Writer Showcase: D. Lambert
Why do you write?
I can’t NOT write. I tried to give it up in 2011, leading to a very tense week. My left brain needs something to do while the right brain manages my ‘day job’ and general life. If left to its own devices, my left brain gets into trouble, so I distract it with stories and tall tales. Like a hyperactive border collie, it’s then too tired to go chasing things it shouldn’t.
What are your preferred genres?
I gravitate to fantasy and always have. It’s what I loved to read as I child and growing up (physically at least) has failed to dissuade me. Close second, however, is SciFi, particularly writings where I can combine my knowledge of biology with fiction.
What started you writing?
Nightmares.
My over-active imagination used to keep me from sleeping when I was a child. In desperation, my mother (who was no doubt as exhausted as I was!) suggested I tell myself stories to distract myself away from the monsters I was envisioning. It worked, but I haven’t been able to quit the habit since. I blame her and she knows it.
What was the first piece of writing that you were really proud of?
The first novel I ever finished was a Cinderella-like story that I completed when I was twelve. While I am thoroughly embarrassed by it now, I was proud to have completed the novel right down to the fairy-tale ending. Strangely, it had no happily-ever-after with a prince, but was more to do with completing yourself. One day, the story will get a make-over. It might even be presentable at that point.
When did you realise that writing was going to be an integral part of your life?
Although I had been dabbling in writing for fun throughout high school and my first degree, it wasn’t until I tried to ‘quit’ writing as I entered my second degree that I realized how deep I was in and how impossible it would be to live without writing. That was when I fully accepted I was a writer and changed my focus to getting good at it as well as having fun.
Why did you choose this particular piece to post on Showcase?
I love mischievous fairy dragons and had particular fun tormenting Sair in his adventure as the first DragonKeeper. We all can feel in over our heads some days, that is for sure, but at least no silver dragon has plucked me off the streets recently.
What is one thing that is unusual in terms of your individual style?
I don’t like good versus evil stories in general; I like things to be more realistic shades of grey! Because of that, I lean heavily towards showing both sides of the conflict, giving my ‘bad guys’ plenty of reasons to be doing what they are doing. And to keep it realistic, I research the time periods I write in, even learning about economics and ancient cultures to make a world that makes sense. Even if they are in a different world, I want my stories to have the weight of reality.
What are your long term goals as a writer?
I am currently publishing my ‘World of Taint’ stories, which includes ‘Dragon’s Voice’ and ‘Dragon’s Talon’, as well as the upcoming sequel ‘SoulBurner’ coming out March 2nd, 2021. I’m aiming for at least a book a year, but since the world has eleven books (so far) in it, it’ll take some time! I’m still pursuing traditional publication with other projects but my focus is to share my stories and, hopefully, create something others enjoy reading!
An excerpt from Dragon's Voice, A Tale of Espar
An inhuman scream sounded from directly above him. Sair turned around one final time and froze.
At first, it seemed like a thick cloud had covered the morning sun, but this darkness approached, deepening more than any cloud cover. It was no cloud, but the shadow of an immense dragon.
Time froze with him. Sair spotted the wizard on the street behind him, standing in the doorway of a nearby house, his head turned toward the sky, and his mouth hanging open. Dragon hunters scrambled out of the Stockings, unprepared without their heavy weapons. The horses in the barn screamed.
"Go!" a voice shouted.
Glinter cursed, flailed, and fell backward as if he had been kicked. For a moment, Sair saw the flash of the colorful fairy dragons on his uncle's chest, but then Glinter fell from sight, landing in the dirt of the street in front of Sair.
Sair launched himself, jumping over his uncle in an instinctive attempt at escape. But as he shifted himself forward, something wrapped around his waist. He was whisked off his feet.
The ground fell away, leaving Sair's feet dangling over an increasing expanse. A deafening roar of wind tore loose Sair's shoes. He watched, still muted by shock, as the shoes became tiny dots soon lost in the background of fields and forest so far below.
At some point, Sair recovered enough to scream. He shrieked in shameless panic, wiggling in the grip of the enormous dragon until he heard a rumbling growl. A voice sounding like an old man said, "You do not truly wish me to drop you, do you?"
