Palmer Pickering has been writing fiction since she was eight. She received her BA in American Studies from Wesleyan University, with concentrations in Religion and Race Relations.
She currently works in Silicon Valley in the gaming industry and high tech. In addition, Palmer holds a certificate in Chinese Acupressure, is a certified solar panel installer, and studied Tibetan Buddhism with the 14th Dalai Lama.
She lives and writes in the magical redwood forest of the Santa Cruz Mountains, California.
Her latest book is the scifi fantasy for adults, Moon Deeds: Star Children Saga Book One.
You can visit her website at www.MythologyPress.com or connect with her on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram and Pinterest.
Q: Can you tell us what your new book is about?
- “Light
Fighters” is the sequel to “Moon Deeds” and is the second book of an
adult science-fantasy series. “Light Fighters” takes the main
characters, twenty-year-old twins Cassidy and Torr, on a journey to
unlock their shamanic powers and evade those who want to steal the power
for themselves. Cassidy and Torr’s task is to find our ancestors on a
lost planet across the galaxy and save Earth from a brutal dictatorship,
but they quickly realize that magic is the only way they can accomplish
this seemingly impossible feat. The problem is, they haven’t accessed
much of their
inherited powers, and they don’t know how to do so. Much
to their despair, they discover that confronting difficulties brings out
their powers.
Q: Can you tell us a little about your main and supporting characters?
- Cassidy has studied plant-spirit medicine, and she had the gift of clairvoyance blocked by her grandmother. She is slowly learning to unblock her second-sight but doesn’t always like what she sees.
-Torr was in the rebel army on Earth and now finds himself leading a gang on the moon. He is a dreamwalker and learns a little about who he was in the past, as well as discovering a few otherworldly companions who help him unravel some mysteries.
-Jasper is their childhood friend and the third in the prophesied triad. He is a trader who makes his fortune on the black market, associating with some unsavory characters.
-Ridge runs the largest mine on the moon as well as an interstellar spaceport. Unfortunately, he has come under the thumb of a sadistic general who needs his help.
Q: Your book is set mostly on Earth’s moon in the near future. Can you tell us why you chose this location in particular?
-In this story, the moon is a last outpost of freedom from an invading army on Earth. It is also part of a cosmological puzzle that needs solving.
Q: How long did it take you to write your book?
-I have been working on the series for over ten years and have a lot of content written for the series. However, it’s the editing process that has taken a long time, as well as building out additional characters and finishing the arc of the first trilogy, before I move on to the rest of the story.
Q: What has been the most pivotal point of your writing life?
-I would say it was the point when I decided to self-publish. That’s when I really got serious about improving my craft to the level where I felt comfortable releasing my work to the public.
Q: What kind of advice would you give other fantasy and science-fiction authors?
-I think for many speculative fiction writers, we get intrigued by our worldbuilding and magic systems or science-fiction tech. Sometimes I think writers of this genre put character development or even plot behind worldbuilding. But without a strong plot and characters readers care about, all the descriptions or future tech cannot hold a story together on its own. Make sure to work on all three aspects of the craft. Work hard, get feedback, keep learning, and have fun!!
