Lovin' Friday: An Excerpt from Eyes Like Stars

One is an air fairy, a Player in one of Shakespeare's plays. The other is an orphan, living in a theatre. When you add two of the most mischievous characters to ever come into creation together, you get nothing but an uncontrollable hot burst of steamin' hot air, funky dialogue and a heck load of sparkling spiciness. Let's welcome to the stage, Ariel and Bertie from Eyes Like Stars!

"I'm a caterpillar turning into a butterfly. Care to join me?"

A moment passed in which she thought he'd refuse, then-

"How could I resist such an invitation?"

"Glad to hear it," Bertie said with an unintentional sway. She righted herself even as Ariel's arms appeared around her. Her right hand sought out his left, and she wrapped her other arm around his neck.

"Just what," he asked, "do you think you're doing now?"

Bertie tossed her hair so that it flicked him in the face before falling over her shoulders in a messy blue tangle. "Dancing with you, unless I'm much mistaken."

"I think it's customary for the man to lead," he said. The only thing that moved was his left eyebrow, which slid up about an inch.

"How did I know you would say that?" Skilled fingers strummed the unseen strings of a guitar. Castenets beckoned, and Bertie wanted to snap her fingers, stomp her feet, clap her hands. "Lead on, pretty boy."

Ariel gave her a look that contained a lot of something, but he didn't say a word. Instead, he adjusted her arms with light touches of his hands, all the while keeping his upper body pressed to hers.

"This song comes from the center," he said. "So we'll move the center first."

"The center of what?" The butterflies drifted out of his hair as he leaned over her. They fluttered through Bertie's already swimming head, brushed over something dark and sleeping, and roused it from slumber.

Ariel tapped her lightly on the small of her back. "The center of you."

"My cream filling?" she suggested.

There was a moment of complete stillness and silent contemplations before Ariel smiled. "Yes, Bertie. Move your cream filling first, and your feet will follow."

Tea And Biscuits With The Cast And Crew of Theatre Illuminata

When I was invited to tea by the lovely cast and crew from Theatre Illuminata, I wasn't prepared for what was to come. Armed with a platter of colourful cupcakes, I managed to keep my composure and conduct a reasonable interview. Warning: whatever is posted here cannot be... ahhh! Attack of the glitterfetti!

OMG OMG OMG! I can’t believe I’m actually interviewing you. *goes into fangirl mode* Ahem... I mean, thanks for agreeing to be interviewed! How has Lisa been treating you? ;)
Bertie: Not very well, actually. There seems to be this never-ending "let's fling more obstacles at my character" thing that I don't really appreciate. *glower*
Moth: And there is a decided LACK OF PIE.
Mustardseed: We protest!
Peaseblossom: Lisa encourages the boys' bad habits!
Cobweb: Darn tootin'. *appropriate sound effect here*

Let’s talk about sweets. In particular, why cupcakes? *offers a platter of colourful cupcakes*
Moth: Why NOT cupcakes?
Mustardseed: Yeah, what do you have against cupcakes?!
Cobweb: They make good trampolines!
Peaseblossom: *licking her fingers* Cupcakes are the perfect ratio of cake to frosting.

I’m hungry. Is that a stash of sweets hidden under the bed?

Bertie: No--
Peaseblossom: Oh, Bertie!
Moth: You've been holding out on us!
*much crashing as the boys dive under the bed*

Whoops! Tell us more about yourself. Did Lisa have to interview you? Will we get to know more about you?
Bertie: She didn't interview me, or I never would have let her put me in the high heels.
Peaseblossom: She didn't ask me questions, but I would have been ready!
Moth: And I!
Mustardseed: Dang it, I was going to say that!
Cobweb: That was totally my line, too...

How’s living in Theatre Illuminata like? Is it weird?
Moth: Who told you it was weird?
Mustardseed: I think she's been spying on us!
Me: Uh oh! Looks like I've been found out. Change of topic, quick! Living there without TV or the Internet must be boring! How do you cope?!
*matching blank stares and mumbles of "Internet?" and "What the heck is that?"*

It's an instrument of MAYJAH AWESOMESAUCE. What’s your favourite prank to play on The Stage Manager?
Moth: Oh! Oh! The one with the dead fish!
Bertie: Yeah. *glances at her bed* They like that one.

I’m sure you’ve heard that you’ve gained a massive following from readers all over the world. What would you say to them?
Moth: *waving his hands* Get that camera out of my face!
Mustardseed: No autographs, please!
Peaseblossom: You like me! You really, really like me!

What’s one of your favourite memories in Theatre Illuminata?
Moth: Bertie was a very sweet baby--
Cobweb: She had dimpled knees.
Peaseblossom: And cheeks.
Mustardseed: Both sets!
Bertie: YOU SHUT UP.

Lastly, why should we read Eyes Like Stars? Other than the fact that we can get to know more about you!
Peaseblossom: Every time you read it, a fairy gets its wings!

Cross-posted at: Royal Reviews on 17 July 2009.

Cupcakes and Candy with Lisa Mantchev

What do you get when you add cupcakes, candy and Lisa Mantchev together? A whole load of fat free fun, glitter and sugar high!

Okay firstly, what’s your favourite colour?
To wear? To paint on the walls? For both, some shade of blue. Hrm. Well, I guess that explains Bertie's hair!

Describe Eyes Like Stars in 7 words, among which the words “glitter” and “cupcake” will not be used. Hee, that’ll be pretty hard!
Sugar-fueled mayhem with really dramatic lighting. (Neener, neener! *L*) (MoMaM's note: Darn it! I have to admit that pretty much sums it up.)

Everyone and their fairies have read the fantastic blurb. Did you do the blurb yourself?
I didn't... the fabulous people at F&F put that together for me, and it really does fit the tone and style of the book, so I am very happy with it.

Why are The Players called Players?
When Hamlet goes to speak to the actors gathered to perform for the new King and the Queen, it's referred to as "Hamlet's speech to the Players." I liked the word especially, because I didn't want to use "actor," as that would give the wrong impression.

Is Théâtre Illuminata Based on any specific place, building or theatre, or a collection of them?
In my head, it's just as beautiful and grandiose as the Paris Opera House, but that isn't an art nouveau building.

Let's imagine Théâtre Illuminata is a building made out of food. What would you make it out of?
Gingerbread!

Since the Players are "alive", would they exist in the same state (i.e. as Players) at other theatres or is it just the magic of Theatre Illuminata?
That's a great question! I only ever imagined them living like that in one theater, bound to The Book (The Complete Works of the Stage.) Though the idea of multiple Ariels has its appeal. *L*

Why did you choose Shakespeare’s plays? Did you do any research or did the fairies tell you all there was to know in Shakespeare’s universe?
I seem to land on Shakespeare when I make big project decisions... when I needed to pick a college thesis project, I chose Shakespeare, too! With Eyes Like Stars, I picked characters with whom I felt reasonably familiar, and then, because they were acting outside their written parts, the only research I did was to look up appropriate quotes.

What’s your favourite scene in any of his plays?
Oh, Beatrice and Benedick's scene in Much Ado About Nothing... the one with "Against my will I am sent to bid you come in to dinner." *hee* That one STILL cracks me up. As an alternate, I pick the "I'll see thee hanged on Sunday first" scene in Taming of the Shrew.

When is Eyes Like Stars set?
It doesn't have a specific time period, actually. The theatre itself has art nouveau architecture, but characters are from all time periods (Shakespearean, Victorian in the case of Mrs. Edith, and modern for Bertie.)

Are you planning a playlist to accompany Eyes Like Stars? Can you recommend us some songs we can listen to get us in the mood while reading it? (MoMaM's note: Not that I need anything else to get in the mood, but there’s gotta be something to fill that gap while waiting for book 2!)
The only two mandatory songs are "Eyes Like Stars" by Faulter and "The Assassin's Tango" from the Mr. & Mrs. Smith soundtrack.

Give us three "Good to Know" facts about you.
(1) Do not bring me decaf when I ask you for regular (2) If it comes down to the manuscript or the housekeeping, the manuscript always wins. (3) But if it comes down to the manuscript or the kidlet, the writing has to wait.

Tell us a sekrit (or more!) about Eyes Like Stars that no one else knows yet.
Oh, that's a tricky one... I've done a lot of interviews, but I don't think I've talked about the Story Of Bertie's Corset. When I attended WorldCon in Anaheim, 2006, I was still drafting the book. I bought my very first corset--black with silver flowers--in the Dealer's Room. My friend Jenna Waterford is the one who purchased the cotton pin-striped one. When I got back from the convention and needed to dress Bertie for her business meeting, into the pin-striped corset she went!

What else can we expect from Bertie and company?
Mayhem and dessert. Always. (Maharani of Mayhem and Mysteries's note: Sounds perfect to me!)

What would you like to say to aspiring writers who are reading this interview and wondering if they can keep creating, if they are good enough, if their voices and visions matter enough to share?
Dear writers: it's not your job to decide if it's good enough, or if it matters. It's your job to create, to make it as shiny as you can, to be passionate about it, and to FINISH the project. The rest is truly out of your hands.

Complete this sentence: “If fairies ruled the world ...”
Everything would be very sparkly, not just the vampires.

For more about Lisa Mantchev and her Theatre Illuminata series visit http://theatre-illuminata.com/

Cross-posted at: Royal Reviews on 16 July 2009.