SAM Magazine

E82 - Deborah Lambert, Fantasy Author - Son of No Man series

E82 - Deborah Lambert, fantasy author and veterinarian, joins me from Sooke, BC. Deborah is the author of the Son of No Man series. We talk about Julius Caesar, Augustus, and how our calendars have no place in the fantasy world. We also talk about writing as therapy. Our discussion about a dragon's anatomy, using science and biology to make a dragon fly and how to splint a dragon's foot will forever be in my memory. Deborah thank you. I had a great time chatting with you about your novels. Please check out the maps of The World of the Tainted under "extras" on Deborah's web page.
https://www.dlambertauthor.com/

E81 - Mike Martin, Author and The Maple Leaf Mystery Conference

Today, award-winning mystery author Mike Martin is on the podcast to talk about his latest novel and the first virtual Maple Leaf Mystery Conference which takes place over 5 days from May 24 to 28, 2022.
Mike was born in St. John’s, Newfoundland. Mike has always been a writer, and during the last 15 years he’s worked as a freelance writer, specializing in workplace and social policy issues. He’s been published in newspapers and magazines across Canada, the US and New Zealand. His first book was Change the Thing You Can: Dealing with Difficult People. The Walker on the Cape was his first published fiction novel. He has also published a number of short stories in periodicals and on-line. 
In today's podcast we talk about his 12th Sgt. Windflower novel, Dangerous Waters, the B&B which was constructed using a shipwreck's lumber; St. Pierre, which is part of France, and the virtual Maple Leaf Mystery Conference featuring a great line-up of Canadian authors and International best-selling author, Ian Rankin. 
https://sgtwindflowermysteries.com/

E80 - Alice Bienia - Knight Vision

Crime author Alice Bienia is back! We start the podcast talking about rocks, boulders and snakes, tapping into Alice's previous profession as a Geologist. But soon we are talking about Alice's latest Jorja Knight novel, Knight Vision. I learned that Alice is testing Jorja, putting her in situations where Jorja is weighing fact versus fantasy. Jorja's new client is a clairvoyant, who has "seen" her own murder. Alice's readers love her books and want to be her heroine's friend. I enjoy reading about Jorja and also want to warn Jorja to "watch her back". Alice talks about the opening hook in that first chapter to using real crimes as inspiration for her novels. From fat freezing to seances and our own movie analysis, Alice and I have a good time, as always. Thank you, Alice for coming into the studio.
http://www.alicebienia.com/

E78 - Winona Kent, Ticket to Ride

Award-winning author Winona Kent returns to the podcast and we talk about Ticket to Ride, her 4th Jason Davey novel, which is her 10th novel overall. Winona was born in London, England, but grew up in Regina, Saskatchewan where she completed her BA in English at the University of Regina. She moved to Vancouver, and obtained a Bachelor of Fine Arts in creative writing from UBC. Winona’s writing breakthrough happened when she won first place in Flare magazine’s fiction contest with her short story, Tower of Power, about an all-night radio newsman. More awards followed, including being a finalist in Seal Books First Novel contest with her spy book, Skywatcher. 
Winona and I talk about the time she turned down having dinner and drinks with actor Sean Bean of Lord of the Rings and Game of Thrones, as well as scouting locations for our books, creating websites and Instagram accounts for our characters and the various avenues of marketing. I've included the link to the Figgis Green tour website as well as Winona's various social media handles. Winona, welcome back!
https://www.winonakent.com/

E79 - Karen Dodd, Author of Everybody Knows

Prolific award-winning thriller author Karen Dodd joins me, and we have a good discussion about characters making mistakes, keeping our characters real, corruption, the mafia as well as being a discovery writer. Karen is the president of the Sisters In Crime – Canada West chapter. I was excited to talk with her about her novel Everybody Knows, a sophisticated thriller which is hard to put down. It’s the first novel in a new series, the Nicolo Moretti Crime Thriller Series. There are a few spoiler alerts. We talk about everything, including her blog and The Prostitute Pasta Sauce.
https://karendodd.com/home/

E77 - Lisa Kessler, Paranormal Author

Lisa Kessler's writing career was foretold to her by a fortune teller. When she received writing advice from Ray Bradbury, she knew she was on the right path. Forty books within a 10 year period, Lisa has numerous series under her belt. She writes a blog, and she is a podcast host. Lisa's books have won the PRISM award, she has twice won the San Diego Book Award, and her vampire story, Immortal Beloved, was a Bram Stoker finalist.
Lisa and I discuss the writing advice Ray Bradbury shared with her. Great advice that involves short stories and commitment. Using tarot cards to plot your novel, and we even discussed what an author should put on their Tik Tok account! Sunshine pirates and grumpy heroines, it's all in today's electric podcast. Thank you, Lisa.
https://www.authorlisakessler.com/

E76 - Cindy DeJager, Creator behind Opal Writer’s Magazine

Cindy DeJager is a gracious human and an amazing magazine publisher. She is the entrepreneur behind Opal Writer's Magazine and Opal Rising Magazine. Her magazine is packed with great information for writers and authors at various stages of their career. She shares why the magazine is called opal, which is a beautiful and tender story in itself. Opal Writer's Magazine started in Alberta seven years ago, now, it has subscribers from all over Canada, the US, the UK, Australia and just recently Denmark. Each month the magazine showcases an author as well as featuring individuals in the business, such as Mark Leslie Lefebrve, who was the Director of Author Relations and Self-Publishing for Rakuten Kobo. In the May 2019 issue (attached) there is advice from Jenny Hoops about D-I-Y audiobooks. Links to both issues are attached. As well, her cat Sophie, expresses her opinions. Thank you very much Cindy for coming on the podcast.
https://opalpublishing.ca/

E75 - Alisha Sevigny, Author of The Secret Sands series

Award-winning YA author, Alisha Sevigny chatted with me about the 2nd and 3rd books in her Secret Sands Series, The Desert Prince and The Oracle of Avaris. The original novel in the series being The Lost Scroll of the Physician. Alisha is a talented author. Her novels can be read by all age groups, and her fierce heroine, Sesha, is an inspiration for all females. Her novels deal with issues relevant today. In fact, we acknowledged what's going on in the world and the connection to her novels. As well, The Oracle of Avaris is a YAdudebooks Award winner. Congratulations Alisha. Thank you for joining me.
https://www.alishasevigny.com/