SCALES AND STINGERS
K.M. Warfield
GENRE: Fantasy
BLURB:
Thia Bransdottir is shunned for being half Fallen, a race feared by many. She tries to disguise her lineage, but her lilac eyes make it impossible. When her Father is killed, she is taken to the cloister to be a servant of her faith. Jinaari Althir is sworn to protect Thia from the disgraced half of her heritage. Under his holy vows, he must keep others from killing her for their prejudice and using her for her power. He must succeed, there is no room for failure. Trust for someone like Thia is difficult.
Jinaari may say he is there to protect her, but can he truly do his best when he knows she is of the Fallen? Will Thia stay safe in order to fulfill her purpose or is she fated to die for her origins?
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Excerpt:
“Are you sure about her?” Adam’s voice was low, but she could hear him easily.
“Garret and Keroys both are. The priest said she was the best they had. She healed me at one point.”
“What happened?”
“Alesso got a cheap shot.”
“I don’t know, Jinaari. She’s Fallen. They’re not known for holding to laws or vows.”
“She’s also human, Adam. On our way here, we got jumped by a pack of Dangreth. She turned them into ash faster than I could blink.” There was admiration in his voice. “I only took out two . . . she took out ten. Keroys instilled his hatred of the undead in her. She asked if we’d be encountering more in Tanisal. I think she’s looking forward to wiping the city clean of anything evil.”
“Where’s she from? Humans and the Fallen rarely interact, let alone mate.”
“Ask her.”
“Don’t you know?” Adam asked.
“I do,” Jinaari paused, “and she trusted me enough to give me an answer. I’m not going to betray that. I don’t think she told me everything, not yet. Her life this far hasn’t been easy, even at the cloister. Trust isn’t something that she blindly gives. You gotta earn it. Garret said I had to keep her safe. From what, I don’t know. But I made a vow to him and Keroys to do that.” He paused. “She’s not like what Alesso and his kind think, Adam. She takes after her human side. As long as you show you’re okay with her heritage, trust her, she’ll come around. And she’s damn good at magic.”
Interview with K.M. Warfield
Have you read anything that made you think differently about fiction?
If I have to point to one book and not a series, it would be ‘Ariel: A book of the Change’ by Stephen R. Boyett. There’s something about the blend of humor, ‘what if’, and the depth of the characters that resonated in me. I read it many decades ago and can still cite one passage as being my favorite literary ‘nasty’.
How do you select the names of your characters?
For the ‘Heroes of Avoch’ series, it was mostly easy. At least with main characters! I pulled names and the basis of many from a 3 ½ year long D&D campaign I played in/helped run. My friends, family really, that played the characters had no problem with me stealing them, either.
Do you hide any secrets in your books that only a few people will find?
TONS! There’s a whole lot of inside jokes based off of the game we played. Things that fit perfectly fine – they’re not awkward phrases or anything – into the story/dialogue. But ones that my friends can read and know the story of how that phrase started. There’s a few other special things I threw in there. I have no problem divulging the story behind those scenes, either. But you have to ask me.
What was your hardest scene to write?
Thia’s confession. Not because it’s a reflection of how I feel (I played Thia, and someone I call brother played Jinaari), but because I knew some readers would read too much into it. But it was the best thing for Thia’s story, so I ran with it.
Do you want each book to stand on its own, or are you trying to build a body of work with connections between each book?
I’ve got other ideas for the world of Avoch, but I don’t want the entire set of books (however many that may be) to be so entwined that a reader has to start at a certain book. ‘Scales and Stingers’ is a great launching platform, though!
What were your goals and intentions in this book, and how well do you feel you achieved them?
My goal, my intention, was to honor my found family. These people have given me so much, helped me when I didn’t even know I needed it. It’s hard for me to explain the sheer joy of having friends you know have your back, that will drop everything to help you (even if it’s moving a spider out of a plastic tub while I had a mild freak out), and don’t judge you. Don’t expect anything from you. That actually want you in their lives. The best way I could tell them thank you was to immortalize them. Honestly, I nailed it. They’re all thrilled.
What inspired you to write Scales and Stingers?
It was April of 2020. Our game had gone from in person to online due to COVID. I was not handling the isolation well. I also knew the adventure as far as the D&D campaign would end within a few months. I wasn’t ready to let go of Thia, wasn’t ready to let the characters go. So, I started writing. Having the story to work on kept me sane, gave me an outlet at a time I desperately needed one.
Can you tell us a little bit about the next books in Heroes of Avoch Series or what you have planned for the future?
The ‘Heroes of Avoch’ series is now done and out. ‘Shield and Scepter’ is book 2, and the trilogy wraps up with ‘Sword and Soul’. I love all three, but the last one has a special place in my heart. It’s the one that sucks me back in the fastest. I’ll check something for consistency and end up reading it. Not as an author, but as a reader. I’m proud of what I wrote. That took a lot for me to be able to say.
I’ve got more projects planned – 4 of them are set within Avoch, 2 of which are completely different time periods – and I’ve got a 5th novel I started in 2019 and put off to the side. The main character is nagging at me, so maybe it’s time to dust that one off. A change of pace before I dive back into Avoch. Or, I could just open one of those other 4 and decide it needs finished. I’m a total pantser, and I write better if I’m able to visualize as I write. Sometimes, it takes several weeks of thinking about what comes next before I feel the need to sit down and finally get it down on paper.
Can you tell us a little bit about the characters in Scales and Stingers?
Let’s see…you have Thia, who gave up on a lot of normal things early in her life simply because of what race her mother was. She’s guarded, it’s hard for her to trust people, but it’s not without reason!
Jinaari…the best phrase that comes to mind is an arrogant prick. LOL. He’s insufferably noble, dedicated, and keeps his own secrets while expecting others to spill theirs. Once he gets to know you, though, he’s tolerable.
Adam…the near perfect foil to Jinaari, and his best friend. There’s no one else that would dare tell him some hard truths.
Caelynn…sarcastic, funny, and basically the group mom. Worries about everyone, probably would lecture you about going out in the rain with wet hair.
Pan….think unmedicated ADHD run amok in someone who constantly says what he’s thinking. Even if the subject changes in the middle of a sentence.
And then there’s Alesso. Who is almost as complicated as Jinaari, but not nearly as honorable.
What did you enjoy most about writing this book?
Finding my voice as an author again. Shaking off bad habits I’d gotten based on someone giving me advice that really didn’t know what they were talking about. Being able to close my eyes and losing myself into the images in my head…listening to my fingers hit the keys and knowing, deep inside, that the words they were typing were perfectly aligned with what I was seeing and feeling at the time. There’s a sense of freedom, of rightness, that I get when I’m in that zone. It’s intoxicating.
AUTHOR Bio and Links:
Born in the late 1960's, K. M. has lived most of her live in the Pacific NW. While she's always been creative, she didn't turn towards writing until 2008. Writing under the pen name of KateMarie Collins, she released several titles. In 2019, the decision was made to forge a new path with her books. The Heroes of Avoch series, along with a new pen name, is the end result.
When she's not writing, she loves playing Dungeons & Dragons with friends, watching movies, and cuddling up with her cat. K. M. resides with her family in what she likes to refer to as 'Seattle Suburbia'.
Connect with K.M. Warfield
8 comments:
We appreciate you featuring SCALES AND STINGERS today - thank you.
Great interview! This looks really good.
Thank you! It's great to stop by!
I'm glad you think so, Michael! Would love to see a review, if you pick it up!
Sounds great. I like the cover.
This sounds like a good book and I really like the cover.
I'm excited to read this!
Nice excerpt and book cover!
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