A Slice of Cake With... Nikki Moyes

This week I am delighted to have a slice of cake with author Nikki Moyes.

Nikki writes YA fiction and her first book, If I Wake was published in 2016. She was born in Victoria and has moved around Australia amassing an eclectic range of occupations including tallship watch leader, apiarist, rose farm hand, and sandwich artist. She lives with her cat and is thinking about getting him a friend. In her spare time she learns tissu, static trapeze, and aerial hoop (she couldn’t decide on one) in case she needs to run off and join the circus.

What kind of stories do you write?

I write books to make people think. My first published book If I Wake was written to start a conversation about bullying, depression and suicide. My latest book, The Keeper looks at our relationship with reality TV and how there is nothing real about it. The series also covers gender stereotypes and equality.

I want readers to feel, and my books are suitable for readers age 14+.

Can you describe your writing why?

I write because I have stories in my head and I need to know what happens. As the saying goes, if you can’t find the book you want then go write it. Writing is hard – I wouldn’t do it if I didn’t have to! 

Share with us your favourite passage from the book you enjoyed writing the most

I’ve had a lot of fun writing the Suri Series. This is an early scene from the prequel The Destroyer:

I blow through a give way sign onto the main highway. An approaching vehicle gives an automated near-collision warning tone as it brakes to avoid my bike. The two guard bikes come to a stop blocked by the now stationary vehicle while the drivers attempt to receive permission to switch to manual controls.

 “What’s that beeping sound?” The boy clings to me as I weave through traffic.

“It’s the excessive speed alarm. My father believes men are superior to women –”

“Shouldn’t you do something about it?” His voice takes on a high-pitched quality.

“There’s a mute function, I just haven’t installed it yet.” I make a sharp right turn across traffic and he grips my waist tighter.

Tell us about your latest project

The Keeper is a fun sci-fi/fantasy story about a 17 yr-old girl, Cassie, who is forced to participate in a Bachelorette-style program with extreme challenges for the contestants. Cassie’s crush, Dennian, tricks his way onto the program, but he has a lot of secrets he’s trying to hide such as why he is afraid of the Keeper of the Dragon Temple. Dragons haven’t been seen for a couple of millennia, but the temple provides visions to the Keeper who acts as the chief advisor to the Governor of the Universe.

So we have Cassie trying to survive the reality program, Dennian trying to keep his secrets, and a political drama playing out in the background as the Governor of the Universe prepares for the prophesied end of the world.

What is your favourite cake?

Chocolate – preferably something moist like a mud cake. Actually, I’ll eat just about any cake…

Thanks, Nikki! A great choice of cake. You can keep up to date with Nikki's writing at her website, Facebook page and Instagram.

Join me next week when I will be chatting with Laura Mae.

If you would like to take part in A Slice of Cake With... please fill in the form found here. I'd be delighted to have you.

You can also support my writing endeavours and buy me tea & cake - it's what makes the world go round!

Claire Buss is a multi-genre author and poet, completely addicted to cake. Find all her books on Amazon. Join the discussion in her Facebook group Buss's Book Stop. 

Tuesday Poem - Don't Get Stressed

Don't get stressed about that
It's such a small thing
You shouldn't be worried
There's nothing you can do
Focus on the things you can change
Not the things you cannot
Think about everything you do achieve
Regularly
Day in, day out
Those are the wins
Those are the things that should keep you motivated
I know you don't see them
I know you think they don't count
But those are your triumphs
Those are your moments
Those are the things you didn't stress about
You're killing it
You're winning
You will get to the top of that mountain
I believe in you
So don't get stressed about that
Just don't

Claire Buss is a multi-genre author and poet, completely addicted to cake. Find all her books on Amazon. Join the discussion in her Facebook group Buss's Book Stop. 

Eeny, Meeny, Miny, Mo

One of the trickiest things about writing, besides the procrastination and imposter syndrome, is settling down on just the one project to work on. I'm sure there are writers out there who work on multiple projects at once but I am not one of those. I have mum life and a million other things shouting at me for my attention so I can just about handle the one WIP.

The problem is I've got a couple up for consideration. My natural procrastinator is having the time of her life.

Option 1

The Silk Thief - a Ned and Jenni, Roshaven novel. This is Griff's story, a smuggler who died in The Rose Thief, helping Ned and gang escape from his brother's clutches. He has left a will and has made Ned his executor. All Ned has to do is ensure the right person gets the right bequest. Shouldn't be a problem, right?

Option 2

Pirates in space!

Option 3

A multi-book series about a young woman who has been struggling to get a job until she stumbles across an odd temping agency. Things start to get weird. Bring on the magic and the mayhem.

Option 4

Sci-fi Wild West 

Option 5

The Bone Thief - a Ned and Jenni, Roshaven novel. Someone has stolen Jenni's dad's bones. Maybe.

Which one do you think I should work on next?

Claire Buss is a multi-genre author and poet, completely addicted to cake. Find all her books on Amazon. Join the discussion in her Facebook group Buss's Book Stop. 

A Slice of Cake With... Rik Ty

This week I am delighted to be having a slice of cake with Rik Ty.

Rik was a cartoonist, a toy designer, and a toy design manager. Rik is married, has two daughters, one son-in-law, and a full slate of nieces and nephews. He drinks coffee and paces the kitchen a lot.

What kind of stories do you write?

I write stories of interdimensional crisis control, featuring a team of recurring characters, nick-named the Thrill Kings by their youngest member, Nonstop (a test driver of interdimensional motorcycles).

Can you describe your writing why?

I spent a BUNCH of years illustrating, writing, and designing for companies like Marvel Comics, Cracked Magazine and Toys R Us here in the states (I’m in New York). I want to bring at least ONE idea of mine out into the world, and stick with it until it succeeds.

Share with us your favourite passage from the book you enjoyed writing the most

Well, I like them all, but here is clip that is fun. It is from Thrill Kings: The Shaftway.

Now, on the other side of the pallets, he could see the critter, well, the dust trail the little guy was making anyway, and yes, far up the moonlit road, pretty close to the hulking factory, the little guy was running straight for the shadowed interior beyond the broken masonry.

Nonstop revved and drew nearer. The Inter-D looked like a bath mat, like a bath-mat-CAKE, or a brownie, or a cake-loaf, or something else that was low and thick with a top-coating of acorns. He guessed its sustained speed to be about seven miles an hour, which, in his opinion, was respectable for a rectangle.

Tell us about your latest project

Truthfully, my latest project has been taking a stab at Amazon sponsored ads. I’ve been learning how to do them. One piece of advice I encountered was to have as many formats available as you can before you advertise. I have 5 ebooks out, so I spent some time turning them into interesting paperbacks. I’m a few days in on my first campaign, and so far, my results tell me I have a lot to learn. The books are cool and different. They will break through sooner or later.

What is your favourite cake?

Wow, just about any. No cake? I’ll slap peanut butter on a stale biscuit. Hmm, recently, we had a birthday cake that was a giant version of a rainbow cookie (the ones with the chocolate tops, and the almond extract). That was fun. My brother once made a crumbled chocolate birthday cake with gummy worms for his son. That was also fun - we ate it in the park, next to the actual dirt. Thanks for letting me play Claire!

You can find all of Rik's books on Amazon.

Join me next week when I will be chatting with Nikki Moyes.

If you would like to take part in A Slice of Cake With... please fill in the form found here. I'd be delighted to have you.

You can also support my writing endeavours and buy me tea & cake - it's what makes the world go round!

Claire Buss is a multi-genre author and poet, completely addicted to cake. Find all her books on Amazon. Join the discussion in her Facebook group Buss's Book Stop. 

Tuesday Poem - Kiss

Walking along, late one night
I see a young couple
Embraced passionately
They kiss and they kiss and they kiss
Never coming up for air
Completely unaware
Their need for each other
Their hunger is so fierce
It drowns out everyone else

Saying goodnight to my kids
I tuck them in and read a story
There's snuggling and buggling and wiggling
Some laughter and hugs
Lots of hugs
Night-night to mum and night-night to dad
Loves and hugs and squidges
But most important of all
That night-night kiss

Slumped in a heap
In that aftermath parent zone
Too tired to slurp lukewarm cups of tea
Feet barely touching
Eyes turned towards a flickering TV
It can be a peck on the cheek
Or an exhausted press of lips together
It's rarely passionately exclusive
But the sweet memory lingers

Claire Buss is a multi-genre author and poet, completely addicted to cake. Find all her books on Amazon. Join the discussion in her Facebook group Buss's Book Stop. 

10 Reasons Why Reading is Good For You

1. Reading is stimulating! Remember the last time you read a great book? It probably got your heart racing in some way or made you think differently about something. Perhaps it scared you, made you laugh or cry. Either way, it got your brain working out and that is always a good thing.
2. It’s stress-free. Unless you are the author on a deadline to write the story of course, lol. Reading takes you away from the stresses of daily life and helps you to relax.
3. You learn things, probably without even realising it when you’re reading fiction. Your stimulated, stress-free brain is able to soak up little tidbits and share them later with other book lovers.
4. Your vocabulary expands – strictly speaking, that comes under learning but this is in addition to facts and such-like so it gets its own bullet point. That stress-free, stimulated learning brain is acting like a sponge and the ability to articulate is a handy skill throughout your life.
5. Reading a book isn’t just a matter of looking at groups of letters on a page. You’ve got to remember characters, plots, sub-plots, locations, descriptions made all the more complicated if you enjoy reading sci-fi and fantasy novels with their other-worldly names, a large cast and multiple books. It’s a great memory workout for that stimulated brain – looking good!
6. The more you read, the better you become at critiquing, reviewing and discussing books with others. The more likely you are to write a review and the more an author loves you.
7. It helps you focus. In our social-media fuelled world of hashtags and emojis, everyone can agree that news feeds – no matter the platform – run too fast to keep up with and continually scrolling is a massive time waster. So instead of losing focus and being distracted every five seconds by new posts and notifications, why not lose your concentration in a book and feed your beautiful brain.
8. One of the most well-known maxims within the writing community is that to write you must read and every writer I know is a huge reader too. These writers tend to devour their favourite genres and most will dabble in others too. You can’t write well if you’re not well-read.
9. Inner peace. Well, maybe not if you’re reading gloriously dark horror or a terrifying thriller but enjoyable reading can lead to tranquillity and calm in that happily stimulated, unstressed brain of yours.
10. Free entertainment – well, mostly free. Love your local library and indulge your reading habit. Follow favourite authors, explore your genre and get free e-books from new writers. That’s right – we indies will give you free books to help keep your brain healthy and happy.

Claire Buss is a multi-genre author and poet, completely addicted to cake. Find all her books on Amazon. Join the discussion in her Facebook group Buss's Book Stop. 

A Slice of Cake With... Kelly S. Marsden

This week I am delighted to be having a slice of cake with Kelly S. Marsden.

Kelly grew up in Yorkshire, and there were two constants in her life - books and horses. Graduating with an equine degree from Aberystwyth University, she has spent most of her life since trying to experience everything the horse world has to offer. She is currently settled into a Nutritionist role for a horse feed company in Doncaster, South Yorkshire.

Her first book, The Shadow Rises, was published in January 2013, and she now has several successful series under her belt.

What kind of stories do you write?

I like the escapism that fantasy provides. It’s always been my favourite genre for reading, so it was inevitable that my own books would be the same! It takes you away to different worlds, or different versions of this world, so we can escape from the mundane for a few hours.

My first series features witch-hunters, who work in secret to keep us safe from evil witches. The trilogy follows Hunter Astley and his colleagues as they fight the biggest threat in history.

The Enchena series is a Narnianesque adventure, where two teenagers get dragged into another world, to fight a king that can bring the dead back to life. I always wanted to write books with good monsters and evil unicorns!

The Northern Witch series is based in North Yorkshire and features good witches and LGBTQ characters. Mark is a witch-in-training, who is drawn to a demon-possessed soul.

Can you describe your writing why?

I’ve always been writing, but I was inspired to find a way to publish about fifteen years ago. I wasn’t impressed with the new books being released at that time – they were all ‘celebrity’ authors or the same commercial plots. I decided that if I wanted a new, enjoyable adventure, I could write it myself.

My first book was finally published in 2013, accompanied by a very steep learning curve! There was so much I didn’t realise was involved, beyond writing the initial story, and I am so grateful for the help I received from other authors.

I was quickly hooked, and I now have 9 published books. I even get withdrawal symptoms if I don’t get to write regularly!

Share with us your favourite passage from the book you enjoyed writing the most

Winter Trials (Northern Witch #1)

Mark gathered his coat and bag and headed towards the common room, which was sure to be packed on a wet, miserable day like today. 

“Hey, maybe you could invite the new guy to your party.”  Sarah suggested. 

Mark rolled his eyes.  “Sure, I’ll just ask the good-looking stranger if he wants to come round to my Nanna’s and dance naked around a fire.” 

Mark was suddenly aware of the engulfing silence. 

“Who’ll be naked doing what now?”

Tell us about your latest project

Ah, my latest published book is Sophie: Witch-Hunter. This is a prequel to the Witch-Hunter trilogy and was released in July. It follows Sophie, in the years before she joins the witch-hunters, and explores why she is the cold-hearted bitch we all love.

And… that is all I can say about it! It is chock full of spoilers – if you are interested, I would recommend reading The Shadow Rises (Witch-Hunter #1) first (this is free to download from most ebook retailers).

On a personal note, I’ve had quite a tricky year or so. I had thought about writing the third book in the Northern Witch series, but I knew that in my frame of mind, it would end up being much darker than I wanted.

Instead, I poured all that dark and twistiness into Sophie’s story, which was the perfect vessel for it, and ended up being therapeutic.

What is your favourite cake?

I have a very healthy appreciation for all types of cake. My favourite changes daily! My sister is an awesome cook, and she makes an unbeatable carrot cake. My sister-in-law (to be) is setting up her own cake design business. Her cakes are amazing, the horse cake she made for my sister was so realistic, we didn’t want to eat it! As for myself, my go-to recipe is a no-cook chocolate cheesecake.

You can keep up to date with Kelly's writing on her website.

Join me next week when I will be chatting with Rik Ty.

If you would like to take part in A Slice of Cake With... please fill in the form found here. I'd be delighted to have you.

You can also support my writing endeavours and buy me tea & cake - it's what makes the world go round!

Claire Buss is a multi-genre author and poet, completely addicted to cake. Find all her books on Amazon. Join the discussion in her Facebook group Buss's Book Stop. 

Tuesday Poem - Socks

A great pair of socks

Is a wonderful thing

They make your feet rock

Make your toeseys zing

Match them, don’t match them

Pull them up, push them down

Never wear a pair that’s glum

Or a pair to make you frown

Watch out for holes in your heel

Or the ones at the end of your toes

That’s breaking the foot deal

You want ones without any of those

Stripy, spotty, ziggy and zaggy

Rainbow, black, white and plain

Woolly, bobbly, gnarly and saggy

Flowers and stars, never the same

Christmas means new ones to wear

Those squishy parcels under the tree

Giving love to your family to share

Don’t forget new socks for me!

Claire Buss is a multi-genre author and poet, completely addicted to cake. Find all her books on Amazon. Join the discussion in her Facebook group Buss's Book Stop.

The Conflicted Reader

I love books. I always have. I remember sitting at the bottom of the stairs, running my fingers along my mum's bookcase, marvelling at the different types of books on the shelves. Choosing one at random and turning the pages with almost religious fervour, relishing that booky smell and being delighted by the written word.

I viewed the arrival of the e-book reader with a whiff of disdain if I'm honest. I thought it would be a flash in the pan. Why would anyone want to read an e-book when they could get the real thing? So I was most definitely not an early adopter.

Then my beloved hubster brought me a Kindle for Christmas. Great, I thought, what am I going to do with that? My friend showed me his Kindle - he had all the book collections I wanted and they were all in one place! I decided that perhaps this newfangled contraption wouldn't be so bad after all and dipped a toe in the water.

As a speed reader, reading on the Kindle is downright dangerous and pressing that next button is like an addiction. Not really knowing how big your books is or where the end of the next chapter lies really adds to the mystery of it all.

However, I missed the feel of book and that lovely smell and the beautiful sound you get when pages are turned. I was completely conflicted. What did I read on? Kindle or book? Could I really do both? How could I make it work?

For a while, it was a no brainer. I worked in London and I had to commute. The Kindle was perfect, it held lots of books, was lightweight and relatively easy to read in the rush-hour tube crush. But then I lost my job and had kids and reading became a fond and distant memory. I kept making new resolutions to read more and would take several books out of the library to have them languish sadly in a pile. I would set myself ebook-reading goals, forget them, then remember them and discover my Kindle was out of battery.

After surviving the creation of two beloved monsters and cultivated a to-be-read list most definitely taller than me, I realised I had to stop worrying about what format to read in and just get on with the business of book consumption.

Now I read exclusively paper books at nighttime. My collection of bookmarks rejoices. I read kindle at mealtimes (I know, but I do) and whilst out travelling without children and on the sofa during CBeebies marathons. My books-read ratio is improving and I no longer feel guilty about what type of book format I am reading. The pile of paperbacks beside my bed is growing but in a healthy, I can't wait to read that kind of way. My conflict is resolved!

Then I realised I could read books on my phone...

Claire Buss is a multi-genre author and poet, completely addicted to cake. Find all her books on Amazon. Join the discussion in her Facebook group Buss's Book Stop. 

A Slice of Cake With... Sam Kates

Today I am delighted to be having a slice of cake with author Sam Kates. Sam writes mainly science fiction, fantasy and horror. He lives in South Wales, U.K. with a family, a computer and way too many books. 

What kind of stories do you write?

I write fiction that tends towards the dark side. My first completed novel involves a haunted village and vengeance from beyond the grave. My best-selling books are the Earth Haven trilogy, an apocalyptic tale about a manufactured virus that wipes out most of the earth’s population. I have another trilogy about a group of reluctant strangers travelling between dimensions in an elevator, encountering otherworldly perils along the way. My most recently published work is a trio of dark novellas called Moths. 

Can you describe your writing why?

When I first read this question I thought, ‘Blimey! That’s a toughie.’ But when I thought about it a little more, I realised it’s not at all. The answer, for me, is quite simple: what motivates me to write is the possibility of people I’ve never met reading, and being entertained by, words I’ve written. I still get as much of a thrill from each sale as I did when my first story was published in a magazine many moons ago. It’s the greatest feeling of job satisfaction I’ve ever known.

Share with us your favourite passage from the book you enjoyed writing the most

The book I enjoyed writing the most is always the last one I finished. So here’s an extract from one of the novellas in the Moths collection:

Griff’s eyes were wild in the light from his phone. “Fucking hell, Dai! It’s not even possible.” He peered into the hole. “Look at that coffin. Remember how heavy it was. It’s made from oak or teak or something. Wood, anyway. Solid bloody wood.” He turned back to David. “We both went to see him before the end. It was, er…”

“Six days ago,” said David quietly. “And I know what you’re going to say. There’s no way he would have the strength to break out of that coffin.”

“Too bloody right. He was barely seven stone soaking wet. He was being fed by drips. Even if it’s possible they somehow mistook him for dead when he was alive and he survived three days of being kept in a fridge, he couldn’t have punched through solid wood. And never mind the coffin. How in the hell could he have pushed through six feet of wet earth?”

David shrugged. “He couldn’t, but it looks like he did.”

Griff shook his head slowly, like a bewildered bear. 

“So where is he now?”

Tell us about your latest project

As mentioned, my most recent publication is a trio of dark novellas, called Moths. Each one is quite different from the others, so there’s a good chance that readers will enjoy at least one of them. There’s what starts out as a mystery of a young woman with amnesia set in 1950 Devon, which takes a dark turn when the protagonist ventures into Dartmoor in search of a former lunatic asylum. Another tells the tale of the childhood and puberty of a young man whose increasingly bizarre behaviour culminates in tragedy. The final novella begins with a funeral when a certain sound makes itself heard; it’s the sort of sound you might hear at any time, except you never want to hear it at a funeral.

What is your favourite cake?

You can’t mean just one, right? I know someone who makes the most delicious carrot cake I’ve ever tasted, but I’m also partial to my mum’s lemon drizzle and my mother-in-law’s chocolate cake. I have a friend who makes cakes for a living—even her simple iced sponge with buttercream filling is to die for. To celebrate the publication of my first novel in paperback, she made a cake in the shape of a book with my cover. It was a shame to cut it, but it tasted so amazing it made up for what felt like vandalism. Then there’s coffee and walnut cake. Oh, and red velvet cake… 

It's always good to meet another cake aficionado - great choices, all.

You can keep up to date with Sam's writing on his website, follow him on Facebook & Twitter.

Join me next week when I will be chatting with Kelly S Marsden.

If you would like to take part in A Slice of Cake With... please fill in the form found here. I'd be delighted to have you.

You can also support my writing endeavours and buy me tea & cake - it's what makes the world go round!

Claire Buss is a multi-genre author and poet, completely addicted to cake. Find all her books on Amazon. Join the discussion in her Facebook group Buss's Book Stop. 

Tuesday poem - Evergreen

You are evergreen in my thoughts
I miss you
This time of year, the holes in family appear
Somehow the heat of summer
The growth of spring
And the fading warmth of autumn
Hold back the memories
But now
In winter
I miss you
Timeless you exist
Never changing
Frozen in happy memories
Of times gone by
Of hugs and love and smiling events
Evergreen you remain
Same smile
Same face
Same smell
Same powerful loss
That will always be constant
Like the pines that keep their leaves
I keep my sorrow at your passing

This poem is from Little Book of Winter, #5 in the Little Book poetry series.

Claire Buss is a multi-genre author and poet, completely addicted to cake. Find all her books on Amazon. Join the discussion in her Facebook group Buss's Book Stop.

New Release - Little Book of Winter

I am delighted to be able to let you know that Little Book of Winter has been released. This is the fifth book in the Little Book poetry collection.

The Blurb:

Twenty-five wintry poems to read at your leisure by the roaring fireplace, all tucked up under a blanket this winter. Award-winning author & poet Claire Buss shares poetry from the heart in this chilly addition to the Little Book series. 

"Claire's poems carry a kernel of a deeper truth that provoke more thought, while others skip through a scene, describing it in a way that leaves the reader nodding and smiling." Book Squirrel Review Site.

I have shared a couple of poems on my Little Book of Verse Facebook page so be sure to check them out and get a taste of these new poems. 

The other books in the series are Little Book of Verse, Little Book of Spring, Little Book of Summer and Spooky Little Book. All the Little Book poetry books are available in paperback and ebook on Amazon.

They are also available in other ebook formats at Smashwords, Kobo, Nook (Barnes & Noble) and Apple Books.

As always, if you read one of my books - please write a review on Amazon and Goodreads (if you have it). It means so much and it helps other readers find my books. 

Claire Buss is a multi-genre author and poet, completely addicted to cake. Find all her books on Amazon. Join the discussion in her Facebook group Buss's Book Stop.

Looking Back at 2019

I think this is my favourite part of starting a new year - reflecting on the past year. My goals were pretty simple - write more, read more, bake more.

2019 Goal - Write More - ACHIEVED

I wasn't able to write every day, having two monsters running around isn't exactly conducive to writing 1000 words regularly but I persevered as much as possible. There may have been several late nights. 

I published three new books:

The Interspecies Poker Tournament: The Roshaven Case Files No. 27

Ned Spinks, Chief Thief-Catcher, has a new case. A murderous moustache-wearing cult is killing off members of Roshaven's fae community. At least that's what he's been led to believe by his not-so-trusty sidekick, Jenni the sprite. She has information she's not sharing but plans to get her boss into the Interspecies Poker Tournament so he can catch the bad guy and save the day. If only Ned knew how to play!

The Interspecies Poker Tournament, Case 27 of The Roshaven Files, is a humorous fantasy novella following the adventures of Ned Spinks and Jenni, a prequel to The Rose Thief. If you loved Terry Pratchett's Discworld, you'll love Roshaven.

Haunted: The Sparkly Badger's Anthology 

This is an anthology of spooky short stories and poems by members of the Sparkly Badgers Facebook group: Jane Jago, Yvette Bostic, Cindy Tomamichel, Sophie Kearing, Leo McBride, Margena Holmes, Ian C Bristow, Holly Rae Garcia, a stump, S Shane Thomas, Ricardo Victoria, E.M. Swift-Hook, Medeia Sharif, Brent A. Harris and me!

Join us on a pumpkin spiced, ghost-riddled, spooky journey amongst the imaginations of fifteen horrifyingly excellent indie-authors. Let them take you on a candle-lit journey through the minds of the depraved, departed and desperate as they treat you to their haunting tales. Lock the doors, close the curtains and don’t turn off the light!

The Gaia Solution, #3 The Gaia Collection

The Gaia Collection is my hopeful dystopian trilogy set 200 years in the future after much of the planet and the human race have been decimated during The Event, when the world went to war with high-energy radiation weapons. In The Gaia Effect, Kira and Jed Jenkins – a young couple who were recently allocated a child – together with their closest friends, discover Corporation have been deliberately lying to them and forcing them to remain sterile. With help from Gaia, the spirit of the Earth, the group of friends begin to fight back against Corporation eventually winning and taking over the governance of City 42.

In The Gaia Project, Corporation fight back under a new, more terrifying organization called New Corp and Kira, Jed and their friends end up fleeing for their lives trying to find a safe place to live. They travel to City 36 and City 9 in vain and must go further afield.

In the final book, The Gaia Solution, the main characters have ended up with the Resistance and not only do they have to deal with surviving against New Corp but an extinction environmental event is looming on the horizon and they’re running out of time to save what’s left of the human race.

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I was lucky enough to have a poem accepted for the Cozy Cat Press anthology, Mrs Latimer Had a Fat Cat which released in November 2019 and a short story into the new anthology from Inklings Press, Tales from the Pirate's Cove, which releases this Spring.

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I went 'wide' with four of my books: The Rose Thief, The Gaia Effect, The Gaia Project and The Gaia Collection can all be purchased on Kobo, Barnes and Noble & Nook, Apple Books, Waterstones and you can request your local library to stock them as well - how exciting is that!

You will also be able to buy in ebook my short story collections, Tales from Suburbia and Tales from the Seaside, plus all five of my Little Book poetry books - Little Book of Verse, Little Book of Spring, Little Book of Summer, Spooky Little Book and Little Book of Winter. 

Plus I re-covered Tales from Suburbia and all the poetry books. I'm sure you'll agree they look really good now. 

Tales from the Seaside made it over to audio, narrated by the lovely Helena Little. Hopefully 2020 will see the creation of more. Fingers crossed the Gaia books AND the Roshaven books.

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2019 Goal - Read More - SORT OF ACHIEVED

Last year I set a reading goal for 100 books. I 'only' read 77 and I probably added another couple of hundred books to my TBR pile! Definitely won't be short of something to read this year. Seeing as I didn't make my 100 books goal I am trying again so we'll see what happens. Let's face it, I never need an excuse to read a good book! 

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2019 Goal - Bake More - SORT OF ACHIEVED

My dairy intolerance flared up big time plus life threw a few curveballs and motivation to bake as been shaky at best but there have been some delicious bakes here and there. The perfect excuse to carry on in 2020! 

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So what can we expect for 2020? I released my first book on the 1st January - Little Book of Winter, #5 in the Little Book series, my poetry collection and Little Book of Love will follow on the 1st of February so that's a nice start. I hope for more audiobooks. I will be creating a box set for the Gaia books on ebook, paperback and hardback. And... well, there will be some new books. You'll just have to watch this space!

If you'd like to support my writing endeavours, it is possible to buy me tea & cake, vital writing tools.

Claire Buss is a multi-genre author and poet, completely addicted to cake. Find all her books on Amazon. Join the discussion in her Facebook group Buss's Book Stop.

A Slice of Cake with... Ashley J Barner and Jennifer Sanders

At the start of 2020, I am delighted to have a slice of cake with author duo Ashley J. Barner and Jennifer Sanders.

Jen and Ashley met in 2014 over an RP blog on Tumblr and hit it off as writing partners immediately. They finished their first novel together, Force Majeure, in 2016 and began the arduous process of trying to find a traditional publisher. After several positive but noncommittal responses and a couple of 'this is great but our schedule is full, try again next year' they decided to try independent publishing and established their own publishing company, Notus Publishing, in early 2019. A little more polishing and Force Majeure launched in May of 2019, followed by Freeing Fortune in July. The sequel to Force Majeure, Playing with Fire, is anticipated for this fall.

Ashley J. Barner is a fantasy author and literary scholar from rural Pennsylvania. She earned her PhD in literature at Ohio University with a dissertation on fanfiction. She is the author of two other books: the medieval fantasy Blue Feathers (Loconeal) and the nonfiction book The Case for Fanfiction (McFarland).

Jennifer Sanders is a professional editor and researcher who loves to write. She lives in southeastern Pennsylvania, and with her rather ancient degree in marketing and skill at learning on the fly, is currently handling the marketing and sales end of Notus Publishing.

What kind of stories do you write?

Ash: We write about everyday people who find themselves in extraordinary and magical circumstances.

Jen: We also write about extraordinary people who are facing everyday problems, and how they can’t always be solved easily, even with magic. Our focus is on contemporary fantasy, putting magic in the context of the modern day.

Can you describe your writing why?

Ash: We enjoy creating new characters and putting them in new and crazy situations—and then watching them fall in love!

Jen: We do, though we don’t exclusively write romance. But you’ll always find a romantic thread in whatever we write. I think we just enjoy the ‘what if’ of it all. And writing together is so rewarding—it’s connecting on a whole new level with someone. We joke that we share a brain cell, because we often veer in the same directions in our storytelling. For me, too, I love when we’ve set up an almost impossible situation and then it suddenly becomes clear how the story is going to move forward. That’s a very sweet spot.

Share with us your favourite passage from the book you enjoyed writing the most

Probably in Freeing Fortune when Ben and Linnea confront Moribund and Virulea:

A thump from behind them caught Linnea’s attention, followed by a masculine grunt. She turned to glimpse Ben dodging his uncle’s fist. He grabbed it and twisted the older man’s arm, spinning him around to shove him into the wall. Linnea opened her mouth to protest—

“MR. FORTUNE!” Virulea trumpeted like an elephant calling to its mate across a particularly rowdy stretch of the Serengeti. 

Ben appeared, breathless, a moment later, his neckcloth completely skewed to the side. “Ma’am?” Moribund loomed behind him, a streak of dust on his face.

The old virago’s lips stretched into a grotesquely complacent smile. “Come, you need not dawdle over your port, or whatever it is you men do,” she said archly, her lashes fluttering like a coquettish lizard’s. “Surely you do not intend to neglect your guests?”

Ben’s own well-cut mouth twisted; after a moment he managed, “Of course not, Miss Cavanaugh.” Behind him, his uncle’s scowl deepened, but the two men followed the ladies into the drawing room.

Linnea took the opportunity to straighten Ben’s neckcloth, only partially because of the expression of outrage it provoked on Virulea’s jowly, ruddy face. “Are you all right?” Linnea murmured, making rather a business of tidying him up.

His gaze as she looked up into his face was warm indeed. “Fine. I’ve thirty years and three stone on the man. And the militia should be here soon.”

Virulea harrumphed her indignation at having to witness a married couple (so far as she knew) behaving like a married couple. “If you have quite finished valeting your husband, madam?”

Araminta winced at this emphasis. “Surely, Aunt,” she began. “I do think—”

“Well, you should not, my gel. It is not a skill you possess.” Virulea turned her lorgnette on her niece, who got up suddenly and crossed to where Sophia stood by the fireplace. 

Strathmore made an unexpected entrance, distracting everyone from the cloud of awkwardness that had settled thickly about them. “Sir—Mr. Fortune?” he began, looking from Ben to Moribund and back.

“Yes?” they answered in unison, each glaring at the other.

“Lord Frumpington has arrived, and brought with him some persons,” Strathmore said feelingly before melting away.

Ben smirked; Moribund frowned. “Persons?” snapped the latter.

“Militia,” Ben clarified gleefully. “You’re finished, old man.”

Tell us about your latest project

Our current WIP is the sequel to our first book, Force Majeure. The series, called the LifeWard Legacy, centers on a magical family in modern-day New York, and the fallout from a murder which has shaken their community down to the foundations. The first book began the tale of Hulda van Dusen, a young woman who is trying to come to terms with the murder of her grandfather, her inheritance, and her own powers. The current book, Playing with Fire, takes the characters farther along their journey and is largely the story of Hulda’s sister, Jubilee: why she’s so estranged from her family and what happens to bring her home at last.

What is your favourite cake?

Ash: Plain ole white sheet cake with LOTS of buttercream icing.

Jen: Pound cake, and Ashley can have my icing.

Great cake choices! You can keep up to date with Notus Publishing on their website.

Join me next week when I will be chatting with Sam Kates.

If you would like to take part in A Slice of Cake With... please fill in the form found here. I'd be delighted to have you.

You can also support my writing endeavours and buy me tea & cake - it's what makes the world go round!

Claire Buss is a multi-genre author and poet, completely addicted to cake. Find all her books on Amazon. Join the discussion in her Facebook group Buss's Book Stop.