I have a new book out: “Sturmkrallen” (Storm Claws). It is the third volume of the fantasy series “Die Geheimnisse der Klingenwelt” (Secrets of the Blade World). This series was originally published by Droemer Knaur, but they suddenly didn’t want the third volume. That kind of thing happens to authors all the time. Some marketing crank thinks that something else could be better positioned on the shelf, and suddenly a series dies – without a conclusion. This is very annoying for both authors and readers. But it has become “normal”, which is why there are so many unfinished series on the German fantasy market. In fact, there is now even a small publishing house that specialises in ‘finishing’ these series and publishing ‘leftover’ series volumes. I was very frustrated at the time, especially as I had already been well on the way of writing the third volume. That’s why it…

I’m currently finalising the first part of the next novel for the publisher Torsten Low, so here’s a small teaser. Working title: “Serpent of Malice” – this is subject to change Location: Cambridge The year: 1887 “Since flirting with the kitchen staff is bad style in any case…” “Never mind the kitchen staff. I saw a… lady. A young lady. A very pretty young lady. A quite astoundingly gorgeous…” “I get the gist, Drossos. Yes. I saw her too. Smallish, trim, with lots of titian hair and of course a hat sprouting feathers. She is not a figment of your imagination. I saw her – and she saw me… emerging from my afternoon swim in my… well.” Drossos looked shocked. “Dash it, Rudyerd! Did she go blind? I am told they go blind in this country if they see a naked man. Or they think of England. Very patriotic indeed,…

„Sturmkrallen“, (=”Storm Claws”) is the third and final volume in the series „Die Geheimnisse der Klingenwelt” (“Secrets of the Bladeworld”). It rounds off the story of the cruel Urgorrn monstrosities and the intrepid heroines and heroes who fight them. Sturmkrallen Vol. 3 der Serie „Die Geheimnisse der Klingenwelt“ Amazon KdP, 516 Seiten, broschiert ISBN 9798323173631 Preis € 18,40 / E-Book: € 5,35     The first casualty of war is the truth, and in the eight Duchies of Predorenn truth has been dead for a long time. War has raged here for centuries, and the achievements of culture and reason of a more civilised day and age have long fallen victim to the ever-present violence and treachery. Any knowledge or information may just be an enemy ruse – or not. No one can still distinguish between superstition and a fact-based lore warning of a danger far greater than all the armies…

For my English readers : I have a new book out in English: “World Raiders“. This is a novel placed in three different time frames;   – NOW (more or less: I wrote the German version some 8 years ago). – in 1952 (a period somehow caught between postwar and ROARING FIFTIES ( 50ies ): a time of a new and better life after a period of dread and the memory of war and brutal oppression. Still, a time of poverty for many. – SOMETIME, – SOMEWHERE across a gulf of time in an expiring post-apocalyptic future world that has forgotten the technical and scientific achievements and take the remnants of their knowledge for wizardry or magic. One thing they can do, though, is use the dimensional portals or gates into other time periods and different realities. But this is forbidden and punished by death. But the truly fanatic will…

I just realised that I’ve written 28 short stories in the last few years that have been published in anthologies. And then there are short stories that fill three short story volumes of my own, two in German: “Bisse” (BOD) and “Machtschattenspiele” (Edition Roter Drache). And one in English: “Call it a Knight“. Plus a few that I’ve written but haven’t fit in anywhere yet. Two short stories are also finished and waiting for future projects. That was fun. I love short stories. They are my proof to the universe that I can be brief at times. Still, I wish short stories would pay. But they don’t. At least in Germany they don’t. L’art pour l’art. All the same. Here’s an overview, in case anyone thinks they should aspire to own my complete works ?     1 Short Story „90-60-90“ in: Der Arsch auf dem Sessel von Margit Schönberger…

I have already mentioned that the English version of „Schwingen aus Stein“ is now finally available as “Wings of Stone“. It’s always great when a new book arrives. You’ve been sitting at it for ages: writing, improving, writing, correcting, writing, editing, writing, sweating and sometimes swearing profusely, because at some point self-doubt always sets in if you sit on a project long enough.                 And then it’s finished: the new book. The wonderful Marilisa did the editing. And hopefully we have not missed any mistakes. (You can find them in every book, no matter how well you’ve paid attention). When you write in two languages, as I do, it’s always interesting to see if you can create the same mood in both. I actually wrote “Wings of Stone” in English first. Nevertheless, the German version came out first, long before the English. Well,…

I was a busy girl. Very busy. I have three new books out: Gefangene des Panthers – Teil 1: Verräterinnen (Prisoners of the Panther – Part 1: Traitors) in German Gefangene des Panthers – Teil 2: Monden-Feinde  (Prisoners of the Panther – Part 2: Enemies below the Moons) in German Wings of Stone (Steam Age Quest, Vol. 5 – English edition of the award winning novel “Schwingen aus Stein“). It’s always a terrible fuddle until you’ve got it all correct, have sliced your path through Amazon KDP, until even the last robot spirit is satisfied with the manuscript or the cover. It could give you grey hairs, but then I’ve already got those. A positive experience: nice KDP staff actually helped me. But now they are out, the novels: at the moment just as print editions, I still have to tackle the e-books, but I needed the printed books right…

I should actually finish writing my current novel project. But at the moment I’m having absolutely too much fun translating  my German novel “Weltendiebe” into English. I find it interesting that only now that I’m doing the translation I notice little mistakes in the German text that neither I nor my editor noticed before. Maybe I should always translate my books before I give them to anyone to read. But that would make everything take even longer. It’s complicated to adequately translate things into English that only exist in Germany. “Lastenausgleich” ( life support for for people who had lost everthing during the war) was a term I could explain but not translate directly. Or anything to do with the school system, because school systems in the UK and also in the US are so completely different that it is difficult to just translate. A simple translation would be confusing.…

You’re never quite finished. Not really. But in fact I have now finished writing my new novel and have edited and re-edited and cut it several times. Since I have a tendency to write very long books, but have been told that only a shorter book has any chance of being published by a publisher (Tolkien – despair!), I have put the sword to the manuscript. I did three levels of shortened manuscript. Some of it really hurt. A reader would probably not miss what is now not mentioned, because they don’t know that it used to be there. Nevertheless, as the author I do miss some nice sentences or even chapters. The first beta reader criticized that there was too little background ambience. Of course, that’s always the first thing that gets cut, because cutting bits of the plot might make the story illogical. Now I have four different…