Weldon, Phaedra M.

PERSONAL:

Born in Pensacola, FL; married (a scientist); children: one daughter. Education: Attended Georgia Southern University.

ADDRESSES:

Home—Atlanta, GA. Agent—Writers House, 21 W. 26th St., New York, NY 10010. E-mail—ZAM007@comcast.net.

CAREER:

Author. Also worked as a graphic artist.

WRITINGS:

Star Trek: Starfleet Corps of Engineers #59: Blackout (ebook), Star Trek, 2006.

Star Trek: Corps of Engineers: Signs from Heaven (ebook), Star Trek, 2007.

Star Trek: The Next Generation: Slings and Arrows Book 2: The Oppressor's Wrong (e-book), Simon & Schuster, 2007.

Wraith: A Zoë Martinique Novel, Ace Books (New York, NY), 2007.

Contributor to numerous anthologies, including Cosmic Cocktails; Fantasy Gone Wrong; Gateways; Hags, Sirens and Other Bad Girls; Strange New Worlds; and Wizards, Inc. Also author of the blog Phaedra Weldon.

SIDELIGHTS:

After leaving college early to pursue a career in graphic arts, Phaedra M. Weldon got married and had a daughter. Her career and family life kept her busy, but she also pursued an interest in writing. She attended a number of writing workshops, and by 1997 had sold her first story, ‘The Lights in the Sky,’ to a Star Trek anthology. Weldon began writing novels, including two that were published as electronic books in the ‘Star Trek’ series. Several books went unsold, but in 2007 the first installment of a new series, Wraith: A Zoë Martinique Novel, debuted to many good reviews.

Weldon's heroine, Zoë Martinique, has the unique ability to astral project out of her body. She has had this power since she was a little girl, when she discovered it after the horrifying experience of being raped and left for dead. Now an adult, she uses her powers as a private investigator. Wraith is the most disturbing case she has encountered, because at the scene of a murder she runs into a Symbiont, a murderer she calls Trench-Coat because of his garb. This being can see her in her out-of-body form, and his touch causes her spirit to become physical in other planes of existence: she becomes a wraith. Trench-Coat is not only a murderer but also a stealer of people's souls; he promises his victims erotic delights that tempt Zoë as well. The Symbiont is somehow connected to a plot involving a businessman and a televangelist, and Zoë, motivated by the fact that a child's life is being threatened, works on the case with a handsome detective.

The book is ‘a fantastic kickoff to what promises to be a vibrant new series,’ according to Kristine Huntley in Booklist. Wraith earned praise from several other reviewers as well. ‘Martinique is strong, resourceful, self-deprecating, and fascinating,’ reported Jackie Cassada in Library Journal, while Best Reviews contributor Harriet Klausner lauded the plot, too: ‘The storyline is original with strange interesting creatures that make the other planes seem normal while Zoë is a one of a kind heroine.’ Even those critics who found flaws in the book felt that Weldon largely surmounted these difficulties. For instance, a Kirkus Reviews contributor called Zoë an ‘appealing if occasionally irritating protagonist, and the plot mostly works despite the overcomplicated backdrop.’ Darque Review critic Kimberly Swan declared Zoë ‘a great new character,’ and concluded that ‘Ms. Weldon weaves a riveting tale with well defined characters and a marvelously fun world for them to work and play in."

Weldon told CA: ‘My first scribble was rewriting a Scooby Doo episode. I was very disappointed that the cartoon character Miner Forty-Niner was just another guy in a mask. I always wanted him to be real. From there I went on to rewrite episodes of my favorite shows such as ‘Land of the Lost,’ ‘The Kids from Caper,’ and ‘Star Trek,’ as well as just about every show by the television producers Sid and Marty Krofft. I wrote all the time in notebooks, sharing stories with my best friend, until my mom bought me my first typewriter when I turned ten. After that, I was hooked.

"My work is influenced by everything: music, movies, television, gaming, drawing, family drama, work drama, friend drama, marriage drama. But my writing is all about characters. I love them. I cannot get enough of a strong, well-developed, three-dimensionally flawed character. And when I see that character in a movie, or read about him or her in a book, I know that THAT is what I want to write. I want to move the reader to feel they are a part of the story. That is what happened to me when I first read Robert A. Heinlein's novel, Podkayne of Mars, when I was a teen. I loved Podkayne, the main character. She was sixteen and so inexperienced. It did not matter that she lived on Mars. She made the same mistakes I did, but with even worse consequences. I remember her as being so real to me. If I can't believe in a character, it's hard for me to finish a book, whether I'm reading it or writing it. I've discarded loads of material—even an entire book—because I thought the plot was pretty cool, but the character was as entertaining as a fried egg.

"When I write, I start with an inspiration. For example, the idea of traveling outside of one's body. Wow … now how would that mess with someone's life? And what kind of person would they be? Well, I'd want them to be strong—not someone who was going to run off and watch naked people in the locker room, but someone who would use that power for good. So I create the character—from how they look to how they walk, to what they like or don't like. Then I figure out the worst thing I can do to them and I do it. Next I figure out how that character is going to fix things and what the consequences might be.

"After all that is taken care of—and scribbled on various pieces of scraps around me—I grab a title that appeals to me, which may be a song title or lyric, and I start hammering. And I usually don't stop until I'm done. I build a musical soundtrack as I go, and I even create my own visual character sketches to evoke emotion for me. But once the first draft is done, I have cheesecake. And when the second draft is done I have more cheesecake. With whipped cream.

"I hope that my books are pure, unadulterated, fun. Reading can be educational, and it can be an escape. I don't think people read enough for escape. I loved getting into a series and loving that character and worrying what would happen to him or her. How many people follow soap operas (they call them ‘stories’ where I'm from—Grandma always had to watch her ‘stories’ when I was growing up) and watch them from day to day, and week to week? That's what I want to build, whether in Zoë's world or in another world. I want the reader to have a good time."