A Slice of Cake With... Majorie King

This week I am delighted to have a slice of cake with author Majorie King.

Marjorie is an engineer turned full-time Mom turned Sci-Fi author. House Ravenclaw (with a little bit of Slytherin). She started this writing experiment in 2015 because she wanted to work from home and have complete control of her hours. (Which has both its advantages… and disadvantages.) Majorie found her place writing her favorite genre, Science Fiction. Marjorie’s years in engineering gave her a strong background in science and technology. Her years as a mom gave her a strong dose of patience. But, like all people, there’s more to Marjorie than just science and books. She loves hiking the National Parks across the US, painting, and cooking.

What kind of stories do you write?

I love writing team stories. That lets me give each individual strengths and weaknesses. No one person is a Chosen One with ALL the gifts. It also allows me to write group conflict and resolution. I get to write people who disagree but still love each other anyway.

I also love writing future technology, space travel, and robots. That’s just fun for me, no deeper meaning there.

Can you describe your writing why?

Writing is cathartic for me. It helps me process and allows me to explore personal and cultural problems.

And it’s fun.

But also, it’s satisfying work with a final product that I’m proud of. When I was a Chemical Engineer, I had fun writing computer programs that made operators’ jobs easier and helped the plant run more efficiently. Now that I’m a writer, I enjoy writing character arcs with exciting plots that might brighten someone’s day. Both jobs had similar rewards for me. Writing is the right job for this season of my life, but it’s not my only “dream job.”

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

My most recent book, Rogue Invasion, had a teacher as the main character. That’s rare in SciFi/Fantasy novels. Most of the time, the mentor is killed. But I loved exploring the teacher role, especially since my mom is a retired teacher.

Right now, honouring our teachers is so important.

Tell us about your latest project

Like I said above, my main character, Brant Mallet, is a teacher at a school for adapted children. (IAS, Institute for Adapted Soldiers) Think of it as Xavier’s School for the Gifted, but in space. There are two struggles colliding at the same time:

1) A robot war is about to break out. The school is planning on sending soldiers and even some of its teachers to fight the war.

2) A rogue group of adapted teens plan to attack the school. While the soldiers and teachers are gone and not protecting the school, there’s a secret attack planned against the school. Brant knows about it and wants to stay and protect his students.

Most SciFi books would deal with the robot war. I wrote about the home front and the dangers and sacrifices of those who stay behind. It’s a different point of view, and I don’t know if it will resonate with readers. But so far, they really seem to be getting a lot out of it.

What is your favourite cake?

Cookie Cake!!! In fact, that’s the cake that I’ve baked for my kids on most of their birthdays. If they have a theme they want, like Star Wars, I use their LEGOs to decorate the top. In addition to SFF book reviews, I put a few recipes on my website, and this is one of them. Check it out:

https://www.engineerstoryteller.com/2018/star-wars-cake/

You can connect with Majorie at her website EngineerStoryteller.com

Join me next week when I will be having a slice of cake with Greg Fidgeon. 

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Claire Buss is a multi-genre author and poet, completely addicted to cake. Find out more about her books on her website clairebuss.co.uk. Join the discussion in her Facebook group Buss's Book Stop.