wait interlaces a complex plot that grabs the reader and doesn't let go. This book will appeal to readers with varied interests as it has everything: tension, conflict, murder, mystery, romance and the ability to keep the reader turning the page as Sam Harper is thrust into a world that leads to a cursed papal ring tied to biblical prophecies in the book of Daniel. Sam's not a religious man, but it raises the question of whether a series of unrelated murders are the result of a sick mind or are they actually connected to the beasts in Daniel chapter 7? Harper's investigation leads him on an unpredictable trail making him more of a believer with each turn. This one is a must read.

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Reviewed by author and full-time freelance writer, Donna Sundblad, who resides in Georgia with her husband, Rick. Among her published works you'll find Pumping Your Muse a creative book for writers, Windwalker and Beyond the Fifth Gate, two young adult Fantasy novels, and various inspirational short stories and articles. Check her website for more information at www.theinkslinger.net.

Thursday, October 16, 2008

The Daemonhold Curse - Review

The Daemonhold Curse
by author Teel James Glenn

Fantasy/ Sword and Sorcery/ Mystery
Published by ePress-Online
Isbn#: 978-1-934258-07-1


TCM review by Eugen M. Bacon

“(Arinna) slapped him hard enough on his right cheek to stagger him. ‘Next time, Master Daemon, should you lay hands upon my person,’ her voice like a glacier, ‘I will close my fist before I reply to the insult.’”

Dame Arinna sparks bold, disarming in chamber as she is in combat. When night fills with sound, a curse settles upon the land. Come face to face with mortality, Lady Fidelity Daemon must employ the priestly expertise of warrior protectors. Fine pace, engaging dialogue and insightful writing, not to mention excerpts as if fresh from Fight School, all rally to affirm Teel James Glenn’s convincing and unsullied charm; his ability to write something sombre with levity without shrugging off its weight.

The Daemonhold Curse opens new insight to a medieval world fenced in tradition. The mantra and ceremony of the religion of Kova parallel in notice finely sequenced fight scenes across the novel. The inspired story does not fail to whet my appetite for more Teel James Glenn, including Gift of the Mage Eye: A Story of Altiva. The Daemonhold Curse is a refreshing read as seldom isn’t for a capable, convinced author who does not shudder to employ wit.

More About the Book

Five years ago the Kova Warrior Priest Lord Erique Shoutte: failed to save the elder Daemon sister, Lady Caution. The curse of a long ago accused sorceress states that each female member of the line will die, drained of blood, before the morning of their 21th birthday. No female Daemon has survived that morning in three hundred years.

Now the younger sister, Fidelity seeks Lord Shoutte out to protect her as her 21th birthday approaches.

“Why me?” Lord Shoutte asks. “I failed!”

“Because then you didn’t believe,” she replies. Now you do!”

Lord Shoutte and his long time friend the fierce swordswoman Dame Arinna Cabal undertake to save Fidelity, despite the attacks of religious radicals and thugs. But can they solve the mystery and save the new Lady Daemon or will they fall victim to The Daemonhold Curse themselves?


About the Author

Teel James Glenn is a native of Brooklyn though he has traveled the world for thirty years as a Stuntman/Coordinator/Swordmaster, Jouster, Book Illustrator, Storyteller, Bodyguard and Actor.

His books in the Altiva fantasy series are: Tales of a Warrior Priest, Death at Dragonthroat, The Daemonhold Curse, and Sister Warrior all from ePress-Online as are Knight Errant :Death and Life at the Faire , Them’s Fightin Words :A Writers Guide to Writing Fight Scenes and the forthcoming: The Vision Quest Factor and A Hex of Shadows.

The Exceptionals: #1 Measure of a Man and #2 Across the Wasteland are out from Whiskey Creek Press with #3 due next year.

He has stories published in AfterburnSF, Blazing Adventures, AnotherRealm, Event Horizon, Fantasy Tales, Mad, Black Belt, Alternative Cinema, Classic Pulp Fiction Stories, Weird Stories, Double Danger Tales, Startling Science Stories, Shots Writer’s Village and others.



Wednesday, October 15, 2008

The Exceptionals #1: Measure of a Man

Author: Teel James Glenn & Jerry Kokich
Genre: Science Fiction/Adventure
Sub Genres: superhero//thriller
ISBN (E) 978-1-60313-244--2
ISBN (P) 978-1-60313-243-5

It was not a world anyone wanted to live in except the terrorists. Their desperation to make the rest of the world conforms to their view of the universe as far back at the 1980s had changed the world. It was a slow change at first, and then like a dam that burst, the violence and irrationality of their vision was imposed on the rest of the world.

It was from this chaos and lawlessness that a terrified world came to embrace the concept of the Exceptionals: extraterritorial bio-enhanced bounty hunters, who could go anywhere, do almost anything in the name of law. Their lives were always at risk from the narco terrorists, tyrants and hate mongers of this not-so-brave new world. TheUnited States Government and the United Nations mandated that their identities became a closely guarded secret.

Now the Exceptionals must confront demons from their past, a horror from beyond the grave and a conspiricy from within their ranks that threatens everything they hold dear. For one, may claim his very soul!!

* * *

About Author Teel James Glenn


Teel James Glenn is a native of
Brooklyn though he has traveled the world for thirty years as a Stuntman/Coordinator/Swordmaster, Jouster, Book Illustrator, Storyteller, Bodyguard and Actor.

His books in the Altiva fantasy series are: Tales of a Warrior Priest, Death at Dragonthroat, The Daemonhold Curse, and Sister Warrior all from ePress-Online as are Knight Errant :Death and Life at the Faire , Them’s Fightin Words :A Writers Guide to Writing Fight Scenes and the forthcoming: The Vision Quest Factor and A Hex of Shadows.

The Exceptionals: #1 Measure of a Man and #2 Across the Wasteland are out from Whiskey Creek Press with #3 due next year.

He has stories published in AfterburnSF, Blazing Adventures, AnotherRealm, Event Horizon, Fantasy Tales, Mad, Black Belt, Alternative Cinema, Classic Pulp Fiction Stories, Weird Stories, Double Danger Tales, Startling Science Stories, Shots Writer’s Village and others.

Sunday, October 12, 2008

Tales of a Warrior Priest


Author: Teel James Glenn
Publisher: ePress-Online
Genre: Fantasy/Sword and Sorcery
ISBN Number: 0977222446

Published May 2006
141 Pages

Tales of a Warrior Priest : Return to the world of Altiva, first visited in the novel Death at Dragonthroat, a world of crystal magic and cruel combat where young Lord Erique Shoutte becomes a master swordsman and a devoted priest of the Kova religion. Follow his adventures in a series of linked short stories as he quests for love, knowledge and martial perfection and fights serpents, dictators, demons and deadly damsels along the way. These tales range from the heroic, to the mysterious to swashbuckling adventure. In the classic tradition of Conan, Zorro and Captain Blood!

* * *
About Author Teel James Glenn

Teel James Glenn is a native of
Brooklyn though he has traveled the world for thirty years as a Stuntman/Coordinator/Swordmaster, Jouster, Book Illustrator, Storyteller, Bodyguard and Actor.

His books in the Altiva fantasy series are: Tales of a Warrior Priest, Death at Dragonthroat, The Daemonhold Curse, and Sister Warrior all from ePress-Online as are Knight Errant :Death and Life at the Faire , Them’s Fightin Words :A Writers Guide to Writing Fight Scenes and the forthcoming: The Vision Quest Factor and A Hex of Shadows.

The Exceptionals: #1 Measure of a Man and #2 Across the Wasteland are out from Whiskey Creek Press with #3 due next year.

He has stories published in AfterburnSF, Blazing Adventures, AnotherRealm, Event Horizon, Fantasy Tales, Mad, Black Belt, Alternative Cinema, Classic Pulp Fiction Stories, Weird Stories, Double Danger Tales, Startling Science Stories, Shots Writer’s Village and others.

Wednesday, October 8, 2008

Death at Dragonthroat


Death at Dragonthroat

Written by Teel James Glenn
Genre: Fantasy/Sword and Sorcery
Isbn#: 0977222403
Publisher: ePress-Online

The strangest day in T.K. Mitchell’s life began with the former marine on the run for his life in North Dakota and ended with him on the run for his life from an entire empire on the strange world of Altiva. Will the evil emperor who thinks T.K. is after his job kill him? Will the nightmare from his mysterious past do him in? Or the strange Shadowbeast that seems unstoppable and has an insatiable appetite for blood? Then again, will T.K. give into the seductive clutches of the six foot eight blue furred warrior woman? What a way to die…….

* * *
About Author Teel James Glenn

Teel James Glenn is a native of
Brooklyn though he has traveled the world for thirty years as a Stuntman/Coordinator/Swordmaster, Jouster, Book Illustrator, Storyteller, Bodyguard and Actor.

His books in the Altiva fantasy series are: Tales of a Warrior Priest, Death at Dragonthroat, The Daemonhold Curse, and Sister Warrior all from ePress-Online as are Knight Errant :Death and Life at the Faire , Them’s Fightin Words :A Writers Guide to Writing Fight Scenes and the forthcoming: The Vision Quest Factor and A Hex of Shadows.

The Exceptionals: #1 Measure of a Man and #2 Across the Wasteland are out from Whiskey Creek Press with #3 due next year.

He has stories published in AfterburnSF, Blazing Adventures, AnotherRealm, Event Horizon, Fantasy Tales, Mad, Black Belt, Alternative Cinema, Classic Pulp Fiction Stories, Weird Stories, Double Danger Tales, Startling Science Stories, Shots Writer’s Village and others.