An Interview with James Hutchings

Please Join me in welcoming James Hutchings as he shares some insight into his publishing journey, as well as some good advise for prospective authors.

Be sure to check out his excerpts from his book The New Death and others.

1) Links to website and list of books with purchase links. 

Blog:

New Death and Others

Amazon

Smashwords

Barnes and Noble

2) How long have you been writing? What got you in to writing?

I did a Bachelor of Arts majoring in creative writing and media, but I didn't do anything with it after graduating. Years later I created a fantasy city called Teleleli or Telelee as a background for role-playing games like Dungeons & Dragons. Once I finished I realised there wasn't any demand for it. My ex suggested I write stories instead, and that's how I got started.

3) What was your first published book? Looking back, is there anything you’d change about it?

The New Death and others is the first full-length book that I'm charging money for.

4) What or Who has influenced your writing? 

JRR Tolkien and Jack Vance for the elaborate dialogue. Robert E Howard for the general atmosphere. Terry Pratchett for the humour. and Lord Dunsany for the use of Fame, Time and so on as characters.

5) Where do you get your ideas?

Some ideas just pop into my head, without me knowing where the idea comes from. Other ideas come from experiences in my life. For example a while ago I found three injured birds in the space of a few weeks. I took all of them to the local vet. As I was carrying one of them, I thought that the woman at reception might wonder where I was finding all these injured birds, and that was the inspiration for my story 'Lost, Feral or Stray'. I've written a lot about cats, based on having been a cat owner. But I'm a lot more cynical about them than some cat-lovers. One reviewer said he couldn't work out whether I loved cats or hated them. Of course other fiction is a big inspiration. In some cases it's obvious. I've done poems directly based on stories by HP Lovecraft and other writers for example. In other cases it's more subtle: for example the city of Teleleli or Telelee is partly based on Fritz Leiber's Lankhmar, partly on Terry Pratchett's Ankh-Morpork, and partly on Port Blacksand in the Fighting Fantasy series. the dialogue in Lord of the Rings had a big influence on how my characters talk.

6) What hinders your writing? (distractions? noise?)

Not much, other than having other work to do.

7) What genre are you most comfortable with? What would you like to explore?

Fantasy. The main thing I'm working on right now is a poem set in the old West, called 'Confession of a Bounty Hunter'.

8) Are you a by-the-seat-of-your-pants kind of writer, or do you have to use an outline to put your collective thoughts into some semblance of common sense?

Most of my stories and poems are fairly short, so I don't need to write a plot outline. However I've been encouraged to write a novel set in the fantasy city of Telelee, which is the setting of a few of the stories in 'The New Death and others'. When I start on that I'll do a plot outline first.

9) Which of your books is your favorite? Why?

There's only one book, so I guess that's my favourite. I think my favourite story is probably 'The New Death and others'.

10) Do you incorporate some of yourself into your characters? Personality traits? Likes? Dislikes?

Probably, but I don't do it deliberately.

11) What do you think is the perfect hero/heroine? Why?

I tend to think of plot ideas and work the characters around that, rather than the other way round. 

12) What is your latest release? Please share the blurb and purchase info with us.

The New Death and others

Blurb:

Death gets a roommate...

An electronic Pope faces a difficult theological question...

A wicked vizier makes a terrible bargain...

44 stories. 19 poems. No sparkly vampires. There's a thin line between genius and insanity, and James Hutchings has just crossed it - but from which direction?

Available from:

Amazon

Smashwords

Barnes and Noble

13) What do you have in the works?

Apart from 'Confessions of a Bounty Hunter' and the Telelelee novel which I mentioned above, I'm working on a verse version of 'A Princess of Mars'. This is a science fiction adventure story, now in the public domain, written by Edgar Rice Burroughs, who's more famous for Tarzan. Disney is also doing a movie of it, called 'John Carter', but that's not why I chose it. I generally work on several things at the same time, so I'm also in the middle of a shorter poem.

14) Do you have any suggestions/comments for prospective authors?

Nowadays anyone can self-publish. If you can make a Word document, you can have an ebook on Smashwords or Amazon. However that means that if your work is no good, no one's going to stop you. I'd recommend that people get onto Critique Circle and/or Scribophile, put their work up, and listen to what people tell you. Don't 'defend' your work against people's 'attacks'. They aren't attacks, they're helping you. I've found that the people who defend their work have a strong tendency to have the worst writing, I suppose because they're not making the changes they need to make.

My next point doesn't matter if you're going to self-publish, but it is important if you want to be published by a regular publisher, or if you want to submit stories to magazines. Most places won't publish work that's already been published. And most places count putting a story on the internet as publishing it. In my opinion that's silly, but that's what they do. Scribophile and Critique Circle are exceptions, because google doesn't index them and you can't see any stories without logging on. However there are writing group websites out there where, if you put a story on the site, that counts as the story being published. That seems like a really terrible way to set things up, but they're out there.

I'd also say that getting a book out isn't the final step. It's just the start of the work of self-promotion. This is true even if you're not self-publishing: I'm told that authors are expected to pretty much arrange their own book signings and so on (if you just want to have a book out to show family and friends then this doesn't matter, of course).

There are a lot of sharks out there, who make their money from authors and not from readers. They will make all sorts of promises about how they're going to promote you and help you, but these are lies. Authors do not pay publishers, ever, and if they're asking you to pay then it's a scam. Of course if you're self-publishing you might end up paying someone to design a cover for you, or you might pay for internet advertising, but those are different things. You might also pay a printer to print your books if you want to get physical books rather than ebooks - but in this age of the kindle and print-on-demand I don't know why you'd want to. Preditors and Editors is a good website to look at, and you can get good advice at the forums of Critique Circle.

Finally, I'd suggest learning to touch-type if you can't already. You're going to be doing a lot of typing, and every hour you spend getting faster at typing will save you ten in the long run.

Author Name: James Hutchings

Book Title: The New Death and others

Genre: Fantasy

Publisher: self-published

Purchase:

Amazon 
Smashwords
Barnes and Noble 

Format: ebook

Excerpt: G rated

THE GOD OF THE POOR

In the beginning of the world the gods considered all those things which did not have their own gods, to decide who would have responsibility and rulership.

"I will rule all flowers that are sky-blue in colour," said the Sky-Father."I will listen to the prayers of migratory birds, and you all other birds," the goddess Travel said to him. And so it went.

At last all had been divided, save for one thing."Who," asked the Sky-Father, "shall have dominion over the poor?"

There was an awkward silence, until the Sky-Father said,"Come - someone must. Those with no gods will grow restless and cunning, and in time will cast us down, and we shall be gods no more."

"Not I," said blind Justice, and her stony face flashed a momentary smirk at the thought.

"Why not Fame or Fortune?""Darling I don't think so," said the sister goddesses together.

There was a long pause. The gods shuffled their feet and avoided one another's gaze. At last a voice broke the silence.

"I will," said Death. 

IF MY LIFE WAS EVER FILMED

If my life was filmed, it would

go straight to DVD

and someone who was famous once

would have the role of me

and if five stars meant 'excellent'

you'd give it two or three

and most of those who rented it

would watch ironically.

Years later they would track me down

and do an interview.

They'd say "I heard you died," and I'd

say "Yeah, I heard that too."

"Is any of it fictional?"

"Perhaps a scene or two.

There weren't as many ninjas, but

the rest is mostly true." 

Demons by S.F.Spencer

About the author…

I grew up reading fantasy - David Eddings, R.A.Salvatore, Tolkien, Michael Moorcock - and began writing my own stories at an early age. I had a vivid imagination, which was further fuelled by the tabletop game Dungeons & Dragons. I'd had an idea for my first novel and over the course of many years, I wrote several variations of Demons, all of them centred around my D&D character, Mecel. Eventually I moulded these drafts into something I would allow other people to read. The positive feedback I received was so encouraging that I took steps toward publishing it, finally producing it as an ebook on Amazon. Writing is something I do in my spare time and for the enjoyment of submersing myself within the realms of fantasy. When I'm not working for the National Trust, I'm out and about with my camera or playing guitar or creating videos, but all I want is to share my words with the world and have the world give me the thumbs up.

Author Name: S.F.Spencer

Book Title: Demons (Part one Corilon of Corsden)

Genre: Fantasy

Publisher: Amazon Kindle

Purchase  

Format: ebook

Blurb: 

Demons is the first in a magical new series of 'sword & sorcery' novels by S.F.Spencer, exploring the thin line between good and evil, hero and villain. Corilon of Corsden is a man with a past he works hard to forget. Once a court mage for the Baron of Corsden, contentment came to an abrupt end when he was attributed blame for a series of sacrificial murders in the town he was charged with protecting. Stripped of his magic by a rival mage, Mecel Corilon was then banished in disgrace, sending him on a journey of madness. Seven years later and he believes he's finally rebuilt some semblance of a life, only his world is about to turn upside down again...

Excerpt:

Mecel closed his eyes and tuned out all sound but that of his own heart beating loud in his ears. Lorina was at his back, Thallion to his right, and that was as far as he allowed his senses to extend. Don’t get hit, he told himself.

Before he’d even opened his eyes, Mecel sprang into movement and parried a dagger that had been on its way to gutting him. With a flick of his sword he deflected the weapon before cutting the orc in two, spinning around to slay his second before facing a third. Bodies dropped at his feet with the regularity of raindrops from an oncoming thunder cloud, but still the orcs came. From out of the corner of his eye he kept watch over Lorina, but she showed no signs of needing help, and Thallion was swinging his axe with the practised skill of a master.

Trelain was surrounded by his men, all of them fighting to protect a Prince who looked angry at being kept out of the fight. None of them looked to be injured though, but then, Mecel didn’t think the orcs were paying them much attention. They all seemed to want to fight him, and for a long time, they did just that. Until:

“They’re retreating!” cried Lorina triumphantly, pulling her sword from yet another dead, green body. Mecel cut down one, two, three more, before getting the chance to look around and see that she was right.

“Don’t let them get away!” roared Trelain, and his men charged after the fleeing orcs, disappearing into the trees while Monti, panting from exertion, took up protective residence beside him. Lorina, resting her hands on her knees to catch her breath, exchanged grins with Thallion. When the barbarian’s eyes fell upon Mecel, however, his triumphant grin faded.

“What is it?” he asked. “Are you hurt?”

Mecel was frowning thoughtfully down at the dead that scattered the ground in a sea of green blood. “No, I’m not hurt. It just seems too easy.”

“Easy?” exclaimed Thallion, laughing. “You call that easy? We were outnumbered five to one!

“Exactly. So why did they run?” Mecel looked questioningly at Thallion, unease knotting inside his stomach. He peered out into the darkness beyond the fire light. The night was quiet – too quiet, and Mecel couldn’t even hear the sounds of Trelain’s men chasing after the orcs that had fled. Something wasn’t right.

“Trelain, call your men back.”

The Prince looked at him, uncertainty gnawing at him like he was gnawing at his thumb nail. “You think it’s a trap?”

Before Mecel could respond, something grabbed hold of his leg, just below the knee. Startled, he jumped back – or tried to – but the dead orc’s hand remained firmly clamped around his calf and he fell. The ground was suddenly a writhing mass of limbs, some severed, some not, and now everyone found their legs being grappled as the hands tried to pull them down.

“The fire!” yelled Mecel, struggling to disentangle himself from the grip of hands that were clawing at his body, “Use the fire!”

The corpses were regaining the use of their heads now, and Mecel found himself having to fend off sets of rotten, broken teeth as well. Somewhere behind him he heard Lorina cry out – whether from pain or fear, he couldn’t tell – but try as he might he couldn’t escape the orcs to even turn his head and look at her. He could hear Monti cursing and swearing as he hacked at the bodies, but the dwarf was quickly overcome due to his lack of height.

A pair of jaws clamped around Mecel’s forearm, biting down hard on the soft flesh, and he let out a cry of pain. Somehow he managed to twist his arm out of its mouth and punch the reanimated orc away.

Thallion came into view, shaking oil out of a flask and all over the bodies on the ground. A moment later and there was the putrid stench of burning flesh. The smell crawled into Mecel’s nostrils like slime, making him choke and gag; none of the orcs screamed or shrieked their pain – they were already dead.

Teeth sank into his shoulder while hands took hold of his throat. Lorina appeared above him, kicking and stabbing at the orcs that had smothered him. With her help, Mecel managed to drag himself out from under them just before Thallion set them alight with the burning torch he’d taken from one of the camp fires. Lorina dropped to her knees beside him.

“Are you alright?” Mecel asked her, ignoring the blood that was pumping from his arm to check her over for injuries.

“Oh my God,” she breathed, quickly removing her shirt and wrapping it around his arm. Even as he began to feel faint, he took comfort in seeing that she was wearing something else beneath that shirt, a kind of corset made of hard leather. It was with alarm that he realised the rune on his chest felt hot, and was growing hotter.

It’s awakening! screamed the voice of panic inside his head.

Just stay calm… he told himself, closing his eyes in order to concentrate, …stay calm and regain control.

 “Thallion!” Lorina shouted urgently.

“Hold on!” he called back, still dealing with the last of the animated bodies.

  

Mecel couldn’t understand his weakness of late. He could see the doors again, doors he’d kept closed for so long, and prayed to the Gods he would be able to keep them closed. He tried to think when he’d first shut them and of the man who’d helped him do it, but he couldn’t focus. Was he really weakening?

  

Lorina was holding his hand but he was close to being overcome with panic. His rune was burning now, threatening to take him, to take his mind and consciousness, and no-one knew what he would do then. When the rune had him, it was like he was somebody else. When the rune had him, he never knew what he did or where he was – what if he attacked his friends?

What if I attack Lorina?

  

“Thallion, please!” shouted Lorina, close to tears herself. Monti hunkered down beside her to peer at Mecel, his expression immediately becoming one of concern.

  

“He doesn’ look so good,” he commented, taking Mecel’s wounded arm and looking beneath the makeshift bandages. “Nasty bite…bleedin’ well. It should be cauterized –”

  

“No!” exclaimed Mecel. Something like that would definitely send him over the edge. He could feel something inside him, something foreign and sharp crawling beneath his skin which had nothing to do with the rune, he was sure.

  

Before he knew what was happening, he was convulsing. Lorina threw herself on top of him to keep him from hurting himself as he arched his back, shaking violently, the veins in his neck standing out so much they looked as though they might burst. It was like what had happened in their bedroom, back at Galor, only this time it was worse. Am I awake? he had asked Lorina.

  

Give yourself to me…echoed the chilling voice of something that wasn’t quite human, a voice that only Mecel could hear. He immediately recognised it as belonging to the thing of his nightmares, and losing control over the rune on his chest suddenly became less important than keeping the demon out.

    

I can see into your soul, the demon all but cooed, and what a wasted life you have led. Failure and loss has dogged your every footstep. What makes you think you can defeat me, mortal? What makes you think you can be successful where countless others have failed?

  

It felt like his entire being – his very soul, even – was being invaded and ravaged by spiritual pestilence. Vaasz had forced his will and mind into Mecel and was now dipping his clawed fingers into every part of him. The rune on his chest was burning hotter than ever. His body seized and bucked and convulsed as every muscle tightened and twisted in revulsion, trying to expel the demon.

  

Turn around now and forget this foolishness. Return to whence you came, and perhaps I will spare your soul the torment that awaits all others. It is what your heart desires anyway. I can taste your fear.

  

“Fear? Fear fear fear feaaaaargh!” screamed Mecel, in a rage. The rune felt as though it was burning a hole in his chest, but right now it didn’t matter, because the demon had just made its first mistake and had unwittingly strengthened his resolve.

  

“You fear me!” he screamed. “You fear me! Get…out…!”  

  

Vaasz had been trying to convince him to give up, and Mecel believed with great conviction that it was because Vaasz felt threatened by him. The constant nightmares, the frightening illusions – it was all scare tactics. He knew that now.

  

I will destroy you, mortal! I will feast on your very bones and confine your soul to infinite torture –

  

With the help of the rune and a huge, concentrated burst of will power, Mecel expelled the roaring demon from him. For a moment he lay there still and panting, allowing the sensation of relief from intense pain to wash over him. The rune cooled too; it must have been reacting to the demon’s magical forced entry of his body. After all, it was a kind of anti-magic field, which was why he was no longer capable of being a wizard.

  

Mecel locked eyes with Lorina, who was still laying across his chest and staring wide-eyed down at him, breathing hard. Silently she pushed herself off him, and Mecel rolled over to be sick, the nausea not passing until he’d brought up the entire contents of his stomach.

 

Be sure to check out S.F. Spencer’s writing at her:

Website

An Interview with Jaq Hawkins

Please join me in welcoming Jaq Hawkins as she shares with us a little information about her journey through writing and what a perfect first date for her would be.

Be sure to check out the excerpt from her book Dance of the Goblins, after the interview.

1) Links to website and list of books with purchase links.

Website

 

Goblin Films Limited

 

Books on Magic:

Chaos Monkey

Understanding Chaos Magic

 

Spirits Books:

Spirits of the Aether

Spirits of the Air

Spirits of the Earth

Spirits of the Fire

Spirits of the Water

 

Dance of the Goblins

Print

Ebook

2) How long have you been writing? What got you in to writing?

All my life, driven to write since I was 6.

3) What was your first published book? Looking back, is there anything you’d change about it?

Understanding Chaos Magic (Capall Bann Publishing) I did actually update it for the second edition.

4) What or Who has influenced your writing?

All my favourite authors; Ray Bradbury, Marion Zimmer Bradley, Anne McCaffrey, etc. Mostly Fantasy authors.

5) Where do you get your ideas?

From everything. A casual remark can set me off on a new idea for a project.

6) What hinders your writing? (distractions? noise?)

Having a life. ;) My boyfriend and I have worked out balances so that I get time to write now.

7) What genre are you most comfortable with? What would you like to explore?

Fantasy is where I want to work most. I'm getting into Steampunk now, have sent a first novel to an appropriate publisher and am waiting to hear back.

8) Are you a by-the-seat-of-your-pants kind of writer, or do you have to use an outline to put your collective thoughts into some semblance of common sense?

I'm mostly 'seat of the pants', but I did an outline recently for an erotic novel because a publisher wanted it.

9) Which of your books is your favorite? Why?

Dance of the Goblins, because I really love visiting the world I've created there. I'm finishing off the first sequel now and am really reveling in the atmosphere.

10) Do you incorporate some of yourself into your characters? Personality traits? Likes? Dislikes?

I think that's inevitable for an author, but I also have charaters who are very diferent from me or anyone I know. Some are people I don't even like.

11) What do you think is the perfect hero/heroine? Why?

Someone who the ordinary reader can identify with. They need to have fallibilities as well as motivations for what they set out to do in the story.

12) What is your latest release? Please share the blurb and purchase info with us.

The most recent is the Ebook edition of Dance of the Goblins, http://www.smashwords.com/books/view/123080 but keep an eye out for The Wake of the Dragon, my Steampunk novel.

13) What do you have in the works?

Sequels to both series' as well as a few short stories and 2 films in edit. There are other projects waiting to be finished as well, including a fun fantasy novel called The Chase for Choronzon.

14) Do you have any suggestions/comments for prospective authors?

Let the rejections roll off your back, we all get them. JK Rowling did as well.

JUST FOR FUN:

2) If you could be an animal, what would it be? Why?

I used to want to be a cat, but then I thought about what they eat. I think I'll stick with human actually.

3) If you had super powers, what would they be? Why?

But I do... ;)

4) If you could be an immortal, what would you want to be? Why?

A successful Alchemist. They can still enjoy the pleasures that mortality brings.

5) If you could change three things in the world, what would they be? Why?

Currency and governments, because they are all about power over others, but most of all materialism. It just causes so much trouble.

6) What would be a perfect date for you?

Disneyland of course. Or looking for fairies in Groudle Glen (Isle of Man).

7) Is there anywhere you’d like to visit? Why?

I still haven't made it to Egypt (for the historic sites) or Australia(for the animals).

8) Do you have any obsessions? What are they?

Writing and filmmaking are quite enough, trust me.

9) Do you have a crush on any actor/actress? Who?

Not the actors so much as the characters. Captain Jack Sparrow tops the list of course.

Getting personal with Jaq Hawkins…

I went on a game show called Dragon's Den to try to get funding to make a film of my book. This led to making somw no budget movies and having my life taken over by filmmaking, although I do manage to keep writing as well.

Author Name: Jaq D Hawkins

Book Title: Dance of the Goblins

Genre: Fantasy

Publisher: International Waters

Purchase:

Print

ebook

Format: ebook and print

Blurb:

At the centre of goblin society is The Dance, the spiritual exaltation of life itself which is central to the goblins' existence. In the human world above, life is austere and goblins only a myth. When Count Anton is drawn into the rhythm of The Dance, a clash between two worlds is about to begin...

Excerpt: G

'I don't know why we're doing this,' growled Latham. Ten pairs of eyes turned towards him as the ragged group of common men huddled within their cloaks in the damp chill of pre-dawn on the heath. Latham drew his own cloak as close as possible over his hulking frame, pulling the hood down over his dark, greasy hair. He peered at them from within his wrappings to be sure that he had their attention. 

'Since when do we take orders from the women anyway? It's not like it was the first time Caleb had a fight with his missus and went off for a walk to let off steam.' 

'But he always came back before,' said the younger man at his side. Latham had always liked Ranalf, but just now he was only irritated by the metalsmith's apprentice and his reasonable attitude. The boy didn't even have to be here as he had no wife yet to nag him out of his warm bed. Latham only wished they would find the missing man so that he could get back to his own. But there was no more to be done now except to keep on complaining until the others gave in and they could all go home. 

'We've been walking over the heath half the night, we probably missed him in a patch of fog.' 

'What was that?' The hushed voice of one of the older men had an acute sense of urgency to it. All was silent for a moment. It was Ranalf who next thought he heard a sound, almost like a voice, just on the edge of hearing. He motioned with his hand for the others to follow and crept carefully in the direction that he thought the sound had come from. He knew that sound could be deceptive in the dampness, but his intuition led him on. His trust in the odd sense that he had was quickly rewarded with another sound, like tree branches being pushed aside. The others heard it too this time and moved more quickly towards it despite the potential danger of a misstep in the dim light. 

'There he is!' shouted the older man. Caleb had seemed to appear suddenly out of the side of a lichen covered hill. The man who had spotted him was almost delirious with the excitement of seeing the missing man alive and apparently unhurt, just when they had begun to give up hope. Then his face quickly changed to an expression of shock and horror. 

'What is that…thing!' he said in an exclamation of gross disgust. 

In the next heartbeat the man took in the sight of the creature that held Caleb by the arm. It seemed small and scrawny, but the muscles visible beneath its sickly green skin spoke of powerful limbs. They held as much threat as the sharp teeth protruding from its slack mouth, hanging open now in an expression of astonishment. It matched those of the humans who stood frozen in a moment of disbelief. The creature was nearly naked, wearing only a loincloth of some unknown animal skin. It was as dark as the unruly hair that hung down its back in a sweeping wave, broken only by its large, pointed ears. 

There were blue marks on its upper body which looked like paint imbedded in the skin. Most mesmerising though, were the large yellow eyes that held the man's gaze for an eternal split second. Then the creature was gone. Caleb stood alone for a moment, then collapsed into unconsciousness. Ranalf leaped to his side, checking quickly for heartbeat and breath. He nodded to the others to confirm that the man was alive, then as if by a signal, the men shouted all at once in an unintelligible war cry that rang through the early morning light. They plunged through the lichen and fell on a depression that might have been an opening once, but had been freshly filled in with loose earth. Latham shouted to Ranalf to run back to the village for help, while the others called orders to each other randomly. They began to dig with their hands or any other tools they could improvise. 

On the other side of the freshly filled opening, the creature ran. The others of its kind had acted quickly. Goblins learned from a young age what to do in case of a sighting. There were enough others with him to hold the wall for a few minutes at best on their own, but it would be enough. He leaped down the left hand passage, clearing the pit trap easily. He nodded with an undulation of his upper body as he said just one word to the goblin waiting just beyond the opening in the side wall. 

'Sighting!' 

The other goblin's eyes widened, but he reacted quickly, returning the nod briefly as he began beating a rhythm on the large drum at his side. Now the diggers will come, Darek thought to himself as he continued running down the passage. He stopped anyone he met to spread the message as he ran. In his mind, the young goblin retraced his movements just before the sighting, searching for any hint of carelessness. By the time he reached the deeper levels he was satisfied. There was no breach of procedure. It was just an accident of timing. But one thought terrified him. 

Because of that timing, the world is going to change. Forever.

***

Where you can find Jaq:

Website