Coming For Money by F.W. Vom Scheidt

About the Author:

F. W. vom Scheidt is a director of an international investment firm. He works and travels in the world’s capital markets, and makes his home in Toronto, Canada. He is also the author of a new book, Coming for Money (Blue Butterfly Book Publishing), a remarkable and provocative novel about the world of international finance and the human quests for success, understanding and love.

You can find out more about his book at http://www.bluebutterflybooks.ca/titles/money.html.

About the Book:

How much money is too much? And how fast is too fast in life?

International investment firm director and author F. W. vom Scheidt, writes from his first hand-hand experience of the world of global money spinning with candor and authenticity in his remarkable literary novel Coming for Money.

As investment star Paris Smith steps onto the top rungs of the corporate ladder, he is caught between his need for fulfillment and his need for understanding; trapped between his drive for power and his inability to cope with his growing emptiness where there was once love. When his wife disappears from the core of his life, his loneliness and sense of disconnection threaten to overwhelm him. When he tries to compensate by losing himself in his work, he stumbles off the treadmill of his own success, and is entangled in the web of a fraudulent bond deal that threatens to derail his career and his life.

Forced to put his personal life on hold while he travels nonstop between Toronto, Singapore and Bangkok to salvage his career, he is deprived of the time and space necessary to regain his equilibrium.

In the heat and turmoil and fast money of Southeast Asia, half a world from home, and half a life from his last remembered smile, he finds duplicity, friendship and power --- and a special woman who might heal his heart.

A talented author, vom Scheidt has confidently crafted a fast-paced, highly readable and intelligent novel. His details are fascinating. His characters are real, and not easily forgotten. A deeply felt story about the isolation of today’s society, the prices great and small paid for success and the damages resulting from the ruthless exercise of financial power, Coming For Money is a taut literary page-turner about a man who refuses to capitulate to the darkness in his journey into the light.

I was lucky enough to get the author to answer some interview questions. Here's what he had to say:

Could you please tell us a little about your book?

In summary, Coming For Money is a novel about the world of global finance and a human quest for success, understanding and love.

Who or what is the inspiration behind this book?








How I came to write it is much like a montage of photographs, all taken of the same subject, but all taken from several perspectives.

I have always written.

Following the adage of write from what you know best, I wrote from my first hand-hand experience accumulated as a director of an international investment firm. I wrote as truthfully as possible of the world of international finance — not with the over dramatization so common in film and television, but with an intimate telling through a first-person narrative ... of what it can be like to labour in the world of money spinning ... of how the money’s immense leverage for triumph or disaster doesn’t so much corrupt people as corrupt the way they treat each other ... of how the relentless demands of the money so often deprive you of sufficient time and energy to live through the events of your emotional and interior life.

In addition to this witnessing of the world of international finance, Coming For Money is also a provocative literary novel.

That flows, I think, from the fact that, throughout my life, I have always sought to maintain my integrity in a struggle with questions that have no answers.

So the novel flows from some of the questions I continually ask about life. The plot advances along questions arising from how we relate to our careers: How much money is too much? And how fast is too fast in life? And the central character advances along deeper questions in his own life: How do we cope with love and loss?

Moreover, because our societies equate financial success with a successful life, we are often blind to the inner stories of countless people in all endeavors who, in their desperate search for inner happiness, endlessly repeat a formula for financial success even while remaining deeply unhappy due to unresolved emotional and psychological issues at their core. I wanted to bring one of these inner stories to life.

The result is a deeply felt narrative about the isolation of today’s society, the prices great and small paid for success and the damages resulting from the ruthless exercise of financial power.
I also wrote the Coming For Money to be a good story well told.

The story is event-driven. It follows Paris Smith. As he steps onto the top rungs of the corporate ladder, he is caught between his need for fulfillment and his need for understanding; between his drive for power and his inability to cope with his growing emptiness where there was once love. When his wife disappears from the core of his life, his loneliness and sense of disconnection threaten to overwhelm him. When he tries to compensate by losing himself in his work, he stumbles off the treadmill of his own success, and is entangled in the web of a fraudulent bond deal that threatens to derail his career and his life.

Forced to put his personal life on hold while he travels nonstop between Toronto, Singapore and Bangkok to salvage his career, he is deprived of the time and space to mourn the absence of his wife and regain his equilibrium.

In the heat and turmoil and fast money of Southeast Asia, half a world from home, and half a life from his last remembered smile, he finds duplicity, friendship and power --- and a special woman who might heal his heart.

As much as I want to write a literary novel, I wanted to write a story that was fast-paced and highly readable.

Did something specific happen to prompt you to write this book?

I sat down at the keyboard. Although I have always been a literary writer, I had no idea how I would capture my experiences in international finance in literary fiction. Without thinking, the first sentence came to me. I typed it. Then I looked at that sentence for a long time.

Instinct told me that the sentence had risen from something that was deeply absorbing me, and that it was something I had to tell. I knew I had to find some way to tell it truthfully. From that point, I knew there was no way out . . . except to construct the novel.

Who is your biggest supporter?

My wife.

Your biggest critic?








Me.

Who has influenced you throughout your career as a writer?








I was fortunate to come from an environment that valued reading and education. As a result I absorbed a broad spectrum. Having the experience of so much writing from so many writers was a far greater influence that any single author.

What are you currently working on?

I’m working on a new novel; and on bringing a new institutional investment fund to market.

Do you have any advice for writers or readers?








For writers … write.
For readers … read whatever interests and entertains you regardless of what it may be, but never stop reading.

What are some of your long term goals?

Value the gift of each new day by working at what I love, learning something new, being grateful for those in my life; and, before the day runs out, somehow becoming a better human being than I was yesterday.

What do you feel is your biggest strength?

Being able to see what I want to paint on the canvas of my life while it is still blank.

Biggest weakness?

Succumbing to the seduction of working too much.

What do you feel sets this book apart from others in the same genre?

At last count, I was not aware of many literary novelists coming from the international investment industry. I imagine I bring a unique perspective to a unique setting for storytelling.

You know the scenario – you’re stuck on an island. What book would you bring with you and why?

The collected works of Shakespeare, to populate my world with characters and stories.

What is the most important lesson you have learned from life so far?

If we are not here for each other, then we are only here to die.

Is there anything else you would like to share with us?

I was thinking the other day about how I came to writing.

When I was in the eighth grade our history studies focused on how colonists came from England to settle in Canada. It was mentioned that some immigrants came as indentured servants, working on farms for several years to pay off their passage; and it was pointed out that some of these indentured servants were the same age as we were in the eighth grade. Our assignment was to imagine that we were indentured children newly arrived in the Canadian colonies, and to write a letter to our families left behind in England.

It was assumed we would write about clearing the land, planting crops, building farm houses and everything else from our history lessons.

When I began the assignment, the first words I wrote were: “Dear Mother and Father, it is with great regret that I write to tell you that my sister, your daughter, died of typhus on the ship to Canada.”

I went on to express remorse over not sharing food with her and to describe the loneliness of the dark winter nights without her.

Later in the day, when the teacher was reading the assignments, something happened without expectation or warning.

The teacher took me and my assignment to the principal’s office.

The principal demanded to know what was wrong with me.

It was generally accepted in the eighth grade that the ultimate calamity was to be dragged to the principal’s office. And worse than that was to be asked by the principal to explain yourself when you had no explanation.

As I sat between the principal and my teacher, and resigned myself to the misery of their demands and derision, it occurred to me that I was the only one in my class who had caused so much trouble with something I written ... and maybe I had something that the others didn’t have.

Grayrider by Bruce Skye

About the Author:

A former technical writer, detail is important to Bruce Skye. His research for the Deathsong Chronicles included medieval armor and fortresses, as well as Celtic names and magic. "If you create a world, it must be consistent. And that's what I strive for Grayrider's world to be. I've built a database of material for each of the Deathsong Chronicles. Those databases aid me in keeping the world the same from book to book.

"When I wrote Grayrider, I followed the advice of Stephen King. I did not write the book following any sort of outline. I have no more idea than my readers do when I write a novel what will happen in the midst of the story. It makes it more exciting for both the readers and myself."

You can visit his website at http://www.bruceskye.com/.

About the Book:

Gabriel, the exiled king of Rivalin, comes before King Airell to warn him the Ansgarian army will invade his kingdom before the night is over. Airell tells him he has no one to send. Gabriel wants revenge for the murder of his family by the Ansgarians. He decides to fight the incursion without help.

As this takes place, Deirdre (Airell’s daughter), flees the kingdom of Cynyr north of Boadhagh. She knows now her mentor, Morrigan, created the Ansgarian army her father has fought for years. She goes south to warn him of her. Because Deirdre does not believe in herself, the young sorceress has difficulty in performing magic.

Once she is reunited with her father, she tells both he and Grayrider about Morrigan. Her power is growing; only Gabriel’s magical sword may yet destroy her. He must go to Cynyr to fight her. He agrees if Deirdre attends him, seeking her counsel. On that journey they fall in love and foil many efforts by Morrigan to kill Gabriel by both armies and sorcerers.

Grayrider fights Morrigan and sees his beloved slain by the sorceress before he is finally able to kill her. He returns to Rivalin brokenhearted. The ending is a complete surprise the reader will not expect at all.

I had the opportunity to ask Bruce some questions. Here's what he had to say:

Could you please tell us a little about your book?

Gabriel the Gray is a refugee king driven from his land by those who murdered his family. He is an exile in the kingdom of Boadhagh, helping in defending that land from the same army which invaded his own realm. To do that, he has a powerful magical sword known as Deathsong. The sword and its abilities scare him on occasion.

Did something specific happen to prompt you to write this book?

Being a writer has been a lifelong dream of mine. A divorce made me decide to finally begin to live out my own dreams.

Who or what is the inspiration behind this book?

I had a troubled childhood. The Grayrider character has been in my mind for years.

Who is your biggest supporter?

My fiancé. She pushed me to attempt to publish the book. She’s dying of cancer. And I dedicated the book to her.

Your biggest critic?

I am.

What cause are you most passionate about and why?

I fear radical Islam. I have studied Muslim terrorism and it truly frightens me.

In the last year have you learned or improved on any skills?

My writing has improved because I constantly work at it. My goal is to have every novel I publish be better than the last.

Do you have any rituals you follow when finishing a piece of work?

No.

Who has influenced you throughout your career as a writer?

Two writers have influenced my writing: Jack Higgins and J.R.R.Tolkien

What is the most important thing in your life right now?

Succeeding as an author.

What are you currently working on?

Grayrider is the first volume of the Deathsong Chronicles series. The second volume is finished and I hope for it to be published later this year. I’m working on the third book in the series now.

Do you have any advice for writers or readers?

For writers I suggest not to give up. Being published can be quite daunting. And there is much to know in doing it wisely. Find out everything you can before attempting self-publication.

Is there an author that inspired you to write?

Again, Jack Higgins.

What are some of your long term goals?

To have a New York Times bestseller.

What do you feel has been your greatest achievement as an author?

Writing suspenseful stories both reviewers and readers enjoy.

What do you feel is your biggest strength?

Having the humility to be willing to constantly learn and grow in my craft.

Biggest weakness?

The fear of failure.

What do you feel sets this book apart from others in the same genre?

This fantasy novel is actually a suspense story combined with sorcery, swordplay and romance. One reviewer wrote of Grayrider "I found that I could not put the book down."

You know the scenario – you’re stuck on an island. What book would you bring with you and why?

That is a difficult question!

Are you a different person now than you were 5 years ago?

Absolutely!

In what ways?

I’m certainly more mature and level-headed.

What is the most important lesson you have learned from life so far?

Never give up. If I had, Grayrider never would have been published.

Is there anything you regret doing/not doing?

I have yet to go skydiving, scuba diving and getting my sailplane license.

What is your favorite past-time?

Reading.

Is there anything else you would like to share with us?

I think the message I want Grayrider to give to people is not to give up, no matter the odds against you.

WIN PRIZES:

GRAYRIDER VIRTUAL BLOG TOUR '08 will officially begin on February 2 and end on February 27. You can visit Bruce's blog stops at http://www.virtualbooktours.wordpress.com/ in February to find out more about his new book!As a special promotion for all our authors, Pump Up Your Book Promotion is giving away a FREE virtual book tour to a published author or a $50 Amazon gift certificate to those not published who comments on our authors' blog stops. More prizes will be announced as they become available.

Cry of Justice by Jason Pratt

About the Author:

Jason Pratt is a native of West Tennessee, and the systems manager for Dyer Fiberglass, Inc. He holds a bachelor of communications degree from the University of Tennessee, Knoxville.

When he isn't freelance editing other people's books or writing philosophical treatises as a respected guest on various Internet sites, he can be found pondering tactics and strategies in the lates war game or studying metaphysics and world history. Occasionally he finds the time to instruct, judge and compete in the art of fencing; and has been known to write cinematic epic fantasies when people aren't looking.

Cry of Justice is the first book of an initial trilogy, the third book of which he is currently composing.

I was fortunate enough to be able to ask Jason some questions - this is what he had to say:

Could you please tell us a little about your book?

Cry of Justice_ (CoJ hereafter) is an epic fantasy novel, the first of an initial trilogy, concerning an ambitious young woman leading a small ragged brigade in a world still suffering aftershocks from a vicious international war.She plots and battles against a series of increasingly ruthless adversaries, with help from her colorful sub commanders, while finding herself irreconcilably drawn to a charismatic, kind and hopeful stranger. Or, to give a 50 word description: Complicated anti-heroine. Angsty elite killer. Cheerfully average do-gooder. Wretched egotistical bully. Quiet brilliant giant. Lanky droll 'cowherd'. Brash paladin thief. Dedicated folk historian. Paranormal romance. Erotic ethical mysticism. Logical conundrums. Clever duels. Daring rescues. Innovative tactics. Climactic multi-brigade Macro-Fight Sequence. Arrogant villains. Shoulder beasts.Aasvogels. Army-slaughtering walking plateaus. Weepingly cool orcs. That's in the first book. The series gets better as it goes along... {g}

Did something specific happen to prompt you to write this book?

Nothing specific that I can think of. I had been ginning up a huge plot in the back of my mind for about 20 years, and in 2000 I was helping a friend of mine edit her first novels (Orbit author Marie Brennan, whose fourth novel, In Ashes Lie is scheduled for release in June this year,plug, plug. {g}) It just seemed time to start pulling everything together and putting it on the page. CoJ was my solution for how to introduce the story. Ironically, very little of my main overarching story is in CoJ though! (But the little that's there is super-important. Also rather hidden.)

Who or what is the inspiration behind this book?

Hm. Lots of inspirations. Two of the most important for the immediate story, though,are the medieval enchantress/paladin paradigm, and the Jewish story of Israel's relationship with God (which is alarmingly rocky! {g}) I wanted to do something different with the enchantress/paladin trope than to have her simply be the bump in the road or pitfall for the hero, or to have him simply be the bump in the road or pitfall for the heroine. So she's the main protagonist, and the story is really mostly about her; but she isn't always (or even usually) a heroine. She can be downright evil sometimes. In other words, a very challenging character to write!

Who is your biggest supporter?

That would certainly be my parents,under heaven, God bless them.

Your biggest critic?

I try to make sure that that's me!--but I've seen some reviewers who thought nothing I did was worth more than derision.I'm not remotely famous enough to have a nemesis opponent, though, or anything like that.

What cause are you most passionate about and why?

Oh, good question. Um. The fact that I'm temporizing here is a bad sign... {lol!} If I had to choose, that would be the mistreatment of women. (With mistreatment of children close behind; but for some reason mistreatment of women I'm more passionate about. Probably because I'm a romantic chivalrist. {s}) However, I make a point not to be passionate about even that, in practice,so as not to lose sight of fair judgment on topics. That being said, I would certainly be most passionate about caring for my wife--if I knew where she was and could be with her. The devotion of men to women in my novels strongly reflects that; and I would go so far as to believe that this is the single most crucial social issue of human history under heaven.

In the last year have you learned or improved on any skills?

My first two novels I composed simply as prose with some poetic flourishes here and there, but later I redrafted my first novel (CoJ) as one large rhythmically varying poem (which, interestingly, helped me trim the word count down substantially!) And I'm in the process of editing my second novel, Edge of Justice (EoJ), the same way. This past year, however, I completed probably 2/3 of my third novel, Song of Justice (SoJ), while composing it that way from the outset. Which I'm very happy about, because going back and doing a phrase-by-phrase rhythmical polish of a whole book is by far THE single hardest thing I've done for the first two books!(And SoJ will be larger than either of the first two, as befits the grand finale of a trilogy. {g})

Do you have any rituals you follow when finishing a piece of work?

I wish I had some actual rituals I followed when I finished a book! That would be quite unutterly cool; but also far more likely to develop with a wife than not. {wry g} Unfortunately, what actually happens is very mundane: I verbally dictate the thing out loud as my first editing pass (though I'll have done lots of partial editing passes before then). With SoJ I'll start a new habit of doing a statistical analysis for figuring out the Action Scene Percentage(which I've already done for the first books, but long after their composition), so I can concentrate on making sure that the current book is at least as good as previous books (if not better) at giving reading audiences more than just a bunch of plotty talking heads. I'm a plotty kind of guy, so I tend to overwrite that way if I'm not careful. On the other hand, and rather schizophrenically, I would write the whole story as endless butt-kicking if I could figure out a way to do so while actually having a story in there somewhere! {lol!} Those two sides of my head have to come to terms; managing both inclinations is the job of my superego maybe.

Who has influenced you throughout your career as a writer?

Lots andlots of people and authors. Like many fantasy authors, I hew back to George MacDonald for his use of mythopoeic design. (Phantastes,Lilith,the Curdie novels, various short stories and novellas.) Brian Daley's Coramonde duology, though almost forgotten now, is a yardstick of high-efficiency plotting, characterization and entertainment value that I routinely aspire to. There's a lot of H. Rider Haggard running around in the back of my mind for sure. Stephen King for his internal characterizations (and general imagination). J. M. Straczynski, Peter David and Jim Starlin for their ability to run epic plot lines with great characters and characterizations. Josh Whedon, ditto. Robert Jordan sets a good bar, pro and con (PAY ATTENTION TO HOW TO AVOID PLOT CREEP IN AN EPIC SERIES!!!) When I first wrote CoJ I knew very little anime outside of an early childhood adoration of Space Battleship Yamato_, but there's so much good work out there to try to stand up along side with: Rurouni Kenshin,Trigun, The Irresponsible Captain Tyler, and Giant Robo still top my list there, but there's tons more (including Bruce Timm and Paul Dini's work on the Justice League animated series several years ago). I have to mention Marie Brennan again here (Doppelganger, Warrior and Witch, Midnight Never Come, several other novels of hers I've read but which haven't been published yet): I'm always comparing the quality of what I'm doing by the light of whatever it is she has done or is doing recently, whether I'm measuring up or not. (We kind of grew up as baby writers together. {g} So she's like a big sister, only 10 years younger.)

What is the most important thing in your life right now?

Logically, I would always have to say "God". But below that, my family is always the most important thing in my life, even though I don't always show that enough.

What are you currently working on?

Well, this week I'm scrambling to answer interview questions for my virtual book tour! {wry g!} More broadly, I'm very busy as a guest author along with Gregory MacDonald(not to be confused with George MacD) and Thomas Talbott, over atwww.evangelicaluniversalist.com. The back of my head is meanwhile busily composting on how the heck I should integrate a new plot development into my long-detailed plans for the final third of Book 3. (This book tour may help jog me back into creative-writing mode for the grand finale there.)

Do you have any advice for writers or readers?

For readers...honestly, I can't imagine any advice I could ever give to readers. Every reader is so different... For writers: writing and sex are both creative disciplines, and very dangerous ones because of their power. They are, in fact, both quite literally magical enchantments which affect other people, which is why you should be careful (in the fullest senses of that word) in what you do with them. Are you serving the other person by helping them become more completely and cleanly the person they are, expanding their person-ness,empowering and actualizing them, fulfilling their fertility--helping them walk according to whatever light beyond you they can see, looking for more light thereby? Or, are you only trying to create effects in them with your power, putting yourself into them or calling them into yourself, for your own purposes, making them react to you? One of those is a dark enchantment, and is damnable, regardless of how pleasureable it might be for the other person, even regardless of whether the other person is seeking that pleasure from you. The other is a mystical union, and is the human contribution to the generation of healthy interpersonal relationships. Which, now that I think of it, might constitute advice to readers, too. Be careful about who you curl up with, and why. {s} Make sure he or she is someone you can trust to care for you, and not abuse you.

What are some of your long term goals?

Finishing the Mikonese Saga would be nice! {g} And in fact, I don't think I should responsibly have any long term goals as an author (of fiction anyway) beyond that. One thing at a time. Whether I'm successful, in the sense of ever being bought by large numbers of readers, is not a long term goal for me. I care about it, of course, but I can't make people do that, and would be rather horrified to learn that I could make people do that. If I'm ever popular, I'll certainly appreciate it. But I have work to do.

What do you feel has been your greatest achievement as an author?

So far, that would be CoJ winning the 2007 retailer poll held by the CSPA for Novel of the Year. As a publisher, that would be creating a fine product and being able to send it out (including to people I care about),after so many years of working on it.

What do you feel is your biggest strength?

My humility? {rimshot!} Sorry. Um. I really don't think about myself in those terms. Which makes it hard for me to market myself, sometimes. Who gives a hoot what I think my greatest strengths are!!? Me, maybe, the end. I'm far too egotistical to safely answer this question. When I keep coming up with answers and then going, "No, that one is! No,that one!" then it's time to move on.

Biggest weakness?

Here we go! This question I can answer! {g!}Amending to 'weakness-es'... I have far, far too high an opinion of my own cleverness; I have to constantly watch to make sure I'm not doing something in a story simply for cleverness sake. I don't always distinguish well between necessary detail, color detail, and minituae. While I think I can objectively say I've gotten better about this overtime, I still worry that my character voices and characterizations aren't distinct enough. (A major problem in the first several chapters of CoJ.) I'm worry that I don't do enough research to properly present things in my story. (Yes, this is despite being overly picky about details. It's possible to have both kinds of shortcomings.) I worry that I'm being too vague for readers when they really need the extra info to understand what's going on. I worry that, thematically, I keep beating the reader over the head with a dead horse... or, y'know, words to that effect. {g} I could go on with this for a while, but I don't want to give the impression my novel is crap. {lol!}

What do you feel sets this book apart from others in the same genre?

Heck, I'd be happy if the book is 'just as good as others in the same genre! Not many other writers, even in epic fantasy, are making their books as one long piece of rhythmical poetry, but I don't necessarily consider that a selling point. (It might be considered eye-bleedingly pretentious, as one casual reviewer basically said last year...!) Look, the field of epic fantasy is small enough that I'm not terribly interested in setting myself apart from what other people are doing. I try to come up with interesting things to do and to talk about and to explore in interesting ways, in a big melodramatic story with lots of characters being slowly introduced over time and interacting with one another and occasionally kicking butt (for better or for worse), presenting various mysteries for readers to debate among themselves while waiting for new installments and then resolving those mysteries along the way. Some readers want to read that kind of thing; and in fact there aren't a lot of such things out there. (A lot of trilogies, yes. Not a lot of multi-book epics.) Some readers don't. I do try to avoid a tendency among modern epic writers to plot-creep as they complexify things. (Hint 1: DON'T SCATTER THE PROTAGONISTS ALL OVER CREATION!! um... okay, admittedly, that's on schedule for Book 4... crap... {lol} But at least I know enough to get them the heck back together, or else settle them down somewhere that they don't have to be kept an eye on, asap!) And I try to write according to the anthrax-airliner principle: if an airliner full of anthrax crashed on my head tomorrow, would people think my series as it stands was still worth their time reading? If I can't answer that question in the affirmative, I'd better dang well be doing something about it in whatever book I've arrived at currently!

You know the scenario; you're stuck on an island. What book would you bring with you and why?

You know the stereotypical answer now: "How To Survive And Hopefully One Day Escape From A Deserted Island"! (Ideally the "For Dummies" version...) However, if the question is 'only one book to read if I only had one book ever': the Bible. In some non-pretentious but still artistic but accurate translation. With plenty of footnotes for alternative translations and an apparatus showing all even-remotely-pertinent textual variants along with rationales for and against their prominence in the main text. And interlinear with the original languages. And with exhaustive cross-referencing between textual references, whether quotes, allusions or just thematically. Then I could build a paddle and a sail, and use the blessed thing as a raft. {g}

If you could go back and change one day, what would it be?

I wouldn't. As bad as things are, I'd have to be omniscient to know what could be changed that wouldn't somehow be worse in the long run. (And someone else already has that job. {s} Glad it isn't me!)

Are you a different person now than you were 5 years ago? In what way/s?

5 years ago? Winter of early 2004... I don't even remember the winter of early 2004. I'd have to go look things up that I was writing and doing at that time. I doubt I've changed much personally. I hope I'm more charitable to opponents than I've been in the past. I'm sure the pain I continually live with was a lot closer to the surface at that time, but I can't say that's really changed; only submerged. Less distracting, but not really a change. I'm increasingly more tired every year (comes from living with that pain every waking hour and then having constant stress dreams and nightmares every night. I'm always exhausted or near exhaustion.) But that's not a personal change. One day my brain will finally just stop, and then maybe God willing I'll be able to rest. Good Lord that was horribly depressing. Next question! {g}

What is the most important lesson you have learned from life so far?

Hoping for the death of someone else's good hope, and wishing evil of another person, is an ultimately evil and entirely damnable thing to do. So I mustn't do that. No matter what. Ever. (Quite a few Bible verses about that, btw. {s}) Okay, sorry, that was still depressing. Something equally pertinent but more upbeat: it matters almost nothing whether I ever receive my rights. It matters everything whether I acknowledge the rights of other people.(Thanks George MacD!) True love really is the most important importance in all reality. Justice without true love to the object isn't justice, but is only evil tyranny.True justice, even in wrath, seeks fair-togetherness and reconciliation;and never stops seeking it. When all other things have passed away, these three will be remaining: faith and hope and true love. (And the greatest of these is the love.)

Is there anything you regret doing/not doing?

Too many sins to list. But kind of answered already in principle. {s}

What is your favorite past-time?

Creative writing is certainly on top, at this time. Serving someone else would be better, though. {s!}

Is there anything else you would like to share with us?

Just incase readers don't know, those little letters in the fancy brackets are astyle of 'emoticon'. {s} means smile; {g} means grin. And no, I don't usethose in the book. {g

The Book of Names by Dean Barkley Briggs

Join D. Barkley Briggs, author of the young adult fantasy novel, The Book of Names (Navpress Publishing Group), as he virtually tours the blogosphere in December on his first virtual book tour with Pump Up Your Book Promotion!

About the Author:

D. Barkley Briggs has worked in radio, marketing and new product development. He also pastored for 11 years. After losing his wife of 16 years, Briggs decided an epic fantasy might inspire his four boys to live courageously through their loss. The Book of Names is the first in a series of adventures set in the Hidden Lands of Karac Tor. Briggs has since remarried and now has eight children. Learn more at www.hiddenlands.net.

About the Book:

It was supposed to be a routine Thanksgiving break. But when Hadyn and Ewan Barlow discover an ancient Viking runestone buried on their family farm, they unwittingly open a magical portal to another world. Fleeing grief and broken dreams over the loss of their mother, the two brothers find themselves hailed as Champions in the Kingdom of Karac Tor. But all is not well. Nemesia the witch is releasing shadows over the whole land. Names are being stolen from The Book of Names, the most sacred relic of the kingdom. Before long, the Barlows realize they must find the courage to fight, or they will never find their way home. There’s just one problem: even if they win, will anyone know how to send them back?


I was lucky enough to be able to interview Dean. Here's what he had to say:

Did something specific happen to prompt you to write this book?

On one level, I’ve always loved fantasy stories. I’ve always loved the adventure and magic. But there is a deeper story here. The Book of Names is partially my attempt to define and reclaim my life (and my kids), from some very painful events.

The Cliff Notes version: I was married to my dream girl for 16 years. We had four boys. At age 36, I lost my wife to cancer. My world crashed. It was the most wrenching, utterly disorienting, soul-shredding experience of my life. My young family felt exiled from the world we had known. We felt dumped into a strange, new world. If I could have, I would have laid in bed and withered away, but I had four young boys who needed me, and who needed to know that life can still be good. Together, we embarked on a journey, and thus my tale. It’s been strange, and it’s not over. The Book of Names is part of that journey. My four boys serve the role of heroes, struggling through the loss of their mother, then becoming magically ensnared in the perils of another world. It is my attempt to write my way through grief and inspire my sons to fully engage in life.

The premise is Narnia-esque, with a decidedly modern twist on the legend of King Arthur. Four brothers in rural Missouri are magically transported to another world. In the Hidden Lands of Karac Tor, names are being stolen from the mystical Book of Names, and it falls to the Barlow brothers to figure out what is happening. Through the perils they experience, the boys discover more about themselves, grow as brothers, and learn to live heroically. That part is fun, wild, straightforward "hero fantasy". But there’s a deeper side, too, and I think that helps set these books apart.

What is the most important thing in your life right now?

I want to live life on simpler terms. I want to impart a value system to my kids that is antithetical to the consumerism that defines the American dream—it’s no longer a dream, it’s a nightmare. The sum total of life has become acquisition. I’m as guilty as the next person, but I want to escape. I want my kids to escape.

What are you currently working on?

The Book of Names is the first book in a series called The Legends of Karac Tor. The second book comes out in Spring, 2009. It’s called Corus the Champion. I’m currently about halfway through the manuscript for book 3, called the Song of Unmaking.

What do you feel is your biggest strength?

As a writer? I really strive for a certain lyrical quality to the way I write. I want to imbue the narrative with a sense of meter and rhythm. Once upon a time, I also painted watercolor so I also try to write kind of like I paint, by layering light washes of words to build various scenes and characters. I’m also fairly organized, which helps with plotting.

Biggest weakness?

I suppose I might have a tendency toward symbolism that some might find annoying. To me, appropriate symbolism adds depth to a story if it’s subtle enough, like a treasure waiting to be found. Some might also fault me for being more of a classical fantasist, rather than something more trendy, such as urban or gothic fantasy.

What do you feel sets this book apart from others in the same genre?

It’s gritty and heartfelt. It’s got a raw core that most teens today will readily identify with. In fact, chances are they’ll feel like this is their story in some way or another. I don’t try to whitewash some of the deeply felt struggles teens face every day. And yet it does all this in the context of another world they can escape to, rather than having to slog through the disappointments of their own lives. Like all good fantasies, The Book of Names helps to stir a sense of wonder, which is increasingly rare in a jaded, cynical age.

Are you a different person now than you were 5 years ago? In what way/s?

I’m more compassionate. I have a greater sense of scale for what matters and what doesn’t. You know, like Richard Carlson, Don’t Sweat the Small Stuff...and It’s All Small. That’s really true.

What is the most important lesson you have learned from life so far?

Forgive. Forgive others. Forgive yourself. Be forgiven.

Excerpt:


(By now, the chilling truth has sunk in: Hadyn and Ewan are in a strange, new world. It’s not a dream. As they journey toward the capital city of Stratamore, hoping to find someone who can send them back home to Missouri, they are attacked by an angry mob of birds and five drone-like teenagers who have been following them for unknown reasons. Accompanied by Sorge the Gray Monk, Asandra the mirling, and a grumpy, stouthearted gnome named Flogg, the brothers take temporary shelter in a small structure called The Stone House.)

Sorge glanced out the peephole cut into the wall, “The birds that attacked us are a Flight of Crows. Sorcery makes the birds fly swifter, with focus and greater rage. They even seem to multiply. It’s Nemesia’s doing, I’m sure. Ewan, lock the door. Everyone else up against the east wall. Stay flat and still.”

Scooting on all fours, Ewan found the latch and slid the bolt. They all pressed against the stone wall, though Flogg seemed more irritated than afraid. Outside, amidst scattered, low voices, a sound drew near. Feet crunching on pebbles.

Memory jarred Ewan. “Sorge, the hole you made!” he hissed.

Quickly, Sorge smeared the rock face with his fingers. The surface sealed under his touch as if made of paste. At the wall, he drew himself to his full height, staff in hand. Pacing feet now ringed the Stone House. Only the four walls stood between the hunters and the hunted.

The five outside circled the Stone House with slow, deliberate movements—once in full, then twice. The light sound of flapping wings returned. Claws scratched against the thatched roof. Squawking. On the third circuit, something like fingernails began scraping the rock wall. Inside, the air strangely thickened, so that Ewan found it hard to breathe. A strange heaviness began oozing under his threshold of conscious thought, like smoke slipping under a door, making it difficult to think clearly. He fought it, trying to focus on a spot on the far wall. Beside him, Haydn leaned hard against the stone, as if using it to hold himself up. Matted blood was stuck in his brother’s hair, smeared on his face. His ragged breath strangely comforted Ewan, to know he felt it, too. They were both fighting the same thing.

Though Sorge had counted five, only one voice arose from the artificial calm. It was creepy and directionless, drifting like a leaf in the wind, leeching through the stone, shiftless and flat.

“Who travels...so far?” the voice said. It was male, not old. He sounded neither curious nor fearful, stringing words together like pearls on an open loop before letting them tumble thoughtlessly to the ground, unclaimed. Other voices rose faintly in response, moaning like wind on a barren plain. “Who journeys...through...the skies to the home...of despair?”

More soft strides on padded feet. More scraping. More bird noises. Strangely, none of them even attempted to peer through the high windows. Perhaps they didn’t care. Perhaps this was all some bad dream, or a very bad joke.

When a hard fist suddenly rattled the wood planks, Ewan jumped. So much for that theory. Sorge reached out to his left and right, placing a steady hand on the shoulders of both boys. He put a finger to his lips to focus their thoughts. Shhh...

Another thump, this time harder, as if one of the people outside had taken a heavy stone from the pond, and was trying to smash the door apart.

“Who crosses the hidden...barrier...”

The door rattled again, a bone-jarring sound. Thwack!

“...to trouble holy men?”

Thwack! By now, the birds had gone wild, dancing and squawking, flapping and pecking.

“Plans come to nothing. Yours...ours. Nothing. The world will...come to nothing. Hide and prove us true. Emerge and join us. Fight and be consumed. We are...the Name—”

Thwack! Another blow and the door would surely shatter. Ewan found himself straining to concentrate. The what? What had he called them? The last word had drowned in the clatter, but Ewan thought he heard it: the Nameless. The boy’s voice had an gooey, sticky quality. The words formed questions, yet at the same time seemed passionless to any answer that might be given. Ewan’s head spun. The voice in his head felt foreign on the one hand, yet it entered his brain with a sense of relief, leaving a residue of thought he could not wipe away. He shook his head angrily, saw Hadyn making a similar gesture. Ewan wanted to scream, to force it out of his head.

The same young man kept droning on:

“Do not think proudly, outlanders. You have come for no great purpose. Let me show you the beginning...of the way of peace: Nothing matters.”

The other voices joined in, creating a soft, uneven chant: “Nothing. Matters. Nothing.”

It seemed to crescendo. Ewan braced for the door to splinter. Wings flapped wildly. Sorge’s knuckles were white on his staff. Asandra’s face glistened in the half light.

“Nothing matters...”

Then, simply nothing. They were gone, the sound of their feet trailing away to the south, lost amongst the whispering grass and the generous curves of dimpled land; lost in the slow circles forming on the water where silver perch topped the pond, gulping for mosquitoes. Birds and voices alike—gone.

Hadyn sank to his knees. In the warmish light, his face was pale. “We shouldn’t have come, Ewan. We should be home right now, with Dad. Not here, wherever this is. I’m so sorry.”

Ewan struggled to catch his breath. He felt the same. But home was a long, long way away...


Review:

"In the same vein as such master fantasy writers as J. R. R. Tolkien and C.S. Lewis, author D. Barkley Briggs has penned a superb tale... The Book of Names is fast-paced and compelling. Readers will be clamoring for Briggs's next installment in this exciting and worthy new series."
— Teenreads.com

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THE BOOK OF NAMES VIRTUAL BOOK TOUR '08 will officially begin on December 1 and end on December 23. You can visit Dean's blog stops at www.virtualbooktours.wordpress.com in December to find out where he is appearing!

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