Author Review--Jenn Lidster

One of the great things about joining a writing community is that you get to meet a lot of fascinating writers. A few months ago, I didn’t even know there was such a genre as paranormal romance, but today’s author not only introduced me to it, she sparked in me a love of reading it. And that author is Jenn Lidster.

In her blog, Jenn talks about her life as a writer. And she takes writing seriously. She has been a member of the Romantic Writers Association since June of 2009 and the Ottawa Romantic Writers Association since this past September. Yup, you read that right, Jenn is a Canadian. But don't hold it against her. She's actually a very wonderful person. ;)

A mother of two little ones, a five year old daughter and a two year old son, Jenn somehow finds time to revise her superhero romance, Topaz Skies. She hopes to be ready to send it out to agents by the end of the month. But she's not done there! She's also got two upcoming paranormal romance projects, tentatively titled Badge of the Sentinel and The Hidden.

She just finished reading A Perfect Darkness, by Jaime Rush and admits that her favorite authors include Carrie Vaughn with her Kitty the Werewolf books and C.E. Murphy with her Walker Papers series. Jenn highly recommends everyone check out the latter author's awesome blog.

When asked what she hoped for the future, Jenn kept it simple. She would love to write full-time, but would be willing to settle for part-time employment just as long as she could devote more time to her writing career. In order to get that, she's crossing her fingers for an agent/book deal. We're all crossing our fingers with you, Jenn!

If you would like to learn more about this author, check out her blog and become a follower today!

I'd just like to send a big thank you to Jenn Lidster for allowing me to talk about her today! I love doing this and I hope she enjoyed it as well!

~Emily White

Author Review--Liz Penn

For those of you who may have missed it, I hosted my first monthly Tuesday's Trivia where the first person to answer the question correctly wins a blog post all about them. There will be a new Tuesday's Trivia on the second Tuesday of every month.

I'm very happy to report that my first Author Review will be all about a good friend of mine, fellow writer, Liz Penn.


If you haven't visited Liz's blog, Wandering-Quill, I highly suggest you do so today. With three novels under her belt, not to mention short stories, and poems, she has honed her craft to such a degree that she has already developed a fanbase that eagerly awaits any postings of her work on the Writer's Digest Forum.

Liz is currently working on a complete rewrite of her sci-fi, Phoenix Rising while simultaneously writing her fantasy, Half-Soul, novel #5 of a 9 novel series. And if that wasn't enough for one person's plate, she is also trying to find homes for two of her short stories. I have been fortunate enough to read all of these pieces and I am constantly impressed with how Liz is able to portray the human dynamic. Many female authors feel constrained to write about only women, but Liz has shown an uncanny ability to get into the male psyche and articulate the growing friendship of two men in her novel, Phoenix Rising.

As I mentioned earlier, Liz has broadened her writing career to include poetry, of which she has two published, Look to the Horizon and Autumn.

As a sci-fi/fantasy novelist, it should not be surprising that her favorite author and the one who's books inspired her to write is J.R.R. Tolkien, the father of fantasy. Some other favorites include, David Drake (King's Blade series), Jennifer Roberson (Sword Dancer, Karavan series, and Cheysuli Chronicles), and Dean Koontz for his "more urban/contemporary fantasy and some thriller/suspense." She is currently devouring the newest two books in the Sword-Sworn series by Jennifer Roberson.

When asked what she wanted for the future, Liz of course gave off a list that is every writer's dream: "A multi-book deal, six-digit advance, interview on Oprah's book club." But for the more recent future, she's willing to settle for ten publishing credits and an induction to Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America.

This was such an honor for me to be able to talk about Liz Penn today. I hope you take the opportunity to check out her blog and show her your support.

Don't forget to check out Monday's Myths where we will look deeper into the history of the dragon.

~Emily White