The Chronicles Covent Waiting Game Author Interviews and *Giveaway*

I'm so excited to have the opportunity to introduce these authors to my blogger readers. J.L Ficks and J.E Dugue have an exciting new novel, The Chronicles of Coven Waiting Game, Tale one of The Shade Chronicles featuring the art of Thom Scott

Shade has grown into Doljinaar's most widely feared assassin. A Dark Elf, trained in the black forests of Jui-Sae, he was once part of an elite caste of assassins known as the Unseen. A tale of pride and villiany, Shade stakes his life and reputation against a powerful crimelord to prove once and for all that he is the true killer of killers. Seeking a challenge, Shade offers the crimelord a fighting chance by publically announcing his mark in a tavern. But how many waves of monstrous foes can one assassin face until he falls victim to his own deadly waiting game?

Thank you both for giving us this awesome chance to take a look not only at your new novel but at the genius behind the writing. Also I would like to Thank both authors for giving a lucky reader the chance to win a *SIGNED* copy! So with out any further waiting let's jump into the Interview.

Could you tell us about your main character Shade a Dark Elf from the Black Forests of Jui-Sae?

Shade is probably one of our darkest characters. He is a butt-kicking, highly feared assassin in the human kingdom of Doljinaar. The first book is action packed and really delivers on Shade’s confidence and deadly abilities. We were really just going for good smashing fun in the first book. That said he has one of the most interesting back-stories which we are slowly revealing book by book. He was trained in the ranks of the Unseen, which is an elite class of assassins in Jui-Sae. He can make himself completely invisible to the naked eye, which makes him the perfect stealth killer.

Our Dark Elven lore is different than traditional fantasies. Our Dark Elves are not subterranean. They live in black forests with verdant black trees and leaves. The Unseen cut down any who dare trespass, so the borders are widely feared, but deep Jui-Sae houses many secret beauties. It’s a majestic night kingdom where glowing flowers shine in midnight glades and moonstone cities glow in the moonlight. Shade started a new life out west where he has grown into a legend. He is a hard calloused killer at this point, but we’re really excited about slowly unfolding the story of his soul.

Which characters in your novel where the hardest to write?

Most of the characters came out pretty naturally. The humor was a bit challenging, but I’d pick Warlord Lewd if I must narrow it down to one character. I mean how does one write a charismatic troll anyway? In the end I was very happy with Lewd’s scenes. His perfect set of pearly whites and courtly polish really painted a strong contrast against his more hideous features. He’s the mobster that Shade was after in Waiting Game, so the story is mainly about the clash of a legendary assassin against Lewd and his endless waves of underlings.

                                                             Kishrub and Zulbash

                                                                   The Sharkgates

The art work in your novel by Thom Scott is amazing, how long did it take to come up with final character drawings for your novel?

We went through quite a journey of artists before we settled on Thom Scott. This was a bit hard on the wallet, but it really gave us time to perfect Shade’s appearance. The whole process took a little over a year, but that was mainly due to our little game of musical artists. Thom pumped that picture out in about a month, but he also did six black and white interior illustrations for the inside, which gave him plenty of practice. If you want more details on the evolution of Shade’s appearance check out this two-part blog entry Chronicles of Covent and
The many faces of Shade Part 2

Which do you consider your favorite character in your novel besides Shade?

I’ve got a soft spot for big dumb muscle, so I would have to say Kishrub and Zulbash. They’re a pair of hulking oversized Gorums, who do not have much in the brain department, not to mention they’re guilty of a serious fashion crisis. Our artist had a blast drawing the ridiculous collection of scrap metals they use for armor. Kishrub and Zulbash spend more time fighting each other than Shade. Check out our Kishrub and Zulbash blog if you want a good laugh.Dumb grows well Dumber

I also really enjoyed writing the Festan cameo appearance. He just had two short scenes in Waiting Game, but he’s a main character in our Adventure Series so I just couldn’t resist throwing him into the mix. Festan loves life and is a “minstrel at large” and “merrymaker extraordinaire” as he calls himself. He was really fun to put in a scene to grate on the nerves of such a dark, serious assassin.

You mention a Doelm race can you enlighten us to what that is?Doelms are one of our many dark races. People will probably most compare them to Orcs, but we were going for something different than Tolkien’s original vision. Unlike Orcs, Doelms were not spawned by twisted experiments on Elves. Doelms were created like other beings in our world and contain a dark midnight beauty. A lion or a bear for instance can scare you to death, but they are still beautiful creatures. You can think of them as more apish versions of Doelms, but we also tried to make them more human and less beastly.
Doelms have glowing solid yellow eyes that look quite frightening at night, but on a Doelm female they look beautiful and exotic. Doelmesses are actually surprisingly beautiful. The race once had a great civilization, but after suffering a defeat at the hands of Doljinaar they tumbled back into the tribal eras. They scar their bodies with claw marks to resemble tribal markings. Doelms can range from four to seven feet tall; their size determines their caste.

If you want to know more about Doelms this blog contains a TON of Doelm artwork and details:Chronicles of Covent

In each novel we are to expect new reveals of new characters, races and creatures. Which sounds incredibly awesome! May you give us a sneak peek into one of them in your upcoming novel?The next novel will feature the Shaltearan Brotherhood’s elite and more importantly, Raithe! Raithe is a cocky young upstart who has got his eyes on overtaking Shade as the world’s top assassin. Worse, he’s got the skills to back up his mouth. Raithe, pronounced like the word “wraith”, can best be described as a ghost assassin. He can float through the sky, pass through walls, cause his body to dematerialize to avoid strikes and he wields a pair of the coolest daggers in fantasy history!
Keep an eye on our official killer homepage for the character, races and creatures updates:www.chroniclesofcovent.com


When shall we expect your next Novel is this series?
The next novel is called Kingsblood, which is Shade’s 2^nd novel. It will be released late 2012 or early 2013. I am so excited about this book since our readers’ group said this next book takes Shade to the next level. We’re starting to peel away at Shade’s hard callous lifestyle and find out whether he still has good within him. Shade has an unwanted tagalong in the next book who forces him break out of his coldblooded killer mold. He also plays the unlikely role of an anti-hero since he must not only kill his marks, but stop another assassination attempt. There is so much more on the line in Shade 2. 

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Funny Questions about you
Football or Basketball? J. L. would say basketball (he’s taller). J. E. would say football (he’s buffer).

Computer or Pen? Laptop all the way, we’re word jugglers, though J. E. is a bit artistic too.

Soda or Water? Water, J. L. is fighting off the belly in his older years.


You can Find The Chronicles of Convent on
Chronicles of Covent homepage: www.chroniclesofcovent.com
Chronicles of Covent on Wordpress
Chronicles of Covent on Facebook
Chronciles of Covent on Twitter

Author Bio's

J. L. Ficks graduated from Illinois State University with a degree in English Studies. He worked as a freelance writer and ghostwriter for six years. He now works as an adjuster and spends his spare time working on his own writing during low storm activity periods. He is married and has one son.

J.E. Dugue currently resides in Chicago with his wife Lindsey and their cat Diesel. He is a professional musician, a coffee and beer connoisseur, and spends most hours writing stories and music. J. E.’s soothing voice can be found on his album website, Ave Moi, which means “with me”: http://album.avecmoimusic.com/