Seressia Glass...Embracing Urban Fantasy

by Wayne Jordan

1.   Seressia, tell us a bit about Shadow Blade and the Shadowchasers series.

I wanted to create a world in with the fantastic and the mundane live side by side, even if the Normals aren't aware of it. The Universe is all about Balance with Light and Shadow being the two opposing forces. Most humans and most hybrids live somewhere close to the center. Sometimes though, the Fallen--offspring of Shadow who fell through to our plane of existence--want to disrupt Balance, and that's where Shadowchasers come in. As for Shadow Blade, here's the back cover description, which sums it up nicely:

Kira’s day job as an antiquities expert, but her true calling is as a Shadowchaser. Trained from youth to be one of the most lethal Chasers in existence, Kira serves the Gilead Commission dispatching the Fallen who sow discord and chaos. Of course, sometimes Gilead bureaucracy is as much a thorn in her side as anything the Fallen can muster against her. Right now, though, she’s got a bigger problem. Someone is turning the city of Atlanta upside-down in search of a four-millennia-old Egyptian dagger that just happens to have fallen into Kira’s hands.

Then there’s Khefar, the dagger’s true owner-a near-immortal 4000-year-old Nubian warrior who, Kira has to admit. looks pretty fine for his age. Joining forces is the only way to keep the weapon safe from the sinister Shadow force, but now Kira is in deep with someone who holds more secrets than she does, the one person who knows just how treacherous this fight is. Because every step closer to destroying the enemy is a step closer to losing herself to Shadow forever. . . .

2.  Why the move to Urban Fantasy?

Honestly, it's like mentally coming home. I grew up devouring comics because they were relatively inexpensive. I got hooked on fantastical tales early. One of my first attempts at a novel when I was eleven was about a girl who becomes a teen and discovers she can do magic; my second attempt was about two sisters who served as protectors of a mystical realm. I read almost exclusively science fiction and fantasy in my teens--Ursula K. LeGuin, Madeline L'Engle, Anne McCaffrey, and Octavia Butler and and Samuel R. Delaney. I didn't "discover" romance per se until I was in my mid-twenties. Even though I love romance and continue to read, my personal faves in books, movies, television have always contained a fantasy or paranormal element. Getting the opportunity to write paranormal romance and then urban fantasy is a long-deferred dream finally coming true.

3.  What the title of the next book in the series and when is it due?  Tell us a bit about it.

The next installment is called Shadow Chase and if people think the first book is darker, they haven't seen anything yet. Shadow Chase will be out July 27th.I can't explain any better than the back cover blurb:

As a Shadowchaser, Kira Solomon has been trained to serve the Light, dispatch the Fallen, and prevent the spread of chaos. It’s a deadly job, and Kira knows the horror of spilling innocent blood. But now she has a new role, as the Hand of Ma’at, the Egyptian Goddess of Truth and Order, and an assignment that might just redeem her.

A fellow Shadowchaser has gone missing, and so has a unique artifact imbued with astonishing magic. Unless the Vessel of Nun is returned, it will cause destruction beyond anything the modern world has seen. Kira’s got a team at her back, including Khefar, a near-immortal Nubian warrior who’s already died for her once. But as complicated as her feelings for him are, they’re nothing compared to the difficulties of the task she faces. And the only way to defeat the enemy at hand is to trust in a power she can barely control, and put her life—and her soul—on the line.

4.  What was your reaction to your 4+ star rating from Romantic Times Magazine for  Shadow Blade?

I was thrilled for it, glad that the reviewer liked it. The same with the review in Publisher's Weekly. It always feels like you're dreaming, and I always think of Sally Fields from the Academy Awards long ago: "They like it. They really like it!" Of course, now I'm hoping that readers will like it as much as they reviewers so far have.

5.  Do you plan on still writing romance?

I sure do. I have several ideas that I'm working on in between finishing up the third book in the Shadowchasers series working on an idea for the fourth. Any romance I come up with probably won't be a full length contemporary romance though. Right now, my brain is still firmly in the paranormal world.

6.  In 2000, when we first interviewed you, you said you were a voracious reader?  Is that still true?

Balancing two full-time jobs leaves little time for sleep, much less reading! But I try to get in as much reading as I can. Reading enriches the soul; there's a joy to immersing oneself in a story that few other things can provide. I have a huge to-be-read pile, and I continually pick up new books for the shelves. And once it got my mini laptop, I've bought tons of ebooks as well. Any writer worth their salt should still be a reader.

7.  When you’re not writing, what do you like to do in your spare time?

Spare time? What's that? I like to sleep, read, catch up on my shows on the DVR. Dinners out with friends for much needed laughter and fellowship. Belly dancing workouts when I can because they're fun and dancing is exercise that doesn't feel like it. When I'm not burning vacation time for conferences, I like to rent a cabin in the North Georgia mountains and just recharge.

8.  Are you still a full time writer?

I design training materials during my day job, sitting at a computer for 8+ hours a day. Then I go home and sit in front of that computer for another 5 hours or so. The goal of writing fiction full time burns brightly in my heart, but it will probably be a long while before I can make that dream a reality.--hopefully sometime before retirement age!

9.  Tell us a bit about your writing process.

Stare at the blinking cursor until a headache blossoms and panic sets in. Seriously though, despite my attempts to cure myself, I am a panster. Not necessarily a good thing when you have two full time writing gigs and both have pressing deadlines. I "sleep with my characters," ruminating on who they are and what they want while drifting off to sleep, using a form of creative visualization to make them and their story multidimensional. My story evolves in my head, the bits rolling around like the ringer in a brass bell. I start with a blurb, then an outline, then expand on the outline. I also allow scenes to pounce like divine inspiration and either write those out longhand or store them in separate files. When I am stuck, I stretch out on my bed with a pen and notepad. Instrumental music plays int he background and I just let the pen move, cleaning it up when I type it into the file.

10.  What would you consider to be your greatest accomplishment (as a writer) to date?

Hhm...there are a couple. Winning the RT for Through the Fire, a book I labored over but loved to pieces. Selling the Shadowchasers series to Juno/Pocket, especially after so many industry professionals told me there wasn't a market for AA paranormal.  But nothing compares to being 18 years old and reading my "Living the Dream" essay to the King family, including Coretta Scott King and Berniece King.

11.  If you were introducing a new reader to your work, which one would you choose and why?

It would depend on what type of story they'd like to read. Still, even in my paranormal romance, I've tried to make sure the relationship still felt real and emotional. So "Double Down" in the Vegas Bites anthology I think is a good story and a good love story. "Through the Fire" for a contemporary read because I really felt for Brandt and his struggle. "Rode Hard" in the What White Boyz Ride anthology because the characters were funny, smart-assed, loving and real in their affection for one another.

12.  What has been the most difficult thing about being a published author who writes African-America Romance?

Don't get me started! From the shelving to readers thinking all the stories about about "the issues of being black" to not being able to relate to characters, to people thinking AA romance is the same as street lit, I sometimes feel like AA romance authors are fighting an unwinnable war. I try through my online presence and through reasonable discussions to clarify and edify. Other writers try as well. I just wish that AA romance was not the literal "nappy headed stepchild" of the romance industry and had its time at the ball.

13.  Since writing your first book, the romance industry has changed significantly.  What would you consider to be the most significant change and how has that change impacted on you?

I think the most significant change has been the rise of ebooks. The good side of that is that authors can write novella length or longer stories for epublishers while maintaining publication in traditional prints markets. It's a great way to supplement the writing income. The ebook market allows for experimentation, for getting your quirkier story ideas out tot he reading public. the ebook market is also a more-level playing field. The readers are more willing to try the book based on the story and not the character's color.

The downside to the ebook market is of course, seeing the Google alerts with people asking for a pirated copy of your books. I know some of those are people who would have never bought my books anyway, but some of them would have. If someone emails me saying they enjoyed my books and when will I write the sequel to so-and-so, what if the answer is I won't be writing that because the publisher won't give me another contract because the sales aren't there? Writing is a career that I enjoying having, but it is a job. If writers aren't making money at it, we have to find another job. I still have my day job and I won't be leaving it any time soon.

14.  How have you grown as a writer since the release of your first book No Commitment Required in 2000?

I certainly hope so! I think there's a depth to the writing, layers to the characters that might not have been there in the early days. The writing is tighter.

15.  How can readers contact you?

ROMANCE IN COLOR would like to thank Ms. Glass for taking time out of her busy schedule to share with us.