Janus Witch: Interview and Giveaway

THE JANUS WITCH

by

MICHAEL SCOTT CLIFTON

Genre: Paranormal Urban Fantasy / Romance Publisher: Book Liftoff Publication Date: September 1, 2018
Number of Pages: 372 pages

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Malice vs Love

A beautiful witch, a member of a murderous coven, is torn from her medieval world and transported to East Texas. The passage leaves her with no memory of her previous life. She falls in love with a young pediatrician, but her dark past threatens to reassert itself…and make her a threat. 

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PRAISE FOR THE JANUS WITCH:

This book is filled with magic, intrigue, excitement, and fantasy. Michael Scott Clifton is a truly gifted author.  -- Teresa Syms, Readers’ Favorite

This novel was an absolute page turner with action and great character development. I enjoyed every minute of it. I'm excited for the next work by Mike Clifton. -- Bronwyn Pegues, Librarian, Longview Public Library

“Michael Scott Clifton weaves and casts a magical spell in his fantasy romance The Janus Witch. A must read for any Fantasy Romance, Urban Romance, or Paranormal Romance enthusiast!" -- Ranay James, Author of The McKinnon Legends: A Time Travel Series

A continuous flow of witchery and energy that kept this reader captivated until the end. -- The Electric Review, 5-Star Review

INTERVIEW WITH MICHAEL SCOTT CLIFTON

Why did you choose to write sci-fi and fantasy?

Although I like a broad range of genres, science fiction and fantasy have always been my favorite. I have a very active imagination, and I love the challenge of creating worlds. With urban and paranormal fantasy now part of the fantasy mix, the door is wide open for any combination of sub-genres (including romance) to stitch together a good story. I’m only limited by my imagination, and creativity is definitely not a problem for me. 

Although Fantasy is my stated genre, I like to tell a story which includes elements we are all familiar with. In The Janus Witch, for instance, we have a witch transported from a medieval world to modern-day East Texas—complete with cars and computers. Yet magic and mystical powers are still main tenets within the story. Too much fantasy nowadays is larded with layers of rules, prerequisites, and complicated backmatter. My attention span isn’t that long, so my books get right to the plot as soon as possible. A person won’t have to read to page 75 before it finally gets interesting or before the story becomes clear.

What was the hardest part of writing The Janus Witch?  

I had to follow a delicate line when introducing Tressalayne as a murderous witch, then later, as a young woman deeply in love with Dr. Lucas Beckett. In order to make this dichotomy believable to the reader, it was necessary to present both her “pre” then her “post” personalities. Then I added just enough snippets (flashbacks/nightmares) of her old life so it’s evident her new, happy life is by no means certain. Finally, transitioning characters from a medieval world to our 21st century society was tricky. The challenge was to portray these characters in a way where they appeared to be fish out of water, while still managing to somehow adjust to a modern world. 

How do you decide if your main characters will be male or female?

The story drives the characters. As such, a particular gender may or may not be a better fit. For example, in my book, The Treasure Hunt Club, I needed a perpetual loser, someone who always suffers from bad luck. I felt this fit a man better, and so I produced Nick Hollister’s character. In The Janus Witch, a warlock just didn’t seem to pop like a witch, hence Tressalayne’s character. However, my books are populated by strong minor characters, both male and female, something I take great pride in. 

What projects are you working on at the present?

I am finishing up on a fantasy adventure series called The Conquest of the Veil. A suicidal, bullied girl awakes to find herself a beautiful woman of wealth and privilege—and also trapped behind a wall of magic created by an evil and malevolent queen. The release date of the first book is March 1st, 2019. I am also working on a YA (Middle School) book called Edison Jones and the Anti-Grav Elevator. Edison is a twelve-year-old genius and inventor. Paralyzed from the waist down from an accident suffered when he was five, Edison has been homeschooled and sheltered his entire life. When he is enrolled in public school, he learns being a “normal” kid like his friends is more difficult than any invention he has ever attempted. My hope is for a release date either in late spring or early fall of 2019.

What do your plans for future projects include?

Several books will follow in The Conquest of the Veil series. I hope to release at least one book per year until the series is concluded. I am also going to start a book called The January Man. Jordon Blake is a suave and handsome lawyer on track to become the youngest partner in the history of his firm. Jordon doesn’t believe in love but still induces one woman a year to fall in love with him. Then on New Year’s at the stroke of midnight, he dumps his latest love and starts the search for a new one…until his Fairy Godmother decides to teach him a lesson. 

Michael Scott Clifton, public educator for over 38 years as a teacher, coach, and administrator, currently lives in Mount Pleasant, Texas with his wife, Melanie, and family cat, Sadie. An avid gardener, he enjoys all kinds of book and movie genres. His books contain aspects of all the genres he enjoys...adventure, magic, fantasy, romance, and relationships. He has been a finalist in a number of short story contests. Clifton’s fantasy novel, The Conquest of the Veil, won a First Chapter Finalist award. Professional credits include articles published in the Texas Study of Secondary Education Magazine. Clifton’s latest book, The Janus Witch, the July Book Cover of the Month, is a featured book on the We Love Indie Books website. Currently, Clifton is completing Book I of The Conquest of the Veil, which will be released in March 2019. He can be reached at mike@michaelscottclifton.com.

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Two Winners: eBook Copies DECEMBER 4-13, 2018

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VISIT THE OTHER GREAT BLOGS ON THE TOUR:

12/4/18	Excerpt	All the Ups and Downs
12/4/18	Book Trailer	Books and Broomsticks
12/5/18	Review	Bibliotica
12/6/18	Author Interview	That's What She's Reading
12/6/18	Top 5 List	StoreyBook Reviews
12/7/18	Review	Momma on the Rocks
12/8/18	Excerpt	Texas Book Lover
12/8/18	Promo	The Book Review
12/9/18	Review	Book Fidelity
12/10/18	Author Interview	Rebecca R. Cahill, Author
12/10/18	Excerpt	Chapter Break Book Blog
12/11/18	Review	Nerd Narration
12/12/18	Guest Post	Rainy Days with Amanda
12/13/18	Review	The Clueless Gent
12/13/18	Review	Reading by Moonlight

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Incoherent Gods

Incoherent Gods

by Gabriele Russo

Book 3: Gods Inc. Series

Fantasy

Fiery Seas Publishing

November 13, 2018

Hercules, guardian of the Lemuria Zoo, has a big problem: the Zoo’s divine animals have been going crazy. To make things worse, Queen Louhi, the CEO of Gods Incorporated, has just arrived for her yearly visit… with a new fiancé in tow (along with his yenta-minded grandfather Jupiter). Of course, the fact that Hercules is desperately in love with her doesn’t help his plight in any way whatsoever.

His attempt to cover up the situation quickly blows up in his face and they finally realize the animals’ madness is caused by artificial means. Cue in the bodiless god Mimir, who reveals that the real target of the mind-altering poison is Yggdrasil, the World Tree.

​And if the Tree loses its cohesion, then so will the barriers between the worlds, crumbling the foundations of reality. Who in gods’ names could be crazy enough to want to do something like that?

Excerpt:

EXCERPT THREE

CIRCLES AND ROUNDABOUTS

Athena and John listened to the new directions, and the abuse, attentively. When the bureaucrat reached an end to both, she thanked him/her profusely and shut the door.

“I told you that water fountain was the –” He hated the quote gesture, but sometimes it was necessary, ““drinks station”.”

Their search for the Burelaine was not going well. First, they had encountered a fork, which had made it impossible to “walk straight down”. With his compass, John had determined that one of the passages was less divergent than the other, making it the obvious choice. Of course, it had also been the wrong one. A fact made abundantly clear by the bureaucrat they had surprised in the shower (a disturbing sight to say the least). Apparently, they needed to learn how to read the corridor nomenclature; this would have told them which was the first one’s continuation. John was more than ready to do this; problem was, he couldn’t figure out where they hid said names. He’d found one so far, when he’d tripped on a loose floor tile: underneath the tile.

He’d tried looking for other loose tiles elsewhere, with no success.

They had turned around, but hadn’t been able to find their way back to the fork. In desperation, they had followed a short blond mustachioed man and his enormous redheaded sidekick looking for an A-37 permit, which eventually led them back to their starting point.

Then the “third corridor on the left” had turned out to be the fourth. There had not been any “drinks station” of any kind. The corridor just led straight into a funky smelling hangar that contained a river, a bridge, a troll, and a goat, all four busy arguing the best method to collect excise taxes. When at last Athena had managed to knock out the troll and grab the goat’s beard, they had found out that the second passageway on the left was sometimes walled off because it led to the wing outsourced to the Teleport Inc. reward miles’ industry, and even bureaucrats find some things repulsive.

They had finally taken the right corridor, but had walked along its bendy ways for a good half-hour without seeing a “drinks station”. Then, once they’d given up, they had gotten lost trying to retrace their steps, in defiance of John’s deeply held conviction that it was impossible to get lost following a corridor that didn’t branch out.

It was now well after five, at which time the bureaucrats, while tolerating people who had gotten in before four, did not see why they should be helpful in any way whatsoever. The lights were dim, and the entire place felt empty. When by some incredible chance they ran into a rare straggler, their pleas for help were met with vague excuses before the bureaucrat would scuttle away and disappear in an elbow of the corridor.

Finally, despite their apprehension, they had decided to knock on an office door where they could hear the clacking of computer keys.

It hadn’t been computer keys. It had been the creaking sounds of a swing’s chains. They had walked into a strange photo shoot. The bureaucrat had been holding a long stick from which dangled a new kind of camera and taking (sultry? seductive? macho?) poses on the swing. While apparently this was very important, as the obvious annoyance of the bureaucrat had made clear, s/he had agreed to help them find their way to the Reception and Dispatch Burelaine, because to quote him/her: “The least that promotion stealer deserves is being annoyed after hours by bumbling idiots such as you.”

And now, at last, they found the “water fountain”.

John stopped. “Wait, did the bureaucrat tell us it was the

office to the right before reaching the water fountain?” “Yes.”

“But didn’t the Information Attendant tell us it would be the office to the right after the drinks station?”

“Yes.”

“Then it should be the office to the left before we reach the water fountain, no?”

Athena shrugged. “Let’s just knock on both doors.”

They did. Or, at least, they tried to. Their fists hit the doors, but no knock could be heard, no vibration felt.

They tried again. They switched doors.

“I get it,” said John. It’s like a computer application form. You can’t get to the next step before completing the previous one. Apparently, we need to make a choice.”

If Athena had had the fiery eyes in her divine abilities package, the door in front of her would surely have been reduced to a pile of ash. Instead, the goddess narrowed her eyes and her fists, then took a deep breath and slowly released the tension.

“Fine. How? Which right is the right right? Clergy! I wish these doors had numbers.”

“Wouldn’t help, the Attendant didn’t give us one. I do think you might be on to something, right is probably the important factor here. Let’s go to the next elbow in the corridor, come back, and knock on the door to the right.”

He was about to join action to word, but Athena held him in place.

“Wait. Toward which should we go? To the elbow where the office would be on the right after the ‘drinks station’, or the one where it would be on the right before the ‘water fountain’? And which way is which?”

BUY LINKS:

FIERY SEAS BOOKSTORE: https://www.fieryseaspublishing.com/product-page/incoherent-gods

AMAZON: https://www.amazon.com/Incoherent-Gods-GODS-Gabriele-Russo-ebook/dp/B07GMS6TZG/

BARNES & NOBLE: https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/incoherent-gods-gabriele-russo/1129277907?ean=2940161934784

KOBO: https://www.kobo.com/gr/en/ebook/incoherent-gods  

ABOUT THE AUTHOR:

Gabriele Russo, AKA Lucie-Gabrielle Jolicoeur-Rousseau, was born in Quebec City amidst a family of book lovers – her father had dreamed of being a writer and both of her brothers are published authors.

Since she earned her Bachelor’s in History, it was no surprise (except to her) that she ended up working in restaurants, eventually owning two, which almost drove her mad. She sold them and was nursed back to pseudo-sanity by Douglas Adams and Terry Pratchett.

That’s when she answered the family calling and decided to write. Armed with her ideas for the Gods Inc. series she went back to the University and got her Master’s in Creative Writing.

She now lives with her husband in Culpeper, Virginia, where she divides her time between painting, ripping apart and reconstructing her recently bought historical home, playing tennis and, of course, writing more books.

SOCIAL MEDIA

Website: http://www.russogabriele.com/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/GabrieleRussoLGJR/?fref=ts

Twitter: https://twitter.com/lugabirusso

RK Gold

Here is my interview with RK Gold!



Tell me about yourself:

Not sure what there is to say. I’m in my last semester of grad school, finishing my masters in economics and I write books in my free time. I also started a consulting firm with my family called Follow the Hummingbird consulting.

What first inspired you to start writing?

I loved to write, and I realized I needed to at least give it a try. It’s one of those things you can find a little time for throughout the day, it’s not like shooting a movie, or painting, you can do it in bed under the blankets at 3 in the morning if you want to.

Are you a cat or dog lover?

I love all animals, but I have a dog.

Are your characters based off real people or did they all come entirely from your imagination?

They all come from my imagination, but I’m sure the people I interact with have some weight on my characters’ personalities.

What book that you have read has most influenced your life?

I’m not sure. My favorite book of all time is A Confederacy of Dunces, but Harry Potter was the series that taught me reading is fun.

Tell us a little about your plans for the future. Where do you see yourself as a writer in five years?

Hopefully I’m able to sustain some kind of success and have some semblance of a fanbase. I doubt I’ll ever be at the level of Stephen King but it would be cool to be.

Of all the characters you have created, which is your favorite and why?

I don’t know if I have a favorite. Probably Milly from Brinwood. She’s a murderous lunatic but also incredibly manipulative. She knows the world sees her as just a little girl and uses it to her advantage.

Any website or resources that have been helpful to you as a writer?

YouTube has a lot of amazing videos on the writing process, tropes, publishing, marketing etc. Start there.

What do you love most about the writing process?

The first and the final drafts. Everything in between is SOOO exhausting

If you could spend time a character from your book whom would it be? And what would you do during that day?

The Neighbor from Beds Are For Flowers and we would just chill in his garden all day.

What are some tips you can give other aspiring writers?

Find a schedule that works for you, read more than you write and don’t write to exhaustion every day, or else you won’t have the energy to keep it up. Set a disciplined goal and stick with it.

What is your favorite book you've read?

A Confederacy of Dunces.

Who is your favorite literary character?

The Marquis de Carabas

What inspired you to keep writing it?

I love it. It’s not work for me it’s what I do to feel happy. I could never sell another copy of a book and I’d still write—it would obviously suck because some of the joy I get from writing is the response to my stories but it wouldn’t stop me. 

Can you leave us with an excerpt from one of your projects/novels?
Better to live in the shadows brought on by the light than to live in the dark

Beds Are For Flowers

What are you working on now?

A post apocalypse serial, released monthly
a new fantasy series
edits for an adult urban fantasy

Is there anything else you would like to share with us before you go?

I think we’ve covered it all

R.K. Gold graduated from the University of Maryland in 2014 with a B.A. in English and is now pursuing a M.S. in Economics from the University at Buffalo.

He is a non-genre specific author who enjoys reading and writing whimsical tales about nature and the power of imagination.


Amazon author page: https://www.amazon.com/R.K.Gold/e/B016057NQC/ref=dp_byline_cont_ebooks_1

my site www.authorrkgold.com


social media:
twitter.com/rkgold91
instagram.com/rkgold91
youtube.com/c/RKGold
facebook.com/authorrkgold

Dawn Hosmer

I am so excited to have Dawn Hosmer on the blog today! Check out her interview below and be sure to reach out to her on social media!

Can you tell me more about yourself?

I am the mother of four fabulous children, 3 of whom are now adults, and a wife. I’m a lifelong resident of Ohio but I love to travel whenever I can. I spent the majority of my career in Social Work. I have a passion for helping others, as well as writing.  I was diagnosed with Crohn’s disease about 15 years ago which has had a profound impact on my life. I am no longer able to work outside of the home which has been a blessing in that I can devote more time to my writing.  Now if only I could find the energy, that would be perfect. I signed with my publisher, Ant Colony Press, in May 2018.

What is your writing Kryptonite?

My writing Kryptonite is definitely my fatigue/exhaustion from having a chronic illness, as well as the pain and brain fog that accompanies it. No matter how much motivation I have to write, my body sometimes will not cooperate. It doesn’t matter how long I sleep, it NEVER feels like enough. Sometimes, I am able to push through and write anyway but I’ve noticed that I write a lot slower now that my disease has progressed. It seems that it takes me longer to finish writing a first draft because I don’t have the energy for long writing sessions.

What first inspired you to start writing?

I’ve wanted to write since I was in the second or third grade. I’ve always loved reading. My mom and I would read “The Little House on the Prairie” series together at night when I was in elementary school, which I loved. Now that I’m a mom, I know what an act of love that was to take turns reading with someone who is in the early stages of reading – a practice in patience for sure.

I studied Sociology in college and at that time, I envisioned myself at some point doing research and writing academic type books (that never happened). Once I had children, I wrote several children’s books and queried them, but they never got picked up so I shelved them.

About twelve years ago, I was inspired by a true story that had a profound impact on my life. A story idea instantly came to mind and I couldn’t NOT write it. Writing it was truly cathartic – it helped me in my healing process and to make sense of an unthinkable situation.

Where is your favorite writing spot?

It depends on if I’m alone in my house or not. Lol If I have the house to myself, I love to sit in my recliner with my laptop and let the words flow. It is easiest to write there because of pain. But, since my recliner is in the family room where the only TV and game console in our house resides, that doesn’t work so well if others are home. Sometimes I can tune everything out and write there anyway but other times, I have to slip away to another area of the house for some quiet.

Are your characters based off real people or did they all come entirely from your imagination?

That’s an interesting question. I think there are bits of real people in all of my characters. But, I think I combine pieces of a lot of different people into one character. All of my books however are inspired by real life events. Of course, the story line and characters are then fictionalized but I can tell you what the real life inciting incident was for all of my writing.

What author has most influenced your writing?

This is a hard question. I would say Jodi Picoult in that I love everything she writes. I am typically a very fast reader but whenever I read one of her books, I force myself to read slowly to savor every word. I hope someday to be even one-quarter of the writer that she is in terms of drawing readers in and making them rethink life in shades of gray rather than black and white.

Tell us a little about your plans for the future. Where do you see yourself as a writer in five years?

My debut novel, Bits & Pieces, released last week in paperback. The e-book releases November 30^th. My biggest hurdle right now is coming up with some kind of effective marketing plan, which is quite overwhelming. I have a book signing and an author event coming up in the next month as part of my book launch. I also just signed a contract with a narrator through Audible which I’m super excited about.

My second novel, The End of Echoes, is scheduled to be released in mid-2019, so in addition to marketing Bits & Pieces, I also need to work through edits on it. In addition, I am currently about 40,000 words into the first draft of my third novel. I hope to finish the first draft of it by the end of the year (originally my goal was to finish by the end of November but that didn’t happen).

In five years, I hope to have at least three books published. I have so many story ideas floating around in my head so I hope to be still putting them on paper for many years to come.

Of all the characters you have created, which is your favorite and why?

Now, that’s like asking me to pick my favorite child – not a fair question at all! I truly can’t pick a favorite character because there are things I like about each of them and what they’ve taught me about life and/or writing. I hope that’s not a cop-out but it’s true. Although the reverse is also true, there’s things that also annoy me about each of them.

What literary world would you love to visit for a day?

Even though it may be cliché, I would love to visit the world of Harry Potter because I really need one of those magic wands! I have a list of things I’d love to be able to just wave my magic wand and have them be fixed. Although fighting evil sounds a bit tiring so I wouldn’t want to stay longer than a day. Just set me lose with that magic wand for a day and I’d be happy.

What do you love most about the writing process?

Writing the first draft because, as a pantser, it really is me telling the story to myself. I love how the characters take on a life of their own and help me write a story much different than what I envisioned when I began. I don’t edit as I write so that first read-through of my first draft is always thrilling, even when it’s a mess. It’s when I finally see the bones that I have to work with during the re-write process.

Back Cover Copy of Bits & Pieces:

A chance encounter with a stranger traps Tessa within the mind of a madman. 

Tessa was born with a gift. Through a simple touch she picks up pieces of others. A “flash” of color devours her, the only indication that she’s gained something new from another person. Red equals pain; purple, a talent; yellow, a premonition; orange, a painful memory; and blue, a pleasant one. Each flash blurs the lines between her inherent traits and those she’s acquired from others. Whenever she gains bits of something new, she loses more pieces of herself.

While assisting in search efforts for a local missing college student, Tessa is paralyzed by a flash that rips through her like a lightning bolt, slicing apart her soul. A blinding light takes away her vision. A buzzing louder than any noise she’s ever heard overwhelms her, penetrates her mind. As the bolt works its way through her body, images and feelings take over. Women’s dead eyes stare at her as her hands encircle their throats. Their screams consume her mind. Memories invade her of the brutal murders of five women. 

Will she be able to find the killer and help save the next victim? Can she do so without completely losing herself?

Bits & Pieces is a fast-paced, riveting Psychological Suspense with supernatural elements that leaves the reader guessing until the end.

Dawn Hosmer is a lifelong resident of Ohio.  She and her husband have been married for 18 years and they have 4 children, although 3 of them are now adults.  She has spent her career in social work and has a passion for helping others.  She was diagnosed with Crohns disease 15 years ago which has been both a blessing and a curse.  Her illness has prevented her from continuing to work (the curse) which allows her to pursue her passion for writing with many less time-restrictions and focus her energy on being a wife and mother (the blessing). 

Dawn’s writing is often sparked by a true story which creates a cast of fictional characters/situations in her mind. In addition, Dawn sprinkles pieces of people’s true -life stories they’ve shared with her throughout the years into her fiction as a way to honor many of the tragedies and joys that people live through.

​

In addition to God, her family and writing, Dawn loves coffee, traveling, reading, HGTV and naps. Dawn believes that a story lives in all of us and that it’s important to share ours with others, never knowing who will benefit from what each of us has to say. Sharing our stories not only helps others, it changes us as well.

Author Links:

Website: www.dawnhosmer.com

Twitter: @dawnhosmer7

Instagram: @dawnh71

Goodreads: Dawn Hosmer

Facebook: Dawn Hosmer

Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_sb_noss_2?url=search-alias%3Daps&field-keywords=Bits+%26+Pieces+by+Dawn+Hosmer