GtPGKogPYT4p61R1biicqBXsUzo" /> Google+ Interview: PNR author Nancy Northcott (The Light Mage Series) + giveaway | I Smell Sheep

Friday, February 21, 2014

Interview: PNR author Nancy Northcott (The Light Mage Series) + giveaway

Nancy Northcott, author, paranormal romance
Today we have PNR author Nancy Northcott visiting the flock. What is cool about Nancy, other than her ability to bend steel with her mind (okay, that’s a lie, but how cool would that be?), is she lives in NC like me! How are you holding up with this crazy winter weather we are having?
Nancy: I’m staying inside a lot! And I find that the snow distracts me from almost everything. I watch a lot of weather forecasts.



coming out soon!
Sharon: You have a PNR series that was recently renamed The Light Mage series. Can you tell our readers who aren’t familiar, a little about it?
Nancy: Thanks for asking! This series is contemporary, dark fantasy romance. The Light Mages are the good guys, as you might guess, dedicated to the service of what’s right. Their foes, the ghouls, use dark magic. They can draw the life energy or magic out of mages or Mundanes (normal humans). Ghouls can’t breed among themselves, so they need mages and Mundanes for that or, since ghouls can eat only fresh kill, for the occasional meal.
The mages and the ghouls have been in conflict for millennia. The ghouls have recently formed an alliance with an even worse species, so the mages have their work cut out for them. The tag line for the series is “Holding back an ancient evil, one Light Mage protector at a time.”
There are two books, Renegade and Guardian, and a novella, Protector, out currently. Those were published under the series label The Protectors, but they are part of the overall Light Mage Wars story arc. There will be a novella, Sentinel, out next month. It’s set before the events in Renegade, the first book.


Sharon: You love the English culture and history. Which historical figure would you like to meet, you know, once you finish building that time machine?
Nancy: Elizabeth I, without a doubt. About the only thing in her favor when she took the throne was that she was Protestant, yet she managed to hold onto the crown, reigning for almost half a century. I’d love to know what she saw as her particular challenges, what she found especially satisfying, and what regrets she had, if any.

Sharon: I couldn’t imagine living the life of the court having to wear those horrid outfits!
Nancy: LOL! Good point. I could ask her whether those starchy ruffs scratched.


Sharon: You are a self-confessed nerd, which makes you fit in around here. So what is the nerdiest thing you own?
Nancy: That’s a hard choice. There are so many possibilities:) I’ll go with my Queen Amidala laser pistol. I like to point it at things and hear it makes its little electronic zapping noises.

Sharon: *pulls out her little laser gun* pew-pew pew-pew
Nancy: Exactly! *grins*


Sharon: What was that first comic your grandfather bought you?
Nancy: It was Superman’s Pal Jimmy Olsen, issue #62. It was a Phantom Zone story and featured Mon-El.

Sharon: A lot of our readers love those sexy paranormal men. What makes being with a Light Mage worth all the trouble they can bring to your door? And did you bring one with you, you know as a visual aid… *looking behind Nancy*
Nancy: I did bring one with me. This is Griffin Dare, the hero of Renegade. *stops to stare at him*

*Sharon waves, wiggles eyebrows*
Nancy: Oh. Right. You asked me a question. I love those sexy paranormal men, too, so I tried to give the heroes of this series the traits I enjoy reading about. First is power. Their magic is based on natural energy and the elements of earth, air, fire, water, and spirit. They’re sort of the fantasy equivalent of super-heroes, and they have the super-hero code. They protect anyone weaker than they are, especially Mundanes, watch out for each other, and have high standards of integrity.
Sharon: I am suddenly feeling very weak…help…me…Griffin…I need…*looks around and realizes everyone is staring. Gets off floor.* Stop judging me!
Nancy: No judging from me! But I think Griff may be off fighting ghouls right now.

Sharon: Do you have a guilty pleasure like watching reality shows?
Nancy: I do watch some reality shows. My husband and I enjoy Top Chef and Project Runway. My bigger guilty pleasure is action movies. I watched Battleship a lot when it was on HBO. When I need a fantasy fix, I often pull out The Thirteenth Warrior.

Sharon: Action movies shouldn’t be a guilty pleasure, they should be celebrated with pomp and circumstance! I loved Battleship too, and The Thirteenth Warrior is about…something…something…Antonio Banderas! Great movie.
Nancy: And not Banderas’s usual sort of role. And, hey, Vikings!

Sharon: Did you know they are no longer going to teach cursive writing in school? What do you think about that?
Nancy: Really? Wow. I think that’s a shame. Cursive writing is so…elegant. And there seems to be less elegance in the world every year. For me, at least, cursive writing is faster than printing.


Sharon: If you were an amusement park ride which would you be?
Nancy: I’d be the merry-go-round. It’s so cheerful, with the colorful horses (or other animals) and the bright music.

Sharon: Which animal do you like to ride most? I’ve always gone for the horses.
Nancy: I always go for the horses, too, but a gryphon or a phoenix would be hard to walk past. A lot of the animals other than the horses don’t go up and down, though. For me, the motion is part of the fun of a merry-go-round.

Sharon: What if all the creepy garden gnomes came to life one day. What do you think would happen?
Nancy: Well, they’d be hard to stop, being concrete, though maybe that would slow them down. I think the sales of sledgehammers would go up.


Rapid Fire:
Sharon: Super Bowl or Puppy Bowl?
Nancy: Puppy Bowl.

Sharon: water bowl cam!
Nancy: Absolutely!

Sharon: King Kong or Godzilla?
Nancy: King Kong. I’ve never been a fan of lizards.

Sharon: salt water or fresh water?
Nancy: Salt water to swim or wade in, fresh to drink.

Sharon: pe-can or pe-con?
Nancy: Pe-con

Sharon: Nope! :P
Nancy: Aw, rats! *g*

Sharon: Pepsi or Coke?
Nancy: Coke, definitely.

Sharon: again, Nope!
Nancy: No Coke? Uh-oh. I guess that means no Cherry Coke either? Will, the hero of this summer’s release, Warrior, is also a Pepsi fan, so he’d be totally in your corner, but Tasha, the heroine of the winter book, Nemesis, is a Coke-only woman.
Sharon: You can come back when  you have Will with you! <G>

Sharon: Pirate or cowboy?
Nancy: Cowboy. Maurading is a high-risk job, imho.

Sharon: not to mention sea sickness. Puking is NOT sexy.
Nancy: Oh, really not! Bleech. Hadn’t thought about that.

Sharon: captain the Enterprise or the Millennium Falcon?
Nancy: Enterprise. My parents were in the US Navy, and the starfaring equivalent appeals to me more than smuggling.

Sharon: Thanks for visiting. Before your dragon ride, is there anything you would like our readers to know?
Nancy: Dragon ride? Cool! Maybe the dragon would like to know I love the Pern books. As for the readers, I’d like them to know I enjoy action, adventure, and romance, and I try to deliver the kind of reading experience I enjoy. Thanks so much for having me today!


The Light Mage Series

About the Author:
website-Twitter-FB-blog
I still love comic books, fantasy and science fiction, though I don’t read comics as much as I once did. I try to get to Dragon*Con every year. I’m also a lifelong history geek and Anglophile, passions born when I was in second grade and watched a television drama about the Tudors. By the time I reached college and learned just how inaccurate that story was, it was too late. I was hooked! I majored in history and spent a fabulous summer studying Tudor and Stuart Britain at Oxford University (as well as learning to drive on the left side and observe local customs in pubs). These experiences left me with serious geek tendencies, which I indulge by reading a lot of history. My college classes mostly covered who fought whom, when, why, and how, and I’ve been delighted to discover how much material is available about the ways people of different eras lived.


I've traveled extensively in Britain with my husband and our son, collecting numerous tomes, weighty and not, on my passion. My husband, a children’s literature professor who understands the “book thing,” graciously carried home the ones I didn't have time to entrust to the Royal Mail. His help put a whole new spin on the “carry my books” bit and helped make possible the Writer Resources section of this site, where I share some of my best finds.

39 comments:

  1. Replies
    1. Debby, aren't they pretty? That's a great photo Sharon found for the post.

      Delete
  2. ^^ the calm and quiet one, i can't do the rapid or too height ones^^;;

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Miki, I don't do rapid rides or heights, either. Or anything swoopy. I worked in an amusement park one summer, but there were only a handful of rides I'd venture onto.

      Delete
  3. The swings that go up in the air and spin around. It's my fave county fair ride. I forget the name of them :)

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Beautiful Disaster, that's one I wish I had the nerve to ride. The heights thing gets me, though.

      Delete
  4. Thanks for the fun interview ladies! Love the puppy bowl picture, and yeah for the Enterprise. I also love the Pern books by Anne McCaffrey (not by her son).
    I would be ... the fortuneteller.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Aurian, glad you enjoyed it! Fortunetellers can be fun.

      I have to confess I haven't read the later Pern books. I tend to prefer the original voice in any series, and that stops me from reading continuations. Though I'll probably read the concluding Wheel of Time volumes.

      Delete
  5. p.s. books with covers like those are always welcome on my shelves!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thanks! I had nothing to do with choosing them, but I love them, too.

      Delete
  6. In NC as well:) if I were a ride....I think I will have to go with a bumper car, you can cruise on the outside or join the drama your choice, I like choices.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Bookswagger, that's an interesting take. I've never tried bumper cars, but you make a good point about the options. :-)

      Delete
  7. Replies
    1. Angie, I can't take the swooping on a roller coaster, but our son loves them.

      Delete
  8. With the way my days go I have to go with a roller coaster. You never know what's around the next curve. LOL!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Isn't it the truth about that next curve, Susan? I don't think I could deal with the swoopiness of a roller coaster. Our son loves them, though.

      Delete
  9. Loved the interview, and the chance to learn about a paranormal author who is NEW to me! Love the premise of the series and will be checking it out. If I were a carnival ride, I'd choose the ferris wheel -- but it would be one that breaks loose from its platform and rolls away across the countryside.....

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thanks, Dani! I appreciate that.

      Wow, the runaway Ferris wheel is kind of a scary image. There used to be a small Ferris wheel (securely anchored) at the beach we went to. The view was great, but I get nervous when I'm up on the air and something starts swaying, even gently.

      Clearly, my adventurous living is all vicarious! *g*

      Delete
  10. Hi, Nancy and Sharon! What a delightful interview. I can see I need to hang out more with you fantasy geeks!

    I want to ride a dragon like Daenerys in GOT. Can I, please, pretty please?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Jo, thanks! I think all merry-go-grounds should include dragons.

      Delete
  11. I would be a roller coaster, fast and loud and loads of fun - all the things I'm not in reality.

    Sharon - is it true that cursive is no longer going to be taught in school? If so, that is just sad. Printing is simplistic and a waste of time. I always hated it.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Michelle, LOL! I'm not fast, loud, or loads of fun, either! And I'm unfortunately scared of roller coasters--too swoopy. Our son loves them, though.

      Delete
  12. What a fun interview from fellow Bandit Nancy! LOL...I'd pass on riding a phoenix...all those flames you know :D

    This is a great series and Sharon a great blog/website! As to the garden gnomes? If they do come alive don't touch them. They're poisonous according to the heroes in my upcoming series :D

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thanks, Joan! Yeah, the flames would be an issue on a Phoenix.

      Ya gotta watch those garden gnomes. They're sneaky.

      Delete
  13. Very enjoyable interview! Sharon, you really captured all that is special about Nancy with your questions. Btw, her books are awesome!

    I think I'd be Disney's It's a Small World ride. I love to sing but I don't have the greatest voice but I love to sing...a lot. ;-)

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Hi, PJ, and thanks! Sharon came up with great questions.

      I don't have a great voice, either, but am cursed with having an excellent ear. So I mostly sing when no one's around.

      You know, there's something about that Small World ride. It kinda slots into a person's head and stays there. Plus, y'know, it's air conditioned and you can sit down. When the boy was little, we rode that over and over and over and over, he loved all the "little people" so. *g*

      Delete
  14. Hi Nancy! Hi Sharon! Sharon, this is my first visit here. What a great blog. Nancy, as you know I'm a huge fan of your Light Mages. Whoever wins the prize has a real treat ahead of them. Interesting that you picked Elizabeth I - as you know, we've had many medieval conversations, so I had a feeling you'd go for Richard I or Elizabeth Woodville! I have a tremendous admiration for EI too. You just have to look at the mess her cousin Mary Queen of Scots made of things to see where it all could have gone so horribly wrong.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thanks, Anna! Isn't this a great site?

      There were many possibilities for historical figures, but some of them weren't what we might call successful. Yes, Mary's situation makes Elizabeth look all the much savvier (more savvy?)

      Delete
  15. I've always had a special place in my heart for the merry go round so I'd want to be a part of it at least :) more books for reading, look forward to the new installment coming out

    ReplyDelete
  16. This comment has been removed by the author.

    ReplyDelete
  17. Since my favorite was always the Gravitron, I'll have to say that. I am at times a little spacey so it fits. :)

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Steph, I've never ridden the Gravitron. I'm spacey at times, too, though. :-)

      Delete
  18. I'd have to say the scary, ricketty roller coaster ride :) Congrats to Nancy on the new release and thanks for sharing!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thanks, Erin! Roller coasters are scary to me, too. There was a wooden one at the beach we went to when I was growing up. I never rode it, though other family members did. It was definitely rickety!

      Delete
  19. The Grizzly at Great America (California) .... rickety and old school (wooden track).

    ReplyDelete