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DISCLAIMER: This content has been provided to INFINITE HOUSE OF BOOKS by Roger Charlie. No compensation was received. This information required by the Federal Trade Commission.
DISCLAIMER: This content has been provided to INFINITE HOUSE OF BOOKS by Roger Charlie. No compensation was received. This information required by the Federal Trade Commission.
ABOUT THE BOOK
What if the Earth’s ozone layer decayed? What if asteroids weren’t destroyed by outer atmosphere and impacted us on on a regular basis? And what if the Earth’s core slowed its rotation, leaving our planet completely out of sync with the gravitational pull of the moon? Bestselling author Sue Duff explores these terrifying questions in her latest installment of her urban fantasy series, Stack a Deck (Book Four in The Weir Chronicles).
As the epic story continues, Duff’s main protagonist Ian Black learns how dangerous tyrannical ruler Aeros has become, and sees for himself the narcissist’s impact on an entire planet. Ian is forced to turn his back on the Pur Weir and align himself with the rebels to rescue Rayne. But when he travels to Earth’s alternate universe, he finds himself powerless and struggles to survive. Though, it is here that he, along with eager readers of the series, finally discover the true history of the Weir and his connection to Earth’s imminent destruction.
“Stack A Deck was so challenging because I had to consider the worst future for Earth and ask the tough ‘what if’ questions,” said Duff.
Stack a Deck is the fourth of five books in the Weir Chronicles, so fans of Duff’s novels can anticipate an exciting close in the final chapter in 2018.
Out of hundreds of submissions, Duff’s novel Fade to Black placed as a finalist in the Colorado Gold Writing Contest in 2011 and in 2015, her writing earned her the PEN Award from Rocky Mountain Fiction Writers. Masks and Mirrors nabbed Duff a nomination for the 2015-2016 Independent Writer of the Year from Rocky Mountain Fiction Writers, and Sleight of Hand landed on the Denver Post Bestseller list in 2016.
Additionally, Duff has completed a short story entitled Duo’vr for the anthology TICK TOCK: Seven Tales of Time, which received the gold medal for Best Book Cover and silver medal for Best Anthology for the 2016 Colorado Independent Publishers Association EVVY Awards. The anthology also was nominated for Best Anthology at the 2016 UTOPIA Con. A second anthology is on its way in 2017 and, in addition to the seven Wicked Ink authors short stories, it will feature two short-stories hand-selected from over 45 submissions received from writers all over the world.
OTHER BOOKS BY THE AUTHOR
INTERVIEW AND GUEST POST BY THE AUTHOR
What initially got you interested in writing?
I wrote some short stories that, looking back, were pretty bad. But I believed there was a writer inside me, and it took a skiing accident, and way too much free time on my hands, for me to take the plunge and catch the writing bug for real.
How did you decide to make the move into being a published author?
I couldn’t get enough of writing courses, trainings and attending conferences when I became serious about honing the craft. The second contest I entered, because I wanted some expert feedback about my story, selected me as one of five finalists from a pool of over 200 entries! That was the turning point, and I believed that I could go all the way if I wanted this bad enough.
What do you want readers to take away from reading your works?
A fun and exciting escape! I have always enjoyed reading to curl up, forget about the pressures and worries that are always hanging out with you, and escape into a story. I love to go on a journey, hang out with interesting and fun characters and overcome adversaries, triumphing in the end. I honestly hope my readers can do the same with my novels/series. So far, that’s the feedback I’ve gotten!
What do you find most rewarding about writing?
It’s better than therapy! When life throws you curve balls, and you feel like everything is out of your control, there’s nothing more satisfying than sitting down at your computer and torturing your characters. It’s a lot more humane than kicking the dog or murdering your teenager.
What do you find most challenging about writing?
At this stage in my writing career, finding the time to do my stories justice. I get my best writing time during the summer months, and although I don’t get outside and soak up the sun as much as I’d like, I get to spend my “vacation” with characters I love and care about. Also, the journeys I take them on can’t be bought!
What advice would you give to people want to enter the field?
Write what you love. You spend an insane amount of time with your characters and hanging out in your worlds. If you don’t want to be with them, or live in that place, keep plugging away until you find one that excites you. Also, whether you are ever published or not, it doesn’t mean you aren’t a writer. I’ve known hundreds of writers that never see any of their work in print outside their own home office, or bulging notebooks. But they are dedicated writers as anyone I’ve ever known. Do it because you enjoy it!
Guest Post:
I thought my biggest challenge in writing the fourth book was to get my science right for Thrae, Earth’s alternate universe. I was waaay off!
My biggest challenge was how to keep the romance going when my two protagonist characters are kept apart for ninety percent of the fourth novel. But I decided that nothing spells true love more than risking life and limb to save the one you love. Once I recognized that, I had an awesome time writing the next book in the series!
I chose to torture my protagonist, Ian Black, in his quest to find Rayne. He ends up traversing an entire planet ravaged by natural forces, dodging meteors, stumbling across endless desert without enough water, and avoiding a deadly methane cloud that blows in at a moment’s notice. Then there are piranhas the size of a VW car and other poisonous fish that he encounters on the river ride from hell. Of course, help comes in the form of a penal colony where survival means weeding out the weakest links with a fight-or-die code. Oh, and there’s a giant bird that thinks our hero is a juicy worm meal.
Yeah, I’m good at torturing my characters while using my love of science to torture Earth and its mirror dimension, Thrae at the same time. Conflict? Check. Death and destruction? Check. Do they find each other in the end and make it back to Earth? I suggest you pick up a copy to find out. In case you can’t tell, it’s one hell-of-a-ride!
Thank you for inviting me to hang out with you and your readers! Happy reading, one and all!
Sue
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Sue Duff has dreamed of dragons and spaceships before she could even read, so it’s only natural that she now combines both fantasy and science fiction as her favorite genre. Having written since high school, Duff never took it seriously until a skiing accident laid her up for an entire summer and she turned on the word processor to combat the boredom.
A few years later, her first urban fantasy novel, Fade to Black, was one of five finalists in the RMFW Colorado Gold Writing Contest. Duff’s writing has also earned her a PEN Award, a nomination for 2015-2016 RMFW Independent Writer of the Year, three consecutive years as a featured panelist at Denver ComicCon and a coveted spot on the Denver Post Bestseller list.
She is the second oldest of six girls with an avid reader mom and her dad, the family’s single drop of testosterone in a sea of estrogen.
By day, Duff is a dedicated speech-language therapist at an inner city school district, a career she pursued much in part to her aunt who got her hooked on stories of the profession when Duff was younger. She is passionate about the work she does and regularly works to help those students that need it the most.
Sue is a member of the Rocky Mountain Fiction Writers and The Pikes Peak Writers. She calls Colorado home and when not saving the world one page at a time, she can be found walking her great dane, getting her hands dirty in her garden, or creating something delicious in her kitchen.
Check out her blog, A Cook’s Guide to Writing and other musings on her website.
LINKS
Author Links below:
