About Daryl J Ball:
I've been an avid lover of fantasy and science fiction books since a young age often with one feline pal or another next to me.
What inspires you to write?
In life there are struggles and reading always helped me through such times by offering escape for a time. Now, writing allows me to share stories of my own creation in the hopes of being for others what the books i read were for me. The world is full of inspiration everywhere you turn and chasing down the ideas they form leads to stories to be told.
What authors do you read when you aren’t writing?
I have so many favourite authors that this could be a potentially long list. Keeping it to as few names as possible though I'd definitely list Piers Anthony, Tom Holt, D. R. Perry, and Melanie Rawn
Tell us about your writing process.
Once i have an idea for a story, i mull over what i see as the key aspects: what will the ending be, what are the main characters like and what defines them, what do i want them to learn or explore along the way, and what is the overall theme i want to touch upon.
Once I have all of that roughly defined, i begin writing letting the story ebb and flow as it sees fit while using the key aspects I've defined to keep it on track and cohesive.
As other characters appear, no matter how minor, I pause and make sure I figure out what they're like as well before continuing on.
All characters have their names, why they have that name, defining physical characteristics, traits, and any other knowledge about them I want to bear in mind written on recipe cards next to the computer. I may not incorporate everything I've written on them into the book but it helps them feel more real to me when writing.
For Fiction Writers: Do you listen (or talk to) to your characters?
Depending on the book I'll "converse" with the characters in different ways. Sometimes I'll let the character essentially sit next to me and dictate what they'd say or do. In that case i'm basically putting myself in their head-space.
Other times when there's a group of them, I'll go for a walk before writing and let the characters chat away with each other about what they would do in the next scene. I'll usually go through several versions of a scene this way until i find the one that works best for where i plan to take the story.
What advice would you give other writers?
When it comes to advice for other writers the best advice i can give is to remember it's a journey. There will be times you struggle, when you want to give up, when you feel like you aren't cut out to do this. Hang in there. Learn, grow, refine, ask others for help, but don't quit. If you have to set the story aside for a while, it'll be there still when you're read you get back to it, but someday you get to look back and see what you accomplished and be proud that you brought a story for others to read and be inspired by, possibly even setting another writer on their own journey. Do not give up on your dreams.
How did you decide how to publish your books?
To be perfectly honest, when i decided to self-publish it was a decision greatly influenced by my own feelings of self-doubt. What publisher would take a chance on me? I had this book written i wanted to share with the world and didn't want to run the risk of having that desire snuffed out by rejections. i may never know if a publisher would have taken it on had I tried but i am happy with the fact i self-published. Looking back, i let fear dictate my decision but i know now it was the right one.
If you're starting out as an author, don't be like me and let fear influence your choice. If you want to be published, look into what is involved, and decide if it's the path for you. The main thing to remember is that there are options and the right one for you may not be the right one for others.
What do you think about the future of book publishing?
I remember as a teenager being told printed newspapers were dying and would soon be gone. A few years later i began hearing the same thing about printed books. Over 20 years later, both are still around.
I feel as though there will always be a need for books in some form. Some love holding a physical copy, some enjoy the ease of access of e-books, but both formats are still books and as long as there are people out there who enjoy reading, how they are published will adapt to accommodate demand.
What genres do you write?: Fantasy including several of its' sub-genres such as contemporary or sword & sorcery
What formats are your books in?: Both eBook and Print
Website(s)
Link To Daryl J Ball Page On Amazon
Your Social Media Links
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All information in this post is presented “as is” supplied by the author. We don’t edit to allow you the reader to hear the author in their own voice.
