MeiLin Miranda writes the fantasy novel series "An Intimate History of the Greater Kingdom" and the online serial "Scryer's Gulch: Magic in the Wild, Wild West." MeiLin has written professionally for 30-plus years under her birth name. She has fatal addictions to BPAL perfume, wool roving, and
fountain pens. MeiLin lives in Portland, OR with her husband, two daughters, two cats and a floppy dog.
Product description: The Tremont family has conquered kingdom after kingdom, and rules its continent. Now, Tremont stands on the cusp of an industrial revolution; trains and steam engines are new, and the Scholar Priests of Eddin's Temple make exciting discoveries daily. Magic is long forgotten, but the Gods are not.
Prince Temmin must now leave his childhood home to live with his father--Harsin the Fourth, by the Grace of Pagg, King of the Greater Kingdom of Tremont and Litta, Emperor of Inchar. Harsin expects his son to become the kind of ruthless, pragmatic man he is. But his immortal advisor Teacher has other plans, involving the seductive human avatars of the Gods called the Lovers. Teacher intends to bind Temmin to the Lovers' Temple, bring him closer to his people, and set him on a path that will lead to ultimate glory for Tremont--or its end.
Why you might be interested apart from the book itself: This book was 100% crowdfunded. Based on a draft posted in installments on the web, fans bought $2500 worth of pre-sale packages so the author could hire a professional editor, typographer and cover artist. In return, those fans wanted only the story. And the advance manuscript, an ebook, and an autographed paperback with their name in the acknowledgments. None of them have asked for their money back.
Q: What will e-readers like about your book?
The story and its world is submersive--in one case, that of a magic book which features heavily in the series, literally. My characters are written as real people, including a teenaged protagonist who acts pretty much like a real teenaged boy; my world-building is detailed but not heavy. "Lovers and Beloveds" is erotic fantasy where the sex serves the story, not the other way around. Think
Jacqueline Carey, not Linda Lovelace. (A good way to tell if sex is essential to the story: If you skip it, apart from just knowing it happened, you won't understand what happens next.)
Q: Why did you go indie?
At first, reading the Common Wisdom discouraged me from even trying to find an agent or publisher--and I'm not talking about stuff written by other indies, I'm talking about stuff written by agents and publishers themselves. But as I garnered both readers and (more than a little) money posting my draft online in serial form, and as I read about successful indies, I thought why not. The only thing that gave me pause was money, and my readers solved that problem for me.
Q: Who are your favorite authors in your genre?
Cecilia Tan for erotic SF/F; for a broader definition of fantasy than strictly erotica (I write non-erotic fantasy, too):
Lois McMaster Bujold;
Neil Gaiman;
Eric Flint;
Neal Stephenson;
Philip Pullman;
Marion Zimmer Bradley
Website:
http://www.meilinmiranda.com/
Amazon:
http://www.amazon.com/MeiLin-Miranda/e/B0045JRNC0
Smashwords:
http://www.smashwords.com/profile/view/MeiLinMiranda
Goodreads:
http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/2731702.MeiLin_Miranda
