Larriane Wills a.k.a. Larion Wills

Larriane: Vern, I am so excited that you’re here. I just can’t believe I’m talking to a real, live dragon. There are so many questions I want to ask I’m having trouble deciding which one first. I just—oh, I have to ask, can I touch you?

Verm: Over here, behind the cheek crest...little higher...  That's the spot. (purrrrr)

Larriane: Oh, wow. That is, wow, that is so awesome. Okay, deep breath here and get it together. Guess we should start like at the beginning. Just how is it you ended up in our world making a living as—oh all things—a private detective?

Vern: High strung, aren't you?  Remind me of Malchoir Rawlings, artiste.  We had to remind him to take deep breaths, too. I wonder if he's mellowed any since the Brownies started painting clothes on his nudes?

Larriane: I’m not going to ask you to explain. They’ll just have to read Magic, Mensa And Mayhem to find out why Brownies would do that. But, please, go on.

Vern: About being a private investigator and living la vida mundania: For the past 850 years, I'd been working off a geas (spell, obligation curse, whatever) put on my by the Faerie St. George. Since Faerie dragons are immortal, he'd done the next best thing--taken away my power, my size, my flight, my fire... Then he gave me a way to get it all back by serving God and His creatures under the supervision of the Faerie Catholic Church.

So I was doing my duty, pulling a plow for the Silent Brothers, one of my quieter assignments, when the Interdimensional Gap opened between our worlds. And wouldn't you know, I felt a genuine Calling to come to the land of technology and asphalt?  Where I have been misunderstood and underappreciated, thank you.  I became a professional problem solver kind of by accident after helping the local Sherriff solve a caper involving a magical fruit and a murderous chili pepper field. This was back before everyone realized just how badly magic and technology mix at times.

It's been an interesting gig, and since the Duke of Peebles-on-Tweed has basically exiled me here as a practical joke... (shrug) I make the best of it.

Larriane: So you were really one of those eat maidens, devour knights kind of dragons at one time?

Vern: Maidens are not my favorite meal. I much prefer a juicy bovine to a skinny virgin. But you can't always count on places to get your take-out orders right. You know how it is.  As far as knights, Spam in a Can is a lot of work. I only ate them if they were especially threatening. Or irritating.

Of course, there was that time when rescuing the fair maiden from the "horrible dragon" was in vogue for courtship. Most of the time, they kept to the bargain, and it was worth getting poked and monologue at for the juicy bovine at the end. Once or twice the couple got too into their role, but at least they shared a last meal together.  Or, more to the point, were the last meal.  Kidding!

Larriane: I’m so glad. I understand that in Faerie there are a lot of parallels to here, but it’s like they’re stuck in more medieval times with all the magic creatures—or should I say races—that are legends here?

Vern: Not all legends parallel, and some are not like you'd expect, and it'd caused a lot of misunderstandings. Brownies, for instance: don't bother bribing them with milk to clean your house. They're lactose intolerant, and may wreck more havoc than help. You can read about that in Magic, Mensa and Mayhem out from Swimming Kangaroo.  There are also a lot of scams out based on the legends. I've got an article coming out on that in Mother Goose is Dead. No date on that one yet, so just be suspicious of anyone wanting to cash in on a legend, using your cash.

Larriane: Thank you for that advice, Vern. That’s so sad, but let’s not dwell on it for now. Tell us a bit more about the book. You were asked to—well, what amounts to babysitting a really mixed bag from both worlds and weren’t even paid for it.

Vern: Yeah, well, that's what happens when you're an agent of the Church. The Bishop says, "Do it!" and you say, "Thank you, Your Excellence."  Kind of like the military that way. As far as assignments go, this one wasn't so bad--lots of chaos, and some embarrassment for me, which Karina seemed to think was funny.  Okay, it is funny. Now. Our friend, Natura, would call this an exercise in "lightening up."

In a nutshell, Grace and I chaperone the Magicals at a Mundane Mensa convention in Florida. We were to prevent any "cultural misunderstandings" and act as Magical Hazmat should something go wrong. We had practical joker pixies, bellhops who thought it'd be fun to make fun of Sigfried in his own language, Brunhilde the bodybuilder Valkyrie having some fun away from her "rowdy Vikings," Kent the dwarf actor (who got arrested at Fantasyland); and of course, the High Elves not only had to bring their political machinations with them, but accelerate their schedule! 

Despite that we had a good time. Grace even met up with an old school chum--Euterpe, the Muse. I'll let you read about that.

Larriane: I have and really enjoyed it, and we don’t want to give too much away to spoil the surprises. Tell us where they can get it and where they can contact you.

Vern: They can purchase it at amazon.com or direct from the publisher at www.swimmingkangaroo.net/mensa. (Hint: Karina gets better royalties if you order it from the publisher.)  It's on Kindle for those who like that thing. Too small for my paws.

They can contact me personally via my website, www.dragoneyepi.net. I have a contact form there, and if they join the website, they can access the forums and get my bi-monthly newsletter, A Dragon's Eye View.

Larriane: It has been so much fun and such an honor to have you here, Vern. Thank you so much for coming.

 You're welcome. I like bloggers better than reporters for the most part. They tend to be more appreciative.  Now, come on over to the other side and scratch right there... That's it!  (purr)

Larriane: While I'm scratching you all go on to read more about the wonderfully funny, "Magic, Mensa and Mayhem." He sounds just like a cat, a big cat....

Contest: I am having a trivia contest for people who have read Magic, Mensa and Mayhem. On April 30, I'll post 10 questions whose answers can be found in the book.  I'll accept answers until May 15. The winner gets a free copy of Live and Let Fly, the next DragonEye, PI, novel.  Folks can find the details on www.dragoneyepi.net.

Magic, Mensa and Mayhem

By Karina L. Fabian

Title:                                    Magic, Mensa & Mayhem

Author:                   Karina Fabian

Publisher:                   Swimming Kangaroo

                                    www.swimmingkarngaroo.com

                                    dindy@swimmingkangaroo.com

Genre:                                    Fantasy

Released:                  March 2009

Retail Price:                  $13.99 (print- US) 11.99 pounds (print – UK)

                                    $3.99 (electronic)

ISBN:                                    978-1-934041-78-9

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