PROMOTION - SHEKRUVARIS THE WEB OF WAR BY LOUISA WATSON

Title: Shekruvaris The Web Of War

Series: The Shekruvaris Trilogy

Author: Louisa Watson

Release Date: 22nd December 2014

BLURB from Goodreads

Beyond the mundane world of humans and the perilous Dimensions lies Askamar, the home of the immortals. For centuries these magical entities have fought, schemed and betrayed, each striving for power over the human kingdoms. As their rivalries rage across Askamar and the mundane world, cities burn, empires crumble and entire continents are engulfed by war.

The immortal Lady Liralian longs to end the violence and establish a society in which mortals do not have to fear the tyranny of her own people – but first she must defeat her enemies.

When the kingdom of Eoradha is threatened by a ruthless immortal lord, its last remaining wizard embarks on a desperate journey through the Dimensions in search of help. Moved by his plea, Liralian is drawn into a conflict that will imperil all she holds dear – for while she fights to free Eoradha, her mightiest foe is forging a weapon that may change the world forever.

Goodreads Link

PURCHASE LINKS

Amazon US

Amazon UK

MEET THE AUTHOR

Louisa Watson is a fantasy author who lives in the UK. When she’s not busy with her day job or her writing, she spends her time working on the world of Askamar, which she started creating when she was sixteen. Her interest in history and her love of the fantasy genre were her main inspirations.

Louisa enjoys drawing maps and animals, creating characters and kingdoms, and – most of all – telling stories. She also likes visiting museums (especially London’s Natural History Museum and Oxford’s Ashmolean), and reading about history, nature and cultural anthropology, all of which feed into her world-building efforts. 

Visit www.askamar.com to discover more about her characters and her world.

  

AUTHOR INTERVIEW

Did you always want to be a writer?

I’ve always loved inventing characters, stories and fantastical settings, and I’ve wanted to be a writer ever since I learned how to hold a crayon (I put together my first book, ‘Sunshine’s Birthday’, when I was four or five) . Thanks to the self-publishing revolution, I’ve finally been able to see my work in print… not that I ever expect to become a full-time writer. It’s just really nice to own a physical copy of my books, and to have the chance to share my creations with others.

When did you first consider yourself as a "writer"?

That’s an interesting question. I’ve always written stories, so I’ve always considered myself a writer. However, there are writers and there are Writers. To be a professional writer, I suppose you have to make some kind of regular income out of your book. That’s something I have yet to achieve.  I call myself an ‘author’ in my bio, but I don’t know if I’m feeling it yet!

Did it take a long time to get your first book published?

I spent over ten years building the world of Askamar and writing short stories about my characters before I started working on the Shekruvaris Trilogy. I wasn’t planning to publish it, but after I’d written a few drafts of the first book my family encouraged me to put it out there – I was anxious (obviously), but they knew how much it would mean to me. Once I’d made the decision, it was very quick. I just had to give the manuscript a final polish, then submit it to Amazon’s Createspace and KPD.

What genre would you place your books into?

My books are ‘high fantasy’, like Lord of the Rings – they’re set in another world filled with magic. Many people also call the genre ‘epic fantasy’, because in such books the future of the kingdom, society or humanity itself is often at stake. In the Shekruvaris Trilogy, the main character is trying to reform her society and protect humankind from the tyranny of her people.

What made you decide to write that genre of book?

I love inventing my own settings, I love dramatic tales and I love writing about fantastical characters/lands/events. In high fantasy you have a lot of freedom to do that.

Are there any hidden messages or morals contained in your books?  

High/epic fantasy traditionally deals with themes like Good vs Evil, although these days people seem to prefer more morally ambiguous books. While I personally like reading about characters with a strong sense of morality, I haven’t included any hidden ‘moral messages’ in my own story, because I prefer books that make you think rather than books that tell you what to think.

My immortal characters have a lot of power (which they don’t always use wisely), and my human characters are often forced to navigate difficult situations. Each of my characters has their own idea about what is ‘right’, but I feel it should be left it up to the reader to decide.

Do you have anybody read your books and give you reviews before you officially release them?

My sister reads all my stories and provides an invaluable critique on my work. She loves Askamar and has given me enormous encouragement over the years. However, it doesn’t seem right to ask her to post a review. She’s my sister, so she’s bound to be biased!

Would you ever ask a reviewer to change their review if it was not all positive about your book?

Certainly not! Everyone is entitled to their own opinion – there are books I’ve thought were awful that hundreds of other people have loved, and books I’ve loved that other people hated. You just need to read the reviews on Amazon to see how widely people’s views can differ. When you look at it like that, it’s probably easier not be disheartened by bad reviews. If the reviewer has been kind enough to discuss the book’s flaws in detail, a negative review can even be helpful.

Obviously I’m not speaking from experience, because I have no reviews yet. However, I don’t think I’d be too upset if someone wrote a bad review of my work, and asking them to change it would just be obnoxious!

How do you market/promote your books?

I’m awful at book marketing (see my above comment about no reviews). I have my website, my Goodreads profile and some online galleries where I post my artwork, but not many people find their way there. I’m afraid I wouldn’t know what to say to anyone if I joined a social media site (‘buy this book, it’s awesome!’ seems rather arrogant coming from the author themselves).

I’ve offered free copies of my book to a few dozen book bloggers, but since self-published authors outnumber book bloggers by a million to one, I don’t expect I’ll get very far with that strategy! That’s why I’m grateful to this blog for hosting my first-ever author interview. It’s been fun answering these questions – and who knows, maybe someone here will see my book  and think it looks interesting?

Where can readers follow you?

I’m  very active on Goodreads, where I like reviewing the works of other self-published authors of high/epic fantasy (because I know how hard it is getting those first few reviews!) I also have a blog on my website, where I post about my writing, world-building and art.

Blog: www.askamar.com/blog

Goodreads author page: www.goodreads.com/author/show/11025739.Louisa_Watson

`Amazon:  www.amazon.com/Louisa-Watson/e/B00R97O3YG/ref=ntt_athr_dp_pel_1