Congratulations on the recent release of your first novel, The Adventures of Stanley Delacourt: Book I of Hartlandia. How does it feel to be a published author?

Thank you so much for your well wishes, Mr. Schmidt! It feels very gratifying to finally have this book in the world. It’s been in my head for nearly ten years, hollering to get out!

Can you tell our readers a bit about the novel?

Ten-year-old Stanley Delacourt loves his quiet life in the peaceful village of Meadowwood. At least, he does until his best friend is killed. Then the town library—where Stanley lives and works—is burned to the ground. The individuals responsible for both tragedies are a nasty group of soldiers. They work for the kingdom’s new leader: Christopher Siren.

No one understands the rules Siren’s creating. They don’t know why breaking them means death, or why the leader is so keen to destroy books. And no one can figure out where the former queen and king disappeared to—or if they’ll ever return.

With the grown-ups too fearful to take action, Stanley vows to confront Siren. He plans to get answers and demand justice. Little does he know that his journey will involve sword-wielding knights, kidnapper fairies, and dark magic.

Stanley has only two allies back home. One is an intimidated witch named Meredith. The other is a young apothecary called Sophie—who may have enchantment problems of her own. Can they help him discover the reason behind Siren’s crimes and end this terrible reign? Or is Stanley set to become the next victim in the tyrant’s evil plot?

If you enjoy the fantasy works of Rick Riordan, Lemony Snicket, or Philip Pullman, then explore the world of Stanley Delacourt today!

Although the book is set in the fictional Hartlandia, the story begins in the village of Meadowwood. I couldn’t help but be reminded of The Shire and other literary towns that time forgot. Where did you draw your inspiration from for these worlds?

It’s funny you reference works like The Hobbit and Lord of the Rings—that’s sort of the feeling I was going for. Not to copy Tolkien of course, but to return to that need for home deep within us. I specifically wanted to create a timeless world where nothing changed—until adventure came calling!

As the title suggests, in the book we’re following the journey of young Stanley Delacourt, a shy, quiet, but precocious boy. He’s obviously had to grow up a lot faster than most kids, but it’s obvious he still has a youthful fascination with the world. What was the thought process that went into creating this character, and do you feel like he’s an identifiable figure for any particular type of reader?

The character is a combination of someone I knew in real life, and my own relationship with the world. Specifically, Stanley is the part of me that is (was?) afraid to take a chance. Some of us won’t do anything outside our comfort zone unless we’re pushed to. And as you can see from your reading, Stanley is definitely pushed! I think shy, quiet kids (and some adults) can relate to him, as well as anyone who wants to escape the real world . . . but can’t.

Correct me if I’m wrong, but I believe you plan to turn this book into a trilogy. Do you already have the entire adventure mapped out, or is the story still evolving?

You are correct, sir! The Adventures of Stanley Delacourt is indeed the first of a trilogy. I have the adventure mapped out for Book II of Hartlandia, but Book III is still evolving. However, I am planting seeds in Book II that will sprout into exciting things in Book III. The most exciting part is . . . not even I know what they are yet!

Without giving too much away, will Stanley’s journeys give readers a glimpse into the full world of Hartlandia? You mentioned earlier that ‘need for home’ that Meadowwood provides to readers, so I’m wondering if you will continue to come back to that setting.

Wow—you ask very insightful questions! Rest assured that I will flesh out a great deal more about Hartlandia. I plan to do this throughout the trilogy, as well as other novels, novellas, and short stories that take place in that world. Meadowwood remains a setting throughout the first and second volumes. However, in the third one, the main characters will once again have to venture outside their comfort zones and leave the village.

Ilana Waters, author of the Stanley Delacourt series

You also mentioned earlier that you had this book in mind for 10 years. What was the tipping point in getting you to write and publish it?

I finally got to the point where I had to follow my dream of being a writer. I was in a very stable job, but it failed to satisfy me (to say the least). I thought I’d got what I wanted. But when it wasn’t enough to make me happy, I decided to take the leap into something that did. To my delight and surprise, Stanley was waiting. 

What are your thoughts on the Young Adult genre in literature today? Obviously big name series like Harry Potter or The Hunger Games have made people of all ages take notice.

I think the Young Adult (YA) genre today is fantastic. I wish we’d had books like this when I was a teen. I mean, we did to some extent, but not nearly in the numbers we have now. There were a few Middle Grade (MG) and YA fantasy authors, like Tamora Pierce and Patricia C. Wrede. But most literature—especially fantasy—was aimed at adults. If you were younger and not up to that reading level, there was little from which you could choose. Now we have things written at all levels, being enjoyed by all ages. It’s a great time to be a writer for young people!

I’m big on technology, so I’d like to know what you think about e-readers and self-publishing methods that allow more authors to get their works to more people. What has this done for you personally, and do you feel like this is necessarily a good thing for the industry?

I used to despise technology. Then, with a lot of practice (and more than a little hair-pulling), I slowly realized its benefits. I think a lot of this had to do with online shopping.

And that’s sort of what e-readers (and free e-reading apps) are all about, in a way. The bridge between authors and readers has shortened considerably, making for a much more streamlined experience. What this has done for me (and countless other authors) is let us launch new careers over which we have complete control. Of course, it also comes with a ton of work, but I think the freedom is worth it.

I also think the new technology is a great thing for the publishing industry in general. Readers get more books faster and cheaper. Their money is then freed up to pursue traditionally-published books as well, so that side of the industry benefits. Really, I think whatever is done to get people reading more can only be good for the business side of things.

Readers can pick up Book I of Stanley’s adventures right now, but when can we expect to see the sequel?

I’m hoping to have the sequel to Stanley out sometime in 2013. But before that, I’ll have a Hartlandia novella and short story made into e-books. Oh, and a vampire paranormal romance as well—really! Because I heard there was a shortage. So hopefully, readers who enjoy Stanley will have something to tide them over until that sequel!

Thank you for your time.

Thank you, Mr. Schmidt, for having me on your site! 

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© 2012 – 2013, The Indie Mine. All rights reserved.

Drawing comparisons to the works of Miami-based author Carl Hiaasen, these two novels take the reader on adventures all the way from North Carolina to Europe with a number of quirky, flawed characters revealed along the way. Check out the summaries below then head on over to Cokas’ author page on Amazon for reviews or to pick up either novel. Both titles are currently available in either Kindle or paperback formats.

Seeking refuge from a corporate scandal, Wally Gibbs trades his corner office in Chicago for a tweed jacket with elbow patches in a quaint college town. He soon realizes he wasn’t meant to teach marketing; he was meant to reinvent it. And the timing is right. To Wally’s perverse delight, the economy has brought consumers everywhere to their knees. In Wally’s own words, “people are so desperate to lop thirty cents off a cantaloupe, they’d give a urine sample at the checkout.” During a routine colonoscopy, he envisions a new hyper-efficient marketing vehicle, which he labels “Project Argus.”

As Wally ensnares his unsuspecting students in the beta test, Project Argus catches the attention of eight-fingered frustrated campus policeman Nick Pappas. Sensing a connection to an unsolved student death, Nick becomes obsessed with exposing the scheme, even “deputizing” student cartoonist Zak Dawson to do the digging he can’t. The pair follows Wally to a tiny Greek island, where he acquires a rare exotic gem that he smuggles back home and turns over to a local jeweler. Within a few days, the hottest-selling graduation ring in the school’s history is quietly collecting data—and claiming lives.

Ring of Fire is a quirky suspense full of wry social satire, combining offbeat characters, a contemporary twisted plot and a setting that’s equal parts academia and Aegean Sea. Those who appreciate the offbeat characters and unconventional plots of Carl Hiaasen, Tim Dorsey and Janet Evanovich should thoroughly enjoy Ring of Fire.

© 2012 – 2013, The Indie Mine. All rights reserved.

Hi Andy. We’re here to specifically talk about your novel The Darkening Dream, but before we get into that I’d like to discuss Andy Gavin the author. You’re probably best known for being a co-founder of video game studio Naughty Dog. Can you tell us a bit about the journey that took you from there to becoming an author? When and how did your interest in writing begin?

From at least high school on I always intended to write a bunch of novels. Work just got in the way.

And the thing about making games is that you can no longer do it mostly by yourself. These days, most games are big teams of over a hundred people, with budgets over 50 million dollars. It’s no longer about your creative expression (most of the time), but about getting it done well, on time, and on budget. And the role of team lead is largely about fire fighting and resource (achem… people) wrangling.

So, I really wanted to focus directly on the creative aspects. Dozens of story ideas have been bouncing around in my head for years, and I felt it was time to let a couple of them out.

Have there been any times where you began to doubt your future as an author?

Of course. Fundamentally I believe in the strength of my writing and I get enough positive feedback to support that, but novels have a visibility problem. There are hundreds of thousands published every year and only a few rise to popularity. I’m pretty confident that a lot of people who read my books will love them, I just worry that not enough will find them.

Have you considered going back into game development?

I occasionally evaluate what that might mean. I love video games. They are also very creative, and it’s a bigger industry dollar-wise. But games today are also large projects that take a lot of money and people to get started.

You’ve had a lot of interests over the years and you seem to really dive into whatever creative field it is you’re currently working in. Knowing that, I’m curious if you have any opinions on the self-publishing scene?

I never do anything halfway. So in 2010 I read about 20 books on publishing and query writing and spent hundreds of hours researching and querying agents. Since I’ve self published one book and also have a real literary agent (my second book is on submission to New York) I know a bit about both.

The traditional route is all about waiting and bashing your head against a wall. You query and query, investing time and emotional currency, only to get back very little feedback. I eventually landed a great agent, although it took two books to do it. Then you submit and wait and also get very little feedback. With self publishing you have control of your destiny. I think with The Darkening Dream I made an A quality product. It’s heavily edited and proofed, professional typeset, and has a brilliant cover by acclaimed fantasy artist Cliff Nielsen. I have a great Kindle edition, a beautiful trade paperback, and a gorgeous hard cover edition (rare for an Indie book). But the marketing and sales arena is new and constantly shifting. There is no guaranteed way to get it out there and advertising is not very effective for novels. So you have to be creative and lucky.

Let’s talk about your first novel, The Darkening Dream, which released earlier this year. It’s a dark fantasy novel set in early twentieth century Salem. What made you settle on both the genre and the time period?

When I started writing the book I wasn’t thinking YA/adult, I was just thinking about my story. I find this age based slotting to be a recent and artificial construct of the big chain bookstores and marketing departments. Regardless, I like to read books with young protagonists, and you write what you like to read. In some ways, the meta idea of The Darkening Dream is a twisted gritty historic reinvention of Buffy the Vampire Slayer (which is my favorite television show of all time). I wanted to emulate the angst and wonder factor of dealing with newly discovered weirdness as a young person, but also ground the entire story in researched and “real” magic and occult, and “sell” it via a very hardboiled and matter of fact style.

As a history buff, I’m always thinking, “that could have been so much better if they didn’t make up the historical backstory” so I started with the villains. What kind of ancient evil creatures might still be around? What do they want? And what legitimate human reason would they have to destroy the world (which is so Buffy)? I don’t exactly answer the question in TDD, because the motives of 5,000 year old baddies should be mysterious. But trust me, they have a plan, and the sheer audacity of it will literally shake the foundations of the heavens.

The focal point of the novel is Sarah, a young girl coming of age and fearing the pressures of what that brings. Were there any challenges in writing a young, female lead from that time period?

I chose 1913 for a number of reasons. I wanted a time before mobile phones and the internet and a time when people’s knowledge of the world left a little more room for mystery. Additionally, as I always intended this as a series with long lived (achem… immortal) characters, I wanted some runway to cross through history. I also loved the idea of a “vampire in the trenches” so I stuck it right before World War I.

Fundamentally, I think I settled on a female protagonist because of contrast. A bookish female is the less expected character in the role of budding sorcerer and central pivot. I enjoyed trying to get inside the female head. They’re more exotic and foreign. I like exotic and foreign.

There are a lot of different supernatural elements to The Darkening Dream. Did you have any particular literary or religious influences that helped shape the story you created?

The book has a bunch of themes, but one of the overriding ones is the relativity of belief. Each religion, and even esoteric belief structure, has its own lens through which to view the world. I wanted to envision a system that made real the myriad magical and supernatural ideas people have historically held. But how to properly envision a world in which vampires, the Archangel Gabriel, witchcraft, and Egyptian gods all exist? Many writers might just toss them together arbitrarily, but I wanted to find a framework consistent with traditional mysticism. Having read hundreds of religious and magical texts I have identified numerous consistencies in the thought patterns of the esoteric mind. I have a more extensive write up on my magical researches here.

What was the experience like finally getting that first book out the door? Relief? Fear? Triumph?

After nine or more drafts, total exhaustion. Like a game release, it was very anticlimactic.

Judging by Amazon and other sources, the reviews seem overwhelmingly positive. Do you feel like that’s an affirmation that you’re doing just fine? Is it inspiring you to try even harder? Basically, what’s your reaction to the feedback you’ve received?

Reviews have been great. About 50 professional and blog reviews have been posted and eighty-seven on Amazon. The overwhelming majority are positive, even some going as far as to say it’s one of their favourite books ever. A few people love the book but don’t love the ending. But even Publishers Weekly, notoriously hardass, gave it a starred review and said, “Gorgeously creepy, strangely humorous, and sincerely terrifying tale.”

It’s gratifying that a lot of people seem to get what I was trying to do with the book and enjoy it.

What audience do you feel like your novel is targeted at? Who do you feel would get the most enjoyment out of it?

The book has a couple different audiences. At one level it’s a fast paced horror story packed with action, pretty solid characters, and even a bit of dark humor. I tried to marry a fairly hardboiled realistic tone with some pretty wild and dark stuff. The overall effect is pretty creepy and should appeal to those that like HBO fantasy dramas (True Blood, Carnivàle). There’s also a lot of interesting history and religious and occult detail in there which appeals to an older more historically oriented audience. But I tried not to ever let it bog the story, which (at Renni’s insistence) just moves and moves. Finally, the book has young characters and some romance for the younger fan of urban fantasy (Laurell K. Hamilton, Kim Harrison, Jim Butcher).

You’ve already been hard at work on your next novel, Untimed. In what ways has the writing process for that novel benefitted from your experiences writing The Darkening Dream?

I learned a tremendous amount while writing (and more importantly revising) The Darkening Dream. I used these lessons to make Untimed a stronger and more sellable novel. In early drafts TDD was too long and too unfocused, so for Untimed I chose a single first-person point of view. This helped focus the book. I also worked to make this voice unique and individual from the start. It’s unclear how much this matters to readers, but agents and editors love “voicey” prose. And perhaps most importantly, I went with a more high concept story that begins with a big hook and a dramatic inciting event in the first chapter.

Do you have any advice for up-and-coming authors out there?

Read, read, write, write, edit, edit, edit. And hire good professional help too. Friends and family can give you a sense of how the book reads, but they can’t usually tell you how to fix anything serious. I’ve read a lot of half-decent Indie books on my Kindle that are at their core good, but just need some serious tightening and polish. Hell, I’ve read plenty of big-six bestsellers you can say this about.

Thanks for taking the time to talk to us today.

If you’re curious about The Darkening Dream, you can read the first couple of chapters for free via the official website.
 For updates on Andy Gavin and his future projects, be sure to Follow him on Twitter and Subscribe on Facebook.

© 2012 – 2013, The Indie Mine. All rights reserved.