Welcome to our first Author Interview of 2016! This week we welcome author M. Lachi to the ranks of the Here There Be Dragons author army! (oooh, I like the sound of that…) Her book, The Ivory Staff, is available for you now and the book trailer…well, see for yourself:
Let’s get this new year show on the road!
Welcome Author Lachi, thank you for spending some time with us today. I hope your 2015 has ended amazingly. Our first question should be pretty simple for you:
- What name do you write under? Is this a pseudonym? Do you use more than one name when you write?
I write under the name M. Lachi. Lachi is my middle name and is short for Ulachi which means ‘ring of God’ in my parents’ native tongue. Currently I do not write under any other names.
I love that name. “Ring of God” sounds very regal and important. That’s a big thumbs up for your parents!
- Tell us about the first time you realized that you were an author or were going to be an author.
I’d always been into writing: short stories, poems, songs. I wrote a novella in Dante’s Destiny and had it published by a small press. From that point on, I knew professional fiction writing was in the works for me in some form or fashion.
That’s fabulous! I wrote a poem that got published in 8th grade and that really solidified for me as well. I love the chance happenings that point people in their directions.
- What genre(s) do you write in, and why?
Though relatively new to the stage, I am interested mostly in Sci-Fi and Fantasy encompassing varying aspects of political intrigue, psychological thrill, mystery and romance. I waft towards fantasy because I love to embrace the whimsied escape from our realm, and I’m into touching upon sci-fi due to a constant need for humanity to continue to speculate. A lot of today’s awesome technology was born on a sci fi page, and I believe that that tradition must endure in order to continue our technological rise.
“Embrace the whimsied escape from our realm…” That needs to be the tag line on every interview, book summary, youtube channel, and website you do! Beautiful.
- What genres are your favorites to read? Why?
I like to read both Fantasy/Horror and Mysteries. Both genres tend to challenge the mind and force engagement. I do prefer the adult settings and content of Sandra Brown and Dean Koontz, but I have been known to find myself inhaling Veronica Roth novels as well.
Books that challenge the mind and force the reader to become engaged are so much more fun to read for me! Fluff books make me super annoyed and frustrated because they lay it all out and there’s no reason for me to keep investing my time.
- Tell us about your two all-time favorite characters: 1 that you wrote and 1 that someone else wrote.
In my novel “The Ivory Staff” I’ve been darting back and forth from who my favorite character is simply because, how can you pick a favorite from all of your creations? Presently, and this will most likely change with the wind, my favorite self-written character is Pan—mainly because he embodies the falters of self-preservation we all possess and cringe to see in our heroes.
One of my all-time favorite non-self-written characters is Achilles from the Enderverse Shadow Series. I love falling in love with perfectly intelligent villains, and Achilles did not disappoint.
I adore villains with intelligence and smooth charm, I will definitely have to check out Enderverse Shadows.
- There is a lot of controversy about allowing books to be made into movies (especially when they cut or change large portions of the plot). Would you be willing for your books/stories to become a movie? Why or why not?
I would. It would be amazing if I could have some sort of voice when it came to casting and interpretation.
I think that’s the crux of the situation. I would love mine to be filmed as well, but I would want to be incredibly vocal with it too!
- How do you handle writer’s block?
I take a shower and listen to classical music. Or I’ll pick out a hand full of titles currently circulating and scarf them down.
All good ideas! Who is your favorite? Ok ok I know, we have a lot to get through, but we should talk music sometime.
I have this great mix of music on Pandora…a punk rock station, new rock station, classic rock station, jazz station, big band station, classical station, and symphonic rock (Like Trans Siberian Orchestra) all mixed together to make the most random assortment…there’s even Native American flutes and Celtic music that pop up. Music and dishes and reading always make me stop whatever I’m doing to write!
- What inspires you?
I close my eyes and journey into the vastly infinite planes of my still vibrant childhood imagination.
YES! Remembering the musings of your childhood mind can be amazing and frightening all at once!
- How do you respond when people ask what you do, then make that face if you say “I’m an author”?
I honestly have not yet gotten the face. Perhaps because I am also a performing artist, so they recognize the ‘face’ to be a lost cause!
People in my small town(s) have started to become invested, and just know I’m an odd one anyway, so I’m seeing the ‘face’ less and less of late…but when I go elsewhere…phew. Silly normals.
- Finally, tell us where to go to find you (Twitter, Facebook, Blog, Online Bookstores, Physical Stores, Etc. List them all for us please!)
I can be found on my website and all social media!
- mlachi.com – Blogs, content and updates!
- facebook.com/mlachiauthor
- twitter.com/mlachiauthor
- Amazon, Barnes and Noble, and all online book outlets
Thank you so much for taking the time to talk with us today! I look forward to more great things coming from you soon!
Remember everyone, if you want an interview of your own just give me a shout here in the comments, on my YouTube comments, or on Twitter!
Here there Be Dragons! 