Jennifer Eifrig Interviews Me

Author Jennifer Eifrig has posted an interview of me. She asked some more unique questions than some I've had, and so you get some unique answers than perhaps you've heard from previous interviews with me. I think she did a great job, and am thankful for providing the opportunity.

Check out her interview with me and post comments on her site. You can here as well. Thanks for checking it out.

Interview: Seeking Unseen by Kat Heckenbach

Today we have a treat for our readers. Kat Heckenbach's new title, book 2 of her The Toch Island Chronicles, Seeking Unseen has just been released this month. For the Splashdown launch party, I'm kicking off the blog tour to feature her and the two books, Finding Angel and Seeking Unseen. Here's her interview:

Did you always want to be a writer?

Well, yes and no. I actually grew up wanting to be an artist. I drew all the time and was very good. But, when I got to college (after deciding I'd like to teach art), I lost some of my interest in it. I had some phenomenal science teachers at the community college and ended up changing my major from Art Education to Biology. I never really went into science as far as work. I ended up teaching and tutoring (mostly math) until I had my son. Then I became a stay at home mom and eventually started homeschooling. Then, a couple of years ago I was overcome with the desire to write. I love reading Young Adult fiction--became completely addicted to the Harry Potter books and movies and Cornelia Funke's InkHeart series--and decided one day I just had to give it a try. Memories came streaming back that showed me it was a desire I'd always had. I read all the time from the time I was very young, but never thought I could do what those authors do, so I pushed the idea out of my head for so long. But, I suddenly remembered sitting on my bed when I was in high school trying desperately to start a novel. I also remembered writing fourteen-page notes to my friends all the time, which should have been a clue that I like writing :). And I always got A's on my papers and essays. I just think I was so focused on my art and never had the self-confidence in writing. I didn't think I was interesting enough to come up with any grande and creative ideas. And, I was too young back then. I didn't have enough life experience. Now, I've been through a lot and all of that comes out in my writing.



Tell us about your relationship with your publisher Splashdown. Any surprises as you’ve worked with them?

The whole experience has been one surprise after another! I had no idea what to expect from working with a small publisher. But it’s been awesome. Grace Bridges is wonderful, and the whole group of authors work really well together as a team. We brainstorm back cover blurbs and such for each other, and everyone is respectful of each other’s suggestions. I will admit, I love the creative pow-wows Grace and I have when it comes to cover art. We seem to totally connect most of the time and it’s ridiculously fun. Those moments of, “What if we….?” followed by, “Oh, yes, that’s brilliant!” happen a lot—in both directions. There have been far too many for me to doubt I’m in the right place.

---

Kat Heckenbach grew up in the small town of Riverview, Florida, where she spent most of her time either drawing or sitting in her "reading tree" with her nose buried in a fantasy novel...except for the hours pretending her back yard was an enchanted forest that could only be reached through the secret passage in her closet...

She never could give up on the idea that maybe she really was magic, mistakenly placed in a world not her own...but as the years passed, and no elves or fairies carted her away...she realized she was just going to have to create the life of her fantasies.

Now she shares that life with her husband and two kids. Ok, maybe "share" isn't the right word--more like lives that life in her writing and tries her best to be normal the rest of the time...

Kat is a graduate of the University of Tampa, Magna Cum Laude, B.S. in Biology. She spent several years teaching, but never in a traditional classroom—everything from Art to Algebra II—and now homeschools her children.

Author Website: http://www.katheckenbach.com/

Toch Island Chronicles

Book 1: Finding Angel (Sept. 2011)
ISBN: 978-1927154137

Book 2: Seeking Unseen (Sept. 2012)
ISBN: 978-1927154298

Visit the other blogs in the tour:

Grace Bridges	http://grace.splashdownbooks.com
R. L. Copple	http://blog.rlcopple.com
Ryan Grabow	http://www.egrabow.com/rm.php?e=Prime
Diane M. Graham	http://dianemgraham.com/blog/
Travis Perry	http://travissbigidea.blogspot.com/
Paul Baines	http://www.pabaines.com
Caprice Hokstad	http://caprice.splashdownbooks.com/
Keven Newsome	http://www.kevennewsome.com
Greg Mitchell	http://www.thecomingevil.blogspot.com/
Robynn Tolbert	http://ranunculusturtle.blogspot.com/
Frank Creed	http://blog.frankcreed.com/
Fred Warren	http://frederation.wordpress.com/

Final Rift Jump 2-Question Interview

Rift Jump by Greg Mitchell

The day Michael Morrison died was the day his life began.

A sinister threat is growing in the void between realities, and Michael has been recruited to stop it. Ripped from his own violent life, he is sent rift jumping to other worlds seeking out the agents of the Dark and putting them to an end by any means necessary. The love of his life, Sara, joins him as he battles Civil War space ships, sea serpents, superpowered humans, and even his own duplicate from a parallel timeline.

But the darkness he fights is growing within him too, calling him to the same destiny as every other Michael from every other world. If he is to change his fate, he must learn to love, to forgive, to trust, and to let the man in the Stetson guide him to become the warrior of the Light he was always meant to be.



Interview with Greg Mitchell



How would you summarize your style of writing?

Cinematic. I’m a screenwriter first, so I naturally lean towards my narratives being very streamlined, fast-paced, and action-packed. But I also love to live inside a character’s head and just get their reaction to the events they find themselves in. That’s a depth of detail that I can’t do in a film, so I like that super-intimate insightful approach that only prose can offer. I like to keep things moving, though. I love action scenes. I love to blow stuff up. And then I have my characters wax philosophical about it afterwards ;)

How has Splashdown helped you to be a better writer?

Well, there are always little technical things that I pick up with every book I write. No matter how many editors I work with, I always learn something about sentence structure or verbage or what-have-you. All boring behind-the-scenes things that most Readers don’t want to know about.

What are your contact links: web sites, blogs, Facebook, Twitter links, your book's page, etc.?

I’m everywhere!

Website: http://www.thecomingevil.blogspot.com

Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/thecomingevil

Twitter: http://twitter.com/TCEauthor

To order Rift Jump: http://www.splashdownbooks.com/darkwater/rift-jump

Visit the following blogs on this Splashdown Blog Tour for Rift Jump by Greg Mitchell.

Grace Bridges             http://grace.splashdownbooks.com

Fred Warren                http://frederation.wordpress.com/

Caprice Hokstad         http://caprice.splashdownbooks.com

Paul Baines                 http://www.pabaines.com

Travis Perry                 http://travissbigidea.blogspot.com/

R. L. Copple               http://blog.rlcopple.com

Keven Newsome         http://www.kevennewsome.com

Kat Heckenbach         http://www.katheckenbach.com/

Ryan Grabow              http://www.egrabow.com/rm.php?e=Prime

Diane M. Graham       http://dianemgraham.com/blog/

Robynn Tolbert           http://ranunculusturtle.blogspot.com/

Frank Creed                http://blog.frankcreed.com/

I'm Interviewed at 5020genesis

I have a new interview! Melissa Finnegan asks me a few questions on her 5020genesis blog in her "Write to the Point" author interview series. Some good questions, and hopefully, some good answers that will let you in on some more info about me and the books.

Check out "Write to the Point with R. L. Copple" to not only read the interview, but to have a chance to win an ebook of my latest novel, Reality's Fire.

Interview with Gabrielle from Reality's Fire

Welcome to another edition of Author Interviews. Not interviews of authors, but an author interviewing their characters. Today, author R. L. Copple interviews his character, Gabrielle, who plays a starring role in the newly released novel, Reality's Fire from Splashdown Books.

RLC: Hello, readers. My name is Rick Lee Copple, thus the author by-line: R. L. Copple. I write fantasy and space opera stories. As stated in the opening, the third and final novel in "The Reality Chronicles" has just been released. One character that has appeared in all three novels, but hasn't played as large a role in the story until this book, is Gabrielle. Why don't you start by introducing yourself.

Gabi: Hi Rick. Funny talking to you. It's almost like talking to myself.

RLC: It does help an author to have split personalities. Maybe to start, tell us a bit about your family life.

Gabi: My parents lived on a mountain just outside Jerole, in the northwest edge of the Cluster Range. My mother died early in my life, leaving myself, my father, and older brother, Seth, to fend for ourselves. My dad did his best, but a wizard of sorts put a curse on him and my brother so that the littlest provocation sent them into an uncontrollable rage. I spent several years keeping them from killing one another. So while life started out pretty normal enough, it went from crazy to crazier after that.

RLC: But Sisko came along and saved them from that curse. Yes?

Gabi: Oh yes, he healed them from their hate, after almost killing us all. But if you think dealing with a miracle man is not crazy, not to mention his children, I have some lake-front property on Dark Lake to sell you.

RLC: You did have a significant part in the first novel, Reality's Dawn, even if it wasn't extensive.

Gabi: Yes, even though I was only in two of the stories, I did play a part in the last story that was key. If not for me, that would have been the end of the series right there. And what was my thanks? The next book, Reality's Ascent, you lock me up in a crystal prison for practically the whole book!

RLC: Yes, I did feel guilty about that. But look at it this way, the readers felt really sorry for you for the whole book too. And you had a couple of good scenes, opening and closing the book. But, that was part of the reason I wanted to give you a starring role in the final book of the trilogy.

Gabi: Indeed, it was quite the part. I had my own point of view for nearly half the book. And not only a big part, but I got to play a part of "eternal significance" to many people, as Father Jonah put it. And it was nice sharing the stage with my daughter, Kaylee. I think we made a good team.

RLC: Naturally, I would agree. But let's talk a bit about your co-star, Josh. Like you, this was his biggest role. He played a part in the first stories of Reality's Dawn as the fledgling wizard. But by the end the second book, we discover that he has become a very powerful wizard. What was it like sharing the limelight with him in Reality's Fire?

Gabi: Yes, he did become a very powerful wizard. He explains that in more detail in this book. However, that turns out not to be as big a help as you'd think in attempting to fulfill my task of finding Kaylee and Nathan, and change the course of events. Naturally, you'll have to read to discover if I succeeded despite that or not.

RLC: How did he make it harder, without giving away any surprises?

Gabi: Let's just say, he doesn't have full control of himself for most of the story. Making him on the unpredictable side. When you have the most powerful wizard in the world not able to control his power, we'll just say, setbacks happen.

RLC: What is your favorite part of the story for you?

Gabi: Despite the frustration of the moment, it was probably turning Josh into a dog.

RLC: We forgot to mention that you end up with a power yourself.

Gabi: Yeah, that steam house. You never know what it is going to do.

RLC: If you had to sum up what this story is about, how would you put it?

Gabi: There's lots of things I could say, but if I were to boil it down, I'd say that the fear of God will either redeem you or defeat you, depending on how you approach Him. Each character experiences that in one way or another.

RLC: I couldn't have said it better myself. Now, let's shift gears a little to some topics the books don't usually touch on. The world you are in, does it have a name?

Gabi: Huh, just the world.

RLC: It doesn't have a name?

Gabi: You call your planet, dirt. Earth.

RLC: Hum, you have a point. But here we have nations like the United States, England, Germany, Australia, and a lot more. Is there anything similar there and why not?

Gabi: Not being from your world, I couldn't say for sure. But our world has a series of city-states. Mostly they get along though there are fights from time to time. A small handful of cities might govern an area, but most have their own king, ruler, or whatever, and they trade and work with neighboring villages and towns in an organic way. So there's not a bigger political entity beyond that.

RLC: And therefore, no need to name a bigger area.

Gabi: There are forest, deserts, and mountain ranges that have names. Like the city I'm in when this book starts out, Reol, is in the Durge Forest.

RLC: So your lands have never experienced wars much?

Gabi: If you believe the myths, thousands of years ago there was a big war between humans and dragons. Some say our peaceful living is in part due to our bonding together back then to fight a common enemy. Most people believe they are scary stories told to frighten kids around camp fires and that dragons don't exist. I used to think as much too, but Sisko's encounter with an invisible dragon gave me pause to wonder about that.

RLC: Interesting. Thank you so much, Gabrielle, for being with us today. Any last words to leave with our readers?

Gabi: Sure. God's reality is the reality. Don't hide from it, embrace it.

RLC: Your on a roll today. Until next time, faithful readers. Be sure to read the series if you haven't and if possible, leave honest reviews on Amazon, Barnes and Noble, and anywhere else you please. You can find the book list at my website along with the other books I've written. Thanks for reading.

Reader's Realm Interview

Today, a new interview with yours truly has "magically" appeared at the Reader's Realm blog site. Not only do you get the sheer pleasure of reading about me and my musings, but by leaving comment, you'll get put in the draw for a chance to win a copy of Reality's Dawn, the first book in "The Reality Chronicles" series. And you'll learn a little bit about my most recently published book, Hero Game.

So don't delay, jump over there and throw in your two cents for a book that would cost you well over ten dollars. Not a bad deal, eh?

New Interview and Chance to Win a Book

Yet another interview is up on Zoe Mack's blog. Want to learn the three things you're not likely to know about me? I divulge that information in this interview! An exclusive!

And not only that, if you leave a comment, you'll get a chance to win a free copy of the book that started it all, Infinite Realities. It is a good sampler of the kinds of stories you'll find in the full novel, Reality's Dawn. So if you've not had a chance to read either book, get yourself over to the blog, read it and laugh at me, and then comment to get your name in the running.

Do it.

Interview at Precarious Yates

Another person has undertaken the grueling task of interviewing me. This interview was specifically concerning my self-publishing work, and my recent self-published novel, Mind Game.

To check out this interview, visit her blog. You may find some other info there of interest as well!

Thanks!

An Interview at Family Fiction And Other News

Yet another interviewer has picked my brain, and in the process, featured my new book, Reality's Dawn. You can read the review at the Family Fiction website.

Also, Chapter 2, "Ship of Surprises," of the space opera adventure, The Underground, is now out on Amazon.com in Kindle, and Barnes and Noble in Nookbook formats.

Shashara goes on her first mission with the Underground cell lead by Father Jonah, and gets to know the team. Some of them she befriends, others she doesn't trust, and yet one surprises her. Together, they face the surprise awaiting them in the space ship they must board.

And one last bit of news, though the official publishing date for the launch of the second book, Reality's Ascent, in The Reality Chronicles is set for May 1, 2011, the book can already be purchased in paperback at Amazon.com and Barnes and Noble. The ebook versions should not be long in coming. If you have never bought or read a copy of the original publication, Transforming Realities, this is the perfect time to correct that glaring hole by getting the new and improved version of the adventure. Same story, but cleaned up a bit, new snazzy cover, and better map of Sisko's world.

A lot happening, so don't miss out!