Wednesday 7 June 2023

A Slice of Cake With... Joanna Maciejewsja

Today I am delighted to have a slice of cake with author Joanna Maciejewsja.

Joanna might be a bit too cautious to do anything even remotely daring or dangerous herself, so she writes about daring adventures and dangerous magic instead. Yet, she found enough courage to abandon her life in Poland and move to Ireland, and then some years later, she abandoned her life in Ireland to move over to the US. She’s determined to settle there, once she finally chooses which state to reside in.

When she’s not writing or thinking about writing, she plays video games or makes amateur art. She lives the happy life of a recluse, surrounded by her husband, a stuffed red monkey, and a small collection of books she insisted on hauling across two continents.

What kind of books do you write?

I write about strong friendships and found families in settings full of magic and intrigue, topping off my stories with a healthy dose of friendly banter.

Can you describe your writing why?

My stuffed monkey looks at me funny when I don’t write. He gives me the “I’m not impressed” kind of look, and I hate to disappoint him. But, on the more serious note, my why is probably similar to other writers. Ever since I was a kid, I enjoyed telling myself stories, and at some point, I started writing them down, so others could enjoy them as well. Knowing that someone enjoyed my story and that it offered them a few hours of escape or entertainment is one of the priceless rewards of writing and strong motivation to keep going. I also have a wonderful husband who fully supports my writing and wonderful friends who cheer me on: with motivation like that, I can’t “not write”.

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

The book I’m enjoying writing the most is either the book I’m writing at the moment or the next book I’m going to write, so at some point, all of them were favorites, so I’ll pick something from my current project.

When I finally stopped in front of the three-story building with a crude sign saying “Max’s”, the lights at the shop were out, but a single window on the top floor glowed yellow. I gave a firm tug on the bell chain, and the chimes above me rang with urgency. It took another ten minutes of persistence before Max stopped ignoring the noise and looked out the window.
His mouth opened, but he didn’t say a word, and the enraged expression faded from his face. Within seconds he was away from the window, and the light went out. I waited outside until the shop’s interior brightened, and at the backdrop of a magic lamp’s glow, Max’s silhouette opened the door for me.
“I guess you vouldn’t bother vith the social call. Something vrong?” he said with his heavy German accent.
Before the war, Max was a chemistry student, and he made money on the side by mixing experimental and not so legal substances, and come to think of it, the Magiclysm didn’t change much in his life, save preventing him from getting a degree. This thin, dark-haired German embraced the returning magic and its effects with the excitement and curiosity of a mad scientist. Every new substance or liquid, every weird plant that sprouted in places warped by curses made their way to Max’s shop, and he brewed them into potent salves and elixirs... and drugs, because his work ethics didn’t bother with the substance’s purpose so long as it was useful in some way.
If Max wanted, he could be a drug lord, or even the drug lord of Dublin, but instead of running his own crime organization, he devoted all his time and energy to chemistry and let others play the power games. His position remained unshaken since the first years of the war, and both humanborn and mythborn sought his services.
That’s not to say he was an angel either. I had no doubt that the tale of how he’d poisoned five members of a humanborn gang when they had tried to force him to work for them was every bit true. Max offered courtesy only to paying clients. The rest could either leave him alone or die by one of his alchemical experiments, whichever they preferred.
“Please tell me you have something for that mythborn poison,” I pleaded as soon as I walked in. The other business I had with him had to wait.
“Mythborn poison?” He arched his eyebrow. In the lamp’s light his eyes looked even more sunken than usual. “You need to be more specific.”
I didn’t want to be more specific, but he had a point. “I kissed a mythborn,” I muttered. I really, really hoped I didn’t blush, and I chased Riagán’s memory away from my thoughts.
“YOU DID VHAT?!”
“Don’t give me that ‘you’re pregnant and drinking’ look.” I waved him off. I came for an antidote, not a lecture.
“It’s vorse than drinking vhile pregnant.”

Tell us about your latest project

My latest project is Humanborn, the first book in Shadows of Eireland series. It’s contemporary fantasy set in Dublin, Ireland that suffered from a magical cataclysm and a war that broke out with the newcomers from another world. The main character, Kaja, an information broker and a veteran, has to work with her former enemies to uncover the conspiracy behind a series of recent attacks that could cause the war to break out again. And while she chases the new threats, old secrets and life debts resurface, forcing Kaja to juggle her allegiances.


What is your favourite cake?

Now that’s a tough question! I’m from Poland, so I immediately think of my childhood favorites. One of them is “skubaniec” which is a layered cake of white and dark dough, topped with fruit, meringue, and crumble. The other is a cake which at my home we call a “coffee cake” (though it has nothing to do with American coffee cake), and it’s coffee-infused biscuits layered with butter-based coffee-flavored filling. When it comes to American cuisine, a certain pecan pie might have stolen my heart...


You can connect with Joanna here:


Join me next week when I will have a slice of cake with Bernadette Rowley. 

If you would like to take part in A Slice of Cake With... please get in touch. I'd be delighted to have you.

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


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. Never miss out on future posts by following me.
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