Our Interview with Jeremy Laszlo!

                            


                                                       Bio

First and foremost I am a father and a husband. I work full time as a civilian employed by the US army, and have also been known as a welder, electrician, carpenter, roofer, writer, painter, CNC machinist, and amongst many other things a romantic. I also belong to the eternal fraternal brotherhood of the United States Marine Corps, having served 8 years that showed me a much broader perspective of the world at large serving in Opperation Iraqi Freedom, Opperation Enduring Freedom, The war on Terrorism, and the humanitarian effort in Liberia.

I currently live in southern Louisiana with my wife and children, though I grew up in Michigan, graduating high school in Mason MI. I also spent time living in North Carolina, Florida, and California during my time in the United States Marine Corps. I have always dreamed of publishing my work, and seeing it on a bookshelf in a store, however with the huge shift to digital media I finally realized that the dream was in my own hands. I tell my children that they can live their dreams, and I believe in leading by example.

I enjoy writing across several different genres from poetry, to children's stories, to full epic fantasies. Creating new characters for my readers to connect with, new worlds for them to immerse themselves in, and new ideas to wrap their minds around is an amazing if not humbling experience. I hope that all my readers can take something away from each of my books, and enjoy reading them just as much as I have enjoyed putting them in print.

Semper Fidelis

                                                      Bio provided by author

It was our great pleasure to get an opportunity to learn more about Jeremy and learn more about his journey to becomming an author. Jeremy is one who likes to take his readers on a journey and does everything he can to be sure they enjoy the ride! So please get comfortable and give a warm welcome to Jeremy!

1. What makes for a good hook in your stories? Where does your inspiration come from?

 1. I think just a good story line, believable characters, and real emotions are what hook my readers. As for inspiration, at least for me, it comes from everywhere. The people I have met in my own journey and some of the circumstances that have befallen myself and those I know all play a role when I write. The "big secret" in chapter one of The Choosing for example was in effect a portion of my very own life, though you'll have to read it to see what exactly that secret is.

2. Are you an organized writer? Do you do things like take notes and make lists of characters? Or do you free write and work it out as you go?

2. I am both an organized and disorganized writer. I start with the best intentions with general descriptions, character progression, and main plot points all outlined. However, generally speaking I pay the outline little attention and just write from the story that plays out in my head. Free-writing always feels more natural to me, and so I often stray off on a tangent and rarely return to the original plan.

3. What is your normal writing day like? Do you write when you are inspired or do you have a schedule?

3. I don't think I would know a "normal" writing day if it smacked me in the face. I usually write when I am inspired, and often that inspiration will span several days. In those times I write as much as humanly possible, though my days are relatively full. Usually speaking I write at night, when the opportunity and my other responsibilities permit. It isn't uncommon for me to write early into the morning, catching a couple hours of sleep, just to start a new day feeling like a zombie.

4. Who is your favorite author and how did they inspire you to write?

 4. Though I honestly don't have a favorite Author, for I enjoy so many, I can mention a few of special interest to me. Terry Brooks and his Shannara series are what turned me on to fantasy as a genre nearly two decades ago. To this day I follow his releases fairly regularly and have consumed most of his books more than once. As for writing style, I truly admire the famed duo of Margaret Weis and Tracy Hickman for their ability two write flawlessly from multiple perspectives and carry a reader from cover to cover with perfect prose.

5. It’s easy to see that you have a passion for writing but is there any part of it you don’t like?

 5. As with all things in my life I try and do as best as I am able, and tackle each challenge with a positive attitude. Unfortunately however, editing and revising can be absolutely horrifying to me. I know it needs to be done, and if I were more self assured in my ability to control my fingers as they unleash themselves on the keys of my computer, I wouldn't have to proof read, edit, and revise dozens of times on each manuscript. Editing is my very own brand of kryptonite.

6. Do you make time to read and if you do what are you reading right now?

 6. I do read, voraciously in fact and recently (within about 10 days) read The Runelord series by David Farland. Fortunately for me, My amazing wife knows when buying me books, to buy an entire series at a time, because once I start a series I have to read all books available.

7. How did you get started in writing in the dark epic fantasy genre? Is there personal life experience in the writing?

7. Something about Epic Fantasies have always struck a cord with me, though that journey began while I was in high school. I was actually assigned a book report, and another student suggested I read The Sword of Shannara. Unfortunatly, as I said before I CANNOT just read one book of a series, so while I continued to read the rest of the available books in that series (and others by Terry Brooks) I completely forgot about the report and received a 0 as a large portion of that semester's grade. I have written stories and poetry for nearly as long as I can remember, and have examples of my writing from as far back as second grade. As a teen I began writing in earnest, and over the years started many books that still remain incomplete. At that time in my life I hadn't yet found my "voice" as they say, and the work was rudimentary at best. Having experienced so much more in life, traveling the world with the United States Marine Corps, having children of my own, and just everyday on its own is all a part of my inspiration, and has helped me to find the voice with which to write a book that others enjoy reading.

8. Your books have been published with Amazon.com, Does this mean you see the publishing industry headed this way?

8. I have released my books on both Amazon and Smashwords for a number of varying reasons. First and foremost I guess is that traditional paper media, in my opinion at least, is a dying industry. I read somewhere that paperbacks alone had dropped in sales by as much as 26% in 2011. Though I havn't independantly verified those figures, it just goes to show the huge shift into digital media. Another factor that led me to indie publish was time restraints. Some writers take years to land an agent, and then years more to score a publisher. I have a wife, four children, two dogs, a cat, and a full time job. What I don't have is years to wait, when I can be spending that time working on new projects. Also of course is the financial aspect of indie publishing. Whereas I could go the traditional route, wait years, then sell a paperback for around 8 bucks of which I might see 40 cents. With e-publishing I can reach my readers at a much lower price, and retain higher royalties for myself and my family.

9. Do you have any online sites where others can read more of your writings?

9. Currently I don't have any of my work gracing the pages of a site designed to show off my writing abilities, however you can visit Amazon or Smashwords to get a free sample of any of my books, or you can visit my personal site @ http://www.wix.com/jeremylaszlo/author to find out what my books are about, or to enter my contests, or just get to know me a bit better.

10. Do you have any more stories in the works? What kinds of stories do you plan to write next?

10. Just this Febuary I released three books in e-format. I first released Clad in Shadow, a collection of select poetry that I have written over the last couple decades. I also released the first book in the Blood and Brotherhood Saga entitled "The Choosing", as well as the second book of the saga titled "The Chosen". I am currently about half done with the third book of the saga, and also toying with a thriller idea that has been haunting me.

11. Who would be your first choice to play Seth from your book "The Choosing (Blood and Brotherhood Saga)"?

11. Personally I would love to play Seth myself, however I fear I'm getting a bit old for the part. So if I had to choose a substitute for myself to play Seth I would probably go with Xavier Samuels.

12. If you could meet anyone from any time who would it be and what would be your first question?

12. If I currently owned a hot tub time machine and could meet any singular person from any time it would probably be Cleopatra. Her story has always garnered my attention, and upon first speaking to her I would probably ask her if she would care to join me in the hot tub :)