Colin Sephton
~~~~~~~~~~~~~
GENRE: Steampunk Fantasy
~~~~~~~~~~~~~
BLURB:
Ignatius and Indigo find themselves struggling mentally to come to terms with the complex nature of the cosmos and their newfound supernatural powers obtained through their prior encounters with gods and demons. In their quest for another relic from the Creation, they are aided by the secretive thirteenth Chapter of the Union Jacks. In search of the secret of the Flaming Celestial Pearl, they must travel to Tibet in the great airship, HM Spirit of the Empire.
Pursued by fanatical knights sworn to protect the relic, they must reluctantly call upon the Charon, the seven merciless demons from the underworld to assist them. Piecing together the map that will lead them to a fabled city hidden deep within the Himalayas, they must defend themselves from air pirates, a previous foe from Oxford, mountain beasts and elementals.
Discovering the correct path through the mountains, Indigo realises her soul may never be the same again. Regardless, they enter the Great Void where using the Sword of Wisdom, they discover the truth about the cosmos.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~
EXCERPT:
The desk was large, and made from burr walnut, inlaid with green leather, decorated around the edge in gold. Its golden glow illuminated the office. The room was floored with black and white tiles and all four walls were lined with rich oak panelling, with the same crest carved into one of the panels. Behind the desk hung a large oil painting, a dark portrait of a brooding figure. The desk was otherwise uncluttered, just a brass inkstand and a green banker’s lamp. The only
ornamentation was a bronze of a lion like those seen in Trafalgar Square.
“Good morning, Mr Lawrence,” said an aide as he entered the office with a silver tray of tea. Earl Grey, his preferred choice. Hot, no milk.
“The latest reports, sir,” the aide gestured with his head at the stack of Manilla folders. “Some unusual goings on in Oxford,” he said as he raised an eyebrow. The thin weaselly man had been with the Union some twenty years and throughout all that time had spent most of it behind a desk.
Lawrence didn’t rise to his prompting and replied simply, “Very well, Jenkins, I will let you know!”
Sifting through the reports, Lawrence took on a serious brow, mulling over the potential impact on the Empire of each report. The first report told of dangerous shamanic practices in China, disrupting the activities of the East India Company. He picked up the next report and after reading it, then reading it again, his face turned red, his brow furrowing. Significant disturbances in Oxford. His large fist slammed down in a rage onto the green leather, knocking his ink pot
over. A book fell off the shelf behind him as he filled his lungs and bellowed, “Jenkins, get me Isambard Ignatius. NOW!”
~~~~~~~~~~~~~
AUTHOR Interview
Tell me about yourself. Where are you from?
CS: I was born in Warwickshire, England and worked in the automotive industry for
over twenty years as a design and manufacturing engineer, before becoming
an Engineering teacher to share the joy of problem solving. Having an analytical mind,
this is why I really enjoyed being an engineer, creating solutions to difficult manufacturing
problems. This is probably why I enjoy a good mystery. I like to find the answers. As a child
I was always researching the unknown and creating projects and notebooks. Today
I guess these would be called knowledge organisers! I can’t help it; I have always had an
inbuilt curiosity for lost knowledge and ancient
texts that may help to unlock the secrets of consciousness and the universe. I lived in
Oxford for thirteen years, which is where my knowledge of the city comes
from to use in my novels. I am good at making links between subjects that may at first appear
to be unrelated. I think this skill is really useful when it comes to writing fantasy novels.
What genre do you read? Who's an author you read? Name your top 5 authors.
CS: I read a lot of non-fiction books and magazines about the universe and consciousness,
trying to understand their mysteries. I read some fiction and mainly fantasy books.
I am also an avid reader of Science books and journals concerning the mysteries of the
Universe.
My top five authors are:
Michael Moorcok
Robert E Howard
Jonathan Green
Matt Haig
Adam Roberts
What book are you reading right now, and what do you like about it?
CS: I am currently reading two books. I often have more than one on the go at any
moment in time. I am reading Rory Maclean’s Magic Bus – On the Hippie Trail
from Istanbul to India. It’s a really interesting travel journal where he retraces the
footsteps of the original hippies during the Summer of Love travelling across the
east. I think times past could be made much simpler than life today. I have also
just started S. F. Williamson’s A Language of Dragon.I am interested to see her take on the dragon fantasy novel, of which I think there
have been a lot recently, all started, of course, By Anne McCaffrey in
the sixties. Williamson’s appealed to me because it appeared to me to be a
bit different, and as it involves language, it seemed areasonable follow on from
Babel by R F Kuang, which I read recently.
How long have you been writing?
CS: I have been a writer all my life. If I am not painting or drawing, I am writing. When not
raising a family I have always had several long-term projects on the go. I may go for years
before finishing something. The good thing is, I have a very good memory so can always
return to some writing or even a painting after several years has elapsed. I have even been
known to pick up novels I didn’t finish reading after a year or more, and know exactly
what is going on.
How did you come up with the ideas for your series?
CS: I’m not sure. My wife always tells me I’m well read. I guess I have a very good imagination,
and I draw inspiration from lots of places – other fantasy books, science books and
magazines, comics, other artists work in fantasy art books, ancient texts, Hindu, Norse
and Buddhist mythology and even music. I have a very eclectic taste in music. So I think
I have a natural ability to draw lots of information from several sources and blend them
together. A lot of my characters have just always been with me. I used them for my fantasy
artwork and most of them seem to have made their way onto the page.
What would you tell a writer who is just starting out? What program do you use for writing?
What advice would you give to a writer working on their first book? What’s your writing
software of choice?
CS: I would tell writers to believe in themselves. If you have an idea, get it written down. It doesn’t
matter how bad it is, just record all your ideas and try and make it flow. You can always go
back and modify, improve and edit content. There are also experienced editors you can work
with to improve it. But if you don’t, you will have nothing to work with! Even if you just
scribble it down in a notebook, it’s a start. I write all my work in Word. About half of it is on
an iPad and the other half on a laptop. I find it easier to edit and move whole chunks
of text around on a laptop rather than the iPad. But the iPad gives me the flexibility to
be able to work anywhere – coffee shops, hotel rooms, even the beach. It’s so small to
carry around with me. However, before I get to that stage, I will often write whole
chapters by hand in a notebook. I also keep lots of research and ideas in the notebook.
Planning I use Excel. It’s great for laying out chapters so you can see where everything
should fit, and to keep track of word count, etc.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~
AUTHOR Bio and Links:
Colin was born in Coventry and worked in the automotive industry for over twenty years before becoming an Engineering teacher. Obtaining his first library card at the age of thirteen, he became an avid reader of Fantasy and the mysteries of the Universe. He has an inbuilt curiosity for lost knowledge and ancient texts that may help to unlock the secrets of consciousness and the universe. Living in Oxford for many years, he has now moved back to his home county of Warwickshire where he enjoys creating and working with his wife on their garden in which he writes and entertains their two grandsons. He has always been an artist and writer and is inspired by the worlds created by Robert E Howard and Michael Moorcock, with the artwork of Frank Frazetta.
Connect with Colin on Instagram at @timeslayers or @sephtonart
Find Colin’s website here: colinsephton.com
~~~~~~~~~~~~
GIVEAWAY INFORMATION and GIVEAWAY CODE
Colin Sephton will be awarding a $10 Amazon/BN gift card to a randomly drawn winner.
Enter to win a $10 Amazon/BN GC
1 comment:
Thank you so much for featuring SOULSLAYERS today.
Post a Comment