Welcome to the Riptide Publishing/L. A. Witt blog tour for Precious Metals, the second Klondike Gold Rush steampunk novella set in the same world as Noble Metals!

Every comment on this blog tour enters you in a drawing for a choice of two eBooks off my backlist (excluding Precious Metals) and a $10 Riptide Publishing store credit. See below for more information about the giveaway!

Research & Liberties – Mixing Historical with Fantasy

by L.A. Witt

So one of the fun parts with Precious Metals (as well as Noble Metals) was taking an actual historical era (the Klondike Gold Rush) and mixing it with steampunk.  I still had to research it like I would a standard historical novel, but I went at it with the mindset of “how would this be different with the addition of steampunk technology?”

The challenge there is keeping it true to the real history, but also realistically adapting it to the added technology. In that sense, it’s kind of like alternate history—if a certain event in history were changed, how would the world be affected? If the Klondike Gold Rush happened after the invention of airships and mechs to carry provisions, how would things be different?

Well, the consensus of all my research was this: the Klondike Gold Rush was miserable. It was dangerous, it was a grueling journey, and more people died along the way than found gold at the end. I mean, there’s a reason one of the trails was nicknamed Dead Horse Trail, and it wasn’t because a tree stump looked like a dead horse. Basically, once you left Seattle and headed north, life was going to suck until you made it back.

So, add steampunk technology. How would things change? There were a number of ways, of course, but I’m an author, and therefore a sadist of sorts. Thus, my answer to that question was: Things would get worse.

Yeah, we’ve got airships now that can whisk you to Dawson City in warm luxury…except they’re horrendously expensive and have a habit of crashing into mountainsides.

Oh, we’ve got mechs to carry your provisions so you don’t have to feed horses/mules or break your own back…but they’re clumsy, they break if a bird farts, and don’t do so well on ice. And there’s a lot of ice in Alaska.

And hey, getting over the Chilkoot Pass is easy now that you can do it in one shot! No more crossing the pass a dozen times, carrying whatever you can before walking back over to pick up another load of provisions. Because, hey, mechs!  Oh. Right. The pass is covered in ice. And a mech sliding down the Golden Staircase (1,500 steps carved into the ice) while loaded down with a half ton or so of provisions isn’t dangerous at all.

So we’d better make sure every mech is sure-footed and in good repair before it starts going over the pass. Which means the Mounties have now opened an encampment on the south side where they inspect mechs and provisions. Which slows everybody down. And ticks everybody off. And generally makes for a camp full of cranky prospectors who kind of wish these stupid mechs had never been invented.

And that’s how Noble Metals and Precious Metals came about—start with a real point in history, add technology that backfires, stir rapidly, and throw in a couple of boys who would really like to turn around and go home, but can’t.

About Precious Metals

For Constable Paul Benson of the North-West Mounted Police, monotony is a blessing. As a provision inspector below the Chilkoot Pass during the Klondike Gold Rush, he’s seen miserable conditions and gold fever turn civilized prospectors into madmen.

Joseph Starling is on his way to the Klondike to find the men who savagely beat him, murdered his eldest brother, and stole their mining machine. They’ll kill his youngest brother if Joseph doesn’t operate the machine for them—it won’t work without him. With time running out, Joseph must purchase an expensive ticket aboard a crash-prone airship. But the station is miles away through dangerous terrain.

Under orders, Paul grudgingly escorts Joseph, but quickly finds himself intrigued by the young man. As they make their way toward Juneau, it’s not just the need for warmth that drives them closer together. But neither man can draw an easy breath until they make it to the gold fields . . . and there’s no guarantee that Joseph’s brother will still be alive when they do.

Available at: Riptide Publishing and Amazon

About L.A. Witt

L.A. Witt is an abnormal M/M romance writer currently living in the glamorous and ultra-futuristic metropolis of Omaha, Nebraska, with her husband, two cats, and a disembodied penguin brain that communicates with her telepathically. In addition to writing smut and disturbing the locals, L.A. is said to be working with the US government to perfect a genetic modification that will allow humans to survive indefinitely on Corn Pops and beef jerky. This is all a cover, though, as her primary leisure activity is hunting down her arch nemesis, erotica author Lauren Gallagher, who is also said to be lurking somewhere in Omaha.

L.A. Witt’s backlist is available on her website, and updates (as well as random thoughts and the odd snarky comment) can be found on her blog or on Twitter (@GallagherWitt).

Every comment on this blog tour enters you in a drawing for a choice of two eBooks off L.A. Witt’s backlist (excluding Precious Metals) and a $10 Riptide Publishing store credit. Entries close at midnight, Eastern time, on November 2nd, and winners will be announced on November 3rd.  Contest is NOT restricted to U.S. entries.

Note from the author: I am in the process of relocating, and of course, I picked this week to make the drive from Nebraska to Seattle. As such, I’ll be at the mercy of hotel wifi and 3G signal in the middle of nowhere, but I will do my best to catch up whenever I’m stopped and/or when I reach my destination!

Don’t forget to check out Heather C’s review of Precious Metals to see what she thought of it!

Good luck!