Would you visit the future or the past, and why?
Being a historian, I would love to visit several eras in the past! But not to stay, of course. We tend to romanticize earlier times while minimizing the harsh realities that these ages presented to the people living in then. I’d love to be able to observe while not having to worry about infectious diseases or accidents, and to be able to leave when I wanted to. Top times and places to see: Anglo-Saxon England, Viking-age Scandinavia, twelfth-thirteenth-century England, Elizabethan and Jacobean England, Victorian times.
What action would your name be if it were a verb?
To “Tim”: To enjoy life, good music, good food, good wine, laughter, and happiness, while always maintaining some level of snark and irreverence.
What fictional speculative fiction character would you like to spend an evening with, and why?
Honestly, I’d love to spend time with some of the characters in my books, as much as anything to make sure that I’ve actually represented them accurately! But there are so many possibilities: Gandalf (just to hear his tales), David Copperfield (for insights into writing), Falstaff (as long as there was enough food and ale), Scrooge (reformed, of course!), Beowulf (again, would need a lot of food and drink, and we’d have to watch that things didn’t turn violent), Sherlock Holmes (which could either be fascinating, or terribly dull), Randolph Carter (what a life in the Dreamlands!), and a dozen others.
What’s your drink of choice?
I love red wine, both European and other locations. Big, bold, impressive varietals are always among my favorites: Syrah, Zinfandel, Petite Sirah, Tempranillo, Bordeaux blends, and so on. I’m also fond of single malt scotch, especially those from the Scottish island of Islay. Their distinct smoky flavors are just amazing and I never tire of them!
What food(s) fuel your writing?
I’m not sure that any specific food does, which might seem surprising, given how much I love food and drink! But in the afternoon, I’ll usually have some tea or good decaffeinated coffee, and maybe a snack like some nuts or some such to keep me going. Of course, there’s the old saying, “write drunk, edit sober,” which may or may not be true. On cold, rainy days, a little dram of scotch in the afternoon can be a joyous accompaniment to putting words down in a document.
If you could choose three authors to invite for a dinner party, who would they be, and why?
I’d probably invite Shakespeare, Dickens, and Tolkien, all of whom I’ve read extensively and loved. I’d be curious to see if they would get along with each other, though! They strike me as being pretty different personalities, but maybe they could find some common topics to talk about, such as Hamlet’s ghost, Scrooge’s spirit visitors, and Tolkien’s elves and orcs. But what to feed them?
What are you working on now, and when can we expect it?
Various work-for-hire books (as always), and a new fantasy series! I’m not saying anything else about it at the moment, but I’m quite proud of it. Also, I have two new non-fiction books coming out in November, The Scary Book of Christmas Lore, a collection of horrifying holiday tales and legends, and Northern Mythology, a fresh look at not only Norse mythology, but also Finnish myths and the beliefs of the Sámi. Both will be out on November 14, and make great holiday reading!
As Halloween draws near, Qwyrk and company are abruptly reminded of just how screwed-up everything can get. Qwyrk and Holly are literally being driven apart by magical forces they don’t understand, and their friends are in disarray.
Then Holly goes missing and Qwyrk loses something else that’s almost as important, while the behind-the-scenes scheming and shenanigans come to the fore at last. And who is the mysterious, ancient figure in red that seems to know all and see all, but annoyingly, won’t talk about it?
Traitors abound, old friends return, sides will be picked, and the final battle between good and evil will rage. To stop the actual end of the world from happening, Qwyrk might have to make a decision that will change her life forever.
Faytte is the final book in a series of four novels about the comic misadventures of a group of misfits at the edge of normal reality in modern northern England, a world of shadows, Nighttime Nasties in a bakery, a mysterious key, every monster you can imagine, an abundance of sarcasm, and the answers to all the questions. Oh, and Qwyrk is going to definitively prove that she’s not a bloody elf; they’re just silly!
About the Series
Join the adventures of a group of misfits at the edge of reality in modern northern England, a world of shadows, Nighttime Nasties, sorcery, witchy magic, philosophical speculation, every monster under the moon, an abundance of sarcasm, and even elves… though they are a bit silly.
Universal Buy Link
Amazon
Tim is giving away a $20 Amazon gift card with this tour:
“It’s like they don’t even trust me. Now that I’m learning all about witchery and can finally hold my own, they don’t even want me around anymore. Yeah, really nice, thanks everyone.” She brooded. “Oh, calm down, Jilly, it’s not like they haven’t done rubbish like this before, and there’s always been a good reason for it. And they’ve let you know when the time was right. It’s probably just that again.”
But something about Blip’s behavior in particular bothered her, nagged at her. It had been going on for too long, and he was not one to be secretive. As she sat stewing over it, a thought came to her.
“What if I could spy on him? Check out where he’s going without him realizing? I wonder.” She peered out the living room window across the street. Granny wasn’t home as usual, but Jilly had complete run of her house while she was away. She checked the time: 8:00 pm.
“Mum and dad aren’t going to be home until at least ten, so that only gives me a couple of hours to go on over and poke around. Unless, what if…”
She went back upstairs to her room and found a small book she’d been reading recently: Fludd’s Phenomenal Grimoire of Useful and Slightly Annoying Enchanted Distractions. Leafing through it, she found the page she’d recalled, in a section about how to divert attention from oneself.
“Here it is, brilliant!”
She noted a simple little apotropaism to buy her some more time away at Granny’s. Speaking the two-line spell, she waited just a short while, and sure enough, the sound of mild snoring began to drift through the bedroom. She smiled, satisfied.
“With the light off, they’ll never even think to check in on me! Still, better pile up a few pillows under the duvet, just to be sure.”
Once she’d created a convincing snoring dummy of cushions, she turned out the light and shut the door. Going back downstairs, she grabbed her coat, and hopped off to Granny’s for a good evening’s snooping.
He’s also an internationally acclaimed musician. He plays dozens of unusual instruments that quite a few people of have never heard of and often can’t pronounce, including medieval instrument reconstructions and folk instruments from Northern Europe, the Balkans, and the Middle East.
He has appeared on over forty recordings, and his musical wan- derings 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 Italian hill towns, and high school gymnasiums.
He currently lives in Washington State, surrounded by many books and instruments, as well as with a sometimes-demanding cat. He is rather enthusiastic about good wines and cooking excellent food.
Author Website: https://www.timrayborn.com
Author Facebook (Personal): https://www.facebook.com/timrayborn
Author Facebook (Author Page): https://www.facebook.com/TimRaybornMusicandWriting
Author Mastodon: https://mastodon.social/@timrayborn
Author Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/rayborn.esoterica/
Author Liminal Fiction (LimFic.com): https://www.limfic.com/mbm-book-author/tim-rayborn/
Author Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/stores/Tim-Rayborn/author/B00DWY5J8E
