Welcome to A Month of Rain and Reads, a celebration of self-published and indie SFF throughout the entire month of November. To find out how you can take part and view the whole list of content, visit our introduction post.
Today, we interview book a reviewer and fantasy enthusiast going by the name Masterpiece of Turkey Cleverness.
Please, tell us a little about yourself.
I’m a voracious reader and always have been. I manage it because I’m fast, and I also have no life to speak of, unless you count my three cats (they certainly count themselves). IRL I’m a biologist, and I know a whole lot about birds. My username (probably the most interesting thing about me, if I’m honest) comes from a phrase used in an old scientific paper.
Who’s a character in a book that you identify with, that you relate to, or that you’d like to represent you?
That’s hard; I don’t tend to leave my house much, so people generally don’t write about people that are like me. I’m also ace, agender, and autistic, and that’s a rare combination to find in fiction. One of the reasons I’ve switched to queer indie books is in hopes of seeing more people like me. That said, Alicia Lake in Saltbrook by Dee Arbacauskas is ace and curious. Quentin D’Arcy in AK Faulkner’s Inheritance series has autism that presents a lot like mine (aka I can fake my way through some things) and he’s demisexual. Thank goodness I don’t have anywhere near as much trauma as either of those two characters, though.
What kind of books do you like the most? Genres, tropes, characters?
Queer indie spec fic and romance! Fantasy and Romantasy are my top two genres, followed by romance, sci fi and horror. I’m fine with just about any trope, as long as it’s written well…and that pickiness applies to books, too. I’ve got the kind of autism where typos stand out like huge neon flags to me, so if there are too many typos (especially if I’m not invested in the characters) I’ll DNF. Speaking of that, however, good characters and/or good storytelling can 100% make up for any other deficiencies. I need to understand and like the characters enough to get invested in what’s happening to them. For ships, I need to see what exactly the characters love about each other, and then I’ll happily cheer for them. Finally, I’m of the age where I like a bit of spice in my romance, if you know what I mean.
Our theme for November is A Month of Rain & Reads. Do you subscribe to the idea of curling up with a good book while the rain pours down outside? What book would you read? Would you bring tea and a blanket? What would make the moment perfect?
Absolutely! I like flavored teas; chocolate mint is one of my favorites. I also make some amazing mulled cider. As for what book, either the next one I bought because it sounded interesting or one of many I like to re-read because they’re just so good (the Inheritance series by AK Faulkner and The Starian Cycle by Iris Foxglove are special favorites…but mind the content warnings for both). My cuddly, fluffy cat Sylphrena would make the moment perfect. My chaos gremlin cat Horangi would ruin it somehow, though.
How and why did you come to take an interest in indie books?
Fun story! I’m on a server with a couple of friends from an old RP site. At some point, we passed around the (really old) meme that had someone responding to ‘we should exile all LGBTQ+ people,’ with ‘yes, to offshore islands, and those islands would then end up being the most wonderful place on Earth!’ A few weeks later, one of my friends found a book with exactly that premise…and bought it for me (The Rainbow Isles, by Devin Harnois). I read it, loved it, then read everything else he had written, managed to stumble my way onto a few other indie authors’ social media accounts, read their stuff, and…well, here I am!
What advantages and disadvantages do you see with indie books?
The main advantage is being able to hear voices (BIPOC, LGBTQIA2s+) that aren’t well represented in traditional publishing for various reasons. Many of these indie stories are so much better than what you can find in trad pub because these authors can do whatever they want. As for the main disadvantage…I’d say there are two. First, more typos. While the best indie books are as well-edited as the best trad pub books, a whole lot of others are…not. As I said, I’m a stickler for SPAG. The other problem is that I feel there’s a disconnect between authors and readers, such that I’m sure there are more great books out there, but…I haven’t heard of them yet because I haven’t stumbled across the authors’ social media accounts, or other people who have read and loved them, or…Discord helps, but I wish it would help even more!
How do you find new books to read and get excited about? How do you decide what to read next?
Discord, social media, etc. I usually have to see an ad or a book mentioned several times before I go, ‘Okay, I really should read this.’ As for what I read next, I’ll generally read everything an author has written if I like them, and then re-read books while I wait for another book to speak with me. I’ve found I don’t like to get bundles, because then there are too many unread books at once and I can’t keep track of them. (This is totally a me/my brain problem, not an author problem.)
Are you working on any projects? Can you tease us?
Nah. I’m trying to eventually write something, buuuut we’ll see how that goes.
And a few quick questions. What’s your favourite…
…book, in recent times?
Rites of Winter, by AK Faulkner, although Three Sharp Knives by Abra Conwell (writing as Jessica Conwell)
…game, in recent times?
Stardew Valley
…source of inspiration?
Things I get tired of seeing in other books XD.
…way to clear your mind when everything gets a bit much?
Stardew Valley. Don’t even ask how many save files I have.
Do you have any last words? Any shoutouts to people who have supported you or books that have inspired you?
That sounds ominous! Shoutout to the people on AK Faulkner’s Discord server because I love being Perfectly Normal™ with all of you! And, a final shoutout to Az, who bought me my first indie book!
Masterpiece of Turkey Cleverness
An ace, agender, autistic fren-shaped person. Owned by three cats.
