Photo Credit: André Karwath, Wikimedia Commons
Today I have special guest M. Pax, author of several science fiction novels, including the soon-to-be-released book Stopover at the Backworlds’ Edge. Read on to hear about the importance of chocolate in her series and where her inspiration for it came from.
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The history of coffee plays a large role in inspiring aspects of the worlds in my Backworlds series. The husband unit and I watched The History of Everything one evening, and there was a segment about coffee, about all the cloak and dagger of smuggling plants, etc … Interesting stuff.
Husband unit said, “You should use that in your story.”
Since the worlds on which my stories take place are far removed from Earth, it makes sense certain items from Earth might become valuable and a luxury. I picked chocolate as a commodity for wealth, smuggling, and subterfuge on my off-Earth worlds.
Perhaps because I had just visited the shop of a local couple originally from Austria who hand make every piece of chocolate in their store. It’s the most divine chocolate I’ve ever tasted. Yum.
What from Earth would you miss if you lived on another planet?
In The Backworlds, the first in the series, chocolate is a means to gain vast wealth and is used to cover up a more sinister smuggling operation. In book 2, Stopover at the Backworlds’ Edge, chocolate plays a key role again. This time as something much darker.
The Backworlds is a free read available in all formats for all ereaders. Amazon / B&N / Smashwords. / Other Links
Stopover at the Backworlds’ Edge releases July 23rd. It is currently available on Smashwords. Other links will be up on www.mpaxuathor.com on July 21st. Maybe earlier.
M. Pax
Inspiring the words I write, I spend my summers as a star guide at Pine Mountain Observatory in stunning Central Oregon where I live with the husband unit and two loving cats. I write science fiction mostly and have a slight obsession with Jane Austen. Want to connect? Visit www.mpaxauthor.com for links to Twitter, FB, Goodreads, Pinterest, and more.
Thanks for hosting me today, Becca. Congrats on the upcoming release of Foreign Identity.
ha ha ha… absolutely loved the inclusion of Chocolate (notice the capital C) in your stories as a main element. When I read Backworlds and Chocolate appeared, I was laughing. It was kinda fun, yet believable at the same time!
When I did a review for it on Amazon, I wanted to mention Chocolate, but didn’t want to give anything away. Such a creative story, and I just got the next one in the series, and can’t wait to see what Chocolate is up to now. 😀
My evening tea n chocolate will never be the same!
Now the chocolate makes sense.
I’d miss Hot Tamales. And movies. All right, I’d probably miss everything.
the title of this post is enough to make me want to read on! love that concept! yay, mary!
You will spy your chocolate with more suspicion after you read Stopover, Loretta.
I’m sure there’d still be some form of entertainment, Alex.
Thanks, Tara.
Definitely chocolate and coffee. Cheesecake.