I tried to write a synopsis and stick to it, but I felt trapped when it came to writing out each scene.  My creative juices just don’t work that way.  My process is to create a character and put them in a situation, then write my way out of it.

Leonard Little – 16 June 2013

The Back Flap

Marcus gets blood on an ancient amulet, alerting the Dark One that the dragon’s heir is still alive. The dark sorcerer sends his drakyn—flesh-eating, undead dragons— to pursue Marcus.

Home burned to ashes and Grandfather killed, Marcus runs with the drakyn a step behind. He joins scholar Ben, novice healer/dragon-mate Chelene, and her teacher/dragon Xan’Drake. Together they seek out ways to battle the rampaging evil. Betrayal gets all except Marcus captured, who is left for dead, buried alive beneath tons of gravel and rock. Will Marcus escape the grave or die, leaving his new friends to enemy’s tortures?

About the book

What is the book about?

Rise of the Drakyn is tale of discovery and acceptance.  Neglected by a grieving father, beaten by a jealous stepmother and hunted by flesh eating undead dragons, Marcus sets off to find his real mother’s family.  He learns how to merge his mind with trees and animals, looking at the world through their senses.  He struggles with self confidence and courage, until his new found friends are captured by the evil sorcerer who gave life to the drakyn.  Buried alive under tons of rock and gravel, he must accept the destiny of his birth as the last heir to the ancient throne of dragons if he is to have any hope of rescuing his friends.

When did you start writing the book?

September of 2003.  I had a spinal cord stimulator implanted and my pain management doctor told me to find a hobby to take my mind off the pain.  I discovered an entire world where I could lose myself in the struggles of my characters.

How long did it take you to write it?

Too long.  I’ll say around seven years.  This one went through several rewrites as I learned the craft.  My first draft had one chapter for the antagonist and the rest was a huge data dump of world building and story telling.

Where did you get the idea from?

I guess the initial idea came from my curiosity about angels.  Lucifer was an angel and has also been referred to as a dragon.  From there I postulated a world before men where angels in the form of dragons ruled the earth.  The Drakyn are fallen angels or demons.  This is not a religious story.  It’s just my imagination filling in the gaps created by my avid curiosity.

Were there any parts of the book where you struggled?

A few.  One is making it believable when Marcus was forced to dress as a girl.  Another was Chelene’s character.  I wanted a strong female role that didn’t rub the readers the wrong way.  I had to show that she was strong despite her vulnerabilities.  Staging and adding the background scenes to help readers see what I imagined took the longest to work through and I’m still learning and hoping I can improve.

What came easily?

The plot.  I didn’t force the story to go one way or another.  I had an idea of the beginning and of the end, then I just put myself into the characters and let them write their own stories.

Are your characters entirely fictitious or have you borrowed from real world people you know?

Completely fictitious.   Each of my characters live in my mind.  I’ve been told a few times that I should picture someone I know and use their personality, but that never worked for me.  How could I get inside the mind of even someone I know?  However, if I create the characters then I can step into their skins and walk a few miles.

We all know how important it is for writers to read. Are there any particular authors that have influenced how you write and, if so, how have they influenced you?

David Eddings:  I love his characters.  They seemed to come off the page, making me laugh and cry as I hung onto the edge of my seat.

Anne McCaffrey.  I love her characters too, but I loved the plots and flows of her stories…and let’s not forget her dragons.

J RR Tolkien, Terry Brooks, and C.S Lewis for my love of fantasy and world building.

And Finally  Ursula LeGuin and George Lucas for the structure of magic and how it affects my world.

Do you have a target reader?  

My hope is that it will appeal to a wide audience, but it is written with those who love and enjoy epic fantasies in mind.  There is a lot of carnage so this is geared for high school students and adults.

About Writing

Do you have a writing process? If so can you please describe it?

I tried to write a synopsis and stick to it, but I felt trapped when it came to writing out each scene.  My creative juices just don’t work that way.  My process is to create a character and put them in a situation, then write my way out of it.   I have found that my best ideas come while I’m driving.  I guess all those years of truck driving weren’t wasted after all.

Do you outline? If so, do you do so extensively or just chapter headings and a couple of sentences?

No.  For me outlining takes the joy of discovery out of my writing.

Do you edit as you go or wait until you’ve finished?

Both.  No matter how hard I try.  I can never fix all the errors while I am creating.   When I first began I was lucky to get half of the ideas I came up with on paper…or electronic type…I did start this story with a notebook and a pen, but I’m not opposed to technology.  I used a voice recognition program to read my notes into my manuscript.

Did you hire a professional editor?

No, but I have put every chapter before two critique groups.  The members include teachers, engineers, doctors, and authors.  They consider plot, characterization, grammar, spelling, and technical feasibility.

Do you listen to music while you write? If yes, what gets the fingers tapping?

No.  I lose track of the world around me.  Ask my wife.  I can’t count the times she’s tried to tell me something while I was writing.   I can’t say it goes in one ear and out the other, because sound doesn’t travel in the vacuum of space.

About Publishing

Did you submit your work to Agents?

Yes

What made you decide to go Indie, whether self-publishing or with an indie publisher? Was it a particular event or a gradual process?

A friend from one of my critique groups passed away in 2012.  He had written several stories, but was never published.  My vanity wouldn’t allow me to follow in his footsteps.

Did you get your book cover professionally done or did you do it yourself?

My sister is an artist.  I sent a mock up of my ideas from photos I found on the web along with a couple of articles on how a book cover should draw attention to the center of the cover.  She took those ideas and came up with the picture on the front of my book and then I added the title and by lines.

Do you have a marketing plan for the book or are you just winging it?

I guess I’m just winging it.  I think it’s a learning process.  Since my novel is the first of six in the series, step 1 is to finish writing the other five books.  I’m also looking into creating a slideshow presentation with several scenes from my book along with a monologue voice in the style of The Lord of the Rings. I’ll post it on Youtube when I finish.   I think it’s called a visual trailer.

Any advice that you would like to give to other newbies considering becoming Indie authors?

Let several people read your story, preferably people who will not just tell you what you want to hear, because they don’t want to upset you.  Invite real criticism and listen to them.   You’re not going to please everyone, but you need to make sure your ideas are clear. Remember you can’t go out to every reader and tell them what you meant by this or that line.

About You

Where did you grow up?

Gridley, CA

Where do you live now?

Sacramento, CA

What would you like readers to know about you?

I love to write.  It started out as a way to get through each day, but it has become so much more to me.  I had a lot of fun writing Rise of the Drakyn so for me I have already won, so when others find enjoyment from my stories, I am twice blessed.

What are you working on now?

Book two of The Sword of Souls series…..Plague of the Pyronines / Pyronine Plague….I’m still deciding on the title.

Children of the Stars….A science fiction novella about a Kachina, a Skinwalker, and a Ghost Dragon.

End of Interview:

Get your copy of Rise of the Drakyn from Amazon US (paper or ebook) or Amazon UK (paper or ebook).