Friday, February 17, 2023

Friday D. V. Stone and friends are visiting and talking about their latest release #MFRWAuthor #Pirate

 


1. Tell me about your latest release or the book you wish to feature? Genre?

       Quartermaster is a paranormal pirate romance and a spin-off from the Walk the Walk series. Branko and his vampiress may be living their HEA as landlubbers but Patricia’s Wish sails on with Captain Teeth at the helm and Chub returning as Quartermaster. It’s 1725 and most of the pirates have taken pardons from the Spanish or English government. Teeth and Chub are on the hunt for treasure—not gold, but love. The sidekicks are ready to become heroes.

 

2. Where did the idea arise?

       I’m a homeschooling mom. I needed to teach the foundations of democracy to my then-10-year-old. From Hammurabi’s code in ancient Mesopotamia to the pirate parlay code, I found democracy was found in more places than in ancient Greece and the colonial USA. In fact, women and people of color had equal rights on the sea, but not on land in colonial America. I fell in love with the governing systems of what I always thought were “lawless scoundrels.” Every job aboard was a voted position from Captain to poop deck scrubber, and each person holding those positions had an equal vote. Pirate Captains were slave liberators and portrayed by villains because the ones losing money are the same men writing the history. The truth is buried in the shipping logs from the port masters and merchant boat Captains. I was fascinated!

 

3. How much research was involved? Did you stay on point or be distracted by wanting to look at just one more thing?

     Quartermaster comes from a love of psychological warfare in the records of 1700s piracy. In the movies, pirates are portrayed as brainless sword-slashers when historically, they hardly ever boarded another vessel. They depended on their reputations to scare their opponents—easy when the general population was superstitious. I fell in love with the tales of Sam Bellamy taking the Whydah by making a pretend ghost ship, Blackbeard braiding firecrackers into his beard to appear possessed, and the rest of the shenanigans of the 4 years called the Golden Age of Pirates. While I wrote about this time period in the Walk the Walk series, Quartermaster takes place in 1725. Most of the pirates had taken pardons and retired from the sweet trade to a landlubbing life of agriculture or crime. I wondered what would happen if a boat refused to retire. They would be hated by the Spanish, English, and colonial Americans…

 

4. How long did you take to write the book?

        I wrote Quartermaster in a month. I was already half in love with Chub from his role in my other book series. I knew I wanted him to represent tough men who weren’t tall, dark, and classically handsome gentlemen. Chub is a 5 foot 5 inches tall, freckled, red-headed pirate with more brains than manners. What he brings to the table is a patient disposition, a talent for teaching, and a huge heart. He teaches the young crew how to sail, the Captain to read, and his lady love to trust again. I wanted his HEA so badly, the story wrote itself.

 

5. Now a bit about you. How long have you been writing? What is your Sun Sign?

        This Aries sun/Taurus moon/Aquarius rising author started writing in 2018. I used to write books to be printed at our local office supply store, so my friends could read them after their homeschooled kids went to bed. We would meet for drinks and an informal book club to giggle over the dirty bits once a month. When the pandemic canceled my husband’s business travels, he found out about my “playing author.” Within his first 24 hours at home, I had a website, business cards, manuscript queries sent, and a membership to the Kentuckiana romance writers.

  6. Do you write in a number of genres of stick to one?

          I may bounce from pirates to cowboys to scientists to monsters, but all my books are paranormal. They say you must write what you know, and my life is too strange to write anything else.

 

7. Where on the internet can you be found?

     www.marilynbarr.com

TikTok

Instagram

BookBub Author Profile

Amazon Author profile

Goodreads

1.      Tell me about your latest release or the book you wish to feature? Genre?

 

Seeker is a medieval Scottish romance, part of a 7-book series about a magical mortar and pestle that brings true love to its holders. Castles…mythical creatures…to everyday adventurers, it has something for everyone. In Seeker, restless archer Aileana yearns for a target to prove her worth, but when a magical mortar and pestle spins its charm upon her and a rival clan’s son, winning the yearly tournament might mean the difference between war and peace, as well as risking her heart.

 

2.      Where did the idea arise?

 

Seeker came about from two minor characters in another one of my books in my historical trilogy (A Hundred Lies). I wondered: Wouldn’t Aileana (the spunky sister of the hero; she is adventurous and a very non-typical noblewoman of a magical family) and Brodie (a reserved, beta-hero who has a medical condition that prevents him from being war chieftain) make a great story of their own?

 

3.      How much research was involved? Did you stay on point or be distracted by wanting to look at just one more thing?

 

Thankfully my world was already built in my trilogy. However, I had to stay on point with the continuity and timeline, so it matched the other books in the series, since this story happens concurrently with one of them. And rabbit holes – yes! I spend hours down them all the time. Researching this and that – clothing, foods, archery, illnesses, herbal treatments, vernacular, medieval tournaments, and oh my so many strategy and tavern games of the 1300s. With historical books especially. For one of my previous books in the series, I visited an actual Viking ship since the Norse played predominantly in that story. I’ve also been to Scotland, and have visited countless castles.

 

4.      How long did you take to write the book?

 

Since it’s a novella (~150 pages or so), it was quick. Only a few months! This one came rather easily to me. That is not always the case.

 

5.      Now a bit about you. How long have you been writing? What is your Sun Sign?

 

I’ve been writing for over twenty years and have five books published. I’ve written about nine or ten though…I’m a Pisces and love the great outdoors. Although I’m not psychic, I am very true to my sign’s traits.

 

6.      Do you write in a number of genres of stick to one?

 

I write contemporary romance, women’s fiction, mainstream/commercial fiction, and historical romance (with paranormal elements).

 

7. Where on the internet can you be found?

www.jeanmgrant.com

Social Media links:

Website ~ Twitter  ~ Facebook ~  Goodreads ~ Bookbub ~ Amazon Author Page ~ Instagram

Sea Hunter

By

D. V. Stone

Book Four of The Mortar & Pestle Series by various authors

 

1. Tell me about your latest release or the book you wish to feature? Genre?

Hi, my name is D. V. Stone. I’m so happy to be here to talk about my latest book, Sea Hunter, which is part of a multi-author series of seven books tied together by a mystical mortar and pestle.

Sea Hunter is my first historical/paranormal/romance. It takes place after WWII and focuses on Zahra Corbyn and Jack Alexander in an enemy-to-lovers tale of the high seas.

 

2. Where did the idea arise?

I am part of an author support group. We came together as writers needing shoulders. Things like social media, marketing, writing craft, etc. Through that, ideas started percolating. We have quite different styles and backgrounds, but the center of us all is the creative. And, ta-da, the M&P series was born.

 

3. How much research was involved? Did you stay on point or be distracted by wanting to look at just one more thing?

For Sea Hunter, I traveled to Maine and Massachusetts, visiting shipyards and museums. I even spoke with an underwater archeology conservator. I will say the most fun was researching the post-war vernacular. The slang of the time was a hoot.

 

4. How long did you take to write the book?

From concept to publication was about a year. I had other projects I’d committed to and needed to finish. Once they were done, Sea Hunter’s first draft took about a month. The rewrites, editing, and formatting filled the rest of the year.

 

5. Now a bit about you. How long have you been writing? What is your Sun Sign?

My first book was independent and published in 2017. Since then, I’ve grown to nine books published or about to be. One is an anthology through The Wild Rose Press. My work is almost 50/50 between independent and traditional. My sun sign? Gemini.

 

6. Do you write in a number of genres of stick to one?

I’m split between Fantasy (both epic and contemporary), Paranormal, Contemporary Romantic Suspense, and Mid-Grade Paranormal. I wonder if that reflects my sun sign?

 

7. Where on the internet can you be found?

I’m all over. The best place to go is my website, but here are all the links

https://www.dvstoneauthor.com/

https://t.co/MUVW91E2iB

https://www.instagram.com/d.v.stone/

https://twitter.com/donnavstone

https://www.facebook.com/dv.stone.1

https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/16344100.D_V_Stone

https://www.bookbub.com/authors/d-v-stone

https://www.amazon.com/D.-V.-Stone/e/B01N154Y9U

https://www.tiktok.com/@dvstoneauthor

https://mailchi.mp/3b289d8d7569/d-v-stones-peek-further-and-campfire-crew

https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCoWqGJB3WxpUCV2OUE2VN_w

 

 


No comments:

Post a Comment