Witchslayer’s Scion by L.T. Getty

Please welcome L.T. Getty author of Witchslayer’s Scion

L.T. Getty will be awarding a $25 GC, of the winner’s choice, to an online bookseller to a randomly drawn winner via rafflecopter during the tour.

Witchslayer’s Scion

byL.T. Getty

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GENRE:   Sword and Sorcery/Fantasy

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INTERVIEW:

What or who inspired you to start writing?

 

I think I’m just a naturally creative person. If it wasn’t writing – say, I grew up in an era where I couldn’t read and write or that paper was too expensive – then I’d probably be creative in other ways. Both of my sisters have creativity in them too – Katie paints and draws, my sister Ali is less obvious, but she paints detailed cakes and can sew. We can all design projects and can improvise or improve things.

 

Why writing specifically, because I like to draw and paint, I think I cared about controlling the narrative and the focus of the story as opposed to interpreting someone else’s work.

 

 

How did you come up with ideas for your books?

 

I don’t know exactly. I know I was bored a lot in the public school system, and I was often doing really monotonous chores so I’d daydream and tell myself stories.

 

I’m also a pretty active person, so I get a lot of ideas when I’m swimming or riding my bike.

 

What expertise did you bring to your writing?

I have a Degree in English from the University of Winnipeg. I’ve taken classes through the Manitoba Writer’s Guild as well as attended the Canadian Mennonite University’s Creative Writing Program in the past.

 

Professionally, I am a paramedic and that was one of the reasons I held off on putting this project “out there” because my knowledge of the human body, wounds, and other things were very book smart but I wanted life-smart.

 

 

As far as your writing goes, what are your future plans?

 

I have written two more books and a novella supplement in what I’m going to call the Rogue Healer series. If the publisher is cool with it, I want to go beyond trilogy and go five-book series, as well as fix the original books this spun from.

 

For now the plan is to fix up a science fiction novel and send it to the publisher, as well as continue to develop another project for self-publication. I have a younger YA Steampunk Mystery series I think I want to focus on for self-publishing, but I make no promises. The first two books are written just need some TLC on my part, and then professional editing.

 

Do you belong to a critique group? If so how does this help or hinder your writing?

 

I tried writing groups and they don’t work for me because I find when you get people who are interested in different genres, people focus on the mechanics because otherwise they often lead with some interpretation of, “I don’t normally read science fiction, but…”

 

I have a beta reader named R.J. Hore. We swap manuscripts in the draft process, and critique each other’s stories. A lot of beta readers go swap once the manuscripts are more polished, Ron and I are usually trade and critique still fairly early on in the Work In Progress so they’re less about catching grammatical errors so much as telling the other person how the story is flowing. Now that we’re published we also typically share tables if we’re trying to promote our books, on account that we have similar books and can split costs.

 

When did you first decide to submit your work? Please tell us what or who encouraged you to take this big step?

 

I was in University and naïve. I got some positive but mostly negative feedback, but before I got my degree my rejections went from generic to “Getting warmer, kid”.

 

I basically just never gave up.

 

I took a break from submitting my work even to my publisher because I started a new job and was incredibly broke, so I wanted to focus on getting good at being a paramedic. I still wrote and edited in my down time, I just didn’t have the energy to be nitpicked on two fronts.

 

So the good news, is that I have a small body of written work that can be developed and sent to Champagne Books, another publisher, or I can consider self-publishing. I just need to find the time.

 

What is the best and worst advice you ever received? (regarding writing or publishing)

 

The best advice I got was to be told to do things that inspires me, but to know that there’s a lot of perspiration behind the inspiration. It took me a long time to get good, and that doesn’t mean my ideas or taste weren’t good when I started. It just meant that I needed to learn to story tell better, and some of my stories were very ambitious.

 

The worst advice is probably the generic “You must edit your work X times”. It’s not practical to tell people that they must edit again and again and again unless you’re giving advice on how to clean up the manuscript. I find the main problem is that there’s this idea that publishers and editors really know what’s going on and their expertise can’t be questioned, and I don’t think it’s a good idea to go in swinging every time someone critiques your manuscript, but not all editors are the same, and I’ve called some out on mistakes they made.

 

For instance, there are some stylistic choices that are technically fine but they don’t work for the majority of audiences today. It’s like, trying to hook the audience right away. Because there’s so much competing for the audience’s attention, it makes sense, but there’s a ton of fantastically written material from the past that wouldn’t be published today because of those standards. I think it’s important to know what’s important to you, where to compromise and where to stand your ground.

 

At the end of the day remember that publisher and editors are people. Same with other writers, and readers. We all come from different walks of life and expertise and expectations.

 

Get feedback and work with your editor. Let yourself be edited, but if something doesn’t smell right, call it out but don’t try to make it personal or insult the other person. Learn why they’re trying to do what they’re doing.

 

 

Do you outline your books or just start writing?

 

I’m what’s called a Plantster.

 

I basically write the dessert first and then come up with a structure, so to say I don’t develop an outline is silly. I usually come up with a vibe or an idea for a scene and start writing it out. Around the 20k mark of a new project, I usually make decisions about voice, and hash out a rough synopsis as a guideline. I’m to the point where I can tell relatively early with how I paced the novel how long it should be, so in my mind I start thinking about scenes that are necessary, nice or could be cut, or if I have time to go into a subplot. Now, that isn’t to say that I stick to it strictly. If I have a better idea but I need to cut out a bunch of stuff that’s already written, if I genuinely believe this is better, then I have no problem cutting out other ideas, and keeping them in a file folder (my theory is one day being able to go through all this cut stuff and use old ideas in new ways). Yes, this is painful.

 

It’s different with a series because I usually get vibes for future books while I’m writing the first one. Plans need to be flexible, but that being said I don’t think that I should build up questions in book 1 that are never explored because I took a hard right and detoured the audience somewhere in the second book. When I say be flexible with the plan, that doesn’t mean abandoning it altogether. Let’s say my initial plot is Save the Princess. If I get the idea that the princess is the evil mastermind behind her own kidnapping, that just means I have to now Thwart the Princess, not go off on a tangent about Learning About the Secret of the Enchanted Crystal. If the two plots coincide – fantastic. Revision is fun because now I can include hints that the princess was scheming that most people would only catch on a reread. But if I want to go on and on about the crystal, don’t waste the readers time focusing on the princess.

Do you have any hobbies and does the knowledge you’ve gained from these carry over into your characters or the plot of your books?

 

I’d love to say “yes” but I only did kendo for a few years. It did help me understand fighting better than if I had nothing, but a lot of what I do can’t be in a community-setting because I’m a shift worker with a rotating schedule. I’m generally a very active person who likes to skate, bike, kayak – and I’m not saying that’s all bad stuff. I can ride a horse and am a decent shot with archery, but not at the same time. I think maybe a story like Koth’s it would be a little more prevalent, but I joke that nobody in their right mind would take me hunting. I get bored fishing. I’ll build your shelter and hike a trail, but then I want to go back to the comfy cabin and go to the hot tub.

 

 

 

Do you have an all time favorite book?

It’s hard to narrow it down to one, but the best contender is C.S. Lewis’ Til We Have Faces

 

I read a lot of Greek mythology growing up, and I studied Apuelious’ The GoldenAssin University. The original telling of Cupid Psyche is a tale within a tale – the main character is transformed into a Donkey, and as he’s going down the road another character retells the myth.

 

Til We Have Facesis the story of Eros and Psyche told from the perspective of Psyche’s ugly sister Urial. She’s treated unfairly her whole life, and possessively loves her sister, so all of her evil is justified in her own mind. On her own, she’s actually an incredibly competent leader and warrior in her own right, but she rages against the gods for her perceptions of injustice.

 

I recommend reading it, but moreso if you are familiar with the original story of Eros and Psyche – of Love and Soul.

 

 Have you started your next project? If so, can you share a little bit about your book?

I have written and submitted the next two books in the Rogue Healerseries. I don’t know if it’ll be a trilogy or if the publisher will let me play in the sandbox a little longer.

 

In the first book, Koth sets out to avenge his brother’s murder, only to find that the world is a lot bigger than he thought. Book 2, Magus Gambit, is about Koth hunting down Radij, but also letting go of the revenge that’s been fueling him. He starts to learn about the past and his role in the bigger picture, because his abilities does give him a distinct advantage in fighting the supernatural. Book 3 shifts focus to another character enraged by being hurt by mages, willing to unleash a monster she thinks capable of defeating them.

 

As for “What’s Next” I think I’m going to spend some time fixing projects that have spent a lot of time percolating on my computer. I do have more ideas; and writing them down isn’t that hard. It’s making the manuscript good that is time consuming.

 

 

Can you tell us a little bit about what it was like to write a series.

I really liked writing series because that’s what I like to read. I enjoy picking up a novel and knowing who the characters are, and knowing that I like them. I don’t bulk at the notion of a 10+ book series, even if each book is a brick.

 

The problem is in the publishing world, that’s like the equivalent of landing a tv series just because you asked nicely, and I have no experience shooting a 30 second commercial. I enjoy short stories but they’re not my go-to read, so some of the advice I got when I was in High School was to try to publish short stories, to get that novel deal, to get that series deal. Shorts and novels are different formats, but I understand it from a producer’s POV. They’re the one footing the bill, so they want to ensure that it’s money well spent.

 

Basically when I started this I had no idea what I was doing I just kind of winged it. It’s probably the least efficient way of doing things, but it was good for experience and refining my skillset.

 

I know a lot of people who write series are meticulous and plan everything out. I found that I need to have a goal but be flexible in how I want to get there.

 

Anything else you might want to add?

 

There is also another virtual book tour going on right now for my first middle-grade novel, The Mermaid and the Unicorns. Not meant for the same audience as I wrote it for my niece when she was eight (I aimed it at 10-12 year old readers for content), but it’s about a mermaid who gets turned human against her will, who’ll only be allowed to return to the sea if she gets a unicorn horn for a sea witch. It’s a light hearted adventure and I have it on sale for $0.99 until the end of the tour; head to my blog and I’m sure I’ll have links up to some of the reviews.

BLURB:

 

Koth’s life was decided for him since before he was born, for his ability to heal wounds by touch is rare even among his people. When an attempted kidnapping turns to sacrificial murder, he embraces vengeance and the sword. As he journeys far from his small isolated village in the north, he learns the truth as to why his bloodline is targeted by strange magic, in a world still rebuilding from a time when dark sorcerers didn’t bother with secrecy.

Koth thinks his quest is straightforward enough–find the men responsible, and kill them–and any who aid them. He will soon learn that those who have both privilege and power, there are few things they lack–and in the pursuit of godhood, their allies can prove even more sinister as mere mortals seek to advent empires and dynasties.

 

 

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EXCERPT:

 

“Something’s wrong,” Una said. “Koth, wait here.”

 

“Why?” If there was a problem, she should be waiting outside for him.

He sensed inside, his aunt’s thoughts remained hidden from him. Una shouted, and he ran inside the building. He thought there were lights on inside, but he saw no candles.

 

The tea house was very dark, and he felt a sudden dread—he wanted to leave. Baro barked from the outside. ~Una!~  he thought, before something hit his neck.

 

He knew at once it was a poison dart, and ripping it out he tried to smell what it was. Seeing metal reflect moonlight and he moved his hand, his skin cut. Moving instinctively out of the way, his next reaction was to purge the toxin that coursed through his body and tried to understand the wound. It was mostly his forearm, deep but he could still use it, the bone unaffected. He’d do a better healing later. He focused on something not unlike a burn before going for the knife at his hip. Striking 85 in the next liquid motion, Koth realized he was attacking his aunt.

 

She grabbed onto his injured flesh and seared it, destroying, weakening the sinew and the cartilage and causing it to age and die, following up the bloodstream, to find the heart and kill. Koth tried to brace; he couldn’t heal and keep her at bay. He was physically stronger and much heavier, but she was weakening his muscles. He tried to wrench the knife from her.

 

He knocked the blade to the ground then tried to lock minds with her to find nothing short of blinding pain take him over, wrestling him to the ground and making him drop his knife. She took the dagger and when he tried to force himself up, a familiar sense washed over him. Magic, but not coming from Una.

 

“Do not kill him yet,” Yeshbel said, “we will bleed him first.”

 

 

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AUTHOR Bio and Links:

 

L.T. Getty is a rural paramedic from Manitoba. She enjoys writing science fiction and fantasy and generally being creative.

 

Amazon (American): https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B096LXWJM6/ref=dbs_a_def_rwt_bibl_vppi_i1

Amazon (Canadian): https://www.amazon.ca/gp/product/B096LXWJM6/ref=dbs_a_def_rwt_bibl_vppi_i1

Kobo: https://www.kobo.com/ca/en/ebook/witchslayer-s-scion

Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/58269585-witchslayer-s-scion

Champagne Books: https://champagnebooks.com/store/fantasy/843-witchslayer-s-scion-9781771552707.html

Barnes and Noble: https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/witchslayers-scion-l-t-getty/1139633382?ean=2940165401237

 

Author Links:

My Blog: https://ltgetty.ca/

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GIVEAWAY INFORMATION and RAFFLECOPTER CODE:

 

L.T. Getty will be awarding a $25 GC, of the winner’s choice, to an online bookseller to a randomly drawn winner via rafflecopter during the tour.

 

http://www.rafflecopter.com/rafl/display/28e4345f4134