Interview with Indie author Jeremiah Davis

Today, I'm featuring Jeremiah Davis. He is the author of several books, including Heir and The Chaos Theory. His latest The Hunt for the Great Beasts, Book 1: Water is the first in a series.

Set in a post-war society, the new series follows the remainder of humanity trying to survive and deal with four giant mythical beasts that have come after them.

More about the new series and this young indie author in the exclusive interview below!

Nadaness In Motion: Tell us a bit about yourself and your writing journey.

Jeremiah Davis: I was born in Chicago, Illinois as the only child of my mother. I spent a few years in the city moving around, but eventually moved out to the suburb of Homewood, Illinois. There, I attended grammar and middle school, and during this time was when I began to write. During 4^th and 5^th grade, I wrote little stick figure comics alongside some of my friends, and we were planning to sell them. We didn’t, and they eventually got bored with it, but I didn’t. Instead of comics though, I started writing little books. I would use regular loose leaf paper and create stacks of about forty or fifty sheets; I would staple them together, write stories, and usually just keep them. I didn’t really make them to publish; I mostly made them for myself. 

Due to bullying and social issues, I left Homewood after the 8^th grade and went back to Chicago for high school. I stopped writing during my freshmen year, mostly due to lack of time, but continued reading. Two years passed and it was during the winter of my junior year when I began to write again. It started when I watched an anime called ToraDora (aka Tiger Dragon). It’s about romance, and it made me cry my eyes out; it motivated me to create something that would make me proud to call my own, and thus I began writing again. Unlike the romance based anime, the story I started working on shortly after was tied to mythology and world domination, which are sub-genres that are very interesting to me. Once I finished my book,  I published it with the help of my mother and Amazon, and have not looked back since.

Nadaness In Motion: Who are your favorite authors (past or contemporary)?

JD: When I was younger, I enjoyed the “Hunger Games” series as well as “The Mortal Instruments” series. Though I like the way these two series are done, I can’t necessarily say the writers of either one is my favorite. However, I will say that they do a wonderful job at creating very imaginative universes. My favorite author is Scott Westerfield, creator of the “Leviathan” series.

Nadaness In Motion: Is The Hunt for the Great Beasts Book 1 your first book? What were your previous publications?

JD: No, it is my fourth book. My first book was, “The Chaos Conspiracy,” which I wrote a sequel for called, “The Demons Design.” My third book was a standalone called, “Heir.” The first two are about a man trying to rule the world through godly means, and the third is about three brothers trying to maintain their kingdom after the death of their father.

Nadaness In Motion: How did the idea of the beasts first come to you? (Are any of them monsters that we know from mythology or are they created from scratch?)

JD: I created them from scratch.

Nadaness In Motion: Can you give us a brief idea about the series as a whole? What can readers expect from later books?

JD: The series as a whole will follow a hunter by the name of Curtis and those he travels with. I want it to be a cautionary tale as well as a great read, with a hint of real world influence. It will primarily focus on the hunting of the “Great Beasts,” but also give insight into a society that is trying to rebuild after its previous failures.

Nadaness In Motion: You mentioned 4 books, how far done are you with the remaining three?

JD: I haven’t even started thinking about the fourth book. Right now, I am still trying to come up with an outline for the second and third, but I haven’t begun writing either of them yet. I have a picture, but I’m still trying to make sure I like it.

Nadaness In Motion: Do you write one book at a time, or do scenes pop up in your mind and you add them to the other books' drafts till you get to them?

JD: Usually, I write one book at a time, but I am starting to create outlines for any ideas I get, so that I don’t miss out on what could be a great story. Right now, I have one book in the works, and two outlines for two different types of novels.

Nadaness In Motion: The book name mentions water, will all the beasts (I assume) be related to the elements?

JD: Yes, all four are tied to the four elements: water, earth, air, and fire.

Nadaness In Motion: What was the biggest challenge you face while writing your books and how did you overcome it?

JD: My biggest challenge at first was spelling. Sometimes, my mind is going so fast that my fingers can barely keep up, and I had to learn to slow down when I formulate a story.

Author Jeremiah Davis

Nadaness In Motion: Are you an indie author? Can you tell us about your publishing journey?

JD: Yes, I am completely independent. I have found that my biggest help is the web and people such as you; without reviewers or people who bring attention to smaller authors, I probably wouldn’t even show up on a google search. Advertising can be a very hit or miss situation, and when you pay for it, you mostly expect results; however, I have found that it can work well some times and fail others. I try to use social media to my benefit, but I find that since I am not the most active or popular person, most of my posts go ignored and overlooked. I still have hope though, and will never quit trying; as I continue to write, I try to sharpen my marketing skills as well as my writing ones. Instead of posting only once about an upcoming book, I now post once or twice a week; I make sure my followers can get to the book or my website easily on all of my social media accounts. It takes time, but I am happy to do it, because I know it will pay off.

Nadaness In Motion: Is there anything you'd like to add?

JD: I didn’t mention that I am attending Morehouse in the fall of 2018. Though it does not have to do with my writing, I just thought it might be a fun fact. Thank you so much.

Get in touch and connect with Jeremiah Davis via Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, Goodreads, and Blog. 

Takhayyal Writing Prompt 88: Once Upon a Time

Welcome back Ladies and Gentlemen, Artists, Poets, Writers, Authors, Dreamers, Friends and Family; Welcome EVERYONE to Nadaness In Motion's monthly picture-prompt writing challenge Takhayyal/Imagine.

I'm a tad bit late posting this but I honestly couldn't find anything "inspiring" for an image. I searched on Pinterest, my old images, and a few other places – and I decided enough with the beach pics.

Then I found this one. The opportunities and the ideas are limitless!

Happy writing

Arabic for Imagine, Takhayyal is a challenge for writers of all ages and genres; a place to spark creativity and explore new genres.

Your post can be in English or Arabic, prose, poetry, short story, flash fiction; you name it and write it.

General rules:

·        No nudity, violence, and/or abuse.

·        Leave the link to your post in comments below OR post your piece as REPLY to this post

·        Your piece MUST be inspired in some way or other by the above picture

·        Multiple entries allowed

·        It is not required but it is a nice and encouraging gesture to comment on others' pieces.

·        Feel free to add your Twitter handle (@....) so I can tag you in my tweets!

Let's IMAGINE!

Tales of the Forest by Johanna Sarah Aldridge – Book Review

Book: Tales of the Forest

Author: Johanna Sarah Aldridge

Genres: Adventure, Fantasy, Children's, Middle Grade

Synopsis:

The Forest Realm is a magical world within our own. You cannot see it, nor can you hear it, and only very few might be able to feel it. The realm feeds the hungry, shelters the homeless, and protects the hunted... so long as their hearts are pure.

Recently orphaned, two heartbroken brothers are at risk of separation by the government...

A black Labrador leads a colony of rabbits away from danger...

A destitute family of rats seek a new life away from the pollution of the big city...

All have been rescued by the realm of magic, and their lives are truly about to change.

Come and join us in The Forest where magic thrives, adventures are rife, and friendships last forever.

Book review by Nadaness In Motion

Tales of the Forest by Johanna Sarah Aldridge is a collection of children's stories, featuring a fun, friendly, and overall wonderful cast of characters.

The tales are both connected, in terms of recurring characters, while also being non-sequential. Story no. 1 doesn't lead to story no. 2 but it's recommended that they be read in order because some events are added as background in other stories.

I can't comment on character development because by the end of each story a character – or more – develops in a way or other.

At the beginning we meet two orphaned brothers Ben and Jamie, who find their way into the forest and become one of its inhabitants. They make several appearances in the  stories afterwards.

I found several of the stories to be quite emotional and heartfelt, some even made me teary, including "A Sacred Friendship" and "The Candletree".

"Growing Pains" is one of the strong and emotional stories. It is also about misinterpreted actions and how they affect children and adults alike.

"Fracturing" the third story in the book is simply beautiful, tackling themes and ideas of friends, family, bravery, and helping others.

"Bear Essentials" was very funny and adorable. It's about a bear family going to visit grandma bear and I like how Aldridge portrayed that grandma were the same everywhere, especially with getting a certain pleasure from feeding their children and grandchildren.

"You're way too thin, Felicia dear! You must put some weight on if you're going to survive the winter. And you boys could use some fattening up, too!"

My only comment was that when I picked up this book its genre was labelled as young adult (YA) fantasy. It's a children's book. So I had slightly higher expectations based on the genre. Still, it's a good read.

Although most of the tales are short, the last three ones are quite long. Fun but long considering each of the ones at the beginning could be finished in a sitting. The last three make up 40% of the book.

"A fat bear was a healthy bear, as far as she concerned, any anything less was not good enough."

I absolutely love the cover!

Overall, I enjoyed reading Tales of the Forest. The stories were fun, exciting, funny, and above all magical and cozy. The book is highly recommended for children and for parents to read with their little ones. It is also a great bed-time read with lots of lessons about friendship, family, and love.

Overall rating for Tales of the Forest by Johanna Sarah Aldridge: 4 stars.

Note: I received a free copy of Tales of the Forest by Johanna Sarah Aldridge for a review as part of a blog tour. This has not impacted my review in any way.

Add Tales from the Forest on Goodreads and/or pick it up on Amazon. 

You can also follow the rest of the Tales from the Forest blog tour for more reviews and other posts and exclusive content. 

About the Author:

Jo was born in Colchester, Essex, in 1974 and since an early age has always been accused of having a wild imagination. This didnt stop her from studying for an honours degree in Cell and Molecular Biology, training as a science teacher, then go on to train as a Biomedical Scientist. She eventually took a post in Clinical Chemistry at Jersey General Hospital in the Channel Islands.

Whilst holding down a full time job, and working 28 hour emergency on call shifts, she has managed to find the time to share that wild imagination with the world by writing online fan fiction stories about the CW series Supernatural.

She enjoyed it so much that, with a lot of encouragement from her husband, she decided to write her own stories. Not an easy task for somone dogged by anxiety and depression, and since her diagnosis in 2013 she has also been battling with Ulcerative Colitis.

In spite of her struggles, Tales from the Forest, a series of short stories set in a magical realm, began to take physical form on her laptop screen, and her black labrador Nelson is a valiant hero in some of the stories. As an avid animal lover, she has vowed that all proceeds from the sale of this book series will help to set up a forever home sanctuary for stray, elderly and abandoned dogs.

Although still working full time at the hospital, she has turned her thoughts to the future, and now holds a Diploma in Dog Training from the Centre of Excellence, and is currently studying towards a Diploma in Canine Communication in order to prepare for a life of working with rescue dogs.  

Connect with the Author via: Website * AllAuthor * Facebook * Twitter * Amazon * Goodreads

Excerpts from Manual for a Murder by Goncalo JN Dias

Today, I'm featuring Portuguese author Goncalo JN Dias, who often has lots of interesting ideas for books. I hosted him before on Nadaness In Motion, where we did a short interview with book excerpts from The Good Dictator.

Goncalo has a new book out called MANUAL FOR A MURDER. I'm featuring two excerpts from the book.

Both of Goncalo's books can be found in English and Portuguese.

Synopsis for Manual for a Murder

Marina, a 38-year-old accountant in a crumbling relationship, falls in love with her charming colleague Andre.

Oscar, a homicide detective, is assigned to the case. He is a man dedicated to his work and to his family, and he likes to joke about and mock the typical American police series.

The book is narrated from two perspectives, Marina and Oscar.

The first excerpt is from Marina's view in chapter 1.

Looking back, I can identify several reasons why I fell in love with Andre, and they are largely related to defects that I projected onto Julio to justify my behaviour. His sense of humour was one reason. Andre was funny, with his dark humour, refined and clever, but he could also be melancholy, quiet and needy. He was comfortable talking about his faults, his defeats, failures and fears.

Julio’s sense of humour was more conservative. He was also funny, but he couldn’t laugh at himself. He held himself in high regard, thought that he was intellectually superior to most people, and had an opinion about every topic. He loved to argue and never took the blame for anything. I would be lying if I said that physical factors had no bearing on my choice. During our thirteen years together, Julio had gained over three stone. When we met, he was a handsome young man, almost 5’9” tall and weighing 12 1/2 stone, and with lovely, curly light brown hair. Thirteen years later, he weighed nearly 16 stone. He was practically bald, but refused to accept it by preserving half a dozen hairs in an absurd attempt to hide the fact. He knew that he was becoming fat, but did nothing to get in shape; he constantly made plans but never put them into practice. Andre was no Greek god, but he was clearly more attractive. Every Sunday morning he played squash with friends from university. He had a small belly, but his body was firm, and he was happy to use creams and perfumes.

Julio was a true gentleman when he made love; he always asked permission, and if I said that I wasn’t in the mood, he understood and never insisted. He liked to talk during the act, to ask me if everything was good, if I wanted to change position. At the end, he wanted me to approve of his performance. Andre never asked permission; he won the right to make love through his insistence, confidence and determination. He never spoke during the act, nor asked for an assessment. He knew that he satisfied me.

However, out of all the reasons I could find to justify my actions, what really made me want to be with Andre was hope: the fantasy of being with someone who understood me, who didn’t criticize me, who saw the world through the same eyes; it was the belief that Andre would banish all my ghosts, my doubts and anxieties, and that I would once again dream, fly, have projects and ambitions, wake up in the morning with a lust for life. What I saw in Andre was hope, so much hope.

  

The second excerpt is from Oscar, a homicide detective, who is assigned to the case. From chapter 2 in Manual for a Murder.

The autopsy results came on Monday. There were no signs of violence or rape. The victim had been injected with bleach or a similar cleaner and then, already unconscious, had died in the fire with her hands cuffed to that car’s armrest, so that she couldn’t flee and survive. Pretty macabre and sick. Neither on her body nor on the remains of her burnt clothes did we find any fibre from anyone we could use as evidence. Which led to another question: if she had been killed for money, why hadn’t the killer withdrawn anymore? Or stolen her laptop or her wedding ring?

There were several questions to ask Sofia’s relatives, principally Andre, so we waited until the funeral that Wednesday, and then, on the followings days, we called in different relatives to give statements. The funeral was held at the Limiar Cemetery, fairly close to the deceased’s house. It was full of people, relatives, friends, colleagues, acquaintances, and the curious. I watched Andre carefully, looking for some abnormal reaction or odd closeness, but I detected nothing.

Add Manual for a Murder by Goncalo JN Dias on Goodreads and stay tuned for the book review by Nadaness In Motion!

Follow Goncalo JN Dias on Facebook, Twitter, Goodreads, Blog, and Amazon.

Purchase Manual for a Murder via Kobo or Amazon.

About Goncalo JN Dias and his books

The life of this character is full of contradictory information and rumours. Both his date of birth and home town are uncertain. Some say he hails from a suburban ghetto in Lisbon, Portugal; while others claim that he was born in eastern Russia, in the city of Vladivostok, sometime in the ‘60s.

According to gossips, he worked for the Reagan Administration in the early ‘80s, and helped to weaken the Soviet economy, although others say that he worked for the KGB as a spy in the western world.

At the end of the ‘80s, he was spotted in Seattle, working as a grunge music producer under the pseudonym of Johnny Blanco.

Goncalo JN Dias

His location was a mystery for over a decade until, at the beginning of the century, he emerged as an executive in the burka trade between the mountains of Pakistan and Afghanistan with the name of Mustafa Blanco. Clashes between the Taliban and US troops forced him to vanish again for a while.

Nowadays, there are some rumours that he became a hermit and lives in the woods of a small town, No Name, Colorado, United States, spending his time reading and writing; others, however, claim that he resides in Tennessee as a country music singer, with the name Marcogekson Blanco.

What is certain is that he wrote two books. The first one, The Good Dictator, was a real failure; although it was translated into several languages, it only sold two copies.  The second one, Manual for a Murder, was said to incite violence and killing, and has been banned in several countries, including Tuvalu and Kyrgyzstan.

A Court of Thorns and Roses by Sarah J. Mass – Book Review

Book: A Court of Thorns and Roses

(A Court of Thorns and Roses, book 1)

Author: Sarah J. Mass

Publication date: 5 May 2015

Publisher: Bloomsbury

Synopsis:

Feyre's survival rests upon her ability to hunt and kill – the forest where she lives is a cold, bleak place in the long winter months. So when she spots a deer in the forest being pursued by a wolf, she cannot resist fighting it for the flesh. But to do so, she must kill the predator and killing something so precious comes at a price...

Dragged to a magical kingdom for the murder of a faerie, Feyre discovers that her captor, his face obscured by a jewelled mask, is hiding far more than his piercing green eyes would suggest. Feyre's presence at the court is closely guarded, and as she begins to learn why, her feelings for him turn from hostility to passion and the faerie lands become an even more dangerous place. Feyre must fight to break an ancient curse, or she will lose him forever.

Book review by Nadaness In Motion

A Court of Thorns and Roses is the first instalment in a series of the same name by Sarah J. Mass. It's my first read for Mass. It might take me a while it pick something else by her, although I was planning to read Throne of Glass.

The beginning opens with Feyre hunting and then a scene with her family, both revealing her character. Feyre is harsh on the inside and because of her hard life, a useless father, two useless sisters, she's also created a prickly exterior (not literally). I actually liked her then but the beginning trailed too long and I started getting bored. I wanted "the action", which came in quite late.

A Court of Thorns and Roses is narrated from the first person perspective of Feyre, the youngest of three with a broken father, and whose mother passed away without offering her a chance of education. Feyre has learnt to survive and taught herself to hunt. One day in the forest, she is tracking a deer but instead finds a wolf following the same deer. She kills both but the wolf isn't what it appears and Feyre is now indebted to the High Fae of Prythian.

"We need hope as much as we need bread and meat," he interrupted, his eyes clear for a rare moment. "We need hope, or else we cannot endure. So let her keep this hope, Feyre. Let her imagine a better life. A better world."

"There is no such thing."

While there was some fresh imagery in the book, there were A LOT of repeated images. I liked the "tore me to ribbons" image, and thought it was creative, but it was used once per chapter for six chapters! That's just overkill. The word 'feral' was used 17 times in the book. 17 times! I mean the English language must have some other words to replace this.

These are the most notable examples of repetition that really bugged me in the book. They also made me feel like I was not progressing. Didn't I read this before?

Despite never seeing fae in her life, Feyre is able to determine who is high fae and who isn't, which didn't appear logic to me.

Image via the Throne of Glass blog

There is a bit of a Beauty and the Beast theme in there. Although Tamlin, the masked High Fae, is not entirely a beast. He's actually more likeable than Feyre. The romance in the book is ok.

Even though we see Feyre as selfless with her family, when she meets Tamlin, she becomes selfish in her selflessness. I liked her varying character traits. In the end, her fight and strength are admirable.

Her thoughts and the endless repetition of the need to go back home after being sent to live with the fae are tiresome and could be trimmed down, though. 

His eyes became clearer and bolder than I'd seen them in years. "You were always too good for here, Feyre. Too good for us, too good for everyone." He squeezed my hands. "If you ever escape, ever convince them that you've paid the debt, don't return."

Feyre has an oversized inferiority complex. Despite that, she's a strong but emotionless and harsh character. Her development is slow but there. I loved Tamlin and Lucien. We also meet Rhysand, the trickster Highlord of the Night Court, who is set to appear in future books. I liked and disliked him at the same time. A kind of Snape character with a wry sense of selfishness and humour.

I felt that A Court of Thorns and Roses went on and on and on. I'd read several pages and then check the percentage completed and I'd find I haven't progressed much. The novel took a while to unfold to get to the important and interesting parts. Even towards the end, I felt that Mass had strained certain parts beyond the limit. The book was at an important turning point and the events needed to move faster.

I did like, however, how Mass kept throwing problems in Feyre's way. Testing her to very last breath.

I think I might have had higher hopes for this book. The length didn't help. When I checked book 2 and realised it was over 600 pages long, I was totally put off.  

Overall, I felt that A Court of Thorns and Roses could have been better. As I read books, I try to learn from them. I learnt the cost of repetition. I totally docked one star off my review for that.

Overall rating: 3 stars

An Early Wake by Sheila Connolly - Book Review

An Early Wake by Sheila Connolly is the third book in the County Cork Mystery series. I was surprised to discover that it was the third book (didn't realise it when I bought it) because it reads like the first. Connolly gives great background so you don't feel like you've never met the characters before.

The novel is set in Leap, a small town in Cork Country, Ireland. Maura Donovan has inherited a pub from her grandmother. This was six months ago, but Maura still has a lot to learn. She interacts well with her part-time employees, even those that had been hoping for a share in the business but didn't get it.

One day a musician who had been famous a few decades back enters the pub and talk ignites of a musical reunion. Business kicks is better than the whole tourist season on the day of the music event, but the following morning Maura opens the pub to find a dead body.

One of the things I liked in An Early Wake was the use of Irish pronunciation and occasional Old Irish words, stuff like good morning and good luck. Some of those weren't translated, which was a bit hard to understand, but can easily be skipped. Irish pronunciation gives a strong feel for the novel. It had me practicing speaking like the characters a bit (don't try it out loud in public, you'll look weird).

"We've set the bird to flight and the ball to rolling and the clock to ticking. It'll be a day like no other since yer arrival."

On the flipside, I found Maura's character as difficult to believe. She repeatedly mentions that she's around 25 years old but surprisingly doesn't act like it. She doesn't have a mobile phone that takes images and is entirely unfamiliar with such technology. Throughout the book, I often felt that she was over 50 not just 25, even when she compares her age to the slightly younger police officer Sean Murphy, making him look like a kid, while she deems herself more mature as if she were his mother.

It took a long while for the death and mystery to take place, a little over 100 pages in fact. The bit at the beginning isn't boring but I picked An Early Wake for the mystery not just the background information, so I was disappointed that the "mystery" was delayed.

The characters are down to earth and likeable. They are a close community that Maura is surprised to discover she's become part of. A family she's never had. One of the things I liked was the touch of romance but that comes towards the end. I'd love to learn what happens in that area.

The mystery could use more suspects and more action. The setting, characters, background are great, but the mystery, which should be the focus of the novel, isn't. I felt it was kind of stuck in the novel.

The dialogue was shabby and often didn't reveal much. There was a TONNE of repetition, with Maura having to repeat conversations to various characters. This could have been skipped or just mentioned as "Maura repeated what Sean had told her to Mick and Jimmy" or "Maura described the situation to Mick but decided to keep the...information to herself." This over-repetition bothered me (so I'm docking 1 star because of it). Imagery was minimal, if any.

The way the music event takes off is repeated so many times in almost the same way, it was over the top annoying. Sadly this book isn't an e-book, otherwise I would have pointed out the number of time that was repeated.

An Early Wake does contain a lot of history and background on Irish music, which I found interesting. Maura has no idea about it and neither did I. But I liked seeing a few band names I recognised and had no idea were Irish.

Overall, I think An Early Wake could have been a lot stronger and more memorable. I liked the characters and the way they take care of each other, and the romance bits.

Overall rating for An Early Wake by Sheila Connelly: 2.5-3 stars. It needs more work.

Takhayyal Writing Prompt 87- July: TIME

Summer here is going head strong, which means we're melting or hiding next to the air conditioner. I'm taking 38 Celsius/100+Fahrenheit almost all week. 

For June, I thought the mighty Mediterranean would be a good inspiration and writing prompt. For July, I'm thinking it's all about TIME. 

How you spend it - or waste it, plans and deadlines, all of that. Feel free to mix the June and July writing prompts.

Ready? 

Get set...

GO!

Arabic for Imagine, Takhayyal is a challenge for writers of all ages and genres; a place to spark creativity and explore new genres. Your post can be in English or Arabic, prose, poetry, short story, flash fiction; you name it and write it.

General rules:

·        No nudity, violence, and/or abuse.

·        Leave the link to your post in comments below OR post your piece as REPLY to this post

·        Your piece MUST be inspired in some way or other by the above picture

·        Multiple entries allowed

·        It is not required but it is a nice and encouraging gesture to comment on others' pieces.

·        Feel free to add your Twitter handle (@....) so I can tag you in my tweets!

Let's IMAGINE!