BBB: What is the strangest thing you ever did to research something for a story?
EA: I don’t know if it’s strange, but I have gone to great lengths to get the tiniest of details right. I’ve contacted horticulturalists to confirm certain flowers or plants were native or in bloom at the time and place I need them, received translation help from a young woman in Wales, and once emailed a distant relative in Ireland for some authentic local colloquialisms.
BBB: What character was the toughest for you to get onto the page, and why? How did you finally crack it?
EA: I think the most difficult character to write was Gray de Coursy. Readers had already come to know him through two previous books and two novellas. He had a past and a personality established over many stories. This made it a challenge to flesh him out in a way that was consistent with what readers already knew of him as a secondary character and yet revealed him in a whole new (and heroic) light. Luckily, he was one of those characters that hit the page and write their own story. I just had to keep up with where he led me.
BBB: Have you ever had second thoughts or regrets after killing off a main character?
EA: It would be pretty hard to have an HEA if I murdered any of my main characters, but even with more minor characters I try to always leave myself an ambiguous end–just in case. I learned that one from watching movies. Always give yourself a way to bring them back for the sequel.
BBB: How do you keep track of your world building?
EA: I’ve lived in this world for so long that much of it is second nature to me now. I know my characters and my setting and I understand how the otherworldly and human interact and coexist. It’s the details I sometimes struggle with; what color eyes did Character A have in the first book or what did I name Minor Character B three chapters ago? That’s where cp’s and editors come in VERY handy.
BBB: Please tell us more about Warrior’s Curse and the storyline that drives it.
EA: The Imnada Brotherhood is a para-storical sword and sorcery swashbuckler set during the Regency period about a race of shapechangers who have lived secretly as human for thousands of years and would do anything to guard their secret from a dangerous outside world.
As a result of a savage massacre on the eve of Waterloo, four soldiers of the Imnada are cursed to live the hours of darkness trapped as their animal aspect. As they battle to break the curse, they must also struggle against ancient enemies and those among their own kind bent on their destruction.
Warrior’s Curse is the third novel in the series. When accursed shapeshifter Gray de Coursy reunites with childhood companion Meeryn Munro to steal the Imnada’s most treasured relic, desire reignites as enemies converge in a final fateful battle for control of the clans.
BBB: How many more books will there be in the Imnada Brotherhood series?
EA: The current storyline will be wrapped up with Warrior’s Curse, but I’ve had so much fun writing in this world that I’d love to continue as long as readers want to read them. I’ve already started tossing around ideas for a new series, and I can’t wait to dive in!
BBB: What sets Warrior’s Curse apart from other books in the same genre?
EA: Warrior’s Curse is such a complex blend of the Regency era setting and the paranormal world of the Imnada that there’s no way to untwine the two strands without losing the essence of the story. I think that’s what I love most about these books and writing in this world. I can pull from so many different familiar tropes but give them a different spin depending on the otherworldly aspects to make them new and different.
BBB: What types of creatures/characters can readers expect in your world?
EA: This is a Regency setting where otherworldly creatures secretly exist side by side with humanity. The Fey-bloods are the most numerous and the most powerful, but hidden for thousands of years are the Imnada shapechangers who were almost wiped out in a war following the betrayal and murder of King Arthur. The five clans—panther, lynx, wolf, eagle, and seal—remain isolated from the outside world as much as possible, but this seclusion has come at a price and the Imnada are dying out. Now, they must risk coming out of hiding in order to save themselves from extinction, but in doing so they risk a renewal of old hostilities with their old enemies.
BBB: Did you do any kind of research to determine the details of your characters lives / lifestyles?
EA: I’ve always been a bit of a history nerd. I love reading about kings and queens and battles and discoveries and can rattle off famous dates, which thoroughly annoys my children. My office is floor to ceiling bookshelves and probably two-thirds of that space is devoted to historical research; everything from military maps and travel guides to sources on food, architecture, fashion, and social mores.
For the fantasy elements, I pull from a lot of Celtic mythology and Arthurian legends and then toss in my own ideas around the edges. As I’ve worked, I’ve had to research some odd minutiae; the floor plan of the opera house at Covent Garden, dates of lunar eclipses, and the ferry schedules from the Scottish mainland to the Isle of Skye come to mind first.
BBB: Are you a plotser or a pantser? or a Planster (a combo of both)
EA: Very much a pantser! I was just laughing about this with my critique partner. I was complaining about my less-than-organized process and she was reassuring me about its success. I told her, yeah, it works, but I really wish it was less nerve-wracking. As deadlines loom and I’m taking two steps back for every one step forward, I yearn to be one of those authors who knows every step along the way to the finish line.
BBB: What’s the best thing that anyone said to you when you were in a writing low spot?
EA: I have the best critique partners EVER!! They are never shy about letting me know when something is off, but when I need it, they offer non-stop encouragement and thickly spread ego-stroking. LOL!
BBB: Do you set a daily word count goal, time limit goal, or just go with the flow?
EA: Unfortunately, my days are fluid enough that they don’t allow for such concrete goals. (Boy, I wish they did) I begin the day with a to-do list and hope that I come out the other end with at least two things accomplished. That, for me, is a successful day.
BBB: What’s coming up for you for the rest of 2014?
EA: I have a few irons in the fire for 2014. I’m working on a new project that is a complete departure from what I’ve been writing up to now, but I’m really excited about it and having a lot of fun. In addition, I’m continuing my Imnada series as well as picking up an old series that I laid down a few years ago. Yeah, I’m crazy-busy!
BBB: What was the BEST book you read in 2013?
EA: Hester Browne’s The Runaway Princess. Ever since I picked up one of her books at RWA Nationals, I’ve been a huge fan. All of her books have made it to my keeper shelf. I just wish she wrote faster.
10 Quick Things About Alexa
Favorite Food? Spaghetti and meatballs
Favorite Color? Red
Favorite Movie or TV Show of all Time? Local Hero
Favorite Drink? Sweet tea
Favorite Book? The Blue Sword by Robin McKinley
Favorite Season? All of them
Favorite Online Hangout? (think FB, Twitter, Goodreads) Facebook
Favorite Animal? Horse
Favorite Band or Musician? Dire Straits
Mode of Travel? (Trains, Planes or Automobiles) Trains
Favorite Vacation Destination? Vermont
Buy a print copy of Warrior’s Curse from Amazon by clicking here.
Buy a Kindle copy of Warrior’s Curse from Amazon by clicking here.
Books in the Imnada Brotherhood series in the order they should be read:
Demon’s Curse
Shadow’s Curse
Warrior’s Curse
About Alexa Egan
Author Bio:
Alexa Egan lives in Maryland with a husband who’s waiting impatiently for her fame and fortune to support them in a new and lavish lifestyle, three children for whom she serves as chauffeur, cook, nurse, social secretary, banker, and maid (not necessarily in that order), one cat, one dog… and twenty-seven fish.
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