The Book Dragon Team
Kirsty F. McKay
Firstly, allow me to introduce myself, my name is Kirsty McKay, I am a passionate self-published author from Middlesbrough, England, whose urban fantasy novel ‘The Veils of Valoria’ launched The Morvantia Series, reflecting my love of fantasy, paranormal romance, and supernatural tales. I live with Fibromyalgia and ME/CFS but this doesn’t dim my creative spirit – and while these conditions may slow my writing pace, they haven’t diminished my joy or passion for storytelling. When I am not running The Book Dragon HQ with my daughter Bronwyn or crafting reviews to support fellow indie authors, you might find me practicing holistic therapies, offering reiki healing, crystal therapy, or working on my diamond art painting. I am also kept busy studying an MA in Creative Writing & Publishing, and I am currently writing three novels, two I aim to publish this year!!
I am a practicing pagan and proud cat lady to six feline companions, and a voracious reader nicknamed “Johnny Five” by my husband for my insatiable appetite for books – my library card gets as much exercise as my Book Dragons shopping cart. While I enjoy all fiction genres from young adult to horror, I particularly gravitate toward fantasy and supernatural genres both in my reading and writing. I am always seeking stories with authentic dialogue and characters that forge emotional connections with readers. An author who can take me on a rollercoaster ride, will definitely have me invested in their story.
I am your friendly neighbourhood Book Dragon (not worm….hey why be a worm when I can be a Dragon!!) Since the release of my first book ‘The Veils of Valoria,’ I have both given, and received valuable feedback, which has helped me as an author to improve my writing, and allowed my work to reach a far wider audience. So I very much wanted to support my fellow self-published / indie authors by offering the same opportunity to improve, and grow their reading audience, and to share my appreciation of their work. Which is why I am an official reviewer and lead for The Book Dragon’s Smurgle Book Review Team.
Best Wishes
Kirsty
Bronwyn McKay
My name is Bronwyn McKay, and although I am not an avid reader, I am so very proud to be the daughter of self-published author, Kirsty McKay, and I truly appreciate the hard work, dedication and commitment that goes into writing and publishing a novel. The Book Dragon is a family run business, and it has been such an amazing time for me welcoming so many fantastic authors into our services, and joining our extended family of dragons. I am really excited by the opportunities that The Book Dragon provides, and how it embraces talent and learning for young people, allowing me the opportunity to develop my career, in a role I love, and the chance to keep supporting my mum and best friend. My role is to provide a professional and welcoming Front of House service to our self-published and independently published authors, and as the lead for our ‘Roarie Dragon’ Department I manage our social media presence, liaise with schools and local community groups to market, organise, and facilitate public in-house events including, but not limited to, children’s reading groups, writing groups and local book clubs. I really enjoy working in partnership with our Author Memberships Business Partners, and being part of the fantastic initiatives that The Book Dragon is launching. To have the opportunity to introduce my own ideas and contribute to the success of The Book Dragon, and its family of authors is a wonderful experience and I am loving every minute of it.
Best Wishes
Bronwyn
Michelle Marshall
I’m Michelle Anne Marshall and I’m an Author Membership Business Partner at The Book Dragon. My job is to help support the authors under my care and facilitate an experience that is as smooth and successful as possible for them.
I’ve loved reading ever since my first experience at the tender age of two. As a child, my parents had to force books out of my hands when it came to mealtimes, as I’d happily have spent every possible moment engrossed in one. I’m still an avid reader and feel lost if I don’t have a current book on the go.
My tastes stretch over a wide variety of genres, but I have a special place in my heart for mysteries and thrillers, particularly those with a psychological edge. Some of my favourite contemporary authors include Brett Easton Ellis, Ian Rankin, Mark Billingham, Val McDermid, Nicci French and Lisa Jewell. I also love classics by George Orwell, F Scott Fitzgerald and Jane Austen amongst many others! In addition to my own personal reading and keeping up with my authors’ creations, I’m a member of a book club that meets monthly.
I also enjoy creative writing, although I’ve yet to attempt to have any novels published (kudos to all you brave authors!) I have had short stories published however and I’ve completed creative writing courses and attend a creative writing group. I even met my husband Tim (who is also an Author Membership Business at The Book Dragon) in a writing community. We now live together in a beautiful coastal town.
Away from the worlds of reading and writing, I enjoy going for walks (particularly by the sea), being a member of a photography group and listening to music. Some of my favourite recording artists are Radiohead, Arctic Monkeys, The Last Shadow Puppets, The Red Hot Chili Peppers and The Foo Fighters. I also attend live music events whenever possible and enjoy taking part in quiz nights with family and friends.
Ralph Booth
My name is Ralph Booth and I am the Marketing and Entertainment Business Partner here at The Book Dragon. My job is to help get books out where the public can see them; be that schools, libraries, museums, in the house at R’lyeh where the dead Cthulhu lies dreaming…
…Anyway, I have been a passionate reader for the entirety of my life. My mum would read me the “Redwall” series by Brian Jacques and would do incredible voices for the various species that make up that world, and my passion for sharing and enjoying novels of all kinds started there. My favourite genres are fantasy and sci fi, though I’ll give anything a go, and I particularly like the kinds of books which bend the form and play with your expectations. As such, my favourite authors include the likes of Susan Cooper, Brandon Sanderson, Gene Wolfe, Robert Jordan and Charles Stross.
In other walks of life I have been a primary school teacher and continue to narrate and produce audiobooks, and therefore accessibility to reading is very important to me. There is no greater act of love and kindness than encouraging a reluctant reader or giving someone access to the worlds and imaginative spaces of books that would otherwise have barriers to that.
Away from books I am a keen practitioner of karate, DM to a band of misfits and rogues, a Beaver leader, and the chairman of Guisborough Theatre Company, where my wife and I enjoy performing in productions whenever we can find the time.
I am thrilled to be a part of the Book Dragon team and to help share your words and worlds with as many people as possible.
Timothy Blake Marshall
I’m Timothy Blake Marshall, and I’m a Business Partner for Author Membership at The Book Dragon. My role is to support the authors I work with in getting the most out of the Book Dragon’s membership services.
I would say that I have my parents and my uncle to thank for my love of books – my parents used to read to me, and my uncle recorded a cassette tape narrating ‘The Little Engine That Could’ for me as a child. Bringing the stories to life through vivid narration helped ease me into reading books myself, and I loved the Hardy Boys and Encyclopaedia Brown even before I started school. My uncle also turned me onto the Sugar Creek Gang series – similar in genre but more relatable as I was a grade schooler living in Arkansas at the time.
Later on, I developed a taste for fantasy, Star Wars novels, and Douglas Adams – though I still enjoy mysteries. Science fiction, fantasy, and comedy are all elements that I tend to be drawn to the most when it comes to books and other media.
I enjoy creative writing in my spare time (though I’ve yet to publish anything), and currently volunteer as staff in an online collaborative writing community. Outside of reading and writing, I love gaming on my PC, virtually attending e-sports events, playing guitar, and listening to music. My favourite genres are 90s rock, post-hardcore, folk, metal, J-Rock, and most things in-between.
I was born outside Atlanta and moved to Canada just before my teens, so I’ve lived in a variety of places, but I’m now happily settled on the North Yorkshire coast with my wife Michelle (who’s also a Business Partner for Author Membership at the Book Dragon). I’m excited to be a part of the Book Dragon and supporting self-published authors.
Jesse Gibbs
My name is Jesse René Gibbs, and I am the author of Girl Hidden. I am an artist, designer, dancer, and survivor. I am a stepmother to four, Amma to four more and blessed beyond measure with the family that I chose. As a designer I have extensive experience collaborating with authors, marketing managers, copywriters, web developers, photographers, and designers, to translate marketing and brand strategies into elegant solutions for print, social and digital media. I have expertise in successfully creating dynamic marketing collateral under tight deadlines and tight budgets. I strive to offer my clients outstanding customer service, while thinking outside the box and connecting marketing collateral from every angle. I’d love to help you design everything from your website to your book cover to creating branding that will build your audience and help your amazing writing find the perfect audience.
My portfolio site is esperluettecreative.com
Best Wishes
Jesse
Sophie Jupillat Posey
I read many kinds of works, as long as they’re well written and connect with the reader. I enjoy sci-fi, fantasy, thriller, horror, and historical novels and short stories, as well as children’s books, non-fiction, essays, poetry, and plays (though I like comedies, I enjoy dramas too, as long as they have a happy ending).
In a good book, the characters have to be unique and strong—without being Mary Sues or Gary Stus. The dialogue has to flow, be pertinent, and sound original to each character. I tend to go for sweeping epic plots, but I also like smaller, more “cozy” plots that focus more on character growth. There has to be some sort of change, whether big or small, in the plot and/or character. In the end, books that make me reflect and that have memorable lines or characters are a plus.
I love reading indie books, as there is so much undiscovered talent there. One of the reasons I have for being with the Book Dragon is that I can discover a whole world of diverse indie works that I wouldn’t otherwise. The Book Dragon takes care of its indie authors and offers visibility, and I think that that mentorship is vital to an author’s career.
As an indie author myself, I know how hard it is to get your book out there, so giving reviews, particularly to indie authors, is really important. Reviews help immensely in gaining exposure and building a following. Plus, nothing beats getting a detailed review that shows a reader delved deeply into your work. The indie community is a warm, welcoming one, and giving reviews is part of the process. My favorite part is discovering new authors in new genres. I have started fairly recently and the books I’ve gotten have been diverse, but I think my favorite so far is The Darkness Rising by Carl F. Northwood.
Best Wishes
Sophie
Phoebe Wilby
Best Wishes
Phoebe
Eryn McConnell
Yvonne Marrs
Rebecca Wade
Becky
Niall McKay
My name is Niall McKay and I have been an avid reader since the age of 6 having been introduced to JR Tolkien and John Wyndham in the fantasy and science fiction genres respectively. I then developed into further adult fiction enjoying authors such as Stephen King and Clive Barker in fantasy horror. My enjoyment of action and espionage developed from many trips to the cinema and particularly watching great actors such as Sean Connery and Roger Moore portray James Bond. Whilst I didn’t take to Ian Fleming as an author I did enjoy the grittier portrayal of espionage through the mind of authors such as Robert Ludlum and John Le Carre. I enjoy reading stories where you never quite know what will happen next but you know something will. Action developing at a fast pace is important to me as are unique and believable characters. So with this in mind I have started to read more historical fiction such as Ken Follet. If I could pick one stand out author it would be George RR Martin who has adapted stories under the fantasy genre. Whilst Game of Thrones is such a good read there are many other stories away from Westeros that are really well written, immersive reads.
I want to give genuinely constructive feedback when reviewing new novels and I will aim to make sure this is balanced. I believe that in anything we do we should look to continually improve and reinvent ourselves to keep ideas fresh and exciting. Knowing how much work goes in to writing a novel this philosophy is just as important to authors too. I hope that my comments are taken in good faith with good points reinforced and areas for improvement taken on board to help the author really sharpen their pens. If I don’t like a particular read I will say so but this does not mean that other readers won’t like it so I will make this point in reflection.
I am looking forward to sharing my enjoyment of reading with you all, and my recommendations for your next book.
Best Wishes
Niall