My friend Paul Anthony Shortt
has just released his book Silent Oath,
which is the sequel to Locked Within. He's also the father of adorable twin girls, an avid gamer and a blogger. He's visiting today to let us know about Silent Oath and to share a little bit about his life as a writer and his life beyond writing.
I hope you'll enjoying visiting with Paul today and will leave a comment to let him know you stopped by. Thanks for coming!
First, a little about Silent Oath:
Hope has returned to New York City. Nathan Shepherd leads a small band of dedicated fighters against the Council of Chains and the city's supernatural masters. But it's not enough. Because from the shadows of Nathan's former lives comes an old enemy, one who knows terrible secrets that Nathan has not yet remembered, secrets that could undo everything he has fought for.
Nathan's only chance to uncover the memories of his previous existence, and to conquer these new forces of evil, lies in Elena DeSantis, a woman he has fought beside in past lifetimes. A woman he has loved.Together, Nathan and Elena are the only future the city has.
AND NOW, LET'S FIND OUT MORE ABOUT PAUL
ME: Paul, you seem to be a very prolific writer. How often do you write
and for how long?
PAUL: I write every day. My
standard schedule is to write during my lunch hour in work, and early on
weekend mornings while my daughters are playing in their play chairs or
napping. Beyond that, often if we’re not doing anything in particular on a
weekend afternoon, my wife will watch the girls while I get some extra work
done for an hour.
ME: I've also seen you
say you are a "gamer" - what exactly does that mean?
PAUL: I play video games,
board games, and tabletop role playing games. The last one there probably stands
out as the most unusual. Essentially, tabletop role playing is like improv
acting. There are a number of players sitting together, usually in groups of
three to six, and each player has their own character, much like they would in
a video game. They describe what their character does in the fictional game
world and they speak as their character when their character has something they
want to say.
One of the players,
referred to as the game master, plays the role of all the other characters in
the game and comes up with a storyline, or adventure, for the others to play
through. There are rules to adjudicate things like combat or tests of skill,
typically used to heighten the drama and add an element of uncertainty to the
game.
It’s a hobby I’ve been
involved with since I was about 14, and to this day many of my closest friends
are also gamers.
ME: Does gaming a role
in your writing?
PAUL: Definitely. I’m often
the game master in our regular group, and it gives me an opportunity to test
out story and character ideas before I include them in a book. Dorian, one of
the antagonists of Locked Within and Silent Oath, is actually
inspired by the villain from a game I ran based on the Buffy The Vampire Slayer TV show.
ME: Do you have other
employment besides writing - if so, what do you do?
PAUL: I work in office admin
and customer services. I’m the team supervisor so I have a lot of
responsibilities, but thankfully this means I sit at a desk with a computer, so
once 1 o’clock comes around I can get straight into writing.
ME: I love seeing the pictures of your twins on Facebook. I can only imagine that your ability to find time to write has changed since having twin girls, yet you seem to still always be writing. How are you managing the balance?
PAUL: Certainly. Before I could get up early on a Saturday or Sunday and
write for hours while my wife slept. Now I get up, and I have to get breakfast
ready for the girls. Also, while the girls now have a set bedtime and are
usually very good at going to sleep, since they’re teething now they can
sometimes have trouble settling down. As my wife has somewhat limited mobility
and is in her third trimester with the new baby, I have to go upstairs to check
on them if they start crying. It’s hectic and tiring at times, but one smile
from my girls and it’s all worth it.
Also, not that this should make any sense, but now that I have to
divide my time so much, I actually feel like I’m more productive when it comes
to writing.
PAUL'S BIO:
A child at heart who turned to writing and role playing games
when there simply weren't enough action figures to play out the stories he
wanted, Paul Anthony Shortt has been writing all his life. Growing up
surrounded by music, film and theatre gave him a deep love of all forms of
storytelling, each teaching him something new he could use. When not playing
with the people in his head, he enjoys cooking and regular meet-ups with his
gaming group.
Paul lives in Ireland
with his wife Jen and their dogs, Pepper and Jasper. Their first child, Conor
William Henry Shortt, was born on July 11th, 2011. He passed away three days
later, but brought love and joy into their lives and those of their friends.
The following year, Jen gave birth to twins, Amy and Erica, and is now
expecting their fourth child.
Paul's first novel, Locked Within,
was released on November 6th, 2012, by WiDo Publishing. Silent Oath is
the second book in this urban fantasy trilogy.
HERE ARE THE LINKS TO PAUL'S BLOG AND HIS BOOKS:
Links:
Twitter: @PAShortt
Let the end of the world come tumbling down
I'll be the last man standing on the ground
And if my shadow's all that survives
I'm still alive
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