Rogue's Angels Present: Op-Dec Operation Deceit by K. Williams

Please welcome K. Williams author of OP-DEC: Operation Deceit.

K. Williams will be awarding a grand prize of a paperback of OP-DEC: Operation Deceit (US only) to a randomly drawn winner via rafflecopter during the tour and 10 digital copies to the runners up.

Don't forget to leave a comment using the rafflecopter below.

OP-DEC: Operation Deceit

by K. Williams

~~~~~~~~~~~~~

INTERVIEW:

1. What or who inspired you to start writing?

How did it start…how did it start. That’s a really tough question. There’s not really one single moment or artist who triggered me. There, however, was a long experience with many varied artists and people. When my mother was pregnant with me the Lord of the Rings novels had made a resurgence, and so she read them. The Rankin & Bass animation movie poster was in my nursery from day one (Thanks, Dad). I had stacks of books—Mog the Cat, Dr. Seuss, Chicken Soup with Rice is Nice…I think I listed them all in my Goodreads read list (I have a kids shelf). Aside from reading, I was blessed growing up with Jim Henson’s work, Spielberg and Lucas and Walt Disney’s cannon. Oh, what sights I have seen! Legend by Ridley Scott, Labyrinth…Mixed into that was watching classic films on after Saturday Morning Cartoons, and the Auto shows and documentaries with my dad. I have a very eclectic background that includes plenty of music. I grew up on several acres, near my grandparents, but no other kids—except my elder brother. That meant a lot of time alone—imagining, reading, watching…In 1990 it all gelled. Memphis Belle had been released, and to watch it now, you see its age, but then it was everything. I scoured the streets for a poster to put on my wall. My friends were kindly trying to tell me to get over it. I never did—I decided I wanted to write, that I wanted to build stories like that—have something to say to the world. I wanted to inspire others as I had been inspired by the arts that colored my youth. 

2. What elements are necessary components for this genre?

Research skill set. A respect for history. A background of some kind that has bent your ear to the sound of the age. A historical writer doesn’t always need to weave facts of history so deeply as I have in OP-DEC, but when they do, it gives the reader the full experience. That’s what the reader is pulling your book off the shelf for. Knowing what it ‘sounded like at the time’ (vernacular, music, absence or presence of vehicles, etc.) can be another level of immersion. The reader wants to jump into your TARDIS and go back—forward, whichever way their clock turns, and be there. The writer’s knowledge about the period is the only way that can be transferred to them. 

With research skills, a writer often gains a respect for the history and the reasoning behind telling as fair a truth as possible. Though OP-DEC is a work of fiction, inevitably, pieces of it break off and are incorporated into the reader’s sense of actual facts about the time—so what you write can really have an effect on peoples’ understanding of the event. For instance, more people learned about Gettysburg from Killer Angels and the film than they did in history class. That’s pretty powerful! 

3. How did you come up with your idea for your novel?

It’s really weird how I come up with quite a few of my works. I dream quite lucidly, probably something born from the art immersion I had as a child. I dreamt that I was Claire, coming home where I didn’t want to go, after years away at school. There in the window was the most gorgeous incarnation of Apollo yet to be seen. The glittering rain in the window. The dinner. The date…the ending.  When I awoke, I had this gut wrenching feeling that I needed to write this as a book. When anyone first wakes, the dreams they have make a lot more sense, but then as the day goes on you start feel like that was crazy. For instance, they didn’t go to see Star Wars. Yes, the film in my dream was Star Wars (totally a favorite of mine). However, the meat of that story was holding up to waking light. 

4. What expertise did you bring to your writing?

I have years of classic film and World War II documentary viewing. I’ve been steeped in the 1940s for a very long time. My obsession with Memphis Belle deepened that experience. When I pursued a degree in writing, I made my minor historical studies. I focused, strangely enough on Early British History, The Roman Empire, The Civil War in the United States and early 20th century America. I had done extensive research on many papers in these courses. The US Civil War Course was an independent study that bore Blue Honor, my first novel. So taking fictional characters and intermingling them with factual events and persons was something I had already done. Approaching OP-DEC was exciting, I was going to be able to apply my experience to a story about the 1940s that I had just dreamt up one night. 

5. What would you want your readers to know about you that might not be in your bio?

I love animals! And, well the environment. I’m not a hiker, but I would go for walks. I like being outdoors, on my terms, as I tend to avoid vigorous exercise for the most part (Yoga is totally on). I have had dogs my whole life, and various other types of pets (rodents, birds, cats). That love of canines extends to Wolf Conservation. Support also extends to Mountain Lions, Giraffe and an unhealthy recent obsession with rabbits because I learned the German word for them. Der Hase! Did I mention I grew up on Monty Python as well? I have a terrible sense of humor, totally British like my roots.  

6. As far as your writing goes, what are your future plans?

I am writing the sequel to OP-DEC, called OP-GHO: Operation Ghost. It continues with my favorite spy and his hijinks. I am also finalizing a trilogy called The Trailokya Trilogy. The first installment, The Trailokya Trilogy, Book 1: The Shadow Soul, is coming soon. It's a fantasy science fiction about a multiverse that envisions the entities we've come to call Angels and Demons as real beings from another dimension, our home dimension of Zion. We're not top dog in the hierarchy, but we are key along with some other colorful races of beings like the Satyrs (resemble fauns or nymphs from Greek mythology) and the Aghartians and Cetians (humanoids). The books also explore the realities of domestic violence and what is like to be in such a relationship, to questioning our notion religion and everything (reality itself). The ever popular question of "Where are we from?" is answered in a creative and provocative way. 

7. If you could be one of the characters from this book, who would it be and why?

Claire. She’s young and just deciding who she wants to be. The potential in her is enormous. If I say too much more about her, I’ll give away the whole book! 

8. Can you give us a sneak peak into this book?

This book is a roller coaster. It turns wildly, sometimes corkscrews, sometimes loops. It’s going to drive you mad thinking that you sympathize with a bad guy. Somewhere right in the middle, I will try to drown you too. 

9. Do you belong to a critique group? If so how does this help or hinder your writing?

I never found critique groups very helpful to me. The ones that were available to me were filled with other writers in the same position as myself. I wanted to learn from those who were already doing the work and being widely published. Otherwise, it was a lot of wheel spinning—well-intentioned advice that just reinforced bad practices. What helped my writing was going to college. I recently graduated (Spring 2014) with a Masters of Arts in Liberal Studies, focused on Film Studies and Screenwriting. I was able to learn one on one with some of the best mentors available. My skills as a writer grew exponentially from the first term to the last final project (which was an adaptation – script – of OP-DEC). The writing I was doing before I started was strong, but the gauntlet the Masters studies put me through polished it in ways I couldn’t expect. The key in that might be the liberal studies portion. I was writing on multiple subjects in multiple perspectives, thinking about things in broader and new ways. That experience is invaluable and something I don’t think one can find in the average critique group. Having my script considered as a possible film by studios wouldn’t have been possible without the mentors I was able to learn with.

10. When did you first decide to submit your work? Please tell us what or who encouraged you to take this big step?

I started submitting when I was 19. My experience wasn’t what it needed to be to be accepted by publishing companies—not at all! I hope that I have burned all the copies of my early work, that they never see the light of day! Ha! Once I graduated with my bachelor’s degree, I started again. But, still, the writing was weak and I hadn’t learned the skills I needed to really do this. Those rejection letters taught me a lot about myself—yes, they stung. Then, I decided to go independent. The problem was, that despite addressing the issues in my writing, there were always excuses from the presses. The final straw was when Penguin said, I wish this had gotten to us sooner, that they had already signed a book, but the one I submitted would have been great. That I had all the markings of the real deal. Yes, the book needed editing, but she wanted to buy it—just couldn’t because of signing another author just moments before. Uhggg!! This nearly defeated me, but instead of caving, I decided to learn about screenwriting. Why is that important? The shape of the writing, the leanness. That is what every publisher is reaching for nowadays. Well over a decade later, I found an independent publishing resource and jumped at it. I put out Blue Honor. I had friends help me proof the copy, I designed my cover from my own photo and I put it out. I learned to market, to take the feedback, to build a presence online. Building my own website was insane! I persevered and it gave me hope. With the small amount of money I made from that, my thoughts turned to putting out a new book. OP-DEC followed, but this time a real editor was affordable and so I reached out to colleagues and found one. Without her efforts on OP-DEC, I wouldn’t have again strengthened my writing (for writing is always evolving and about perfecting the skill) and had this phenomenal book. There weren’t a lot of things highlighted by her as an issue, but what she did bring to my attention has been incorporated into future works. It was another great investment (the first I made in my career with the earnings from writing – the second being my Masters). The encouragement to do these things came from within. For me, writing is like an addiction and it can’t be stopped. The point of penning my stories is to share them. There would be no reason to write them down if I was satisfied with sharing them just with myself. My head is constantly full of them, but sharing them with someone else so that conversation can be had, that inspiring and touching of other lives…that’s what encouraged me to keep going. Most of the people around me are astounded by my ambitions and didn’t really know what to say. They mostly dodged the issue. You’re going to make it if your gut tells you to get up and keep going, and you do. 

11. What is the best and worst advice you ever received? (regarding writing or publishing)

Get an editor. Best Advice Ever. But probably more than that, Go Get Your Masters, from my current supervisor. These two things are why I am where I am today. 

Some of the advice I received form Agents and publishers about my writing was pretty damaging to the writing and even my will to continue. Writing is an art, and thus it’s super subjective. Trying to write to please this person will displease someone else and so on. In attempting to address the concern laid out in rejection letters (if you could even get them), I was losing my yet developing voice. Since, I have learned to stand up and say, I thank you for your time. I will consider your advice where it has merit but on the whole I disagree with your assessment. That takes knowing yourself, though. You can’t disregard every bit of advice because it doesn’t sit well. You have to be able to set you aside and look critically at the work, as though it weren’t yours. (try editing small bits of other people’s work; I do this at my day job and it really built up my courage and skills). 

12. Do you outline your books or just start writing?  I just start writing, and figure out what the characters need to do. Then I wrap a date around them and start there. For OP-DEC, I read Graham Greene's This Gun For Hire. I wanted to write it like a Noir. I really hope I've done that. I love the films that are encompassed by that genre, but I needed to do a little more finding out about the novels that were written along the vein. Green wrote a lot of Noir novels, he was a spy during the war - or intelligence officer - he worked with Kim Philby - known for betraying Britain to the Communists. So, reading his work had a double dip for me. Also, because I had a dream that this book was written out of (the arrival home to the dinner party and the date, plus the final scenes), I wanted to find a perfect film to send Carsten and Claire to, which would be a fantastic intertext; stunning that I found This Gun and the book from which it was written. So that helped nail down the date, because I had to send them there when it was playing. Like kismet, the moon cycle and history clicked into place for the rest of it. Yes, moon cycles - because u-boats didn't surface under moonlight because they could be seen.

13. How do you maintain your creativity?

I find inspiration everywhere. It strikes me in a conversation, a piece of art, a show, a sound, songs and food. Like David Cameron dreamt the Terminator into being, I do this a lot myself. My dreams are a landscape all their own, somewhere between What Dreams May Come (1998) and Insidious (2010). It's fantastic.

14. Who is your favorite character in the book. Can you tell us why? 

Aunt Noreen. She’s one hell of a free spirit. Someone I can see me growing into. Spinster? Hahahahah! That woman just doesn’t let anyone tie her down into monogamy—she’s holding out for the right man if she bothers to ever get married. IN the meantime, she’s willing to try what’s offered. Besides that, she steps in and takes over as mom for her niece, she’s supportive and loving. She dances the line between parent and friend with such skill you’d think she’d raised a brood already, but not one. She’s wealthy, but not pretentious. Above all, she is unsinkable. Probably the only thing that would wreck her is to lose Claire—if something happened to Claire. 

15. Are your plotting bunnies angels or demons? 

Warrior Angels….I filled Trailokya with them. Somehow, they manage to hack a trail through the jungle and meet up at the landing spot. 

16. Anything else you might want to add?

Thanks for having me on your blog! This has been a great interview and I hope your readers enjoy learning more about me and my process. There is so much more that could be said, but I’ll leave it here. 

Thanks the Angels

BLURB:

A shadowy past becomes a sinister future… It's 1933 and the height of Boston's social season. Claire Healey overhears a terrible argument between her industrial-tycoon father and her socialite mother. Claire's father sends her mother away, declaring she is hysterical with fatigue. Displaced by this disastrous outcome, Claire is brought to New York by her spirited aunt, to be raised beyond the reach of the damaging turn of events.

Nine years later, Claire returns to her childhood home to face her past once more. The world has long since exploded in war. A mysterious stranger named Carsten Reiniger has infiltrated the scene, placing his commanding presence among the old familiar faces of Boston's elite. Intrigued by the newcomer, Claire struggles to piece together his identity and finds a dangerous connection to her troubling past. When Claire's prying comes to light, she and her aunt are whisked away in the middle of the night to ensure their silence. Can Carsten Reiniger be trusted or is he implacably loyal to duty alone?

~~~~~~~~~~~~~

EXCERPT:

Claire was relieved her father had not taken up with a Nazi. Rumors of Americans sending their money overseas to the fascists had spread wildly back in New York. She blushed at having dared to think it of her father. Ever since that horrible day so long ago, Claire found fault and suspected everything her father did. She no longer wanted to do that, as it must have been routed in lingering blame for her mother’s displacement.

Clasping her hands in her lap, Claire still felt Carsten’s touch on her skin. She lowered her eyes to the floor, thinking of how silly she’d acted despite being a graduate of a prestigious girls’ school and certainly no longer a girl.

“I have a fabulous idea!” Claire’s father sat up again. “Why don’t you show Carsten a little of Boston for an evening? He’s been working so hard at the factory—I’m liable to burn him out. It would do him good to get out for once. I’ve given him no time to see anything but machinery. What do you say, Claire?”

Claire’s mouth went dry. She knew nothing about the young man her father was pushing at her. Regardless of his resemblance to the god Apollo, he spoke with a unsettling foreign accent. Besides that, he might as well prove to be a deity for all they had in common. Her eyes darted to Carsten. She crossed her legs and clasped her hands on her knee. She struggled for a response, but Carsten silenced her with a smile.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~

AUTHOR Bio and Links:

Born in Saratoga Springs, New York, where she continues to reside, K.Williams embarked on a now twenty year career in writing. After a childhood, which consisted of voracious reading and hours of film watching, it was a natural progression to study and work in the arts.

K attended the State University of New York at Morrisville, majoring in the Biological Sciences, and then continued with English and Historical studies at the University at Albany (home of the New York State Writer’s Institute) gaining her Bachelor’s Degree. While attending UA, K interned with the 13th Moon Feminist Literary Magazine, bridging her interests in social movements and art.

Currently, K has completed the MALS program for Film Studies and Screenwriting at Empire State College (SUNY), and is the 2013-2014 recipient of the Foner Fellowship in Arts and Social Justice. K continues to write and is working on the novels of the Trailokya Trilogy, a work that deals with topics in Domestic Violence and crosses the controversial waters of organized religion and secularism. A sequel to OP-DEC is in the research phase, while the adaptation is being shopped to interested film companies. Excerpts of these and more writings can be found at: www.bluehonor.com.

https://www.facebook.com/pages/K-Williams/65489613737

https://twitter.com/kwilliamsauthor

https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/6033812.K_Williams

Use this code to enter:  http://www.rafflecopter.com/rafl/display/28e4345f865/

DON'T FORGET TO LEAVE A COMMENT!