How did you choose the topic for this book?
I have a life-long love affair with English and British history, folklore, and mythology. Oh, and a love for wacky and surreal British humor (think Monty Python, Blackadder, the Young Ones, Terry Pratchett… the usual suspects). For some reason, I thought it would be a good idea to combine them into a book about the adventures of a small band of misfits in Northern England. They have to contend with a supernatural threat they didn’t anticipate, something really bad that gets them way in over their heads. Along the way, there’s a lot humor, fun, and even personal growth. For me, some of the best stories are the ones that can tell us about very human concerns, but that use fanciful and fantastical means to do so.
What were your goals and intentions in this book, and how well do you feel you achieved them?
I really just wanted to write a fun and enjoyable novel, the kind that I myself would like to read. I wanted to blend several of my interests into one story, give it a stir, and see how it all came out! The idea was to keep the narrative fairly simple, and not have too many subplots or characters. There’s nothing wrong with either of those things, of course, but I definitely wanted to take a simpler approach. When I started writing the book in earnest, I wasn’t sure if it would lead to more, or be a stand-alone. I eventually decided on a four-book series (due out over the next few years), since I felt that with more books, I could tell a bigger and more meaningful story that would have interlinking plot threads and ideas running throughout.
What was the hardest part of writing this book?
Surprisingly, it wasn’t all that difficult to write when I just set my mind to it. I conceived of the idea of Qwyrk and her world many years ago, and wrote a few initial chapters, but then put it aside. Not because it was too difficult, but simply because I was more focused on my musical career at the time. But when I dusted off what I had a few years ago and started writing in earnest, it flowed out pretty easily, so much so that I was able to create three more books over only two years to make a nice series. For me, the hardest thing about any story is consistency: spelling the names the same, making sure the characters’ personalities are consistent, closing any plot holes, and so on.
Who did your cover, and what was the design process like?
The artist is Casey Fritz, who is an illustrator and author. He has a lovely approach to color and design that was immediately appealing to me. You can find him on Instagram and elsewhere. When my agent introduced us, we had some back-and-forth discussion about the look. Casey wanted to use the image of a thorny rose bush (which features prominently in the novel) as one of the main features on the cover; I think his rendering of it is truly striking! We knew that we didn’t want a “typical” cover; to me there is a lot of sameness in many of today’s cover designs. He mocked up several ideas, but we ultimately settled on a fairly simple image of Qwyrk and her characteristic sarcastic smirk, which he captured perfectly!
Who has been your favorite character to write and why?
Qwyrk herself is always a delight. She’s very old (2,000 years), has seen more than enough, and is pretty jaded, cynical, and fed up. She’s big on sarcasm and short on temper. She’s also impulsive, headstrong, and impatient. And yet, there’s nothing she wouldn’t do to help and/or protect those she loves. This book, and the series as a whole, is about her learning to come back to a place of being less cynical and learning to really find joy again. Being on the jaded and cynical side myself, it’s nice to be reminded of when that’s not always a good idea. I envisioned her as bisexual; it was always just how she was to me. This aspect of her life is only mentioned in passing in the first book, since it was important to me to establish her as a developed and likable character on her own. But future books will explore her identity much more.
What qualities do you and your characters share? How much are you like them, or how different are they from you?
I’d say that many of the characters in this book have at least some elements of my own personality in them; I’m sure that’s pretty typical of most writers and their creations. Take something of yourself, put it into someone you’ve created, and then exaggerate it. Qwyrk has my “over it” attitude with so many aspects of the modern world. Blip has my love of culture and the finer things in life. Jilly represents my artistic side and that I can still believe in magical and whimsical things, and Star Tao… well, he’s just an interesting fellow!
Let’s talk to your characters for a minute – what’s it like to work for such a demanding writer?
Qwyrk: “Bloody hell! It’s just one thing after another with him, isn’t it? I mean, I suppose he’s a good sort at heart, but can I catch a breath once in a while?!”
Blip: “A superior gentleman, indeed. Appreciates the finer things in life, such as Bach, single-malt scotch, and good scholarship, you know? But the hair does give him a bit of a ruffian’s look, I fear…”
Jilly: “He seems nice. I think he really does care about all of us, even if things go horribly wrong sometimes!”
Star Tao: “Yeah, right, nice bloke. He created this really groovy world for us all to live in; it’s kind of brilliant, perfect for my super-spiritual workshops. You should sign up for one!”
Qwyrk is having a bad day; several, in fact. One of the Shadow folk tasked with keeping an eye on humanity, she’s ready for a well-earned break in Yorkshire, but now she’s (literally) run into a girl, Jilly, who just saw something quite supernatural and truly awful happen in her town.
As Qwyrk tries to unravel the mystery, layers of villainy are exposed, and she’s stuck with an assortment of unlikely folk that she’d rather not have “helping” her.
Together, they confront ancient magic, medieval conspiracies, and the possible end of the world (that again?). It’s not the holiday Qwyrk was hoping for!
Aboyt the Series: Qwyrk is the first in a series of four novels about the adventures of a group of misfits at the edge of reality in modern northern England, a world of shadows, Nighttime Nasties, sorcery, intergalactic councils, tacky nightclub attire, an abundance of sarcasm, and even elves…though they are a bit silly.
Amazon US | Amazon UK | Amazon CAN | Barnes & Noble | Kobo | Booksamillion | Blackwells | Liminal Fiction | Goodreads
Tim is giving away an Amazon gift card with this tour:
So Qwyrk, and her mates Qwypp and Qwykk, sat and surveyed the scene. It was a nice detached Edwardian home, with a lovely yard. Well, it would have been lovely except that it needed more tending than the Ecklesons were prepared to give it.
An old rosebush had grown to quite a size, such that its thorny branches often grabbed people as they walked by, often to gasps of surprise that then turned to annoyance as new victims found themselves unable to walk any farther until they became untangled. Those that ventured forward to smell the roses risked never being seen again.
At least twice a month, Mr. Eckleson threatened to hack the whole thing down, but somehow, he always got distracted by other weekend activities, such as football on television. And secretly, he harbored a slight fear of the thing, as if it were watching him. He worried that if he cut it down, a mob of rosebushes might return one night to enact a brutal vengeance. Mr. Eckleson needed a bit more fresh air.
Yes, it could have been a charming entryway to an old house, even with the disagreeable rosebush. But the plastic pink flamingos that Mrs. Eckleson had brought back from their Florida holiday and displayed with pride out front ensured that “charming” was not a word on the lips of guests. So did the bright blue ceramic garden gnome.
So, the trio looked down on the yard now: gnomes, flamingos, petulant rosebushes, and all. Humans could only see them as shadows with glowing red eyes, but up here, all alone, they saw each other on their natural form, which was basically like humans, except for their pointed ears. Humans would probably be disappointed by that. The occasional human—like a witch, a druid, a shaman, or some such—who could see them in their true form called them elves or fairies, which the Shadows resented. Elves were pretty silly, after all.
“So… what are we looking at?” Qwypp asked. Her bright red bob haircut clashed with her blue overalls and purple Doc Marten boots in a noticeable way.
“The rosebush,” Qwyrk sighed, as she ran her hands through her short but oh-so-stylish blonde hair.
“The rosebush,” Qwypp repeated. “And we’re looking at this rosebush because…”
“Shhh! Did you see that?” Qwyrk interrupted.
“What?” asked Qwykk, curling a strand of her long, wavy brown hair around her finger, and smoothing out wrinkles in her new designer exercise outfit. She obviously prided herself on being the glamorous one of the three.
“One of the branches moved.”
“Oh. My. Goddess!” Qwypp exclaimed. “You mean they have… wind up here in the north? We got here just in time!”
Qwykk stifled a giggle.
Qwyrk shot both of them an angry look. “It bent a little, like an elbow, you idiots! The rosebush is taking on anthropomorphic qualities. I’m sure I just saw it.”
“Anthro-what?” Qwykk asked.
“It means it’s becoming animated, moving like a bipedal being,” Qwypp answered, looking quite proud of herself, and smiling a smug smile.
“I don’t care what its sexual orientation is! That’s its own private business,” Qwykk answered in an equally snooty voice, clearly trying to sound impressive.
Qwyrk sighed and rolled her eyes. “Look, let’s just focus on it for a while, all right? It may do something else. We have to find out.”
“I wonder how that would work?” Qwykk mused after another minute of the three of them watching in silence.
“How what would work?” Qwyrk knew she’d regret asking.
“I mean, if you was a rosebush, how would you know who you fancied? Like, what if you had a knob with thorns? That wouldn’t be very pleasant! And even if you did know, what could you do about it? I mean… suppose you liked the rosebush on the other side of the street, how would you know if it fancied you back? And even if you knew it did, how would you actually get over there to get a snog? It’s not like you could move or anything. And how would you actually snog? Like, with what? Rosebuds on your branches? And suppose you actually fancied the oak tree next door instead, well, that opens up a whole new set of problems!”
Qwyrk almost put her face in her palms. Almost.
“Why can’t we just go downstairs and do some yoga?” Qwypp interjected, and for once, Qwyrk was glad for her whining.
“I told you…” Qwyrk started.
“You didn’t, though!” Qwypp said, annoyed. “Just that you’ve got a job up here to do, because of some funny reports.”
“Yeah, Qwyrk, what’s up? You dragged us all the way up here from London, when we were going clubbing this weekend, and we have a right to know why.”
Qwyrk assumed a mock pleasant voice. “Look, here it is again, in small words, so you’ll understand: that big rosebush has been doing some strange things over the last couple of weeks. It’s been moving like a human, and people have also been seeing things like ghosts, goblins, strange lights, and apparitions in the neighborhood; there was even a little earthquake a few days ago. When a plant starts moving by itself, it’s usually not a good thing, and if there’re ghosts and goblins involved, and the earth starts rumbling, it doesn’t usually lead to snogs and chocolate. All clear now?”
“But what are we supposed to do about it?” pouted Qwykk. “Now I can’t use my VIP pass to London’s ‘Club Nitro Ibiza Hedonistic Fun Dome’ this weekend.”
“The council wants us to keep an eye on it for a bit, to watch over everything. Our mate Jimmy down there is making that a bit difficult and making me question the wisdom of that order. I’ve a good mind to gag him tomorrow night.”
“The fact that we’re the ones that scare the bejeesus out of most kids who see us is somehow lost on the council, eh?” snarked Qwypp. “I don’t make the rules,” Qwyrk answered. “I just follow them.”
Qwyrk did ponder the irony of it all. “Well, what can I say? Sometimes kids are up far past their bedtimes and spot us. Then they get more scared of us than of the dangers we’re supposed to be watching for.”
It’s time for a change in policy.
He has appeared on over forty recordings, and his wanderings and tours have taken him across the US, all over Europe, to Canada and Australia, and to such romantic locations as Marrakech, Istanbul, Renaissance chateaux, medieval churches, and high school gymnasiums.
On the writing side of things, Tim lived in England for nearly seven years and has a PhD from the University of Leeds, which he likes to pretend means that he knows what he’s talking about. He has written several books and magazine articles about music, the arts, history, and business, and undoubtedly will write more (whether anyone likes it or not).
He currently resides in Northern California amid many books, antique music reproduction devices (i.e., CDs), instruments, and with a sometimes-demanding cat. He’s also rather enthusiastic about good wines, single-malt Scotch, and cooking excellent food.
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