Tell us about yourself and how many books you have written.
My name is Christian Green and I am thirty years old. I work in the education field, teaching special needs students. This year I work with students grades 3-5. In the past I have worked with students as young as Early childhood, all the way up to junior high. In my spare time, I like to read and write books. I recently released a superhero themed novel titled The Ascendants: Genesis. With its release, I have now published four novels.
What is the name of your latest book and what inspired it?
The name of my latest book is The Ascendants: Genesis. It is the first of five scheduled shorter works. These stories range within the 25-30k amount. I wanted to tell a story about individuals with abilities that weren’t necessarily heroes, or the recently popular category of anti-heroes. Instead I wanted to tell a story about a group of people that have these abilities but don’t necessarily want to use them. They are afraid of the growing tension in the world and they simply want to live their life without oppression. I’m a big fan of comics so anything Marvel and DC related I can draw interest from. I think initially people will immediately draw comparisons to the X-Men, but once you read it, you’ll realize this is something different.
Do you have any unusual writing habits?
Yes, I have a very unusual writing habit. I tell my students all the time they have to find what works for them. I’m not necessarily expecting them to do things the same way other people do it, so I tell myself the same thing. When I get ready to write, I come up with the outline. Okay, nothing unusual about that. However, once the outline is done, I turn on a video game. Usually football or basketball. I play one quarter and once that quarter is done, I pause the game, and type two good pages. That’s it, just two good pages. Once I’ve completed those two pages, I turn the game back on and start the next quarter. I type two good pages at the end of each quarter, so by the time the game is done, I’ve typed eight really strong pages. This is typically how I write. It’s very unusual, but it definitely works for me!
What authors, or books have influenced you?
Big fan of comics, so I draw a lot of inspiration for comics. As far as authors are concerned, Brian Keene is one of my favorite authors. Anytime I get ready to write something scary, I pull out one of his books and study how he builds suspense and executes the delivery. Laurell K. Hamilton is also a big influence of mine when it comes to vampire stories. I love the delivery of Anita Blake and have enjoyed everyone one of the Anita Blake novels. In addition, television is a big influence of mine. People often say your stuff would be great for television and movies. For me, I study the things on television I don’t like and try to do the complete opposite in my books.
What are you working on now?
I am currently working on part 2 and 3 of my Ascendants series. It is scheduled to be a five part novella series. Part 1 just came out January 26 and part 2 is currently being edited for the first time. The outline for part 3 is complete and I plan to start writing it within the coming weeks. Also working on another superhero series. Where the Ascendants might be your B squad so to speak, the other series will feature the heavyweights of my superhero universe. In addition, I have the outline completed for book two of my Blood in Their Veins series. So those are the current works I have going on right now.
What is your best method or website when it comes to promoting your books?
There is no such thing as the BEST in my opinion. I use them all to promote my books. Facebook, Twitter, Goodreads, Instagram, my personal website. All of them is needed to help promote my works, and even with all of those sites available, it’s still a struggle to get the visibility where you want it to be. In all honesty, every site available to authors is needed to maximize your presence. I appreciate them all and do the best I can with promoting on the various sites.
Do you have any advice for new authors?
Don’t get discourage. Don’t be in a rush. Take your time and talk to people. Go to the various sites and read success stories. See what strategies have worked and which ones fell flat. Take that knowledge and prep yourself for your launch. For whatever amount of effort you put into writing your book, put double the effort into editing and promoting the book. It isn’t going to be easy, but don’t give up. Even if your first book comes out and you don’t sale a single copy, don’t give up. Write your next one. Don’t write to make money, write because you love it, and hope that as a reward, the money will come.
What is the best advice you have ever heard?
Keep writing is the best advice I ever received when it comes to books. In general, you’re only limited by the walls you put up. Any obstacle can be overcome. Sure, some people have more opportunities than others, but everyone has an opportunity. What you do with yours generally dictates how your life will go. Fall on hard times? Keep standing back up. Make the most with whatever you got.
What are you reading now?
Honestly, at the moment I haven’t been reading much. Between working with students, writing, and formulating some resemblance of a social life, I haven’t had much time to read. I have quite a few books on my to read list, but at the moment these stories are just sitting there. I hope to get back to the Game of Thrones series soon, but before I do, I have a few stories to read from my author friends.
What’s next for you as a writer?
What’s next is whatever comes. Right now my main goal is to continue to grow as a writer. I think with each book I’ve written, a substantial amount of growth can be seen. I have so many stories I want to share, so for me, working on getting these stories out is a big motivation. I hope to transition into comics at some point. Some of my works would really be ideal for the comic book genre, but we’ll see what comes of that!
If you were going to be stranded on a desert island and allowed to take 3 or 4 books with you what books would you bring?
To Kill a Mockingbird would easily be the first book I bring with me. The second book would most likely be The Rising. I would also like to bring with me the Odyssey.
Author Websites and Profiles
Christian Green Website
Christian Green Amazon Profile
Christian Green’s Social Media Links
Goodreads Profile
Facebook Profile
Twitter Account