Only ten posting days left in this year’s challenge. I’ve noted fewer comments on the main page since we started and I still come across broken links, but on the whole this is a great way to start the day.
As part of my theme this year, I opted to introduce you to authors who may be new to you and my guest today is one of those. The easiest way to get to know someone is by asking questions, and the Q and A is a tried and true method for doing that.
Nathaniel Danes is a self-diagnosed sci-fi junkie and, according to his wife, has an overactive imagination. Mostly blind, he writes to create universes where he has no limitations. He lives with his wife and daughter in the Washington, DC area.
Author Links: Facebook, Twitter, Blog, Website, Amazon.
Q is for Questions and Answers
Can you tell us a little bit about your latest book? When did it come out? Where can we get it?
My latest novel, BattleMaster, is the first in a new trilogy, BattleMaster Corps. The foundation of the story is a future where women’s naturally superior multi-tasking abilities allows them to become the masters of the modern battlefield. It comes out today, April 20 excusably on Amazon and is a part of the Kindle Unlimited program. You can find it at https://www.amazon.com/BattleMaster-Corps-Book-1-ebook/dp/B06XNTTQPN
Is there anything specific that inspired you to launch the BattleMaster Corps Trilogy?
A lot of little things I’ve learned over the years came together to form this story. For example, a while back I watched a report about the US Air Forces research into controlling craft via brain waves. Their initial research also showed that female controls performed better than men. Mix that into the fact that modern warfare is becoming increasingly complex and drone focused and you’ve got the beginning of a good novel.
If this book was made into a film, who would you cast in it?
Chris Pratt for the male lead.
Emma Stone for female lead.
Perfect combo of Parks and Rec and Zombieland.
It sounds exciting! Now for some general questions. When reading, do you prefer traditional printed books or ebooks? And why?
Actually, I only consume books through Audible now. I’m losing my vision to a genetic disorder and its gotten too hard to read entire books. Audible is a godsend, though. Its allowing me to increase my “reading” and I’m getting to read many of the classic I haven’t been able to.
What are you reading now?
Just finished “A Short History of Nearly Everything” which is a non-fiction history of scientific discovery and before that, “Stranger in a Strange Land.” I know…it has taken be awhile to get to that one.
When you get an idea for a book, what comes first usually? Dialogue, the characters, a specific scene? Or do you plot it out before you write?
I know the general grand design but really it doesn’t come out until I start writing. The ending of BattleMaster honestly took me by total surprise. I was writing and it evolved moments before the words hit the screen. I think I would find writing boring if I already knew how it would all play out. What would be the point then?
What do you have planned next, Nathaniel? Or is that a secret?
No mystery. I’m already on chapter 15 of the next installment of the BattleMaster Corp Trilogy, BattleSwarm.
Is there anything you’d like to add? Any advice for new writers?
I tell anyone that is interested in writing that you have to do two things.
LIVE and WRITE. Never stop with either one and you will be amazed at the worlds you will be able to create with your imagination.
Thank you for being here. You are truly an amazing author.
Blurb from BattleMaster:
It’s a women’s army, men are privileged to catch bullets in it.
Private Michael Stanner is continuously reminded of that fact but he refuses to give up. He will fight for victory and the chance to become something more. That is, if he can avoid getting killed on New Calcutta.
Members of the all female BattleMaster Corps are the elite warriors of the modern battlefield. Their naturally superior multitasking abilities allow them to control teams of drones in combat more effectively than any man through neural links.
The Corps is the cornerstone of the American colonists’ decades long struggle for dominance in the Eden System. As three powers fight for control of a terraformed world left vacant by the mysterious disappearance of the Indian colony ship, questions linger about the true motivation for the war.
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Living the Dream 
Wishing you well Nathaniel – love the book cover and the theme is interesting.
A Piece of Uganda
Sounds interesting! As a multi-tasking woman, I appreciate the idea that this quality may have other uses beyond the ordinary.
Discarded Darlings – Jean Davis, Speculative Fiction Writer, A to Z: Editing Fiction
Sounds good – and if the film stars Chris Pratt, I’m there!
Congratulations to Mr. Danes! This title sounds just right for a few people in my life.