My interview today is with J.D. Franx who is the author of SINS OF THE PAST: A DARKNESS WITHIN PROLOGUE.  You may note that I just reviewed this prologue here on this website and, in my view, it is fantastic!

Welcome, J.D. Can you tell my readers a little about the DARKNESS WITHIN series and what inspired you to write it?

 The Darkness Within series itself will be a large saga. Not exactly sure how long yet, but I expect it run between 5-7 books, all of which will be about 170,000 words. The series will mainly follow Kael’s story. Kael was raised in a world very similar to ours, but when he is 20 years old, a coven of witches performs a ritual to bring him to Talohna where the story takes place. I know it sounds cliched, but I can guarantee it’s not the cliche you think it is. I won’t say any more than that, lol. The series will evolve around an ancient prophecy that no one really understands and will show how Kael (and others) deal with sudden changes to their environment and lifestyles. Talohna is very different from Earth, it can be very violent and it was formed from the power of magic. Magic is very prolific there. As for inspiration, it will always be the big, multi-race worlds like those in the Forgotten Realms, Dragonlance, and of course Tolkien stories.

 I know, from reading the Prologue, that the world you have created is fascinating. Can you give my readers any insight into your creative process? That is, how did you come up with the idea to create this fabulous world?

First and foremost, I am a huge classic or high fantasy fan. But, I always found that fantasy stories seem to go to the extremes. The all-powerful hero always wins the day or everyone always dies and there’s never any hope, both of which I love. It’s fantasy so it shouldn’t be real but what would happen if a fantasy series was based in reality. Where the good guys don’t always win the day, there are flawed heroes, strong and complex female characters, and typical fantasy cliches are turned on their heads. A world where you don’t know if the hero is going to win, heck, in my world half the time you’re not even sure who the hero is, lol. That’s what I tried to do. Another thing about fantasy is that magic is treated as either super-powered or non-existant, all of which I love again, don’t get me wrong, but what about a world where it is abundant. As the story evolves you will see how important magic is to everyone, yet it’s not usually all-powerful. Wizards, mystics and mages are all trained in combat weapons because magic is limited, it takes a toll on the body-magic users are not defenceless when their magic is exhausted, they are capable of frontline fighting. Magic is classed by ability and any children with an affinity for it are taken to the university for free gov’t paid study-if they choose to. Magic is a way of life in Talohna. Creatures, people animals, and even plants all contain magical properties, even if it’s just the spark of life that every normal, average human being has. Hopefully it will be something a little different, yet still familiar.

 Can you tell us a little bit about your background and what led you to first put pen to paper and share your experience with the world? Is SINS OF THE PAST your first work?

 Yes, Sins is my first book. As for what led me to start writing again, I’m still not quite sure, lol. My background is quite simple, really, I’m an NDT inspector by trade and haven’t written since high school, long time ago now, lol.

 Is there a message in your series that you wish your readers to grasp?

 No direct message, no. I just wanted to show the strength of human resiliance when tossed into a situation far beyond their control.

What do you find to be the hardest part of writing a fantasy series?

 Timelines. The only thing I have problems with, lol. One of my favourite authors is Dean Koontz. He is the master of weaving several storylines and then bringing them all together at the end. I wanted to do the same, only not quite so many, lol. Therefore keeping a very close watch on your timelines is a must. Two groups can’t meet up if they are weeks apart on the timeline, it can be very tricky at times.

 I know what you mean, I have several threads in the sequel to MATEGUAS ISLAND and it is difficult weaving them together to form a cohesive whole. 

Besides your own writing(s), what other new titles in your genre that are you excited about in 2014?

I’ve been so busy with my own that there are really only two that I will be looking for. Mainly it will be Michael Manning’s new series titled The Mountains Rise-Book one of the Embers of Illeniel Series. His first series was very good. The other is Terry Goodkind’s new book in August.

What’s next for you? Any new projects in the works and when can we expect the next installment in THE DARKNESS WITHIN SAGA? (I know I can’t wait to get my hands on it!)

 Book One, The Legacy, will be out soon, I hope, lol. It will be in final editing soon. Book Two, Blood of the Lost, is already written and hopefully will follow shortly after The Legacy. For the forseeable future I only plan to write in this world. Talohna has over 20,000 years of complex history, all of which has already been planned. There are plenty of stories in Talohna, likely way more than I will ever be able to write, lol.

Finally, do you have any advice for other writers who are just starting down the publishing path?

Yes, research, both your story and the indie publishing world. There are so many vanity presses out there that they are giving legitimate small presses a bad name. A publisher never charges you for your book, for anything. Period. Indie publishing is not that hard, actually, though I had some excellent help along the way. Though if you do publish your own, do the best you possibly can. It’s your brand, your image. Editing, covers, proofreaders, all of these things need to be better than a professional pubbed book if the industry is ever going to accept self pubbed books on the same level. A little research and hard work can go a long way.

Good advice!  Thank you very much, J.D., for stopping by today and giving me an excellent interview.  Be sure to put me on your list to be notified when THE LEGACY is released. (Love the cover, by the way.).

You can purchase J.D.’s SINS OF THE PAST ON AMAZON for only 99cents. For a direct link click here:  Sins of the Past

Also, here’s a link to J.D.’s Facebook page so you can keep up to date on news about THE LEGACY:  J.D. Franx, Author

Next week, my guest will be Sam Reese, author of the new horror novel, IMMOLATION. See you then!