An Interview With S.D

An Interview with S.D. Stevens

What do your fans mean to you?

Without my fans, there would be no point in writing! It gives me a great buzz to know that someone likes my world or has fallen in love with one of my characters. I love to listen to fans, I've got a couple of good ideas from them too. I'm kinda unknown and new to all this publishing stuff but the fans I do have are awesome!!!

I love to hear from readers so don't be afraid to email me or add me to your social media pages.

Do you remember the first story you ever wrote?

Wow! That's a long time ago but I do remember writing a story about my sister and her boyfriend, who had a motorbike. She told me it was very exciting sitting on the back and feeling the speed and the wind rush by. So I wrote about a journey they took to the seaside. It wasn't very long but when I showed her, she loved it.

When you're not writing, how do you spend your time?

Well, I do have a couple of hobbies and interests that could be considered odd or different. The first would be my love of Steampunk!! My husband and I often attend Steampunk events and love to dress up. The Victorian/sci-fi genre appeals to me on a creative level. We design and make our costumes, which ties me into another hobby; sewing and jewellery making.

The next one is Burlesque!! Yes, I am a burlesque dancer but not on a professional level. I joined a lady's fitness class about four years ago and love it! We put on shows and perform where we can but we are all normal individuals with different abilities and ages!! It's so much fun and a great confidence boost.

What motivated you to become an indie author?

Control! I want to write what inspires me and what I enjoy. I don't want to work to deadlines or even add content that will cover some issue that a publisher demands. It's also about taking out the middle man and getting the product out to people at a reasonable and acceptable cost. With the availability of such innovations as Smashwords and social media sites, it makes following your dreams believable and accessible.

I have also had lots of encouragement from other indie authors and I think I would have given up before now if it wasn't for them. So here's a huge thank you to Jan Gordon, Nicky Charles, Candace Carrabus and Rae Edwards. (To name a few). The indie author community is a place to gain knowledge and learn by other peoples examples!

Independent publishing is not a get rich quick scheme! It's a long process of learning and growing and in some cases laying down some hard cash. It has never been about money for me, it's about hoping readers will enjoy my stories as much as I enjoyed writing them!

What's the story behind your latest book?

The Sisterhood Trilogy came about after spending weeks creating the magical world of Alhanassa. I wanted to get behind why the two main factions of this world could never get on. It gets it all in straight in my head I started Lynwen's story and it soon escalated from there.

Dark Magic Rising - The Sisterhood Trilogy book one. Using her magical abilities to decipher ancient text Lynwen embarks on her journey to the far reaches of Alhanassa. She and her colleagues discover a fallen god who plans to wreak havoc on their world. Lynwen fast realises that magic is no match for this new foe. Romance flourishes amid a battle for their lives as the beasts created by the fallen god tear their newly formed trust apart and send them hurtling into a trap. Will this new-found unity be enough to save them all?

What are you working on next?

I am currently working on The Sisterhood Trilogy book two. This one is about Sash'ha, another sister in the Clar'han Order. She is searching for where she fits in, as her ideals do not match that of The Order's. The leader of The Clar'han Order sends Sash'ha on a task that will lead her to discover what she truly wants to do.

I honestly have no idea when I will get this one out. I work a fulltime job now. That's something I didn't do when I began writing about Alhanassa.

A work in progress!!

Currently, I'm working on book 2 in The Sisterhood Trilogy, Echos of Silence (working title, I'm not all that keen on this one).

As well as reading about Lynwen and Stewart we meet many new characters. Sister Sash'ha is heading for the Clar'hen Order leadership but she's young, hotheaded and felt The Order needed a shakeup. Feeling she's not what The Order needs she tried to see the significance of her own destiny.

Here's a small teaser.

The sound of multiple blades being drawn brought Sash’ha to her feet. She hopped on to the tabletop; food, dishes and cutlery scattering as she drew her sword and pointed it at the largest of the men bearing down on Markus. “LEAVE HIM, BRET.”
“Go to hell Sash.” Bret shoved her blade from his chest. Only to have pushed back
“Back off all of you.” Her free hand pointed to some of the men. “Markus, let him go.” She said calmly. He didn’t budge.
“If he doesn’t let go of my hair…”
“Shut it!” Markus pulled the brutes hair. Bret made a move to protect his friend, swinging his sword towards Markus. He dodged out of the way, pulling on his captives hair in the process.
The crack of fire brought the room to silence. Sash’ha’s sword burned with a white-hot intensity that should have melted the steel. Tiny, hot droplets of molten rock dripped from its tip onto the table to start fires of their own. Most of the weapons in the room returned to their resting places, the others stayed defiant in the face of chaos magic.