Tell us about Witchlight:
Witchlight is the second book in the Magic
Born trilogy, which is a sort of magic-meets-cyberpunk, dystopian, romance
mish-mash of genres. In this book, the stakes are raised considerably in this
world as conditions worsen for the oppressed Magic Born. Along with that, I
explored the life of a secondary character from the first book, Trancehack -
Vadim Bazarov. Vadim is a nightclub owner, leader in the witch underground, and
all-around shady guy. He needs access to information and materials that will
help the underground, and to get it he finds someone in a powerful position in
Normal society who is secretly a witch - city councilwoman Lizzie Marsden.
Blackmail has always worked for Vadim in the past, but this time he gets more
than he bargained for.
What inspired you to write this particular
story?:
I gave Trancehack an ending that would allow
it to be a standalone in case there was no interest in taking the series
further, but my editor Jeff Seymour and Carina Press wanted more. That gave me
the chance to write a trilogy and take this world where I wanted it to go.
Probably the other biggest inspiration for
Witchlight was Vadim. With each new scene of his in the first book, I wanted
the chance to make him the hero of his own story. Though he’d no doubt prefer
the term anti-hero.
Please share a favourite snippet from your
book:
This short excerpt features Vadim
trancehacking, a kind of magic that allows a witch to use astral projection to
enter cyberspace.
Trancehacking while high on nightshade always turned the internet
into a Kandinsky abstract. The blue-and-white lines of cyberspace widened and
stretched like rubber bands, bubbles of random color popping up all over. His
consciousness sank deep into trance and even deeper into the greens and purples
of the drug, wisps of it wrapping around his perception like fog on a rainy
night. Realspace crackled at the edge of his vision as he lifted his glass,
draining the drink in one swallow. He blinked away reality and dove fully into
cyberspace, hopscotching through hidden links to reach the darknet. Wide lanes
of glossy black opened up. Muddy swatches of red haze marked various sites,
most of which he ignored out of habit, since he liked his porn live and in
person. Password-protected chat rooms glowed in muted shades of blue. He
searched for one with ribbons of yellow, red and green woven into the code, so
faint the colors were easily missed. There.
It pulsed with magic. Vadim opened it with a spell and entered to find he was
once again late for the meeting.
Which comes first for you – a character's
looks, personality or name?:
The very first thing that comes to me is a
character’s goal - what do they want, and why do they want it? Next comes
personality, because the character’s personality will largely determine how
they go about reaching their goal. What they’re willing to do, what their
limits are, that kind of thing. Then I start trying to form an image of them.
Names are hard, and with the help of “find and replace” are frequently changed
before I finally settle on something.
Any tips for aspiring authors?:
Before you can think about anything else,
finish a book. It doesn’t have to be good. It can go in a drawer or a dark
corner of your hard drive, never to be read by the public. First novels usually
suck, and that’s fine. But you have to know you can finish what you start. Then
you can work on the finer points of craft, and learning about publishing.
Questions for fun:
If you had the power of time travel, is there
anything you would go back and change?
I would prevent the cancellation of Firefly.
Sorry to give what might seem to be a
flippant answer, but time travel is a trope that doesn’t work for me. But I do
totally think Firefly was worth saving. J
What super-power would you choose?:
Would the power of never needing to sleep be
considered a super-power? It should be, and that’s what I’d choose. Oh, I'd totally bid for that one too. >.<
If you could have three wishes, what would
they be?:
To write the tenth season of Supernatural,
because DemonDean! Beyond that, I
have no idea.
Coffee, tea or wine?:
Coffee.
What is your favourite book? (aside from one
of your own!):
Death Is A Lonely Business by Ray Bradbury.
It’s a valentine to noir, and to Bradbury’s early days as a writer, trying to
get by selling a few stories here and there to pulp magazines. I read it for
the first time when I was thirteen years old. I’d already been writing and
telling stories, was a voracious reader. But reading this book for the first
time was the moment I recognized - this is what I am. I’m a writer.
Favourite genre and why?:
Paranormal, because you can do just about
anything with it. Make it funny, make it serious, make it a romance, make it a
road trip. There’s an endless amount of lore and mythology to explore. Every
aspect of life can be explored through paranormal metaphors. The only limits to
how creative a writer can be is their imagination.
Favourite colour?:
Blue.
Upcoming news and plans for the future?:
Firewall, the last book in the Magic Born
trilogy, will be released in December. I’ve got a short story in an upcoming
anthology called Guns and Romances. For fun I have my free online paranormal
serial The Bradbury Institute.
And right now I’m in the very early stages of planning my next book.
Thank you so much for taking the time to talk
to us!
Thank you for inviting me, Pippa!
Blurb:
Councilwoman
Elizabeth Marsden is a powerful player in New Corinth politics, but a closely
guarded secret could destroy her life—she’s a hidden Magic Born. Her family
has gone to great lengths to erase all her magic-related records, until a
trancehacking outlaw discovers the last remaining one…
Vadim
Bazarov smuggles Magic Borns through the underground railroad and threatens
to reveal Elizabeth’s secret unless she helps him access blank ID cards.
Elizabeth wants to hate him for having a stranglehold on her life, but can’t
help being attracted to someone so sure of who and what he is.
Vadim
initially sees her as a political ice queen, but is intrigued by her
suppressed magical abilities. He trains Elizabeth to use her magic, and
before long finds himself falling for her. But their newfound love may be
shortlived; an anti-magic ordinance forces one of them to make a choice that
will change both their lives for good.
Title: Witchlight
Series: Magic Born book 2
Publisher: Carina Press
Release Date: June 30, 2014
Word Count: 86,000
Genre: Futuristic Paranormal
Romance
About the author:
Sonya Clark grew up a military
brat and now lives in Tennessee with her husband and daughter. She writes urban
fantasy and paranormal romance with a heavy helping of magic and lot of music
for inspiration. Learn more at http://www.sonyaclark.net and sign up for her
new releases announcement list at http://eepurl.com/bT3NL.
It’s 2065. Those born with magic
abilities live in government-run zones, without rights or freedoms. Fear of
magic created this segregated world and fear keeps it intact.
A high-profile murder brings
Detective Nathan Perez to Magic Born Zone 13. He’s had little experience with
the Magic Born and isn’t sure what to expect during his first encounter with a
witch, but he never thought he’d be so drawn to her.
Trancehacker Calla Vesper uses
magic to break into computers and aid the Magic Born underground. She has no
interest in helping a cop, even if he is smoking-hot, but money’s tight and
Nate offers a tidy amount for help navigating the Zone. Calla’s determined to
keep it all business, but sparks start flying before the investigation even
gets started.
When Calla’s trancehacking and
Nathan’s investigation uncover a conspiracy, Calla becomes a target. Nate can
protect her by keeping her role a secret—but then who will protect Nate?
Title: TRANCEHACK
Author: Sonya Clark
Series: Magic Born, Book 1
Publisher: Carina Press
Publication date: October 28,
2013
Genre: Futuristic Paranormal
Romance
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