Discovering a Lost World

Hello all, I hope your weeks have been more splendid than the thought of a thousand koalas synchronized swimming to the tune of Alice Cooper's "Welcome to My Nightmare."

I just wanted to add a quick reminder that the terrible writing contest to win a free signed copy of "Life is a Circus Run by a Platypus" will be going on until Sunday, April 13th!

I've already gotten some pretty awesomely awful entries. All you have to do is write the most terrible first line or two that you can come up with to a story and post your entry either on my Facebook Page or in the comments section on this page: Enter the Contest Here!

So come on, show me how horrendously you can write!

This week I had the pleasure of interviewing author Andy Peloquin about his first novel "In the Days: A Tale of the Forgotten Continent!"

Andy Peloquin's "In the Days: A Tale of the Forgotten Continent" is certainly a fast-paced adventure. The story never seems to pause as the reader is thrown head-first into a great mixture of political intrigue and action.

The subject matter of Atlantis is interesting on its own, and the envisioning of the fabled land by Peloquin is fascinating. Peloquin also does an excellent job creating characters that actually read like real people that readers can really get behind. Mixing excellent dialogue with suiting inner-struggle, readers will find themselves gripped by the story.

A great plot, splendid characters and a fantastical ancient civilization to boot. An excellent first work by Andy Peloquin!

Let's find out what's going on in the depths of Andy Peloquin's mind.

 

1. What made you want to start writing?

It was actually thanks to an English/science professor of mine when I was still in elementary school. He was so passionate about all things science and literature that I couldn't help but find joy in it as well. He had me writing poetry by the age of 11, and I wrote my first short story by age 12. It was total garbage, but I guess it set the stage for what has been a good decade and a half of writing. I'm now a professional freelance writer, a graphic novelist (coming soon!), and now an author.

2. Why did you choose Atlantis as the setting for your book?

The mystery of it. For me, the idea of a world no one knows about is hugely intriguing. I could do pretty much anything I wanted with the story, and it worked simply because there is no written records of Atlantean civilization. Sword and sorcery (Conan-style) is one of my favorite  genres, and this seemed like the perfect setting for a book.

3. How on earth did you come up with your character's names?

To be honest, the names sort of popped into my head. I knew I wanted a Historian and an Empress, and the rest kind of just fell into place. I use name generators, but rarely stick with the names that are generated. I use the generated names to give me ideas for the names ultimately used.

4. Who is your favorite character from the book and why?

I'd have to say Daltos the Creator is my favorite. I wrote him while high on two large mugs of espresso, and I had so much fun creating him!

5. If you could choose a character from your book to play a game of one-on-one basketball with who would you choose?

I'd say Traga, as he's very short, but I know he'd cheat. Probably Deucalion, the main character.

6. What was the most difficult part of the writing process?

The editing. It's always hard to see your work sliced up by an editor, but thankfully there weren't too many edits to make. It just took more time to do, and it was far more real WORK than the writing. For me, writing is a release of tension, and a great way to relax.

7. I kind of had a soundtrack playing in my head while reading your book. Was there any particular music you were listening to when you wrote it?

I have a playlist on YouTube called Comic Book Songs, which I used when writing comic book scripts or my novel. It's a lot of dubstep, techno, and some oddly unique songs like Radioactive by Imagine Dragons and Sail by AWOLNation.

8. If you had to choose between having to face off in a fencing match with Patrick Swayze or learn how to Cha-Cha with Richard Simmons which would you choose?

Fencing match! I've always wanted to study fencing and swordplay, and taking martial arts lessons over the last year has piqued my interest even more!

Thank you Andy for being willing to answer whatever popped into my tiny little mind to ask you!

If you are interested in reading Andy's book you can find it on Amazon and you can find out more about the author on his website! 

As always, you can find me on Facebook, Twitter (@AllisonHawn), or Goodreads!