I am delighted to be participating in the book tour for Guardian of the Moon Pendant by Laura J. Williams. Today, I have for you an author interview with Laura.
Guardian of the Moon Pendant
Publication: September 4, 2012
Pages: 304
Publisher: Indie
Buy it: Amazon | Kindle | B&N
The MacAlpin women are of a fierce clan, born from a rare bloodline that harbors a dark and powerful secret – a mystical heirloom called the Moon Pendant. It is the key to controlling the MääGord standing stones, a magical Portal into the Otherworld, the realm of the Fae.
Anabel and Izzy’s MacAlpin are two sisters, polar opposites, living separate lives. Anabel’s life is going precisely according to her plan. Izzy’s life is filled with scars and wounds from her past. These two sisters’s worlds are about to explode when one of them must go to Scotland and fulfill her duty as the Guardian of the Moon Pendant. There’s only one problem. The Baobhan Sith desires the Moon Pendant to take control over the Portal, take revenge on the MacAlpin clan, and quench her eternal thirst for human blood.
Anabel finds herself torn between a sinfully handsome Scottish warrior, Blane and her fiancée, Edgar. Izzy finds herself angered by her sister’s lack of faith in her. Both are forced to help one another, but may end up killing each other in the end. Will these two sisters put aside their differences before the final task to charge the Moon Pendant, or will the Baobhan Sith, the vampiric faery be successful and open the Portal into the Otherworld?
Author Interview
Welcome to Imaginary Reads, Laura. To start, please tell us a little about yourself and how you got into writing.
Oh, I hate talking about myself, but if I must I must. 😉
I’m the youngest of nine children, born and raised on Long Island, New York. Growing up in a large Irish family the older siblings had a tendency to talk a lot to each other and not to me ‘the baby’ as we traveled in our super-sized van to different destinations along the eastern seaboard. So, I tended to be quiet, staring out the window daydreaming, waiting for the next meal or the next bathroom stop!
As I say, I’m just a daydreamer with a story to tell.
When I was young I remember I wanted to be a writer but never knew what to write. I created a few plays when I was a kid in school, but that was about it.
After college I lived in Edinburgh, Scotland doing volunteer work with the L’Arche community. I worked with mentally handicapped adults as a house assistant. One day I was climbing Arthur’s Seat, an extinct volcano in the center of Edinburgh, also known as Holyrood Park, and a wonderful idea for a story popped into my mind.
Since then, I’ve been studying Celtic Mythology, character development, plot, writing techniques, and creating my own mythological Celtic world.
That’s so cool. I was actually at Edinburgh for a weekend trip this summer while studying abroad in England. What kind of research did you do for Guardian of the Moon Pendant?
I’ve been doing research on Celtic mythology for about seventeen years now. For the Scottish Fae it’s been about 2-3 years. One of things I aim to do is to bring real existing Celtic Fae into the main stream. Many people don’t know how many cool and unique types of Celtic Fae are out there. Guardian of the Moon Pendant is based, of course, in Scotland. Once we pass through the Portal, then I can explore all different types of Celtic Fae, different mythologies, and swirl it together with my own personal twist.
I appreciate how you’re bringing the Celtic Fae to the public, and I love the Scottish setting. Why did you decide to set the story there?
I love Scotland too! I decided to set the story there because it’s just plain ‘ol cool and it allowed me to establish and explore my world of the Scottish Fae. Book Two will have more Celtic Fae (Irish, Scottish, Welsh) and Book Three will be based in Ireland with of course Irish Fae. I believe I’ll have a total of 4+ books. But don’t hold me to that.
Anabel and Izzy are polar opposites. What kind of dynamics went into the making of their relationship?
First off, I have to say, I have a HUGE family. I have three sisters and five brothers and a crazy amount of cousins and friends all from large families. From my observations most family dynamics have one sibling who is the golden child and another who is the rebel.
It’s the duality of human nature to have polar opposites. The Ying and the Yang, North and South, Hot and Cold, Good and Evil, Demons and Angels.
When you have two opposites like Anabel and Izzy you can easily play off those different mentalities.
Anabel is all about control and Izzy is uncontrolled. And yet as a reader you can also relate to them by seeing different parts of your own personality in them. Each has a lesson to learn as the plot moves along and each one is flawed by what they believe to be their own personal strengths. They are both set in motion to make the reader think, what would I do?
Did any of the characters surprise you in particular as the story developed?
Yes. Izzy surprised me a lot. I knew she was hard as nails, but I didn’t realize how funny she was. She still cracks me up!
Guardian of the Moon Pendant is charged with four elements. Do you have a particular affinity for one of the elements?
I’m leaning toward the element of air, since I’m an air sign. With air, at least in my world, you can create impenetrable hurricane force winds, fly, and lift large objects to throw at people.
It’s a useful element, isn’t it! If you could hang out with one of the characters at a location mentioned somewhere in the story, who would it be and where would you go?
I’d love to hang out with Izzy. We could lie on our backs within the MääGord Standing Stones and stare up at the stars.
What are you working on right now?
I’m working on second book for Guardian of the Moon Pendant which I’ll go into the Otherworld and explore that realm.
It’s gonna be fun – yet cool! I’m so excited!
day-dreamer with a story to tell, doing her best to kick arse. She hides behind a shroud of anonymity, creating a world of lost mythical creatures, breathing life into them, and praying that someone will take pleasure in her work.
Author: Crystal
A story girl at heart, Crystal is a bibliophile who can easily spend the day immersed in a good read. She writes under the name Kristy Wang. You can follow her writing adventures on X and Instagram @_kristywang.
Susan says
Great interview! I love the twist and how the Celtic Fae and the sisters are at the center of this book.
Crystal says
Thanks, Susan! I love the Celtic Fae element as well!