The Raven’s Daughter
By- Peggy A. Wheeler
Genre- Fantasy, Adventure
Publication Date-February 29th
A Murdering Monster and a Myth Come to Life
After a police shootout where she killed a man, criminologist Maggie Tall Bear Sloan retires from the force to enjoy peace and quiet in rural California. When sets of young twins are murdered in her town, the local sheriff recruits her to solve the gruesome killings.
But to catch a killer, Maggie either accepts her true nature as a “pukkukwerek” —the shapeshifting monster killer of Yurok legend—or more children will die.
As the manhunt intensifies and her own family is threatened, Maggie will do whatever it takes to keep them safe. Whether she’s awake or asleep dreaming, Maggie is faced with a difficult choice: embrace her heritage—even if it means turning into myth itself—or deny that heritage and lose everything.
Author Interview-
What inspired you to write THE RAVEN’S DAUGHTER?
A
few years ago, I was mildly depressed about something unimportant, but it was
getting to me. I wanted to “kill a
monster” to rid myself of the blues. I thought, “What is the most heinous
monster anyone could imagine?” Turned
out to be a cannibalistic Manitou who targets small children. I can’t think of anything more awful. So, I invented a villainous murderer who
kills little ones, and a strong middle-aged woman who catches and slays
him. It worked. No more blues!
When or at what age did you know you wanted to be a writer?
I
recall writing little poems and making up stories when I was six years
old. I still have some, actually, so
probably then.
What is the earliest age you remember
reading your first book?
Five or six.
I loved “The Saggy Baggy Elephant,” and the Disney books, like
“Pinocchio”.
What genre of books do you enjoy reading?
Literary, Upmarket Fiction,
Straight Commercial Fiction, Magic Realism, Sci Fi, Mystery, some Fantasy, some
Horror, Historical Fiction, Biography, Memoire, Non-Fiction Science (especially
quantum physics), the Classics. I’m not
overly fond of Romance, Erotica, Military or Westerns. And I do not read “Slasher” books that are
over-the-top gory just for the sake of gore.
What is your favorite book?
“One Hundred Years of Solitude”,
by Gabriel Garcia Marquez.
You know I think we all have a favorite
author. Who is your favorite author and why?
Gabriel Garcia Marquez. I fell in love with him when I was a student
at U.C.L.A and we read his short story “The Very Old Man With Enormous
Wings.” I was hooked from the get-go. I was then (and still am) mesmerized by Magic
Realism, and I wish I was good enough to write in that genre. Of course Marquez is the father of Magic
Realism. I’m re-reading his Nobel Peace
Prize for Literature winner, “A Hundred Years of Solitude” right now…which I
listed above as my favorite book.
If you could travel back in time here on earth to any place or time.
Where would you go and why?
I’d like to see what California was like four hundred years
ago. I understand when European
explorers first set foot in California, they described it as a paradise filled with
flowers.
When writing a book do you find that
writing comes easy for you or is it a difficult task?
Easy.
Writing to me is like eating candy. When
I’m locked onto a story, I’m blissful.
Don’t ask me about revising or editing, though. Hahahaa
Do you have any little fuzzy friends? Like a dog or a cat? Or any pets?
Six
small dogs, all rescues that no one wanted, and a pair of Spice finches.
What is your "to die for", favorite food/foods to eat?
Good
gelato is hard for me to pass up. I also
love great red wine and champagne. And,
let’s not forget classic crème brule!
Anything made with lots garlic and butter is heavenly.
Do you have any advice for anyone that would like to be an author?
Ignore the age-old advice to
“write what you know.” Instead, write
what you are passionate about. I heard
that from Margaret Atwood when she spoke a few years back at the Los Angeles
Book Festival. It makes perfect sense to
me. Did Ray Bradbury ever visit Mars before he wrote THE MARTIAN
CHRONICALS? Did Arthur Golden ever live
as a female Japanese Geisha prior and during WWII before writing MEMOIRS OF A
GEISHA?
About the Author-
Peggy A. Wheeler is published under the names of Peggy A. Wheeler, Peggy Wheeler and Peggy Dembicer. Her non-fiction articles and poetry have appeared in a number of national
magazines and anthologies. She has written for Llewellyn Worldwide. Most recently, she her short story Mama’s Special Stew appears in WOMEN WRITING THE WEIRD II: Dreadful
Daughters, by Dog Horn Press.
Her B.A. in English Literature is from U.C.L.A. Her M.A. in English with a Creative Writing emphasis is from California State University at Northridge. While attending U.C.L.A., Peggy
was one of only twelve students (and the only undergraduate) chosen to study with Robert Pinsky, former Poet Laureate of the United States. She won first prize awards for two of her
poems from an Evergreen Women’s Press nation wide poetry contest. Her poetry received honorable mentions from the judges of a Los Angeles Poetry Festival and The Academy of
American Poets. Peggy’s poem Du Fu was nominated for a Rhysling award for Best Science Fiction Poem. Her manuscript for THE RAVEN’S DAUGHTER was a top ten finalist in the 2014 CCC Great Novel contest.
Social Media Links-
0 comments:
Post a Comment