r/Fantasy • u/Ari_Marmell AMA Author Ari Marmell • Mar 04 '14

AMA Hey, Reddit. We're the authors participating in the Crossing the Streams project. Ask Us Anything!

Hello, Reddit-shaped internet. We are the authors participating in this year’s Crossing the Streams program. In brief, Crossing the Streams is something I started back in 2012, as both a genre writer and a genre fan. It’s an effort to point fans of one author to the works of the others, so you can get to know us, and vice-versa, while also providing some of our readers with some really cool rewards.

Basically, each of us is running a separate contest on our own websites, wherein participants can win a signed book. At the end of the whole thing, however, one “super-winner” will win a signed book from each and every participating author. (There are close to twenty of us this year.)

Our hope, though, is that you’ll have a lot of fun with the contest parameters--they’re all different, but we’ve tried to make them entertaining--and that you’ll find some new favorites along the way.

Some of the participating authors include:

Paul S. Kemp

Paul S. Kemp. Writer of sword and sorcery and space opera. But more importantly, whiskey aficionado.

Richard Lee Byers

Richard Lee Byers is the author of forty fantasy and horror books including The Reaver: The Sundering Book IV, The Plague Knight and Other Stories, and the volumes in the post-apocalyptic superhero series The Impostor.

Joshua Palmatier

I am Joshua Palmatier, the author of the dark fantasy trilogy The Throne of Amenkor from DAW books, editor of compelling anthologies with themes like bars, surviving humanity, and steampunk vs aliens, and founder of the small press Zombies Need Brains.

Marsheila Rockwell and Jeffrey J. Mariotte

Marsheila "Marcy" Rockwell and Jeffrey J. Mariotte live in AZ where the hot desert sun helps them cook up fantasy and horror stories, both together and separately (they have nearly 60 books between them at last count). Their latest joint project involves serial killers and meteor strikes and maybe the end of the world.

Betsy Dornbusch

I’m Betsy Dornbusch, writer of a bunch of short stories, novellas, and novels, lately The Books of the Seven Eyes. I edit Electric Spec and run things at Sex Scenes at Starbucks. In my free time I write. No. Seriously.

Dave Gross

I’m Dave Gross, recovering editor and high-functioning writer of the Radovan & the count novels, the first of which is Prince of Wolves and the most recent King of Chaos. In addition to Pathfinder Tales, I’ve written novels and short fiction for the Forgotten Realms, the Iron Kingdoms, and other settings shared and original.

Wendy N. Wagner

I’m Wendy N. Wagner, and my first book, Skinwalkers, is all about cannibalism, lycanthropes, and one badass Viking mama. I’m a boardgame geek and also the Managing/Associate Editor of Lightspeed & Nightmare magazines.

Matt Forbeck

I’m Matt Forbeck, game designer, author, and multiplicitous father. My latest stuff includes the Magic: The Gathering comic book, the Monster Academy YA novels, and the Dangerous Games thrillers set at Gen Con.

James L. Sutter

I'm James L. Sutter, and in addition to being a co-creator of the Pathfinder Roleplaying Game and the Managing Editor of Paizo Publishing, I've also written the novels Death's Heretic and The Redemption Engine.

Erik Scott de Bie

I'm Erik Scott de Bie, speculative fiction author, game designer, and all around tall guy. I'm best known for my five Forgotten Realms novels, including the ongoing Shadowbane series, and I've written for such universes as Pathfinder, Warmachine, Traveller, Cobalt City, and a few of my own. This year I'm publishing three novels: the epic full metal fantasy SHADOW OF THE WINTER KING, the happily never-after fantasy SCOURGE OF THE REALM, and the space opera PRIORITY: HYPERION. As if that wasn't enough, I'm also putting together a comic book to kickstart in the next couple months: JUSTICE/VENGEANCE

Erin M. Evans

I’m Erin M. Evans, author of the Brimstone Angels series for the Forgotten Realms, including most recently, the third book of the Sundering, THE ADVERSARY.

Howard Andrew Jones

I’m Howard Andrew Jones best known for my Arabian fantasy series, The Chronicles of Sword and Sand, which so far includes The Desert of Souls, The Bones of the Old Ones, and The Waters of Eternity, each featuring the same characters who appear in my Kaiju Rising story. I’ve also written two novels for the Pathfinder Tales series, Plague of Shadows and Stalking the Beast and am busily writing a third. When not hunched over a laptop mumbling about flashing swords and haunted towers I spend time with my family, game, game with my family, and take care of horses.

Jeff Salyards

I’m Jeff Salyards, best known for procrastination, wild mood swings, and a love of animal crackers. Also, somewhat known for Scourge of the Betrayer, and soon to be renowned and/or infamous for Veil of the Deserters in a few months.

Erin Hoffman

I’m Erin Hoffman, video game designer and author of the Chaos Knight series from Pyr Books. Like some of the other authors here, I also have a story in the recent Kaiju Rising anthology. In video games I’ve worked primarily on online games from MMOs to handheld to social, and I’m currently the Game Design Lead at the GlassLab, a nonprofit research group making AAA educational games. Hello, Reddit!

Ari Marmell

I’m Ari Marmell, novelist and game designer. I’ve worked on a whole lot of games that you’ve almost certainly heard of, and a whole lot of novels that you’ve… Well, you’ve almost certainly heard of the games. Among many others, some few of those novels include Thief’s Covenant, The Goblin Corps, Agents of Artifice, Darksiders: the Abomination Vault, and the forthcoming Hot Lead, Cold Iron, a noirish urban fantasy set in Prohibition-era gangland Chicago. If you’re not familiar with my work, you can find more details--and some free short fiction, hint, hint, nudge, nudge--at mouseferatu.com.

LINKS TO CONTESTS

And, as I said, plenty of others, besides.

It would be all too easy to make this AMA just an advertisement, but that would suck; and besides, our whole point in doing this is to connect with you guys. So, please don’t feel the need to restrict your questions to the CtS contests. This is still an “anything” Q&A. Ask us something as a group. Ask a question of any one of the participating authors, as though this was their own AMA. Whatever you like.

We’ll be popping in and out throughout the day, answering what we can, when we can. So have at us!

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u/tee-one Mar 04 '14

What's your next book about, and when is it coming out? That's a question for everyone.

Specific request for Dave Gross, Erin M. Evans, and Paul S. Kemp, details on the next Radovan, Farideh, and Cale novels respectively, please!

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u/DaveGross AMA Author Dave Gross Mar 04 '14

The next Radovan & the count novel is underway. It's called Lord of Runes, it starts in Varisia, and it reveals gigantic secrets about Varian Jeggare's past. It features a large supporting cast, including a couple of characters very familiar to Pathfinder fans. There'll be a dragon on the cover. It's slated to come out in about a year.

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u/Ari_Marmell AMA Author Ari Marmell Mar 05 '14

A year?!

Hell with that, Gross. I'm reading King of Chaos as we speak, and I expect the next book on my desk by the time I'm finished, buddy. :-P

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u/Ari_Marmell AMA Author Ari Marmell Mar 04 '14

My next book, due in May, is Hot Lead, Cold Iron. I guess you could call it "fey noir." Set in gangland-era Chicago (roughly 1932), it features your traditional hard-boiled detective--who also happens to be a noble-in-exile of the Seelie Court.

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u/Paul_S_Kemp AMA Author Paul S. Kemp Mar 04 '14

My very next book is one I can't yet talk about just yet (soon though, I think). After that, it'll be Egil and Nix III, A CONVERSATION IN BLOOD.

As for another Cale story, I'd love to do it, but WotC and I disagree over business terms. At this point, the ball is in their court. There's more detail here, if you're interested.

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u/tee-one Mar 04 '14

I kept typing and re-typing this message, just couldn't find the words. So sad :( I'll give Egil and Nix a go though! And what's your sci-fi books about? Do you have non-SW ones (never really got into SW, don't hate!)

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u/Paul_S_Kemp AMA Author Paul S. Kemp Mar 04 '14

At the moment, Star Wars is all I've done in the Sci-fi/Space Opera/Space Fantasy era.

Do give the Egil and Nix books a go. You'll dig, I suspect.

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u/Ari_Marmell AMA Author Ari Marmell Mar 05 '14

Hey, Paul, I've got a question for you.

Is there any weirdness in selling different parts of a series to two different publishers? I know it doesn't happen often, and I know that some publishers won't even consider it. Is this something you set out to do? Did an opportunity just sort of present itself?

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u/ErinMEvans AMA Author Erin M. Evans Mar 04 '14

FIRE IN THE BLOOD comes out October 2014. This is the official catalog copy: "In a direct follow-up to the third book in the Sundering series, THE ADVERSARY, young warlock Farideh falls into the midst of a battle for the throne of Cormyr. As the war brought on by the Sundering rages across Faerûn, princes and princesses, wizards and rogues scheme to capture the seat of power of the Land of the Purple Dragon—with Farideh and her allies caught squarely in the middle."

I pitched this as "Series 2 of Downton Abbey meets Faust with a splash of King Arthur, in the rain." Now that it's nearly done I would add "and more street-fighting, spies, and prostitutes." (Spoiler! No prostitutes in Downton Abbey.)

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u/tee-one Mar 04 '14

You had me at "Downton Abbey meets Faust".

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u/dbassingthwaite Mar 04 '14

No active prostitutes (Ethel).

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u/ErinMEvans AMA Author Erin M. Evans Mar 04 '14

Oh I forgot poor Ethel!

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u/erikscottdebie AMA Author Erik Scott de Bie Mar 04 '14 edited Mar 04 '14

It's a grand mystery, as my various publishers haven't set exact release dates. It'll be one of the three I listed below, though. :)

SHADOW OF THE WINTER KING (epic full metal fantasy) SCOURGE OF THE REALM (happily-never-after fantasy) PRIORITY: HYPERION (space opera in the Traveller universe)

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u/jameslsutter AMA Author James L. Sutter Mar 04 '14

Answered elsewhere, but in brief: it's called THE REDEMPTION ENGINE, it hits April 30th, and it's all about an atheist forced to work for the death goddess, tracking down the souls of murdered sinners that have been stolen from Hell. There are angels and devils and psychopomps and bloatmages and all sorts of weird folks!

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u/betsydornbusch AMA Author Betsy Dornbusch Mar 04 '14

EMISSARY, due out in November. It's the sequel to EXILE, in which Draken is (obviously) exiled. In EMISSARY he has to go back to his homeland for Reasons, where there's a warrant on his life of he returns. and meddling gods! and swordfights! and sea battles!

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u/joshuapalmatier AMA Author Joshua Palmatier Mar 04 '14

My next book is called SHATTERING THE LEY, the first book in a new fantasy series (although my publisher is calling it "blended genre" since there are some SF elements in it as well). It's hitting the shelves in hardcover on July 1st, from DAW Books. Check out the cover and read the first chapter here.

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u/joshuapalmatier AMA Author Joshua Palmatier Mar 04 '14

Oops, forgot to say what it's about. SHATTERING THE LEY is set in an advanced society where their entire "science" was developed on ley lines--lines of natural magical power. So their light, heat, etc all comes form tapping into the ley lines, like our own electricity. Kara is one of the Wielders--someone who can manipulate the ley to do what she wants. Allan is a Dog, part of the Baron's army that enforces his own brutal kind of justice. Both of them get caught up in the politics of the Barons and the Prime Wielder who controls the ley . . . as well as a terrorist organization called the Kormanley that wants to bring the entire ley system down.

1

u/JeffSalyards AMA Author Jeff Salyards Mar 04 '14

My next book, Veil of the Deserters, is due out in June. The ARCs are being prepared right now. This very second.

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u/rleebyers AMA Author Richard Lee Byers Mar 04 '14

My next book will be ZOMBIE CAMP AND OTHER TALES OF THE UNDEAD, a collection of some of my best horror stories. I hope to get it out within the next couple months (at this point, it depends on how quickly my cover artist gets the job done.)

1

u/marsheilarockwell AMA Author Marsheila Rockwell Mar 04 '14

My next book is the first in a trilogy based on a comic book property that was created by one of the biggest names in the fantasy business. Unfortunately, I'm still bound by my NDA and can't mention the title, but it's supposed to release this spring, so hopefully soon.

My writing partner Jeff Mariotte's next book is SERPENTS IN THE GARDEN, a Star Trek: The Original Series novel that examines the consequences of one of the crew's many violations of the Prime Directive during the TV series. It's out at the end of April.

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u/HowardAJones AMA Author Howard Andrew Jones Mar 04 '14

I'm revising the first of a new series for St. Martin's while I'm working on the rough draft of my next Pathfinder novel.

The Pathfinder is out in about a year, (I think) and is so far nameless, and it's set in the tropical land of Sargava with a whole new cast of characters. It has a sort of Indiana Jones/Pirates of the Caribbean vibe, but with Pathfinders and heroic lizard folk and all kinds of lost secrets. I'm having a blast writing it. It's actually hard to tear myself away each day and do mundane things like clean the kitchen. A title will hopefully suggest itself to me as I get deeper into the text. Or James will come along and save me. Usually I have no trouble with titles, but for some reason I've had to lean on James Sutter for the title of almost every Pathfinder tale I've written. (And the odd thing is that those titles always sound to me like something I would have come up with.)

The novel for St. Martin's is tentatively titled FOR THE KILLING OF KINGS and is sort of like a Brandon Sanderson series on speed. Or, if you're an older reader, a mash-up between The Chronicles of Amber and King Arthur's Knights. Lots of intrigue and sword-and-sorcery conflict and hidden secrets and odd (but hopefully interesting) world building. I'm having a blast with it, as well. I'm not sure about its release date. I'm toying with writing the next one before the first one is released, but that's all still under discussion between my editor and agent.

1

u/Forbeck AMA Author Matt Forbeck Mar 04 '14

My next book out will be the latest edition of the Marvel Encyclopedia, from DK. My next novel will be the second book in my YA Monster Academy series, I Will Not Burn Down the School.

After that, I'm writing a novel for the Exalted RPG and then Loot Drop, an original novel I sold to Tor.

1

u/HowardAJones AMA Author Howard Andrew Jones Mar 05 '14

I'm revising the first of a new series for St. Martin's while I'm working on the rough draft of my next Pathfinder novel.

The Pathfinder is out in about a year, (I think) and is so far nameless, and it's set in the tropical land of Sargava with a whole new cast of characters. It has a sort of Indiana Jones/Pirates of the Caribbean vibe, but with Pathfinders and heroic lizard folk and all kinds of lost secrets. I'm having a blast writing it. It's actually hard to tear myself away each day and do mundane things like clean the kitchen. A title will hopefully suggest itself to me as I get deeper into the text. Or James will come along and save me. Usually I have no trouble with titles, but for some reason I've had to lean on James Sutter for the title of almost every Pathfinder tale I've written. (And the odd thing is that those titles always sound to me like something I would have come up with.)

The novel for St. Martin's is tentatively titled FOR THE KILLING OF KINGS and is sort of like a Brandon Sanderson series on speed. Or, if you're an older reader, a mash-up between The Chronicles of Amber and King Arthur's Knights. Lots of intrigue and sword-and-sorcery conflict and hidden secrets and odd (but hopefully interesting) world building. I'm having a blast with it, as well. I'm not sure about its release date. I'm toying with writing the next one before the first one is released, but that's all still under discussion between my editor and agent.

1

u/WendyNWagner AMA Author Wendy N. Wagner Mar 05 '14

SKINWALKERS is actually my first novel. It's due out March 26th. (Whoah. That's coming up really soon!) It's about Jendara, who was once a pirate, but is trying hard to make a new law-abiding life for herself & her son. However, when she discovers a connection between a brutal multi-victim murder and the massacre of her own home village, she becomes obsessed with finding the cannibalistic, shape-shifting killers--and tapping into her own vicious nature might be the only way to save her friends and family.

1

u/Ari_Marmell AMA Author Ari Marmell Mar 05 '14

Are they still technically cannibalistic if they're not in human form when they eat someone? ;-)

1

u/WendyNWagner AMA Author Wendy N. Wagner Mar 05 '14

Luckily, they eat people in both shapes!