Author Interview: Josie Jaffrey, Author of The Solis Invicti Series

About the Book

The Solis Invicti series is set in London, in a world in which the human population has been decimated by a blood-borne virus.  In the wake of the zombie apocalypse that follows, a vampiric race called the Silver seizes control.  Without the protection of the Silver, humanity will soon cease to exist, and without uninfected human blood, the Silver will perish.  A necessary symbiosis is the result, but the power of the two races could not be more unevenly balanced.

The protagonist of the series is Emilia, a twenty-something barmaid with an insubordinate and reckless approach to the new order.  In the first days following the collapse, she struggles to accept that her life has changed irrevocably and that she is powerless to reclaim it.  That recalcitrance brings her face to face with the highest ranks of the Silver.

The series is targeted at adults and mature young adults.  The books contain horror, profanity and sexual content.  This isn't erotica, but there are some steamy scenes (only one or two per book).  There are love triangles, aggression and drama, but there is also an eventual HEA.

About the Author

Josie lives in Oxford, England, with her husband and two cats.  When she’s not writing, she works as a lawyer, specialising in intellectual property and commercial law.  She also runs a video book review club, The Gin Book Club, through her website.

The first book in the Solis Invicti series (A Bargain in Silver) is Josie’s debut novel.

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Author Interview

What field or genre would you classify your book(s) and what attracted you to write in that field or genre?

A Bargain in Silver is the first novel in my four-book paranormal romance series, the Solis Invicti series. I’ve always loved paranormal romance and read more of it than is probably healthy. It seemed like an obvious choice when I started writing; I think it’s a good idea to write what you love, because you have to write for yourself primarily. If you don’t enjoy your books, then it’s likely that no one else will either.

What is the intended audience for you book?

The series is New Adult, so it’s targeted at adults and mature young adults who love vampires and zombies! The books contain horror, profanity and some steamy scenes (only one or two per book). If you love Charlaine Harris’s Sookie Stackhouse books and are looking for something a bit grittier, it might be for you.

Are you traditional or self-published, and what process did you go through to get your book published?

The Solis Invicti series is self-published. I did initially approach agents for the series to see if I could swing the traditional publishing route, but although the writing was well-received, the market was at that time so saturated with paranormal romance (and vampires in particular) that there was no hope of selling it to publishers. I’m happy to keep it self-published for the time being.

I’ve just finished writing a YA historical fantasy novel, which I intend will be traditionally published. I'll be speaking with agents about it in early 2018.

Do you believe there is value in a review? Do you believe they are under rated, over rated, or don’t matter at all?

There is absolutely value in reviews! They are completely essential, particularly for self-published authors like me. That’s why I run an online book club, The Gin Book Club, through my website, which provides honest review of all kinds of books, both traditional and self-published.

Do you read your reviews? Do you respond to them, good or bad? Do you have any advice on how to deal with the bad?

I do read my reviews, because I’ve usually requested them from book bloggers, and it seems impolite not to. I always respond by email (not publicly) to say thank you to the reviewer for taking the time to read and review, whether the review is good or bad. I don’t generally engage with the content of the review unless it’s extremely positive; it’s certainly not my place as an author to argue with how a reviewer has interpreted or criticised my work. Not everyone is going to like it!

I think it’s important for authors to recognise that all reviews you receive, even the awful ones, will help to improve the visibility of your work to potential readers.

The author/book reviewer relationship is such an important one, and I see so many authors getting it so wrong. I actually wrote a blog post about it earlier this year (https://www.josiejaffrey.com/single-post/2017/11/06/Two-Views-on-Indie-Reviews). I think the problem is often that authors have unrealistic expectations of book bloggers, or of the quality of their own work, and are unable to deal with criticism. That said, the vast majority of my interactions with authors and book bloggers have been overwhelmingly positive. After all, at the end of the day we’re all doing this because we love books.

What are some events you have attended or participated in that has been a positive experience/influence on/for your writing?

I’m very lucky that in the UK we have the wonderful Writers’ Workshop. They run an event called The Festival of Writing every September at the University of York, where authors, agents and book doctors get together to discuss the industry, pitch books, and attend or present seminars about writing technique.

I attended in 2017 and met some lovely agents, whom I’ll be approaching in early 2018 with my latest manuscript. It is a completely amazing event that I highly recommend to all unrepresented authors in the UK. Even if you don’t come away with offers from agents, you’ll meet some great fellow authors and learn a slew of valuable writing skills.

Do you view writing as a career, labor of love, hobby, creative outlet, therapy, or something else?

For me, writing is increasingly becoming a career. When I started writing seriously in 2014, I was working (at least) twelve-hour days in my day job and just crammed in the writing wherever it would fit. Back then, writing was very much a hobby. Now that my working life is a little less demanding, I have time to approach my writing in a more structured and commercial way, which I hope will (eventually) mean that I can give up my day job entirely and write full time.

What is your writing process? Do you follow a regular routine or do you have any weird, funny, or unusual habits while writing and what are they?

I do my plotting in a notebook first, then when I’m ready to write I set myself a writing target (somewhere between 1,000 and 5,000 words a day, depending on how busy I am) and just write until I’m done. I have a habit of becoming ridiculously immersed in what I’m doing, and I stop noticing that time is passing. It’s not unusual for me to sit down to write, then look up only to find that it’s dark, five hours have passed, and I’ve missed a meal. This is why I eat a lot of chocolate!

What do you do if inspiration strikes in an inconvenient place like (car, restaurant, bathroom/shower, etc..) and how do you capture that moment before it gets away from you?

When I’m in plotting mode, I make sure I have my notebook with me at all times. When I’ve moved on to writing, I use the notes app on my phone to jot down scenes or snatches of dialogue that come to me, so I can copy and paste them into my manuscript later.

What is your most/least favorite part of the writing process, why?

I really dislike editing, but I think all authors do. It’s the hardest part, and it takes so long.

My favourite part is writing the first draft. I always get to a certain point, about halfway through, and then find myself getting completely carried away. My daily word counts start skyrocketing, and invariably I write the second half of a book in a quarter of the time it took me to write the first half. That’s a heady experience.

What is the easiest/hardest scene for you to write, why? (Love, action, fight, death, racy, controversial, etc…)

I usually find love scenes the easiest to write (because I’m an incorrigible romantic), but sex scenes are a different matter entirely. They can go wrong so easily, and then they’re just awful.

Generally, I find action scenes quite difficult because you have to be aware of everything that is happening, and describe it in precise and concise detail so that the pace doesn’t slow. When it’s done well, it should feel as real and natural as watching it happen in front of you.

Book Review: 03:02 by Mainak Dhar

Title: 03:02

Author: Mainak Dhar

Publisher: Westland Publishers

Review:

While reading Mainak Dhar’s novel 03:02, I was reminded of the television series, Revolution. The series is set in a post-apocalyptic near-future, in the year 2027. Fifteen years earlier, in the year 2012, a worldwide event known as "The Blackout" caused all electricity on Earth, ranging from computers and electronics to car and jet engines, to be disabled permanently. As a result, trains and cars stopped where they were, ships went dead in the water, and aircraft plummeted from the sky and crashed. In the years after the Blackout, people adapted to this new world without electricity. Because government and public order collapsed, several areas are ruled by militias and their generals. Quite similar is Dhar’s setting. While in Revolution the blackout was a global phenomenon, in 03:02, the locale is restricted to Mumbai. The author does mention that other places have also been impacted, but it is basically India’s economic capital that he chooses to highlight.

What sets Dhar’s novel apart from the series is the cause behind the blackout. 03:02 builds off something that is very topical — the threat of terror. In this novel, terror is not something ordinary Indians watch the news or read about on the internet, but something they must confront firsthand. It talks of an attack wherein a deadly threat sweeps through our homeland, threatening our freedom and way of life. With no army or police to help them, ordinary Indians must band together to face this threat and wage a war for our freedom.

Thus far the story held the promise of a big, bold, and brassy adventure and would have certainly been the best read for me. Unfortunately, the storyline all of a sudden takes a dive. Dhar perhaps becomes so enamoured by his protagonist Aadi that instead of paying attention to the story at large, he becomes busy in sketching a larger-than-life character for the hero. When characters take precedence over the story, it is the reader who suffers eventually. What could have been a brilliantly crafted page turner otherwise stays just an above average reading.

What has not been compromised with is the narrative skill that Dhar is known to hide up his sleeves. As usual, his writing style is a neat package with no nonsense showery. He delivers some consistently terrific action scenes that I’ve come to associate with his storytelling (I read another book by the same author and enjoyed it). The crisp writing makes for a pleasant read.

Whether willingly or unwittingly, almost every story has a message to deliver and that message becomes the central idea that marches the narrative onward and ahead. The spark lies within each of us — this is the driving point of Mainak Dhar’s latest release, 03:02, which happens to be a post-apocalyptic novel.

If you haven’t read the book, go get a copy. Read it if not for anything else but for the novelty (at least in the Indian literary market) of the idea behind the book.

About the Author:

After finishing his schooling at Modern School, Barakhamba Road and his under-graduation at Hindu College, Delhi, Mainak Dhar graduated from the Indian Institute of Management, Ahmedabad. He has spent two decades in the corporate sector starting with Procter & Gamble in India. He spent eighteen years with P&G, fifteen of them outside India across the Asia Pacific region. In 2014, he moved back to India as the CEO of the India operations of a major consumer products multinational. A self-described cubicle dweller by day and writer by night, Mainak is also the author of over a dozen books, some of which have been bestsellers in India and abroad. These books have been translated into Turkish, Vietnamese, Japanese, French, German and Portuguese. He lives in Mumbai with his wife, Puja and their son, Aaditya. When not at work or with his family, he can usually be found working on or thinking about his next book.

Buy Link:

Amazon

* I received a review copy from the publisher in exchange for an honest review.

** Picture courtesy: Amazon.in