Enter the Clean Fantasy Realm of Second Eight
1) What is your Author name; use your Pen name if you have one.
Brian Byrom
2) What is your genre and what drew you to it?
Fantasy. I have been drawn to fantasy since I was young, especially toward creatures in religious and mythological tales.
3) What is the best time of day for you to write?
Early morning, between three and ten. After I eat lunch I’m worthless!
4) Which character of yours is your favorite and why?
It changes daily, but today it is Kirin Aradhya. He is coming into his own and I really enjoy thinking about his mental growth and self-analysis. (Maybe some of it will rub off on me!)
5) Do you attend writing conferences? If so, which ones?
No, never have.
6) Did you receive encouragement from a mentor, family member, teacher, coach…?
I had two English teachers in High School that taught me to think for myself. Without them I never would have started down this path. As far as encouragement – my family has been incredibly supportive. Parents, cousins, siblings, kids, nieces. Everyone.
7) What is the most important bit of information you would want to tell a person interested in publishing a book?
Set a goal before you start and design every aspect of your publishing and marketing to achieve that goal.
8) How much description do you give to your book characters?
General is probably the best word. I give a basic physical description – skin and hair color, ethnicity, size, sometimes eyes. Outside of that, I prefer to give readers freedom to shape them as they like.
9) What is your favorite book and why?
Dune. The imagery, the world building, the characters, they mythology. It is everything I could ever want in a book.
10) Do you read books in your genre, or do you prefer reading other genres?
I read nearly everything – history, poetry, theology, mythology, philosophy, psychology, mystery, western, classical, sci-fi, fantasy, horror…
11) What is your favorite book turned T.V. show/movie and why?
Any Kenneth Branagh does by Shakespeare. Much Ado About Nothing, Henry V, Hamlet. That being said, the new Dune movie is very well done. Can’t wait for part two!
12) What is your favorite quote and why?
“Most things I worry about never happen anyway.” Tom Petty. Because it is 1,000,000% true.
13) What was your favorite childhood book?
I loved the Hardy Boys books. Not sure I could select one in particular.
14) What is the name of your book/series? Tell me a little bit about them.
The series is called Second Eight and Book One is called The Three Rings.
In short, this is Demons and their minions vs. Angels and their human allies, primarily the kids at St. Alexis. The Devil wiped out these kids’ families and they want revenge. But they are kids and are going to need some help. Their parents’ old friends, some demons looking for redemption, and a pile of mythical weapons just might do the trick.
In Hell, Lucy’s been plotting her revenge for centuries. It’s almost time for her to make her play for the throne, but she has a few loose ends to tie up before she can strike. Step one is eliminating the kids at St. Alexis.
Once the fighting begins, the kids will discover that their greatest weapons are their faith in and love for each other. Their story is fun, scary, philosophical and with any luck, enlightening. It hints at underlying themes of personal responsibility, self-reliance, and hard work without being preachy.
15) Do you have a website? If so, what is it?
I do! www.thesecondeight.com
16) Where can we find and follow you? (Name your social media platforms.)
17) If there anything important that you would want my readers to know about you?
Me? No. But I really want readers to know that The Three Rings is appropriate for kids over 10 or 12, but not too childish for an adult to enjoy. The older you are the more you will get out of it, but kids will find plenty of enjoyment as well.
