Author Interview & Giveaway - Day Unto Night by Tammy Jo Eckhart

 

Day Unto Night

by TammyJo Eckhart

 GENRE:   Vampire 

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BLURB:

 A Sumerian child named Ningai survives the murder of her entire family and cries out to her people’s gods, who answer her prayer in an unexpected way. Now, as the first of the Akhkharu, the living dead, Ningai embarks on a journey across the millennia to rebuild what she lost. The best of her offspring must maintain some shred of goodness to prove worthy to their Child-Mother while fighting the deadly impulses of their kind. Join their journeys across time in a series of interconnected stories from the earliest cities to a brutal future where humans are mere pawns in the hands of near gods. Like all of us, Ningai and the best of her children will stop at nothing to protect her family. Can they succeed before they lose what’s left of their humanity, or will all of humanity become enslaved to the Akhkharu forever?

 

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Excerpt: 

Jack sat up on the roof of what had once been the Library of Congress, looking out toward the ocean, which he could not see, even with his improved eyesight.  A century ago, he may have been dismo, thinking about the waves, his board, and the feeling of it all, but now he couldn’t even clearly remember what “dismo” meant.  Only a deep, tiny twinge flickered through his heart when he reached up to caress his buzzed blond hair that resembled his master’s own haircut.  He’d changed his hairstyle within a few decades of his transformation into wardum, not because Cornelius had commanded it, as he doubted the Akhkharu even noticed his hair, but because he’d caught the looks and comments other vampires and their servants had been giving him as he’d circulated within the dark venues of the Night Kingdom. 

No, there wasn’t much left of surfer dude Jack anymore. 

He’d been replaced with someone more focused on the almighty texts that they protected and censored below.  Jack glanced down and saw the flicker of light, so he stood, then bounded down the roof and the side of the building to meet his contact below. 

No, Jack wasn’t just some vampire’s obedient slave, at least not in these moments. 

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Talking with Tammy Jo Eckhart

What is your writing environment? 

I am blessed to have a dedicated office space that is just for my writing, whether it is fiction or non-fiction. I don’t have all the books I might need as references, but I have a lot of them in the office. I also have a to-be-reviewed shelf in the office, because I’m always getting in books that publishers want me to review. I have a full-size desk with multiple tiers. I have a big monitor screen now and a pull-out drawer for my keyboard and mouse. I have a decent chair, but I wish it were better. I sit 90 degrees from a window so I can turn my head and look outside to keep my vision from locking up. I learned in graduate school that helps prevent eye deterioration. I wish I had better lighting in my room, but all in all, I love my office.

What is your writing process? 

It varies slightly depending on what I’m writing. 

If I’m writing non-fiction, it would be for a collection or magazine that I’ve probably been approached to contribute to. In that case, it likely relates to my fields of scholarship, teaching, activism, or my personal life. I don’t have to do a lot of research in that case. For a few years, I was writing a biweekly history article for a local women’s group, and that did take hours of research to not only pick a subject (connected to the month and date that the post was to go live) but also to write it. 

If I’m writing fiction, it also depends on why I’m writing it. When I decide to focus on short stories, I keep an eye out for open magazines or anthologies, to find a theme or subject that sounds interesting. I give that a day to sit in my head. If I haven’t thought of a story in 24 hours, I move on to the next call-out. 

If I’m working on short stories or a novel on my own, I have pages of ideas and beginning drafts I can draw from. I go there first. Then I let those sit for a week or so. Usually the ideas turn into dreams, and those dreams start me typing.

What authors have caught your interest lately and why? 

While I am a book reviewer (primarily for Amazon Vine and a couple of publishing houses), it takes a lot to impress me enough to make me remember a new author’s name. Right now, I’m impressed with the alternative and dark fantasy world created by Justina Ireland. I’m not allowing myself to read the second book of her Dread Nation series until I’ve sent in the next book to my own publisher. That will be my reward.

What was your inspiration for this particular novel? 

I’ve always loved vampires, ever since I was a child. At the same time, I’m a very picky fan of vampires. While I give it all a try, I don’t love the angst or the whininess of some vampires that have become popular over the decades. An outright monster, though, is also unappealing. I wanted to do something unique, so I looked farther and farther back in time and discovered a potential vampire-like entity that the ancient Sumerians mentioned, though not much information is given. That allowed me freedom to expand and develop a new mythos while meeting some current expectations for what vampires are and can do. 

What is your favorite scene in your new release? 

You’re asking for hints to the plot, aren’t you? Let me see what I can describe without giving too much away. In the middle story, there’s a horrific moment where Jon realizes that the vampire he’s in service to isn’t what she seems. That’s when the entire world starts to change, going from “Day” to “Night.” 

What are you working on now and when can we expect it to be available? 

I have the first four books in a series called Almost Partners contracted for, and the first one is due in the editor’s hands at the end of this month. It’s a mixture of social science fiction and reverse harem. Think old-fashioned feminist science fiction that’s been updated with dark romance edginess. I hope that book one will be out in 2022 and that there will be one book out every year after that through at least 2025.

What do you like to do when you are not writing? 

I am a huge movie and television viewer. I was raised on television in the 1970s. I find enjoyment in that idiot box or on the silver screen. I love a bad movie that I can make fun of while I watch it, too. MST3K girl right here! I’m especially fond of horror movies and TV shows.

What is one interesting fact about you that readers don’t know? 

I have a blog that I’ve been regularly publishing since February 2009 called “The Chocolate Cult.” I work with a group of volunteers to learn about and test chocolate of all types using a five-sense approach. We write about it in hopes of helping others make better decisions about what chocolate to spend their money and calories on. https://thechocolatecult.blogspot.com/

Top 3 things on your bucket list? 

Travel back to Italy and Greece and take my entire family with me. 

Travel to Hawaii and Alaska so I can say that I have visited all 50 states (if more states get added, I’d have to travel to them, too). 

Travel throughout the UK and Europe to see where my family of birth came from.

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AUTHOR Bio and Links: 

TammyJo Eckhart, PhD, is the published author of science fiction, fantasy, contemporary, horror, and historical fiction. Her non-fiction works covering subjects ranging from history to alternative sexuality to relationship advice and the challenges of trauma recovery. She holds a PhD in Ancient History with doctoral minors in Gender & Sexuality and Folklore.  Her blog, The Chocolate Cult, has been the go-to guide for chocolate lovers since 2009. She loves visiting conventions as well as organizations to read, sell books, or share her experiences and insights on various topics in the form of lectures or workshops. 

https://www.tammyjoeckhart.com/

https://www.instagram.com/thechocolatepriestess/ 

Dr. TammyJo Eckhart’s Edgy World @thetammyjo

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/The-Worlds-of-Tammyjo-Eckhart-497503123647950/

Goodreads:  https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/102009.TammyJo_Eckhart

Pinterest: https://www.pinterest.com/thetammyjo/

Twitter: https://twitter.com/thetammyjo

 

Buy Link:  Amazon 

 

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GIVEAWAY: 

TammyJo Eckhart will be awarding a $25 Amazon or Barnes and Noble GC to a randomly drawn winner via rafflecopter during the tour.

a Rafflecopter giveaway