Archives
Another online interview…
...this time with Casey at The Bookish Type. It begins: What inspired you to write The Shards of Excalibur? Have you always had an interest in Arthurian legend? I have always had an interest in things Arthurian, or at least since I read T.H. White’s The Once and Future King as a kid, followed up with Mary Stewart and any number of other retellings since. But what inspired The Shards of Excaliburwasn’t initially my interest in the Arthurian legends, but a very specific place: Wascana Lake, the man-made lake in the heart of Regina where Ariane sees the staircase descending into the water and meets the ...Fine Lifestyles Regina has feature article about me
Yes, I know, I edited the thing, but honestly, the story wasn't my idea: it was publisher Randy Liberet's. And since I have a new book coming out (November 15 is the new release date for Song of the Sword) I'd have to have been an idiot to let modesty get in the way of promotion. And so I assigned Mark Claxton, one of the best writers available to me, the task of interviewing me and making me sound interesting. Remarkably, I think he succeeded. The feature is called "A fantastic life" and begins thusly: Edward Willett has a few things on his plate these days. In fact, he ...Leader Post features Song of the Sword
There was a nice feature about Song of the Sword (and me) in the Regina LeaderPost on Saturday. The accompanying photo (at left: it was posted online on Global TV's Your Saskatchewan site, though with a hilariously wrong caption) was taken on the shore of Wascana Lake with Willow Island in the background: this is the exact spot where, in the book, the Lady of the Lake makes her appearance to my young heroine). The story, by Tim Switzer, begins: Looking out over Wascana Lake on foggy mornings in Regina, Edward Willett loved the thought that anything could be hidden in ...Covers of the last two Willett-edited Fine Lifestyles magazines
The fall issues of Fine Lifestyles Regina and Fine Lifestyles Saskatoon, the last edited by me, are now out. Here are the covers. (Similar, but not identical!) They should both be online sometime in the next little while. Fine Lifestyles Regina includes a feature about me, written by Mark Claxton, and although I'm not exactly shy about promoting myself, I do feel I should emphasize it wasn't my idea: publisher Randy Liberet suggested it, and who was I to argue? Once everything's online, I'll link to that and the other articles I wrote for ...SciFiGuy features me in an interview
There's a nice big interview with me up at SciFiGuy.ca, mostly focused on the upcoming release of Song of the Sword, Book 1 in The Shards of Excalibur. Alas, it's still the upcoming release because printer problems delayed it past the hoped for October 15, but they promise me it'll be ready at month's end--which is good, since I've got a signing coming up at Chapters here in Regina on November 6. (2 p.m. Be there! Well, unless you're reading this in, say, Miami. In which case, I won't look for you.) I had a school reading last Friday at W.S. ...In the author spotlight at Lobster Press: me!
With the release date of Song of the Sword, book one in The Shards of Excalibur series barreling down on us, Lobster Press is beginning its marketing in earnest. Today they ran an interview with me on their blog. It begins: With our Fall books soon on the way, we want to start introducing you to some of our new authors! This week, we have a behind-the-scenes Q&A with Edward Willett, author of the upcoming novel, Song of the Sword, the first book in the Shards of Excalibur series. Why did you choose to re-envision the story of the Lady of the Lake and Merlin? I’ve been ...Up close and personal with Saskatoon Mayor Don Atchison and wife Mardele
Yesterday I posted my cover story from the spring issue of Fine Lifestyles Regina, an interview with Regina businessman Paul J. Hill. Today, I'm posting my cover story from the spring (and premiere!) issue of Fine Lifestyles Saskatoon, an interview and Saskatoon Mayor Don Atchison. Enjoy! The summer issues of both magazines are just around the corner... *** Saskatoon Mayor Donald Atchison likes to say anyone who doesn’t like the way things are going in this city should call his wife, Mardele, “because she was the one who encouraged me to run.” It’s a joke, of course, and yet there’s an element of truth to it. She ...Up close and personal with Paul J. Hill
With the summer issue of Fine Lifestyles Regina just around the corner, I thought I'd post my cover story from the spring issue, an interview with Regina businessman Paul J. Hill. Enjoy! *** Paul Hill says he’s most known in Regina for three things: his blue 1976 Mercury Marquis, his habit of consuming eight Diet Cokes a day, and his addiction to non-fat frozen yogurt. Of course, that list leaves out one other minor thing of note: Paul is president and CEO of The Hill Companies and Harvard Developments Inc., companies intimately intertwined with the history of Regina, owning and/or managing more than two million square feet in ...An interview with Saskatchewan Premier Brad Wall
I'm in the throes of finishing up the Winter issue of Fine Lifestyles Regina, so it seems like as good a time as any to post my cover story from the September issue: an interview with Brad Wall, Premier of Saskatchewan. Enjoy! *** Premier Brad Wall: “The luckiest guy in the country in terms of a job!” By Edward Willett (Originally published in Fine Lifestyles Regina, Fall, 2009.) Brad Wall fully realizes that as premier, he has to represent the entire province—but he still hopes people will understand, if they see him at a Western Hockey League game between the Swift Current Broncos ...The Nipawin Journal reports on my reading there last week…
...and I have to say it's one of the best articles of this sort I've seen anywhere. Thanks to the reporter, Joel Cherry! (Oh, sure, there's one instance of the dreaded "one-T Willett" misspelling of my last name, but if I worried over much about that very common typo I'd go crazy.) The story begins: The term freelance was first used by Sir Walter Scott to describe a medieval mercenary warrior, (a "free-lance") in his novel Ivanhoe. The freelance would fight for whoever needed him. Science journalist, biographer, critic, singer, actor, and Aurora-award winning author of science fiction and fantasy Edward Willett is a freelance if ever there was one. Oct. 20 the Regina-based writer paid Nipawin a visit, ...
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Magebane
“Spectacular” – Publishers Weekly (starred review)
“Evil wizards, multi-level conspiracies, hidden kingdoms…Lee Arthur Chane…has done a marvelous job…Magebane is a very entertaining book and well worth the time.” – A.M. Donovan, Night Owl Reviews
I happily recommend Magebane and I’ll certainly give Chane’s next novel a try based on this one.” —Bill Capossere, Fantasy Literature
“…an original and delightful tale of epic fantasy and magic, steampunk science, adventure, tragedy, and love…” – Errant Dreams Reviews
Eight centuries ago, the world changed. A devastating war swept the lands, and the MageLords, who had long ruled by virtue of their spell powers, were driven to a distant place, separated from those they had ruled by a magical Barrier. With magic banished from the rest of the world, the MageLords became mere legend and people turned to science to improve their lives. But if one man has his way, all that is about to change….
Written as Lee Arthur Chane (the middle names of my older brothers, Jimmy Lee and Dwight Arthur, and myself, Edward Chane Willett).
Marseguro
Winner of the 2009 Prix Aurora Award for Best Long-Form Work in English
Water world Marseguro is home to the Selkies, a water-dwelling race created from human DNA. When an unmodified human seeks revenge on a Selkie by activating a distress beacon taken from the remains of the original colony ship, a strikeforce is sent from Earth to eradicate the genetic abomination. Yet Marseguro will not prove as easy to conquer as the Earth force anticipates…
Terra Insegura
Finalist for the 2010 Prix Aurora Award for Best Novel in English
Marseguro, a water world far from Earth, is home to a colony of humans and the Selkies, a water-dwelling race created from modified human DNA. For seventy years the colony has lived in peace. Then Earth discovers Marseguro, and a strike force is sent to eradicate this “abomination.” But Marseguro has created a genetically tailored plague to use against Earth’s Holy Warriors. With the enemy defeated, the people of Marseguro feel they are safe. But Chris Keating, the traitor who signaled Marseguro’s location to the Holy Warriors, has fled to Earth, unknowingly carrying the deadly plague within him. The people of Marseguro feel they must send a ship to Earth with a life-saving vaccine. Only time will tell what awaits them when they reach their destination.
Lost in Translation
Kathryn was a human empath whose world and life had been destroyed when the alien S’sinn slaughtered her parents before her very eyes. Jarrikk was a young S’sinn, an unproven warrior who’d seen his flight mates slaughtered by the humans who’d sought to colonize his world.
As humans and S’sinn found themselves on the brink of war, these two Translators had to work together to find a common ground and avert catastrophe. But whether their Translators’ oath and training could overcome the enemies leagued against them was very much in doubt…
Archives
Song of the Sword
My new YA fantasy novel from Lobster Press
Before the Lady called her, Ariane’s life was a mess. Two years ago, her mother disappeared. She bounced around different foster homes until her aunt finally took her in. The meanest clique at her new high school has decided to make Ariane their prime target. And to top it all off, she is having frightening premonitions, and they are becoming more intense. The moment water touches her skin, she sees visions of a lake, a lady, and a sword. When a staircase opens up in the middle of Wascana Lake and the water begins singing to her, she has no choice but to answer the call….
Historic Walks of Regina and Moose Jaw
Ten walks to points of historic and architectural interest in the cities of Regina and Moose Jaw (eight walks for Regina, two for Moose Jaw).
Johnny Cash: The Man in Black
When country music legend Johnny Cash took the stage at Folsom State Prison in 1968, he solidified the public’s perception of him as a rebel who followed his own path. Born in Arkansas during the Great Depression, Cash endured poverty, the death of his older brother, and a difficult relationship with his father. He turned to gospel and country music to express the pain, and after many years of struggling, his songs of hardship and hope would finally reach the ears of those waiting for an artist who represented them, ordinary people fighting to survive.
Andy Warhol: Everyone Will Be Famous for 15 Minutes
“Paintings are too hard. Machines have less problems…” In the 1960s, Andy Warhol became the most famous creator of a new style of art called pop art, which transformed mass-produced items of popular culture into fine works of art. From Campbell’s Soup cans to photographs of Marilyn Monroe, Warhol’s willingness to use anything and everything from the mass media in his work expanded the range of subject matter available to artists. His avant-garde films, artistic usage of American icons, and unconventional social life made him a controversial figure, both greatly admired and deeply reviled. A trendsetter rather than a trend-follower, a dispassionate observer of both the seamy and celebrity sides of life, Warhol was a true American rebel.
Disease-Hunting Scientist
The true stories of six real disease hunters. Epidemiologists travel the world trying to keep us safe from deadly diseases—from high-tech labs in Canada to remote villages in Africa. Learn how these “disease detectives” are coming up with new ways to fight disease, and find out if you have what it takes to become an epidemiologist, too!
The Bounty Mutiny
The Bounty was a British ship visiting Tahiti in 1789 when some of the crew overthrew the captain, William Bligh, and set him adrift in a tiny boat with sailors loyal to him. The mutiny resulted in a number of trials–both of the men who mutinied and of Bligh for losing command of his ship. These fascinating events have been the source for numerous Hollywood movies, most recently The Bounty. The Bounty Mutiny: From the Court Case to the Movie explores the famous case and the movies it inspired.
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