Welcome to this week’s Blog Ring of Power guest, Sarah-Jane Lehoux, author of the SEVY SERIES. Don’t miss the rest of her interview at:
PART 4: ABOUT YOUR CURRENT WORK
Tell us about your new book and when it is out? Where can people purchase it? The Sevy Series is a fantasy series consisting of (to date) three books: Thief, Shades of War, and Masquerade. The series was originally contracted and published by a traditional publisher, but due to some behind the scenes things I won’t get in to here, I decided to have my contracts revoked and the rights of the novels returned to me.
I’ve re-edited and re-formatted all three books, and they will be available for sale in both print and ebook on May 20. Interested readers can visit http://sarah-janelehoux.com/sevyseries.htm for more information on the series, as well as purchase links.
Is there anything new, unusual, or interesting about your book? How is it different from other books on the same subject? e-Publishing a Book has called the series “gritty” and “realistic” and that I subvert the stereotypes of fantasy. That’s up to the individual to determine for themselves, but I do think that I have created a universe and characters that are pretty different from other current fantasy reads out there.
What I am more proud of is that fact that I’ve made my villains as sympathetic as the heroes. I believe in making characters as three-dimensional as possible. Every character has their flaws and their virtues, and that makes it hard to figure out where the plot is going to go next.
What was your favorite chapter (or part) to write and why? My favourite chapter is in the third novel, Masquerade. It is when the villain confronts someone from his past. It is told from the point of view from someone suffering the last stages of syphilis (which causes neurological problems). So it’s very disjointed and disturbing, which I find so completely compelling. It actually gives me the chills to read it over, even though (as I said previously) I don’t usually have strong emotional reactions while reading or writing my stories.
Is there a message in your novel that you want readers to grasp? There are a few different messages I want readers to take away with them. The first is about moral relativism—what’s right and what’s wrong depends on a great deal on the situation. Another message has to do with the dangers of stereotyping people/races/cultures and how first impressions can be dangerous and deceitful.
Tell us about your book’s cover – where did the design come from and what was the design process like? I’m a freelance cover artist, so for the re-launch of the series, I designed the covers myself. I wanted covers that were classy, yet magical. Many of the covers that I’m commissioned to make for other authors feature a pretty girl against a gothic background; that seems to be what’s popular these days. I wanted something just as eye-catching as those covers, but different enough to stand out in a crowd.
Is your book in print, ebook or both? The Sevy Series (Thief, Shades of War and Masquerade) will be available in both print and ebook starting May 20.
Please let us know where can your readers stalk you:
Blog: http://sarah-janelehoux.blogspot.ca/
Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/LehouxSarahJane
Goodreads author page: http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/4038179.Sarah_Jane_Lehoux
Twitter: https://twitter.com/SarahJaneLehoux
Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/Sarah-Jane-Lehoux/e/B003VH11VG/ref=ntt_athr_dp_pel_1
Other: http://silverc.deviantart.com/
