We're doing something a little bit different on the blog today. We're taking part in the Character Blog Hop, where writers take turns introducing (or interviewing, if they enjoy tempting fate) one of their characters. Last week, it was S. Elliot Brandis, whose interview with The Android went...a bit awry. You can read it here: http://selliotbrandis.com/an-interview-with-the-android-or-the-meet-my-character-blog-hop/ Find out more about his books at http://www.amazon.com/S.-Elliot-Brandis/e/B00KC82Y54/ , and follow him on Facebook. https://www.facebook.com/selliotbrandis
This week, it's my turn. I've been rather busy lately, with the launch of preorders for the second Monkey Queen novel...so someone volunteered to help me out. Michiko? It's all yours after the cut.
What is the name of your character? Hiiii! I'm the Monkey Queen, but my friends call me Michiko. (I do have a last name, it's Koyama, but I hardly ever use it.)
Is she fictional or a historic person? Am I fictional? Am I real? Are YOU real? "Reality...what a concept!" Oh, now I'm all sad about Robin Williams again... (Editor's note: She's fictional. I think.)
When and where is the story set? "When" would probably be in the present, and some people might say we're a year or two in the future; I've been watching a TV show that hasn't actually premiered yet!
"Where" is a college town up way north in California. It's a normal college town, with students, teachers and a few eccentric locals...except that in the woods outside of town, there's a portal to Faerie (we call it an "auldgate"). It was shut for centuries, but with magic returning, it reopened a while back, and we've been having people from there moving here ever since (and when I say "people", I mean faeries, pixies, gremlins, dwarves, brownies, hobgoblins, the occasional troll or ogre, and lots more). They use seemings (personal illusions) to disguise themselves and their homes as best as they can, but I keep running into more and more of them.
What should we know about her? Well, I'm 5'1" and I like 60s pop songs, beating up bad guys and long walks on the beach...wait, this isn't a personal ad? :)
Remember what I said just now about magic returning? Well, there's this group called the Council of Eight that's trying to keep a lid on things until the time is right. One of them had a prophetic vision about a baby who was destined for great things, and that turned out to be me.
I was orphaned right after I was born, and I was adopted by one of the Council, Grandmother Fox. She educated me and supervised my combat training, and most importantly taught me what was right, what was wrong, and how best to tell the two apart.
At one point during my combat training, I was jumping around a little too much, and one of the masters who was teaching me yelled at me about trying to be like the Monkey King. (Sun Wukong, who was one of Earth's greatest heroes. Google him, but that's not even half the story...) Grandmother Fox joked that I was more like a "Monkey Queen", and it stuck! Anyway, I started working with the local Emigres from Faerie a few years ago. I keep getting told that I'm going to be saving the world, but for now, I'm starting small.
But I'm not doing it by myself any more! A few weeks back, I met Beth McGill. She goes to the college here, and she just discovered that she has "second sight", which means she can see through and dispel seemings. We teamed up to rescue a kidnapped friend, and now we're partners in adventure! Better yet, she's got a spare bedroom in her apartment, so we're about to become roommates! I'm moving in this Friday! I can't wait! Beth's smart and so funny! She's awesome, even if she keeps trying to get me to watch this TV show named Doctor What with her. (I know that's not the name. I just like to tease her about it. :) )
What is the main conflict? What messes up her life? Gregor. Such a cranky guinea pig for being so cute! (I can't blame him sometimes, though. It must be rough to have been a powerful sorcerer, stuck in Limbo for a thousand years, and then getting reincarnated as something small and furry.)
Seriously, things have started to get a bit crazy here lately. We've had baby-eating trolls, short-tempered ogres, hobgoblin gangs, Dukes of Faerie sending agents in to make trouble, an evil sorceress, conniving wizards, and I know I'm leaving stuff out! Guess who has to stop them all and clean up their messes? Not to mention settling arguments, helping when someone needs a hand, and finding lost kids (I seem to do that a lot). I'm doing my best, but I keep worrying that I'll screw up, I'll make a mistake, and someone will get hurt or worse...
What is the personal goal of the character? Long-term? Sooner or later, word will get out about what's happening here and around the world, and things are going to change when it does. I hope I'm around to keep everything calm and take care of any bad guys who are out to take advantage of this, and find a way for humans and Emigres to live together in peace and harmony.
Short-term? Keep the peace, keep anyone from getting hurt, help where I can, have fun when I can, and be the best roommate I can be for Beth.
What is the title of the novel and where can we find out more?
Well, our first novel is called Of Introductions And Abductions, and you can get it now through Amazon! http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00NAKJUG2 Our second novel is called The Brigadoon Boondoggle, and it's coming out November 28, but you can preorder it now! http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00PGC39JQ
You can stick around this blog that you're reading for updates and fun stuff, including a sneak preview of the new book! Just scroll down! We're also on Twitter, where we're @MonkeyQueenBks, and Facebook! https://www.facebook.com/monkeyqueenbooks
And if you want to find out more about Willow, who does such a good job drawing our covers (I love my scarf, Willow!), she has a lot more beautiful art up at her DeviantArt page! http://willow-san.deviantart.com/ And you can keep up with her on Facebook too! https://www.facebook.com/willousan
Ooh, look at the time! Gotta meet Beth at Wonderland for breakfast! Bye!
Next week on the Character Blog Hop: Go back a few posts to meet Beth! Or click here: http://monkeyqueenbooks.blogspot.com/2014/11/character-blog-hop-meet-beth-mcgill.html
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