Friday Friends: Silver James

I got to know Silver James via Twitter, when she kept offering to send her "Coffee Fae" to help me make it through each morning. These are hunky creatures who make sure my coffee cup is always seen to, and well, they can make a gal forget why she loves coffee! (You can probably imagine our conversations when Silver wanted me to send them BACK. Hah!) After that, we got to know each other better via Six Sentence Sunday snippets. Silver's always got sexy heroes and sassy heroines that are tons of fun, as well as a little "out of this world". She's also got a wicked sense of humor. Without further ado, here's the lovely and talented Silver!

Of all the characters you've created, which one is your favorite? (Characters, look over there! They're giving away free coffee!) Why do you love them best?

*deploys coffee fae as diversion* *lowers voice to whisper* Oh, you wicked woman! This is like picking my favorite child. Of course, I only have one…Child that is. Okay. Characters. My favorite. Not that I’m stalling or anything. I’ll have to pick Sade Marquis, the FBI heroine of my new Urban Fantasy series. The guys who have to deal with her will understand because they sort of feel the same way. Sade, and yes, it’s Say-dee, has been living in my head for seven years now and she’s finally escaped by appearing in the prequel novel, THAT OL’ BLACK MAGIC, which is like #0.5 in The Penumbra Papers series. The first full-length novel—SEASON OF THE WITCH—will be out in October.

Oooh, she sounds intriguing! Just like the coffee fae! What's your go-to "writing avoidance" technique? (There's always room for more of these in our collection.)

Ah yes, the infamous WAT system! I’m ALWAYS looking for models for my characters. And gosh, if I have to tweak the photos by like changing eye color or adding a tattoo or something, there’s always my trusty Paint program. And there’s this new thing I’m doing—postcards with quotes from the books. So that means searching for just the right background image, acquiring rights, and getting the text placed just right and the right color and…and…Oh yeah. I can spend HOURS! Would you like to see some of them? You can check out the character page at my website. ;) Just look for PENUMBRA PAPERS and click.

Damn you! *shakes fist* Now I'm going to be spending all my time there! And I love acronymns. If you were able to go on a writing retreat, where would it be? (I hope I don't have to repack these suitcases. . .)

So many choices! I love mountains and the sea, but not for like wearing a swimsuit or anything. I’d love to go somewhere in the Big Sur, California area and stay someplace historic. IS there such a place? Ooh…Google, here I come! Yeah. Settings are important. Google maps and images is also my friend when it comes to WATs. ;)

It's like an armchair vacation! (And I love not having to worry about the swimsuit part.) What's the word you love to use (and abuse and overuse, so you have to take it out of your book during edits)?

That depends on the book. When I’m dealing with Sade, her favorite word is F^@%! But I don’t ever take it out. LOL Crutch words though…in the edits I just finished, it was “of them.” Okay, that’s two words. But “both of them” and “the two of them” and…pretty sure there was more of them in there somewhere. “Just” is probably another one.

That's too funny about the "of them". I love that. Name the first thing you'll do when you make a million dollars from your books.

Same thing I’ll do if I win the lottery—set up the Just Because Foundation so I can hand out money “just because.” Like when volunteers come to help after a disaster and some scumbag steals their tools? Yeah, I’d be all over replacing the tools. A disabled vet needs an ADA van? You betcha’! A high school band is raising money for a bowl appearance? Let me buy about 100 cases of that chocolate! And all anonymous because warm fuzzies are best when private. Oh, and I’d buy my husband a new truck and pay off my daughter’s student loans. ;)

Aww, now *I* want a million dollars so I can do that! That is beyond wonderful. Okay, next is a lightning round we'll call The Tasty Ten, where we get to know you in a speed dating kind of way:

Dark roast or light roast? Dark! Or light. Hot. Cold. Yeah. Bring it! Oh, coffee fae?!?

Drafting or revising? Draft. Beer and words.

Twitter or Facebook? Six of one, half dozen of another…*looks shifty-eyed* 

Winter or Summer? Fall. Or winter. But Fall.

Werewolf or vampire? And fae, gargoyle, and dragon. Thank you. :D

Baseball or football? Baseball! And college football.

Rare or well-done? Medium rare. With horseradish. There’s just something about hair on a chest…

Soldier or sailor? Married a soldier but there’s something about a Marine (which is both!)

Beer or wine? Yes, please.

Biter or licker? (Hey! I'm talking ice cream cones here!) Cup or cone? And is there a cherry with a stem? *looks shifty-eyed again* Not that I can tie a knot in a cherry stem with my tongue or anything….

~~~~

Author Bio

Silver likes to take walks on the dark side and coffee. Okay. She loves coffee. LOTS of coffee. Warning: Her Muse, Iffy, runs with scissors and can be quite dangerous. She’s the author of the award-winning Moonstruck series and new urban fantasy series, The Penumbra Papers. She's been a military officer's wife, mother, state appellate court marshal, airport rescue firefighter and forensic fire photographer, crime analyst, technical crime scene investigator, and writer of magic and mystery. Now retired from the “real world,” she lives in Oklahoma and spends her days at the computer with two Newfoundland dogs, the cat who rules them all, and myriad characters all clamoring for attention. She writes dark paranormal thrillers, time travel romance, and light contemporary with a kiss of suspense. To find out more about Silver, visit her blog and website at https://www.silverjames.com.

Social Media Links

Facebook ~ Twitter ~ Goodreads

Book Blurb

Welcome to the world of the Penumbra Papers. These "Cases from the Shadow's Edge" explore the forces of light and dark as they dance through shadows humans barely glimpsed prior to the Big Rip. Since then, all manner of preternatural magicks intermingle with humans in ways mysterious, magical and, in some cases, criminal. Much to humanity's surprise, there really are monsters under the bed and the things that go bump in the night are bigger and scarier than anyone ever imagined.

That’s where Special Agent Sade Marquis enters the mix. A human FBI agent with an X-Files mentality,

Sade's been handpicked to fill a new slot within the Bureau—Preternatural Liaison Officer with the MAGIC Unit. The Magical Activity, Grievances, and Inhuman Crimes unit is in charge of investigations involving magicks. It's her job to deal with all the monsters.

Along with her FBI partner—and werewolf best friend—Caleb Jones, Sade is sent to New Orleans to investigate the murders of several high-ranking magicks. The Big Easy is neutral territory so Sade must find and arrest the culprit before war breaks out between the Realms. Things look up when the gargoyle Sentinel, Roman, a permanent fixture in Sade’s childhood, arrives to keep the peace. Maybe.

The investigation is hampered by Sade’s faerie nemesis, Ariel—the King’s Seducer. Oh, and then there’s the new dragon in town, Nikolas Constantine. Sade can’t decide whether to arrest his ass or admire it.

When guilt and innocence come to play in the French Quarter, it’ll take Sade’s brand of crazy to sort it all out.

That Ol’ Black Magic – It’ll cast a spell on you!

Excerpt

This was only Day One of what was shaping up to be a bloody weird week and the gods had been drinking again. Too bad Sade Marquis didn’t have that option. She was on duty. Dammit. Not to mention it was only ten in the morning. However, if things got any stranger, she might change her mind.

She occupied the one booth that gave her a broad view of the whole place. Déjà Vu. All over again. Back in the early days, right after graduating from the FBI Academy, the New Orleans Field Office had been her first assignment. She’d leased an apartment upstairs from the Déjà Vu. The bar-restaurant combo became a second home. Open twenty-four/seven, she could eat no matter the time of day.

She was on her third cup of post-breakfast coffee when two girls sitting at the bar stirred. Their attention swiveled to the front door, eyes on the prime specimen of fae male swaggering into the shadowed space. Back-lit by a sunshine nimbus, Ariel made quite an entrance. Sade looked to heaven for a reprieve that didn’t come. Her day just kept getting better and better.

Book Buy Links

Amazon ~ Smashwords ~ All Romance eBooks~ Barnes & Noble ~ Kobo

Comments

[Silver James]

Uh oh. I think I scared all your readers away, Donna. :(

I'm still happy to be here, though!

[Donna Cummings]

Silver, I think they're all recuperating from a wild party from last night. . . one WE weren't invited to. LOL

I'm glad you're here too. I'm still chuckling about Sade being on her "third cup of post-breakfast coffee". She loves coffee more than we do!

[Lorraine Paton]

I love the idea of a "Just Because Foundation"! And, Ariel sounds like he could be quite distracting as a nemesis. What fun! ;)

[Silver James]

Wait? Party? And we weren't invited, Donna? *muppet flail* I'm going to pout. With a passle of coffee fae to make me feel better. *nods*

Sade loves coffee and she's a big water drinker. And likes her steak rare. With horseradish. The real stuff. ;)

[Silver James]

Lorraine, the Just Because Foundation has been a dream of my family's for a long time. I just hope to be able to do it at some point!

And Ariel is...Let's just say Sade has a love/hate relationship with him. Readers of THAT OL' BLACK MAGIC will understand and then when he shows up in SEASON OF THE WITCH, they'll get to see a different side of him. ;)

[Donna Cummings]

Lorraine, I definitely need one of those foundations. Oh, and I think I need an Ariel too. LOL

Silver, I think Sade scares me just a little. LOL Maybe it wasn't a party. Maybe they're all cozy somewhere with their e-readers, devouring great books. :)

[Silver James]

Donna, as long as they're reading OUR books, that's cool! And want to know a secret? *looks shifty-eyed* Sade scares me a little, too. Okay. A lot. She's a scary b...witch when she's riled. But I know a certain vampire who will tie her up in knots come SEASON OF THE WITCH. *waggles brows* Emotionally, at least. *bwahahaha*

[Sandy Emers]

Loved the interview, learned a few new things about Silver. Amazing lady and author. I loved the WAT acronym, I knew it as "work avoidance technique"! LOL I really like the idea of the Just Because Foundation, there are so many that Ned that type of help. October is rapidly approaching and can't wait for the release of Season of the Witch!

[Donna Cummings]

Sandy, I'm glad you enjoyed the interview. I agree about Silver being amazing. :) And it's great that WAT can fit SO many situations. LOL Not that I'm using any WAT methods now. *cough*

[Donna Cummings]

LOL, Silver -- I love your way of keeping Sade in line. You're the evil one!

[Silver James]

*waves to Sandy* Hey, you! Thanks for stopping by! And yeah, Donna wheedled some of my deepest secrets out of me. *looks shifty-eyed* I thought everyone knew WAT it's all about... ;)

[Silver James]

Evil? Me? Oh pshaw, Donna. You know me so well... ;)

[Siobhan Muir]

I love the Just Because Foundation. Can I donate to that when it comes about (and I hit my million too)? Loved your answer to vampire or werewolf. Dragon, and gargoyle and gryphon and goblin and... Great interview, Silver. :)

[Silver James]

Thanks for dropping by to say hi, Siobhan! Oooh. Gryphon....hrmnmmmm.... ;) And yes, you can definitely contribute. Once we both sell 950,000 copies of our books, that's what we'll do!

[Donna Cummings]

Siobhan, you've added even more scary creatures. *shivers* I might have to keep you and Silver in separate corners, so you don't come up with any other scary stuff. LOL

LOL, Silver -- I like your math there. :)