Author Interview: Vincent E. M. Thorn

It’s been a long time! Hope to do these as often as I can. First interview in these troubling times is with Vincent Thorn. Hope you guys enjoy!

 

 

First of all, tell me about yourself! What do you write? 

 

Hello, there! I’m Vincent E. M. Thorn, relative newcomer to the scene, and broadly speaking, I write fantasy.

 

Less broadly, my first (and currently only published) book had many steampunk elements mixed in, but I am also writing and developing cosmic horror, a wuxia drama, high seas/pirate adventures, Arabian nights style fantasy stories, weird west stories…. A lot of things. I like when fantasy wears different hats.

 

How do you develop your plots and characters? 

 

I find plots tend to unfold rather naturally for me, so much so that it’s actually a little difficult for me to quantify. It usually starts out with just cool ideas, a character moment or a scene. I think of what I want to happen, cool battles, dramatic moments, then I work outward. Why are they fighting? Why do these words hurt this character? Why would this character dive off a boat onto a dragon’s back? I usually have at least a rough arc pretty shortly after I start conceptualizing.

 

In fact, I’ve tried going full pantser, just to see if I could. I had the skeleton of a trilogy mapped out in an hour.

 

Characters usually go through a little bit more effort and struggle, but it starts in the same place. Who is in those scenes I was thinking about earlier? What kind of person would be involved in this conflict, and how would it shape them? Is that a starting point or end point?

 

Tell the world about your current project!

 

I have a few, but the one that’s the in a position to talk about and call “current” is Promises of the Empire, book two of my debut series, the Dreamscape Voyager Trilogy.

 

Starting off about half a year after the events of Skies of the Empire (and here I will dance around spoilers), Cassidy Durant is trying to forget what happened and move on with her life, only to learn the consequences are catastrophic and she is dragged back in to resolve them. For those who read Skies, Promises features a deeper dive into the setting, especially the magic and the horrors that spawn from it.

 

Some trivia: The Dreamscape Voyager Trilogy actually became my debut by happenstance. While going through a dark period, I looked at all the projects I had on-going and said to myself, “Listen [explicit deleted], you need to finish one of these by the year’s end, or else.” I won’t elaborate on the or else, but as it happened, Skies of the Empire had just the slightest bit higher of a word count than the next most-complete project in the pile, so thus it became the world’s first taste of my work (I finished it that September).

 

Who would you say is the main character of your latest novel? And tell me a little bit about them!

 

Skies of the Empire is split fairly evenly between its two PoV characters, Cassidy Durant and Zayne Balthine, and each have their own thing going on, giving equal credence to either being considered the main character.

 

Cassidy is arguably the more traditional protagonist, being a simple cargo trader who gets roped into events far above her ambitions and expertise. She’s a generally good-hearted and optimistic, but hot-headed character, not exceptionally well educated, but clever, and dedicated to her friends. She is also the first character the audience meets.

 

Zayne, in contrast, toes the line of villain protagonist. As a mercenary knowingly working for a cultist, he sees what he does as wrong, but due to the cards he’s been dealt, doesn’t really see any other option. He detests violence but excels at it.  He is pessimistic and jaded, but he yearns for a better life even if he doesn’t know how he would go about finding it.

 

Have you been to any conventions? If so, tell me a little about them!

 

I have attended JordanCon every year since 2013. It’s a Fantasy/SciFi convention in Atlanta that originally came about via the Wheel of Time fan community. I’ve met some spectacular guests, like Patrick Rothfuss, Saladin Ahmed, Brent Weeks, and so many more. It’s on the slightly smaller side, but once the Wheel of Time TV show drops it’s likely to grow. It has a phenomenal writer’s track, and last year they started hosting an anthology that attendees and guests can submit to. I actually have a piece that was slated to be in this years’ anthology, but with the convention postponed due to the current crisis, that’s pushed back to next year, along with the convention itself.

 

I also used to attend DragonCon, also in Atlanta, because it falls around my birthday, but it has gotten way too big for my tastes.

 

When things settle down on all fronts, I’m going to see about trying to be a panelist at cons, which would be a good excuse to discover more good ones.

 

When did you first realize you wanted to be a writer?

I always had the kind of imaginative spark, but it didn’t click for me until I was around 11. I told my dad I wanted to be a video game designer, but when I started talking about all my cool ideas and ambitious things I wanted to do, he listened and pointed out that what I was just laying out story and what I clearly wanted to do was to be a writer. I reflected on that, and yeah, it’s been about the only constant in my life since.

 

If you had the opportunity to live anywhere in the world for a year while writing a book that took place in that same setting, where would you choose?

 

Wyoming. It’s actually where I’m originally from, and it’s got a lot going for it. Beautiful and varied vistas running the gamut between forests and deserts. Varied weather with actual winters. Lot of space to get away from people.

 

What advice would you give new writers?

Actually put words on the page. I’m sure we’ve all been guilty of worldbuilder’s disease, or brainstorming the same ideas ad nauseum, but the fact of the matter is, if you don’t actually start writing it, you might as well be talking to your wall for all the good it does you.

 

Also, if you’re self-publishing, actually grab a ruler and measure the books on your shelf when deciding the trim size, especially if, like me, you have no sense of scale.

 

What real-life inspirations did you draw from for the worldbuilding?

 

I draw inspirations from all over the world, but speaking specifically of Skies, mostly Imperial Chinese, France, and the Middle East.

 

What inspires you to write?

The arts are the only things that make life bearable, and writing is the art I am most attuned to.

 

What is the hardest part of writing for you?

 

Proof reading. I see what I wrote and my brain glazes over it, going, “Yeah, yeah, I know what I wrote here,” so not only am I mind-numbingly bored, but I’m also seeing what I intended and not what’s actually there.

 

What is your routine when writing, if any? If you don’t follow a routine, why not?

So, I have had to shift my routine a few times just based on changes to my daily life, such as the dreaded day job. Although that term is now inaccurate, since as of this interview I work nights.

I don’t currently have regular shifts, but whenever I get home, I get cleaned up, settle in at my desk, and write until… lately it’s been about 8 AM, but ultimately it’s whenever I feel I’ve made satisfactory progress, then I go to bed.

 

Outside of that, if I’m out for something that involves downtime, like an oil change or a visit to the clinic, or whatever else, I’m usually writing on my phone through the entire waiting process. Same goes for my breaks at my other job.

 

Basically, I try to squeeze progress in wherever I can.

 

What was your favorite chapter (or part) to write in any of your books, and why? 

 

Chapter 38 of Skies of the Empire. This was the big one for me, the scene I had been driving towards, building it up both in my head and in the narrative. It also marked the end of the biggest gap between rigidly plotted points in the book. And it was just a fun, action packed chapter to write. Also, that chapter and every one after that all the way to the epilogue became so much easier to write, as if I’d crested a hill.

 

Did you learn anything from writing your latest book? If so, what was it?

It’s hard to say; ideally, we should always be learning from and about our craft, but I’ve learned so much over the course of it, I can’t say what I learned from it or what I learned around it.

 

I guess, one of the things that you can know all you want but can only understand when you do it is that when you write the scene, it’s probably not going to go how you envisioned it, because it doesn’t exist in a bubble anymore, it exists in the context you’ve built up at that point, and your initial understanding probably didn’t mesh well with the reality. And that’s not a bad thing.

 

Are you a plotter or a pantser? A gardener or an architect?

 

I forget who I stole this term from, but I am a “Points on the Map” style plotter. The major events, the emotional beats, the cool battles, the interlude points, the ending, are all pretty much locked in place, plus or minus some details.

But in between those points are much less rigidly enforced. As Brent Weeks once put it, I know I need the characters to cross the river eventually, but I haven’t decided if they go straight to it, if they get chased by wolves first, or if the take a nice stroll through the woods on the way, and in those bits I’m more of a pantser.

 

If you had to give up either snacks and drinks during writing sessions, or music, which would you find more difficult to say goodbye to?

Music, definitely. I don’t eat at my desk, and while I occasionally have coffee or tea when I work, it’s usually gone too quick to matter in the grand scheme of things. Music, however, is often a key part of my creative process.

 

Which is your favorite season to write in, and why? 

Winter. I am miserable if the weather is ever over 50F/10C, and even that’s pushing it for me. I hate warm air. Warmth should come from clothes or blankets or food and drink, not the air. And I live in the American south, so it’s warm or hot 90% of the time.

 

It’s sometimes difficult to get into understanding the characters we write. How do you go about it? 

Understand that characters are people, and people make sense even when they don’t.

 

What are your future project(s)?

So, as I mentioned earlier, I’m working on book two of the Dreamscape Voyager Trilogy, Promises of the Empire, which will be followed up by the concluding volume, Dreams of the Empire.

 

My two most immediate projects afterwards are most likely going to be a stand-alone cosmic horror novel and a novella series of wuxia adventures.

 

What is your favorite book ever written?

 

That is a really cruel question. I’ll answer it, but the answer will probably change a dozen times after it’s too late. Republic of Thieves, by Scott Lynch.

 

Who are your favorite authors?

 

Again, I’m sure as soon as I walk away from this interview, I’m going to regret not answering with more. But for now… Scott Lynch, Patrick Rothfuss, Brandon Sanderson, and Bradley P. Beaulieu.

 

What makes a good villain?

 

There are a few schools of thought on this one. One class of villain I love is a villain who stands as an example of what the hero could become. Darth Vader is a standout case.

 

Villains who believe they are doing what is right are also effective.

 

But on the flipside, you can also have a villain who knows what they are doing is wrong but still carries on because they must. See the Operator in Serenity, and his “there is no place for me in paradise” speech.

 

But of course, you can’t deny that sometimes what a good villain needs is a whole truckload of ham. Jafar in the 1992 version of Aladdin was a million times more enjoyable than the 2018 version because he was bombastic and fun, full on chewing the scenery during the climax.

 

What do you like to do in your spare time?

 

In addition to writing, there’s reading, playing video games, and catching up on entertainment news.

 

If you couldn’t be an author, what ideal job would you like to do?

Musician. I had a brief stint where I was a bassist and a rhythm guitarist. I wasn’t exceptionally good at it, but I love music and it was nice.

 

I’d also like to direct films. Just because I really like movies.

 

Coffee or Tea? Or (exult deep breath) what other drink do you prefer, if you like neither?

Both, with caveats. I only drink green tea, preferably hot. No other tea works for me. I enjoy coffee with flavors, like mint or cinnamon, or pumpkin spice. Otherwise, I drink milk, or juice, or water. I’ve cut out most soda, though I very occasionally still drink root beer and cream soda. Which probably defeats the purpose of cutting it out, really.

 

You can travel to anywhere in the universe. Where would you go, and why?

I would like to see other galaxies and nebulas from space, just to get a sense for what they’re really like.

 

Also, Japan. My grandma was Japanese, and I’ve always wanted to learn the language and go see the sights.

 

Do you have any writing blogs you recommend?

 

John Hartness, the head of Falstaff Books, does video blogs on the Falstaff Books YouTube page. Also, not quite a blog, but Brandon Sanderson films the classes he does on writing fantasy, and they’re always good for a refresher, and something about the way he talks about the craft always gets me in the mood to start working.

 

Do you have any writer friends you’d like to give a shoutout to?

 

Ask me later, either when the friends I’m close to actually release something, or I get closer to some of the more active authors I know. I’m in an awkward spot right now.

 

Pick any three fiction characters. These are now your roadtrip crew. Where do you go and what do you do?

Sabetha Belacoros (The Gentleman Bastard series), Ciri (The Witcher Saga), and Pyrre (Chronicles of the Unhewn Throne). It would probably start as a cross-country road trip and devolve into international chaos that leaves us rich with a lot of bodies in our wake.

 

What superpower would you most like?

 

Mind control.

 

What are two of your favorite covers of all time? (Not your own.)

 

The Emperor’s Blades by Brian Staveley, and The Queen of Swords by R. S. Belcher.

 

It’s a very difficult time right now for the world. When quarantine and pandemic comes to an end, what is the first thing you would like to do?

 

Go to the movies. Mulan or Wonder Woman would be my top picks, if they’re in theaters when it’s safe to go out.

 

Finally, what is your preferred method to have readers get in touch with or follow you (i.e., website, personal blog, Facebook page, here on Goodreads, etc.) and link(s)?

 

My website is WritingWithThorn.com

My facebook page is my name, at Facebook.com/VincentEMThorn

If people start trying to contact me or ask me question on Goodreads I’ll probably start checking in there more often.