On this episode we spoke with Patrick Carr, author of the Staff and Sword Series, about his venture into the Darkwater Saga and the Shock of Night.
A trilogy of trilogies awaits!
In these episodes, Patrick keeps us laughing. Also, you'll never believe how accident prone Patrick is!
All of us wax nostalgic at some point...you'd think we're old or something!
In Episode 29
- Odd character traits with Patrick's main character. (How does sleep walking and murders correlate?)
- Writing with an unreliable protagonist.
- Hating your writing while you're writing.
- Juggling. Emergency room visits! We manage to gross Aaron out. How Patrick uses his own accidents to inform his books.
- How to recast your books from one setting to another when your editor and agent tell you to.
- Fencing stories! Some engineering talk, which is totally fascinating.
- Googling has some interesting answers...including how dogs see.
- We get off into old time radio and radio broadcasts in general because of Patrick's answer to the superhero question.
- You will NEVER guess Patrick's answer to his Captain. Never, never, never!
- Patrick's looking forward to teaching a class at Realm Makers!
Links:
Patrick Carr
The Darkwater Saga
The Shock of Night
Home Improvement.
Steve Laube (Patrick's agent!)
David Eddings (The Belgariad)
Steven R. Donaldson (The Chronicles of Thomas Covenant)
Robert Ludlum
Brandon Sanderson
C. S. Lewis (Screwtape Letters; The Space Trilogy)
Robert Jordan's The Wheel of Time series
The Magician by Raymond Feist
Mike Duran, author of The Ghost Box and Saint Death, novels in the Reagan Moon para-noir series, joins us in Episodes 27 & 28 this week. 
We had a blast talking to him. Sometimes funny, sometimes very serious, Mike is a former pastor and he definitely keeps us on our toes throughout both episodes.
As Christian writers...hope has to be a pretty big factor in our writing. ~Mike Duran
In Episode 28, Stand On Your Head:
Our Plotting vs Pantsing question sends us down a hilarious rabbit trail, before Mike helps us get back on track. Then he talks about his own paranoia as a writer. Mike shares how he figures out what book to write next.
We discuss the learning curve of Scrivener, but also the benefits, too. (Hint: we all use Scrivener and LOVE it.)
Mike compares the editing process to a visit to a dentist, and while it's a gross comparison in a way, it has a lot of merit. Had us in stitches! :)
Writer's block, or the lack thereof. Mike's solutions for feeling inspirationally dry are tremendously helpful (and is a technique I've used myself!) Mike starts waxing philosophical about writer's inspirational...and it gets deep (in a good way.)
Mike recommends not eating or drinking during writing, and also uses a standing desk. He believes he writes better when he's standing.
What characteristic does Mike share with his son? (Hint: it kind of grosses Aaron out!) And yeah, we went there. Mike compares his marketing practices to corpses about to be autopsied. (He's kidding.)
Through giggles, we manage to get in some deep theological discussion. Which, if you've read Mike's blog, shouldn't surprise you at all. When we start discussing theology in tandem with physics and the reality of time, it gets deep. Truly a fascinating discussion.
Links:
Mike Duran
The Ghost Box
Saint Death
Peace Like a River (Leif Enger)
Moby Dick
Dante
Twilight Zone
Dean Koontz's Odd Thomas Series
Dean Koontz's Frankenstein
Tosca Lee's Demon
Realm Makers
Ex Machina (motion picture)
Drawing On the Right Side of Your Brain
Eternity in Their Heart
The Creator and the Cosmos
Mike Duran, author of The Ghost Box and Saint Death, novels in the Reagan Moon para-noir series, joins us in Episodes 27 & 28 this week. We had a blast talking to him. Sometimes funny, sometimes very serious, Mike is a former pastor and he definitely keeps us on our toes throughout both episodes.
As Christian writers...hope has to be a pretty big factor in our writing. ~Mike Duran
In Episode 27:
Mike shares about his unlikely background, which includes going from dabbling in the occult to being a pastor. We're pretty sure it informs Reagan Moon's stories, which are definitely fun reads, but they may not be for all our listeners. Mike describes Reagan in a bit of a...colorful...manner. ;)
We discuss paranormal stuff...and Mike suggests that a lot of that may exist more than people realize. You may or may not agree, but it's still a fascinating discussion.
So, what you're saying is that life is a little more like Hot Topic than we want to admit? ~Aaron DeMott
Why Los Angeles needed to be the setting for the Reagan Moon books...I think when you hear his reasoning, it'll make perfect sense.
The background for Saint Death is really a fascinating discussion, and some of it has been in the news in the last few months (I vaguely remember hearing about it.) Mike describes a research trip he and his wife did in the process of writing this book. It's interesting, to say the least.
Mike's answer to our superhero question raises a few eyebrows. But given his background, it makes perfect sense.
Gremlins! (And not the movie!) The true origins of ghost boxes (who knew?)! Some moderately gross stuff (that may make some of our listeners squeamish!)
Mike's "what's up next" is definitely something to look forward to if you're a writer interested in horror and/or writing from a faith perspective and what the parameters are for that.
Links:
Mike Duran
The Ghost Box
Saint Death
Peace Like a River (Leif Enger)
Moby Dick
Dante
Twilight Zone
Dean Koontz's Odd Thomas Series
Dean Koontz's Frankenstein
Tosca Lee's Demon
Realm Makers
We had the pleasure of having Tosca join us on this episode of LD&K. In between ramblings by the hosts we got to hear how much Tosca loves car chases. And fashion. A donkey race may have been spoken of as well. Believe it or not, that all ties in to her latest book Progeny, due to drop in stores on May 24th!
Stick through the whole thing to hear Tosca's views on naming favorite authors - and to get some good Audible recommendations!
In Episode 25 (AKA the FOOD episode):
- Plotsing, and how Tosca handles plotting. Hint: she references looking at her plot from 30,000 feet is way different than when you're "boots on the ground".
- Tosca discusses techniques to overcome writer's block, even though she doesn't get it very often.
- Tosca imparts a ton of wisdom.
Tosca Lee
MYST
Call of Duty
Shazam/Isis Power Hour
Thundarr the Barbarian
Marion Zimmer Bradley
Thomas Locke
Ronie Kendig
Ted Dekker
Frank Peretti
Ben Wolf
Robert Lipaluro
The 5th Wave
Six of Crows
Red Rising
Legend
Big Magic
We had the pleasure of having Tosca join us on this episode of LD&K. In between ramblings by the hosts we got to hear how much Tosca loves car chases. And fashion. A donkey race may have been spoken of as well. Believe it or not, that all ties in to her latest book Progeny, due to drop in stores on May 24th!
Stick through the whole thing to hear Tosca's views on naming favorite authors - and to get some good Audible recommendations!
In Episode 24:
We discuss Tosca's hidden love of fashion, her past as a gamer, and how Biblical fiction doesn't have car chases.
There is some 'fun' discussion about Count & Countess Bathoroy and their torture techniques.
Liberty and Tosca come to an agreement on who the best Star Trek Captain is.
Tosca Lee
The Progeny
MYST
Call of Duty
Shazam/Isis Power Hour
Thundarr the Barbarian
Marion Zimmer Bradley
Thomas Locke
Ronie Kendig
Ted Dekker
Frank Peretti
Ben Wolf
Robert Lipaluro
The 5th Wave
Six of Crows
Red Rising
Legend
Big Magic
Supernatural gifts, demons, and martial arts - oh my!
In our two segments with Amy Brock McNew, Aaron manages to break Amy before we barely even get started. Which is totally epic.
Amy, for those of you not in the know, is the author of REBIRTH, which debuts May 24th. She is an interesting character (and one you may be hearing more from in the near future!)
- In Episode 23:
- We are Josh-less in this part!
- The myriad of places that Amy's notes end up during her plotsing process.
- Her unbelievable production rate during NaNoWriMo
- Her crazy Scrivener/note card hybrid organizing process.
- Paydays, yellow Starbursts, Jelly Bellies, and all the other goodies in Amy's desk.
- Vampiric blood (you have to listen to hear how this figures in).
- How Pinterest figures in to her relating to her readers.
- How her background in journalism led to her being surprised by the author culture.
- Where her heart is and what she wants to do in the future where that is concerned.
We were delighted to have Kat Heckenbach on the podcast this
week! Kat is the author of 
Finding Angel
& Seeking Unseen, both entries in the Toch Island Chronicles.
With origins in biology, math, and art, her journey to become an
author took a bit of circuitous route.
We had a bit of technical difficulties with this podcast, so we apologize for a few blips here and there. I think Aaron suggests juggling a couple rabbits and/or tin foil for the next time. ;)
Happenings In Part 1:
With Kat’s
background in biology, she shares how that informs the Toch Island
Chronicles. The flora and fauna are very important details in her
books! The Lord of the Rings is also discussed and how it figures
into Kat’s favorite character in her books. There’s
magically-powered electric guitars involved! (This, I gotta see!)
With the biology background, it really feeds into how adamant Kat
is about the setting of her books. I can’t recall if we’ve seen any
of our guests so far be so firm about a story location! Reasons for
writing fantasy abound, and there be sheep involved! And as we get
into Kat’s answer to our superhero question, Aaron brings up some
trivia about the making of The Avengers.
Goings On In Part 2:
As we shift into
writing mode, we of course ask our plotting versus pantsing
question. Kat’s answer involves a lot of notecards. Can you guess
her answer? Because Aaron has an irreverent solution to her
notecard “problem.” About that point in the show, we start plotting
against Aaron’s neighbor’s tree….which continues to cause
connectivity issues for the podcast. Getting back on track (is this
a possibility with this bunch?), we talk about a lack of snacks and
drinks with Kat and why that is.
We hates research, Precious! That is why we writes fantasy!
Every writer’s favorite part of the episode: Kat offers some of her favorite tips for marketing, and some are pretty off beat options, but definitely viable for most every author.
Even though Kat’s is a well-known Harry Potter fan, her answer
to our new fandom question may surprise you. But her favorite book
is the Harry Potter series. Can you guess which one? And as we wrap
things up with Kat for this time, her most surprising thing about
being a writer may just surprise you as well.
This and a whole lot more—with lots of laughing!—in this week’s
episode.
Links to topics we discussed:
Kat Heckenbach
Finding Angel
Seeking Unseen
J.K. Rowling
Brandon Sanderson (Y.A.
stuff)
Brandon Mull (Fable Haven
series)
Cornelia Funke
Sage Blackwood
We were delighted to have Kat Heckenbach on the podcast this
week! Kat is the author of Finding Angel
& Seeking Unseen, both entries in the Toch Island Chronicles.
With origins in biology, math, and art, her journey to become an
author took a bit of circuitous route.
We had a bit of technical difficulties with this podcast, so we apologize for a few blips here and there. I think Aaron suggests juggling a couple rabbits and/or tin foil for the next time. ;)
Happenings In Part 1:
With Kat’s
background in biology, she shares how that informs the Toch Island
Chronicles. The flora and fauna are very important details in her
books! The Lord of the Rings is also discussed and how it figures
into Kat’s favorite character in her books. There’s
magically-powered electric guitars involved! (This, I gotta see!)
With the biology background, it really feeds into how adamant Kat
is about the setting of her books. I can’t recall if we’ve seen any
of our guests so far be so firm about a story location! Reasons for
writing fantasy abound, and there be sheep involved! And as we get
into Kat’s answer to our superhero question, Aaron brings up some
trivia about the making of The Avengers.
Goings On In Part 2:
As we shift into
writing mode, we of course ask our plotting versus pantsing
question. Kat’s answer involves a lot of notecards. Can you guess
her answer? Because Aaron has an irreverent solution to her
notecard “problem.” About that point in the show, we start plotting
against Aaron’s neighbor’s tree….which continues to cause
connectivity issues for the podcast. Getting back on track (is this
a possibility with this bunch?), we talk about a lack of snacks and
drinks with Kat and why that is.
We hates research, Precious! That is why we writes fantasy!
Every writer’s favorite part of the episode: Kat offers some of her favorite tips for marketing, and some are pretty off beat options, but definitely viable for most every author.
Even though Kat’s is a well-known Harry Potter fan, her answer
to our new fandom question may surprise you. But her favorite book
is the Harry Potter series. Can you guess which one? And as we wrap
things up with Kat for this time, her most surprising thing about
being a writer may just surprise you as well.
This and a whole lot more—with lots of laughing!—in this week’s
episode.
Links to topics we discussed:
Kat Heckenbach
Finding Angel
Seeking Unseen
J.K. Rowling
Brandon Sanderson (Y.A.
stuff)
Brandon Mull (Fable Haven
series)
Cornelia Funke
Sage Blackwood
This week with Cindy Koepp...
Hi ho, Silver, away! We learn about the strange inspiration for "Like Herding the Wind"... Also, this book was apparently set in every location known to man (and some that weren't) before the final draft.
We also learn that Cindy loves to write fight scenes... hmm....
What does a 1925 Ford have to do with Like Herding the Wind? You'll have to listen to find out. Also, we get a new answer to "What's your favorite superhero?"!!
This and so much more this week on Lasers, Dragons, and Keyboards!
Things we talked about:
Dead bodies - and their viewing - were liberally sprinkled through our time with Morgan Busse. Morgan is a writer of epic fantasy. She's recently branched out into Steampunk with the soon-to-be-released Tainted. The idea for Tainted? A discussion on necromancy!
When we weren't discussing the history behind morgues and what rain did to Victorian-era graveyards (you won't want to miss the answer!), we had fun talking about tea. Though Morgan did admit that she'd like nothing more than to enjoy a Raktijino.
Her path to becoming an author is actually a bit unique, and Morgan didn't always want to be a writer. You'll have to tune in to find out how she came to be an author!
Her odd Google searches are truly odd, even for this crowd. You'll want to tune in for that.
How Morgan writes with four kids and as a pastor's wife. If you have a crazy house, you'll want to hear how she deals with writing in that environment.
And her marketing practices are very helpful...but you'll have to listen to hear what those consist of. One tip she has is that she sees an uptick in her sales when she finishes writing a series. (So maybe that's a hint to all of us authors to produce more books more quickly!)
Enter to win TAINTED through a Rafflecopter giveaway
Links:
Morgan Busse
Tainted
Enclave Publishing
Star Trek: DS9
Captain America
Enclave Publishing
Evangeline Denmark
Terry Brooks (Shannara series & Sometimes the Magic Works)