Friday, July 18, 2014

Indie Author Spotlight ~ J. Aleksandr Wootton

Welcome back everyone! 
Thanks for stopping by to check out the latest installment of my Indie Author Showcase. 
Today Wolf Majick Reviews is happy bring J. Aleksandr Wootton to the spotlight. I have had the pleasure of reviewing both novels in his series, although I can't seem to find the review post for the second one. (I will keep looking and post a link later) Anyways if you enjoy Fairy lore or anything about the Fay you should pick up this series.

A little about J. Aleksandr Wootton

J. Aleksandr Wootton is a Virginian and a bookworm, in the Tolkienic meaning of 'worm' as 'dragon' - he hoards books in shelves and spare rooms and likes to sleep surrounded by them.

In his spare time he chairs the Folklore Studies department at Lightfoot College, where his research focuses on post-war Faerie.



WMR: First off could you explain to our readers a little about the “worlds” you have created?

Jack: The world I've been exploring in my Fayborn series is an awful lot like our world. The only difference is - and I bet you didn't know this - most of us have fairies somewhere in our family trees.

See, centuries and centuries ago the Fay nearly destroyed their world, Faerie, in a civil war. The survivors fled to our world, and have been living and fighting here in hiding ever since. You can't record anything true about them - old enchantments keep that from happening - but most fairy tales and folk legends were true histories of real events, real meetings between humans and fay, until somebody wrote them down.

So we're not completely sure what happened in the past, but we do know one thing - there are thousands of Fayborn refugees here on earth - some who know their heritage, some who don't - and they need to get home, to heal Faerie, before their power and legacy fades away completely.
WMR: Is there anything you hope readers will take away from your work?
Jack: I hope they have fun getting caught up in Petra's adventure... and I hope they enjoy meeting their old friends from beloved classics and familiar fairytales for new adventures. 
I hope the Fayborn series helps readers take a second look at the everyday world around us - there's more magic here than we give it credit for.
WMR: How long have you been writing?
Jack: Since I was 8 years old. I published my first novel in July 2012, though I've published shorter works before that.
WMR: Do you have a favorite character to write? What about the hardest character?
Jack: Sometimes the characters you didn't create yourself are the most challenging - it's great to spend time with them again, but you've also got to be sure you understand them well enough so that they stay "true to themselves" for readers. Toad from The Wind in the Willows and Wormwood from The Screwtape Letters both have parts to play in the Fayborn series, and I've enjoyed writing them very much.
But of course, I have soft spots for my own characters, especially Petra, my protagonist - a girl who turns out not to be ordinary. Petra suddenly discovers that fairies are real, that they need her help... but helping them might mean becoming a slave, forever, to the man who's been stalking and harassing her family since before Petra was born.
WMR: Where can readers find more information about you and your books?
Jack: My website, www.jackwootton.com
WMR: Do you have any suggestion for aspiring writers?
Jack: Read good writers; read what good writers write about writing; and write, write, write.
One really helpful resource I was introduced to recently is the podcast Writing Excuses - I highly recommend it!
WMR: What is the hardest thing about being a new author?
Jack: Figuring out the right balance of marketing/outreach for published projects while forging ahead with new writing projects. There's no trick to it - you just have to keep up with both!

J. Aleksandr Wooton's Work

Her Unwelcome Inheritance  (Fayborn, #1)
Paperback ISBN: 978-1491291009
ebook ISBN: 9781301949687
August 18 2013

The Eighth Square  (Fayborn #2)
Paperback ISBN: 978-1492860945
ebook ISBN: 9781301752799
October 8 2013

A First or Final Mischief  (Fayborn, #3)
Wootton's current project - coming soon!
Release Date TBA

Forgetting: impressions from the millenial borderland
Paperback ISBN: 978-1494448318
ebook ISBN: 9781311237439
December 10 2013

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