Every Tuesday, get to know a bit about the stories behind the books you love, and discover your next favourite novel.

Zilla: In our current environmental crisis, we need stories that imagine different worlds. I invited Lauren C. Teffeau here to tell us about her eco-thriller Accelerated Growth Environment, which gives us adventure, sapphic romance, and science fiction. Lauren, take it away!

Lauren: Dr. Jorna Benton is proud to be the Principal Scientist for the Climasphere, a massive, sea-going ecological nursery capable of supporting nearly every biome on Earth. On its inaugural mission to restore and re-wild collapsing ecosystems along the Atlantic coast, Jorna manages the Climasphere’s habitat and harvest, while her colleague—and inconveniently attractive commander—Ava Kaysar directs the rest of the vessel’s critical operations. When an explosion rocks the Climasphere, Jorna’s carefully-managed world is thrown into chaos, threatening both her personal and her professional future. And worse: she’s the prime suspect. To clear her name, save the mission, and preserve her chance at a future with Kaysar, Jorna must finally confront the secret she’s been running from all these years: a family and a faith that could destroy her.

Zilla: What inspired you to write this book?

Lauren: With the world fragmented and the informationsphere weaponized against collective action, democratic freedoms, and the realities of climate change, I wanted to showcase a future where it was possible to do “big” things for the betterment of all. Once upon a time, the vast majority of countries around the world worked together to curb chlorofluorocarbon emissions that were depleting the ozone layer of the atmosphere. And it worked! But now we’re rolling back climate protections in America and fighting with allies and enemies alike, making such collaborations at that scale seem impossible. In Accelerated Growth Environment, I wanted to show what it would look like if our countries worked together to create a symbol of hope—the Climasphere—a seaworthy habitat capable of nurturing the plants necessary to rewild the earth and repair the damage by the fossil fuel industry, and the people committed to such a mission. We need to be able to imagine such possibilities in order to work toward a brighter future together.

Zilla: That makes so much sense as a goal for your writing. What about visual inspiration—did any visual images inspire your world building?

Lauren: The most influential visual reference I had for the Climasphere, the setting of my novella, was BioSphere2, a massive human-made biodome just north of Tucson, Arizona that contains a bunch of different biomes and was intended to be a self-sufficient system with its own power, water, air, and all the plants and equipment necessary for food production for the scientists who volunteered to spend two years sequestered there away from the rest of the world. The facility is huge, and the architecture still has a futuristic vibe decades later. Now, it is a research laboratory to test out new approaches to growing plants and how to construct man-made habitats in extreme environments like the moon, Mars, and beyond.

Zilla: If you weren’t a writer, what do you think you’d do instead?

Lauren: Probably architecture or interior design. We did an architecture segment in technical education in eighth grade, and I loved being able to design my own building—very much like the worldbuilding I do on the regular with my writing. I also really enjoy making my home feel welcoming and finding ways to optimize its function. The challenge of finding just the right spot for the chair that came from my grandmother, or the painting from my aunt, or the knickknack I picked up from the thrift store is so much fun—navigating the constraints of what you have and the unexpectedness that results, a creative process in its own right.

Zilla: Thanks for sharing your story and your process. We’re looking forward to reading! Where can the Night Beats community find you and your book?

Lauren: 

Author Links:

Website: http://laurencteffeau.com/ 

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/lteffeau/ 

Bluesky: https://bsky.app/profile/teffeau.bsky.social 

Linktree: https://linktr.ee/teffeau 

Book Links:

Shiraki Press: https://www.shirakipress.com/books/accelerated-growth-environment/ 

Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0G3Z82PGJ 

Barnes and Noble: https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/accelerated-growth-environment-lauren-c-teffeau/1149394456 

Bookshop: https://bookshop.org/p/books/accelerated-growth-environment-lauren-c-teffeau/702dfb200d67fc3b

Every Tuesday, get to know a bit about the stories behind the books you love, and discover your next favourite novel.

Zilla: I’m a big fan of dark fantasy—particularly starring nuanced, dangerous women. L. N. Holmes delivers exactly that in her latest novel, The Floating Castle. L.N., can you describe the story for our readers?

L.N.: To secure her position as the emperor’s favorite daughter, Princess Fu Liling sails across a monster-infested sea to marry and subdue Elias of House Zartisval, crown prince of a rival kingdom. When she meets Elias, however, he unexpectedly refuses to marry her. At risk of being cut off from the imperial family, Liling tries to force the wedding, only to discover that Elias is a murderer and she is his disposable hostage. 

 Liling resolves to expose this betrayal to her father and plots an escape, relying on a reluctant guard and a rebel witch to aid in her flight. Elias, who’d rather see them all dead than free, gives chase. The ensuing battle may cause the Floating Castle to literally fall, and Liling must decide: surrender and die to keep the peace or dishonor her father in exchange for her own life and liberty. The repercussions of her choice will ripple across a continent. 

Fans of Game of Thrones and The Witcher will appreciate this epic fantasy for its morally gray women, dangerous political intrigue, and sinister magic. 

Zilla: I love everything about this—you could have written this book for me. Who did you write this book for?

L.N.: When I was a young woman, I needed stories about women who could survive despite the extreme adversity they were facing. Thankfully, I stumbled upon stories like The Handmaid’s Tale and The Hunger Games, but I struggled to find the stories that I needed in epic fantasy, especially ones that didn’t center a romance. I became so frustrated with the lack of those stories that I decided to write one instead. That’s how The Floating Castle came to be. I hope it will find its way into the hands of women who need to see other women surviving.

Right now, mostly other writers (horror and fantasy writers) are reading my book. I hope to reach more readers at festivals and other in-person events coming up this year.

Zilla: You have a really personal reason for writing this book. What’s the reason you write overall?

L.N.: Stories are one of our most powerful and effective ways to communicate with one another. I’m not a gifted speaker, but if I have time to think about and refine my ideas, I feel like I can communicate at least somewhat well with my writing. I ultimately just long to connect with other people, to love and understand those who are different (or even the same) as me.

Zilla: What’s your next writing project?

L.N.: Besides finishing The Dragon Gate series? I have two horror stories haunting my brain, demanding attention.

Zilla: Thanks for sharing your story and your process. We’re looking forward to reading! Where can the Night Beats community find you and your book?

L.N.: You can find The Floating Castle in six independent bookstores: The Crafty Bookstore, The Cozy Book Nook, The Bookworm (Omaha), Amethyst and Ink Books, Snapdragon Books & Gifts, and The Floating Bookshop. I would encourage you to buy from them first. The purchase links are on my website.

Every Tuesday, get to know a bit about the stories behind the books you love, and discover your next favourite novel.

Zilla: Honey Novick is a singer, poet, writer, among her other talents! She’s here to tell us about her work. Honey, can you tell us a bit about what you’ve created and what drives you?

Honey: I’m considered a song/poet, someone who sings, writes and interprets poetry.  My writing is shared only when it is positive and hopeful.  I believe that that is why I write and sing – to offer hope.  It is a personal struggle as I tend to be discouraged but in my writing and singing, I find a strength, a spiritual connection and that is what I like to offer and share with others.

Zilla: What inspires you? How do you start a song?

Honey: I was feeling discouraged one afternoon.  Sitting on my bed, I felt I had to get out of this funk.  I started saying to myself, “I am a winner”  then I’d think, “You are one, too.”  Then I thought, “1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, I know something really great!!!” That became a song.  I had the opportunity to sing at a Voice of Women conference and performed that song with motions.  Unbeknownst to me, a United Nations representative was in the audience and loved it.  She invited me to send all my material to the UNESCO Education department.  I was honored and knew my words had a positive effect.

Zilla: Thanks for sharing your positive creations and your process. We’re looking forward to seeing more! Where can the Night Beats community find your work?

Honey: Night Beats people can find me on Google, Youtube and Facebook. I’m a technical luddite and don’t know how to provide a link to my books but they are all archived at the National Art Gallery of Canada, General Idea Reading Room