Welcome to another installment of EATING AUTHORS. I’ve been away all weekend, finishing up a training which will allow me to use my powers of mind control to help people quit smoking (and you thought it was only good for getting Nebula nominations), which goes a long way to explaining why it’s about an hour before dawn and I’m awake and sitting in front of my computer writing this introduction. I know there are too many of you — a couple hundred thousand at least — who simply could not start your week without reading about an author and her most memorable meal. And so I’m here typing when I should be snug in bed and dreaming of world domination. That’s just the kind of guy I am.

Our guest this week is Ysabeau S. Wilce. Her many accomplishments include being a James Tiptree finalist, a nominee for a World Fantasy Award, and a winner of the Andre Norton Award. Ysabeau writes the adventures of Flora Fyrdraaca, a “girl of spirit,” who protags her way through a series of YA novels, each with some of the longest subtitles ever imagined. These books are a delightful romp, and had it not been for that Harry Potter fellow I have no doubt that Ysa would have two Nortons on her shelf. If by some quirk of the universe you haven’t read any of these books yet then drop everything and get one right now. I promise you, it’s like a visit to an ice cream parlor on a hot summer’s day.

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Welcome to another installment of EATING AUTHORS, the Monday morning blog post that dares to ask authors about their most memorable meals. Okay, maybe dares isn’t all that accurate, but this is the introductory paragraph that’s supposed to be six kinds of grabby, complete with verbal car chases, teasing innuendo, provocative statements (“Polar Bears!”), and computer-generated explosions. So… please, imagine all that stuff just happened.

Our guest this week is Jon Armstrong, a member of that select group of authors who have been short-listed for the John W. Campbell Award for Best New Writer. His first novel, Grey, was nominated for the Philip K. Dick Award, and he followed it up with an even more surreal visit to the same universe with Yarn. I know I’m not alone when I say I’m eagerly awaiting what comes next.

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By the time you read this I should be safely back home, after another long weekend of slipping in and out of trance and causing similar slippage in others. I should also have a shiny new certificate naming me a hypnotherapist. To which I can only add, “bwahahahaha!”

But enough about me, let’s talk about Patrick S. Tomlinson. I had the pleasure of meeting Patrick last month during my visit to Michigan for Immortal Confusion, where I learned that he hails from the great city of Milwaukee, competes in half-marathons and triathlons, and sells insurance. He’s also been building up a nice collection of short story sales to a range of anthologies. His first novel, The Wererat’s Tale III: The Collar of Perdition, just came out a few weeks ago from the fine folks over at New Babel Books.

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It’s Monday and I’m hoping to sleep in a bit, as I’ve only just returned from the first of two three-day trainings in Conversational Hypnosis. Is it any wonder that I’m sleepy? Fortunately though, my guest for this week’s installment of EATING AUTHORS lives in the UK, and I’m sure the time difference makes it all work out. Or at least I’m going to tell myself it’s so. Shhh.

Mike Shevdon and I started out the same, reading the works of Edgar Rice Burroughs, C. S. Lewis, Robert Heinlein. And then any similarity appears to have ended. His official bio speaks of martials arts such as aikido and archery, and his culinary expertise include something called “squeaky cheese curry” which I can’t help but suppose has no resemblance to the squeaky cheese I used to get in Wisconsin. Since 2009, he’s been serving up novel-length fantasy for the fine folks at Angry Robot, juxtaposing tropes of faerie with the modern world. It’s a balancing act that makes for great reading, so after you’ve had a look at his response to the weekly question, pick up a copy of his first book and prepare to be delighted.

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