Lasers Dragons And Keyboards

Today we had Kara Swanson, author of the Heirs of Neverland books, on the show! This SoCal native enjoys running the Authors Conservatory, the writers school she co-founded, and is hard at work at a new series focusing on the phoenix. www.authorconservatory.com www.theyoungwriter.com  www.instagram.com/karaswansonauthor www.karaswanson.com  

We are absolutely delighted to have back on our show Becky Dean! Becky, also known as B.L. Dean, is the author of her debut space opera novel, Rogue Pursuit, which released in March. In today's podcast, we discuss writing for two different major publishing houses, the differences between them, as well as how she came up with the ideas for Rogue Pursuit and its sequels (all coming out by June 2023.)  We last had Becky on for S4 E2 discussing her contemporary YA romance which is laced with tons of geeky references. Becky Dean is a fan of adventures both real and fictional. When she’s not writing or traveling, she can be found drinking tea, watching science fiction shows or Jane Austen adaptations, or quoting The Lord of the Rings. Though she’s a proud Baylor grad and lives in Texas with her husband, she remains a Southern California girl at heart. You can find out more about her books at www.BeckyDeanWrites.com .

Under the guise of testing some borked settings, we reinterviewed our very own Aaron DeMott who just released his third novel, "Etherno 2: Catgirl Overload". We discuss everything from needing to do rants (look forward to updates from Patreon!) to the inspiration of his books to finding time to write while working full-time and raising four kids.  As one third of the LDK group, Aaron is hugely busy, and the fact he still wants to do the podcast is amazing in and of itself, so it was fun to just sit down and discuss his books for a change.  Also in the episode: some personal updates from all three of us. (Hint: two of us are married to each other now!) Check out Aaron's books at www.aarondemott.com .

We have with us Josh's aunt this episode, the amazing Dawn Shipman!  Dawn Shipman is an award-winning author whose fantasy stories bristle with believable characters fighting fierce battles in strange worlds. Teens of all ages will love these tales of soaring wonder, ferocious loyalty, and heart-stopping romance. Kingdom Lost, the first book in the Lost Stones of Argonia series, is her debut novel. We had a blast talking to Dawn and we know you'll love her too!  For more information about Dawn's books, check out her website at: https://dawnshipmanfiction.com/ 

This is a lost episode! The producer has no idea what we discussed, but it's with Josh Chadd. He's awesome. Listen, buy his books, you know the deal.  Joshua C Chadd's Website Find Joshua C. Chadd's books here

Today, we talk to Becky Dean, author of debut YA Romance novel Love and Other Great Expectations. Not our normal fare, but Becky is completely awesome and also about to release a series of Space Opera books in 2023!  Becky Dean is a fan of adventures both real and fictional. When she’s not writing or traveling, she can be found drinking tea, watching science fiction shows or Jane Austen adaptations, or quoting The Lord of the Rings. Though she’s a proud Baylor grad and lives in Texas with her husband, she remains a Southern California girl at heart.  https://beckydeanwrites.com https://www.instagram.com/beckydeanwrites/  (Please note there was some technical issues with our recording for Becky's feed. Producer was unable to fix in post.) -- Watch live at https://www.twitch.tv/ldk_podcast  

We're BACK! And we've got Travis W. Inman with us, discussing his newest book, Chrome World.  Travis W. Inman grew up in the ranch country of West Texas and worked as a cowboy for his first 20 years. Travis graduated from seminary in Dallas, Texas, and later served a year in the mission field in Mexico and South America. Upon his return home, he married Sarah, his wife of more than 25 years. They have two children whom they successfully home schooled. Over the years, Travis has applied his skills to a variety of fields, ranging from marketing and real estate to criminal justice and law enforcement. Travis served in the United States Army where he overcame a devastating hip injury and was able to walk again despite the odds. Writing is a life-long passion for Travis. His short stories and poems have been selected for publication in a variety of newspapers and on Internet sites. Travis’ writing includes children’s literature, action adventure, short stories, one act plays, love stories, westerns, sci-fi, thrill

We're back in the saddle again with award winning author Steve Rzasa! Check out our chat as we discuss the life a librarian, cool cover designs, and working with a collaborator. 

In our "lost episodes" files, we interview UF and Paranormal Romance author, Amy Brock McNew. 

Due to a Midwestern snowstorm, Liberty was unable to join Aaron & Josh in this spectacular interview with sci-fi legend, Nick Cole. A former soldier and actor, Nick shares insights into his writing process, tabletop gaming, indie publishing, and who you should pay attention to in this world where everybody is a guru in the indie-sphere. 

We sat down and discussed Jason Joyner's debut novel, Launch. As well as what led to the creation of the Realm Makers Consortium in 2015, and how great it is to be a part of a writing community that shares bonds in areas of both spiritual and fandom. Be sure to check out the stream on Twitch.tv/LDK_Podcast for great interaction on the chat! Where to Find Jason + other links: Jason Joyner Launch LDK on Twitch LDK on Patreon

We sat down with J.J. Johnson, author of  Iggy & Oz: The Plastic Dinos of Doom this week on LDK! We discussed the challenges of writing for middle grade, giant snot blobs, and insights into marketing from a marketing professional. Oh, and there was laughter. A. Lot. Of. Laughter. (But what else do you expect from us?)  Links: J.J. Johnson Iggy & Oz on Amazon LDK on Twitch.tv LDK on Patreon After Atlantis Gaming on Twitch.tvJosh's book on Amazon Aaron's books on Amazon Liberty's latest book on Amazon

We're excited to be re-launching the podcast! And today, we did a test run of our new recording setup. Be sure to join us on Twitch.tv/LDK_Podcast for future episodes!

We were delighted to have with us NYT bestselling author, Ed Greenwood, on this week's episode of the show! For those not in the know, Mr. Greenwood is the creator of The Forgotten Realms. Note to listeners: we had not only our producer missing, but the guys had to jury-rig a setup to record. Mr. Greenwood joined us over the phone, which was not what we had planned—but we were delighted to have him despite our technical difficulties. (Liberty's hair may or may not be more grey after editing...) Also, for our listeners with sensitive ears, there is some mild swearing in this episode. The guys mostly let Mr. Greenwood talk, and as such, we think this is an episode best listened to rather than trying to sum it up. But we do get a history lesson on publishing and research. My word, do we have it easy nowadays. Everything in a home exists to support bookshelves. ~ Ed Greenwood   Links: Ed Greenwood The Edverse Ed on Twitter

We've got some great insight into intellectual property law with attorney Steve Fairchild. It may sound boring, but as authors, it's important we understand at least a little bit about the law. We start things out with an overview of what's encompassed in intellectual property, and then it really gets fun! In Episode 76: How biology degrees relates to intellectual property How Steve gets his clients Can you use the term "lightsaber™" in your book? Does I.P. law translate to other countries? Finding an I.P. attorney...and do you need one? What's the difference between an I.P. attorney and an agent? When does copyright exist? Do you need to file your copyright with the copyright office? What happens when your work has been pirated? Can I.P. law be funny? How Steven actually informed an episode of Suits--and how they got it wrong! What Steven finds frustrating in fiction about the law Bunny trails! Do I need to copyright my idea formally with the copyright office? Fair use law Steve's advice on courtroom scenes

We sit down with physics teacher by day, thriller author by night, Kayla--K.M.--Dailey this episode. K.M. is the winner of our flash short story contest with Laura VanArendonk Baugh to write a short story featuring Samwise Gamgee (LOTR) and River Song (Doctor Who.) K.M.'s story had us in stitches, and we're sure you'll see why we picked the story as our winner. We talk about our Harry Potter houses, Kayla's inspiration for the short story, Christmas trees out of books, Liberty admits to having lower standards in her reading, the ever-present need for more bookcases, Harry Dresden, the new doctor on Doctor Who and Kayla's and Liberty's concerns about the direction, Doctor Who indoctrination (no pun intended!), Kayla's goal of 100 rejections in 2018 (!!!), Captain America...or Captain Jack Sparrow? Find out more about Kayla on her YouTube channel. Kayla's book recommendations: Ender's Game - Orson Scott Card The Series of Unfortunate Events - Lemony Snicket The Three Body Problem - Cixin Liu   For a transcript

This week we have hopeless romantic, H.L. (Heidi) Burke on the show. She's totally obsessed with dragons, but we know a few people who also are, so we won't hold it against her.   In episode 74: The evolution of a pantser to a plotter Guess which of Heidi's offspring might be a future Bond villain! Lyrics in music? Yes or no? The adventures of being a military wife Why Heidi doesn't think she's a very deep person. Working with an editor when you've been self-published first How Sarah picks her release dates Aaron warns new authors about vanity presses Who is Theodore??   As always, check our website for full show notes! LasersDragonsAndKeyboards.com      

This week we have hopeless romantic, H.L. (Heidi) Burke on the show. She's totally obsessed with dragons, but we know a few people who also are, so we won't hold it against her. In episode 73: We discuss the Eros & Psyche myth again (see Laura VAB's recent episode for more E&P!) as H.L.'s book, Coiled, is based on the myth. Heidi's desire to go "aww" while writing. How we have to release our books to the world and they become a part of the world instead of ours. Myths are out of copyright—we can plagiarize them! Can snakes get sea sick? Star Trek rants! Re-reading on Goodreads Myers Briggs analysis of characters For more notes and links to other shows, please visit LasersDragonsAndKeyboards.com

We have Andrew Winch on this week, who is the executive editor with Splickety Publishing group where he's worked with a whole host of authors including Jerry B. Jenkins, Tosca Lee, and Robert Liparulo. He's a full time physical therapist when he's not running around with Ben Wolf. In this episode: Google is a wonderful thing. ;) Who is Ben Wolflichman? Wrangling flaming pigs Gothic horror / steampunk Weird stuff submitted to Splickety (hint: did you guess frog erotica?) Andrew's love of creepy stuff Don't edit your voice out of your story!!! Is writing flash fiction a perfectionist's game? What 3 tips would Andrew give to improve your writing? Why you should read women's fiction. You have to write a great story. Supporting characters Andrew wants to know more about! For additional show notes, visit LasersDragonsAndKeyboards.com