Alana Woods   AUTHOR        

Today it’s with pleasure I have as my guests Jack D Albrecht and Ashley Delay, the authors of Osric’s wand: the wand-maker’s debate.

I read this book several months ago and also reviewed it, giving it 5 stars because it so gripped my imagination. But not wanting to hold you up any further here are those two wonderfully talented writers.

Q. Hi Jack and Ashley, this is my first participation in a blog tour and I'm pleased to be able say that it’s with such a classy book. You started the tour at the beginning of the month, how is it going so far?

Jack: It's been a tremendous success so far, thanks. We managed to give away over 1400 ebooks on the first day, and we got to meet some amazing bloggers and readers in the process.

Q. Osric's wand has been compared to JRR Tolkien and Lewis Carroll's books, why do you think that’s so?

Jack: Beats the hell out of me! I have to be honest here; I failed nearly all of my English classes in high school. Yes, I love to read, but in spite of Ashley’s assurance I expected far less out of this whole venture. I feel honored to have been compared to some great authors but I was surprised when it happened. I think the comparison has to do with the scale and the fantastical nature of the story.

Ashley: Jack doesn’t give himself enough credit. The Osric’s wand series takes place in the world of Archana, a realm of magic and mystery. The comparison to Lewis Carroll probably comes from the presence of talking animals who wield magic and live alongside the humans in Archana. Tolkien was a master of creating a world that is both fantastical yet believable, and the comparison is humbling. However, our books do share some classic creatures such as elves and dwarves.

Q. I think authors generally are for the most part a pretty modest bunch so to be compared to the greats probably lifts the top of your skull off to begin with. Now you’re getting used to the idea what do you think you have in common with them as writers?

Ashley: A passion for the imagination. I believe authors enjoy getting lost in the worlds they create as much as those who read about them do. We love watching as the characters come alive and the plot unfolds before us as we write. I imagine they felt the same way.

Jack: Unnatural good looks and charisma ... yep, that’ll do it.

Q. Ah, one of those modest authors I was just talking about. How does it make you feel to be compared to them?

Ashley: We feel honored and humbled because they are incredibly talented authors. Who wouldn’t feel that way?

Q. I agree, who wouldn’t? I imagine it’s every new author’s dream to be compared to one of the greats. Did the comparison come as a surprise?

Jack: Yes! Because this really started out as boredom and wanting to try something new. If you had read the way it was when I started you would understand my surprise. I’ve learned a lot about writing since I started and I have a lot left to learn. This is not one of those topics that you can master overnight and I want to keep learning as much as I can. I know we’ve been received well with the first book but now the pressure is on to do the same again, and I can’t wait to find out what people think of the next book!

Q. Yes, you must be experiencing a certain amount of the jitters in anticipation. How long has Osric's Wand been out?

Jack: Osric’s wand: the wand-maker’s debate, the first book in the series, was released the last week of August 2011.

Q. How has it been received?

Jack: Very well! We hit several Kindle bestseller lists shortly after we had the new cover designed, and the reviews have been amazing. We have maintained a presence in the dragon category on the Kindle lists ever since.

Q. Well done and congratulations! I’d be interested in hearing a bit of the background, such as what the inspiration was for the story?

Jack: I started writing it because I’d run out of books in my house and had recently become unemployed so I had a lot of time on my hands. That was the catalyst, but the idea for it came from reading books. When something grabbed my attention I would tend to think ‘Hey, it would be cool if I could find a book that talked more about that!’ Over the years more of those ideas came to mind while reading and they all started to form the basic story in my head. Mix all that up and throw in a lack of things to do and voila!

Q. That’s the difference between the doers and the thinkers, isn’t it. The doers act on their ideas and the thinkers don’t. When I read Osric’s wand I felt that your target market would be young adults, but I also thought that it’s really the kind of story and storytelling that actually spans the age groups. So I’m interested in knowing what age group you intended it for?

Jack: 8 to 108. We actually have an adult reader in mind when we write, but the tale can be enjoyed by almost anyone. Since there are many new creatures and concepts introduced in the book a child may find it difficult to read. However, there is very little content that might be considered inappropriate, if you can overlook a drunk squirrel and a few made up swear words.

Q. I actually disagree with you there. I think younger children—I’m not talking toddlers here—would love it as a bedtime story. I know my grandchildren look forward to each chapter of whatever novel they’re listening to when they go to bed. But enough of that. I believe Osric's wand is your first published novel, but is it the first one you’ve written?

Ashley: I began a novel in my early twenties but life somehow interrupted my writing and I never completed it. Most of my writing up until my collaboration with Jack has been poetry and short stories although I've never sought publication for any of them.

Jack: I have only one or two relatively simple things compared to this. This was really my only writing experience. If I hadn’t been able to recruit Ashley to help with some of the issues I had with the book and characters, and also to take over the whole ‘bad guy’ writing phase the book wouldn’t have been anywhere close to the way it ended up. Recruiting her was the most important thing I did in this whole process. She is simply amazing at the craft!

Q. Well, you’ve both gained a fan in me. When can we expect the sequel because I have to say I'm looking forward to it?

Ashley: Osric’s wand: the high-wizard’s hunt will be available on an e-reader near you in September 2012!

Q. Not too long to wait then, good! To finish, can you ... would you ... give us a sneak peak at the sequel?

Jack: Sorry, we can’t just yet. But keep an eye on OsricsWand.com as the release date approaches and you may just get that sneak peek then!

Ashley and Jack, thank you SO much for taking the time to talk today. It’s been a real pleasure.

Now for the GIVEAWAYS.

Jack and Ashley have one paperback copy of Osric's wand to give away to one lucky reader. Just leave a comment and your email address so we can contact you if you're the winner.  If you're in the US you'll receive a signed copy! All entries will go into the hat and the winner drawn at random. The draw will take place at the end of the tour and the winner notified.

And for all of you who'd like a free e-copy here's the link to the book on Amazon. For four days starting 13 June (today) you can download it for $0.00. Please note that I'm in Australia, so check your time zones in case you are behind or ahead of me.

If you'd like to read my review take this link.

And for all the tour dates and sites to be visited take this link to the Osric's wand site.