Mandy Eve-Barnett's Blog for Readers & Writers

Please welcome Jeremy, a prolific writer from an early age. A perfect match for today’s word – Voluminous – definition: 1) a. having or marked by great bulk or volume : large b. having much material; 2) filling or capable of filling a large volume or several large volumes.

a)      Of the characters you have created or envisioned, which is your favorite & why?

I have a love for most, if not all, of my characters, even the nasty ones. I would say my favorite at this point is the main protagonist I’m creating for my current work-in-progress. His name is Koran, and he is a slave who is forced to fight for the Yhiss Empire, ruled by a snake-like race called the Yuan-ti. He inspires me to be a better person, and I don’t know if I’d be as strong as him if I were subjected to what he has to endure on a daily basis.

 b)      Do you favor one type of genre or do you dabble in more than one?

I enjoy reading multiple genres, but with my writing I tend to favor Fantasy and Science Fiction.

 c)      What do you enjoy most about writing?

I love developing my characters! Also, I enjoy organizing elaborate battle scenes. Who doesn’t love the besieging of a castle-fortress, or a flashy sword-fight?

 d)     Have you got a favorite place to write?

I usually do most of my writing on my laptop, and though I have an office, I tend to do most of my writing while sitting on the couch, with the TV on in the background.

 e)      Do you plan your stories, or are you a seat of the pants style writer?

I plan and outline a great amount of my stories. In fact, I have a rough outline for at least my first 9 books or so for the series I’m working on. However, I always leave plenty of room to adapt to scenes, and to the flow of the book, as I write it. The planning is just a guide.

 f)       What inspires your stories?

I daydream a lot. I was daydreaming about my current work-in-progress a couple years ago, long before any of it ever landed on paper. I would say one element that seems to inspire me the most is music. There is a group, called ‘Two Steps from Hell’, that creates music generally used for movie trailers that has inspired many battle scenes for me.

 g)      What are you currently reading?

When I’m not writing, I’m usually reading. Right now, I’m reading book 1 of  the A SONG OF ICE AND FIRE series, A GAME OF THRONES, for the third time. I’m a big fan of George R.R. Martin, Robert Jordan, Brian Sanderson, Terry Goodkind, R.A. Salvatore, the list goes on and on.

 h)      Do you have any odd habits or childhood stories?

Not really, although I’ve always liked to create stories, whether by writing, or making comic-books (my drawing is absolutely terrible).

 i)        Do you have any pets?

I have had dogs and cats in the past, but at this time, I do not. However, my wife and I are looking at getting a beagle puppy, or maybe a basset-hound.

 j)        Do you belong to a writing group? If so which one?

I am currently a member of “Writer Unboxed”, “Fantasy Writers”, and “Connecting Comic-Book Writers and Artists” groups on Facebook. I am also a member of the “Internet Writing Workshop” (IWW), which is a critique group that operates through e-mail mailing lists, moderated by Penn State.

 k)      What age did you start writing stories/poems?

I started writing in grade school. I wrote tons of short stories as I was growing up. When I was in high school, I teamed up with a friend of mine, who was an amazing artist, and we created a comic-book series called DIRESWORD. He did all the artwork, and I wrote and organized the plot and dialog for the series. We released an issue around the school once a month for three years, finishing with the 36^th issue.

 l)        Do you have a book published? If so what is it called & where can readers purchase it?

I don’t have anything published yet. My current work-in-progress is the first project I intend to try to publish.

 m)    If you could meet one favorite author who would it be and why?

I would want to meet either Ed Greenwood or R.A. Salvatore, authors in the Forgotten Realms series, and avid Dungeons & Dragons players. I enjoy the game, and I think it would be fun to play a game with them.

 n)      If you could live anywhere in the world – where would it be?

That’s easy. St. Louis, Missouri, or a nice suburb in the area. I am a die-hard St. Louis Cardinals fan, and my family took numerous trips to St. Louis when I was growing up, to go to games. The city is special to me, and holds a lot of memories.

o)      What’s your  favorite movie of all time?

Star Wars: Episode V – The Empire Strikes Back

p)      Where can readers find you and your blog?

My new website is http://www.jeremylynrobins.com and my blog, PATH OF THE WARDENS, can be found there.

q)      Do you have plans or ideas for your next book?

I do indeed. As I mentioned earlier, I have several of my next books already outlined.

r)       Who is your best supporter/mentor/encourager?

Hands down, my wife, Becky is my rock, and she has been nothing but supportive for  me as I’ve been following my dream to become a Fantasy author.