This week’s Author Chat guest, is one of my oldest writing friends – no she’s not old, we’ve just known each other a long time. Anne Barwell gives tirelessly to other authors, both on social media and in her job as a librarian. Anne has helped bring LGBTQ+ books to her library system which isn’t just a gift to the authors, but to those readers who otherwise wouldn’t see themselves in books. As authors we know the power of words, but we don’t always appreciate the power of librarians. Anne taught me they are almost as powerful as the pen, and definitely mightier than a sword.

I hope you take the time to check out Anne’s interview, and her wonderful books. Make sure read to the end to connect with Anne and enter her giveaway.

With that, let’s chat with Anne.

ACwA Guest: Anne Barwell

• How did the first story you ever wrote influence your career as an author and how do you feel about that story now?
  
  The first story I wrote as an author wasn’t my first published.  I started Shadowboxing, the first story in my WWII Echoes Rising series, years before I was published, but I shelved and didn’t finish it.  When my first published story, Cat’s Quill, came out, I polished off Shadowboxing, sorted out the pesky plot point that had stalled me, and submitted it for publication.
  
  I still love that story, and the series. I wrote it because I couldn’t find any historical action/drama fiction with gay leads.  I’m happy that there are a lot more out there now, so plenty to read.  Although I write across several genres, historicals still hold a special place in my heart, and I doubt I want to keep writing them.  I’ve since written On Wings of Song, which is set during the WWI Christmas Truce of 1914, and I have plans for 1920s and 1950s mystery detective stories.  Watch out for familiar faces in both of those, although it will be a while before I have time to write them.
  
  Having got my rights back from my former publisher, I’m now republishing as an indie writer, so Echoes Rising is available to read again, with the final book coming out in July. I love the new covers by TL Bland, and being able to tell the story in UK English.

• Which of your characters is most like you (or someone close to you.)
  
  That’s a tricky question. I don’t think any one character is like me, but they all have elements of people I know, and share some of my passions.  Ben in The Sleepless City series is a comic book geek, and his favourite character is Nightwing—that’s totally from me, but I don’t have his personality. He’s not shy about saying what he thinks. His partner Simon, although much more reserved, is a musician. So are Kit and Michel from Echoes Rising.  Many of my characters draw on my music background. I play piano and violin, and was a music teacher for many years.
  
• What is your favorite trope and why?
  
  I have a lot of favourite tropes, but I’m particularly fond of hurt/comfort, as I love that relationship between characters.  It has the potential to break through the barriers that someone puts up around themselves, and also show the love between them. There’s nothing like holding back someone’s hair while they’re vomiting, or nursing someone who isn’t at their best to show the depth of feelings they might not put into words.

• How many half-written stories are on your hard-drive and what do you plan to do with them?
  
  I have 2 full first drafts, and about 3/4s of another on my hard-drive. Plus the first chapter of another. Rosebound is book 1 of my Kiwi Psi series, which is a spin-off of The Sleepless City series I wrote with Elizabeth Noble.  Double Exposure is Book 1 of Simon and Ben’s NZ set spin off Pōneke Shadows series. I wrote the latter during our seven week lock down last year, as I figured I wouldn’t get a long stretch of writing time like that again so I was going to make the most of it.  Forgotten in Fire (the ¾ almost written manuscript) is Book 2 of my Dragons of Astria series. I started it, then got sidelined with Rosebound as I pitched that to an agent and didn’t want it to be book 2 of a series. Then I decided I’d prefer to go indie with that series too, especially as it and Pōneke Shadows will cross over.

I started writing The Blue Feather a couple of months ago when I got fed up with the endless rounds of edits/republishing my backlist, but I only have a chapter so far so that’s going to be a while before it’s completely written.  It’s a Wellington set shifter story that is part of a shared world. I’m aiming to publish Rosebound and Double Exposure later this year/beginning of next year, once I get the next two backlist books out.  Still deciding whether I want to finish Hidden Places or Dragons of Astria after that (my two remaining backlist series that also need new books to finish them), or alternate them between new Sleepless City universe books.

• What are you working on next?
  
  La

At present I’m formatting Comes a Horseman, book 3 of Echoes Rising, with the aim to publish it early July.  I’m knee deep in house maintenance so that’s impacted my writing time over the last few months. 

Once that’s out my next project is republishing Prelude to Love, my Wellington set contemporary romance.  I want to add a few new scenes to expand some of the plot. Plus I already have the cover so it makes sense to publish that before the new books which I don’t have covers for yet.  I loved writing this book the first time round as it’s set locally, and one of the MCs is a music teacher, so I was able to draw on a lot of my own experiences.  I’ve played all of the music referenced in the music, whether on piano, or as part of an orchestra.

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Anne Barwell’s Latest Release

The Sleepless City Book 1

To be soulmates they first have to survive.

A serial killer stalks the streets of Boggslake, Ohio. The victims are always found in pairs, one human and one vampire.

Simon Hawthorne has been a vampire for nearly a hundred years, and he has never seen anything like it. Neither have the other supernaturals he works with to keep the streets safe for both their kind and the humans.

One meeting with Simon finds Ben Leyton falling for a man he knows is keeping secrets, but he can’t ignore the growing attraction between them. A recent arrival in Boggslake, Ben finds it very different from his native New Zealand, but something about Simon makes Ben feel as though he’s found a new home.

After a close friend falls victim to the killer, Simon is torn between revealing his true nature to Ben, and walking away to avoid the reaction he fears. But with the body count rising and the murders becoming more frequent, either, or both of them, could be the killer’s next target.

Author’s note: This story was originally released in 2014 by another publisher. This edition has been revised and re-edited with the end result being a better, stronger story.

Buy Links

| eBook | Paperback |

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Giveaway

To celebrate the upcoming release of Comes a Horseman, Anne is offering a giveaway of the ebook of book 1 in that series, Shadowboxing, to one of Andy’s readers. Comment either on this post or the accompanying post in Andy’s Gallorious Readers Facebook group for your chance to win a copy!

Complete their mission or lose everything.

Berlin, 1943

An encounter with an old friend leaves German physicist Dr Kristopher Lehrer with doubts about his work. But when he confronts his superior, everything goes horribly wrong. Suddenly Kristopher and Michel, a member of the Resistance, are on the run, hunted for treason and a murder they did not commit. If they’re caught, Kristopher’s knowledge could be used to build a terrible weapon that could win the war.

For the team sent by the Allies—led by Captain Bryant, Sergeant Lowe, and Dr Zhou—a simple mission escalates into a deadly game against the Gestapo, with Dr Lehrer as the ultimate prize. But in enemy territory, surviving and completing their mission will test their strengths and loyalties and prove more complex than they ever imagined.

Author’s note: This is the third edition of Shadowboxing. The first and second editions were released by another publishing house.  This story has been re-edited, and uses UK spelling to reflect its setting.

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About Anne Barwell

Anne Barwell lives in Wellington, New Zealand. She shares her home with Kaylee: a cat with “tortitude” who is convinced that the house is run to suit her; this is an ongoing “discussion,” and to date, it appears as though Kaylee may be winning.

In 2008, Anne completed her conjoint BA in English Literature and Music/Bachelor of Teaching. She has worked as a music teacher, a primary school teacher, and now works in a library. She is a member of the Upper Hutt Science Fiction Club and plays violin for Hutt Valley Orchestra.

She is an avid reader across a wide range of genres and a watcher of far too many TV series and movies, although it can be argued that there is no such thing as “too many.” These, of course, are best enjoyed with a decent cup of tea and further the continuing argument that the concept of “spare time” is really just a myth. She also hosts and reviews for other authors, and writes monthly blog posts for Love Bytes. She is the co-founder of the New Zealand Rainbow Romance writers, and a member of RWNZ.

Anne’s books have received honourable mentions five times, reached the finals four times—one of which was for best gay book—and been a runner up in the Rainbow Awards. She has also been nominated three times in the Goodreads M/M Romance Reader’s Choice Awards—twice for Best Fantasy, once for Best Historical, and once for All-Time Favourite M/M author.

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Where to Find Anne Barwell

| Website | Facebook Profile | Facebook Page | The Sleepless City | Rainbow Readers Club | Kiwi Authors Rainbow Readers | Instagram | Twitter | Goodreads | Bookbub |