Announcing the winners and finalists of the LesFic Bard Awards for 2018.
See full announcement notice here.
25Jun/19
21Jun/19
OF Cieri
June 21, 2019
It gives us great pleasure to welcome O.F. Cieri as the guest on Episode 221 – Just Go Berserk and Start Shooting Lightning!
O.F. Cieri joins us to discuss their upcoming release, Lord of Thundertown, as well as the role history plays and gender representation in fiction!
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Books Mentioned in This Episode:
- Lord of Thundertown – coming soon from Ninestar Press
Bio:
O.F. Cieri is a New York historian and author with her first work of fiction being published by Nine Star Press in summer of 2019.
This Podcast episode is available on these channels (in order alphabetical):
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14Jun/19
Steff Green
June 14, 2019
It gives us great pleasure to welcome Steff Green as the guest on Episode 220 – My Whipping Skills Are Not Up To Snuff!
Steff Green, a prolific Kiwi Author, joins us to discuss many topics including her two recent releases – one of which is a children’s book that sounds fab!
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Books Mentioned in This Episode:
Bio:
Steff writes paranormal, gothic, and reverse harem romance under the name Steffanie Holmes. She’s known for her popular Briarwood Reverse Harem series. As S. C. Green she has published six weird fiction/dystopian fantasy novels, including the Engine Ward series, which was longlisted for a Sir Julius Vogel award.
This Podcast episode is available on these channels (in order alphabetical):
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07Jun/19
Eliot Parker
June 7, 2019
It gives us great pleasure to welcome Eliot Parker back as the guest on Episode 219 – Don’t Be Afraid, Be Proud!
Eliot Parker joins us to discuss his two novels, Fragile Brilliance, and A Knife’s Edge, as well as book contests and awards.
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Books Mentioned in This Episode:
Bio:
Eliot Parker is the author of four novels, most recently A Knife’s Edge, which was an Honorable Mention in Thriller Writing at the London Book Festival, and is the sequel to the award-winning novel Fragile Brilliance. His novel Code for Murder was named a 2018 Finalist for Genre Fiction by American Book Fest. He is a recipient of the West Virginia Literary Merit Award and Fragile Brilliance was a finalist for the Southern Book Prize in Thriller Writing. He recently received with the Thriller Writing Award by the National Association of Book Editors (NABE) for his novels.
Eliot is the host of the podcast program Now, Appalachia, which profiles authors and publishers living and writing in the Appalachian region and is heard on the Authors on the Air Global Radio Network and Blog Talk Radio. A graduate of the Bluegrass Writers Studio at Eastern Kentucky University with his MFA in Creative Writing and Murray State University with his Doctorate in English, he teaches English at the University of Mississippi and lives in Oxford, Mississippi and Chesapeake, Ohio.
This Podcast episode is available on these channels (in order alphabetical):
Or right here:
September 8, 2017
It gives us great pleasure to welcome Eliot Parker as the guest on Episode 128: Show Up and Keep the Chair Warm
This week Eliot Parker joins the show to discuss his new release A Code for Murder, characters with flaws and drive, and then shares some advice for authors prepping for interviews based on his own experience as an interviewer!
Follow Eliot and support his work:
- http://www.eliotparker.com
- https://www.facebook.com/eliot.parker.98
- https://twitter.com/e4419
- http://www.blackrosewriting.com/mysterydetective/codeformurder
Bio:
Eliot Parker is the author of three novels: Breakdown at Clear River, Making Arrangements, and Fragile Brilliance. He currently teaches writing and literature at Mountwest Community and Technical College in Huntington, West Virginia, and hosts the television show “Chapters” across the Armstrong Television Network, which profiles authors, editors, and publishers in West Virginia, Ohio, and Kentucky.
This Podcast Episode is
AVAILABLE NOW!
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04Jun/19
Ithani (The Oberon Cycle Book 3) by J. Scott Coatsworth
The third and final part of the Oberon Cycle trilogy, the first books being Skythane (Book 1) and Lander (Book 2) The books must be read in order, the first concentrating on building the world the author has created, and the second adding more characters to those already introduced.
The worlds of Oberon and Error have been lovingly crafted right from the get-go, so I felt I knew the characters and their surroundings, the curious alien foods they eat and the commodities they treasure. There is an excellent glossary in each book too, reminding the reader of what unusual words mean if they get stuck as I did on occasions. And the size of the glossary alone is testament to how meticulous the author has been in creating these worlds.
The writing was flawless in all three books, with colourful, almost cinematic set-pieces and rounded-out, diverse characters. As with a lot of fantasy/sci-fi novels, there were a LOT of characters, which is always risky as sometimes it can be hard to connect to them all. And yes, I did have a job remembering all of them, and what their dynamics were. There were places where I had to re-read to ensure I was following the plot correctly.
But in this world, the world of Oberon, everyone had their role, and there wasn’t one character that I felt didn’t really need to be there. They were an engaging lot as well, even the bad guys. I don’t want to give too much away, to be honest, fearful of letting a spoiler loose by accident.
What I can say is by the end of the trilogy, a lot of the characters, Jameson and Xander, Quince and Robin, almost felt like friends. Their dialogue was approachable and very natural. I love the mix of pronouns, the diverse genders and sexualities; it really was a rainbow cast, and with cool tech to boot.
Also I saw echoes of our own world and warnings for the future of what we stand to lose if we aren’t responsible for our planet (but not in a heavy-duty, worthy way) but in the end it was just a really good story from start to finish. I think I said in my review of Skythane that Scott’s writing made me fall in love with sci-fi again.
And at the end of this trilogy, I’m glad to say I’m more in love with it than ever.
BLURB
Time is running out.
After saving the world twice, Xander, Jameson, and friends plunge headlong into a new crisis. The ithani—the aliens who broke the world—have reawakened from their hundred millennia-long slumber. When Xander and Jameson disappear in a flash, an already fractured world is thrown into chaos.
The ithani plans, laid a hundred thousand years before, are finally coming to pass, and they threaten all life on Erro. Venin and Alix go on a desperate search for their missing friend and find more than they bargained for. And Quince, Robin, and Jessa discover a secret as old as the skythane themselves.
Will alien technology, unexpected help from the distant past, destiny, and some good old-fashioned firepower be enough to defeat an enemy with the ability to split a world? The final battle of the epic science fiction adventure that began in Skythane will decide the fate of lander and skythane alike. And in the north, the ithani rise….
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04Jun/19
The Radicals by Marolyn Krasner
Marolyn Krasner was a very welcome recent guest on WROTE! To check out her interview and her work, follow Episode 209: Have To Have That Light and Dark!
It’s interesting to dive into a book with absolutely no idea what to expect. I confess I didn’t warm to D at first. She was too aggressive, too attracted to chaos and seemingly selfish, but as the story unfolded, I began to get why she was like that, and understand her frustration and being propelled into a world of diapers, responsibilities to loved-ones and society in general. One can’t rage all the time. Sometimes you have to listen, to learn, and D found those dynamics very hard to adjust to.
And her refusal to compromise made her bloody difficult to like, if I’m honest, but in the end I really did warm to her her. Not because she manages to conform and make those around her more comfortable in her presence, but because she kept true to her beliefs, her spirit, making a brave decision not to be held down by choices someone else made for her, and still fighting for those who find it hard to fight for themselves. It really was a triumph, and I loved her by the end.
The author pulls no punches. She doesn’t attempt to make D accessible to readers, and by that I mean she isn’t afraid to make her protagonist unlikeable at times. But then, we are all unlikeable at times. She doesn’t try to feminise her, or make this a tale where everyone is happy at the end. It’s life, with compromises from everyone. It felt very real.
The writing is first-class, with sharp dialogue and great characters. D’s hideous alt-Right father is one, and so is Sally, the Pussy Power cofounder who I didn’t warm to at all. She seemed even more toxic than the bigoted dad, constantly undermining D who incomprehensibly (to me) went back for more every time, even though she knew how toxic the woman was. For me that was the only bum note. I hated Sally every time she was on the page, and her presence haunts D and her lovely femme girlfriend, as they try to do the right thing for their baby whilst holding on to their disintegrating relationship.
In the end though, this is a coming-of-age story, not just for D, but for Sally and those around them, and the ending is oddly uplifting. This is a book I’ll remember for a very long time.
BLURB
After twenty-five years of extremist feminist activism, D is on probation for assaulting 
homophobes and she is becoming something she never wanted to be: respectable. D’s mom and girlfriend hope her life as leader of the feminist collective Pussy Power is over, but D feels like a failure. When she finds out her estranged father has jumped on the white power bandwagon and is sharing the personal details of marginalized people on his badly designed website, she reconnects with her toxic Pussy Power cofounder and triggers a chain of events that causes her new life to implode, which is very bad, but is also exactly what she wants.
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31May/19
Tarian PS
May 31, 2019
It gives us great pleasure to welcome Tarian PS back as the guest on Episode 218 – I’ve Developed a Healthy Crush on Life!
Tarian PS comes back to the show to talk about the work he’s doing on his brother’s books as well as his own, the craft of storytelling, and a perspective on life after transitioning.
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Bio:
Both Proud Indy Authors, twins Talon and Tarian love to torment their editor with a nefarious world of foreign language, slang, local dialect, stretched/outside-of-the-box definitions, and have even been known to throw in some new word creations of their own at times. This, of course, is all thrown in there with the dyslexia soup stock they both suffer from that makes editing for them a joy {joy: n. see mental illness}.
However, the final product comes out as richly detailed as we believe all stories should be created: holographic worlds of love, pain, frustration, and challenges beyond the every day. We believe a good story should take you on an emotional ride, pluck your heart strings, and zing you about until you’re dizzy and screaming at the antagonist, while cheering for the protagonist before returning you to your cozy reading spot. And we’ve created these adventures within a mix of genres, so you can find the one right for you: Gay & Het Romances, Suspense, Paranormal and Sci-Fi Erotic Romances, War-time Romance Fictions, along with Talon’s favorite Space Sci-Fi Frontiers, and Tarian’s favorite works of Post-Apocalyptic Dark Fantasies and Historical Fantasies. All for readers to submerse themselves into and escape from their day when they need or desire, and to whet your appetite for more.
“A true Story Teller doesn’t deliver a product, they take you on an experience.” ~ Tarian P.S.
This Podcast episode is available on these channels (in order alphabetical):
Or right here:
September 28, 2018
It gives us great pleasure to welcome Tarian PS as the guest on Episode 183 – Will Write for Sex!!
Tarian PS (Stephan Knox) joins us to talk about his historic fantasy, Anáil Dhragain: (Dragon’s Breath), transgenderism in literature, and culturally sensitive ways to write Native American characters into your works!
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Books Mentioned in This Episode:
- Anáil Dhragain: (Dragon’s Breath), The
Pendhragains Book 1 at Amazon - Becoming His Slave, The
Dominion of Brothers at Amazon
Bio:
Both Proud Indy Authors, twins Talon and Tarian love to torment their editor with a nefarious world of foreign language, slang, local dialect, stretched/outside-of-the-box definitions, and have even been known to throw in some new word creations of their own at times. This, of course, is all thrown in there with the dyslexia soup stock they both suffer from that makes editing for them a joy {joy: n. see mental illness}.
However, the final product comes out as richly detailed as we believe all stories should be created: holographic worlds of love, pain, frustration, and challenges beyond the every day. We believe a good story should take you on an emotional ride, pluck your heart strings, and zing you about until you’re dizzy and screaming at the antagonist, while cheering for the protagonist before returning you to your cozy reading spot. And we’ve created these adventures within a mix of genres, so you can find the one right for you: Gay & Het Romances, Suspense, Paranormal and Sci-Fi Erotic Romances, War-time Romance Fictions, along with Talon’s favorite Space Sci-Fi Frontiers, and Tarian’s favorite works of Post-Apocalyptic Dark Fantasies and Historical Fantasies. All for readers to submerse themselves into and escape from their day when they need or desire, and to whet your appetite for more.
“A true Story Teller doesn’t deliver a product, they take you on an experience.” ~ Tarian P.S.
This Podcast episode is available on these channels (in order alphabetical):
Or right here:
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24May/19
Sera Trevor
May 24, 2019
It gives us great pleasure to welcome Sera Trevor as the guest on Episode 217 – I’m the Expert What Are You Gonna Do?
Sera Trevor returns to talk about her latest release, Son of Beauty God of Death, and what to do when your carefully planned book goes off the rails.
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Books mentioned in this episode:
Bio:
Sera Trevor is terminally curious and views the 35 book limit at her local library as a dare. She’s a little bit interested in just about everything, which is probably why she can’t pin herself to one subgenre. Her books are populated with dragons, vampire movie stars, shadow people, and internet trolls. (Not in the same book, obviously, although that would be interesting!) Her works have been nominated for several Goodreads M/M Romance Reader’s Choice Awards, including Best Contemporary, Best Fantasy, and Best Debut, for which she won third prize in 2015 for her novella Consorting With Dragons.
She lives in California with her husband, two kids, and a cat the size of three cats.
This Podcast episode is available on these channels (in order alphabetical):
Or right here:
October 12, 2018
It gives us great pleasure to welcome Sera Trevor as the guest on Episode 185 – Ugh Reality!!
Sera Trevor joins us to talk about her upcoming release, Earthly Pleasures, as well as writing fantasy in M/M, and fantasy that is not set in or inspired by medieval times!
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Books Mentioned in This Episode:
Bio:
Sera Trevor is terminally curious and views the 35 book limit at her local library as a dare. She’s a little bit interested in just about everything, which is probably why she can’t pin herself to one subgenre. Her books are populated with dragons, vampire movie stars, shadow people, and internet trolls. (Not in the same book, obviously, although that would be interesting!) Her works have been nominated for several Goodreads M/M Romance Reader’s Choice Awards, including Best Contemporary, Best Fantasy, and Best Debut, for which she won third prize in 2015 for her novella Consorting With Dragons.
She lives in California with her husband, two kids, and a cat the size of three cats.
This Podcast episode is available on these channels (in order alphabetical):
Or right here:
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17May/19
Brad Graber
May 17, 2019
It gives us great pleasure to welcome Brad Graber as the guest on Episode 216 – Tales of the City Meets The Crash!
Brad Graber joins us for a delightful discussion about his amazing and award winning works The Intersect, a love letter to Phoenix, and After the Fall, a tale of two healing journeys.
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Books mentioned in this episode:
Bio:
Brad Graber writes novels because he grew up in a family where no one ever listened to him—so he made up stories about them. Born and raised in New York City, Brad obtained a B.A. in Biology from the State University of New York at Buffalo and an M.H.A. from Washington University in St. Louis, Missouri. A former healthcare executive, Brad has held a number of management positions and been a Fellow of the American College of Healthcare Executives and a Certified Medical Executive through the Medical Group Management Association. Though he no longer works in healthcare, he continues to volunteer with local non-profits.
This Podcast episode is available on these channels (in order alphabetical):
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10May/19
William C. Tracy
May 10, 2019
It gives us great pleasure to welcome William C. Tracy as the guest on Episode 215 – 110 Percent Germination!
William C. Tracy joins us to discuss his latest novel, Fruits of the Gods, as well as cosplay, selling at cons, and the importance of inclusivity.
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Books mentioned in this episode:
Bio:
William C. Tracy writes tales of the Dissolutionverse: a science fantasy series about planets connected by music-based magic instead of spaceflight where you can explore aliens, magic, and steampunk!
He currently has five books out, from a coming of age story, to tales of political intrigue, to a Sherlock Holmes-like mystery, to a Jules Verne style adventure, to the first book of his epic space opera, titled THE SEEDS OF DISSOLUTION. Several books include LGBT-friendly elements as well.
William is a North Carolina native and a lifelong fan of science fiction and fantasy. He has a master’s in mechanical engineering, and has both designed and operated heavy construction machinery. He has also trained in Wado-Ryu karate since 2003, and runs his own dojo in Raleigh NC. He is an avid video and board gamer, a reader, and of course, a writer.
In his spare time, he cosplays with his wife such combinations as Steampunk Agent Carter and Jarvis, Jafar and Maleficent, and Doctor Strange and the Ancient One. They also enjoy putting their pets in cute little costumes and making them cosplay for the annual Christmas card.
This Podcast episode is available on these channels (in order alphabetical):
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