Babs Book Bistro

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>Hello everyone please help me welcome Anthony to the blog today.

 

B: How did you come up with the idea for the Altered Creatures series?

 

A: I’ve actually been making notes for this series for around 30 years. It’s been a life-long dream to finally see all of these ideas come together. I’ve outlined a total of 30 books within 5 different series. I then decided to start with the Thorik Dain series, which is an underdog coming-of-age story. The reason it took so many years to develop was due to high expectations I had for each. I wanted each to be a stand alone novel and yet have key ties to all of the other novels. In addition, I placed hidden “easter eggs” of information in each book which will mean nothing special to the reader until they have read one of the other novels. By doing this, the reader gets a new experience each time they read the same book after they have read one of the others. I have fans that have read the books 4 and 5 times each and still say they get more out of it each time.

 

 

B: Sounds like you’ve always wanted to be a writer.

 

A: Actually no. I grew up with a severe case of dyslexia, which I will always have. But I never let it stop me from achieving what I wanted. I learned to accept the good and the bad with the learning disability and went on to achieve management positions in companies such as director, vice president and even president. When I start writing notes about the series, I always assumed it would be made into a movie, not a book. But once I started writing them, I realized that I could create a writing style that caused the reader to feel as though they had just watched the movie. So, I decided to focus on the novels.

 

 

B: I know each book is a favorite, but do you have one that stands out more then the rest?

 

A: It’s hard not to have a special emotion with your first novel. In my case, this would be Fate of Thorik. There is such an internal growth for the writer on their first major endeavor. I know I’ve grown as an author and as a person during the writing of all my books. In my mind, each new one continues to get better than the last.

 

 

B: What other books have your written?

 

A: I have completed 4 of 6 in a series of books with illustrations for ages 10 to 15 called Nums of Shoreview. This is one of the 5 series within the 30 books I’ve outlined. These fast-paced books are also fantasy adventure and actually take place in the same realm as the Thorik Dain series. Younger readers will get a glimpse at some of the characters, locations, and events that take place in the Thorik series so that when the reader is ready for YA books they can step right in and feel comfortable that they know what’s going on.

 

 

B: What authors/books do you like to read?

 

A: I like how Timothy Zahn puts a story together and his writing style. He doesn’t talk down to you. Nor does he make you work hard to understand what he’s saying.  It’s always an easy and exciting read.

 

 

B: Do you have any projects in the works now?

 

A: I’m always working on 2 or 3 books at any given time. Periodically I need to take a break from one of my novels and step away from it so I can come back later with a clear head. During this hiatus, I step into one of the other novels. Right now I’m typing up the 4^th Thorik Dain novel as well as the 5^th Nums of Shoreview novel, while sketching out the details for the 5^th Thorik Dain novel. I typically publish 2 to 3 books per year.

 

 

B: Do you have any time off? If so, what do you do with it?