Tell us about yourself and how many books you have written.
After I dropped out of high school at 16 due to severe anxiety, I started working as a freelance programmer. Shockingly, that only managed to make my anxiety worse, until, at around 22, it came to a pitch and I had a complete breakdown. Thankfully that was right around the time of the 2016 election, and I started freelance political writing. I loved writing but hated the death threats, so I began work on my first short stories.
Outside of writing and reading, I enjoy sports, esports, and turf management.
I have written 4 books and released 1.
What is the name of your latest book and what inspired it?
Homecoming is my most recent book, and quite frankly I have no idea where the idea came from. I had been working on a different project but was constantly running into problems and getting stuck (and still am today!) and wanted to write something more straightforward.
Do you have any unusual writing habits?
Recently, I’ve taken to streaming a lot of my writing. It’s made me a bit more productive and added a lot of fun.
What authors, or books have influenced you?
My influences honestly depend on what I’m reading at the time, but Brandon Sanderson and Steven Erikson have been recent mainstays.
What are you working on now?
The sequel to Homecoming, which is tentatively called Tides of War. When I’m procrastinating on writing that, I’m working on the outlines of a few unnamed projects, and at the time of writing, planning my Nanowrimo book.
What is your best method or website when it comes to promoting your books?
Do you have any advice for new authors?
Just write. You’ll develop your own technique and style in time. Have an idea and you’re not sure if it will work? Try to make it work. Not sure if an idea is going to be sellable? Try to sell it.
What is the best advice you have ever heard?
A baseball coach when I was in Little League always said, “No excuses. Own your mistakes.”
What are you reading now?
Malice by John Gwynne and The Blade Itself by Joe Abercrombie
What’s next for you as a writer?
I’m aiming to finish more books in my current, Homecoming Chronicles every year while venturing out from them at the same time. A big portion of my plan is to use Nanowrimo as an opportunity to explore ideas and concepts without any pressure.
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?
Dune by Frank Herbert, Gardens on the Moon by Steven Erikson, The Myth of Sisyphus and other essays by Albert Camus, and Sapiens: A Brief History of Humankind by Yuval Noah Harari
Author Websites and Profiles
James Thornton Website
James Thornton’s Social Media Links
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