Category Archives: Author Interviews

Interview with Author JC Kang

This month we are pleased to present an interview with John (JC) Kang, author of The Legends of Tivara, a multi-volume epic fantasy “series of series” that includes, among others, The Dragon Songs Saga and Scions of the Black Lotus.

The Dragon Songs Saga Boxset

Welcome JC. Please tell us a little about yourself and your writing.

Thanks for having me!  I’m an acupuncturist by trade, a Wing Chun Kung Fu instructor for fun, and I do a little writing, as well.  I generally write epic fantasy with a mix of cultures drawing from Earth’s history.

When did you first decide to be a writer? What first drew you to writing fantasy?

I grew up both GMing (Game-Mastering) and playing D&D, and as a teen, I’d stood in line waiting for Dragonlance books to come out.  As something of a misfit, I tried to write a story set in my game world then. It was a total mess. Twenty years later, I came across my worldbuilding materials while cleaning out my room in my childhood home. Of course, as an adult, I had a better understanding of matters like economies and gravity, so I decided to recreate the planet that I’d envisioned as a teenager.

On the seventh day, I rested. It was then that I realized I would probably never play D&D again; and since as a DM, my players always frustrated me with their free will, I decided I would write.

Are there particular books, movies, or games that were a major influence on your work?

Besides Dungeons & Dragons, Civilization was a huge influence in terms of giving me the idea of a second world with Earth Cultures.  Of course, Star Wars, Star Trek, Lord of the Rings, Chronicles of Narnia were huge literary and media influencers when I was growing up.

Do all of your stories take place in the same fictional universe? How do you approach setting and world building?

So far, yes!  The primary characters of one series might make a cameo in another, and there is one character who appears in all of them.

For world building, one of the most important things to me is continuity and interconnectivity.  For example, I created a low-orbit moon which is tidally locked and always in the same place in the sky. I started to think, how would that moon influence the people viewing it from below? What cultural practices would that lead to?

Yes, I remember thinking what a cool idea that moon was. It gave a science fiction touch to the fantasy world. 

I am always interested in the magical aspect of fantasy. What inspires the magic or supernatural elements of your stories?

I give each ethnic group their own form of magic, but it is all based on borrowing wave energy from an abundant mineral on the planet. Each culture describe the manipulation of frequency, wavelength, and amplitude to alter reality it in different terminology:  For example, the “Roman” Diviners hear the Gods’ Whispers to Divine; whereas the “West African” Mystics sense the Resonance for sorcery; South Asians channel Vibrations into fighting prowess, etc.

I think a big challenge of fantasy is creating magic that is plausible and understandable to the reader. Do you construct rules-based magical systems or approach it in some other way?

I would neither call the magic system hard or soft—it’s firm. There are definite rules, but I don’t keep track of mana points or anything like that. The key to me is consistency: if there is magic, how will that affect the development of a culture, and the cultures around it?

Complete Tales of the Floating World Boxset

Of all the characters you’ve created, who are your favorites and why?

My favorites have changed over the years, but now, I would say it is my half Asian/half-elf ninja. Originally, she was just a minor character meant to show the world was a mix of Eastern and Western fantasies; but my first critique partners loved her so much, she got an important back story. She’s fun to write because the snark in her viewpoint.

How would you describe your writing style?

Technical?  Not technical writing—I actually worked in that field at one time—but rather, the idea of structuring variety in sentence structures and patterns. Beyond that, I can’t say I’m a brilliant wordsmith who knows the perfect word to evoke the perfect image.

Your biography includes professional experience as a Chinese Medicine Doctor and a martial arts instructor. How have these experiences added to your fiction?

Martial arts has helped me choreograph fights. Chinese Medicine has helped come up with some cool sayings.

Art of the Floating World cover

What are your current projects? When will we see your next book?

I’m currently working on the sequel to Masters of Deception, which chronologically takes place between Crown of the Sundered Empire and Orchestra of Treacheries (though the sequel to Crown, and possibly a serial) will squeeze in between those last two.

I’m also working on a cyberpunk-Progression Fantasy mashup.

What advice would you give to aspiring writers?

Read a lot. Critique, because if you’re like me, in reading unpolished works, you will see what doesn’t work, and you’ll realize you probably make the same mistakes.

In closing, is there anything else you would like to say to your readers?

I’m deeply humbled by those who’ve spent time reading my stories. Thank you!

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You can find JC Kang’s books on his Amazon page.List of JC Kang Books

To learn more about JC Kang visit http://jckang.dragonstonepress.us/

 

Interview with Fantasy Author Kasper Beaumont

This month we have an author interview with Kasper Beaumont, creator of The Hunters of Reloria trilogy (young adult sword and sorcery) as well as fantasy short fiction. December 14 will see the publication of her newest work, a contemporary urban fantasy titled Captive of the Darkness (Hidden Angel Series, Book One).

Kasper Beaumont

Welcome Kasper. Please tell us a little about yourself and your writing.

G’day Jack.  Great to be here, thank you.  Your Triskelion Books website sure looks interesting, and I’ll be checking out your Mazes of Magic book for sure. I love Egyptology.

Oops, back to the question. Yes, I’m an Australian author of fantasy books.  Four in The Hunters of Reloria series (yes I called it a ‘trilogy’ and I fail at maths haha). I have now started on another trilogy (slow learner here) and think it will be three books, but I do find my characters have their own ideas about things, so we’ll wait and see.

When did you first decide to be a writer?

In primary school I was that geeky kid reading Lord of the Rings while my classmates were enthralled by Dr. Suess. I guess that was the first clue. When we swapped our creative writing books and read each other’s work aloud, my friends couldn’t even pronounce, let alone comprehend, some of my stories. Oops, sorry guys. At least we’re on good terms now. One friend named Becky recently gave me a Galadriel award for creative writing. (She totes made up that award, but I gladly accepted.)

I then grew up, went through uni where my assignments struggled to fit in under 2K or 5K word limits. Then after having a few halflings (kiddos) of my own, I rediscovered my love for creative writing.

What first drew you to writing fantasy?

My first thought to answer this is laziness (chuckles). I’m not one to spend hours in libraries researching the past when I can create my own worlds. I have vivid dreams, such a halflings and fairies playing in wheat fields or mace-wielding lizardmen being tossed into the air by a dragon.

I guess another instigating factor was when my eldest child started school and I thought it would be a cool project for us to write a book together and see our ideas in print.

Are there particular books, movies, games that were a major influence on your work?

The Belgariad series by David Eddings was one of my faves growing up. I felt pure joy and the excitement of waiting for the next installment in the series. It’s probably why I chose to pen a series instead of a single novel. You get more time to formulate and expand your ideas over several books.

Movies I enjoyed growing up were madcap adventures like The Three Musketeers, The Goonies, modern spins on classics, such as Neverending Story, magical escapism such as E.T, and I can’t overlook my fave of all time, Star Wars, for sheer entertainment value.

You were born and raised in Australia. In what ways would you say that influenced your work? Put another way, do you see any particular differences between Australian fiction and that of other countries?

Mateship is a strong theme in Australia. Being the driest inhabited continent and prone to bushfires, the people are tough and form deep bonds where we look out for each other. I guess that is why my characters develop such deep friendships and risk their lives for each other, like the traditional ‘Aussie digger’ soldiers in the World Wars.

Sometimes I write of things we lack in my country such as historic castles and particularly documented histories. Our culture here is very old, but has limited written or man-made edifices, more a sense of one with nature and lore stored in the minds of elders and passed down from generation to generation.

Can you tell us about your newest work, Captive of the Darkness?

On Riley’s 18th birthday, she is told she’s a demon hunter, like the rest of her family. She shrugs the news off in disbelief but that very night she unwittingly enters the lair of a powerful demon and her whole world is turned upside down.

She meets a stripper nicknamed Cupid, who states he is prisoner of the demon. He is a graceful ballet dancer forced into slavery but yearning to escape his dangerous master. When she sees a glowing aura around this young man, she realizes he isn’t just any ordinary lad, but something very special. She knows she must try to save him.

Captive of Darkness Cover

As urban fantasy, Angels and Demons is a departure from your Hunters of Reloria series. What influenced you to take this new direction?

Good question. I think my reading interests have been leading me in this direction for many years. After years of loving epic fantasy, I’ve been reading a lot more paranormal and mature content and guess this is where my inspiration developed. Influences would be The Fallen series, Anita Blake Vampire Hunter, Sookie Stackhouse, Anne Rice, etc.

Also, my love of culture is evident in the ballet dancing and the artwork (more in the 2nd book, so I won’t elaborate). I still do love coming-of-age and graduation themes though. It’s such an important part of life, and I think that being around and writing about young people keeps me young at heart too.

How would you describe the challenges of writing urban fantasy versus epic fantasy or sword and sorcery?

Hmm…I guess for me it was a more mature writing style and language. They are quite different genres. In the Hunters of Reloria series I could just throw in a twin planet or a new form of magic without having to explain the physics of how that would work or why. The beauty of writing in an alien world, anything is possible.

In the Hidden Angel series, I feel more responsibility to make the paranormal abilities and characters believable as though this is just a part of the real world you didn’t know about. I have thrown in a few little ‘Easter eggs’ of places that people living in Redcliffe and Brisbane may recognize. One is even a hotel which was demolished but has been reborn in another location in Captive of the Darkness.

The Hunters of Reloria books are described as YA (young adult) fiction while Angels and Demons is adult fiction? How did you adjust your writing for the new audience?

I’m hoping there aren’t young readers here, but if so, please look away now.

The main mature concept introduced in Captive of the Darkness is male exotic dancers. You know what they say, sex sells, baby. That may sound a bit cocky, but to keep it real, I write what I like to read and hope there are readers with the same tastes as mine who would like to follow me down the rabbit hole.

Elven Jewel Cover

While we’re on the subject, can you tell us a little more about The Hunters of Reloria?

This fantasy adventure begins when the magical continent of Reloria is threatened by cruel, scaly invaders called Vergai from the wastelands of Vergash. These invaders are barbaric and are intent on destroying the protective elven forcefield and conquering peaceful Reloria. The Vergais’ plan is to steal the Elven Jewel which is the key to the Relorian defence system.

Halfling friends Randir and Fendi and their bond-fairies are the first to discover the invaders, and they embark on a quest to save the Elven Jewel. They leave their peaceful farm village with their fairies and race against time to stop the invaders. They join forces with dwarves, elves, men, and a mysterious dragon, and call themselves the Hunters of Reloria.

The quest is perilous, with numerous encounters with the ruthless Vergai, who are determined to fulfill their mission. The Elven Jewel is stolen and the quest becomes a race to the portal to retrieve the jewel before it can be taken to Vergash. A battle for Reloria ensues where the consequences for the Relorians is death, unless Vergai are stopped.

How would you describe your writing style?

I fly by the seat of my pants. At best I have a general outline of the story and sometimes even then I change the plot in the middle of writing. The uncertainty is quite fun and keeps me on my toes. With work and family commitments, I don’t always get to write every day, but I do enjoy writing a lot when I have the time.

This past year I created two wonderful online groups with my friends Cheryllynn Dyess and Marsha A Moore and later have been joined by around 20 other wonderful collaborators of whom I’d like to particularly mention and thank Rennie St James.

The Fantasy & Sci-Fi Readers Lounge and
The Fantasy SciFi Author Support Group

What advice would you give to aspiring writers?

Join a group, read aloud, get feedback, and hone your craft. We all have to start somewhere, and practice makes perfect. (I’m the Queen of the clichés today, it seems).

I think the most important advice is to keep going. Not everyone who reads your work will love it. Even the biggest writers in the world have had rejections, so don’t quit when someone doesn’t like your work.

In closing, is there anything else you would like to say to your readers?

May the force be with you. Never give up, never surrender. Live long and prosper. Home is behind, the world ahead, and there are many paths to tread through shadows to the edge of night, until the stars are all alight.

If you know and like those four quotes, then you know where to find me.

Also, a review is the best gift you can give an author.

Happy reading, cheers,

Kasper.

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You can find Captive of the Darkness on Amazon

Can an angel be hiding here on Earth?

A veil of secrecy is lifted on Riley’s 18th birthday. She thought she knew the world, but now discovers she is a demon hunter. It doesn’t seem real, but then she meets Him, a charismatic young dancer with special powers.

He is a prisoner of a powerful demon.

What secrets does this stranger hide? Will Riley risk her own family to save Him?

To learn more about Kasper Beaumont visit these links:  

Kasper Beaumont
Hunters of Reloria series
Hidden Angel series
Website: www.huntersofreloria.weebly.com
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/kasperj.beaumont
Twitter: https://twitter.com/KasperBeaumont
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/kaz.beaumont/