Flash Gold Chronicles Q & A

I’m continuing to work through the questions from my “ask a question and get entered to win an Amazon gift certificate” (still open!) post. We’ve done a general Emperor’s Edge Q & A and one just on Sicarius. Today, let’s tackle the Flash Gold series (I’ll do the tackling; you can just read.)

Jenna asks:

When shall we expect the next Flash Gold installment (My friend and I are really anxious to see what happens next . . . )?

And Diana asks:

Are there more “Flash Gold” stories in the works?

I’m just starting to work on the next story, so I don’t have a date yet, but I’ll shift more focus to it soon (I’m sending EE3 off to the editor next week, and then I’ll be done working on that).

Ed asks:

I read a LOT, mostly books with lots of pages because there will always be a lot of info on not only the people in the story but the story itself. BUT, I’ve read both Flash Gold books and I have to tell you, you did an awesome job on both points while still making it great reading.

So I have to ask, are you working on the 3rd book or are we just going to be left hanging like so many TV shows do to us?

Thanks, Ed. Glad you are enjoying them! I’m not planning to leave anyone hanging! I’m not sure yet how many Flash Gold stories there will be, but I like to wrap things up (eventually). 😉

Amy asks:

Hubs and I are LOVING Flash Gold. Are you going to do more with that series? We particularly enjoy the unexpected setting, and the character interactions are fabulous.

And while we’re asking, how did you decide on the setting for Flash Gold? Because it’s just so not what one expects from any of the categories I’ve seen the series assigned.

Glad to hear it, Amy! I’d like to do at least six stories, so it should end up being the equivalent of a couple of novels. Of course, once Kali gets her airship built, they might have to go off on more adventures around the world. We’ll see!

As for the setting, I’ve always liked the Old West, since it was wild and uncivilized, leaving lots of potential for adventure. I decided to head up to the Yukon, since I was a big fan of Jack London as a kid and read lots of other books set up there.

Molly asks:

Do you have any plans for a longer entry (novel length for preference) in the Flash Gold storyline? I love the novellas (and everything else you’ve written to be honest) but something with a little more meat to it would be fantastic too. Flash Gold and Hunted ended too quick, I want more! 😉

I’m glad to hear that you want more, Molly! I won’t say I’ll never do a novel with the characters, but I’m choosing to do novellas right now since they’re something I can work on when I need a break from the books in my other series. It takes a lot longer to write a novel (especially since mine are always over 100,000 words!), so I like that I can finish a novella in a month or so. Once I finish with The Emperor’s Edge series, I’ll have to see where things go.

Ryan asks:

I have just put together a couple of stories that required research (and got bogged down in a third – too much research), and also began reading Flash Gold.

I always like authentic settings, and I’m enjoying the Gold Rush feel in FG. I was just wondering how much you knew, and how much research you did for FG – and perhaps other stories.

I know what you mean, Ryan. Sometimes I start looking something up on the web, and then twenty web sites and an hour later, I’ve learned all sorts of good stuff…but it isn’t what I started out looking up. Sometimes I just end up on Facebook or Twitter. 😀

I take some liberties with my stories, but I try to get the names of the towns and river right and a feel for the time period. I don’t really trust my memory, so I look up most things before including them in a story.

The next adventure will have our heroes tramping around Dawson more, so I’m trying to figure out what some of the local businesses and such were, and they’ll be visiting the local Hän camp (Kali’s mother’s people), too, so I’m reading up on those guys to get the details right.

With my high fantasy stories, I get to make up my own world, but I still do quite a bit of research on the technology of the time period, trying to figure out what might be viable (even if there’s a little magic helping things out!). I’ve spent a lot of time reading about early diving suits, steam-powered ships, and steam vehicles. There are some great videos on YouTube of steam engines and trucks if you’re ever bored.

Okay, that’s it for the Flash Gold questions. Thanks for asking them, folks, and thanks for reading!