SeaGlass Siren's Special Feature 2015

Hi everyone! It's my birthday!
So as a special treat for you mers, I decided to post up Kristy Nicolle's interview months in advance for her upcoming book release "The Kiss That Killed Me," part of her Tidal Kiss Series!

Enjoy!!


Credits go to: Trish Thompson Photography

SeaGlass: Tell us a little about yourself and your background?

Kristy Nicolle: I'm a 22 year old writer and full time MA student living in the historic English City of Lincoln. I attend classes at The University of Lincoln toward my master’s degree in twenty first century literature which has introduced me to no end of interesting new stories, genres and experiences. I originally hail from Norwich which was where I was born, went to school and also enjoyed partaking in sports such as competitive gymnastics, Tae kwon do and ice skating. However no hobby or interest has ever come close to my love of the written word and its capacity to tell stories. I live with my wonderful boyfriend and together we push each other, he pushes me with my writing and academic study and I push him to keep coming up with new and original ideas for his personal training business. Family is very important to me as is my partner in crime MooMoo (nicknamed Doctor Moo- yes I am a sci-fi fan) the family cat.

S: What are your ambitions for your writing career? When did you decide to become a writer? 

KN: I think I have similar ambitions as most writers which is not only to sell books, but to have people love my stories and connect with them in a similar way to me as the writer. It’s a great privilege to craft worlds for others to walk through, just as for the reader it becomes great privilege to walk in them and I love hearing what people make of things I've written. It’s incredibly rewarding to see strong reactions from people about your material- even if that reaction is that they don’t like a character or find your plot twist infuriating. I decided to become a writer officially when I was around 13, but I've always loved writing stories ever since I was able to write from the age of about three.

S: Describe your writing process; Is it structured? Do you write everyday? How do you get rid of writers block?

KN: I think my writing process is becoming more structured as I become further involved in my Masters study. To be honest, the reason book one has taken so long to get to publishing stage is because I'm a stickler for detail and unfortunately an avid perfectionist. I had read the manuscript and self-edited over fifteen times before my editor got her hands on it. Book one was something that I wrote free form- as in I only wrote when I was sure I knew what I wanted to write, but now I know that this is not the most productive way to do things, as your primary draft usually changes in radical ways before you hit publish anyway. I have writing days now where I block off a whole two day section to write new chapters for the sequels, but I'm consistently editing book one every day. As for writer’s block I think it’s something which occurs through over thinking. I make plans for my books- but they aren't definitive and I’ll sit down to write chapters with the idea that whilst following a general plot line, I'm open to what characters have to throw at me. If I'm really stuck (I have to say the worst writers block I had was at the midpoint of my manuscript for book one. It lasted about three months because I got myself into a state about one particular chapter with about fifteen characters in) the best thing to do is just to sit down and write, regardless of whether it’s to do with your book or what you’re stuck on, just write. If I'm ever REALLY REALLY REALLY stuck or blocked, sleeping usually does the trick in solving it as when my mind is mushy and pliable it comes up with solutions. A relaxed happy brain is the best writing tool you can have.

S: What have you written? 

KN: I'm currently working on The Tidal Kiss Trilogy- book 1 ‘The Kiss That Killed Me’ which is pretty much done and I'm beginning book 2 as we speak. I've always got a blog called Freedom Through Fantasy, which I don’t use too often as I'm quite busy at the moment but it does feature a short story I wrote as a part of my Undergraduate study and some of my poems. I have written A LOT of academic literary analysis too. I also have an unpublished novel which was kind of my practice go at writing called Genii- it was always planned to be a trilogy but I never finished it. Who knows, it may rise from the ashes one day.

S: Your new series the Tidal Kiss Trilogy, what is it about?

KN: The Tidal Kiss Trilogy is my current WIP (work in progress) and it’s all about Mermaids and Psirens. The books follow the journey of a young American teenager called Callie Pierce. I don’t want to give a lot away as book 1 is yet to be released, but the long and the short of it is that Callie meets this guy called Orion who she finds herself inescapably drawn to. In the end she discovers more about who she is than she bargained for and leaves the life she knows behind to become the warrior of a Goddess she has never believed in. Here’s the blurb:

When Callie Pierce turns 18 she has three very simple goals: avoid her stepfather, escape to an Ivy League university of her dreams, and party with her friends. But on a night like any other, when the moon is full over the ocean, her life changes in a way that no one could have ever seen coming. On the sandy beaches of San Diego she meets Orion, a man with whom she cannot stay away, to whom her return becomes as inevitable as the tide kissing the shore. If that isn't enough, a kiss which changes everything plunges Callie head first into a world of mythic responsibility, epic danger, and heart stopping romance. The Mer, an ancient race of warriors brought forth to defend the seas, show her wonders beyond what is humanly possible, forcing her into an archaic chain of events that bring together power, seduction, violence, and beauty in a terrifying, yet exhilarating mix. Then there’s the Banished to contend with, a group of Psirens corrupted by the oceans abyss that stand to destroy the eternity Callie has been promised. Will she sacrifice herself for the greater good, or is the gravity that pulls her to Orion just too great to bear?

S: What genre are these books? What drew you to this genre? Where do you draw inspiration from?

KN: These books are NA Fantasy Romance. I think the idea of putting relationships through a baptism of fire has always appealed to me which is why I wanted to do Fantasy Romance more than just normal romance. I enjoy testing the boundaries of how characters can be pushed, particularly romantically and so a fantasy setting is the perfect place to do that. I also really like coming up with quirky dates for my couples to go on, it brings something unique to the table that you won’t find in any other genre. I think I draw inspiration from music a large amount of the time, so much so that a few of my chapters are actually named after song titles because I was listening to those songs on repeat while drafting a particular scene.

S: Where do your ideas come from?

KN: My ideas are very fluid, I don’t have any one source particularly, but as I've said before I'm very inspired by music and I always take a long walk in the evenings before I sit down to write. The movement and beautiful surroundings of Lincoln help me think and I have a few friends who I bounce ideas around with. I wouldn't say I get my ideas from books. But the sheer volume of books I've read certainly helps me to know how to construct a story and what a plot needs to stay healthy and readable.

S: How do you think you've evolved creatively?

KN: I think I'm prepared not to be sentimental about my work now. As in I'm prepared to kill off main characters and take my story to places the reader might not particularly like or agree with. I try to push boundaries, work in new environments and with challenging characters now that I wouldn't have been comfortable writing before. I feel like I've come to a place with my work where I'm starting to really examine what makes up a person, what makes them human and what the human experience means and how to capture it. I think fantasy allows you to do this by looking at the inhuman particularly. It is after all only through knowing what we are not that we can comment on what we are.

S: Will you be doing a trailer for your books?

KN: I do teasers and excerpts regularly but I feel like doing a trailer in video form would be difficult unless I had thousands of pounds to put into it. I believe in quality above anything else. If I can’t produce something high quality, I won’t attempt it.

S: If your book was going to be made into a movie, who would you cast as Callie and Orion?

KN: When I got these interview questions I’ll be honest I knew this one would be the one I’d struggle with. I’ll openly admit that I believe in the written word and haven’t got a clue about how my book would even translate to the big screen. I’d like to have relatively unknown actors on my project, something fresh and new because to me I have an image which I don’t want to deviate from in my head already. I’ll put it simply. Someone cute, short and peppy for Callie and someone super hot for Orion. Who is as much your guess as mine.

(SeaGlass's commentary: Chris Hemsworth. MMMM...)

S: What formats will your books be available in?

KN: Ebook and Paperback. It’ll be available on Amazon, Barnes and Noble.com Smashwords, kobo etc etc. The normal stops for online ebooks basically.

Thank you so much to Kristy for agreeing to do this interview!

If you'd like to support my lovely friend and The Tidal Kiss Trilogy, Like and Share her Facebook page The Tidal Kiss Trilogy. 

If you'd also like to see exclusive material from The Tidal Kiss Trilogy, join Kristy's Street Team, Tidal Telltails, - Official Street Team of Kristy Nicolle for announcements, first looks, sneak peaks, competitions and give-aways!

Also, check out her website, kristynicolle.com

Author of the Month: Mermaid Kelda

This month we will be featuring Poet Mermaid Kelda of Brisbane, Australia!




This interview was kept fairly short, but we hope you still enjoy it!

SSML: So tell me how you first started writing?

Kelda: I've always been a big reader - my mum taught me to read from a very young age and I was lucky enough to pick it up really quickly (I learned to read on The Hobbit!), and my dad was a fantastic story teller, so I was always interested in words and the different ways you can put them together to create meaning and aesthetics without the need for pictorial cues. I wrote my first story soon after learning the alphabet ("Once upon a time there were three flowers who were friends, and good friends." - to a five year old, that's a perfectly complete story) and I've been jotting things down when I have the chance ever since.

S: I'm assuming that you credit your parents then for your literacy and for inspiring you to write. That was a really cute story as well! What kind of things have you jotted down?

K: Yes, absolutely, though my primary school definitely encouraged us to write; a trio of dolphins defeating a grumpy shark, adventures in Egypt and the Amazon, and a jungle princess cursed to live as a tiger are the ones that come to mind. I've still got them, somewhere. I spent a good portion of my middle school years writing down the adventures my childhood best friend and I had had as a pair of heroic witches, and if I ever write a children's novel that's what I'll base it on. But over the last few years I've realised I'm pretty good at poetry, so that's what I focus on these days.

S: What are your poems about? Are there underlying themes in them?

K: It depends a bit on the form of poetry; sometimes it's abstract and unstructured, so there tends to be less of a "theme" than a "mood". If I'm writing a traditional rhyming poem (like my poem featured here), it's usually a story, often fantastical because that's what I enjoy writing about. I love writing half-rhymes most of all - there's something so raw and pleasingly imperfect about them - and they're a lot easier to write than traditional rhymes, so the themes vary just depending on what mood I'm in at the time. But because of my love of story telling, I'll often include elements of fantasy or folklore into all my poetry.

S: What was your favourite piece you work on? What poem are you currently working on?

K: My favourite piece I've written is a half-rhyme called The Space Where I Would Be, and you can read it here on my Tumblr. I like a good rhythm to my poetry, so most of the stuff I write works well read aloud as well as on the page. Currently I'm working on a children's poem about a girl's adventures though a dreamscape, filled with lessons about her perception of actions, intent, and character, and her own self-worth. Those are pretty in-depth themes to work into a story, never mind a poem, and then getting it to rhyme and flow well is another matter entirely, so it's slow going!


Thank you so much Kelda for taking the time to do this interview!
If you haven't already, check out her poem The Space Where I Would Be .

Kristy Nicolle

Morning all!!
I was just invited to be a part of the Tidal Telltails Official Street Team by Author Kristy Nicolle.

What I'll be doing is promoting Kristy by sharing excerpts, announcements, links, pictures or upcoming book cover(s), invite you lovely mers to like her pages and events, writing honest reviews of her material.

In return, I get to see exclusive looks at upcoming releases, and participate in competitions and giveaways exclusive to the Street Team- now known as TellTails -, opportunities such as having a character named in your honour if you join the street team, first look at book covers, exclusive to the minute updates on Work in progress, AND chances to win Tidal Kiss Trilogy Book Swag. WHO DOESN'T WANT SWAG?

I'm also going to be interviewing her for SeaGlass's Mermaid Library as well for her new book series The Tidal Kiss Trilogy.

Super Cannot WAIT! I've been wanting for something like this to happen for a long time!

For info about the book itself and for teasers:
https://www.facebook.com/TheTidalKissTrilogy

For info about the author herself:
www.KristyNicolle.com

Book Submission Form + Volunteer Update

Sorry for the delay guys, this is taking way longer than I expected!

Until this gets resolved the submission form will have to be MIA for now, BUT you can still submit anything you don't see in my mernetwork library thread.

Also, it's almost near the end of the month and I have been super busy that it seems as though I've neglected this poor site :(
This site is all kept and updated on my own personal time (which I seem to be lacking as of late)...
So I have made an executive to take on a volunteer librarian!

The bulk of the work (updating books and posting monthly authors) I can still handle, but I will need someone to share mermaid blogs in the online section, updating the graphic novels section, and Audio/audio visuals section whenever they have the time.

If anyone would like to volunteer or know of anyone who is interested, please let me know and I will love you forever! Contact will be posted below.

Love and Regards.

Email: andrea_duong@hotmail.com
Mernetwork: Seaglass Siren

Author of the Month: Seavanna

Due to scheduling, we shall be posting the next interview two days early for July!



It is time to feature the next author!



Introducing Seavanna; your local horseback rider, speedboater, jetskiier, wake-boarder, SCUBA diver mermaid from Arlington, Texas (whew!) On top of keeping herself busy, she also love to craft and write fanfictions! Scroll down below for the interview.



SSML: How long have you been writing for?

Seavanna: I started writing when I was about twelve, though I have been an avid reader my entire life--I was that third grader walking in line down the hall with my nose in a book. I discovered Buffy, the Vampire Slayer and Highlander fanfiction back in the days when a page of text took a half hour to load, and I started writing fanfic, mostly slash fanfic (romances between gay men). I have continued to write fanfic over the years, and the stuff I have archived on my journal now is primarily Supernatural, Glee, and White Collar. I used to have Harry Potter fic I wrote in highschool, but one day I went back and read it and found it too embarrassing to leave online, LOL! I have written several novel-length fanfiction stories, and I also have another Young Adult original novel in the works besides my mermaid story, Tanked. The other YA novel I am not posting online, but it is a non-slashy, PG-13 version of my original adult slave fiction, Mid Tier Slave. I love to write, and I wish I had more time to do it.

SSML: Which stories are your favourite ones to work with? 

SV: My favorite stories to work on are a fandom genre called "slavefic". It may seem that these are just kinky stories, but I always write them in a manner that challenges people's perceptions of right versus wrong, bringing into light just how much the society you live in effects your views and how good people can be okay with bad things if they are raised thinking those bad things are moral. For example, I almost always make one of the protagonists someone who isn't hardcore pro-slavery, but is not against it, either. This usually makes some readers really angry because slavery is "obviously evil", but then I remind then that slavery isn't obviously evil if you grew up around it. I like to point out that it is an issue no one really sits down and weighs the pros and cons of then makes an educated decision as to whether it is right or wrong--we just "know" it's wrong because our society says so, and the opposite is true in the alternative universes I write in. I also like to remind people that there are more slaves on earth now than ever before and that just because it's "out of sight, out of mind" doesn't mean that it isn't there--someone is making your cheap big-box store shoes.

SSML: What kind of story are you working on now?

SV: I am currently working on two stories. The first is Tanked, which is a Young Adult tale of a mermaid, Rayla, who is taken from the water and put up for show while simultaneously being groomed as a candidate for a mermaid breeding program, much to her anger. (She's pretty sassy, not to mention a self-declared bully.) It is in an alternate universe where supernatural creatures are known to exist but are not considered human. The story revolves around her relationship with Camshel, a wimpy ocean-born merlad who LIKES being on display for the humans; Riptide, a handsome merlad who was beached as a baby, raised in a lab, then released into the ocean for scientific research; and Flipper, a failed attempt at breeding a merman with a human female--the failure being that he has legs and not a tail. He can, however, speak psychically, like the merpeople do.

My other story is much darker. It is called Mid Tier Slave and is based off of this concept: "The battle against the slave trade has finally been won--after years of inequality, the Supreme Court has just declared that everyone has the right to own slaves." It is set in an alternate universe where rather than going forward with the Civil War, Abraham Lincoln declared that no one would move out westward and that the Southerners would be allowed to keep their slaves, though slavery would be illegal up North. Any slaves who deserted the South and joined the Union army, however, were freed and given citizenship. Fast forward to today: the North and South are strongly divided, and there is talk of war now that Eddison v. Kentucky has declared slavery legal for everyone, not just Southerners. The story follows two girls, Annabeth and Franci. Annabeth is the daughter of Senator Sweeney, the richest plantation owner in the South, and is famous for nothing, much like a Kardashian. Franci is the biracial daughter of an NAACP lawyer and a prison inmate who was part of a pro-union, anti-slavery terrorist group and blew up a government building on the belief that slavery destroys the American Dream by taking jobs away from citizens. Both girls are in difficult situations: Annabeth finds herself lured into a dangerous partnership with the Underground Rail-road after her father sells the slave she fell in love with, while Franci winds up in an intern-ship where her job is to market slaves to a new niche: the middle class, much like mid-tier handbags. No one in this story is the "good guy"--not the anti-slavery people, not the pro-slavery people... Everyone has own agenda, and no one's intentions are pure. Eventually the paths of the two girls come together in a very dramatic way. This story is the one I am really drawn to tell, but as I've said--I just don't have that much time to write! I wish it would just appear like magic!

Sorry, that got a little long!

SSML: No that's really descriptive. What inspired the stories?

SV: The idea for Tanked came about after I finished watching the TV series H2O. It, like most YA works, focused on the magical wonder of being a mermaid, something that gets a little old in my opinion. On the other hand, many of the adult versions tend to focus on a mermaid's inherent sexiness and "siren" abilities, developing into romances. I wanted to write about a mermaid who was just a regular person. Not exotic, not magical, just your plain old teen-aged mermaid facing the same stuff any teenager would face: teachers they hate, parents who won't let them do crazy things, kids that annoy them, boys they crush on... From there it just sort of bloomed into a story, and it continues to unfold in my mind, the specifics changing every day. Unlike Mid Tier Slave, I do not have this story totally plotted out and am "pant-sing it", as writers like to say. After a few more chapters to get a feel for the characters, I will sit down and write out a specific plot line to follow--otherwise my stories tend to get windy and you don't get any of those crazy cool "oh my gosh, why didn't I see that coming?" moments.

Mid Tier Slave was inspired by my love for writing the unexpected. I adore taking ideas and twisting them around and around to the point that it leaves people thinking, "Wait... what the heck?" So I came up with the idea that there could be a world where certain people are allowed to be slave owners and others are not--which is, in itself, a form of inequality. And people could be fighting for equality, but not for slaves to be equal to citizens--for all citizens be allowed to own slaves. Then I decided to apply it to modern day America and got that tingly feeling I get when I'm onto something good! I don't believe in re-writing the same old stories: That's too easy. It's so much more fun to think of something that really twists people's brains. And boy howdy, if you could read the plot line... It is a CRAZY twisty book! Every time you think you're back on solid ground, the rug gets pulled out again. Plotting is not my strong point (I am better at character study than the constant, moving plots publishers like), so I am proud of how well I plotted this book.

SSML: How long does it usually take for you to come up with the plot? It sounds incredibly detailed.

SV: It takes quite awhile. I first start constructing it in my head using the "how can I make this worse?" technique supported by agent and plot specialist Donald Maas. Basically every time something happens you think "what if--insert something worse--happens?", making the plot more and more exciting. After all, the higher the stakes the better the book. For example, in Mid Tier slave Annabeth is coerced into having sex with the much adored Reverend who runs the Underground Rail-road, then slut-shamed into not telling anyone because it is "her fault." At the very end it seems like everything had turned out for the best. After being held by terrorists, Annabeth is hurt but okay and she is finally with the slaveboy she loves. Then in walks the Reverend who raped her and her boyfriend turns around and says, "Annabeth, I'd like you to meet my father." They step outside and the nurse comes in to inform her she is pregnant--and the Reverend is the only man she has ever been with. It don't get much worse than that! The book ends there, setting up for a sequel.

For the plotting on paper, that usually takes me a good twenty-thirty hours of fumbling around before I manage to transcribe what's in my head into a lineal timeline with no plot holes. I use the writers program Scrivener for this. I find plotting very difficult, but once you come up with a good one there is nothing more satisfying. When I am floundering, I simply remind myself that whatever they claim, EVERYONE finds plotting a truly good story difficult. Otherwise Dan Browns and Michael Chritons would be a dime a dozen! Even the big guys like Stephen King spend a ton of time coming up with their plots and making sure they're not just fluff. It would be easier if I liked, say, romances, which center on relationships (a type of writing that comes easily to me) but a book's not a great book in my mind unless there is a moment that makes your mouth hang open and you have to stop reading for a second because it's just so intense, be it from an unexpected but perfectly built up bomb being dropped or a deep sociological revelation. That is why I am a huge Hunger Games fan and just think Harry Potter is okay. The world building in Harry Potter is exquisite but the plots are highly predictable and the world is clearly defined as Good versus Bad--if you read carefully you will notice that all of the "bad" people actually have a physically deformity, from being fat to a nasally voice. I probably would have liked the books better if Harry had died at the end, if we had found of there was never any way to stop Voldemort without Harry dying, because what a betrayal that would have been, with Dumbledore knowing all along that Harry must die. It also would have explained why this powerful wizard even let young Harry get in some of those situations. Hunger Games, on the other hand, reveals the real truth about war: there are no good sides. Evil done in the name of good is still evil, a lesson Katniss learns the hard way. I also enjoy the fact that Katniss has no interest in being some great hero, unlike Harry. All she wants is to protect the people she loves. She is forced into the roll of the "Mockingjay" by outside sources just looking for good propaganda and, in the end, her actual efforts have nothing to do with winning the war--Gale's bombs are much more efficient than her arrows. In the end the only real thing she did was making sure that the Hunger Games would not continue in new Panem.

So that is my diatribe on plotting, extended edition, LOL!


SSML: Awesome! Thanks so much for answering my questions so thoroughly!



To read the first chapter of "Tanked" visit Seavanna's Livejournal and read here: http://pucktheplayer.livejournal.com/53566.html

Author of the Month: Mermaid Wesley

Hello every mer!

It's the beginning of the month- that means we'll be featuring our very first writer, Mermaid Wesley from the California Pod.

We spoke very briefly about her experience so far as a writer and her current short story - a work in progress, entitled "Surfacing". So without further ado, here is our first interview!


SSML: So what inspired you to start writing? 

Wesley: I've always liked reading and writing. My first attempt at writing fiction was in middle school, and it was horrible, to be honest, but it got me hooked. 

SSML: What's your short story about? Can you give a brief summary?

Wes: I have several projects in the works right now, but my short story is about a young mermaid who wants to live on land with a human, but things go awry and her sister has to rescue her. It's a modern day version of "The Little Mermaid" with a twist.

SSML: That's gotta be interesting! What inspired the story?

Wes: I think the story was mostly inspired by the mer community. I was trying to get a mersona together and came up with this character that really didn't work as a child's entertainer: this stoic, distrustful, and carnivorous mermaid huntress. Since I couldn't really adopt that persona, I started to build this character, Nielli, as a book character instead of a persona. After that, the story sort of spun out on its own.
It's currently unfinished. I was originally going to be a novel, but now I'm working on shortening it to a short story or a novella. I just have to do some reworking so that things make sense with my new direction.

SSML: I'm assuming that you've been writing for a long time. Do you have any other works that are finished?

Wes: I don't! which is hilarious. (I'm not counting things that I would burn) My writing has gotten better over time, from school as an English major, so I have a tendency to abandon projects when my writing style changes. Apart from the mermaid story, I'm very seriously working on a fantasy novel about harpies and bloodlines and royalty and such. I'm just now getting serious about my writing and trying to get published. Until recently, I only wrote for fun, and only when I felt like it, but now I'm getting serious about it, which is exciting!

Author Support

Calling all Merauthors and budding Merwriters!

Once a month, I'd like to feature your work on this site and perhaps hold a short interview so that fans can learn more about your works and about you as an author.
Your works can range from short stories posted online, or published works, or anything that is a work in progress!

I'd LOVE to support our community in any way possible! If interested, please contact me - I'll post my contact info down below.

Thank you so much - Much love and fish kisses to you!


Email: andrea_duong@hotmail.com
Mernetwork: Seaglass Siren
Facebook: Andrea Luu