Ask the Author: J.M. Briggs
Answered Questions (6)
J.M. Briggs
I make a point of writing at least 1,000 words on my books a day, period. That helps my brain shift into gear on command which is useful. When I need inspiration I look at fantasy art that I collect on my tumblr or read some of the myths that helped me shape the books world. If that doesn't help then I look at photos of nature, I personally find autumn very beautiful and inspiring.
J.M. Briggs
I am currently working on the second half of the fourth book of The Iron Soul series, The Iron Chalice. September was a big month for me as I wrote 8 chapters, a new record! I'm almost to the climax now and I'm super excited as coming up is the scene that the entire book was born from. Currently I am also doing the first edits of The Iron Sword (Book 3) while Book 2 undergoes final edits.
J.M. Briggs
Write everything down! You may think you'll remember the details, but write them down in separate document that is clearly organized and labeled. Having to go back through a book to find some little detail about what color a character's eyes are or what car they drive can be really frustrating. Write down your vague plot points, write down your knowledge of your character and write down the details.
J.M. Briggs
The feeling when all the little clues and plot points merge into that great realization, event or twist. It's not just the climax, its a bit more complex than that. For me it is when the emotional journey for the character reaches a tipping point, often right before or during the climax. Writing that and reading it after I'm done is always my favorite part.
J.M. Briggs
Long walks without a phone or music usually solves the problem for me in good order. Even if I don't get my brain to pick up exactly where I left off I usually start imagining another conversation and scene in some other part of the book. I write this down or take notes on it and by the time I'm done with that I'm usually feeling inspired enough to return to writing from where I was.
J.M. Briggs
The Iron Soul series grew really really slowly over the course of a couple years rather than having a singular concept. While living in England I began interested in Bronze and Iron Age history and saw Stonehenge which lingering in my mind. I had a dream about a reborn King Arthur and started trying to sort out why King Arthur would need to be reborn again and again.
The whole process was gradual and the big break really came from two places: the Celtic mythology of Otherworlds that I was reading one day and then I watched a show about the concept of different universes and the concept of dark matter meaning that they could be radically different. That become a foundation stone of the series and I attached that concept to the Norse World tree after noticing that something similar appeared in a few different mythologies.
I started hunting for themes and concepts that repeated in different mythologies and focused on those. Water for instance became a part of the explanation of the beings who are known as gods while iron was connected in mythology to fairies. Over two years I gathered all this information together to build the Tree of Reality and sort out what sort of lives the Iron Soul has lived and what enemies they faced. And of course actually planning out the book.
The whole process was gradual and the big break really came from two places: the Celtic mythology of Otherworlds that I was reading one day and then I watched a show about the concept of different universes and the concept of dark matter meaning that they could be radically different. That become a foundation stone of the series and I attached that concept to the Norse World tree after noticing that something similar appeared in a few different mythologies.
I started hunting for themes and concepts that repeated in different mythologies and focused on those. Water for instance became a part of the explanation of the beings who are known as gods while iron was connected in mythology to fairies. Over two years I gathered all this information together to build the Tree of Reality and sort out what sort of lives the Iron Soul has lived and what enemies they faced. And of course actually planning out the book.
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