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Author bio:
Gail Z. Martin writes epic and urban
fantasy, steampunk and short stories. She is the author of the Chronicles of
the Necromancer series, the Fallen Kings Cycle series and the Ascendant
Kingdoms Saga series of epic fantasy books, as well as the Deadly Curiosities
urban fantasy world and coming in 2015, Iron
and Blood, a Steampunk novel, co-written with Larry N. Martin. Gail is a
frequently contributor to US and UK anthologies. She also writes two series of
ebook short stories: The Jonmarc Vahanian
Adventures and the Deadly Curiosities
Adventures.
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Hi
Gail, welcome over at The Book Plank and for taking your time to answer these
few questions.
BP:
First off, could you give us a short summary as to who Gail Z. Martin is? What
are you hobbies, likes/dislikes?
GM: Well, I grew up in northern
Pennsylvania, I majored in history in college and have an MBA in marketing. I
worked in Corporate America for about 17 years before I left and started my own
business, with the intent to have room in my schedule to write. I still own and
run a marketing company. Iām married, have three children, two dogs and a cat.
I like spending time with my family, traveling, cooking, reading and Yoga. I
dislike grumpiness, cloudy days and okra.
BP:
Do you still know when and where you decided that you wanted to become an
author?
GM: I remember realizing when I was
about 14 that at some point, new people had to become writers because
eventually all the old ones would die off. Thatās the first time it occurred to
me that a person could choose to become a writer. I promptly did that, and
spent the next 31 years telling everyone that was what I was going to be
someday.
BP:
The latest addition to your bibliography is Deadly Curiosities, and brand new
urban fantasy series. Your other books fell into the epic fantasy genre, why
did you decide to venture into the urban fantasy genre?
GM: Iāve really enjoyed reading
urban fantasy, so that definitely played a role. A few years ago, Jon Oliver at
Solaris asked me to contribute a short story to the Magic: Esoteric and Arcane
anthology, and I wrote āButtonsā for that collection. I had been writing in the
Deadly Curiosities universe, but with stories set in the past. āButtonsā was
the first story in a modern setting. I had so much fun, I was ready to expand
the concept when Jon asked for a novel.
BP:
Was it difficult to change genres? Did you encounter any problems?
GM: I still write in both genres, so
itās actually nice to switch back and forth between them. Reign of Ash, my
newest epic fantasy, came out in April from Orbit Books, and Iāve just turned
in the third book in the Blaine McFadden series and am working on the fourth.
All of that was going on while I was working on Deadly Curiosities. I really
didnāt have any problems. Itās fun being able to use modern phrases and pop
culture references in the Deadly Curiosities novel and short stories, and itās
fun smashing things with swords and axes in the epic fantasy stuff.
BP:
Deadly Curiosities is set to be published July 3rd. If you would
have to sell your book with a single sentence how would it go?
GM: Cassidy Kincaid can read the
secrets of any object with her touch, and as owner of Trifles and Folly antique
store in historic, haunted Charleston, itās up to her team to get dangerous
magical items off the market.
BP:
Each month many books are published in every genre, where do you think Deadly
Curiosities sets it self apart with?
GM: Charleston is a pretty fresh
setting for urban fantasy, and considering itās also one of the most haunted
cities, and one of the most popular tourist destinations in the U.S., thatās a
selling point. I think the chemistry between Cassidy, Teag and Sorren is
special, and their respective supernatural/magical abilities make the team
different. And I think the idea that that heirloom in your dining room just
might really be a cursed magical object waiting for its chance to destroy the
world is a lot of fun and leads to a whole lot of possible plots!
BP:
What was the hardest part when you were writing Deadly Curiosities?
GM:
Until now, Iāve always written in words that were entirely my own
creation, so the history, religion, culture, geography were entirely in my head
and I couldnāt actually be āwrongā (at least, not against an outside source).
Working in a modern urban fantasy with an existing city, thereās a lot of
verification that has to go on, and decisions about how and when to break with
fact, and how to explain it if you do!
After all, several hundred thousand people live there and can correct
me!
BP:
Besides the hardest part, which scene/chapter or character did you enjoy
writing about the most?
GM: I enjoy the banter back and
forth, but I especially like the big battle scenes. Blowing stuff up on paper
is fun!
BP:
If you would be given the chance to retract Deadly Curiosities from publishing and rewrite any specific
scene would you do so? And if yes which part and why?
GM:
No, not really. Iām pretty happy with everythingāI had the time and
opportunity to do it the way I wanted to.
Iād let it stand.
BP:
Deadly Curiosities kicks off a new series. The synopsis of the first book,
which mentions an antique/curio shop allow a lot of possibilities for stories.
Have you already thought about how many volumes it will run?
GM: I have some other ideas floating
around in my head, but nothing as specific as mapping out future books! Charleston is such a great setting for a
series like this because it has such a long and varied history and itās been
rather under-explored as urban fantasy goes. So Iām not worried about coming up
with new ideas. All I have to do is go walk through an antique shop and Iāll
have more options for haunted objects than Iāll know what to do with!
BP:
Can you give us a sneak peak as to what is in store for us as the series
progresses?
GM:
Both Cassidy and Teag are pretty new in harnessing their magic, so Iām
looking forward to exploring what they can do and what it costs them. Sorren
has been operating in and around Charleston for over 300 years, so he has a
history there to be explored. Iāve done other short stories in the Deadly
Curiosities universe where weāve met some more people that I hope to introduce
in future books. Lots to look forward to!
BP:
Besides the Deadly Curiosities series, do you have any other projects that you
would like to pursue in the near future?
GM: I have a new steampunk book
coming out with Solaris in 2015, āIron and Blood: A Jake Desmet Adventureā and
weāre in the process of signing one of my favourite cover artists, so thatās
very exciting. And there are two more books in my Ascendant Kingdoms Saga epic
fantasy series under contract with Orbit, which will come out in 2015 and 2016.
Plus Iām in eight anthologies this year, and we bring out a new short story on
ebook every month. And Iāve got an all-new novella set in the Deadly
Curiosities universe that is free on Wattpad for a limited time. Something that
Iād like to come back to someday is my Winter Kingdom universe from the
Chronicles of the Necromancer booksāI have about 6 more books in my head for
that, so weāll seeā¦.
BP:
Everyone enjoys science fiction and
fantasy in their own way. What do you like most about reading and writing it?
GM: What I enjoy most about
fantasyāboth reading and writing itāis the opportunity to color outside the
lines and not be bound by āhow weāve always done things.ā Itās fun to explore the āwhat ifsā in
creating a whole new world/culture/political system/religious outlook,
etc. As the author, you set up the
rules, build the sandbox, put things in motion and then see where it takes you.
As the reader, you buy in to the opportunity to step outside the world as it is
and experience the world as it could be. Very freeing.
BP:
And just lastly, if you would have to give your top 5 favourite books, which
would they be?
GM: Thatās always hard. There are so
many, and I feel like Iām being disloyal to the other books if I single out a
few! Certainly all three of the Lord of the Rings books, Shakespeareās Macbeth,
Chaim Potokās My Name is Asher Lev, and Edgar Lee Mastersā Spoon River
Anthology. But ask me tomorrow, and I would probably give you five completely
different ones!
BP:
Thank you for your time Gail and good luck with your future writing!
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Find out more about Gail Z. Martin:
Find her at www.ChroniclesOfTheNecromancer.com,
on Twitter @GailZMartin, on Facebook.com/WinterKingdoms, at
DisquietingVisions.com blog and GhostInTheMachinePodcast.com. She leads monthly
conversations on Goodreads https://www.goodreads.com/GailZMartin
and posts free excerpts of her work on Wattpad http://wattpad.com/GailZMartin.
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