Where I Work - Jean Joachim

I used to work on the kitchen table but the call of food was too tempting. So I moved to the tiny desk in my son’s room. I have just enough space for my laptop, a gooseneck lamp and a few odds and ends, like my notebook. While this is where I type my novels, the real work is done somewhere else.

Where do I really work? I work in my mind. When I’m walking to the drug store or on my way to workout, I’m thinking about my stories.  I may be working out a plot dilemma for a current book or be lost in the backstory of a new novel. I call this “noodling”, giving the story the “brain time” it needs for developing the characters and perfecting the plot. Working out my stories in my head means I can work anytime, any place.

My favorite place to “noodle”? Walking my pug, Homer, in Central Park. Homer is my muse. So many plot problems have been solved when in the park with Homer. I talk to him, too, and he’s an excellent listener!

People think I write my books super fast, but that’s not true. A story can be kicking around in my head for months before its written. Spending time noodling means when I’m ready to write, much of the story is thought out and flows quickly onto the printed page.

If you pass me on the street, call out my name and I don’t respond, please don’t take offense. I’m not snubbing you, I’m lost in thought, transported away to Willow Falls or Pine Grove or a beach far away. I’m noodling and I hope you understand.

  

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Wytchfae Journeys with Flossie Benton Rogers

Wytchfae – Runes was published in October 2012, and I’m so excited that SCP gave me a contract for six more books in the Wytchfae series. I look forward to sharing these stories with readers. The Wytchfae world is composed of intersecting dimensions, only one of which is the familiar human world that we know. Getting from one dimension to another can be tricky, especially if you are traveling from the human plane to a fae dimension. In Wytchfae – Runes the heroine Kelly has to muster all the energy and allies she can, including her patron goddess Epona, just to get to the in-between area. Only the mysterious Guardian of the Between can grant permission to travel further into the netherworld where the Viking Ingvar is being held prisoner. Not only is the Guardian protecting his domain from intruders, he’s also saving humans from a wide variety of unruly demons.

Several of the fae domains in the Wytchfae world are generally loosely connected. For example, the netherworld areas, ruled by the Guardian of the Between, the Queen of the Grims, and Goddess Helle of the Underworld, link together by means of long cavernous corridors. Other places use transportation reminiscent of a hover train. The heroine of Guardian of the Deep - Wytchfae 2 rides on one of these when she leaves the undersea home of her lover.

A rare but favored means of travel for fae is the spotty hole. It is a type of spatial portal that is convenient to use when long distances are involved. The main drawback is that spotty holes rarely stay in one place. They tend to appear and disappear at will. No one knows how spotty holes came about, although some consider them natural phenomena.

Time travel is another aspect of the Wytchfae world. Those who dwell in human places require a particular type of Wytchfae, a time singer, to energetically “sing” them back and forth in time. Fae use time trips as vacations. Just as we might book a trip to Ireland or Bali, a fae might buy a ticket for Ireland 1500 or Bali 1970. When the succubus heroine of Guardian of the Deep – Wytchfae 2 takes a trip to 1950 Montana, she uses a popular type of fae transport, a submarine that materializes near its destination.

You would think that a very powerful type of being, such as a goddess, would have an easier time when traveling among dimensions or time periods. However, goddesses can have a tougher time of it than some, as will be seen in Mind Your Goddess – Wytchfae 3. Thank you, SCP, for your support in bringing the Wytchfae world to light.

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Venetian Masks

In July of 2011, I took a trip to Italy with my son and as part of that trip we spent a few days in Venice. I totally fell in love with the city. I'd been to Italy before but not to the city of canals. It's an awesome place. The architecture is wonderful, the gelato divine and history is all around. There are too many bridges to count and lots of canals. The really neat thing is that there are no automobiles. The alleys and plazas are too narrow for cars and the only "roads" are the canals.

I was completely captivated by the city and we had a super handsome water taxi driver take us across the Grand Canal from the train station to our hotel near St. Mark's Square. I knew immediately that I'd be writing at least one story set here. The one I've got to share here has been out about two weeks and I have to say, it's pretty hot and I think (or at least hope) I've captured the feel of the city.

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American oil painter Charlotte Bolling travels to Venice, Italy for three months to study the architecture of the old city and paint. She meets Vincente Canaletto, an Italian man who owns a water taxi and gondola business. They’re attracted to each other and begin to date. Charlotte trusts Vincente with information about her past. She ran away from home at age thirteen when her mother, who was a madam in a house of ill repute, offered Charlotte’s virginity to the highest bidder.

Vincente's son was abducted and Vincente's been on a quest to find him for years. When the boy is located by an investigator in Bangkok in a bordello, Charlotte insists on accompanying Vincente to the capital city in Thailand since she believes her own past will be invaluable in winning the child's trust. They embark on a dangerous rescue mission in the back streets of that city.