Today I welcome author Laurie Cook to my blog. Her latest book, Trouble in the Land: A Goldenfell Saga Novel, was released earlier this year. You can find it on Amazon.
Interview
Tell us a bit about yourself.
I grew up on our family farm and have lived with pets and around farm animals all my life. At one time or another I have had pets that include, dogs, cats, cockatiels, goats, rabbits and raised bantam chickens and different varieties of pheasants and peacocks plus other assorted fowl. I also raised registered Quarter Horses. It’s never been dull around our house and I like to add animal experiences and a little bit of humor to what I write. I worked for over thirty-five years, mostly in the financial sector and now am enjoying retirement. I’ve always been active in creating different crafts and have found writing to be another outlet for this creativity.
What fuels you as an author to continue to write?
It’s the creative process for me. Now that I have started, I find that I have many more stories that are just waiting to be told. I write Mysteries as well as Epic Fantasy and I’m excited to get the ideas down on paper. I write as much for myself as I do the readers.
How do you conceive your plot ideas?
That is not something that I can define very clearly. When I am thinking of what I want to write next, I just speculate what would happen for different ideas until something clearly “pops” into my head. I usually carry the idea around for a while until I get my beginning and ending and then write this down with a few other definite ideas.
Do you outline your books or just start writing?
I usually have a (very) small outline. I always know how my books need to start and how they are going to end, but pretty much everything else develops as I go along. Sometimes it’s as much a mystery to me as it is for everyone else. When I need to sit back and mull for a while it helps to be doing something else (housework?) and it might take a few minutes or maybe a day or two, but the idea eventually comes and I’ll have my next plot twist.
How much of yourself, your personality or your experiences, is in your books?
Actually, I have included quite a few personal experiences in my Mystery books. These books usually have some sort of paranormal occurrences and some of these have been my own experiences. I leave it up to the readers to decided what might be true and what is made up. In the Epic Fantasy I draw upon my experience with horses and cats for some of the plot developments. My last mystery was written in the first person and a bit more or “me” might have leaked through than I planned.
Please tell us about your current release.
My current release is Trouble In The Land: A Goldenfell Saga Novel. This is the second book in The Goldenfell Saga series. The series starts with An Elf’s Homecoming, which is the story of Thomaline and Brandt and their journey to her homeland. Each book is a complete story. The second book deals more with the reason she was called back to her home and the new problems that have arisen. There is a Ward that was placed on the land to keep Goldenfell hidden and safe, but it is failing and now a new enemy has moved into the area outside of the Ward and knows that that the Ward will not last much longer. Thomaline, with Brandt helping, must look for a way to save them from this threat and assistance comes from some surprising sources.
Have you started your next project? If so, can you share a little bit about your next book?
I have started the third installment of the Goldenfell Saga. The next book will pick up were Trouble In The Land leaves off and the title is An Elf’s Sacrifice. Thomaline and Brandt will be facing a new set or problems from outside of Goldenfell. A person by the name of “The River Lord” keeps asking to meet with the pair and they also find that living with the Skellan Elves presents many more problems than they first anticipated. There will be some internal conflicts as well that will keep Thomaline busy. This will be the third and last book in this series.
What book are you reading right now?
Currently, I am re-reading some of Tanya Huff’s books and am reading the first of a three book set called Smoke and Shadows. I’ve probably read these books four or five time before and I’ll read them again in the future. If I find a book I like, I can read it many time over the years.
Do you have an all time favourite book?
It’s hard to narrow it down to one book, but I do have a couple of very favorite authors. I love Barbara Hambly, C. J. Cherryh and Scottish author Stuart McBride.
Book Blurb
It had been nearly eighty years since Thomaline and Brandt had made the long journey to her homeland of Goldenfell and it was now up to them in their new roles to once again make the kingdom safe. A new enemy was out there, waiting to destroy the Elves of Goldenfell and their Ward, the shield that protected the land of the Elves from the outside world was failing. As Thomaline and Brandt search for answers and struggle to find ways to keep them all safe, allegiances are made with new allies and maybe even an old enemy. Together, they will lead the charge to save their world.
About the Author
Laurie Cook is from a small rural community in Saskatchewan, Canada. After retirement, she decided to try her hand at writing the mystery and fantasy books she loves to read. It has been such an enjoyable experience that she continues to write and develop the ideas she has gathered over the years and has now made her first book the start of an epic fantasy series. Laurie was raised on the family farm before moving to her own rural residence and has had many dogs, cats, horses and other assorted pets that have enriched her life. As she likes to add a little humor to her stories, these experiences help to offer inspiration for events in her books. She lives with her husband, two cats and a dog.
You can find out more about Laurie on her website.
You can purchase Trouble in the Land: A Goldenfell Saga Novel on Amazon.
Into Another World 