Question and Answer Time! Thank you everyone who submitted questions in my Facebook group. I figured I’d post these here as well. Next time I do this, I’ll give a shout out to the blog and grab whatever questions you might have!

I did group some together because we had doubles but… lots of stuff!

Q: I know your characters talk to you and you have to write them. But do you also “see” them? If so, do you have ideas about what they look like or do you picture a celebrity, someone you know or just someone off the street who catches your attention?

Rhys: I don’t think my characters necessarily talk to me. They’re constructs I’ve built out in my mind but what does talk to me is the story. There are threads and lines a story should follow and sometimes it takes a bit to find out how they fit. It’s like cooking, finding the flavours that suit. I don’t match up faces to people before I start. It’s pretty easy for me to picture in my head what someone looks like.

For instance, in the beginning of writing Sinners, Miki was paired up with a proto-Quinn. Needless to say, that didn’t work because the created personalities didn’t fit.

Q: What books are scheduled to release this year and what are they about? Is there going to be another sinner’s book?

Rhys: Ah, I have four books on schedule and one… secret project releasing in October. Once Upon A Wolf will be out in February, Sin and Tonic, the last of the Sinners book, will be out in 2Q18. Then after that is 415 Ink: Savior and Kai 3. If I can fit it in, I’ll have 415 Ink: Hellion and then maybe a Hellsinger novella. It’s hard to shoehorn things in.

Q: I have so many questions about the shifter series on its way.  So the only safe one I can think of is……How different was it to plan out a world for this series as opposed to the Kai Gracen world. Alternative universe’s are created with every story no matter how or when they are placed.

Rhys: It was pretty easy. I kept the shifter world pretty close to our universe. I wanted to fold that reality into ours.

Q: Hellsingers! When can we expect more Tristan and Wolf? 2018? Puh-lease.

Rhys: I’m trying. It’s difficult because I’m caught in other series. I’m hoping to at least get a novella out. Cin and Harker need dealing with.

Q: Will we ever get more Kismet?

Rhys: Dude, Kismet is so hard to write. And well, it sucks a lot out of me. I’d love a couple of quarters free to catch up with everyone I need to write.

Q:  Will there be any more Half Moon Bay? Will you be returning to Half Moon Bay?

Rhys: I dunno. There’s a detective I need to deal with. I like Half Moon. It has a certain voice to it that’s great to write.

Q: Do you concentrate on just one WIP or do you tend to switch things up?

Rhys: I only write one book at a time. I get pretty immersed into the world and language of a book. I can’t shift, not easily. It’s always why I concentrate solely on one book. It starts from Once Upon A Time right straight to The End.

Q: Have you decided on Ivo’s book title? He’s the one I’m excited to read about.

Rhys: The brothers’ titles are already in place. Mace is Savior, Ivo is Hellion, Luke is Saint, and Bear is Beast.

Q: How do you choose the city/location? Are the characters driven by the city or does the city drive them?

Rhys: The city they end up in depends on the voice of the book and series. It really depends on how I feel when I work out the characters and really what the city needs to provide to the backdrop of the novel. Each is unique in what it can bring to the table.

Q:  Do you schedule your books or just work on whichever is calling to you?

Rhys: Ah, I am scheduled out until 2020. And possibly beyond if I look at it closer. I can certainly switch things around if I’ve got a drive to write something but for the most part, I know where I’m going. And then I take on projects which shifts things around a month or so.

Q: Have you ever had a rogue character take over a book? Like, he was supposed to be peripheral, but ended up as the MC?

Rhys: Not really, although Bobby and Ichi “earning” their own book was a surprise. I had an idea that Cin would take on his own novel as soon as I created him. He was too forceful to fade into the background.

Q: What was the first story you wrote? What about the first one that was published (anywhere)?

Rhys: Oh that has been lost in time. That first story. Aside from fanfic, Dirty Kiss was my first officially published novel. I have been published in anthologies and I have one of those stories on my blog under Tatsu.

Q: Will we be seeing anymore Kai this year?

Rhys: Yes. After this 415 Ink book, I have a short piece to write then I’m heading back into Kai’s world. I need a snappy title still but I know what I’m going to do there.

Q: Will all of your books be available on Audible? Because I love being able to listen while I am working.

Rhys: All of my books are on Audible. Rebel will be out as soon as it is finished. I am waiting for a sample and word it’s in production.

Q: When you mention a specific food/dish in a scene, is it because you were craving it when writing that scene?

Rhys: Sadly, no. There no impetus for foods and/or dishes. It’s just a part of the flow of the story. What fits into the scene and the circumstance. It truly is whatever seems to work at the time. It’s what the city has to offer and where the characters are when I’m writing.

Q: You’re branching out into a shifter paranormal (not discrediting Wolf and Tristan at all) – do you see yourself ever heading in another direction you hadn’t thought of before? i.e. science-fiction, historical, high fantasy, etc.? Would you like to write a scifi story?

Rhys: I probably will not go into sci-fi, historical or, high fantasy. I’ve already dabbled in steampunk with Clockwork Tangerine and that was fantastic fun but man, the science. I’ve got my hands full with what I’m doing now so I don’t think I can take on anything else.

Q:  In Rebel, was/is Gus’ brother’s actual name “Puck”, or was that a nickname?

Rhys: I think his real name might have been lost on the editing floor but it was Tucker. Or at least it is that in my notes. *grins*

Q:  If you had the chance to live anywhere in the world, where would you live and why?

Rhys: Probably in the UK and someplace all of the Five can be together.

Q: Do you plan to put the tattoo blog posts into one document we can download?

Rhys: Yes. I just have to get everything formatted and pretty. It’s been a crazy couple of weeks. 😀

Q: Do you get this little snarky smile when putting bits and pieces of one series into another one? I know I smile when stumbling across hints like Damie playing on the wharf while characters from “Rebel” pass by.

Rhys: No snarkiness. Honestly, I am not one for snark or sarcasm. Literally have to hold a sign up to tell my friends when I’m being sarcastic. I just write and whatever fits, it slides in. It’s fun mostly because it connects Rebel with the rest of the universe.

Q: Will you be gathering the free stories into collections to release as audio books?

Rhys: Probably not. It’s a tremendous effort on the part of the narrator and well, costly. Doing Dirty Bits was a labour of love on everyone’s part and I’m grateful for how it came together but it’ll be a bit before I have that kind of time and space to do it again. But I will never say never.

Q: Have there ever been a character whose popularity with the readers surprised you?

Rhys: I would say Bobby or Cin. To be honest, I never thought Kai or Miki would be popular. But they are two of my favourites.

Q: Will any of your characters do more than mentions in other books. Like Cole getting a PI case from the sinners or the tattoo boys?

Rhys: Probably not. I like dabbling but cross-posting gets iffy. 😀

Q: I know you are working on a lot of series and sequels right now and have your schedule full, but will there eventually be a Dim Sum Asylum sequel?

Rhys: I do not know. I’m not going to rule it out. We’ve been talking about it. There’s just a HUGE amount of world there and I need to knit together a bunch of stuff.

Q: How do you come up with the names for your characters?

Rhys: No idea. Whatever fits. Well, Kai was simple because his first name but the rest of them has to just fit the personality. It’s kind of like naming a kid.

Q: Have you ever put anything into “the canon” of a series that you later regretted (example – a plot bunny or character quirk that you didn’t much about at the time but it gave you fits in a later book)

Rhys: Right now I’m regretting making Mace a dirty blonde / light brunet. Not really regret. There’s been canon stuff I seed in and I know no one’s going to notice it but it’s there and mine.

Q: Have you ever had any crazy jobs?

Rhys: I had a job stuffing vitamins into sliced open fish. *grins*

Q: Who are your favorite writers, actors, and songwriters?

Rhys: Oh man, that’s WAY too big of a list. I can tell you that every book has a soundtrack. I find music that fits what I’m writing. Kai for instance tend to be more classic rock whereas Savior is turning out to be a bit more hard rock. Seriously, ask anyone who knows me, the music spectrum is pretty huge. Same thing goes with writers. I just love the experience of being in someone else’s world.

Q: Do you have any new stories about your relationship with Greg Tremblay’s cat?

Rhys: Hah! I haven’t seen Doodle in a year but oh man, she’s a love. I adored her.

Q: What would happen if your characters converged on Comic Con in July?

Rhys: Comic-Con is soooo huge. I don’t think Kai would go. It would be too overwhelming for Miki. Cole and Jae would have fun and I’m pretty sure that’s where Rook lives. I can see him being a “red-carpet VIP” at that kind of event because of what he does. Dante would be confused so he and James could go get a few beers while Alex and Rook ran loose about the place.

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Well that’s the end of the questions and answer! Thank you all for playing and for dropping in some great questions! We’ll do this again in a month or so.

Now, next week, Greg and I will be in Los Angeles so if we can get ourselves in some kind of organized mindset, maybe we can do a podcast-ish thing during the week!

Thanks again!