The exciting conclusion of the Leland Dragon Series!
Leland Province remains in danger. The sinister Fordon Blackclaw has returned from the shadows to strike at the heart of neighboring Esra, killing its Venur and making clear his intentions to retake what was once his: Mount Gore, seat of the Leland Dragon Council.
All around, the land grows weaker and weaker. Leland, once thought saved by Kallon Redheart, is without purpose, and within its borders, Murk Forest, a place of mystery and danger, has driven its inhabitants to seek aid. Esra is in flames, and the Rage Desert grows. Dragon and human alike struggle to find their way, and the wizard Orman can sense that there may be more at stake than the affairs of dragons.
Hope remains, yet it is not without obstacles. In Esra, Sela, the daughter of Kallon and Riza, found the well, a source of life, and made herself whole again. But her homecoming is not what she had imagined.
Old wounds buried deep must reopen if life is to continue. Dragons, humans, wizards, and shape shifters are all at risk as the peace between dragon and human has finally been broken.
War is here.
The stakes?
Perhaps the whole world.
I am thrilled to peaches to welcome, Ms. Gamber back to Jorie Loves A Story! She will be sharing a special piece for this stop on the blog tour, which features a portion of a character’s journal from the Leland Dragon series! I am always seeking out ways to bring extra content to my dedicated readers and visitors, whilst participating on blog book tours! In this way, I felt having a guest post from the perspective of a character might be quite enjoyable for all who stop by! If you dropped by during my Seventh Star Press Focus Week &/or whilst I reviewed ‘Redheart‘ previously, you are familiar with my passion for this particular fantasy series steeped in lore and built strongly in a world whose heart endears you to return! I hope this glimpse at Ms. Gamber’s writing will prompt you to read the series that has enchanted me for all these moons since I last visited within the realm of ‘Redheart’!!
{ Character Blog: Gladdis by Jackie Gamber }
Dear Journal:
I considered trying to write this journal entry the way Drell has been teaching me to write in his dragon language, but I don’t know enough words yet to be able to say a whole sentence, let alone spell them all correctly. It’s enough of a challenge just to speak it.
Dragonspeak is full of throat growls and front-of-the-mouth consonants that feel like a waterfall through my teeth, and I wish I was better at it because it’s already so close to singing that I want to add melodies and see what happens then. I heard Drell sing once, or rather hum under his breath. When he noticed me looking at him, though, he stopped and pretended it never happened.
I think there is much more to Drell than he lets on.
Drell is very patient with me, which is a good thing. A kind thing. Because Sela is so very busy with all her dragon council business I hardly see her, and without someone to talk to, I would feel swallowed up by this mountain. By the dragons.
Drell helped me root out some dandelions for Orman this morning. At first, I thought Orman was needing them for potions, or magical ingredients of some sort. But Drell thinks the wizard is just trying to make wine.
I think there is more to Orman Thistleby than he lets on, too, but I don’t dare ask. The man can whither a grape to a raisin with one glare of those gray eyes. I’m always trapped between wanting to get his attention, and hoping he’ll never notice me. He keeps talking about how old he is, how tired and frail he is, but I’ve never seen a star burn so bright. Right inside those gray eyes of his.
I held a stone in my palm last night. One of the little nubs Orman is trying to drench in magic. He’s been stripped of all his crystals and things; we all lost everything when we fled Esra to come to Leland. Orman feels the loss more than the rest of us, I think. He thinks he’s powerless without his stones, but I don’t believe he is. Not really. Because when I held the pebble of amber glass (it had fallen from his desk, I was putting it back), I felt it alive. It pulsed through my hand, into my wrist.
He must be doing something right, to make that stone respond to my touch the way it did. As though it knew I was there, in the room, keeping it company. When I laid it back on Orman’s desk, it stopped shivering, and went to sleep.
I almost spoke, to reassure it I would be back, before I realized what I was doing. Strange though. I could swear that crystal already knew what I was about to say.
One of these days, I would like to ask Orman about it. If I can just face those eyes. Maybe today, since Layce has asked me to ask him if he will meet her under the giant fir.
More tomorrow.
Gladdis
{ About the Author }
Jackie Gamber is the award-winning author of many short stories, screenplays, and novels, including “Redheart”, “Sela”, and “Reclamation”, Books one through three of the Leland Dragon Series. For more information about Jackie and her mosaic mind, visit http://www.jackiegamber.com
And meet Jackie elsewhere on the world-wide web at:
If this doesn’t prompt one to soak into the Leland Dragon series, I am not sure what would! Laughs. I think when you find yourself over the moon in joy in reading a series, you want to read each new installment as quick as lightning, or at least, this is the place I have reached with Leland Dragons! I am ever so very thankful to Ms. Gamber for creating and sharing this little treasure of a glimpse into Reclamation! I will be posting a review of Reclamation on Friday, 28th of February, so please be sure to drop back to read my observations and thoughts therein! I am delighted beyond joy itself for being able to participate on this blog tour because this is one series that I feel so very strongly attached too! Its one of those series that you discover during your ordinary hours of reading, and become struck by the awe of the world which illuminates into view! You get excited at each turnt of a page and your heart leaps a bit in anxiety to see what is going to occur next! This is what I live for whilst reading one story after another! To discover the stories that never quite leave you, and leave a small impression inside your memory!
Be sure to catch the next installments of this showcase on JLAS:
Jorie reviews “Reclamation” & interviews Ms. Gamber within the week!
Similar to blog tours, when I feature a showcase for an author via a Guest Post, Q&A, Interview, etc., I do not receive compensation for featuring supplemental content on my blog.
{SOURCES: Cover art of “triptych of Leland Dragon series” by Matthew Perry and the tour host badge were all provided by Tomorrow Comes Media and used with permission. Post dividers by Fun Stuff for Your Blog via Pure Imagination. Author Interview badge provided by Parajunkee to give book bloggers definition on their blogs. Jorie submitted a request to host a Character Post as part of the tour and received this special post in response by Ms. Gamber through Stephen Zimmer; for which she is grateful!}
Jackie Gamber’s Leland Dragons series is about to get a third installment, picking up where Book 2 {Sela} left off! IF you may recall, I had the extreme pleasure of reading Book 1 {Redheart} not too long ago! I was consumed by the visceral imagery Ms. Gamber paints into the breadth of her fantastical world! You drink in the narrative as a traveler would observe his surroundings whilst visiting a foreign land, wholly unknown and unfamiliar. She pulls you into the setting by directly etching your heart into being sympathetic to the plight of the Dragons! I have been dreaming of returning into the Provinces ever since I was pulled back into my own everyday reality!
About the Author | Jackie Gamber
You can read Gamber’s Full Biography, on her website, however, I learnt quite a few things about her whilst I was composing my questions for an interview! For instance, the essence of what she knew of dragons that originated from a dream she had that was the impetus to create “Redheart” shattered the misconceptions and perceptions of dragons, thus known in fantasy! She has a wicked sense for knowing which teas pair nicely with the books your palette is whet to taste! She took up knitting for its meditative qualities. If music is in the background whilst she writes, it has to be instinctively nondescript and ambient in nature, as if she hears a curious lyrical line it could shift her scene whilst its being penned! She is a retired servicewoman, secretary, and beloved Mum! She finds a keen balance between her writing and her family life. She adores the zoo beyond what words can express. She is a prolific short story writer. She runs a multi-verse platform for story-telling entitled: Allotrope Media, alongside her husband. Believing that a story has the freedom to express itself through multiple mediums. Insofar as being an accomplished playright and screenwriter! She excels at genre jumping but her heart is attached to science fiction, fantasy, and horror.
“Reclamation” : Book Three
Book Synopsis:
Leland Province remains in danger. The sinister Fordon Blackclaw has returned from the shadows to strike at the heart of neighboring Esra, killing its Venur and making clear his intentions to retake what was once his: Mount Gore, seat of the Leland Dragon Council.
All around, the land grows weaker and weaker. Leland, once thought saved by Kallon Redheart, is without purpose, and within its borders, Murk Forest, a place of mystery and danger, has driven its inhabitants to seek aid. Esra is in flames, and the Rage Desert grows. Dragon and human alike struggle to find their way, and the wizard Orman can sense that there may be more at stake than the affairs of dragons.
Hope remains, yet it is not without obstacles. In Esra, Sela, the daughter of Kallon and Riza, found the well, a source of life, and made herself whole again. But her homecoming is not what she had imagined.
Old wounds buried deep must reopen if life is to continue. Dragons, humans, wizards, and shape shifters are all at risk as the peace between dragon and human has finally been broken.
War is here.
The stakes?
Perhaps the whole world.
I am not sure about you, but as I haven’t yet had the pleasure of reading “Sela”, … I am a bit in the dark on full knowledge of Kallon & Riza’s daughter! Therefore, how do you think a happy-hearted reader reads this lovely wicked news!? She shouts out from the giddy bits of her soul, “EEK! They had a *daughter!* A daughter! Ohh, boy!” I was over the moon in merriment over this smashingly brilliant news because as foresaid, I simply adore this entire world of Leland Province! I didn’t want the narrative to end, nor did I want to exit the world completely once the story drew to a close! I felt akin to the principle leads in a way that I haven’t always felt connected to characters! Especially considering that I am re-discovering my niche in high fantasy and science fiction! Even if I am not able to read “Sela” in time, I have already put my hat into the toss to be included on the blog book tour for “Reclamation!” This book blogger is seriously stoked for its pending release!! And, she hopes you are too!
Shh!! I have a sneaking feeling I know what is behind “held on high” in this rather pivotal clue of the story!
Matthew Perry : Shines as Dragon Illustrator
I am never fully prepared for what I am going to see included in the illustrative plates by Mr. Perry! He has a way of conveying emotional conviction and heart in each of his illustrations for the Leland Dragon series! The fullness of his designs, allow the reader to proportionate the action of the story against the innocence, joy, and terror of heightened danger! The dragons themselves are humanistic in quality, as you can see exactly what they are thinking, feeling, and conveying by body language and mannerism! A true gem to be inclusive of a series which paints such a hearty portrait of life not so very far away, in a world not entirely different from our own, where survival and the freedom to choose how one is meant to live is always in a constant battle against propriety and the struggle for power. I was enthralled with the first installment of this story, as you were able to absorb the scope of the history of this land without feeling as though you had to read a historical artifact to ascertain the depth of what was at stake. I credit this first to Gamber’s intuitive choices of narrative design and secondly, to Perry who takes her words and uses his palette of illustrative art to construct the realism which aides the reader’s journey!
Be sure to catch previous Gamber lovelies on JLAS:
Jorie reviewed Redheart {Book One} and interviews Jackie Gamber, author of the Leland Dragon series! This Book Cover Reveal was made possible by Tomorrow Comes Media. They have my full gratitude!And, Gamber is published by Seventh Star Press!
Similar to blog tours, when I feature a showcase for an author via a Guest Post, Q&A, Interview, etc., I do not receive compensation for featuring supplemental content on my blog.
IF you want to hang out with authors of Seventh Star Press, book bloggers, authors at large, as well as the serendipitous twist of conversations which erupt out of an internet radio show? You’ll settle into a wicked hour-long podcast full of bookish content to not only entertain you but enlighten you: hop over to The Star Chamber Show main page on BlogTalkRadio! Tune in Wednesdays, at 9p! {including *Christmas DAY!*} Jorie is the unofficial live-tweeting secretary of the Chamber! You can read ‘near-transcripts’ of each podcast whilst digging through her TW Feed: @JLovesAStory !! Her own appearance was in Episode 2!
Check Out Books Podcasts at Blog Talk Radio with The Star Chamber on BlogTalkRadio
IF you’re a regular reader of Seventh Star Press titles, what draws you into their fantasy selections? What do you appreciate about Gamber’s visual scope of story-telling? Do you seek out other writers of dragon fiction? Which are your favourites? Stay and converse for a spell letting me know what gets you jazzed about stellar fantasy releases such as “Reclamation!”
{SOURCES: Cover art of “Reclamation” and the illustrations therein by Matthew Perry, Jackie Gamber’s photograph, and Book Synopsis were all provided by Tomorrow Comes Media and used with permission. Seventh Star Press logo badge provided by Seventh Star Press and used with permission. Post dividers were provided by Shabby Blogs, who give bloggers free resources to add personality to their blogs. Cover Reveal badge provided by Parajunkee to give book bloggers definition on their blogs. Podcast of Jackie Gamber on BlogTalkRadio was able to be embedded due to codes provided by The Star Chamber Show’s page on BlogTalkRadio.}
You can read Gamber’s Full Biography, on her website, however, I learnt quite a few things about her whilst I was composing my questions for an interview! For instance, the essence of what she knew of dragons that originated from a dream she had that was the impetus to create “Redheart” shattered the misconceptions and perceptions of dragons, thus known in fantasy! She has a wicked sense for knowing which teas pair nicely with the books your palette is whet to taste! She took up knitting for its meditative qualities. If music is in the background whilst she writes, it has to be instinctively nondescript and ambient in nature, as if she hears a curious lyrical line it could shift her scene whilst its being penned! She is a retired servicewoman, secretary, and beloved Mum! She finds a keen balance between her writing and her family life. She adores the zoo beyond what words can express. She is a prolific short story writer. She runs a multi-verse platform for story-telling entitled: Allotrope Media, alongside her husband. Believing that a story has the freedom to express itself through multiple mediums. Insofar as being an accomplished playwright and screenwriter! She excels at genre jumping but her heart is attached to science fiction, fantasy, and horror.
By which the interview commenced,
between Jorie and Ms. Gamber!
I am thankful to announce that I have my second Seventh Star Press author dropping by my blog for an interview today! I am always seeking to propose questions that are not overly asked previously, and I am hopeful, that if you have known of Ms. Gamber’s work previously, you will find something new to learn about her through her visit on Jorie Loves A Story! I look forward to listening to her replies and learning more about a writer who showcases dragons, as they are one of my favourites in the fantastical realms to encounter! Let me yield, to Ms. Gamber!
I presume that dragons are your favourite fantastical creature who reside outside our physical realms, as they are at the forefront of the Leland Dragon series? Was this a lifelong passion to bring dragons into a sweeping epic such as the Leland Dragons, or did it develop a bit more slowly, taking you for an adventure as it unfolded?
Gamber responds:
My writing of the Leland Dragon Series definitely came as an adventure as I went along. I’ve always been drawn to science fiction and fantasy as a reader, and as a writer, because of the “what-ifs” and the vast storytelling capabilities; I love the challenge of making something utterly fantastical seem perfectly probable and real. Kallon Redheart and Leland Province grew from that place. I had a germ of an idea, and wanted to make Kallon and his world as real as possible.
I can appreciate this myself, because whenever I settle my heart and thoughts to write in a fluid moment of clarity, I find that my pen yields to the adventure of discovery! I never know precisely where my pen will lead, as I always have attributed writing as being a vehicle that is inspired by One not of ourselves but as a Guide to allowing the creativity to flow through us and outwardly fuse inspiration into ink which spilts onto the page! The adventure for me in pursuit of story and characters is singularly one of the best moments a writer can experience! And, I could not have stated it better ‘making something utterly fantastical seem perfectly probable and real’ as this is a sentiment I could have spoken myself on behalf of my own writings! We breathe life into nothingness which paints a palette of pictures through the words which give life to our stories!
What draws your eye when it comes to story-telling in general?! Were you a natural bourne writer or did you have to develop it as you progressed from one story to another!? Did your pursuit of writing stem out of your love of reading, such as my own path developed!?
Gamber responds:
I’m not sure which came first; my love for reading or my love for writing. I remember loving books as mysterious little tickets into great unknowns. I remember teaching myself to read, and struggling over words that didn’t look like something I remembered hearing. I wanted to read, so I could go to the places books promised to take me. I wanted to write, too, because I had so many worlds in my own head, so many places I’d escape to in my imagination, and I wanted to make stories for others to escape into.
In a sense, then, I must have been born into writing. But just as I was driven to improve my reading, I have also been driven to always improve my writing. If talent is a seed, it must also be nurtured and cultivated, and practiced. My ultimate goal is that each story I write is a little more skillfully told than the last; in that way, I get closer and closer to opening each world a little more real.
You struck a chord inside me with this response, as I have always referred to myself as ‘a natural bourne writer’ yet I think I mistakenly left out a significant piece of the puzzle! As like you, the lines between when I became the ‘writer’ and the ‘reader’ are blurred,… due to my learning difficulties as a child I did not have the ability to learn to read on my own, but I yielded the words inside the stories to my Mum! She had this magical way of imparting the inflections of character, story, setting, and locale in such a way that I had my favourite ‘go to reads’ of which she read to me nightly! A winding path lateron led me to a quirky out-of-the-box 4th grade teacher who helped me develop my ‘passion for reading’. Yet. At the very same time, I was ‘writing’ solely through the influence of my maternal grandfather’s insistence that I ‘play a game’ called “Once Upon A Time” — a game that involved world-building and story structure! No action. Just your thoughts and your creativity! I concur with your ability to rise in your growth as a writer – each story I craft I notice stepping-stones of progression that although rather microscopic in size I can see the transformations!
Has your writings always developed out of your dreams? In this way, would you consider yourself a think-writer!? Whereupon your characters and stories stir together through your mind’s eye, traversing the gates of your imagination before you bring them into the present?
Gamber responds:
Wow, I really like that term, “think-writer”. That’s exactly how I would describe my process. I’m rarely ready to sit down to a story without a good lot of pondering, first. I do find that morning time, in between sleeping and being fully awake, to be some of my richest fodder for creating. When I’m starved of that time, I generally suffer for it.
Ahh, yes, I wish I could explain exactly ‘when’ and ‘where’ I first learnt of the expression “think-writer” but ever since the very day a fellow writer imparted the merit of what this term encompasses; I have had the honour and privilege to pass on the term to other writers who create their stories in this manner! It opened a door inside my mind as a way of self-reflection and self-expression of ‘how’ I create and in that truth, I understand a cardinal piece of who I am as a writer. I am thankful that I not only recognised it as a possibility in you (smiles) but that in my mentioning of it you have found it applies to you! I love random joy! No one has quite put into terms my own methodology of writing practice until I read this reply of yours! Its one of the moments in this interview I saw myself looking through a reflection of a mirror and was touched by the blessing of our paths crossing each other!
Do you remember the origins of your passion for epic fantasy? Do you recollect a singular book, author, or character that leapt off the page, and gave you the impression that your heart would be warmed by fantasy evermore!? I am not necessarily asking about your ‘favourite’ or ‘go-to’ author/book, but rather, where the underpinnings of your passion for the genre first developed!?
Gamber responds:
I know exactly what book I was reading when something clicked. I didn’t realize at the time, of course, that it would be considered “fantasy”, I only knew it was a story about kids just like me who got caught up in a supernatural adventure. I realized then that stories didn’t have to be about here, and now, they could be about anything! Anywhere! I decided then that’s what I wanted to figure out how to do. The book, which I still own today, was “The Frightened Forest” by Ann Turnbull. It was a Scholastic Book I ordered through my elementary school back around 1974.
Oh, my dear stars! Books through schools! A programme they had whilst I was growing up a few years following you (as I was in elementary school in the early 80s) which sparked a curiosity inside me! They were called ‘book faires’, where inside the libraries (ironically my grades never had the option to go to the library very often! perhaps too crowded?) on such rare occasions we could go in them to find a long table (several put together into one long line) stacked high with books! I was the cheeky girl (as I was told by the attendants!) who refused to find books ‘in her own age group’! I had special permission to choose a book a good two grades if not more higher than my ‘supposed’ reading age! This is even before I met my 4th grade teacher who helped me find true enjoyment in reading without making it arduous! I had the curiosity, I had the will to read, but I had hurdles! Ironically or naught, my inspiration to write and read fantasy fiction came from two motion pictures (rather than books!): “Pete’s Dragon” and “The Neverending Story”!! (the latter is a book but I didn’t realise this at the time!)
Are there storytellers, artists, musicians, artisans, and other creatives in your family who might have planted the seed for the creative arts in your life from an early age!?
Gamber responds:
My mom is definitely a creative who has always strived for outlets. She was involved in Community Theater and similar pursuits. She loved to sing. She had a box of snippets of writing; stories, I think, and poetry. I didn’t understand the significance at the time, but I remember now how she had enormous bookshelves, always filled, and that many of the books were “how-to’s” for writing. She never talked about it, but I think she wanted to be a writer, too.
I smiled whilst reading about your Mum and her secret dream of being a writer. I have a grandfather in my family who dreamt of being a writer as well, and am thankful I too, have pieces of his writings left behind to not only cherish but to see the beginnings of his own writing life! At first I felt sorrowful that he couldn’t obtain his dream, but then, a part of me reflected that if he hadn’t worked on writings and drawings in his spare time – the legacy of his talents might not have filtered down in my family line! As creativity is one of those rare gifts that is best given through passion and time ignited in harmony. All creatives, whether professional or amateur give back to the greater whole simply by leaving a fingerprint of their creative soul behind for others to find! How lovely you had someone to inspire your own path too!
I learnt in a previous interview you had mentioned that you were ‘a soldier, a secretary, and a Mum’, of which I found fascinating, because writers’ live such dynamically different lives, as the whole of our experiences shape our perceptions and inspire the stories that nestle into our spirits that find their way spilt onto the page! I would well imagine you’d have a lot to draw from given this revelation! First and foremost, thank you for your service, as I always try to give back a bit of gratitude to soldiers’ whenever I can (which is why I volunteer with Soldiers’ Angels), and secondly, my own Mum was a secretary so I know that the fast pace of an office can be such an interesting set-up for diverse characters and personalities! Do you find that people you’ve either interacted with or met have formed the basis of a character of yours?
Gamber responds:
Thank you for appreciating those who serve!
I think everyone I meet, or even observe, has become the basis for any number of my characters. Many of my “why” questions come from meeting or knowing someone whose choices puzzle me. I get to wondering about motivation, about what might have happened in their past to set the framework for their life perception…all that stuff. Those are the good bits that get tucked away into the corners of my mind for me to do my “think-writing”. Somehow, and at some point, from all that pondering, characters are born from it.
Your quite welcome! Its my pleasure and honour to give back to those who give so much to all of us! Little ripples of gratitude I am thankful I can give freely and randomly! Its nice to give a piece of joy to someone who least expects to receive it! I smiled seeing you incorporated your new favourite superlative into this response! I do this as well, but more than naught, not necessarily from ‘people watching’ but rather from environment watching! I get caught up and lost in the small details of everyday hours. Usually attached to my museful eyes peering out into nature through the windows of the car and/or whilst walking in nature. My mind’s eye is free to associate wherever a creative thought wants to take me. I created some lovely poems lost in my daydreams, think-writing in the supreme sense, only to wander back inside to my desk and pen — the words lost and tangled in the thoughts which resumed from whence I returned! I think though seeds of those ramblings etch themselves back into my writing when I least expect them too! Do you find this as well?
Have you ever found your creative voice to take a backseat or absence, whilst you had to live through a particular period of your life?! How did you walk through that time, and what led you back to the pen, so to speak!? IF you’ve never experienced writers’ block, what do you think helped forestall its arrival, in case others’ are worried it could affect them!?
Gamber responds:
There have been long, dry periods in my life when there has been no writing. At all. Sometimes it’s been by choice, thinking my real life needed me to be perfectly present. Other times, I’ve suffered a block, when I haven’t been able to get my thoughts in line to make any kind of sense worth writing. I used to think that people who say, “I write because I have to, or I’ll go crazy!” needed a reality check, because I thought I was able to set aside writing as I needed, if life needed me to, and I was just fine. Becoming older (and hopefully wiser), though, I’m realizing that even during dry periods, whether by choice or by block, I never really stopped processing. That whole “observe life, input questions, fill in the blanks, make character-people” is so much of part of how I live, not just write, that it goes on whether I’m aware of it, or not. Sometimes it’s in full swing, under a bright, blue sky—other times it’s getting smothered, as though I’ve thrown a blanket over it. The more I learn to release the process as a part of who I am, the better I feel. And the stronger I become.
Any time I’ve suffered a block, it hasn’t been my writing that’s stoppered up. It’s me. When I understand that being blocked isn’t a wall, it’s a signal, it helps me find that thing in my life that’s out of alignment. Address that, and the words flow again.
When I first read your response I was partially confused – did I write a longer paragraph of a question than I remembered? OR was Ms. Gamber’s response so bang-on accurate for my own inner reflections that I could not distinguish her voice from my own! It was a brilliantly classic moment of seeing how the writing world is as small as the art world! You tend to seek out and find others’ who create in a manner in which is familiar to your own style as much as you find others’ who write in a different vein. At this moment, I found happiness in seeing another writer I could directly relate too speaking on a subject I could personally attest to being one of my own struggles as much as one of my own transitions! This particular question I asked to better understand what was rather dear to me to know! Thank you for helping me connect the pieces!
I know you’ve referenced your heritage in several interviews, as you disclosed how you passed on the gene for webbed toes to your son, however, I was curious, did your family pass down living histories of generations past!? Mine did, but even with that blessing, my Mum and I are still unearthing family lore and hidden ancestral roots that we could only have dreamt possible a few years ago! Do you find research into your family’s history an enjoyable adventure that sparks ideas of setting, time, place, and locale!? I am starting to find that my own wanderings are encouraging me towards historical fiction, even moreso than my own readings of that branch of literature! Have you uncovered anything particularly smashing to share? For us, it was sorting out that our fabled Civil War Captain was actually bourne of immigrant parents who crossed over from Ireland! Learning about our connections to the Underground Railroad is also rather exciting, but for each piece we recover, we find a labyrinth of questions!
Gamber responds:
Much of my family history is an enigma. Dysfunction has splintered generations; I knew my paternal grandmother, but that’s as far back as any real history I’ve got. However, my dad has done a lot of research on his side of the family, and discovered a whole book written about “The Gentle Johnstones” (that’s my maiden name) and our ancestry from prehistoric Scotland, to Northern Ireland, and into the New World. “Gentle” was meant to be ironic. Apparently they were fiercely territorial! And I remember reading a passage that described their women as just as fierce, and hefty, with big arms that could swing weapons with all the might of their male counterparts. And the men were proud of their women for it. It clicked something in me to read that; a sort of acceptance of myself I hadn’t previously had, because I’m no petite woman. My husband likes to say I’m “strong like bull”. And I’ve fought my whole life against my own body; starving it, punishing it, hating it, wishing I could fit into today’s standard of waif-like beauty. But look at my ancestry! This body has been hundreds of years of genetics in the making, and today’s fads don’t have anything to do with it. I’m healthy and strong, and finally, I’m okay with the way I’m made. My dreams don’t have anything to do with the size of my jeans. Or genes.
Thank you for being fearless, honestly open and forthright in your sharing of such a impactful moment of your life! This is such a powerful and empowering statement of growth and self-acceptance! The connecting ties to your ancestry as much as pulling forward from the annals of time a singular truth which as it was brought forward to the present directly impacted your own self-image and self-confidence! Rock on, Ms. Gamber!
What do you like to do when you decompress from writing!? Do you like to travel, walk in nature, or pick up an interest or pursuit that has to fall by the wayside whilst your either knee-deep in research OR wholly consumed by the current story at hand!?
Gamber responds:
I love nature, nature, nature. The more I’m in it, the better I feel, and the more fuel I have for more writing. My husband has a love for motorcycles, and when he finally talked me into riding on one with him, I accidentally discovered I loved it! I get to be up close and personal with nature, all over the place! I love to be with trees, and to touch them and smell them, and to hear them shimmying about in the wind.
By Jupiter’s moons, I could not agree with you more! Every daring chance I get to resume my sojourn in nature, I take the chance! Even the day before this interview went live I had a small window of where I could take a walkabout drinking in the Wintry breezes, clean air, and lumbering stillness of the natural world. I stumbled across a lazy alligator (a baby by all counts!) rolling through the drifting waves of the lake-shore as he ambled along to a berm! His entire countenance was of ease, tranquility, and joy. You could barely make out the essence of his head above the surface of the water, whilst his tail haphazardly appeared every so many feet strokes! (alligators tend to swim by dog-paddling using their tail as rudders!) Off in the distance as the crow flies was a lovely elegant White Egret who took flight just as I was dipping around a corner as the softest blue sky you ever did see was shrunken from sight due to the foliage of the forest obscuring its view! Do you know trees speak to you? I would love one day to visit a tree long enough to hear its whispers! My favourite embrace of a tree was given at a Welcome Station in New England as I met the biggest tree of my years and simply had to give the tree a big ole bear hug! I never fail to acknowledge the gentle lullings and movings of trees as the winds shift through their branches,… absolute bliss if you ask me!
I read in a previous interview that you took up knitting, (back in 2011), have you continued this pursuit as you were lamenting that you weren’t sure if you were going to improve OR simply enjoy the mediated repetitiveness that knitting can provide? I speak as a novice knitter, who took up the needles herself, infused with yarny dreams in the Spring of 2009, and can actually assert she can ‘cast on’ in 2013! As previously, I had to have a bit of assistance, as I was better at the ‘stitches’ than I was at beginning the casting! I celebrate each milestone I achieve, as I find knitting to be my balm in the sea of life! If you continued to pursue it, do you have a favourite type of yarn or pattern?
Gamber responds:
I do still pick up knitting here and there, in fits and spurts, and usually have to re-learn again each time I want to make something. I love wool, and the wool blends of today that make it softer and practical for washing. As an extremely tactile person, yarn is such a boon for my creative senses. When it comes to really decompressing, from writing or otherwise, the best of both worlds is to knit outside. An ideal life would be a front porch rocking chair, looking out onto leafy mountains, with soft yarn in my hands.
To borrow a sentiment of knitting from my Mum (whose my knitting soul sister!), the textural joy of threading natural fibers through your fingers is both a blessing and a blissful joy of comfort! I was like you for most of the years since my first cast-on project – constantly having to re-learn and be re-taught how to do everything. I tend to be the tortoise in the room, where I might take a bit to pick up something I am learning but then, I reach the stage where I even surprise myself, tucking my skirts into a rhythm of knowledge that flows freely through my fingers! My Mum put it best when she said working with wool and natural fibers (she and I adore alpaca and baby llama!) is such a tactile love of happiness! Ohh, I want to live inside your dream as to where to ‘knit’ and ‘be’.
Have you always been a tea drinker!? I read in one of your interviews (from 2012) that you’ve mastered the art and delicacy for making homemade green tea lattes! I find this wicked sweet, as I, myself, have started to make green chai infused tea lattes with almond-coconut milk! My journey towards incorporating natural medicines, green and herbal teas started in my early twenties. Nowadays, although I do indulge in a sinfully smooth coffee latte, my favourite is still soaking into the aroma of a tea latte! I have found that this can change per region (whilst on my travels I noted this!), as I had a Dragonwell Tea Misto in Fargo, North Dakota, but to interpret this in the Southeast I nearly found it impossible to duplicate without confrontation! Have you noticed differences in tea culture as well!? And, do you still continue to match tea with books?
Gamber responds:
Your green chai sounds delectable! I do enjoy almond and coconut, both. I find that tea culture seems to be spreading throughout the U.S. of late, with even grocery stores carrying a far wider selection than they ever used to. The advent of online shopping has brought all sorts of teas into anyone’s home; it’s so great! I do see the tea cultures, though, in differing regions, and I enjoy experiencing it that way. I still have a lovely website for my Booktasting (www.book-tasting.com)* although it has been a while since I’ve added new content. I have a bookshelf of books awaiting their tea pairing! It’s still one of my favorite hobbies.
*Am not certain the website is active at the moment. I could not get it to launch. Am checking on it!
It is quite delectable! All you need to do is put in 3 mugfuls of almond-coconut milk (it comes in a blended form in the refrigerated milk section?) into a medium saucepan, turn the heat up a bit, and place the green chai tea bags (or you can use loose tea if you happen to have them!) inside one of those tea steepers? I used to have the metal ones which clasp to where you can have them bob or sink depending? I could not find those for the life of me, so I took out our mesh steeper which has a ‘loose fitting top’ and placed that in the center of the saucepan? I turnt up the heat ever so slightly (so not to curdle the milk!) until the temperature reached perfection. I steeped it for approx. four minutes or so, as I used three tea bags once the temperature of the milk was level! You simply remove the steeper and pour the decadent liquid into your favourite mug! Enjoy the cuppa!! I put the footnote on your website as at the time of this interview posting I could not get the url to go live? :(
What is the one thing that readers might be surprised to learn about you, that you haven’t previously disclosed in an interview!?
Gamber responds:
I can moonwalk! Yes, like Michael Jackson. Also, I can do a pretty darn good robot. I’ve been doing the robot as a dance since before it really became one
Loved your response here! That’s the coolest thing you could say as I love how unexpected and wickedly brilliant the answer truly is!
If you could change any part of your life, would you take the steps to make a radical change OR have you already arrived at the place by which you hoped to be!?
Gamber responds:
I’ve definitely taken steps to make radical changes in my life. I’ve always endeavored to not let fears and anxieties keep me from pursuing the things I really want (even though I don’t always manage it the first or second try. If worrying burned calories, I’d be Kate Moss). But I also believe the moment I believe I’ve “already arrived”, I’ve stopped growing. Living. I’ve still got plenty of steps to take!
You and me both on this level! I am in a season of transition and I think whilst these occur in our lives, we have to live through our faith as a guiding source of courage! Life is best lived when we embrace the risks that alter our stars in the best ways possible! Generally speaking, the serendipitous nature of change can affect our lives in such creatively curious ways, that the journey becomes an adventure in being mindful of the hidden paths are feet will walk in order to arrive where we are meant to be! The time in which we find ourselves where we are going is not always when we perceive ourselves to arrive but rather, we are led to where we are needed at the time that is right. None of us are ever fully grown until the day the world offers us no inspiration, curiosity, or a healthy thirst for adventure! May our hearts always be open to the unexpected and embrace all the seasons that life will bring us. For knowledge arrives in gentle whispers whilst we are making plans that may not be meant to transpire!
Jackie Gamber is the award-winning author of many short stories, screenplays, and novels, including “Redheart” and “Sela”, Books One and Two of the Leland Dragon Series, as well as the upcoming Book Three of the series, “Reclamation.” For more information about Jackie and her mosaic mind, visit http://www.jackiegamber.com
Thank you, Ms. Gamber for dropping by Jorie Loves A Story today! And, thank you to Mr. Zimmer for making this Interview possible as a bookend to my review of “Redheart”!! Ms. Gamber I was humbled and honoured to not only have you here today on my blog, but to peer into a window of a writer’s life which mirrored my own! The little murmurings of our synchronicity made me smile as wide as the moon! I am forevermore grateful that our paths have crossed in this way, as you truly touched me by your ability not only to be earnestly honest in your answers, but share such an intimate view into who you are as a woman, a writer, a nature-loving soul, and as a creative! My heart is full of gratitude which is overflowing! Please leave a note for the author if you have anything you’d like to say or ask!
Be sure to catch the first half of this showcase:
Jorie reviews “Redheart“, Book One of the Leland Dragon series!
This interview was made possible by Seventh Star Press! They have my full gratitude!
{NOTE: There is no affiliation with Amazon and Jorie Loves A Story,
the link to the author’s page was provided by the author herself.}
Similar to blog tours, when I feature a showcase for an author via a Guest Post, Q&A, Interview, etc., I do not receive compensation for featuring supplemental content on my blog.
I decided to include this for:
as I simply want to spread the joy of this interview!
{SOURCES: Cover art of “Redheart” by Matthew Perry and Jackie Gamber’s photograph were all provided by Tomorrow Comes Media and used with permission. Seventh Star Press logo badge provided by Seventh Star Press and used with permission. Post dividers were provided by Shabby Blogs, who give bloggers free resources to add personality to their blogs. Author Interview badge provided by Parajunkee to give book bloggers definition on their blogs. Jorie submitted her Questions to Mr. Zimmer, who forwarded them to Ms. Gamber, for which she replied in earnest. Jorie was grateful to have this opportunity to interview her. “That Friday Blog Hop” badge was provided by XOXO Rebecca!}
Acquired Book By: I am a regular blog book tour hostess for Tomorrow Comes Media, whereupon in conversation with Stephen Zimmer about my appreciation for epic fantasy, I was offered to receive a complimentary copy of this book in exchange for an honest review direct from the publisher Seventh Star Press.The book released in April 2011. I did not receive compensation for my opinions or thoughts shared herein.
Intrigued to Read: When I first decided to become a (blog) book tour hostess with Tomorrow Comes Media, I am not sure if I ever expected to have such a wicked sweet journey unfold in front of me! Inasfar to say, the authors who I am coming in contact with are writers who create lush, living, and dynamically engrossing worlds that make you think about the content that your reading as much as to jettison your wings off into new directions of literary exploration! I am not sure if I ever mentioned to my friends’ how much I have always kept a keen interest in ‘dragons’, as mind you, I was one of the eager movie goers who could not wait for the release of “How to Train Your Dragon”!! Whilst I was growing up my two favourite dragons were in the motion pictures: “Pete’s Dragon” and “The Neverending Story”, of which I saw in such repetition I could nearly recite the dialogue and describe the scene sequences! In later years, “Avatar” held my heart!
I have oft dreamt of the day to simply carve out space to soak into popular dragon literature, as much as seek out new authors that might not always be mentioned by other readers! How thankful I am, then, that this particular book was offered to me to read and review!
About the Author | Jackie Gamber
You can read Gamber’s Full Biography, on her website, however, I learnt quite a few things about her whilst I was composing my questions for an interview! For instance, the essence of what she knew of dragons that originated from a dream she had that was the impetus to create “Redheart” shattered the misconceptions and perceptions of dragons, thus known in fantasy! She has a wicked sense for knowing which teas pair nicely with the books your palette is whet to taste! She took up knitting for its meditative qualities. If music is in the background whilst she writes, it has to be instinctively nondescript and ambient in nature, as if she hears a curious lyrical line it could shift her scene whilst its being penned! She is a retired servicewoman, secretary, and beloved Mum! She finds a keen balance between her writing and her family life. She adores the zoo beyond what words can express. She is a prolific short story writer. She runs a multi-verse platform for story-telling entitled: Allotrope Media, alongside her husband. Believing that a story has the freedom to express itself through multiple mediums. Insofar as being an accomplished playright and screenwriter! She excels at genre jumping but her heart is attached to science fiction, fantasy, and horror.
Dragons & Humans | akin to friendship:
I would nearly suspect that if I were to live in another realm, I would pick one with dragons who appreciate a living space where dragons and humans live harmoniously together! Who would want to bypass this beautiful interaction!? I oft think that inter-species communication and connection for me, goes back to my teen years whilst I was researching oceanography and marine biology for a novel I was writing. For me, singling out the interplay between whales, dolphins, and humans held fast and firm to the presumption that interactions between different species can yield insight that is limited without the connection formed at all! (An excellent film about dolphins and dogs interacting is “Zeus and Roxanne”!) In this way, I have always held a soft spot in my heart for reading and/or listening to stories of the animals who have learnt to communicate with us directly as much as the stories of inter-species communications I have uncovered from rather unique pairings of animals!
The natural world breathes its mirth of knowledge in gentle and slow breaths of enlightenment, which you can observe the more you’re spending time outside, keeping still, and reverently attune to what is being spoken around you! Gentle whispers of truth floating in the short bursts of wind, the kissings of the sun, the sway of the trees, and the noddings of clouds, as you walk into the depths of the natural environment; your perception of what is there is heightened by your presence being accepted by those who call the habitat your walking through: home.
Dragons to me, always felt to encompass human-like characteristics that gave you the impression that if any species could live in an accord with us, it would be the dragons! They are generally emotionally driven, feel things deeply with their hearts, and they have keen observation and hearing skills that make them in a position to have empathy and tolerance. I always had the sense inside me that a dragon is as curious in nature as humans, and oft-times could get themselves into a bit of trouble untoward that regard!
In Redheart, she opens the door for a dragon to be incapacitated to care as he’s shut off his emotional heart, and would rather wallow in his self-pity than to admit that he still has something he can give and achieve, if he only gave himself half a chance! She writes his character flaws well, giving light to his physical discomfort as much as his reflective mannerisms that paint the picture clearly as how you would expect to find him if you stumbled across his cave! His anguish for his deceased parents is soul-wrenching because you can tell he has not yet traversed through his grief and emerged on the other side. He grieves as though they had only just died and his blinded sight of this sorrow is part of what is holding him back. Kallon gives the adjective ‘downtrodden’ a whole new meaning, as you can nearly see his disheartened sighs as he shifts into the floor of his cave and kicks up dust as he snorts, whilst entering his domain!
I think originally when the worlds of the dragons and humans were more intermixed, the relationships and friendships they built together was easier going than it is at the time we enter the life of Kallon and Riza. Fear has changed the landscape, and greed has nearly shattered the natural environment. Yet. Dragons and humans are akin to friendship because it’s part of the wiring of who they are. They are community entities that thrive best whilst surrounded by others’ rather than isolated as recluses. With friendship, each day is a bit more special than the last, because there was someone there to share the experience, the adventure, and the conversation of simply ‘being in the moment’ as it came to pass!
Wordsmiths are my favourites next to research enthusiasts:
Ms. Gamber has a way of weaving the opening bits of this tale in such a way that your hungry for each new sentence that alights in your mind! She has a way of showing the interactions between a freaked out of her skull human and a disgruntled and reclusive dragon as though this were an ordinary tale, set in an ordinary time, and one that would easily be taken as ‘written’ and ‘true’. Her ease of giving the reader the chance to soak into her narrative is brilliant when you consider this is an epic fantasy, with a world created fully unknown to the reader who picks up the book!
Next to (writers who are) research enthusiasts, my next favourite writer is the wordsmith! The one who uses a palette of words to paint the portraits of what evolves into the stories that light up our imaginations with such a vigorous intensity! They use words in a fashion that infuses emotion, heart, and observation in a way that is both poetic and brilliantly unique. And, being emotional beings (dragons), I would wager could lead to disappointments, misunderstandings, and grievously difficult emotional keels! She eclipses the depth of their personality with deft skill! Soulful! Dragons to me, have always come across as being ‘soulful’, filt to the brim with an ageless wisdom and a mission to seek out understanding in things that they do not always understand at first.
Trust, Determination, and Faith:
Three of the most difficult lessons we all face during our lifetimes is trusting what is happening will eventually turn around and become resolved. Staying determined that what ever befalls us will not define who we are or what we are capable of achieving. And, having the faith to encourage the strength needed in order to carry onward when our paths are not readily known or easily seen. I find these attributes at play in Kallon and Riza, who independently have to come to grips with the fact that their lives are taking a few left turns. Each of them are reluctant to admit that they are hesitate when it comes to trusting others, and each other for that matter! Slowly, as they start to spend time in each others’ company, they realise what they are missing by staying solo and isolated from companionship.
Review of Redheart:
What I feel Redheart is truly about is that a single act of courage and sacrifice is what can separate you from a crowd of maddening prejudice. It can also be the spark of the last true gift a father can bestow to his son at the time of his death. The true miracle is not allowing yourself to turn cold-hearted, to where you can no longer see what your heart is hoping you can! Our eyes are only one vehicle of sight, and if we are blinded in our hearts, we experience true blindness by not being able to see what is right in front of us. We’re surrounded by little bits of fragmented knowledge that speaks to us in the ripples of life that bursts and simmers wherever we walk. It’s knowing how to acknowledge where our lifepath is leading us to venture is the true source of understanding the greater whole of our life.
In the opening sequences of the story, the startled out of her wits human presents a classic encounter where the principal character is plucked out of her environment, taken into a new place, and has to sort out how to live where she’s planted! The fact that her rescuer is a reclusive dragon, makes the story ever more endearing, because oft-times you only hear of bold, confident dragons who are never absent of courage, or you encounter the battle-torn dragons who fight more than they alight in joy. Riza has to yield to trusting strangers in order to effectively change her stars and walk forward into a future of her choosing rather than the one that is expected.
Whilst reading the back-story of the dragons, I started to notice the similarities with their ancestral past and those of Native Americans. I grew up surrounded by Native American culture, art, and tradition as my parents always encouraged me to learn about cultures different from my own at a young age. Some of my fondest memories are the conversations I had with a Cherokee gentleman who owned a lovely art gallery and bookshoppe! Through his conversations, I have always been endeared to their cultural heritage, and as I read about Kallon’s dragon legacies of the ages, I started to recognise the underpinnings of cross-references.
An effective insurrection of power is happening in the background of Redheart, as you are introduced to such a garish brute as Blackclaw! His entire being is consumed with a thirst for blood, power, and control – to where he cannot think of anything else except the execution of engaging Dragonkind into a war with the humans! He is the complete opposite of leaders, who previously were vowed to encourage peace and civility with the humans. There is a sideline mystery about the causes of the environmental destructive patterns that are encroaching on the lands of each societies, which gives root to where the distention might have originally began.
Gamber weaves spirituality into her story with subtlety, as she begs the reader to consider the wider view of the story as a whole. To look inside our own hearts and minds, to reach past what we were expecting of the story and to see what she was trying to impart as the message that she has given us all to bear witness to. Living through faith and by faith alone is not an easy task, nor is seeing without the aide of our senses. Friendship is akin to love, and love is akin to friendship, thus so is faith akin to trust without sight.
Gamber has written a hypnotic tale that lulls you into a dreamy state of ethereal bliss, as you enter into the world of the Leland Dragons! It’s a story that you do not want to rush through, as you wander around slowly, taking in each scene and each piece of the world she’s created for the reader to become wholly enthused inside.
A Dragon Hunter with a curious complex of character!
When Jastin Armitage first comes onto the scene in Redheart, I am inwardly suspicious of his motives and of his leanings for dragon | human interactions. I gathered the sense that he was on the ‘opposite’ side of the spectrum from where I stood myself, and it came as no surprise whilst I learnt the hard truth that he ‘hunts dragons’ for a living! That aside, I found it rather curious when Gamber didn’t create the stereotypical ‘hunter’ character, but rather, gave him a bit of a working up as a man who is in conflict and attempting to be a better man than he might endeavour to represent! His gruff attitude towards Riza softened when he saw her up close, and it led me to believe that there is more to his heart than his persona as a rough-and-ready take no prisoners dragon hunter! I smirked and suppressed a giggle when I came across the scene in the The Brown Barrell where he rather cheekily gained information about the dragons he was seeking! I like cheeky humour in epic fantasy, because it helps keep the pace in-between the serious events a happy calm! He is definitely a character you are eager to read more about, with an arched eyebrow and a furrowing crease of your forehead whilst you realise he’s just this side of dangerous!
And, the story continues,…
I am in full gratitude that this is only! the first installment of the Leland Dragon series, as not since Kate Elliott’s “Crown of Stars” series and the aforementioned “Ave” series by Stephen Zimmer, have I settled into such a wonderfully wicked epic fantasy world! All these years I’ve been seeking where I should go next as far as which series to attempt to sink into and which world of whose characters would charm me with their endearing personalities,… It’s not a lightning bolt on anyone’s desk to realise that I adore full-bodied and fully realised worlds to etch myself into and soak straight into the context of the stories that draw me into their realms! The Leland Dragon series thankfully has a second installment already available, and I am hopeful, the third is shortly going to be released as it’s one of those series you are not inclined to want to put down for very long! I found a rumoured note that Book Three delves into Murk Forest whereupon dragon hunter Jastin Armitage becomes the hunted! I say ‘rumoured’ as I cannot find any mentionings online for when Book Three will drop, but I did come across the news that it marks the final installment, making Leland Dragons a trilogy! I can only hope once I reach that part of the story, I am ready to say “Good-bye”. For this story is a powerful one, that encourages you to move your fingers gingerly page to page, daring not to know what is revealed next, and yet, willing you to read where the story is leading you to go!
All I can say, is that I hope there is more ‘flying amongst the clouds and over the trees’, as being free to explore the land and sky in this way I think is every dreamers ultimate wish! Rock on, Ms. Gamber for giving me such a wicked sense of pure joy and sense of adventure by capturing how it would feel to be ‘in flight’ without the security of being in a plane! I would fathom that being astride a dragon is similar to that of a horse, as there is a co-companionship that emerges that turns the journey into a conjoined experience.
Be sure to catch the second half of this showcase on JLAS:
Jorie interviews Jackie Gamber, author of the Leland Dragon series! This review was made possible by Seventh Star Press! They have my full gratitude!
IF your a reader of dragon lore and fiction, which books and series stand out in your mind as the next ‘best’ read for me to engage in!? I’ll compile a list, and when I go to sit down with more books of this nature, I will pull your suggestions together and see how many I can read! I do have copies of “Eragon” & “Brisinger” on my self as much as I am curious about: the Temeraire series by Naomi Novik, the Rain Wild Chronicles by Robin Hobb, Pern by Anne MacCaffrey, and the Enchanted Forest Chronicles by Patricia C. Wrede, of which I have stumbled across thus far! IF you’ve read any of these, which were your favourites!? And, what warmed you to the story of Redheart, as I reviewed the story!?
{SOURCES: Cover art of “Redheart” by Matthew Perry and Jackie Gamber’s photograph were all provided by Tomorrow Comes Media and used with permission. Seventh Star Press logo badge provided by Seventh Star Press and used with permission. The book trailer by Seventh Star Press had either URL share links or coding which made it possible to embed this media portal to this post, and I thank them for the opportunity to share more about this novel and the author who penned it. Blog tour badge provided by Parajunkee to give book bloggers definition on their blogs.}