Posted in Creekside Cafe, interview

Kaitlyn Kalor Visits Creekside Cafe

Kaitlyn Kalor is a 9-year Navy Vet, having spent most of the first decade of the century on active duty. She grew up in the Pacific Northwest, giving her a love of the mountains that she enjoys daily viewing as she now lives in Colorado. She holds a Bachelor of Science in Computer Security and a Master of Business Administration that she earned after the Navy. She has the weaknesses of Vampires, having porphyria. Vampiric myths about their sun weakness were based upon this illness. She is also a Transgender author.

https://www.amazon.com/author/kkalor

Welcome Kaitlyn Kalor to Creekside Café. I am so excited to be hosting my first author from Tea with Coffee Media https://twitter.com/TeaWCoffeeMedia. Thank you for stopping by my virtual café.

Kaitlyn: Thank you for letting me come by.

Sherri: You spent nine years in the Navy? I have a son who has been in for almost two years. He has just finished his rescue swimmer certification. What was your job in the Navy? Do you use it now that you are a civilian again? Does your time in the Navy influence any of your writing?

Kaitlyn: I was a computer repair for the first 6 years of my time in the Navy. My last 3 was spent as one of their white hat hackers. As a repair person, I managed to half fill a passport in 2 years traveling all over the world to include catching a flight to a carrier from Japan and flying out from Hong Kong. When I left the military, I worked for a Software company that developed software for the Government but after I left that job, the only aspect I still use is the technical writing I did for the Government.

I have a point in the book where one of the characters visit a native city whose design was directly influenced by the time I spent 3 months in Naples and the cities I visited while doing a network install there.

Sherri: You grew up in the Pacific Northwest, I have not been that far west. I’ve only been as far as Wyoming and New Mexico. My niece is out in Washington, and I hope to visit her and her wife one day. My sister-in-law has been out there a couple of times. Do you set any of your stories in Pacific Northwest? Where are your stories set?

Kaitlyn: I currently have no plans to use the Pac NW in the series due to the cultures I am involving. While I have several books planned for the Americas, the time frame puts most of the north under 2 km of ice. The books start 400,000 years in the past, but with Earth looking a little different. The image below is what Earth looks like at the start.

Book one starts between Africa and Asia, in a location that eventually becomes the Middle East. I have a plan that is very very loosely based upon a few scientific theories that will bring the planet inline with how we know the planet to look like.

Sherri: You hold a Bachelor of Science degree in Computer Security and a Master’s in Business Administration. No offense but they hardly seem like creative pursuits. How did you go from computer security and business to being an author?

Kaitlyn: At the time I picked up my degrees, I was heavily involved with both in my company. I started writing when I was 17, in the days of Dial up internet with a Star Trek Play By e-Mail Roleplay group. I started a book with a friend in 2003, but that was never finished due to life for both of us.

In 2015, my company let me go. My health at the time started to slide so I started to stream on Twitch until my pain was too much to focus. I will say this, writing good research papers did help my technical performance in writing.

Sherri: What does Pride Month mean for you?

Kaitlyn: I have no option for it. It’s taken decades for me to accept who I am and to figure it out that I am transgendered. This apathy is a side effect from growing up in a Super-Christian household who preached separation, so I disassociated a lot of things, from birthdays to all holidays as I just didn’t grow up with them.

Sherri: Do you know where your inspiration came from for your novel Dawn of Humanity or the series Generations of Humanity? Did you first get started with a character or scene?

Kaitlyn: The story idea came to me one day in early 2018 when I fell into that part of YouTube. The video suggested that Atlantis might have been in Western Africa, the Eye of the Sahara, or its other name, Richart Structure. By the time I had finished watching, I had a basic outline in my head, covering at least 25 books. It has undergone several revisions since then, but the primary story arc has remained the same.

Sherri: Are you a plotter or a pantser? How do you write? Is this your first novel? How long have you been writing?

Kaitlyn: This is my first completed novel that was started in 2018, but I’ve been writing since 1997, mostly Fanfiction.  I am a planster right now. Draft 1 was written by the seat of my pants, then I started using the snowflake method to plan out the rest of the series. Draft 1 was a dual timeline novel, with a group from today discovering the past and re-living memories of the Aliens. I ended up scrapping most of my first draft because the second half of the series didn’t work due to power creep, and I couldn’t find an interesting way to keep the current timeline involved with the past. When I went to do draft 2, I ripped out the modern timeline and everything slid into place.

Sherri: How many books will be in this series? What is the overall theme? What do you hope readers will think or feel when they finish your book?

Kaitlyn: The series is currently planned for 22 books plus an apocalyptic trilogy to wrap up everything at the end.

I am hopeful that my books have my readers looking into our history, learning about civilizations that helped create our current world. I have a plan to write worldwide cultures to include African and American Gods. Morimi is the Yoruba Goddess of Fire for example, and she will have a strong role in the series. 

Sherri: Tell me about some of your characters. How would you describe them? What is their theme song?

Kaitlyn: The series uses the concepts of the Yuga’s from Hinduism and Reincarnation. While my ages are shorter than the ones in Hinduism, the concept of the Earth going through Cycles is a key plot point. Right now, I plan on having 6 major ages.

With this in mind, we learn that Enki is a new soul, learning about the world for the first time, while his biological father, Enlil, has been reincarnated several times. Chronos as well. The Anunnaki and Annunaki Titans are Reptilian aliens. Think of the smaller creatures from 1993’s Jurassic Park (Their fake Raptors for example Dilophosaurus) but upright like Humans. They come in all kinds of shapes and sizes.

This is Papsukkal, Gaia’s bodyguard. He is dedicated to protecting her, as he protected her father and grandfather. He very much is like “Another One Bites the Dust” when defending his charges from attack.

Gaia, Khione, and Morimi are Humanaki, they can shift their body sizes from 3 meters plus to human size. They have powers of Earth, Water (Ice), and Fire respectively.

Enki’s Theme song is Immigrant Song by Led Zeppelin

F**kin’ Perfect by Pink is Gaia’s theme

Legendary is Chrono’s theme song.

Bad Blood by Taylor Swift is the theme when the two Sky Lords get ready to face off at the end.

Sherri: Kaitlyn, this has been fun. Give us 10 quick, fun facts about you.

Kaitlyn: I am one of the first Navy CTN ratting that was created in 2005. I am a Twitch streamer (when my health allows it), and a Twitch Moderator for a Twitch Partner.

I remember WebTV as my father was one of the few adopters of it. I was the kid who played Oregon Trail in computer labs on the old Apple IIe computers before I was homeschooled. I’ve used NetZero and Juno for dial up internet. My first home computer was a Commodore 64 where I’d end up playing games like F-14 Tomcat. I’d swipe the AOL floppy disc’s from the store entrance whenever I needed floppies.

Being homeschooled, I read a LOT of books. I’d ride my bike 10 miles to the local bookstore and spend the day reading, on most days back when Pagers were all the rage. I’d finish a paperback most days. That’s when I started my writing, via e-mail role play, but I never thought I would be good enough to become an actual author but here we are with my first book coming out 25 years later.

I love Tabletop RPGs, but I tend to be given the role of Game Master. I currently run a game based upon the book with a few from Tea With Coffee Media, for purely selfish reasons. They are helping me flush out the rest of the world.

As I live in Colorado, I grow my own cannabis in hydroponics for my pain management, but I’ve started branching out to grow things like Potatoes and other food in my grow tents.

Sherri: Congratulations on your debut novel. Good luck with your series. I look forward to hearing from you again.

If you all enjoyed this interview, check out Kaitlyn’s book “The Dawn of Humanity” available for pre-order, the links are below, follow her on social media and don’t forget to leave a review. Thanks again for stopping by.

Releases June 21st, 2022!

Book Blurb:

Thousands of years after their planet’s ruin, the Anunnaki and Titans led by Sky Lord An find their way to planet Earth. When this reptilian species lands on Earth, they discover a connection to their powers only described from the days of Olympus.

Sa-Tan Enki led a team of Anunnaki on a mission and set out to create a race of beings that mixed humanity with immortality. However, some of the Titans led by Chronos are unhappy with the creations. What happens when Chronos seeks revenge upon his brother Enlil? To cleanse the new planet of the bastard race, the Titans revolt against the newfound Olympians. Find out what happens in the first book of Generations of Humanity: Dawn of Humanity

My Social Media links are:

http://twitter.com/theciroth

https://www.amazon.com/author/kkalor

https://www.goodreads.com/kkalor

BookBub coming soon

Book Links Available for Pre-order! Releases June 21st!

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B09W4F2LX2?tag=publishdriv01-20&linkCode=osi&th=1&psc=1
https://itunes.apple.com/book/id1616162427
https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/dawn-of-humanity-k-kalor/1141251614?ean=9781957893006
https://play.google.com/store/books/details?id=z0FlEAAAQBAJ
https://www.kobo.com/ww/en/search?query=9781957893006
https://bookmate.com/books/fk6YtDTb
https://www.24symbols.com/book/english/k-kalor/dawn-of-humanity?id=4018970
https://www.gardners.com/Search/KeywordAnonymous/eBook?Keyword=9781957893006&fq=14123

If you are an author looking for a virtual coffee shop to hang out, stop by Creekside Cafe. We’ll treat you so many ways you’re bound to like one of them.

Posted in inspiration, my books, promo

October is almost over

When things go bump in the night…

This has been a busy month. It was supposed to be a month dedicated to writing, finishing my two Christmas novellas and working on my NaNoWriMo project. My friend, Vickie and I went to a writers’ retreat in Murfreesboro where we both were inspired to write something new. We had a lovely farewell ceremony for our fellow writer, Adrienne Dunning who died this summer. Adrienne was supposed to have joined us on this retreat. We’d made plans just hours before her death. We are none guaranteed tomorrow.

I took several days off this month to work on my stories, help my son move next door and spend time with family and friends but my mom fell…she spent three days in the hospital and now is in rehab. Life is altered in the blink of an eye. The good news is she is still with us, nothing is broken, my son got moved in and they’ve been feeding us, or rather we’ve been taking turns feeding each other. I even managed to finish both novellas, at least the ebook version. I’m hoping to have the print version available soon.

Only in My Dreams is a World War 2 romance. After her brother is killed at Pearl Harbor, Nurse Lydia Davis leaves her lover, pilot and mechanic, Jeremy Cross at the altar when she joins the Women’s Army Nurses Corp. The lovers are reunited at Christmas in England but will they renew their vows to each other or simply take comfort from the horrors of war?

This story was inspired by World War 2 Navy Nurse, Ann Windley, a strong and vital part of my community and someone I am blessed to call a friend.

https://books2read.com/u/bPQO0x

The novella is only 99 cents at any ebook retail store.

Posted in my books, promo

Titanium Blue

Tobias Anthony “Tar” Roberts returned from Afghanistan with a chip on his shoulder and missing half his leg. Some of his men weren’t as lucky, they didn’t come home at all. Pain in his body and his soul had him self medicating with pain pills and alcohol. He pushed his family away because it hurt too much to feel anything. When Jenna left to help her parents, he was relieved. When she didn’t return he sank deeper into depression until he reached his darkest moment.

Loving Tar was never the problem. Jenna fell in love with him nearly the first moment she met him but their whirlwind romance, early pregnancy and his deployment wasn’t conducive to a strong relationship. When he returned from Afghanistan he pushed her away. She had to protect her baby. Her father’s heart attack was just the excuse she needed to runaway.

Tar is back and he’s willing to do whatever he has to, even move to Leeward, to get his family back.

Excerpt from Titanium Blue

The stench of steaming crabs slapped him in the face as soon as he slid from the jeep. Tar gagged and considered getting back in and driving off. “God, I hate this place,” he grumbled. Leeward was the toe jam of eastern North Carolina, not the place to raise his son. He stretched, rubbing his knee above the rim of his artificial leg. The ride from Lejeune had been long. He was stiff and there’d been too much time to think. He wiped his sweaty palms on the legs of his pants. His stomach churned. The odor of seafood scraps broiling in the sunshine did little to soothe his mind or his stomach. I need to get Jenna and Toby away from here.

Tobias Anthony Roberts, known to his friends and fellow recruits as Tar, sighed. It wasn’t the first time he’d wondered when his life had gone to shit. He clenched his jaw, glaring at the manila envelope lying on the passenger seat. The bright white address label glowed against the orangey color of the envelope. Tar licked his lips, wishing for something cool to quench his thirst. Jenna wanted a divorce.  He shouldn’t be surprised. They’d not lived together for almost two years.

A flash of dark red hair caught his attention. He watched his wife through the cracked glass of the huge front window. Mac’s really let this place go to hell. Tar noted the peeling and powdering paint, the drooping gutters and broken concrete. He’d heard in rehab Mac had suffered another heart attack. The first one had been the excuse Jenna used for leaving him. She would have found another if it hadn’t happened.

A hot wind pushed sand across the parking lot. His heart raced and fear clogged his throat. It took a great deal of concentration and deep breathing to remind himself it wasn’t the smell of raw sewage, petrol and exotic spices mingling with unwashed bodies assaulting his nasal passages, but the aroma of grease, newly turned earth and the local crab house still in production even though it was early October. The damn season should be over. When would it cool off? The reality burned away the waking nightmare. You’re not in Afghanistan. He repeated it over and over until the feeling passed.

I shouldn’t have come. I’m not ready to be a husband or father again. Jenna passed the window, smiling at a customer. Like the first rays of sunlight when you’d been too long in the dark, her smile lit up the room. The pain, not to his eyes but to his chest, reminded him of why he’d come. You may not get a second chance. The jeep chimed, reminding him he’d not shut the door. You’re draining the battery, idiot. He considered climbing back into the jeep and riding back to Camp Lejeune.

Coward. He could face Afghan soldiers but the prospect of confronting his hundred and twenty-pound estranged wife left him shaking in his boots. Well, his Reeboks at least. He was processing out of the Corp. Would she care? Would it matter? Once a Marine, always a Marine! Tobias Anthony Roberts was no coward! He could handle one little five-foot-eight redhead. He swallowed the lump in his throat. He hoped.

https://books2read.com/u/bzWOrq

Posted in event, Thoughts

Happy Veteran’s Day

I’m so proud of the military men and women who have touched my life and heart.

I come from a long line of veterans. My father, uncles and cousins served in every branch of the military. My father was in the Air Force when he married my mother and when I was born. My uncles were in the Navy, Coast Guard and merchant marines. My cousin served many years in the Army. My middle son and his wife also served in the Army, in fact, that is where they met and became friends, and later, fell in love. My youngest is now serving in the Navy. My father-in-law, his brothers and his brother-in-law were all Marines, and all in Viet Nam at the same time. I come from a long line of veterans and I joined a family who also proudly served their country.

While my husband nor I served in the military, service to our country and community has been ingrained in us. We support our military veterans and proudly raise our flag. We honor those who sacrificed to keep us free. For many, being in the military is a job, for others a calling, but for those of us who are free today because of our veterans, it is a blessing.

We are proud to be American citizens and even with all the blemishes we still feel this country is a beauty. She is not perfect for she is made up of humans and none of us are perfect. We strive to be better to continue to build bridges that allow us to reach the other side. I don’t know what it means to be a person of color in this country, but I can open my heart and listen. I don’t know what it means to be a non-Christian in a country built on “in God we Trust,” but I can be respectful of our differences and learn acceptance. I don’t know what it means to be gay, handicapped or anyway marginalized but I can be a friend, an advocate, a neighbor.

As we celebrate Veteran’s Day, let us remember what they fought for…OUR FREEDOM. All men (and women) are created equal and endowed by their creator with certain unalienable rights: life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.

Thank you to all who have served and to all those who are still serving this country. Thank you for doing a difficult job. God Bless the USA.

Posted in audio books, Book Review

What Doesn’t Kill Her by Christina Dodd

What Doesn’t Kill Her by Christina Dodd Narrated by Vanessa Johansson

When your whole life is built on a lie and you are living a constant nightmare it is difficult to trust anyone, even the man you love. For Kellen Adams, the person she trusts the least is herself. A year-long memory gap, a nightmare and a seven-year-old daughter she never knew threaten to undermine the fragile foundation she has built after running off to join the military.

Someone wants her dead and is willing to go to great lengths to see that it happens, but Kellen Adams isn’t easy to kill. But she has a vulnerability. Though she has tried to avoid getting close to her daughter, when the little girl shows up on a job, she discovers quickly how easy it would be for someone to get to her through the child. After surviving the job, she starts planning a wedding and if she survives, she might live to see her happy ever after.

This is an awesome story, I want to go back and read the rest of the series.

Vanessa Johansson is a fantastic narrator adding her own dramatic reading to an already wonderful story. Being a fan of audiobooks, it is truly important to find the right narrator for your story, Vanessa gives Kellen the voice that rings true to character.