Interview with Gail Martin
The Blog Ring of Power Presents...
An Interview with Author Gail Z. Martin
Fellow Broad Universe member, Gail Z. Martin is here today to share a little bit about herself and to tell us about her latest novel, Ice Forged. Gail writes epic fantasy, a genre that has traditionally been the domain of male authors; it always fascinates me to hear how authors get drawn to a genre that has dominated by the other gender and what crossing the gender boundary has been like.
This is part one of a five-part interview. Be sure to check out the other BRoP sites for the rest of the interview:
Part 2 @ Teresa's site - Thursday, January 24
Part 3 @ Emily's site - Friday, January 25
Part 4 @ Sandra's site - Monday, January 28
Part 5 @ Dean's site - Tuesday, January 29
BRoP: How long have you been writing?
Gail: I “wrote” my first story when I was about 5—my grandmother had to write it down. Since I was a big fan of Dark Shadows, it was about a vampire. That explains a lot.
BRoP: When and why did you begin writing?
Gail: I wrote a lot of fan fiction back in junior high and high school, because there were series that went off the air without a resolution and I had an ending in mind. I wrote for the amusement of a small group of friends (no Internet back then), and found that I could entertain people. By the time I was in college, I was writing my own stuff, and still entertaining my friends.
BRoP: Tell us about your early works—what was the first thing you ever wrote?
Gail: I mentioned the vampire story and the fan fiction. The first full-length book I wrote was actually my version of how I thought Star Wars Episode VI should go, during the time when we were waiting for Revenge of the Jedi to come out. It was over 400 pages long (typed on a typewriter, not a computer), and my vision was a little different from George Lucas’s. Luke went to the dark side, Han was “the other” and Leia died. I still kinda like my version better.
BRoP: When did you first consider yourself a professional writer?
Gail: When I sold The Summoner to Solaris Books in 2006 and qualified for SFWA membership.
BRoP: What genre do you write?
Gail: Epic fantasy—I like the big, sweeping canvas, the world building, and the chance to build characters over the course of several books.
BRoP: What format is your book available in (print, e-book, audio book, etc.)?
Gail: Trade paperback, Kindle, Kobo, and Nook
Where can readers can stalk you:
Website | Blog | Facebook | Goodreads | Twitter | Amazon | Ghost in the Machine Podcast
GAIL Z. MARTIN'S newest book, Ice Forged: Book One in the Ascendant Kingdoms Saga (Orbit Books), launched in January 2013. Gail is also the author of the Chronicles of the Necromancer series (Solaris Books) and The Fallen Kings Cycle (Orbit Books). For more about Gail’s books and short stories, visit www.AscendantKingdoms.com. Be sure to “like” Gail’s Winter Kingdoms Facebook page, follow her on Kingdoms Facebook page, follow her on Twitter @GailZMartin, and join her for frequent discussions on Goodreads.
ICE FORGED: Condemned as a murderer for killing the man who dishonored his sister, Blaine “Mick” McFadden has spent the last six years in Velant, a penal colony in the frigid northern wastelands of Edgeland. Harsh military discipline and the oppressive magic of the governor’s mages keep a fragile peace as colonists struggle against a hostile environment. But the supply ships from Dondareth have stopped coming, boding ill for the kingdom that banished the colonists.Now, McFadden and the people of Velant decide their fate. They can remain in their icy prison, removed from the devastation of the outside world, but facing a subsistence-level existence, or they can return to the ruins of the kingdom that they once called home. Either way, destruction lies ahead…
The Blog Ring of Power (BRoP) is a consortium of five speculative fiction writers who have banded together to bring you highlights from the current speculative fiction market--news, reviews, and interviews with speculative fiction authors--with an emphasis on small-press and self-published authors. So grab a cup of coffee, pull up a chair, and relax. Have we got a story for you...
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