T.D. Thomas is the author of Hera, Queen of Gods, a YA novel and Book One of the Goddess Unbound Series. T.D. stopped by today to talk about writing, reading...and of course, snacks!
Tell us
about your book and introduce yourself!
I'm T.D. Thomas. Canadian. Community-watcher.
Dog-owner. Well, dog-wrangler is more like it. And obviously, I'm a writer too.
My debut novel is a contemporary
fantasy, "Hera, Queen of Gods." It's an action-adventure (with a bit
of romance) narrated, not surprisingly, by Hera, queen of the Greek gods.
When the Fates (goddesses of destiny)
go missing, Hera has to find them before existence is thrown into chaos.
There's only one place they could be hidden from the gods: the mortal world. So
Hera leads the gods on a rescue mission to Earth, even though it means she must
temporarily give up almost all of her divine powers and become mortal. But once
in the mortal world, Hera learns that she's been drawn into a trap. With the
help of an unlikely mortal, she must fend off waves of mythical monsters long
enough to track down the Fates and confront whoever was bold (and insane)
enough to kidnap them.
How did
you get interested in Greek mythology?
Lucy Lawless.
No. Sadly, my obsession with Greek
mythology can't be traced to either her or Kevin Sorbo or how fantastic they
made leather look.
I’ve actually been interested in Greek
mythology for basically my whole life. I don't even know how it started. I do
remember poring over my grandparents' old, outdated encyclopedia set though.
Amid the woefully obsolete information, Greek mythology was a treasure trove of
action and adventure. Heroes. Gods. Monsters. Magic. A child's fantasyland.
Everything was bigger than life, surreal and exhilarating.
I guess I never lost that childlike
sense of wonder. I hope I never do.
Though Lucy Lawless does get an honourable
mention for reinforcing my Greek mythology addiction.
What is
it that makes your main character, Hera, so special?
Um, she can control people’s minds? :p Wait.
Professor X does that too. Damn you, Stan Lee!
Actually, more than her powers, I think
what makes Hera special is the situation she finds herself in. She’s an
immensely powerful god, one of the oldest and most important actually. Add to
that fact she’s queen of all the gods. That’s a lot of responsibility for
someone to shoulder. And if that weren't enough, she’s stuck with a two-timing
(more like hundred-or-more-timing) husband. It’s a perfect storm!
So much pressure, such high stakes, and
at the heart of it all, someone who’s just trying their best to do the right
thing, to do their duty. Hera is a tough chick. To run the Universe, you have
to be. But ultimately it all comes from this place of love. It's just that the
love is buried way down deep where no one can find it, under layers and layers
of rage. :p
I guess, in the end, it’s how much and
how often Hera’s willing to sacrifice, without any hesitation at all, that
makes her truly special. A hero. In that way, she reminds me of a lot of women out
there, especially mothers.
But yeah, also ... she can totally
control people's minds.
Any
advice for aspiring authors?
Be fearless. And tough. Writing isn’t
for the weak. It's a bloodsport. You rip out chunks of your soul and serve them
up to the world. It’s intimate. It’s revealing. And it’s painful, especially
when those pieces of you are rejected. And they will be rejected. Just
hopefully not by anyone who matters. :p
But writing is the best thing out
there. Hands down. No contest. There’s nothing else like it. And once you've
gone there, once you've experienced that high, there's no coming back.
What's
your favorite writing snack?
Anything I can tear a chunk out of and
chew while I keep typing. :p Nothing that gets my hands sticky either. I learned
that lesson the hard way (thanks, buttery popcorn!).
If I had to choose one thing though,
peanut butter and crackers, I think. It’s childhood comfort food. Plus they're
really filling. And it's horrifying just how many I can stick in my mouth at
once.
Thanks
for visiting with us, T.D.!
Check out T.D.'s book on Kindle!
