‘The Demon, The Hero, and The City of Seven’ Blog Tour – An Interview With A.E. Kincaid

A.E., thank you for joining me today! To start with, what can you share about The Demon, the Hero, and the City of Seven?
Thank you for having me! I’ve been referring to the story as “The Odd Couple” meets “The Lord of the Rings.” It’s a forced-friendship humorous fantasy adventure novel about a demon (Lord Malgon) and a human hero (Sir Reginald). They’ve been accidentally, magically connected for eternity. They can barely get ten yards away from one another without the magic pulling them forcefully back together. The book begins just after they’ve decided to travel to the City of Seven, where the wizards live, to see if someone there will be able to help them get unstuck. But truthfully–they are not very good at adventuring. So we get to chuckle at their misfortune.
With our leads being a demon and a hero, what can we expect from the interactions between these two?
Well, as you can imagine they don’t always see eye to eye. In fact, they rarely do. But Reg, the hero, is a pretty affable person. So he’s a lot more tolerant of Mal. Mal is quite mean to Reg through most of the early part of the book. But they begin to understand one another more as time goes on. Never completely! But they become a better team.
I always love seeing fantasy mixed with humor, was that a conscious decision to develop the story in that genre or as you were writing did it evolve into it?
This book started out with a short story that I’ve submitted to an anthology for consideration and the brief for that anthology was basically, “The villain should win, creative swearing encouraged.” I knew as soon as I read it that I wanted to write a humorous story.
The title also hints that this is book 1 of A Mal & Reg Novel of Widdershins. Without going into spoiler territory, what can you tell us about this world and the plans that you have for it?
Some pretty big things are set in motion in this book–even if the characters don’t realize how big they are yet. Many revolve around Mal and Reg, but some involve all of Widdershins. We haven’t seen the last of the side characters from this book. Some end up getting more central roles the further we get into the story. Some will likely get their own stories.
This is your debut novel being published, however, is it the first novel that you’ve released? What work do you have hidden away that you could drop a few hints about?
So–I’ve had about 3 novels before this that I haven’t polished (at all). The first which is in the “best” state is about a music school at a university that was closed down due to financial ruin, but then saved at the last minute by an angel donor. It follows the person who gets hired to be in charge of operations, and is also a humorous novel. The other two are more serious YA books. The first is about a girl from a small village who has magic–which she absolutely should not have because only the ruling families have magic–and the mysteries that unravel thereafter. The second is about a girl in our world who finds out she’s from a different world–but her parents brought her here (where there is no magic) because she has a magical illness that will progress swiftly if she returns home. This last one is the least fleshed-out at this point, and yet has a conflict that I am eager to explore.
You love coffee, I love coffee, everyone should love coffee! (Though there are those people who drink tea instead but that is a whole other world of obsession.) What is your favorite type of coffee and how do you drink it?
Fablegrounds makes my favorite coffees, for sure. I’m particular to Come, Little Children but it’s hard to miss. I used to take my coffee with a lot of instructions, but the more I was invited out for coffee for business reasons, the more I felt ridiculous asking for a drink that took 3 minutes to order when my peers were just getting regular coffee. So I made the change to coffee with a little half and half and 99% of the time that’s still how I take it.
Who is your favorite author and what is one book by them you recommend that everyone read?
I read a lot of fantasy and there are many authors I could recommend in that genre. But the book(s) I have probably recommended more than any other is actually a post-apocalyptic series called WOOL by Hugh Howey. I read it back when it was first published and now Apple is making it into a TV show! If you’re into that genre, it’s a must-read. If you’re a person who likes a mystery with a twist, it’s a must-read. If you’re an author–Howey does not waste a single word. I’ve rarely read stories that are so tight. There’s something for nearly everyone in WOOL!
If you could write a story with any living author, who would it be and why?
Sometimes I think it would be so cool to collaborate on a project. Most of the time I think I would probably be awful at collaborating. But if I really could choose absolutely anyone alive AND I could swallow down my imposter syndrome I would want to write a book of fairytales with Neil Gaiman. The first book I read of his was Odd and the Frost Giants. The second was Stardust. After that it was The Ocean at the End of the Lane. There’s a gentleness to those books, and yet the pages are thoroughly atmospheric and filled with intense emotion. It’s a skill that I would love to strengthen in my own writing.
You have a little human and a cat, how have they helped or “helped” your writing to date?
Well, my cat tries to eat my laptop and often sits on my chest while I’m trying to type so she is no help at all, haha. But my son is surprisingly helpful! He is only 4 but I’ve been telling him the story (minus the swear words) for months and some of his questions have been remarkable. There’s a location in the story called the Stone Rot Mountains and he says, “What were they before?” I asked him what he meant and he said, “What were they called before they were rotting?” And I thought, “Wow. If my 4 year old is asking that question then for sure I should have an answer to it!”
Finally is there anything that you’d like to share with our readers?
First–thank you for getting all the way to the end of this interview! I was honored that you allowed me to share a peek behind the curtain here. Second–I would love to get to know you all better! If you are on Instagram you can find me at @aekincaidauthor. We do MadLibs on Fridays and just generally try to keep things light and fun.
—

“Sometimes a little bad can do a lot of good.”

Welcome to the book tour for a hilarious fantasy debut called The Demon, The Hero, and the City of Seven by A.E. Kincaid! Read on for more info and a chance to win a $25 Amazon e-gift card!

The Demon, The Hero, and the city of seven_updated

The Demon, The Hero, and The City of Seven (A Mal & Reg Novel of Widdershins Book 1)

Publication Date: December 14th, 2021 Genre: Fantasy/ Humorous Fantasy Sometimes a little bad can do a lot of good. What happens when good and evil collide? They yell, “Ouch!” When you’re a demon who’s been magically connected to a human for eternity, life is bound to be annoying. But when that human is also an inept hero who tosses his lunch whenever he gets stressed out? Breaking the connection becomes priority one. Plus, there’s a mystery at the heart of their bond that needs unraveling. When the magical object that bound them broke, it weakened the barrier between Widdershins and the Underworld. The duo hopes to find a wizard in the City of Seven who will be able to help with both problems. Follow along as our demon, Lord Malgon and our hero, Sir Reginald make themselves unwelcome with fairies, humans, dwarves and giants—all while racing to get to the City of Seven before Mal’s supremely evil brother. In this debut humorous fantasy adventure novel, Kincaid pairs an endearing cast of characters with expert world-building and laugh-out-loud dialogue. The Demon, The Hero, and The City of Seven will leave a Mal and Reg shaped stamp on your heart. Add to Goodreads

Excerpt

In my 550 years of existence, I’m not sure I’ve ever met anyone who exasperates me more than Sir Reginald P. Asstradle, the ersatz Hero of Widdershins. When he speaks, I imagine drop-kicking him off a cliff. When he snores, I fantasize tossing him into a fiery volcano. Don’t get me wrong—he’s a good lad. For a human, anyway. But when you are magically entangled with another being in such a way that putting just a few yards’ distance between the two of you triggers the spell to physically smash you back together? That can wear on anyone’s nerves. Like my nerves, for example. Right now.

Available on Amazon

About the Author

By day I am the Creative Director at a branding studio in Iowa. By night I write humorous fantasy novels. In between I drink coffee to keep up with a small human, and try to convince my cat she’s not as great at dictation as she thinks she is. The Demon, The Hero, and the City of Seven is my first published novel.

A.E. Kincaid | Instagram | Twitter | Facebook | TikTok

Enter for a chance to win a $25 Amazon e-gift card! a Rafflecopter giveaway

Book Tour Schedule

December 20^th

R&R Book Tours (Kick-Off) http://rrbooktours.com

Reads & Reels (Spotlight) http://readsandreels.com

Balancing Books & Beauty (Review) https://balancingbooksandbeauties.wordpress.com/

@by_hckilgour (Review) https://www.instagram.com/by_hckilgour/

@authormalmccartney (Review) https://www.instagram.com/authormalmccartney/

B is for Book Review (Spotlight) https://bforbookreview.wordpress.com

*Jessica Belmont (Spotlight) https://jessicabelmont.com/

December 21^st