Featured Interview With J.R. Schuyler
Tell us a little about yourself. Where were you raised? Where do you live now?
My name is J.R. Schuyler and I’m a spec-fic author in my mid-twenties. I was born and raised in New Zealand and still live there to this day. It’s a beautiful country and I’ve been fortunate enough to see most of it, thanks to my frequent travels. I haven’t visited Hobbiton yet or been on a LOTR tour, but I have ridden some of the horses that were used in the movies.
I’m a huge animal lover, but I don’t currently have any pets. In the past, I’ve owned a cat, two rabbits, and many, many fish. Rabbits are by far my favorite animal, but their vet bills can be insanely expensive. Nevertheless, I’m hoping to adopt another pair soon!
Outside of writing, I enjoy playing guitar and creating my own music. I also read a lot, and I’m pretty good at Scrabble (my best score so far is 500 points). Lately, I’ve been thinking about taking up scuba diving too.
At what age did you realize your fascination with books? When did you start writing?
I’ve always been interested in books and storytelling. Even when I was too young to read independently, I used to flip through the pages and pretend I understood the words. I started “writing” my own picture books when I was around three. They were just scribble drawings at first (a purple scribble to represent Barney the Dinosaur; a yellow scribble to represent the sun, etc). I was about five or six when my vocabulary and motor skills were good enough to write stories for fun. I must have started close to a thousand stories over the years, but I only finished three of them.
In my early teens, I made the mistake of submitting one of my stories to a major publisher. My writing ability at the time was… not great. I never edited my work and just assumed the manuscript would be fine as-is. Spoiler alert: it wasn’t. Months later, I got a rejection letter, and it completely killed my desire to write.
I quit writing after that experience and then restarted in my early twenties. One of my friends was writing a book, and their enthusiasm inspired me to give it another shot. I submitted a few stories and articles to various websites, and to my surprise, they got published. My friends encouraged me to keep going and write a real book, so I did. Then I wrote another. And another. I still get plenty of rejections, but they don’t bother me anymore. It’s just a normal part of being a writer.
Who are your favorite authors to read? What is your favorite genre to read. Who Inspires you in your writings?
My favorite genres are fantasy and sci-fi, but I’ll read pretty much anything. Horror is probably my most-read genre, which is odd because I don’t actually enjoy being scared! I think I read it so much because it helps me with my craft as a writer. The best horror authors are able to evoke specific feelings in the reader (usually fear or disgust). Applying their techniques to different emotions helps me to create a more engaging and meaningful experience for my readers.
As far as novels go, my favorite horror authors are Jeremy Bates, Ambrose Ibsen, and Darcy Coates. I also enjoy some Stephen King from time to time. My favorite fantasy author would have to be J.K. Rowling. The world-building in Harry Potter is phenomenal. In fact, it’s one of the only series I’ve read where I didn’t want it to end. My favorite sci-fi authors are Ray Bradbury and Andy Weir.
Although I read a lot, the inspiration for my work usually doesn’t come from novels. My first book was inspired by a neuroscience textbook. My second was inspired by a mewithoutYou song that was based on a bizarre true story. I have no idea what inspired my latest book. In the past, I’ve also been inspired by dreams, misread tweets, and documentaries. I think that just goes to show that you can find inspiration anywhere.
Tell us a little about your latest book?
“The Gloaming” is a portal fantasy novel that follows a boy and his secret wraith friends from the ages of ten to seventeen as they fight monsters, try to outwit evil scientists, and deal with small-town prejudice. The writing style is a bit more complex than the average YA novel, but confident readers 13 and up shouldn’t have any trouble with it.
The idea for the book came to me one night while I was trying to sleep. I sat bolt upright like I’d been electrocuted and immediately started writing the outline. Six hours later, all the elements of the story were in place. You’d think I’d be tired after staying up all night, but I wasn’t. I felt excited and invigorated and ready to write the real thing. I finished the first draft in three weeks and then edited it over the next two years, while also working short-term contracts and writing other stories/novels.
My favorite part of “The Gloaming” is the characters.
Billy is a very anxious boy with intelligence beyond his years. He still has gaps in his knowledge and lacks impulse control, but his maturity enables him to come up with creative solutions to the problems he faces. Billy is also loyal to a fault and has a strong desire to do the right thing.
Corvus is a wraith, and like the other wraith kids, he’s not well-liked by Morton’s human population. Unfortunately, most of his own kind shun him too. There’s an angsty aggressiveness to him from the start, which isn’t unusual when you consider he’s been beaten down by the world from an early age. Despite his rudeness, he’s one of my favorite characters.
Rem is in the same situation as Corvus—shunned by both wraiths and humans. She starts out a lot more like Billy—fearful and trying to hide it. She doesn’t have much fight in her, but once she realizes she has people on her side, she gains a lot of confidence. If I ever got caught in a tough spot, she’s the character I would want on my side. Just wait ‘til you see her with a sword!
“The Gloaming” is available on Amazon, iTunes, and a bunch of other sites. You can find it through the universal link here: https://books2read.com/u/brVaQe
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