In the Author Spotlight & Contest

Janet Lane Walters

CONTEST: For those that leave a post, Janet will give away either a download or a print copy of one of her books. Make sure to include your email on the post so Janet can get back to you if you win. Good luck!

AL: Hi Janet! Thanks for being in the “Author Spotlight” this week.


Janet: Glad to be here.

AL: So, tell us what’s happening with you.

Janet: I've been playing nursemaid to a husband who had back surgery, speaking on the phone to grandchildren in Florida, playing Grammy with the granddaughter who lives nearby and shopping for Christmas.

AL: Do you have a recent release you’d like to tell us about?

Janet: Recent releases is more like it. First there's The Dragons of Fyre, a fantasy romance in which dragons play a big role. My favorite is Verde, the green dragon who is the controller of the red and blue dragons. Then there is A Second Seduction, a spicy romance where the hero learns he has a son and the woman he loved in college is the mother. Third is my short in the Jewels of the Quill anthology, The Amber Dragon where a spoiled princess is changed into a five foot tall fat amber dragon. She must find a prince to kiss her and she has insulted all the princes of the nearby kingdoms.

AL: When did the writing bug take a bite out of you?

Janet: I've always scribbled but until I had my first child I did little more than use writing as an outlet for my imagination. My first short story was published in 1968. I wrote and sold a number of short stories until 1970 when I was told by an editor that my story sounded like the synopsis for a book. My first novel was published in 1972. Then children, four were becoming college age so I dropped out of writing and went back to nursing to put them throuhg school. Once I retired there I began writing again.

AL: When you write do you have specific music that inspires you?

Janet:I really prefer silence when I write, though it's not complete silence since my office opens into the living room. I'm partial to Tchaikovsky and listen th his music when I'm thinking about what I want to write.

AL: Is there an author out there that you’d love to do an anthology with?

Janet: Since I belong to a group that does anthologies, The Jewels of the Quill, Jane Toombs and Karen Wiesner being two of the group I like writing with them. But we always dream of working with writers we admire so I probably have a dozen or more I'd enjoy writing with. Problem is writing short is harder for me than writing long.

AL: What do you find sexy in a man?

Janet: The eyes always fascinate me and I prefer the unusual. Broad shoulders are a plus. I kind of find all men interesting in some fashion.

AL: What annoys you enough to be considered a pet peeve?

Janet: The telephone. It always manages to ring when I'm in the middle of a sentence. Though I try to be polite sometimes I'm not.

AL: Where would you like to travel if you had the chance?

Janet: My first choice is Egypt. Used to be England and Ireland but I made those trips. I've always been interested in ancient Egypt and that's the focus -- sort of -- in my latest work in progress. It's ancient Egypt but an alternate one.

AL: Thanksgiving is this week…what are you thankful for?

Janet: I'm thankful for my husband children and grandchildren. I'm thankful that I'm doing what I love to do. I'm thankful for epublishing since there I can write what I want.

AL: Please share a favorite quote(s) with us.

Janet: "I think writing is a disease. You can't stop it." William Carlos Williams, There is another one but not from a famous person but from my psychiatrist husband. "Writing is an obsession I don't want to cure."

AL: Thanks so much for sharing with joining us this week, Janet.

Janet: Been fun being here.

AL: If you’d like to find out more about Janet please visit:
 
http://wwweclecticwriter.blogspot.com/
http://www.angelfire.com/stars4/kswiesner/jewels10.html
http://www.authorswelove.com/
 

FEATURED TITLE: THE DRAGONS OF FYRE
 
Blurb:
 
Drakon has escaped from the priestesses of the Temple of Fyre and returned home to find the keep almost deserted. There remains but one dragon, an ancient yellow. Vowing revenge against the Lord of Sea Cliff, he sets out to accomplish this.
 
Arana was once a freed slave in the tower where Drakon remains the sole member of the family. She was freed for her ability to speak to and heal the dragons. Now she is a slave again and is threatened by the Lord of Sea Cliff. He believes she will be the one to give him an heir. His ability to fly with the dragons is slowly becoming more difficult and he must have an heir to train.


Excerpt:
 
Arana sucked in a breath. She and Verde had to leave tonight. She walked to the slave quarters. Each step jolted her body and sent agony along her skin.


One of the women waited in the common room. She pulled off Arana’s torn smock and spread a numbing paste on the slashes. “You displeased him. Not a good idea.”

“I know. Thank you for the salve.” The pain ebbed. She retreated to her room. There she donned a clean smock. She wrapped her comb and a knife she had stolen from the kitchen in a shawl. She crept from the cubicle, slipped along the corridor and sped across the landing field. Before entering the pens she made sure no one was about. By the time she reached Verde’s pen, her fear had returned. Tears flowed down her cheeks.

I still think I should bite him, Verde said.

Arana stroked his side. *Not now. We must make our plans to leave. If it ever becomes possible we will return and take care of him. She sat on the floor to work on the riding pad. Then she prepared a meal for Verde. The pain gradually returned but exhaustion carried her into a restless sleep filled with visions of Lagon and of the lashing that she’d endured.

Arana, wake up.

She rubbed her eyes. The motion brought a rush of pain. Is it time?

Yes. The sky is dark and the moon low.

What should I do?

Bring the pad to the landing field. When we are there, you can fasten it and yourself on my back. This is how. He sent her pictures. Do you understand?

Yes.

The green dragon lumbered past the other pens. Arana forced herself to carry the pad and her belongings. She crept after him. Each step brought a jolt of pain. She wished someone could apply more of the numbing paste. She dare not stop. She had to escape.

By the time they reached the landing field, her eyes filled with tears. She bit her lower lip to keep cries from escaping. Verde crouched while she placed the pad over his spinal ridges. He rose so she could tie the straps under his body. When he crouched so she could mount, despite the coolness of the night, perspiration covered her skin.

Once she was securely fastened, Verde moved to the edge of the field and stepped off. He stroked his wings three times. Each stroke brought Arana a jolt of pain. Clouds covered the moon. They circled the tower and headed for High Peaks.

As they continued onward, Arana felt chilled. Her body shook. She wondered how long the flight would take. Were they flying in the right direction? The absence of moonlight kept her from seeing the land below. Would seeing matter? She had never flown before.

She drifted into a half-sleep. She felt hot, then cold and finally hot again. Had the slave cleansed the wound? She couldn’t remember.

With a jerk, she roused. Clouds parted to reveal the moon. Arana peered at the ground. Were they moving slower? The beat of the dragon’s wings seemed less vigorous. Verde, are you tired?

Some.

We could land so you can rest.

What if the evil one discovers you are missing? He will send the blues to search.


Maybe not. He would send servants on horseback. He does not know about you.


The dragons do. They might tell. I can stay aloft until we reach the cavern at High Peaks.


Don’t harm yourself.


When we reach the cavern I will eat and sleep. Rest now. I will see you to safety.

Arana drifted to sleep. The sun rose and still the dragon flew onward. Arana woke and felt him falter. She must do something to help him. They flew over a forest. There was no place to land. She couldn’t allow Verde to kill himself because of the effort of flying with a burden on his back.

She fumbled with the straps that bound her to his back. Exquisite pain ran from her back down her arms. The knots were too tight. She searched her bundle for the knife. The weapon slipped from her hand. She tried to grab it, screamed and slumped against the pad. There was no way to relieve Verde. If you grow too tired you must land.

I can reach the tower.
 
REMEMBER: For those that leave a post, Janet will give away either a download or a print copy of one of her books. Make sure to include your email on the post so Janet can get back to you if you win. Good luck!