Sunday Brunch Author Interview Series – featuring Steven J. Morris!

Happy Sunday everyone and thank you so much for tuning in to the fourth installment of the SBAIS! I originally was introduced to Steve’s books through a tour company, and have had a lot of fun reading his first two books which bring fantasy and sci-fi elements into the modern world. I was super excited when he reached out to participate here!

The SBAIS is now booking into October! If you are reading this thinking “wow I would really like to do that too,” please do contact me!

1) Welcome to the SBAIS! Tell everyone a little about yourself and your books!

Hi. My name is Steve, and I’ve been writing fantasy for a couple of years now.

(“Hi, Steve,” says the writers anonymous group in my head. Ha.)

I’m editing the 3rd of a four book series called The Guardian League, about a group of unlikely heroes saving the world from invasion by magic-wielding aliens. I’ve targeted Dec/Jan for the release of Book 3, but it feels ahead of schedule to me. I’m married and have three daughters spanning the Elementary to High School age, and I do engineering work at Intel to pay the bills.

2)What was your publishing journey like? Do you have any advice for hopeful authors trying to write or publish a book?

There’s a surprising amount of work that happens after writing to get your baby out the door. That said, when I was a kid, there was nothing like the capabilities available now to self-publish. I have suggestions regarding writing: embrace learning, read how to write through books and podcasts, pay for editing and learn from it (find someone good). Regarding publishing, just keep swimming – if you’re not naturally technical (or even if you are), there’s a lot of steps to learn. Once you’ve gone through it, maybe a couple of times, it isn’t so bad. Sadly, you’re not done there – there’s a lot to learn about advertising. I’m still a beginner there, so I won’t offer advice.

3) The Guardian series is full of fantasy, FBI thrills, and a lot of sci-fi elements all brought into the modern, if not slightly futuristic world. Do you remember what idea came first? As in, what did you build the series around?

Ironically, I built it around the ending, in book 4, which you haven’t seen yet. So I can’t say too much about it. I started at the end, and sketched the story backwards. Then I began writing book 1. I did have some components I knew I wanted, magic and science together, travel between worlds, but the actual story was built on top of those components.

4) I loved that there was a bit of a D&D / Warcraft feel to the series, are you a gamer? If you want to nerd out about a game, I’m here for it

For about 10 years, my two brothers and I would meet online once a week and play Everquest. I played an enchanter (go team Galad). The Lost Dungeons of Norrath were some of the most fun adventures I remember in any game ever – one hour cooperative dungeons that you’d finish within seconds of the timer running out… nothing beats that feeling of pulling victory from the jaws of defeat. Yeah, D&D as a kid, played some Worlds of Warcraft, and a few others as well. Believe it or not, I created a shareware game back in 1998 or so – “Homeland: The Stone of Night.” https://www.mobygames.com/game/homeland-the-stone-of-night It was okay for its time (total junk now). Regardless, yeah, definitely have a big gaming past.

5) What brunch item do you think would go with your books?

Chilli-cheese fries, and I’d have a beer with it too. IPA, like Red would drink.

{{There you have it – based on these interviews, I am forced to assume that brunch is a NorthEastern thing))

6) I can imagine being self published that it’s hard to get the word out about your book, has that been a challenge? Was using a book tour company a positive experience?

Oh, I should have read ahead, since I mentioned advertising already. So I exited “writing/publishing” having done NOTHING in regards to exposing my book or writing. I’m naturally a pretty socially timid guy (introverts unite! But, um, keep your distance). I don’t know if a book tour would be the right move for everyone, but it helped me build a community and get connected, so for me, it was a positive experience (and I *have* recommended it to people). But set your expectations – you’re competing with a lot of other authors for attention, and the quick bursts from a tour can’t replace doing continuous advertising work. I am far far far from figuring out the right way to do advertising. So much to learn!

{{That said, thank you to By The Book Tours for originally introducing me to Steve’s books!}}

7)Here is the easy round of rapid fire bookish questions – do you have a favorite book or series you always recommend? Favorite literary character? Any wonderful or strange bookish habits?

Favorite book(s) – The Mirror of Her Dreams and A Man Rides Through

I guess it is cheating, but also natural, to say that the characters in my favorite books are my favorite characters: Terisa Morgan and Geraden.

Strange habits: I have multiple copies of my favorite books. I’ve never written in books, including textbooks. I’d see other people with their highlighters and cringe like someone was spray-painting the Washington Monument. (And now I have to sign them… )

8) Thank you so much for taking the time to interview! If there’s anything else you’d like to say about anything at all, please do so here!

Just a shout-out to all the folks who promote writing, of their own time and energy, for indie authors. It’s really heart-warming. Thanks!

I hope you guys will check out the author’s website and bookish links too!

Website: https://sjmorriswrites.com/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/steven.j.morris.writer/

Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B08TV879J6/ref=x_gr_mw_bb_sin?ie=UTF8&tag=x_gr_mw_bb_sin-20&linkCode=as2&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=B08TV879J6&SubscriptionId=1MGPYB6YW3HWK55XCGG2

GoodReads: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/56811451-the-guardian-of-the-palace?ref=nav_sb_ss_1_23