WOLF NOTES: An Uncommon Interview – Loren Rhoads

Welcome to WOLF NOTES, where interview questions stray from the rest of the pack. It’s nice to know the usual stuff like where an author gets their inspiration and why they write, but sometimes we need a little fun in our lives.

Photo taken by Anna Carson Dewitt.

Loren Rhoads is the author of a space opera trilogy, co-author of a duology about a succubus, and has written a whole bunch of short stories about Alondra DeCourval, a witch who hunts monsters.  You can learn more about her work at lorenrhoads.com.

Wolf: Great to have you here on Wolf Notes. What is the strangest food you’ve ever eaten?

Loren: When the Eat-A-Bug Cookbook came out, the local science museum hosted a book release party.  Instead of a simple signing or a reading, the author did a cooking show.  I tried the Orthopteran Orzo (pasta salad with cricket nymphs) and a sugar cookie starred with white chocolate chunks and pudgy wax moth larvae.  It was the first time in my life that I thought: make sure you get a bite with a bug in it.  I still regret that he didn’t make enough Scorpion Scaloppine for everyone to try.

Wolf: That’s a cool idea. I haven’t eaten any bug, but that’s probably the best way to try them. If you had to pick a weapon, what would it be and why?

Loren: I’d like to be able to kill people with my mind. I promise I wouldn’t misuse the power.

Wolf: I’ve heard that before. What is the nicest thing you’ve ever done to your characters?

Loren: In No More Heroes, the third book in my space opera trilogy, I set the human main character Raena up with her big lizard boyfriend Haoun. After she’d had two really bad relationships in the earlier books, I decided she deserved to be happy.

Wolf: What is the meanest thing you’ve ever done to your characters?

Loren: Lorelei, the succubus heroine of my work-in-progress, is subjected to some nonconsensual body embroidery.  The scene is pretty far out there and I’m kind of horrified at myself for coming up with it.

Wolf: I think most writers have some really scare scenes banging in their heads. They can be very hard to write. (or terrifyingly easy.) There is a door at the end of a dark, damp corridor. You hear rumbling. What do you do?

Loren: I would knock and ask, “Is everything all right in there?”

Wolf: You’re brave. What five items would you want to have in a post-cataclysmic world?

Loren: Water purification tablets, matches, a shotgun, a case of shells, and a composition notebook.  Hopefully I can find some ink pens that still work.

Wolf: Charcoal should be easy to find. Which of your characters is your favorite?

Loren: Alondra DeCourval is a witch who travels around the world fighting monsters.  Her stories combine my love of mythology and fairy tales with my wanderlust.  The latest of her adventures – a werewolf story — just appeared in Weirdbook in August.  Another of her stories should be out in Occult Detective Quarterly before the end of 2018.  She’s also appeared on Nina D’Arcangela’s blog in the last couple months: https://ninadarc.wordpress.com/2018/11/28/ladies-of-horror-flash-project-horror-author-loren-rhoads-morbidloren-sotet_angyal-loh-fiction-2

Wolf: I’ll take a look. What is your favorite body of water and why? (river, ocean, waterfall, puddle, bottle…)

Loren: I’d have to say the Pacific Ocean.  I moved to California because I saw the sun set into the ocean and fell in love.  Well, there was a man involved, too… All these years later, I am continually awed and amazed by the ocean.  This year was the first time I’ve seen whales while standing on Ocean Beach.

Wolf: Cool. What story are you working on now?

Loren: I’m finishing up the second Lorelei book, which is called Angelus Rose.  It’s a sequel to Lost Angels, which came out a couple of years ago.  Lorelei is a succubus who falls in love with an angel.  In the first book, she was possessed by a mortal girl’s soul.  In this second book, she’s trying to learn to fit when she has been radically changed by love.  It’s part urban fantasy, part paranormal romance, and a splash of horror.

Wolf: Wow. I don’t usually read horror, but that sounds interesting. What do you like to do when you’re not writing?

Loren: I like to hang out in graveyards.  A year ago, I had a book out called 199 Cemeteries to See Before You Die.  I still have more to see!

Wolf: That’s a bit too creepy for me, but I like to hang out with wolves. To each their own. Connect with Loren through these links:

Amazon: https://amzn.to/2rhJ38v
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/loren.rhoads.5
Twitter: https://twitter.com/morbidloren
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/morbidloren/
Blog: https://lorenrhoads.com/blog/

 

STAR TOUCHED

Eighteen-year-old Tatiana is running from her past and her star-touched powers eight years after a meteor devastates earth’s population. Her power to heal may be overshadowed by more destructive abilities. Fleeing the persecution of those like her, Tatiana seeks refuge in a small town she once visited. But this civil haven, in a world where society has broken down, is beginning to crumble. Will Tatiana flee or stay and fight for the new life she has built? Only by harnessing the very forces that haunt her can Tatiana save her friends…and herself.