Author Interview with Marie Harbon + Giveaway

Filed in Giveaways , Interview , Marie Harbon , The Latin Lover Posted on November 8, 2011 @ 7:00 am 9 comments

Today we welcome to Book Lovers Inc. Marie Harbon, author of an exciting new science fantasy series, the first chronicle of which Seven Point Eight was released a couple of months earlier. I have to confess that the title of Marie’s novel got me intrigued, so of course when I had the chance to interview her, I just had to ask her about it. 🙂 Please give Marie a warm welcome and read on, because besides learning more about her novel, you could also have a chance to win it!

Stella: Hi Marie, welcome to Book Lovers Inc! Can you please tell us a bit about yourself?
Marie: Hi there! I’m a UK based writer of science fiction, the paranormal, urban fantasy and generally the pretty weird. I also stitch as well as write, and teach on a casual basis to draw in some survival funds.

 

Stella: Describe a typical day of writing? Are you a planner or pantser?

Marie: I plan with a reasonable amount of detail, although I find as I progress through a book, the characters have a mind of their own and the plot takes its own twists and turns. It’s important to know where a story is heading, especially as my plots tend to be complex and I like to keep things tight but spontaneity is vital too. Let a story tell itself as well.
Stella: What do you think is the difference between a reader and a real Book Lover?
Marie: I think there’s more commitment with a real book lover and generally a better appreciation of the writing craft itself. Perhaps a reader just looks at the story, regardless of the skill behind it.
 

Stella: You write science fantasy, can you tell us what, how we should picture this?

Marie: I see it as the creation of fantastical worlds with a background of science, it gives it a contemporary feel. There are aspects of my book that are science fiction, yet at times we feel like we’ve been plunged into a fantastical world that has no actual scientific basis as we know it. It’s a place where the paranormal sits quite nicely too.
Stella: Can you tell us what we can expect of Seven Point Eight? Can you reveal the importance of its title?
Marie: You can expect a sweeping epic that blends science, fantasy and the paranormal, yet it’s told against the backdrop of human drama. You can expect psychic powers, physics and mysticism sitting side by side, time travel, past lives, conspiracy and a great love story at the heart of it. The number has a great cosmic significance and we’ll learn a little bit more about it in each book.
Stella: Can you summarize Seven Point Eight for us twitterstyle (140 characters or less)?
Marie: Sci-fi soap-opera with a wild plot line Sliders, Avatar, Flat-liners, X-men & Star Trek style with inter-dimensional space travel, all wrapped up in a research saga.
Stella: Now can you tell us 3 reasons why people should read Seven Point Eight?
Marie:
• It really is something different; it has a unique story to tell yet there are familiar themes and influences in there too. Discussions have begun for a movie or TV adaptation.
• There’s something in it for everyone; intrigue, ambition, destiny, a love triangle, passionate and intriguing characters and some fantastical worlds to blow your mind too. I wanted to create something that is beautiful and spectacular, that will take you on a rollercoaster ride.
• The series will answer some really important questions regarding the meaning of life and the universe. We’re peering into the cosmos and looking for God, yet we join the characters on their quest to answer these questions and experience it through their eyes.
 

Stella: Seven Point Eight sounds like a scientific, physics-focused read, what kind of research did you have to do? Any specific area you enjoyed researching the most?

Marie: Yes, one of the male leads is a physicist, although Ava is genetics based. I did have to do quite a lot of reading up and draw my own conclusions too regarding the connections between science and spirituality. Although science lies at the core of the story, I didn’t want it to overshadow the human stories at the heart of it. The contexts of our life are so important in the meaning of life.
Stella: What shall we expect from you, what is next on your schedule?
Marie: There are plans for a YA edition of the book. This is due to the interest from this readership group, but in places it’s too explicit for teens so I figured; why alienate a host of potential readers? Sometimes you have to adapt according to demand. It can be tweaked without watering it down. What’s important is that as many people read it as possible.
I’m also working on a supernatural/psychological novella and the next book in the Seven Point Eight series.
Stella: If you could create an original mash up universe, which two novel/TV series worlds would you mix up?
Marie: Harry Potter and Family Guy!
 
Stella: Can you share with us some little secret trivia, something that not many people know about you?
Marie: I’ve studied astrology and the five main characters have their own astrological charts. I used these to help develop their personalities.
You can chat with Marie Harbon on Twitter at @marieharbon or you can find out more about her books at  http://www.marieharbon.com/ (where you can also find a free chapter of Seven Point Eight!)

Seven Point Eight: The most powerful number in the universe. The number that connects everything. A physicist begins a quest to measure the soul but soon finds himself drawn into the world of the enigmatic Max Richardson, where research is sold to the military at the highest bid. However, he soon discovers another purpose when an extremely talented young psychic enters his life. He devises a project and builds a team to stretch the frontiers of exploration, only to make a reality-shattering discovery… The First Chronicle is the beginning of a 5 part epic which follows the spiritual and emotional journey of five people; their quest to understand the universe and our place within it. Along the way, they address the fundamental questions we all seek answers to: why are we here? What is the purpose of the universe? Is there a God? Quantum physics meets spirituality in a tale which begins in the 1940s, unfolds during the 1960s; an era of social and spiritual transformation and reaches its conclusion in the modern age. It interweaves the human dramas of love, betrayal, bitterness and above all, courage in a world where everyone must face their own dark shadow.

And now let’s see the novel introduced by Marie Harbon herself:

The time has come for a new science fiction series, one that is in the fledgling stages of a movie or TV deal. But what is ‘Seven Point Eight‘?

It’s the most powerful number in the universe, it connects everything. It’s fundamental to nature and life itself, its power should only be yielded by the righteous yet it, like anything powerful, is open to abuse too. As we journey through the five books in the series, its meaning is slowly revealed.

The ‘Seven Point Eight’ series draws its influences from the many great science fiction movies and shows, and ones that I’ve always loved; ‘Star Wars’, ‘Star Trek’, ‘Contact’, ‘Avatar’, ‘X-Men’ and ‘Lost’ for example, so in many ways, the series is written for all these fans. However, it offers something entirely different too; an adventure into alternate and beautifully surreal realities, bridging both science and mysticism, uniting the two in a sweeping epic of grand scope set against the contexts of human life.

Be prepared for a journey that draws together fringe science, psychedelic research, psychic powers, the hidden realities within our universe, consciousness, mysticism, time travel, past lives, miracles, folklore, conspiracy and nostalgia, both cultural and historical in a soap opera for the soul. Existential questions regarding the meaning of our lives and destiny, our karma and dharma, God and the universe are explored within the human contexts of love, betrayal, bitterness, violence, trust and above all, courage. This plays out through the lives of five key characters; smart, provocative and psychically talented Tahra; the boundary-breaking physicist Paul; the enigmatic Max; the bewildered scientist Ava and the bitter artist, Sam.

‘The First Chronicle’ lays the groundwork and sweeps through the 40s, 50s and 60s to modern day in a wild nostalgic, scientific, paranormal ride. The physicist, Paul begins a quest to measure the soul but soon founds himself swept into Max’s world, where research is sold to the military at the highest bid. When the talented psychic, Tahra walks into his life, they soon embark on a ground-breaking project designed to stretch the frontiers of exploration but only to make a reality shattering discovery….

This is the beginning of my vision of the true nature of reality, life and the universe; join me in this journey, I hope you’ll enjoy the ride.

You can buy Seven Point Eight at Amazon or Smashwords.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
~*~*Giveaway*~*~

Marie has generously offered an ebook copy of Seven Point Eight to a lucky commenter!

All you have to do is leave a comment or question for Marie.
 (You can read our full giveaway policy here)
Please leave us a way to contact you.
(Email or twitter name – no way to contact you – no entry).
This giveaway is open worldwide!
Giveaway ends on 19 November and we will announce the winner on Sunday.
Good luck!

About Stella


Stella is a proud bookaholic and a self-taught multilinguist in training. Besides reading, her other great passions are travelling and baking. When she is not globetrotting she lives in sunny Budapest, where she loves to spend her free time preparing (and feasting on) delicious cookies or devouring equally yummy books. Her favourite genres are urban fantasy and romance and she couldn't live without her daily dose of sunshine. Besides being the Latin Lover on BLI Stella also blogs about books and a bookish life on Ex Libris.

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9 Comments

Join the Discussion
  • Audra November 8, 2011 at 9:04 am

    You are a new author to me — I can't wait to read your book
    audie(at)wickerness(dot)com

  • Jason November 8, 2011 at 9:28 am

    I love your idea of science fantasy, what an interesting concept.

    Thanks for the giveaway!

    jason (at) jasonkivela (dot) com

  • Aurian November 8, 2011 at 12:08 pm

    Great post Marie, thank you. Not entering the contest, already won the book somewhere else 🙂

  • Na November 8, 2011 at 1:03 pm

    I love epic reads but haven't encountered a paranormal/science fiction one yet. It sounds like a great read.

    Cambonified(at)yahoo(dot)com

  • Arianne Cruz November 8, 2011 at 3:58 pm

    How did you come up with this idea for the book? 😀 Yey for discovery of new authors!

    email: cruz042 at csusm dot edu
    twitter: @ariannecruz07

  • draconismoi November 8, 2011 at 8:15 pm

    I am deeply concerned by your description of this book as a "sweeping epic."

    Why? Because it sounds awesome. And the last thing I need is to become totally obsessed with another book series. My relatives eventually recognize the series I am uber-invested in, and then they'll figure out I'm lying when I say I won I book I actually bought….

    This opens a whole can of worms for me, see? Why did you have to make this sound so interesting?! AND a cool cover? The only thing holding me back here is my scifi-fueled fear of Amazon becoming the sole global book proprietor.

    cas at sigmadog dot com

  • Linda November 9, 2011 at 3:02 am

    Such a nice term "Science Fantasy"; talk about the best of both worlds.

    Amazing post that makes me want to rush out & buy the book & I especially like the twitterstyle description. Book cover is pretty awesome too!

    thumbelinda03@yahoo.com

  • Mel November 17, 2011 at 3:51 pm

    I studied Physics at university so I'm intrigued at the mix of science and soul searching – plus I'm a big X-men fan! 🙂

    Mel S
    notanotherbookblog(at)hotmail(dot)co(dot)uk

  • Marie Harbon Author November 20, 2011 at 4:47 pm

    Thanks for all the comments, guys.
    Yes, I am a new author and the 2nd edition of this book will be out in the New Year. The Second Chronicle is scheduled for early summer 2012.
    I define it as science fiction/paranormal and fantasy as, while some of the worlds I created merge science and the paranormal, I think some of them derive their essence from fantasy. I love creating unique genre mixes!

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