Fallen Angel Reviews would like to welcome the author of Diranda: Tales from the Fifth Quadrant, Enticed, Ravished and Arcadia. Hello, Tabitha.
Thank you for taking the time to be with us today.

You're welcome. I'm very happy to have the opportunity.

You have quite an impressive list of books. Do you have a favorite?

All of my books were fun to write, but if I had to choose, my favorite is Diranda: Tales from the Fifth Quadrant. This book has a collection of my favorite stories set in the Dirandan Chronicles universe. The Dirandan Chronicles is my oldest and most favorite setting and all of these stories are very close to my heart, as are the characters. This book is my favorite so far because several of Gaston VonTesmar's stories are included as well as a couple of Alexandra T'Kayn's stories. Both of these characters are very dear to me and will be appearing in many more stories in the future. I was excited to be able to do this book, because it was the perfect way to showcase the setting and introduce new readers to the Dirandan Chronicles universe. It could almost be considered a Dirandan Chronicles Reader of sorts.

I was able to include the short story, The Blood of Thrax, which was very important to the storyline begun with Arcadia, concerning the disposition of the mysterious Artifact that caused all the trouble in the first place, the Quyrin.

What was the driving force behind your primer: A Guide to Witchcraft for Writers?

Interestingly, this book came out of a discussion the members of the Dark Romance Novels Group were having about writing and the Wiccan religion. Nancy Fulton and I started talking about putting together a writer's guide, since I have a background in Wicca and writing. This wasn't my first non-fiction work about Wicca, though it was my first book-length manuscript. So far, it has been very well received.

Have you found many of the books about Wiccans to be incorrect?

Well, Joletta, the thing is, there aren't many books that have real Wiccan characters in them. The wonderful pagan author Rosemary Edgehill has written a series of mainstream mystery novels about a Wiccan protagonist that are the most accurate and well-written Wiccan fiction. Authors like her are really very rare. Since TV has made being a witch relatively 'cool', more characters who are 'good witches' seem to be appearing in contemporary fiction, but there still seems to be a question about what Wicca actually is. Even writers who are trying to portray Wicca accurately still include a "paranormal" element that simply does not exist in Wicca, at least not in the special effects sense.

My book addresses this in straight-forward terms, while providing authors with a real starting point in their research on this fast-growing contemporary religion.

The majority of your books are science-fiction/fantasy. Do you find this genre more challenging to write as opposed to contemporaries?

I grew up on Science Fiction and Fantasy, so I've been writing it all of my life. It's very easy for me. I love world-building and have gotten to the point with the Dirandan Chronicles where I can concentrate on the characters rather than the setting, which is where the intensity of the inter-character relationships come from. The setting only ends up enhancing the drama, which is where so much of the fun is at.

What's difficult for me is changing gears to write contemporary fiction. It's a challenge, but I can definitely say I've had fun doing it.

Have you ever had a problem keeping your 'worlds' and characters straight in your mind?

Not at all. I have developed an extensive background for the Dirandan Chronicles, most of which never makes it into the actual stories. I've been building this 'universe' for over 10 years. I've taken this method of world-building and applied it to my other settings, such as the Latharna fantasy setting that appears in the Avarair Interludes novella from Ravished! and the Fantasy Egypt setting that appears in Daughter of the Shadows.

Could you tell us a little about your books? Familiarize the readers with your work?

I write science fiction and fantasy, but I don't write what might be considered 'typical' SF. I like to write stories that are centered on the characters, rather than focusing on the fantastic aspects of the setting, regardless of the genre. I also do write romance into my stories, but again, I really don't write romantic plots.

The books I have available right now from Renaissance are all set in the Dirandan Chronicles universe. Three of them are short story collections, two are erotic (Ravished! and Enticed!) and one isn't (Diranda: Tales from the Fifth Quadrant). Arcadia is the novel.

My favorite characters are Alexandra T'Kayn, from Arcadia and Tales and Gaston VonTesmar, from Tales.

There's really no best place to begin to read the books, but if I had to suggest one book, I'd say Arcadia is a good choice. It introduces Alex as she returns to the colony she grew up on, Arcadia. Only when she gets there, she finds herself in the middle of the worst of her nightmares, invasion by one of her oldest enemies, Cerin Tesar.

The erotica collections feature some of my favorite short erotic pieces, with some of my favorite characters, including Alena Varian, Tamara Sable and Joshua Wetfire. They're Science Fiction and Fantasy, just with erotic plotlines. They're definitely not erotic romance, they're very firmly erotica. They were as much fun to write as to read and I still like to write this kind of hot, spicy fiction.

My favorite, of course, is Diranda: Tales from the Fifth Quadrant. I think the reason I like this book the most is because there are several stories which concern Gaston VonTesmar, Prince and later High King and Director of Diranda, who is a very complex man and extremely fun to write.

Can you tell us about your newest book Daughter of the Shadows coming soon from eXtasy Books?

I've been wanting to write a story about a fantasy Ancient Egypt for a very long time. My challenge with this story was to keep it as erotic as possible while maintaining the ancient intrigue of the setting. The main character is Tasherytakhet, a Guardian of Bast. She's a warrior-priestess who is denying her attraction to the dark and sexy Sennefer, High Priest of Set.

I'm planning on doing more "Daughter" books in different fantasy settings as well as more books set in Tashery's Egypt.

This is my first book with eXtasy.

What type of research goes into your novels?

I do the majority of my research at the library. I read extensively, so by the time I feel ready to write a story, I'm usually immersed in the information. I also use the Internet, as well as practical knowledge when required.

Who are your biggest influences?

There are several authors who've had an influence on me as a writer, but I think the ones who have had the most influence on me are J. R. R. Tolkien and Roger Zelazny. I admire these authors for more than their writing style or their books. I think what has had the greatest influence is the fact that both of them are beloved because of the worlds they created and the environments in which they created them.

But the person who is the biggest influence on me is my husband. Not because he's supported my career or given me more than enough time to write, but because he knows these worlds as well as I do. He can help me work through plotting problems, character issues and story ideas.

Your books list as Dark Romance, and you are a member of the Dark Romance Writers. Why do you think that your books are considered Dark Romance?

Dark Romance is romance that doesn't follow the traditional romance formula. My stories are intense, sometimes very dark and they can be disturbing. I don't offer my characters 'happily ever after' endings but more realistic resolutions to relationships. My primary male lead characters are more villains than heroes sometimes, my protagonist female characters aren't perfect either, sometimes they're very far from it, yet I strive to create females that women readers will like. And these women are realistic as well. For instance, the main character of Ravishment, Aurora Katran, (Ravished!) is a voluptuous woman, in the true sense of the word. At the same time, she is sexy and beautiful.

On the same hand, my male leads aren't always 'ruggedly handsome' either. Neither are the truly villainous of the characters.

I prefer writing realistic stories about realistic people in fantastic situations and settings.

This is what makes my work Dark Romance and this is what makes it so appealing to readers.

What genre would we never find in your hands?

Truly gory horror (with a really high 'ick factor') would probably be the only genre I wouldn't read. If a story is good, I really don't care what genre it is, I'll read it.

As a veteran of both worlds so to speak, do you prefer ebook publishing to print or vice-versa? Why?

I don't have a preference, actually. Ebook publishing is great because many people who are writing genre-breaking novels are getting their work seen by readers, when in the print publishing business, this isn't happening.

There are many people who are successful in print making the conscious choice to publish in electronic format simply because the print business, for the most part, has become so commercial.

Yet there are also many Independent (not necessarily just small) presses who are opening their doors to the breakout authors in a way that many (but not all) larger publishers can't or won't do any longer.

Some of the notable large presses are looking at e-book authors with interest now. I know people who have gotten their start in e-books and are now negotiating contracts with some respected names in print publishing.

Both kinds of publishing have their wonderful factors and their problems as well. The real bottom line is, of course, the readers. I want readers to like what I'm writing, and since I don't want to change my work to reflect someone's idea of what the public wants to read, electronic publishing is ideal for my Fiction right now.

I think this was the right move to make for me, since I have met several readers, authors and editors who are extremely supportive of the Dirandan Chronicles project. And that's what really matters to me.

What would we find on your bookshelf?

The Chronicles of Amber by Roger Zelazny, as well as the Harry Potter books by JK Rowling. Classic Wicca books as well as some not-so common books about Paganism, Wicca and Goddess Religion. I tend to collect catalogs and magazines and currently have Linux Journal, Circle Network News and The Pyramid Catalog on my shelf right now. About the only writing books I like are "Zen and the Art of Writing" by Ray Bradbury and "No Plot? No Problem" by Chris Baty.

I am reading "Rebel Code" about the Open Source movement and Linux.

What do you always have with you?

Besides my wedding ring, my garnets. At least one red garnet ring and my two grossular garnet bracelets.

What did you do to celebrate the sale of your first novel?

I told my son first, then my husband. At that point, he didn't know what I'd done and he was in complete shock. We took the kids out to dinner that evening.

Do you have any advice for aspiring authors?

Don't stop writing. It's very hard to stop and go all the time, so write even if you think it's crap. Try reading "No Plot? No Problem" by Chris Baty. And submit your novel, short story or novella. The worst anyone can say is 'no'. There's a point where you have to stop editing or rewriting and submit the damn thing. If it isn't accepted, it's okay. The point is that you submitted it. Seriously. I didn't expect to sell Arcadia. I really didn't. I was stunned.

Read some (not all) books on writing. It's always a good idea to brush up your skills, but don't over-read. Be selective in what you read. Good books are published by Writer's Digest, such as The Elements of Fiction Writing series. Refresh your basic grammar and punctuation skills. Rather than spending money on "how to write" books, invest in a solid dictionary, thesaurus, style guide and quotation dictionary. Writer's inspiration books are fine but remember that everyone has a different way of working. What works for one person might not work for you. Don't feel like a failure just because some famous writer's infallible method doesn't work for you.

Join writer's groups or email lists and try to see if your area has a critique group. It's important to network with other writers but remember that opinions are just that, take them with a grain of salt. Even other published writer's opinions about your work are opinions. About the only opinion besides yours that matters is the person who will eventually become your editor. The best editors work with you, listen to you and help you become better at writing. So don't let someone else's opinion get you down. Or swell your head, for that matter.

Is there anything that you would like to add, Tabitha?

I'm very happy that my books have been so well received by the e-book reading and publishing community. One of the things I have always wanted to do was to interact with readers, find out what they like about the stories and what they didn't, so I can improve the stories and characters. This is why I am actively doing chats and promoting my YahooGroups Email list, since I think the most important aspect of the fiction reading community are the readers themselves. I want to know what the readers think, since they're the ones buying and reading the books.

Tabitha, thank you so much for being here. Check out Tabitha's work at her homepage: www.tabithabradley.com. Readers be sure to mark March 3rd on your calendar and join at 9pm in the FAR Chat Room with Tabitha.




Interviewed by:
Joletta