LexiCon's Spotlight Author, T. C. Miller

First off, I want to thank you, T.C. 

It’s great that you took time from your busy schedule to talk to me.

Can you tell us a little bit about yourself?

     I’ll try to be brief, but I’ve had a pretty busy life. I spent twenty-four years in the Air Force as a personnel superintendent. I’ve studied Hakkoryu Jujitsu since the seventies, and operated my own dojo, (school), for twenty-five years. I was a manufacturer’s field representative for fifteen years after I retired from the Air Force. My wife, Jake, and I travelled the country demonstrating woodworking equipment, and later, telescoping flagpoles at home and garden shows, woodworking shows, fairs, and trade shows. I’ve also been a free-lance writer since the seventies, doing articles and advertising agency copy.

When did you first realize you wanted to be a writer?

     It may sound like a cliché, but I think I was born as a writer. My first published piece was a poem that appeared in the “Toledo Blade” newspaper when I was about eleven or twelve. Much of my early work was lost in an accident in the seventies, but I still have copies of some. (Some of which was amateur, at best).

What inspires you to write and why?

    I wish I had a simple answer, but I don’t. Ideas come to me, and I feel compelled to explore where they might take me, the reader, and the character. Of course, selling my work also helps!

Why did you choose the genre you write in?

     I really haven’t chosen a specific genre. “BlackJack Bomber” has been called a military, action, suspense, mystery, spy, young adult, and adventure novel. I have also written science fiction, time-travel, and am currently outlining a philosophical time travel-piece that involves Native Americans and mountain climbers. I want to explore zombie work, but Joe McKinney does such a great job, I would have trouble following his act.

Why did you choose to write this particular book?

     The idea started out as a horror/mystery piece with the working title “Northern California Story”, back in the early eighties. I couldn’t find the right hooks for it. Later, I was stationed at Mather Air Force Base in Rancho Cordova, Ca., where I happened to meet a great military novelist, Dale Brown. He encouraged me to write, and, consequently, “BlackJack Bomber” began to take shape. I had to wait until four back surgeries took me out of the workplace to find time to finish it.

Have you started another book yet?

     Many. The sequel to “BlackJack Bomber” is “BlackStar Bay”. It continues the exploits of the “BlackStar Ops Group, and should be available mid-spring of 2013.

What do you do when you are not writing?

     Research, and also promote my work. As you know, book signings and promotions occupy an inordinate amount of any writer’s time. I spend time promoting other writers and their work, like Ken Farmer and Buck Stienke. I enjoy reading their military fiction, but am currently engrossed in their historical fiction piece, “The Nations”. It’s set here in Oklahoma, very near where I live. I also have three grandchildren, and a loving family who keep me busy.

How and where can we purchase your book?  

     It’s currently on Amazon.com, in paperback, and e-book, and at Barnes&Noble.com in paperback. It will be out before long in other venues. It can also be ordered at any book store. 

 Visit T.C.:

Facebook

Twitter

Website

LexiCon's Spotlight Author, Dr. David Bedford

 First off, I want to thank you, David, 

for taking the time to talk with me today.

Can you tell my readers a little bit about yourself?

I was born in Fort Worth, Texas, where I live and work, but I grew up in Argentina, where I lived from age 3 until coming to the US for college. I had the privilege of living in two world-class cities, Rosario and Buenos Aires, and down in Comodoro Rivadavia, in the Patagonia, right on the frigid Atlantic Ocean. I love music. I play trumpet and I sing tenor in my church choir. I do occasional sketches and paintings and I’m an avid photographer. History fascinates me and I love to learn about life all the way back to the earliest times.

What is your favorite quality about yourself?

I’m highly affectionate and I love to learn.
What made you want to be a writer?

It’s a list. Are you ready?: My mum loved 19^th-century English literature and read a lot of it to me when I was little; I have always loved a good story; writing always got me my good grades at school and I always enjoyed it; I consume reams of good literature as a reader; I discovered I have a lot I would like to say to whoever may be interested and fiction is the most effective and palatable way to say it; I dream stories and I feel compelled to put them down; Angela came to me one day and I cannot but tell her story.

How long have you been writing?

I have been writing since the summer of 1997 when, on a walk through my campus, I saw the sun glinting of the water jet of a fountain, and the Muse (or as Borges would say, the spirit) spoke.

Why did you choose to write this particular book?

I had been casting around for a book project in English (I first wrote short stories in Spanish) when, during the lunch break of a Saturday workshop on getting published, the three Angela books came to me at once, with main characters, locale, and story/theme arc. Once I started writing, the characters compelled me to continue.

How did you come up with the title?

The title comes from the main character, Angela Fournier, from the situation at the start of the story (she moves with her mom and sisters to the Texas coast from San Antonio because her parents divorced), and from the fact that there will be two more books in the series.

What do you do when you are not writing?

I teach Spanish at TCU. That’s my real job and it supports my writing habit. I do a lot of work with students outside of class (freshman camps, Habitat for Humanity spring break, etc.) and I am active in church. I read a lot. All writers are readers.

Can you share a little of your current work with us?

I have already written the second book of the three, Angela 2: The Guardian of the Bay and I am looking for a literary agent to help me get a traditional publisher so my books will have more presence. The third book (Silver Path of the Moon) is planned out and my idea is to start on it when Angela 2 gets published. After that I have several book projects in mind, including a love story in a dystopian future. I am also writing more stories in Spanish. I would love to get a bilingual version of them published.

 How and where can we purchase your book?

The easiest way and best for me is to buy it from www.strategicpublishinggroup.com/title/Angela1.html . You can also get it from amazon.com and from the Barnes and Noble web site and it is also available as an e-book from all the providers. If you prefer the brick-and-mortar experience, you can have any bookstore order it for you.

David's Fan Page

Goodreads 

I would like to welcome Jeanne Guzman

Jeanne, I want to thank you for taking the time to talk with me today. You’re very welcome; it’s a pleasure to be here.

Can you tell us a little bit about yourself? Where to start? Well, I grew up in a small town in Maryland where I met the other half of my soul. Marriage, children, grandchildren, and writing has kept me busy ever since. I guess you can say that I’m average. I love sappy movies, but I also love the fast paced ones that feature lots of ‘SPLOSIONS. (I heard that word on the radio and made it mine.) I’m an avid reader as long as the story is well written and can hold my attention.

When did you begin writing? Funny story, at least I think so. About 20 years ago, I was reading this book and thought to myself “This is bad.” I mean, really bad as in I wanted to toss it in the trash bad. Anyway, I was telling my sister about how bad this book was and she said, “Why don’t you write a book?” And I thought, “Why not? How hard can it be to write a book?” (Go ahead all you authors out there. Laugh. I do every time I think about it.) Long story short, I’ve been writing for 20 years.

What inspires you to write and why? So many things inspire me. A song on the radio, an unusual name on a name tag, dreams, the actions of those around me. I’m an observer of people. If I see something that captures my attention, I think, where can I put that in my story?

What do you do when you are not writing? I’m guilty of being a gamer. Not your War Of Warcraft type game, but the cute little tap games you can download onto your iPad. They relax me.

Where did you get your idea for Dragon Lover? My youngest daughter came up with the idea. I’d just gotten another rejection from yet another agent and was thinking I just wasn’t meant to be published. My daughter came into my office and said, “Maybe you should write about dragons.” You have to understand that her room was filled with dragons from a mounted wall light to a dragon handled sword. So I told her, “Why not?” It’s been a ride since then.

Is there a message in your novel that you want readers to grasp? I would have to say my message in this book and the rest of the Dragon Hunters series is this. There are people that will come into your life and try to destroy you for no other reason than you’re different. Stand up to them. Embrace who you are. You are not alone.

What are you most proud of accomplishing so far in your life? Beating the odds of today’s society. I married when I was 17 and I’m still going strong. After all, I do write romance, Urban Fantasy romance, but it’s romance. I don’t think I would be where I am today if I didn’t have my best friend/husbands by my side.

Can you share a little of your current work with us? Currently, I’m working on 3 different projects. I’m in the middle of editing the 3^rd book in the Dragon Hunters series, Child of the Dragon, due out in the fall of 2013. My grandchildren have been asking for a book they can read, and so began the first of a YA paranormal trilogy. And last but not least, a romantic suspense I’ve been playing around with that has morphed into novel demanding to be seen.

How and where can we purchase your book? You can purchase Dragon Lover now from the links below in both e-book and print. The Dragon Within has been projected to be released October 6^th.

                                         

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http://freshfiction.com/author.php?id=29290

http://www.gypsyshadow.com/JeanneGuzman.html

http://www.smashwords.com/profile/view/JeanneGuzman

http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/dragon-lover-jeanne-guzman/1107412873?ean=2940013459717&itm=2&usri=dragon%252blover

http://www.amazon.com/Dragon-Lover-Hunters-ebook/dp/B00684D88I/ref=sr_1_4?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1321543809&sr=1-4

http://www.allromanceebooks.com/product-dragonlover-641865-143.html

http://www.bookstrand.com/dragon-lover

Thank you again for inviting me to your blog, and I’d like to close with a question to all your readers. In one word, describe your High School Experience. I’ll be checking in throughout the week and on Thursday the 13th, one lucky commenter will win the print copies of both Dragon Lover and The Dragon Within.