Where in the World is Sandy Lender?
Or...check out today's tour stops

Did I mention that I'm doing an online book tour to pre-promote the short story anthology What Choices We Made? Well, I am. The book is due out on the busiest shopping day of the year (Nov. 28). You can catch me talking about it at various spots for the next couple weeks and two of those places today are at Chris Chat Talks Books and Jamieson Wolf's blog. Nice? Click on the links and visit away!

What's extra nifty about Chris Speakman's blog today is that she's got the cover of What Choices We Made AND she's posted her reviews of Choices Meant for Gods and Choices Meant for Kings that she wrote this summer. The review of Choices Meant for Kings is just amazing. I was so tickled when I first read it. (Apparently, it still makes my day because I just read it again on her site and it's got me smiling.)

So please stop by Chris and Jamieson's sites and leave a comment so I know you were there. I'll be be-bopping through around the lunch hour (yes, I must get some work done, you know) and after work to respond!

Tomorrow, I'll be the featured author at PNR's The Haunt.
If you're trying to get your hands on the current Choices Meant for Gods, you can pick up the hardcover from Amazon.com, where they're currently offering a 20% discount. Or you can get the hardcover or the eBook from my publisher's site. My publisher always has a 25% discount on the hardcover and the eBook is only $3.99.

See you around the blogosphere!
"Some days, I just want the dragon to win."
Tags: online book tour, What Choices We Made, Chris Speakman, Jamieson Wolf

The Dragon Continues Yesterday's Info
Or...a quick refresher on Author Jamieson Wolf

I didn't have time before my appointment yesterday to type up something kind or clever about the author of yesterday's dragon story. Regular visitors to this site will recognize Jamieson Wolf's name-for two reasons. One, Jamieson (Drake) is the villain in the Choices trilogy. Two, Jamieson (Wolf) has appeared here in our author interview series several times as he's released books.

I met Wolf in an online writer's group a couple years ago and learned that he reviewed books for Linear Reflections. So I contacted him offlist to see if he'd read and review Choices Meant for Gods. He accepted and, a couple weeks later, I had a glowing review for my first novel and a new contact in the book publishing industry.

Jamieson writes a variety of genres under the speculative fiction umbrella, and you can learn about them at his site www.jamiesonwolf.com. It's always a pleasure to have him share his publishing experiences with you visitors because he's worked with multiple publishers and multiple genres in both electronic and print books. His articles appear in Linear Reflections and The American Chronicle (and others, I'm sure). He teaches courses with Long Story Short and The Muse Conference Online.

If you missed yesterday's dragon story, I encourage you to scroll on down through today's Word of the Day and check out yesterday's postings. If you leave a comment for Wolf, you're automatically entered in the dragon storytelling contest for the e-prizes later this week. Enjoy Wolf's gift for telling stories!

"Some days, I just want the dragon to win."
Tags: Jamieson Wolf, Choices Meant for Gods, dragon

Today's Dragon Story
Or...The Dragon welcomes Jamieson Wolf with this week's installment in the "There Once Was a Dragon" story-telling series

Dragons Don’t Dream

By Jamieson Wolf



There once was a Dragon who could not dream.

Because she could not dream, she was unable to fly. She would stare at her wings with discontent. She would stretch them out so that the sun could shine through the thick membrane. She wished that she could feel the wind rushing past them, whistling past her as she flew.

Discontent, she would lie by a small pond and watch the reflections of the trees sway when the pond rippled.

One day, as she lay by the pool of water, she watched a Phoenix land in the tree. It eyed the dragon through the branches. “Dragon, why are you sad?” it asked.

“I am sad because I can’t fly,” the dragon replied.

The Phoenix laughed. “Don’t be silly, all Dragons can fly.”

The Dragon sighed. “I can’t. Dragons must dream when they sleep in order to fly.” The Dragon sighed again and looked at the Phoenix in the trees. The Phoenix looked old and foreworn, as if it had seen better days.

The Phoenix shook its head. “I did not realize this,” she said. “I think I can help you with your plight, Dragon, if you help me with mine.”

The Dragon eyed the Phoenix warily. “What would you have me do?”

“I am at the end of my years,” the Phoenix said. “Normally, I would burst into fire and rise again from the ashes. But I am unable to do this.”

“But all Phoenix can,” the Dragon said. “It is the way.”

The Phoenix sighed. “Not all Phoenix can do this,” she said. “I can’t. I was born without fire inside me so I grow old beyond my years when I should be young and beautiful many times over.”

The Dragon thought how they were much alike, she and this Phoenix. “If I give you some of my fire, will that help you be reborn?”

The Phoenix nodded. “In return, I will give you this.” She reached behind her and plucked a tail feather out with one of her clawed feet. “My feathers have a special magic in them, a special resin. Let the feather burn in the fire that I will rise from and inhale the smoke. You will be able to fly then.”

The Dragon nodded, wanting to try anything at this point to achieve her desire of flying. She blew out a plume of fire, softly, so as not to catch the Phoenix unaware. As the Phoenix began to burn, the Dragon clutched the feather in her tail and reached out toward the fire.

The feather and the Phoenix began to burn with a bright, gold light, brighter than any flame the Dragon could ever produce. She pulled the feather away from the flame and was astounded when it started to hum.

The sound grew in intensity and the Dragon leaned her head forward and breathed in the smoke. As she did, she watched as the fire consumed the Phoenix. Soon, the sound was all the Dragon could hear. What she felt, though, was a different matter entirely.

She felt liquid fire enter her blood, a kind of Magic unknown to her. Surely Dragons are the most Magical of beasts? But she had not felt this Magic before, had not felt anything like it.

The Dragon felt as if she were burning from the inside out. Before she had a chance to contemplate this, there was an incredible, loud bang in the air. The tree that the Phoenix perched upon burst into flame and the Dragon lost sight of her.

Dizzy, she let the darkness take her, thankful to at least have made a friend.


* * *


In the darkness, the Dragon dreamt for the first time.

She dreamt that she was a young Dragon, barely over her hatchling stage. Her mother, still alive, was humming a tune.

“Why can’t I fly yet?” the young Dragon asked. Her young voice sounded high pitched to her, funny.

Her mother looked at her kindly. “Because you have not started your Dreaming Cycle yet. I have yet to take you through it. It is something that should be shared through mother and daughter.”

“Can we do it soon?” the young Dragon asked.

Her mother had smiled down at her, eyes glowing in the darkness of the cave. “Of course, my darling.”

The dream switched, moved, jerked. Now she wasn’t with her mother in the cave. She knew it was later that day, later that evening and she watched her mother die. The men had come upon them after dusk, had tied her mother down and had thrown the young Dragon into a net.

She huddled at the mouth of the cave, watching the men massacre her mother in the darkness. The young Dragon watched as the men withdrew her mother's heart, the nine chambers gleaming red in the darkness.

The young Dragon heard their laughter, heard their joking, and knew they were only hunting her mother for sport.

She knew that her mother's death was worthless.

The young Dragon felt tears slide from her eyes. The tears, ones of ultimate sadness, would never leave her. They would mark her scales with a whiteness that would shine in the darkest of shadows.

In the dream, the young Dragon saw darkness and then nothing more.


* * *


Awake again, the Dragon felt tears slide down her scales.

She had not dreamed before. But her first dream was of her most painful memory. She contemplated this; will her dreams get better as they went along, or would the subject matter always be left to chance?

Looking around her, she saw that the tree was burnt to cinders. But her friend had returned. Gone was the old, aged Phoenix. Instead, in her place was a large resplendent Phoenix with gleaming feathers and large tail feathers.

The Dragon looked down at her. “You’re beautiful now.” She said. “Thank you for the gift.”

The Phoenix nodded. “You have dreamt, I can see it in your eyes. I thank you for your gift to me. Without it, I would have been old forever.” The Phoenix regarded her through large black eyes. “You will fly with me now, yes?”

The Dragon nodded, happy to know that she could.



"Some days, I just want the dragon to win."
Tags: dragon, Jamieson Wolf

Author Interview with Jamieson Wolf
Or...The Dragon hosts the author of Valentine

Today we talk about publishing, writing and the new romance novella Valentine from Paranormal Romance Author Jamieson Wolf. He's on a whirlwind promotional binge during the month of June, participating in two online book tours: one hosted by his publisher, one he put together himself. It's marketing insanity at its finest. And, to top it off, he's the featured author at The Romance Studio Blue for the entire month. You can check that out here.

How does he do it? I asked him to share some of his publishing secrets with aspiring authors here at The Dragon.

The Dragon: Good morning, Jamieson, and welcome back to Today the Dragon Wins. It's great to have you here again.

Jamieson Wolf: It’s great to be here. It’s always a pleasure to stop by so thank you for having me.

The Dragon: I'd like to ask you two different sets of questions today. We'd all like to hear about your latest romance novella, Valentine, of course, but I also want to talk a little bit about technique. Some of the visitors today are aspiring writers, and I've always known you to be magnanimous in the way you offer advice and assistance to others. So let's start with a little information about the craft and work our way into the story of Valentine.

Jamieson Wolf: That sounds good to me!

The Dragon: Great! Right off the bat, I'd like to ask about the cover art for Valentine. On your title page, the cover is credited to Croco Designs. Is that someone you selected, or is that an artist/company that Cobblestone Press works with frequently?

Jamieson Wolf: The author isn’t able to design their own cover at Cobblestone Press. Croco Designs frequently do cover designs for Cobblestone Press. They also have in-house cover designers.

The Dragon: Did you have any input on the cover, and how pleased are you with the way it turned out?

Jamieson Wolf: Oh very much so! I was asked to fill out a detailed cover art questionnaire detailing what I’d like to see on the cover, what the heros looked like, that kind of thing. It’s wonderful that the author gets to be so involved in the cover design process, even if they don’t have a hand in the actual design element.

The Dragon: How did that experience differ from other books cover selections you've been involved with, and how would you guide a new author in dealing with either disappointment or anticipation of a cover that he or she doesn't get to participate in creating?

Jamieson Wolf: Well, normally, I design my own cover art. So it’s actually a nice break for me not to have to do that. With regard to Cobblestone Press, if you’re disappointed in the first mock up of the cover, the art department will work with you until you are happy. Just be patient and remember that others may not see the characters as clearly as you do.

The Dragon: Let me ask about the publishing process as well. First, about how long did it take to write Valentine, including research?

Jamieson Wolf: Well, including research, it took me about two months to write. I’d say a month's worth of research and about a month of writing it and self-editing. A long process but worth it!

The Dragon: Then once you had it complete, how long did it take to select a publisher to submit it to? And did you submit it to more than one publisher at a time, or did Cobblestone Press have a policy against simultaneous submissions?

Jamieson Wolf: Cobblestone doesn’t accept simultaneous submissions so I was lucky that they were the first ones I submitted it to. I searched the internet trying to find what looked like reputable publishers for gay fiction and Cobblestone looked amazing! I’m so glad the initial impression of them turned out to be correct a hundred times over. They’re an incredible publisher.

The Dragon: Once Cobblestone Press received the manuscript, how long did you have to wait for an acceptance?

Jamieson Wolf: Their usual acceptance rate is between 60 to 90 days. I know it seems a little long, but it was such a nice surprise to get that acceptance contract in my email box! It was like Christmas!

The Dragon: And were you nervous, or did you feel a certainty about the process? What advice would you offer new authors who are waiting for that "call back" from a publisher?

Jamieson Wolf: Well, I always advise authors to research a publisher before submitting; it’s a good thing to do to make sure your work will be a good fit. I had already done that so I was darn excited when I got my acceptance. They’re very good too at letting you know their process, how long editing will take, the procedures for editing, etc.

The Dragon: Once Cobblestone Press had accepted the Valentine manuscript, how long did the editing and production process take before it was released to the masses?

Jamieson Wolf: It’s usually six months from contract to publication. It seems like a long time, but trust me, you’ll need it. There’s a lot of editing to do, even if you don’t think there is, and it’s a lot of work getting a manuscript ready to go out into the world.

The Dragon: Waiting for our characters to get their chance to shine can be nerve-wracking. Did you have any aspirations of writing a sequel or did the characters of Valentine, Anna, or Asterius "speak" to you while you were waiting? Have they spoken to you about a sequel since?

Jamieson Wolf: You know, originally, Valentine was going to be a one off. I had planned to explore other areas of history. But I never really planned to write a sequel. But that was then, this is now. I’m now thinking there will be two more books, one more for sure. I’m thinking of calling them Valentine’s Promise and Anna’s Wish.

The Dragon: When you were writing, did the character of Anna ever try to take on a larger role than what she has in the final version of the novella? She strikes me as a strong, caring, vivid support character. I don't want to give anything away, but her actions show great love, great friendship, and a willingness to sacrifice if necessary. That puts her at the top of my list for "return characters," if you know what I mean.

Jamieson Wolf: Well, she will be in the sequels but she was never pushy about it or wanting to get in the limelight. She’s very patient; it’s a good thing too. Asterius is a bigger-than-life character. I’m surprised that he wasn’t more vocal about a sequel!

The Dragon: You admit in your preface to taking "some liberties" with the old legend of St. Valentine and Asterius, and I'd like to hear about the act of betrayal that you worked into your story. I don't want to give too much away, but when Asterius betrays his new lover, for reasons that are explained in the story, I found it, as a reader, very difficult to forgive him. Even though various characters were able to overcome the betrayal, I wasn't right there with them for a while. How were you, as the writer, able to deal with Asterius after his treatment of someone he was supposed to love and cherish?

Jamieson Wolf: Well, I wanted to play around with the history of the legend a bit. Asterius had been Valentine’s jailer and nothing more. I wanted to find out what would happen if they were more to each other, if there was some sort of spark there.

I always knew, even before I began writing Valentine, that Asterius would (sort of) betray Valentine. I think that I had much longer to come to terms with it than any reader would.

But think about it this way: in any romance novel, there is always a conflict toward the end of the novel that the hero and heroine (or hero and hero in this case) must overcome before they can be together.

It’s a cliché, but it produces such lovely results.

The Dragon: These characters tend to get into us. Jamieson, as always, it is a delight to have you stop in to talk about your work with us. Would you let visitors know how they can get more information about you?

Jamieson Wolf: Sure I can! You can find my web site at http://www.jamiesonwolf.com/ or you can visit my blog at http://www.jamiesonwolf.blogspot.com/ I’m always working on something so make sure to check the blog often! Oh, and don’t forget to check out the Valentine blog which has a puzzle, excerpts, book trailers and more! You can find it at http://www.valentineanovel.blogspot.com/

The Dragon: And where can we pick up a copy of Valentine?

Jamieson Wolf: You can buy Valentine here. If you buy the novel and you’d like an interactive experience, why not download the soundtrack to Valentine? You can find it available for a free download here.

The Dragon: Thank you, my villain!

Jamieson Wolf: My pleasure Sandy! Thanks for having me again, it’s a treat as always!

The Dragon: Everyone, please note that the lovely Anna from the story Valentine will be Nigel's guest at http://sandylender.blogspot.com/ tomorrow morning. We invite you to join them for that interview to learn more about that powerful character and the novella by Jamieson Wolf.

"Some days, I just want the dragon to win."
Tags: Jamieson Wolf, Valentine, novella, Cobblestone Press, Croco Designs

Valentine Review
Or...in preparation for tomorrow's author interview

Tomorrow, we'll host Paranormal Romance Author Jamieson Wolf. After successfully publishing in both electronic and print format with multiple publishers and on his own, Jamieson has scads of information and advice for aspiring authors. So check in tomorrow to hear what he has to say about his journey and his latest adventure in romance publishing.

For now, here's my review of his novella currently available through Cobblestone Press:
Deep Eros
A review of Jamieson Wolf's Valentine

Opening with the perfect foreshadowing device—a summary of the legend of St. Valentine—Author Jamieson Wolf sets the reader up for an erotic supernatural romp that's going to have meaning. The story Valentine is fast-paced and well-told, and offers not just a quick-and-lusty romance, but a storyline that makes the reader sympathize with the characters' plights and care about the point Wolf wishes to make.

It is only after Valentine, the child of a Roman god, accepts his destiny to marry people, despite the emperor's order against it, that he gains his full magical abilities. As Valentine tells Asterius, the man he's fallen in love with, "It's not right that those who love can't marry because one man says so. When I took my post as cleric, the power grew in me."

Of course, what Valentine risks by performing marriages is more than his life—he risks his heart. From deeply erotic scenes with blatant, descriptive sexual content to scenes depicting agape love through friendship and loyalty, Wolf has a story for lovers to enjoy (after prime time!) during any season—Valentine's Day, wedding season, winter time in front of a cozy fire, or any time love strikes.

"Some days, I just want the dragon to win."
Tags: Jamieson Wolf, Valentine, paranormal romance

Exploring the Pen Name
With Guest Blogger and Romance Author Jamieson Wolf
(During the month of June, here at Today the Dragon Wins we explore the use of pseudonyms. Don't forget to participate in the discussion in the comment field to enter the contest for a copy of the eBook versions of Choices Meant for Gods and Apparitions. Details were posted June 1.)

What’s In a Name?

Once upon a time, I wanted to be an actor.

I had taken dramatic arts all through high school and university and wanted nothing more than to grace the stage and screen with my presence. Acting was in my blood; it was the air I breathed. Looking back on it, I suppose it had a lot to do with the fact that I enjoyed being someone else, pretending to be someone I wasn’t. Like most people with a creative bent, I had a lot of self esteem issues that I didn’t want to deal with. Acting gave me the outlet I needed. I could pretend to be someone else, someone other than me.

There was one thing standing in my way, however. My name. My name was boring, boring, boring. I knew that if I was going to be an actor, I would have to reinvent myself. I would need a new name.

There was another reason for changing my name, a far more personal one. I had grown up in a difficult home where I was the victim of physical abuse. I suppose my father didn’t know any other way to discipline his children. Thus, I was the victim of many beatings and altercations.

I was also graced with his names. William, my middle name, was his first name. Harsh, my last name, was his family name. When I left home, I wanted to leave that life behind. I wanted nothing to do with the man who used his fists instead of his words to express his feelings.

I saw this as the perfect opportunity to leave my old self that I was so unhappy with behind and embrace a new me, a better me. A me I could be proud of, a me I could live with. A me that wasn’t unpopular, gangly and awkward. A me that wasn’t a victim but a survivor.

I was fine with my first name, which has always been Jamieson. But I wanted to change my middle and last names to something that would have a spark, something that would give me the new life I was so desperate for. A name that would help me heal.

All through out my first year of university, my mother and I tried to think of different names. I wanted to take her married name, that of Villeneuve, as my last name. Thankfully my stepfather at the time consented and welcomed me into his family. But I needed a middle name, something that would be different.

We tried all kinds of W names. I was already signing things with my initials of JWV, Villeneuve, so it needed to be a W name. We went through all kinds of names: Willhelem, Watkins, Wilbur, Wilkes, Wade, Walden, Waldo, Wallace, Walsh, Walt, Ward. I didn’t like any of those names. Finally my mother suggested Wolfgang and I thought about it for a moment.

I didn’t like Wolfgang, too old sounding. But Wolf…

There was something there, a spark, a tingle. I loved the sound of it, of the three names rolling off of my tongue: Jamieson Wolf Villeneuve…

I had always loved Wolves, loved the sleekness of them, their allure. I loved the idea that they hunted during the night, that they hunted in a pack or alone. They were hunters, strong and brave; things I always wished I had been.

Thus, a new name was born. But I would have to go through one final change before my name was complete.

After university, however, I realized that I loved the craft but not the people. For those of you not familiar with the world of theatre, it’s a cutthroat business. Though I had developed a thick skin, I didn’t have the patience to deal with the fake people, the backstabbing, and the competitiveness. I just wanted to act.

I left the theatre then. It was heartbreaking to do, as I had loved pretending, loved being on stage, the centre of attention. Something was different now, though. With my new name, I was a new person. The ability to be someone else didn’t hold as much allure or mystery as it once had. I didn’t need to pretend anymore.

Without the creative outlet of acting, I turned to writing, something I had always done on the side. I had always written poems and jottings, stories and what not. I began to submit stories to online venues and magazines under the name of Jamieson Wolf Villeneuve, but it felt slightly wrong. The name, perfect for acting, felt like a mouthful with my new creative outlet.

As I began to write more seriously, I knew that I would have to go through one final change as far as my name was concerned. Again I was looking for a name that would stand out, one that would roll off the tongue and be easy to remember.

So, I decided to drop my last name and have my pen name be made up of my first and middle names. It worked for me, separating my regular life from my writing life and giving me the name I never knew I wanted.

Though it took many years, I finally have a name I cherish and I have finally found myself inside the pages of my work and inside my words.

I no longer have to run from myself because I finally know who I am.

Anyone who's been to The Dragon before knows I am a fan of Jamieson's work. You can find links to it from his main blog. This month, he's the featured author at The Romance Studio, promoting his novella Valentine from Cobblestone Press, so that's something phat to check out. Also come back by The Dragon Thursday to see his interview here and check out one of his characters' interviews over at Nigel's blog on Friday. It's a full week for Jamieson.

"Some days, I just want the dragon to win."
Tags: Jamieson Wolf, Valentine, romance author, pseudonym, pen names, Romance Studio

A Valentine From Jamieson Wolf

Or...The Dragon welcomes a new romance author to the site to discuss a special release for Valentine's Day

Today we welcome back one of our favorite authors to The Dragon. Jamieson Wolf has a new novella out and he's delved into the romance genre with Valentine. He took some time out of his insane writing schedule to share with visitors some of the research he did, some of his writing tips and some ideas for getting your novella into an online publisher's hands - and onto readers' computer screens.

The Dragon: First! Welcome back to The Dragon, Jamieson! It looks like Valentine took some research before writing. You've got the Roman Empire, a god out of the Pantheon, a Roman soldier...tell us how much research you had to do and how that differs from your usual writing style. Did you enjoy it?

Jamieson Wolf: I have had a long love affair with all periods of history but particularly Greek, Roman and Egyptian. I did have to do some research in regards to time, dates, years, etc. so that everything was correct. Though the story is based off of the myth of the real Valentine, I wanted to make sure that there was still enough fact in the story to make it real. I had to research the God Lesperecus, housing, whether or not they would have had simple household objects like a kettle, whether or not they would have drank tea in that time. Normally, I don't do any research. I just write the story. It was a nice change this time around to delve into a past I loved. It helped me get to know my characters better.



The Dragon: One of your characters has to face danger and death to be with the character he loves. Will you be giving away too much of the story to tell us a little about that idea? I'd like to hear how that "danger" element adds to the conflict that already existed in Valentine's disobedience in the novella/story.

Jamieson Wolf: Valentine is a cleric and he marries people against the edict of the Roman Emperor Claudius who forbids marriage. By defying the edict, he is brought to the attention of the Emperor, and Asterius, chief of the Roman Guard, comes to interrogate him. Valentine doesn't care about the danger; he knows that what he is doing is right, despite the Emperor's wishes. There is also the danger Valentine faces from letting himself love an enemy, but you'll have to read the novella to find out more about that. You can actually read the first chapter by clicking here:

http://www.cobblestone-mainstreet.com/forums/attachment.php?attachmentid=246&d=1201895436


The Dragon: In this story, you're exploring the concept of a man's love for another man, even though Valentine, the main character, has been performing weddings for all couples. How has your audience responded to this love story and are you encouraged by the feedback you've received so far?

Jamieson Wolf: Valentine is quite different from my normal fare. I don't think anyone who reads my work was expecting me to delve into the romance genre, even though there is usually an element of romance in everything I write. I was a little worried about the reaction and how people would take it but I needn't have worried. With the exception of a few family members, the reaction has been incredible. I'm surprised by how many people have been touched by Valentine, by how many people have read it and written to me to tell me how much they enjoyed it. I'm more than encouraged by the reaction because it just goes to prove one thing: love has the power to move mountains.


The Dragon: The length of the novella is listed as "tryst" on Cobblestone Press's Web site. About how many words is the story? Is that a comfortable length for your novellas? Will you be submitting more stories of this genre and this length for Cobblestone Press readers?

Jamieson Wolf: Tryst is the signature short story line for Cobblestone Press and can go anywhere from 10,000 to 20,000 words. Pretty much a novella. Valentine clocks in at around 15,000 words and it is a comfortable length for Valentine. I just submitted another historical romance, around the same length, so hopefully that will be accepted. Keep your fingers crossed!

The Dragon: What was the most exciting part of the process in creating Valentine? How did that differ from or feel familiar to the other stories you've had published in the speculative fiction realm?

Jamieson Wolf: I enjoyed the writing the most, I think. I loved getting into the heads of my characters and trying to get their emotions down on paper. I have always wanted to be a romance writer, to explore that genre, so the fact that I am now a published romance author is an incredible achievement for me. Valentine is really different from what I normally write due to the historical background. I had to be a lot more detailed than I normally am. When I write, I tend not be too descriptive. In the romance genre, I had to do the exact opposite so that was thrilling. It was such a wonderful experience because instead of focusing on the story, I got to focus on the people, the characters, to create a thrilling read. I can only hope I've succeeded.

The Dragon: How did you find Cobblestone Press or how did you go through the submission process with them? Do you have any tips or advice for writers visiting The Dragon today who might be interested in submitting a manuscript to them?

Jamieson Wolf: I actually stumbled upon them. I did a Google search for gay romance publications. Since Valentine is a gay romance, I knew that I had to find the right market for it. Luckily my browser pointed me towards Cobblestone Press and they have been fantastic to work with. I submitted Valentine and then played the waiting game. Imagine my excitement when they said they would be publishing Valentine!

My best advice for aspiring writers is to read a lot and to write a lot. If you don't read, you can't write. Reading will help to increase your vocabulary and give you a good idea of how to write credible dialogue and good stories. Writing every day will also get you in the habit of writing on a regular basis. Even if you don't feel like writing, try writing a small piece every day. You never know when that small piece could be the seed for something larger.

The Dragon: How can visitors to The Dragon get a copy of Valentine?

Jamieson Wolf: You can purchase a copy of Valentine by clicking here:

http://www.cobblestone-press.com/catalog/books/valentinejw.htm

And don't forget to check out the Valentine Blog for tons of fun stuff, the Valentine book trailer and much more. You can find that here: www.valentineanovel.blogspot.com

The Dragon: When is your memoir set to be released from The Friday Project? And if our visitors want to stay up-to-date on that release, where can they get more information?

Jamieson Wolf: My memoir, One Step at a Time, is set to be released this summer from The Friday Project. No set date yet, but I'll know more as the summer comes closer. I'm so excited about this release! If you want to stay up to date on the release of the memoir, check out the site: www.takingonestep.com As always, readers can always take a look at what I'm doing by checking out my regular blog www.jamiesonwolf.blogspot.com or my web site at www.jamiesonwolf.com

The Dragon: Thank you for stopping by The Dragon today, Jamieson! It's always a pleasure to have you share information with our fellow writers and readers here. We wish you the best of success with Valentine and all your titles that are out right now!

Jamieson Wolf: Thanks so much Sandy. It's always a pleasure to stop by and visit with you and your readers. Thanks so much for having me! It's an honour as always.

Tags: Jamieson Wolf, Valentine, dragon, Cobblestone Press, The Friday Project

Did You See Jamieson Wolf's Long and Short Lists?
Or...The Dragon is still catching up with what happened in December

Back in December, life was a little hectic for...oh...everyone. My new job involves launching a new magazine so these first few crucial months mean plenty of long hours getting everything in place. In fact, if you'd like to see what a fantasy author does for a day job, you can check out the construction industry blog I created, just for giggles. It's at www.theasphaltforum.blogspot.com. Very little of it will interest the average reader or writer because it's geared for vertically integrated asphalt production facility and quarry owners. That's a mouthful, eh? They're fabulous folks and I'm looking forward to meeting up with them (again, and that's a long story best told on Nigel's blog at http://sandylender.blogspot.com) at some industry events over the next few months. Yes, the travel schedule is about to pick up.

But as the work schedule got a little harried, an e-mail landed in the inbox from fellow speculative fiction author Jamieson Wolf. He's also a reviewer for Linear Reflections and The American Chronicle, and he has a memoir due out this year with The Friday Project called In My Steps. I haven't read any advance or proof copy yet, but I've visited his blog, www.jamiesonwolf.wordpress.com, which inspired and instigated the book, and I recommend checking out both the blog and the book. When the e-mail landed, I read through it and put it in a folder for deeper review later. You'll never guess what it was! That fabulous Jamieson Wolf had picked his favorite books of 2007 and my epic fantasy novel Choices Meant for Gods is No. 2 on his short list and No. 1 on his long list! You can read the entries on his blog that discuss the lists at http://jamiesonwolf.blogspot.com/2007/12/best-books-of-2007-long-list.html and http://jamiesonwolf.blogspot.com/2007/12/best-books-of-2007-short-list.html. How cool is that? I'm so stoked! Jamieson, you rock.

"Some days, I just want the dragon to win."
Tags: Choices Meant for Gods, fantasy novel, fantasy author, Jamieson Wolf, In My Steps, speculative fiction

Lots o' Announcements Tonight!

Or...The Dragon has stuff to tell you

One evening, Sandy Lender was bemoaning the fact that, as a new fantasy author with a new epic fantasy novel, she didn't have a lot of good pictures to post here at Today the Dragon Wins. (Yes, that sentence was engineered for search engine optimization.) So I posted something to the effect that the picture you see here was probably getting a little old and I needed to figure out a way to get more, different, fun, exciting images. My friend and fellow author Jamieson Wolf, whom all ya'll should be familiar with by now and who has his first in-print novel available over at http://www.amazon.com/Ghost-Mirror-Jamieson-Wolf/dp/0974053775/ref=dp_return_1/105-8001163-2859664?ie=UTF8&n=283155&s=books&qid=1187578781&sr=1-1, suggested I have a photo contest. Folks should send in pictures of themselves reading Choices Meant for Gods.

Dude. I was all over that idea.

The results are two contest winners. One that I randomly selected from the Duran Duran 2001 Close Up tour hat and one that I selected as the "most creative." Please join me in congratulating the winners listed in the posts below.

Also, Mr. Wolf prepared a book trailer for Choices Meant for Gods that can be viewed on YouTube (and could be viewed here if I could do the whole linking thing on Blogger, eh?). That contest concluded yesterday and the winner is also listed in her own special post below.

"Some days, I just want the dragon to win."

Tags: Choices Meant for Gods, Sandy Lender, Jamieson Wolf, fantasy author, fantasy novel

The Wolf Talks About The Dragon
Or...check out The Friday Project blog today

If you remember your author interviews, you'll recall Author Jamieson Wolf stopping by Today the Dragon Wins back on July 9 (it's in the archives) to talk about his new young adult thriller The Ghost Mirror. He's on tour all month and his stop today takes him to his memoir-publisher's site at http://meandmybigmouth.typepad.com/scottpack/2007/07/the-ghost-mirro.html where he not only talks about HIS book...he talks about Choices Meant for Gods.

How cool is that?

How amazingly cool is that?

Go see what he says...

"Some days, I just want the dragon to win."

Tags: Choices Meant for Gods, The Ghost Mirror, The Friday Project, Jamieson Wolf, dragon

Take a Haunted Walk with Jamieson Wolf at The Dragon

Or...today's author interview is with the author of The Ghost Mirror

One of my favorite authors and promoters is Mr. Jamieson Wolf, a gentleman who is just a workhorse! One of his latest works is The Ghost Mirror, a fantastical look into an alternate world where Mave Mallory (who had her first interview with Henry Bakerson at http://friendsofdragons.wordpress.com last week!) comes of age! And now, today, her author joins us here at The Dragon.

The Dragon: A lot of visitors to The Dragon are familiar with you and some of your work by now because I mention you frequently, but, for newcomers, could you kind of explain what it is about writing (and speculative fiction writing in particular) that you find intriguing or enjoyable?

Jamieson Wolf: Simply put, I love to write. It's my air, my breath, and helps keep me sane. As for speculative fiction, that seems to be the genre that I'm most comfortable in. I always try to write something in a different genre (romance, suspense, mystery) and the story always works itself into a fantasy or paranormal story. I always let the story write itself, so I don't mind too much. It's almost as if my muse is saying to me: "No no, you have to write THIS story. How can we make this work?" I also have the most fun with speculative fiction.

The Dragon: The Ghost Mirror is not your first work to be released, but you were still pretty doggone excited when you got word about it. Can you tell visiting/aspiring writers how you got your contract with eTreasures and what you recommend and don't recommend for them when contacting electronic publishers for their works?

Jamieson Wolf: No, it wasn't my first published work but it was my first non-self-published work. It's also the novel that I've shopped around the most. The Ghost Mirror is my favorite out of all that I've written; the story spoke to me from the first moment so it was so exciting for it to finally have a home.

eTreasures Publishing has been wonderful to me and to The Ghost Mirror. I first heard of them after a fantastic writer I know, Lea Schizas, had her suspense novel Doorman's Creek published with them. After reading Doorman's Creek (and it was beyond incredible), I saw the kind of work they were capable of and thought I'd send The Ghost Mirror to them. Lea had nothing but fantastic things to say about them.

So I submitted and I waited. And I waited. And I waited. The one thing I would recommend with submitting to any publisher, not just electronic ones, is patience. This is something that is really difficult for me as I have little to no patience and had to learn that along the way. Be patient and don't give up on yourself. You know you can write; you just have to be patient and keep on trying, don't get discouraged!

Thankfully, Vickie Kennedy got back to me and told me she was going to offer me a contract!

Speaking of contracts, that's another thing I would recommend. After you get your contract (and if you believe in yourself, you will!) make sure you read it. Before signing it and putting your name on the dotted line, make sure you read it over a few times to understand what you're agreeing to. It also helps to have someone else look it over and if you have any questions, ask your publisher. They should be happy to help.

The Dragon: Switching gears radically, I'd like to talk about inspiration and motivation and muses. I know where the character Mave from The Ghost Mirror came from. Can you share that story with visitors and give them some pointers about "finding motivation"?

Jamieson Wolf: The Ghost Mirror really came about because of my cat, Mave. I had wanted to write a children's book with her in it and sat down to write it but that's not what came out. Mave is in it, but she's a girl and she has to fight off an evil sorcerer who is an eater of souls.


Oddly enough, it was Mr. Lavender that came to me first. I'm not sure why this is, but he was a good starting point for me. He opened up doors that I wouldn't have gone into and would have otherwise left closed.

I guess my first piece of advice for finding motivation would be to just write and keep going even if you think what you're writing is crap or it's not what you wanted to write. When I first started writing The Ghost Mirror and Mr. Lavender popped onto the page, I stopped writing it for two weeks. I had wanted to write a fluffy children's book with cats. Now I was writing a young adult novel with soul eaters and girl Witches? I almost didn't continue.

But in the end, the act of writing should be the greatest motivation itself. I wanted to see where the story would go, what the words had to say. And most of all, what this new form of Mave had in store for herself. I knew I couldn't bring her to life on a page and just keep her there.

I wrote The Ghost Mirror while unemployed for three weeks and it kept me sane. It wasn't what I had set out to write, but Mave, my cat, kept me company. She sat on my lap through the writing of most of the novel. In a way, I think she wanted to see the story told, as well.

I am beyond glad that I listened to the Muses. Sure, when you go to put something on paper, it may not be what you see in your head. But how will you know how great it's going to be if you don't put it on paper?

The Dragon: Did you find it difficult to put Mave in sad/distressing situations with her parents and in dangerous/life-threatening situations in the town of Elements? You see, I have come to love my character Chariss so dearly that as I'm writing Book III of the Choices Meant for Gods trilogy, some of the trials she endures tear me up inside. It breaks my heart to see this. And to see Nigel's reactions? Oh my God. So knowing what Mave means to you, I wonder how difficult it was to write the "exile" she experienced from her immediate family.

Jamieson Wolf: I found it immensley difficult to put Mave in difficult situations. I know how much you love Chariss, so you must know how much I love Mave. And, let me tell you something, The Ghost Mirror only gives you an idea of what's in store for Mave. There are two more books planned and things will get darker with each book. It's one of the reasons I haven't written the sequel yet. I don't want to go there. But I'm going to have to because in these cases, the story really writes itself. I don't like it, I don't enjoy it, but I have to tell the story the way it needs to be told.

As for her immediate family, I knew that Mave's family wouldn't like her. This is more because people always fear what they do not know or understand and it was the same with Mave and her parents. But don't worry, they get what's coming to them in the second book.
I don't like putting her in difficult situations, let alone a few where she could have died. I knew at the beginning of writing the story that a huge weight would be put on her shoulders.
In the end, I had to write the story the way it wanted to be written, regardless of what was going to happen to Mave. This was really hard to do. But I didn't want to shy away from what was going to happen because of my own selfishness.
Of course, it hurt to do so. But I think that if I had not let the story go where it needed to go, it would have sounded fake. The dialogue would have suffered and it would have come off sounding fake. This happens a lot, especially in young adult fiction; the author feels the audience may be too young so they talk down to them. I just perfer not to patronize my audience and let the story remain as is.

The Dragon: Without giving away any names with this question, could you tell readers how you prepare yourself for the death of a character? See, I have a few important characters die in the line of duty in Books II and III of the Choices Meant for Gods trilogy, and, as a writer, I can tell you that it hurts. You grieve as if you've just lost a member of your family, depending on how close you were to the character. I don't know if you want to tell visitors which character I'm referring to in The Ghost Mirror, or how close he/she was to your heart, but I'd like you to share your philosophy in general with our visiting writers, if you would.

Jamieson Wolf: I will tell you honestly that I cried writing that scene. I won't reveal who it is either, and if you want to know you'll have to read the book. *grin* But you're right. It hurts, a lot. When you create a character, you essentially create an extension of yourself. All characters have something of their creator in them. To have to kill them off or have them hurt: it's painful.

There wasn't any way I could really prepare for it. I knew a few chapters ahead that the character would have to perish. So I just kept telling myself that it had to be written, that the story had to write itself the way it needed to. It still hurt, but it kept the integrity of the book together.

The Dragon: And on a cheerier note, would you share with our visitors where you got the "concept" for The Ghost Mirror? Did it start with Mave? With the alternate reality she visits?

Jamieson Wolf: I started with Mr. Lavender. He scared the crap out of me. I think mostly this was because I knew that if I continued, there could be no rushing through, that this could be the best thing I had ever written. So I thought on him for two weeks. At the time, I hadn't even connected him to Mave, to her story. But in the end, it just seemed to make sense. So, how did I bring her into it? Why did Mr. Lavender eat the souls of children? Who was his henchman? What was Mave's Grandmother like? For two weeks I brainstormed and didn't write anything down. I stayed away from the computer until I was ready. And I knew when I was because words the words came so easily when I finally sat down at the computer and wrote.


The Dragon: Plug it, Baby! Where can folks pick up this book? I've got my copy (and I printed it out so I could carry it around because I like to read while lounging, doncha know).

Jamieson Wolf: Well, currently you can find the book at eTreasures Publishing. You can buy the book by clicking here:

http://www.etreasurespublishing.com/Jamieson-Wolf/ghost-mirror.htm

You can buy it in e book format or in paperback. The paperback will be available towards the end of July and will even be available on Amazon.com and Amazon.uk ! But for now, you can buy it at eTreasures.

The Dragon: Thank you for stopping in, my villain. It's always a good day when we have the Wolf with the Dragon!

You're welcome Sandy! Thanks so much for having me!

Tags: Choices Meant for Gods, Sandy Lender, The Ghost Mirror, Jamieson Wolf, Mave Mallory, paranormal

Step Into Wolf's Alternate Reality with Ghost Mirror

Or...The Dragon welcomes Author Jamieson Wolf Monday, July 9, starting with a review today...and I already know he approves of this review so it's safe

Like Alice stepping through the looking glass or Dorothy finding herself in Oz, 13-year-old Mave wakes up in a run-down sort of house at the end of Water Street. But where is Water Street? And where are all the people you'd expect to see during the day? And how did she get from her grandmother's attic to here? Surely she didn't really step through the ghost mirror?

When Mave Mallory makes the decision to help her ghost friend, she inadvertently gets pulled through a portal to another reality, to a town called Elements where her latest powers are instantly felt by the inhabitants--and instantly feared. Author Jamieson Wolf describes a lonely, inquisitive child suddenly flung into a hostile environment. True to character, Mave initially explores her surroundings, obeying her grandmother's internal voice, and giving the author the opportunity to lay out a fantastical realm for the reader.

The Ghost Mirror may be a short novella, weighing in at 125 pages, but is it filled with scenes that the reader will have no trouble imagining. One can walk along Water Street and hear the fountains trickling as Mave passes by.

A word of caution, though: The Ghost Mirror is not for the faint of heart. Mave encounters death and a gruesome man who wishes to take her spirit to increase his own. The danger Wolf breathes onto the page is palpable, and it is only through a friend's help and sacrifice that Mave finds her inner strength to attempt her quest. It is through forgiveness, too, that she can discover a way home. But before she makes that journey, Wolf has opened the portal for you to step through. Won't you join Mave on the other side of The Ghost Mirror...

Tags: Jamieson Wolf, Ghost Mirror, fantastical realm

The Wolf Gives an Autographed Copy of Choices Meant for Gods to Guest
Or…the tour stop winner for Day 2 is…

Wanda Mallet won an autographed copy of Choices Meant for Gods yesterday during my blog tour at The Wolf Never Sleeps. Congratulations! My new friend Jamieson Wolf was kind enough to host me for the day and held a contest at www.jamiesonwolf.blogspot.com. The lucky Wanda, who I vaguely know through our commentary back and forth as we and others in the Hunted serial novel group enjoyed Jamieson's speculative fiction together, carried the day and will be receiving her prize as soon as UPS gets it to her door!

Congratulations, Wanda, and happy reading! I hope you enjoy the story and report back to the visitors here at The Dragon.

For those of you who didn't win the contest, or who didn't make it to The Wolf yesterday, you can still get your copy of Choices Meant for Gods very easily. Barnes & Noble still has a rewards program, so you can put your card to use here http://search.barnesandnoble.com/booksearch/isbnInquiry.asp?z=y&EAN=9781595071651&itm=1. Most folks are opting to go the amazon route here http://www.amazon.com/Choices-Meant-Gods-Sandy-Lender/dp/1595071652/ref=dp_return_1/104-9089752-5140754?ie=UTF8&n=283155&s=books&qid=1175821346&sr=8-1.

"Some days, I just want the dragon to win."

Tags: Choices Meant for Gods, tour stop, Jamieson Wolf

The Dragon and The Wolf
Or...these hunters are teaming up for the day to talk about Choices Meant for Gods

My friend Jamieson Wolf hosts me over at www.jamiesonwolf.blogspot.com today! Check out the happy interview, ask me some questions with the comment feature, and enter a contest to win an autographed, personalized copy of Choices Meant for Gods! This is the second stop of the whirlwind online book tour and, let me tell you, Jamieson conducts a really nice interview...

Tomorrow, there's no interview, but the tour stop lets YOU do the talking. Yes, there's an online author chat with Sandy Lender Wednesday, May 23, at http://willifordblog.com. It's only an hour long so get there at 9 p.m. eastern time (that's the east coast on Onweald...see Word of the Day below).

Oh, and if you don't win the Choices contest at The Wolf Never Sleeps today, you can order a copy of Choices Meant for Gods with free shipping from Amazon at http://www.amazon.com/Choices-Meant-Gods-Sandy-Lender/dp/1595071652/ref=dp_return_1/104-9089752-5140754?ie=UTF8&n=283155&s=books&qid=1175821346&sr=8-1. You can also get it direct from my publisher at a 25% discount at http://www.archebooks.com/BookIDX/Indexes/Fantasy/CMG/CMGDesc.htm.

Have a fabulous Tuesday!
"Some days, I just want the dragon to win."

Tags: Choices Meant for Gods, Sandy Lender, Jamieson Wolf, dragon

Hunting for a Little Mystery Thriller Soap Distiller?
Or...The Dragon has a treat for you today

An author friend of mine announced yesterday that his online serial novel Hunted has been released from mobipocket books for the masses to enjoy. And I want all you visitors to know about it. This thing is insane. I got in on the ground floor with this book because I was part of the online audience that got to read it as Jamieson Wolf wrote it for his Yahoo group at some address that isn't relevant right now. What is relevant right now is that Hunted is available at http://www.mobipocket.com.

Let me tell you a little bit about it. First of all, I love the cover they came up with. Jamieson, I know you're going to drop by, so you'll have to leave a comment telling us who designed the cover. Was that you? Because I know you're that creative... It reminds me of Heathcliff and a dark, desolate Yorkshire moor. Fantastic.

Next, Hunted isn't your typical mystery thriller. This is a clever satire. If you enjoy watching soap operas (which I actually don't), you'll love all the "pokes" at daytime drama. I asked Jamieson just how much he loves the movie Soap Dish, because I can see the influence. Here's his response:

"Oddly enough, it's one of my all-time favorite movies! I love Whoopi Goldberg and saw the movie the first time because she was in it. I've since watched it countless times. It's a hilarious look into the world of soaps. The movie showed that soap operas could be funny, even if the show they put on television wasn't."

Hunted shows that gruesome thrillers about soap stars seeking a quiet life away from the big-city lights of a television film set can be hilarious, too. The story takes the reader from laughing to cringing to gasping to fanning (yeah, there's a romance that makes you go "woah"). And there are enough pop culture references to make the average reader laugh out loud. Personally, because I'm a little crazy, I read my own references into it. For instance, when heroine Susan Halliway awakes one morning after "imbibing" to reduce the effects of one frightening adventure, she "groaned when the sun hit her eyes. She remembered booze and pills but not much else." All I could picture as I read those lines was Edwina from "Absolutely Fabulous"...

Now, the most entertaining part of the book for me is this character who is prone to hysterics named Sandy Duran. Yeah, it's kinda like that...

So I figure anyone who's in the mood for a fun romp through soap-opera land with some zombies and voodoo and romance thrown in for good measure needs to check out Hunted. And you can do so at http://www.mobipocket.com/en/eBooks/BookDetails.asp?BookID=54712.

"Some days, I just want the dragon to win."

Tags: Hunted; Jamieson Wolf

Sometimes Writers Need a Break
Or...how to avoid a nervous breakdown

I have a friend who amazes me with all the writing and promoting he can do in a day's time. You all have met him because he's been a guest of The Dragon before. Jamieson Wolf has written a plethora of stories and books and online serial works, but the project he stopped by The Dragon to promote a while back was Garden City, a collection of short stories.

Jamieson was scheduled to stop by this coming Saturday to promote his latest non-fiction work WRITE NOW! Exercises for the Aspiring Writer, which has this fabulous concept called the Idea Jar, which I planned to blog about this week leading up to his arrival (and still will), but, after advice from a doctor, he's decided to postpone his blog tour. Seems this gentleman who has the moxie to release two books in one year (and I'll list some of his other projects in a minute here because two books isn't overwhelming enough) needs to slow down for a little while.

You can see Jamieson's blog at www.jamiesonwolf.blogspot.com. You'll be stunned by the number of posts this man makes each day. He also has a blog called One Step at a Time, for which a publishing company is considering a book contract with him. (Add a little dash of stress to his life there.) He also prepares scenes for a serial novel online several times a week (I've lost count, but I think this is his sixth).

I could go on, but I think you get the picture. This is a writer. This is what we writers do. We work like mad on a variety of writing projects simultaneously. We promote those projects every way we know how. And at some point we realize it's 3:00 a.m., we've been editing/writing on the trilogy of Choices Meant for Gods nonstop for far too many hours, and we really could have used something for dinner eight hours before; but now we're just ready to drop onto a pillow so we can drive to the day job (the one that pays the rent) in four or five hours. Jamieson, my hat's off to you, my friend. Let us know here at The Dragon when you want to reschedule the tour, because we don't mind waiting.

I hope you get some sleep.

"Some days, I just want the dragon to win."

Tags: Jamieson Wolf, dragon, Choices Meant for Gods

The Dragon Thanks Megan Kissinger
Or...wrapping up our first artist week

The image above is the map on Onweald that Megan created for Choices Meant for Gods. As she explained earlier this week, she took a rough sketch (emphasis on rough) I provided her and drew the world on tracing paper. Together, we figured out how wide rivers should be, how far different cities were supposed to be from each other, what kind of artistic elements Megan could add in to give the map more flair (as if all her detail wasn't flair enough!), etc.

When she had a drawing that she felt captured the map I had in my head, she scanned it in to her computer and we sat in front of the monitor moving elements, fixing name spellings, and deciding things like whether the chalice should be up in Mahriket near the river where Chariss is to use it or in the Freotho Mountains where Chariss is to find it, etc.

The process of building a fantasy world absolutely requires a map so the writer can keep track of places, story developments, where characters travel, and so much more. For those of us who are artistically challenged (and if you've ever seen an ad I've created, you'll understand just how artistically challenged I am), we really ought to turn to someone like Megan who has true artistic skill to help us make the world "tangible". Megan didn't just create a map I could look at and follow and keep beside the computer for easy reference. She made something that is worthy of publication. It's appearing in Choices Meant for Gods with her name on it. What breaks my heart is that it's appearing in black and white. That's why I take every opportunity I can to plaster the map in color on promotional materials. It's truly a beautiful piece.

Here at The Dragon, we're pretty doggone proud that we got to host Megan for a week. I hope that her expertise gave good insight to those of you who stopped in to read. And, Megan, thank you for your time! Our next guest will be author Jamieson Wolf one week from today. Saturday, April 7, Jamieson joins us to talk about writing, specifically his new non-fiction self-help eBook, WRITE NOW!

"Some days, I just want the dragon to win."

Tags: Megan Kissinger, Choices Meant for Gods, Onweald, Dragon, Jamieson Wolf

A Week of the Wolf at The Dragon
Or…I hosted the villain from Choices with no worries

How did I get through the whole week without making a reference to Duran Duran’s Hungry Like the Wolf? Well, apparently, I didn’t. But it was a pleasure to host author Jamieson Wolf here at The Dragon yesterday to help promote his new fiction collection Garden City and to get some information out about eBook publishing. His first traditional publication, Hope Falls, will be available in about a year or so, and I intend to have us hear from him again! In the meantime, oh, Jamieson, that wait is a killer! I know because I’m still waiting on the release of Choices Meant for Gods. It’s hard to know your baby is in the womb, ready for the world, but the publisher’s schedule isn’t quite ready to let her go yet…

Now, to explain something. I met Jamieson through a writers group that you can find at http://groups.yahoo.com/group/thewriterslife/ and I highly recommend them. Great people. (We chat a lot.) When Jamieson joined the group, I nearly fell off my chair. Who would have thought I’d run into someone with the name of the villain from Choices Meant for Gods? Sure, it’s a small world, but…THAT small? And, as luck would have it, he wasn’t offended when I told him he had the name of a mad, evil sorcerer who tormented my main character her whole life. ;)

I’d like to hear from the visitors who’ve read the review of Garden City and who’ve read the interview from yesterday (or who participated in the interview) to see how the coverage was useful in your writing life.

“Some days, you just want the dragon to win.”

Author Jamieson Wolf Joins us at The Dragon
After the interview, you can post your questions for Jamieson through the comments feature

All this week we've featured articles that introduce both Jamieson Wolf and his latest fiction release Garden City. Now we'll dive right into the interview in which he'll answer some questions not just about that new collection of fiction, but about the business of publishing as well.

Sandy Lender: Your book Garden City contains stories that feature elements of the supernatural both as characters’ learned, “special” abilities and as the dénouement or deus ex machina. Tell visitors to The Dragon why speculative fiction elements are so intriguing to you. What inspires you about (or what first turned you on to) this genre?

Jamieson Wolf: I’m always inspired by what others consider the impossible. I keep telling myself that anything is possible, as long as you believe hard enough. Urban fantasy has always been intriguing to me because it’s the ultimate in conflict: a normal person confronted by something they do not believe in or do not understand.

When I first started writing, one of my big inspirations was Charles de Lint. Here was a writer who took the contemporary setting I loved and added mystery to it with magic. At first, I wrote stories loosely based around his stuff but found it lacking. While Charles de Lint is fantastic at what he does; I found I wasn’t as fantastic at writing Charles de Lint. So I started writing my own stuff with my own idea of what fantasy should be. I found that I could create my own worlds or, if set in reality, my own rules. I love speculative fiction because anything can happen; even the impossible.

Sandy Lender: For my novel, Choices Meant for Gods, I created a fantasy world where I could make up rules as I went along (within reason). For your book, Garden City, your characters live in the real world, but have supernatural encounters that many readers may recognize or expect you to have “correct”, such as the use of a pentacle or a ghost stopping in to get her story finally told to the world, etc. How much time do you typically spend in research of magic to construct something accurate and “within the genre rules” for a short story or a chapter in a longer work?

Jamieson Wolf: Oddly enough, I spend quite a bit of time in research, but not when I’m writing a story. I have a talent for being interested in what others would consider “useless information”. I love old myths and histories, urban legends, and tales of the unknown. I’m constantly delving into information about ghosts and spirits, cults, and witchcraft.

When I find something that strikes a chord, a story or a novel grows from there. My short story Sight Unseen, for example, came from learning about The Delphi Oracle. My short story The Three Fates came to me after I was reading about muses and their influences while I was preparing a course I teach; the Three Fates popped up in a variety of myths and legends and I wanted to put my own particular spin on this old legend.

While a lot of what I write is based in fantasy, I realize that it has to be grounded in reality, too. Having a contemporary setting limits the rules a bit and I have to make sure my information, such as it is, is correct. If I’m talking about witchcraft, for example, I have to make sure that it’s properly represented. The last thing I need is a coven of angry Witches out to get me.

Sandy Lender: Are you a member of the Speculative Fiction Society, SFWA, or any other genre-specific group? How useful do you think such groups are to a writer’s development as a writer? And—the all-important publishing question—how useful do you think such groups are to a writer’s C.V. or list of credentials when querying agents or publishers?

Jamieson Wolf: Actually, I don’t belong to any genre-specific groups. I do belong to a writers group, The Writersville Gang, and we’re from all walks of life and we all write different types of things. I used to belong to a Harry Potter fan fiction group when I first started writing, but I soon found that I wanted to write with my own characters, my own worlds; not someone else’s.

I’m not too sure the idea of a genre-specific group appeals to me, mostly because I write so many different things. I write fantasy, fiction, romance, horror, and children’s books. While a lot of those elements are sometimes melded together in one particular story or novel, I don’t like being boxed in. I’d like to think of my work as not being placeable in any particular genre but open to all of them.

Writers groups are VERY important to a C.V., however. They’re also important for your writing. Though constructive criticism is a hard thing to take for most writers, writers groups can be a great sounding board for your work and give you good experience as a writer.

Sandy Lender: When you realized you had enough short stories of a similar genre ready for publication in Garden City, what was your next step? I just mentioned querying agents and publishers, but, as most visitors to The Dragon will tell you, it’s difficult to find any of those folks who will represent anthologies. Do you regard Garden City as an anthology, and how did you go about getting it ready for consumers?

Jamieson Wolf: I resisted calling Garden City a book of short stories; instead I called it "collected fiction". The stories span almost my entire writing career; Crossroads, for example, was one of my first short stories, followed shortly thereafter by Thirteen. So, yes, I do look at it as an anthology of my work, my stories. Having started my writing with short stories, I’m quite fond of them.

I realized when looking through them that I had set them all in the same place, even some of the fantasy stories, without meaning to. I thought I had been placing the stories in my hometown of Ottawa, Ontario, but in the story Time's Malaise, the Goddess of Time calls the place Garden City. Knowing that I had set them in the same place helped me to see I had a collection of stories, an anthology, rather than separate stories. As well, some of the characters are featured in a number of stories, linking them together. Owen, for instance, shows up in Crossroads, Bride, Pandora’s Box, Magic Man, Boozehound, and Reunion. Once I saw that the stories were all connected, it was easier to make them a collection.

To put them together in a collection, I started with three stories: Time’s Malaise, Sight Unseen, and Blue, as these are the three stories that are not in a contemporary setting. They were my beginning, middle, and ending. Then I looked through the stories with Owen in them and tried to place them accordingly, as it seemed he would be our guide through most of Garden City.

I played around with the placing of the stories for a bit, as I was unsure of how I wanted them to progress. I decided to keep the second half of the book consisting of Pandora’s Box, Dim, Beauty, People Watching, Realties Real, and Crow Dreams Vibrant the darker half, easing readers into the darker side of Garden City. I wanted to start the readers off with the lighter side of things as the darker underbelly of something is usually revealed after you get to know someone or get to know a place.

I then had to design the cover. This took longer than I thought it would. I wanted the cover to be inviting but worrying at the same time. I can only hope I succeeded.

All in all, to get Garden City ready for consumers, it’s taken me about ten years. It’s been a long stay in Garden City and I’m not sure I’ll ever be able to leave.

Sandy Lender: You have three other fiction novels completed – Electric Pink, Electric Blue, and Hope Falls. If I understand correctly, the Electrics are available as eBooks and Hope Falls is under contract with a publisher to be released in early 2008. Will you correct my facts here and let visitors know how they can get their hands on these three novels (and when)? And tell us how we can order Garden City!

Jamieson Wolf: You’re correct. Electric Pink and Electric Blue, the first two books in the Electric Trilogy, are both currently available as eBooks. I will start writing Electric Red later this year, so it should be available next year as an eBook. No date set, but hopefully sooner rather than later.

Hope Falls is indeed under contract with a publisher and has undergone three rewrites with a possible publication date of early 2008. I’ll know more soon, hopefully. You can still read Hope Falls in its original form and the other three novels in the Hope Falls Series, Eagle Valley, Dragon’s Cove, and Hunted, at the web site I created for Hope Falls. You can visit Hope Falls here: http://hope-falls.tripod.com/

You can order Garden City, Electric Pink, and Electric Blue, as well as a nonfiction book I wrote called Finding the Muse, through my web site at: http://jamiesonwolf.tripod.com/

Sandy Lender: Thank you for visiting The Dragon, Jamieson. I’ve invited visitors to ask questions in the comments section so I hope we have some aspiring authors who’ve been inspired by your answers and your work to give you something to respond to today.

Jamieson Wolf: You’re welcome Sandy! Thank you so much for having me. I’ve enjoyed my stay and look forward to any questions readers may have!


"Some days, you just want the dragon to win."

Wolf's Bits
A more technical talk about Garden City

The collection of fiction from Jamieson Wolf entitled Garden City will be the focus of his interview here at The Dragon tomorrow. If you peruse the Garden City Review from yesterday, you'll find that the collection features character vignettes from a fictional/fantasy community where Wolf's imagination brings elements of the supernatural flawlessly into the "real world".

Here's the technical aspect for you. Garden City is an eBook comprising 133 pages. It contains 20 stories ranging in word count from quick to grab-a-cup-of-hot-cocoa-and-relax-for-a-little-while-you-deserve-it-after-a-long-day.

But I want to go to the eBook aspect for a moment because, as far as I'm concerned, it takes a bit of moxie to publish a book electronically. I mean, only 1 percent of the 196 million readers in the United States will purchase, download, and read an electronic book, according to Bob Gelinas, co-owner and editor/publisher of ArcheBooks Publishing, Las Vegas, Nev. At first, you may wonder if it's worth the effort to go after that marketplace. If you think about it long enough, you realize, that's a pretty sizeable group of people willing to spend dollars for your product. Let's go get 'em!

Wolf visits The Dragon tomorrow during his blog tour. He can answer questions concerning traditional publishing, which he experiences with his fiction novel Hope Falls, and e-publishing and self-publishing, which he has experienced with his fiction novels Electric Pink, Electric Red, and Garden City, and with his non-fiction novel Finding the Muse. Join us!

"Some days, you just want the dragon to win."