August Li is making their clubhouse debut to promote Incubus Honeymoon! Find out more about this urban fantasy tale and more about the author below!
At some point every author will be asked, or will ask themselves, “Why do you write?”
For me, the answer tends to be different for each book.
Incubus Honeymoon stemmed, at least partially, from a sense of powerlessness. I’m not looking to spark political debate or start arguments of any kind. But I’m pretty sure I’m not alone in having watched certain events unfold with a sense of unreality and dread.
Maybe there wasn’t much I could do about the direction the country and the world were going, but dammit, my characters could do something about their world spiraling out of control. The first thing they had to do was notice and accept that something was wrong. This can be as a big of a hurdle as the physical fighting. People like to believe they’re living in a world that makes sense, where their hard work and integrity will pay off with a comfortable life, where eventually good and right will prevail. It’s comfortable and comforting to be able to trust in those things, and it’s just the opposite when denial can no longer be maintained. That moment of acceptance is so crucial to a character’s development, because once they can no longer deny what’s going on, they have a choice: ignore it or do something.
Obviously characters who don’t do anything don’t make the best protagonists, but as I explored these characters, I found that what catapults each into action is as telling as the varied ways they choose to oppose evil and the loss of their freedom. Some are idealists (or maybe anarchists) while others require a personal loss or a personal stake to join the fray. Their tipping points are as different as their approaches to the fight. Some are only conditionally invested. Some are kind of just assholes who don’t like to lose.
Part of the fun of writing this book was imaging how one might confront injustice if given the opportunity to wield power—in some cases, magical power. But the even more fun part was the discovery that they wouldn’t react how I expected, how I would. I’m not quite a pantster; I usually have a loose outline with plenty of room for characters to act—and change my plans—according to their natures. What I learned from this particular group of characters was that often, those who have the most power often have less to lose. So they’re not always the first to charge into battle, and even if they are, it’s not quite the heroic act it is when a regular person does it. Even so, it’s sometimes the regular people, the people with the least ability to fight, the most vulnerability, and the most to lose who display the most courage.
Please don’t let this lead you astray. If you’re expecting white knights, you’ll be disappointed. Nearly every character in this book is some form of criminal, or at least someone standing at the very farthest edge of accepted society. But what’s legal, what’s socially acceptable, and what’s right can be very different—and very differently judged, depending on the character.
I also discovered there’s more than one way to fight. Now anyone who knows me or my work knows I like sword fights, gun fights, and blowing things up. I like to whack a deserving party in the head with a wrench. There’s no shortage of any of that. Promise. Some of it will be, I truly hope, quite satisfying. But you can also fight with information, revealing an enemy’s secrets to make their allies lose trust in them. One of the characters is a hacker, and it was a delight to imagine how they would use their skills. Just sowing doubt can be so effective. But so can support. Some characters fight with… love is probably an exaggerated term, but care? Inspiring others, letting them know you have their backs, that you care what happens to them, can go a long way too.
But so too can just being pissed off.
I hope you’ll have as much fun discovering the nuances of Inky, Blossom, Dante, Jet, Emrys, Raphael, and the rest as I did. Oh, and Charlene. Never forget Charlene.
I can’t wait to see who readers like and relate to best!
Blurb:
Too bad that won’t get my arse out of this sling.
Do one—granted, uncharacteristic—good deed, and now I’m held hostage to an arrogant faerie prince, trying to track down the one who summoned him while dodging gangbangers, gun runners, and Nazis. Add the powerful mage guilds scrambling to gather firepower for some doomsday event they’re sure is around the corner, and my cushy life of leisure might be nothing but a memory. On top of that, something’s compelling me to change on my most fundamental level. I’m not sure what I’ve got myself mixed up in, but nothing will ever be the same.
Bloody hell.
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Featuring a new twist on urban fantasy combined with fast-paced action and intrigue, the Arcana Imperii series books are standalone adventures, each completely accessible to new readers.
Buy links:
DSP Publications
Amazon
Find the author on Social Media:
Blog
Fox-Hat’s Den on Facebook
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