My Heart is Booked Blog

Recently, I had the pleasure of interviewing Selina R. Gonzalez, author of The Mercenary and the Mage duology. I became acquainted with Selina’s work through Instagram and quickly turned into a huge fan. I absolutely loved her first novel, Prince of Shadow and Ash. (Read my review here). With the anticipated release of her second novel, Staff of Nightfall, this Wednesday, I thought this was the perfect opportunity to gain some insight into her influences, process, and advice.

I’ve included author links below the interview as well as the synopsis for Prince of Shadow and Ash. Expect my review of Staff of Nightfall tomorrow.

Let’s get the cliché questions out of the way first… What first got you into writing? 

First first? Laura Ingalls Wilder. As a little kid, my mom read the Little House books to me, and I was fascinated by this girl who grew up and wrote down her own story. When I was little, I would internally narrate my life in third person, haha! It made me realize anyone could write and made me want to write some day, and is probably why I still prefer third person in my own writing. But, I didn’t really start writing until I was thirteen or fourteen. I can’t remember exactly why I decided to to write those first couple stories, but my first serious fantasy trilogy I wrote was directly inspired by how annoyed and disappointed I was after watching Eragon (I never did read the book) and thinking, “I could write something better than THAT.”

What books/authors inspire your own writing?

Cliche, but Tolkien and Lewis are a big part of why I write fantasy. Authors who inspire me to keep writing and improving in general include Leigh Bardugo, Stephanie Garber, Nadine Brandes, Patrick W. Carr, and Sara Ella.

What was your inspiration for The Mercenary and the Mage duology? 

It’s sort of hazy, but largely grew out of frustration with media I’d been consuming. I was feeling irritated with the white hat/black hat dichotomy I was seeing a lot at the time. I decided I wanted 1) a good guy whose outfit would make you think he must be the bad guy (and that’s how Regulus’ Black Knight armor was born), and 2) to answer the question, “why might a mostly good guy work for an obvious villain, and how might that play out? What would keep him in that situation?” Then, as I started building this guy’s story, I decided I wanted him to have a love interest, someone bold and strong who wouldn’t be intimidated by his story, and had her own story. I was also feeling grumpy about underdeveloped love interests (of both genders) who didn’t seem to have many problems or goals outside of the romance, and I didn’t want that. As I formed Regulus and Adelaide’s personalities and backstories to both exist on their own and compliment each other, the romance element ended up taking center stage.

Plotter or Pantser?

Plantser. 😉 I lean plotter, but have done more pantsing in the last year than ever before. I’m learning that it really is true that every book is different, and can take different angles to approach. I think I will always go into writing a book knowing at least a backbone plot–some major events and what the basic ending is–but how much plotting I do and how closely I follow that plot seems to vary from book to book.

Can you explain how your publishing process may have differed from the “traditional” publishing experience?  What led you to choosing that particular path? 

I decided to self-publish, so…pretty different than traditional! One of the reasons I decided to self-publish is how long the traditional publishing path is–querying agents and sending proposals for months to years, working with an agent, the agent sending proposals to editors at publishing houses for months, an editor arguing for why the house should publish your book, working out a contract, going through a few rounds of edits, and getting a published book 6-12 months later. I queried a little (for a previous series) in high school, and it wasn’t fun. More recently, as I was working on queries, I was also getting involved in writing groups with a lot of indie authors–and their books were actually good. See, I had this outdated and awful idea that indie publishing was those books with atrocious covers and terrible writing that people did because they rightly couldn’t get a publisher to pick up their book–and that might be true sometimes, but there are tons of other reasons people choose to self-publish. So I spent a couple months researching self (or indie) publishing and indie versus trad pros and cons (because both routes have distinct advantages and disadvantages and suit different styles and personalities). I chose indie mainly because 1) I am impatient, 2) I am controlling, and liked that every decision would ultimately be mine, and 3) I don’t mind doing and planning all the things. So I skipped all the querying bits, did editing, hired a cover designer, taught myself book formatting, learned about self-publishing options and marketing, and went for it!

With what aspects of the writing or publishing process did you struggle?

I think almost every step is a struggle at some point. I struggled to make a secondary character not flat and boring in PoSaA. I hit plot hole snafus in both books of the duology. I had a few difficult scenes in SoN I rewrote and rewrote and rewrote and rewrote… I’ve gotten tough feedback. I stressed a lot about what to put on the covers and which cover designer to hire. I’ve had a lot of stress with COVID causing massively increased print-on-demand turnaround times with nothing I can do about it. I’ve struggled with burnout from doing all the things–editing and formatting and planning schedules for launches and keeping up with marketing, etc. Plus, letting go of a book I poured a lot of myself into so it can venture out into the big wide world is both exhilarating and terrifying. Writing and publishing is constant learning and growth and different struggles at different points. I’m incredibly grateful for family and friends who have supported me, especially other writer friends who have experienced some of the same struggles and are willing to offer advice or encouragement or just listen.

What is your favorite part about seeing your work published?

Definitely reader reactions. I don’t think I will ever get tired of having a reader tag me in a post or slide into my DMs talking about all the things they loved or enjoyed, or how much they hate a villain, or a plot twist surprised them, or a tragic moment broke their heart. Especially when a reader comments on something I put a lot of effort into, like Regulus and Dresden’s friendship, or was a major goal, like Adelaide and Regulus’ communication, or when they connect with a theme, like Adelaide’s story in Staff of Nightfall. That’s why I write, and those little messages make how draining and difficult writing and publishing can be worth it.

What advice can you offer for aspiring writers?

Read. Read so much. Read books and articles on writing, plotting, characters, etc., because writers have to be willing to learn. Read a variety, because no writing advice is one-size-fits-all. Read fiction in and out of your genre. Don’t be the aspiring author who says, “my book is important because there are no books with [broad theme or character type or plot point],” because it probably does exist. And now it’s obvious you’ve broken the cardinal rule of writing: read. Reading fiction helps you learn to recognize good writing, know what your target readers like and what kind of stories you like, and helps you grow as a writer. And then write! Write a lot. Get feedback from critique groups or partners or alpha and beta readers or even professional editors. And know that there’s a strong chance your first book will be…well…not great. But no writing is wasted; it all helps you find your voice and improve. Rewrite, applying what you’ve learned from reading. Take breaks when needed, but don’t give up. Get involved in writing communities, because you’re going to need friends who understand what you’re doing and going through and will support you if you’re going to last as a writer.

What qualities do you look for in a book boyfriend or girlfriend?

Respect, loyalty, and putting others first. A dude takes pain without complaining because he won’t leave his girl’s side or to protect her? I’m weak. Guy pays attention to girl’s boundaries and doesn’t take her for granted or expect more than she wants to give? Oooooh, baby.

Do you listen to music while writing?

Often, especially while drafting (less often while editing). Never anything with words, because I get distracted. I listen to a lot of scores (although they can’t be from movies I know really well, otherwise, again, I get distracted). Most of the time I put Audiomachine or Two Steps from Hell on shuffle, and then occasionally have to skip a song with vocals.

If you could meet one fictional character in real life, who would you choose?

Hmmm. I’m honestly not sure. Maybe Princess Leia, because she seems like she would be interesting and fun to talk to, and she’s a favorite.

What are you currently writing? Can we expect to see any other publications from you in the future? 

Oh, definitely! I’m currently working on the second The Mercenary and the Mage companion novella, Servant, Mercenary, Brother: A Dresden Jakobs Vignette Collection Vol. II, and hope to get that out by November. I have a novel unrelated to The Mercenary and the Mage planned for next year, but still working out details, so no announcement on that yet.

Thank you so much to Selina R. Gonzalez for taking the time to answer my questions. Book 1 of The Mercenary and the Mage duology, Prince of Shadow and Ash, is available now. Book 2, Staff of Nightfall, is releasing Wednesday, July 15, 2020. You can also check out her accompanying novella Servant, Mercenary, Brother: A Dresden Jakobs Vignette Collection Vol. I.

Links:

• https://selinargonzalez.com/books/ <—– links to purchase books here
• https://www.instagram.com/nighttooisbeautiful/
• https://www.facebook.com/selinargonzalez/