When I ask an author if he would like to do an interview, we usually communicate via e-mails. This is when I have the opportunity to get to know the person, not just the writer. When I located Mr. Mixter on Facebook I was able to observe pictures of his ‘real life’ storybook. As I introduce Mr. Mixter to the Underground, there are two words that come to mind: loyal and humble. Mr. Mixter is humble, yet knows he has something important to share, has a deep understanding for what is right for himself, but allows others the same privilege, and is totally dedicated to his wife, family and friends. Welcome Randy Mixter.

Kimberly: Will you tell us a bit about your background?

Mr Mixter: I have been writing since I was a teenager. I have had my poetry and other writings published locally. I have also written articles for a local paper and have won an award for creative writing. My first published book consisted of short stories about growing up in Baltimore City in the 1960s, titled The Boys of Northwood. My second novel, Sarah Of The Moon, is a fictional love story, with a touch of mystery, that takes place in San Francisco during the 1967 Summer of Love. I recently completed and published Letters From Long Binh: Memoirs of a Military Policeman in Vietnam. That book is based on the letters I wrote home to my wife during a 1967 tour of duty in Vietnam. My short story, Eternal, will be published this spring by Sleeping Cat Books in the book anthology, The Storm Is Coming.

Since my retirement from a security position with local government, I have been able to devote more time to my wife, five cats and, of course, my writing.

Kimberly: How did your novel Sarah Of The Moon happen to evolve? Was it inspired by a true story? There are a lot of factual details, so if your novel is not based on what you personally experienced, how did you do your research?

Mr. Mixter: Several years ago I wrote a prologue and a epilogue to a book I called Sarah Of The Moon. The handwritten papers went into a desk drawer. In the autumn of 2010 I was recovering from heart surgery. I had just published my first book, The Boys Of Northwood, and thought this to be the perfect time to revisit Sarah. I began to write without any plot outline. I knew the beginning and the ending, but that was all. Luckily as I developed my characters the story came to me, a chapter at a time. Many readers have asked me if I've ever been to San Francisco. I have not. During the 1967 summer of love, I was military policeman in Vietnam. I researched the time and the place, then allowed my imagination to fill in the blanks.

Kimberly: As I read your novel, the one thing that kept coming back to me was how uninformed people were about the “Hippy” movement. Yes, there were those who were a part of it because they were into drugs more than cause, however the premise of the movement was heartfelt. Do you feel the movement had an impact on the future? How?

Mr. Mixter: I have always been fascinated with the so-called 'Hippie' culture and the music that came from it. I believe that shows throughout the book. I wanted to write a story that focused on their lifestyle and would hopefully depict these free spirits as more than druggies. I personally feel the majority of those young people believed in the tenants of peace and love and were trying to change the world for the better. It was also important to me that my three main characters, Sarah, Alex, and Matt were drug free throughout most of the novel. Although drugs played a significant role in the culture, I wanted my main characters to be enlightened without the use of drugs. In my book, I separated the true hippie from his weekend counterpart. It's significant to note the difference between the two factions in that the first group wanted to make change and the second just wanted to get high.

I would like to think the peace protests of the 1970's, which in some ways helped to end the war in Vietnam, and the protests of today can be traced back to the hippies of the '60s, and, of course, the summer of love. I also believe the movement was instrumental in passing anti-racism laws in the late 1960s and 1970s and undoubtedly was responsible for generating an interest in environmental concerns such as clean air and water, organic farming, and recycling.

You’ve finished your first novel. Good for you. Now, pull your hand away from the send button on your first query, because you’re not ready. You aren’t even close. Let me save you months, or even years, of painful heartache and frustration. I want to introduce you to a place that will prepare you and your manuscript for the realities of the publishing industry.

A few months ago we at Underground Book Reviews were invited to participate in a new concept called Author Salon. Author Salon is a website with four goals: 
1) Be the preferred source of discovery for literary agents, producers, and publishers  2) Serve as an online writers conference  
3) Provide a work space for the writing community
4) Become a source for myth-free news and facts on the publishing industry. 
Let me put it another way: If writing were like baseball, Author Salon takes you from the farm clubs to your first tryout with the Yankees. It doesn’t guarantee you a spot on the team, but it will show you how to hit, field, spit and wear the uniform like a big leaguer. This is how it works.

Joining Author Salon is intentionally detailed and time-consuming. This process forces you to delve deep into your manuscript and ask yourself serious question about your project.  The profile is broken into four major sections: Project Notes and Query, Writer Bio and Goals, Plot and Story Matters, and Prose and Narrative Elements. A step-by-step guide, employing a disciplined methodology, leads authors through the rigorous process of building their profile. Ultimately, a well-honed profile is a standing query that clearly describes your book in a way that gets the right attention.

If Author Salon does anything, it teaches you how to pitch your novel and craft a solid query.  The profile is about selling your book and selling yourself. Once you complete your draft profile the real work begins; now it’s time to tear it all down and start over in Author Connect.

After your initial profile is complete you’ll enter the world of Author Connect, Author Salon’s companion online workspace. Here you’ll collaborate with other writers in your genre to improve your profile and, by extension, your manuscript. This process begins with a “call for peers” where you invite other writers to critique your profile using a rigid methodology. You will also critique their work. These are NOT critiques of the novels, but of the profiles. How well do you understand and describe your novel? If done correctly, a feedback loop will emerge between your profile and your manuscript.

This improvement loop helps elevate your profile and manuscript to clearly defined standards. These standards are available to Author Salon members via guides, tutorials and templates. These critiques are painstaking, detailed, and often brutal in their honesty. Not only are your peers reviewing your profile, but so is Author Salon staff. Critiques are always professional and never personal. This is where the real learning occurs. You’ll probably discover you may have to rewrite your profile...and maybe even your whole novel.

As your profile and manuscript improves, you’ll eventually move up the Author Salon four-tiered system. These tiers indicate the quality of your profile and its readiness for both agents and publishers. You’ll enter Author Salon at “In Production I” and eventually progress up the ladder to “Marquee.” By Marquee-level, your profile has been through at least four rounds of peer critiques, peer votes, and an Author Salon advisor review.  This process is neither quick nor easy. Patience is a must.

Here’s the pay-off and what makes Author Salon truly different. Agents and editors roam the virtual halls of Author Salon. While they likely concentrate on the projects at Marquee-level, they can tap anyone at any level at any time. It’s not a given, but you may just get your big break here. Even if you don’t, upon reaching Marquee-level, you can feel confident in your ability to pitch your manuscript.

Now that I told you what Author Salon is, I can tell you what it is not. It’s not a writing circle or review site for people who are tinkering with the idea of becoming writers. This is for serious work-to-publish authors. It’s for professionals; those who don’t follow the rules are shown the door. It is also not for the faint-of-heart or thin-skinned. Your peers and the site facilitators will be blunt. If you do not heed their advice, you don’t move up the tiers. 

For those considering self-publication, I think Author Salon is a must. In Author Salon, you’ll learn how to write a hook line, a synopsis, define your conflict, and put your best samples on display. Author Salon is an excellent tool for any writer, regardless of desired publishing source.

Author Salon is still in early beta-testing with a small, but growing stable of writers. Like any emergent website, it’s still evolving. However, while it’s in beta-testing joining is free. After this widow closes it will cost $9.99 a month, or $79.00 a year, to join.

Only time will time will tell if Author Salon lives up to its potential, but so far it looks promising. We at the Underground will keep you posted as our journey continues. 

You can find Author Salon here.

If you enjoyed this post, you can follow Brian on Facebook or Twitter. You can also subscribe to the Underground.

Please welcome Coral Moore, author of Broods of Fenrir, an urban fantasy adventure.

Katie: On your website you call Broods of Fenrir an urban fantasy adventure. Can you define that genre for us? What about your novel settles it in that category?

Coral: I've never been asked that, what a great question! Well, I had a lot of trouble figuring out where Broods belonged after I wrote it. I was trying to decide if I wanted to put it in Urban Fantasy or Paranormal Romance. I thought there was a case to be made for either, and I still do. While I was discussing the options with one of my beta readers, she said she thought it was more like a fantasy adventure because of the action and the fast pace. I decided she was right and started calling Broods an Urban Fantasy Adventure from that day on. Adding the word adventure puts the emphasis on the action of the book rather than angst-ridden navel-gazing that a lot of UF gets into. Brand really doesn’t wonder why he gets into the situation he finds himself in, he just takes action to resolve it.

Katie: In the wake of Twilight and similar books, how do you keep paranormal romance fresh while still satisfying the mandatory troupes readers come to expect?

Coral: It’s really tough. There are a few staples that paranormal readers look for and I think you’ve got to stay true to those. You have to have a hero that kicks butt in some way. You have to have a love interest, possibly more than one. You have to have some sort of magical something that defies explanation in our modern world. Those aspects are like the framework of a house. What you put on the outside and inside can make your house look completely different, but at its heart the house is still going to be a Ranch or a Colonial. From that frame you can go whatever direction you like, and I think it’s important to put your own spin on it so that the house—or story—is yours. Are there aspects of my werewolves that are similar to others? Sure, they are humanoids that turn into wolves. That’s why I didn’t make up some other name for them. I’ve departed from the traditional werewolf lore quite a bit though and I think I ended up somewhere completely different.

Katie: Some say the paranormal market is saturated, that the very mention of werewolves and vampires sends audiences running for the hills. What’s your take on the future for paranormal literature?

Coral: I’m sure you’re expecting this response since I write paranormal, but I don’t think it’s saturated at all! Like anything that becomes popular or fashionable, there are a lot of derivative works of the new hotness, but I don’t think that means there isn’t any room for more any more than I think the horror market is full because of Stephen King and Clive Barker. There will always be room for good stories. I think paranormal will continue to grow. What readers of UF and PNR love is that small parts of the fantastic bleed into a world they can recognize as their own. The allure is that magic exists, but we just can’t see it. I don’t think the desire to read about paranormal creatures is going anywhere. Hopefully we’ll continue to see more diversification in terms of what kinds of creatures we see and twists on the usual tropes.