Tell us about yourself and how many books you have written.
At my most basic level, I’m a big ole nerd. I love comic books, particularly Batman and Spider-Man, I’m a huge fan of urban fantasy and sci-fi movies and television shows, I have a soft spot for Greek and Roman mythology, I love all kinds of anime/manga, and I generally love the craft of writing. I’m most likely found buried under my Dashboard on Tumblr geeking out about silly things or engaging in heated discussions about the role of women in George Lucas films.
I’ve self-published one novel, The Black Parade, but I’ve written the sequel and am in the process of finishing the final installment as it will be a trilogy. I’m also working on an epic high fantasy novel that I’ve been describing to people as “Avatar: The Last Airbender meets the X-Men with a dash of Firefly.”
What is the name of your latest book and what inspired it?
The Black Parade. It was actually inspired by two different things–Paradise Lost by John Milton and the 2005 ‘Constantine’, which was a loose adaptation of the Hellblazer series featuring John Constantine.
Paradise Lost is a magnificent story that is revered academically and critically, but so far has not ever had much attention drawn to it in modern times. For instance, there isn’t a recent film adaptation of the story and I really wanted to take its mythology, blend it with some of my own ideas, and give it new life. It’s an epic tale with all kinds of vibrant beauty and horror and wonder and I knew as soon as I read it again in college that I wanted to take a run at the subject matter.
Constantine, while not the best urban fantasy film of all time, ignited a spark in my head. I loved the idea of angels and demons having to blend in to the 21st century and beyond. I wanted to see the famous characters from the Bible and from Paradise Lost interacting in our world nowadays and having to adapt to what humanity is and has evolved from since the early days. I also wanted to write it from a sadly rarely seen perspective–that of a female minority. There are plenty of black female protagonists out there in the literary world, but so few of them are seen in mass media. There is a demographic for this particular type of character and The Black Parade became my opportunity to expose it.
Do you have any unusual writing habits?
I don’t outline until at least halfway through the first draft of a manuscript. It’s not because I don’t see the value in it–my brain just doesn’t work with bullet points when it comes to fiction. I have to have the momentum already there on the page before I can map things out. Even then, I usually write a synopsis style outline instead of the traditional kind for some reason.
What authors, or books have influenced you?
My brother suggested the Dresden Files by Jim Butcher to me early this year and now that I’ve found them, I am completely addicted. His work has influenced the way that I focus on character development and having my protagonists/antagonists make difficult choices. It has also influenced the way that I handle my supporting characters. They don’t exist just to protect or advance the lives of the main characters. They have their own goals and desires that just happen to intersect with the main hero and heroine.
The late great Brian Jacques, author of the Redwall series, was a huge hero of mine growing up. He mastered the art of writing multiple characters, multiple story arcs, and intertwining them across a timeline that only a genius could keep track of at once. I love that he never once talked down to his audience. The Redwall series is remarkably mature and grounded in the kinds of struggles that adults would certainly find intriguing, but the way it’s written makes it perfectly accessible to children as well. I could never hope to reach that achievement level, but I always meditate on the idea that world building is more than a setting, and there is never a reason to assume your readers are idiots.
What are you working on now?
I’m currently writing the third and final installment of the Black Parade series. So far, the working title is The Holy Dark. I plan to have it finished by Dec. 30th. The second novel in the series, She Who Fights Monsters, is already finished and will debut in summer 2014 after it has been professionally edited.
After The Holy Dark is finished, though, I’ve got two more projects lined up. The first is finishing my epic high fantasy novel that I mentioned above. It is two-thirds of the way done, and has now reached the length of an early George R. R. Martin novel. I have no idea how it ended up becoming so long and involved, but I’m ecstatic about it anyhow. It’s a completely new genre to me that I’ve had brief dealings with before (such as the Redwall series and the Symphony of the Ages novels by Elizabeth Haydon) and it’s my own world to run wild in. While I’ve massively enjoyed writing The Black Parade, this project has a larger cast of characters and a much wider scope. I can’t wait to finish it and see where it leads me.
The other project is another urban fantasy novel about a widower and his daughter who hunt dragons. It’s still just in storyboard mode in my head, but I have tons of notes about the two main characters and some of the supporting cast. I think it’s going to be a blast to write as well, so I’m eager to finish the Black Parade series in order to explore that avenue.
What is your best method or website when it comes to promoting your books?
Thus far, I’ve had the most success with my Facebook page. I try and try to breakthrough on Twitter, but it’s a lot like that Chappelle’s Show sketch with the old janitor yelling, “HOLLA HOLLA HOLLA!” So many people advertise on Twitter that it sometimes feels pointless to even try. People scroll right past, even though my book might be something they’d enjoy if they gave it a chance. Facebook has helped me create a ground level for people who enjoy reading my blog posts or who have enjoyed reading my book.
I’d also like to mention that I did a two week virtual blog tour with Bewitching Book Tours that went rather well. They got my book in front of plenty of new sets of eyes and it was a fun experience to meet bloggers of all types.
Do you have any advice for new authors?
Plenty. First, read this blog post if you want a shortcut into the world of self-publishing: http://shewhowritesmonsters.com/the-top-8-self-publishing-myths/
Second, don’t give up. It’s so easy to give up when you’re a new author. No one listens to you. Everyone just nods their heads when you tell them you write books and breeze right past the thing that is supposed to someday make you money. It’s horrendously depressing and upsetting and if you don’t have your own publisher or following before you launch your book, life is going to suck. And suck hard. But you still can’t give in no matter what. Hang in there. Find awesome people and learn what made them awesome and absorb it into your body like some crazy Voltron thing.
Third, don’t fall into the Suck Zone. 50 Shades of Grey became the fastest selling book of all time recently. Crap sells. But that doesn’t mean it should. Write a good book. You owe it to yourself to do that. Integrity isn’t always profitable, but it’s how you become more than just a byline on a past generation’s summary. Longevity exists in quality writing. You should want that, not to make a quick buck by clenching out some terrible fiction.
What is the best advice you have ever heard?
“Knock on the door until your knuckles bleed. Eventually, someone will open it.” -Michael Uslan, producer of nearly every single Batman film (live action and animated) to date.
To give you some backstory, I went to UGA in my college days and he gave a magnificent lecture on the history behind getting Batman to the big screen. If I recall the facts properly, it took him over ten years, nearly twenty, to get someone to back him up and make Tim Burton’s Batman film. The only reason it happened was because he refused to give up, even after every single movie studio told him that no one would ever watch a movie about the World’s Greatest Detective. He kept pounding on that door. He kept bleeding for what he loved, and eventually, it happened. I’ve been self published for almost half a year now and my knuckles are already bruised, but I’m still knocking away.
What are you reading now?
Hellboy: On Earth as It Is in Hell by Brian Hodge. I loved the Hellboy films to pieces and so my brother lent me one of the novels. I’m already a third of the way through it and I’m enthralled. Hellboy is one of the best paranormal/supernatural franchises out there, and I know it has tons to teach me about religious and otherworldly cultures. I’m soaking it all in and loving every minute. (And I keep secretly hoping Guillermo del Toro will do like he promised and finish the movie franchise off with a third film. Fingers crossed.)
What’s next for you as a writer?
As I mentioned above, I have two sets of stories I want to tackle after I finish the Black Parade series. However, I do have some ideas that go beyond 2015. I have another idea for a story that involves a world where there are self-aware fictional characters who go to school to be taught how to become awesome characters worthy of their own franchises, be it films, books, anime, or any other kind of fiction media. Once they become good enough characters, they “ascend” into a writer’s mind. The main character is a young, awkward boy who is the son of the most famous action hero of all time. It’s very complicated and hard to explain, but I think it would be a lot of fun to write.
I also sheepishly admit that I intend to turn The Black Parade into a screenplay and someday shop around Hollywood to see if it could ever become a movie. The current trend in Hollywood is turning YA fiction into film series (and we have both Twilight and The Hunger Games to thank for that) so if my books sell, I might have a shot someday. It’s a pipe dream at best, but that’s the future I want for myself. I adore films, and filmmaking in general, and I hope to someday be able to see Jordan Amador kicking ass on the silver screen.
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?
The Darkest Hours by Jim Butcher, Mr. Maybe by Jane Green, Inheritance by Devin Grayson, and at least one Harry Dresden novel (I love all of them so much I can’t choose.) I think each of those books I’ve read over two dozen times so I could keep myself entertained for quite some time.
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