Can
you tell us a little about how you started writing; was it something you have
always wanted to do?
I
started writing as an escape from reality. The day-to-day world of bills and
work seems pretty drab when you can go inside your head and play with vampires,
wizards, and werewolves! My first attempts at stories were the worst kind of
comic-book fanboy crap. Luckily for me, I think they’ve long since been lost to
the ages (and thank God). I always wanted to try my hand at it, but I never
seriously thought I’d see the day I’d be doing it as a profession until about
three years ago.
Who
or what has been your biggest influence as a writer?
There
have been so many people over the years, it’s hard to pick one and say “This
was my biggest influence.” My mom taught me how to read; my dad taught me the
value of hard work and practicing something until you get it right. Dean Koontz
showed me that it was possible to put words together into something greater
than the sum of their parts. Jim Butcher taught me to never give up and keep
going after the dream, even if it seems like an impossibly long shot. And H.C.
Brown taught me it was okay to say “pussy!”
What
do you consider to be the key elements of a great story?
A
great story should leave the reader with things to think about after it’s over.
It should challenge readers’ conceptions and make them want more, but be
satisfied with what the writer gives them. It should inspire real emotion; the
reader should laugh and cry with the characters, cheer for the good guys and
mutter curses at the bad ones. Above all else, it should be memorable, the kind
of story a reader will think about three months, a year, or ten years later and
want to revisit.
Could
you tell us a little about how you develop your characters? Who has been your
favorite character to write? The most challenging?
My
character development has always been a little haphazard. I like to start with
putting a person in a place and seeing what he/she does. As the story moves on,
the character reveals more and more to me. Think of it as a sort of mental
striptease, except what’s being exposed isn’t naked flesh but the character’s
true being.
To
date my favorite character has been Yemala, from The Gael and the Goddess. She is completely devoid of pretense and
doesn’t understand the modern world’s insistence on covering this, hiding that,
and talking in circles around what one really wants. She was a lot of fun to
create because of the juxtaposition between who she is and what the world
around her tells her she should be, never mind that she’s a freaking deity!
The
most challenging characters so far still have to be my gay werewolves from The Wildsworn. (Now out of print, but in
preparation for intense editing and adding more material!) It took a surprising
amount of time and effort to put myself in a headspace where I could comprehend
the attraction a male might feel for another male, and how such an attraction
would logically be expressed. I had to make myself feel something completely
out of my wheelhouse, and the learning experience it gave me is something I’ll
always treasure.
Please
tell us about the projects you are currently working on; what can readers
expect to see in the coming months?
My
latest project, called Dusk, has been
accepted and serialized by Changeling Press, with the first installment
releasing on March 28th. It’s an MFM ménage…and so much more! (See
more about Dusk below.)
Right
now I’m working on completing added material and substantial reworking of my
Angels stories, which have been previously published, in preparation for
re-releasing them. After that, I’ll be working on doing the same to my Wildsworn books (MM werewolves), with a
view to having the whole thing completed by the end of March. At the same time
I’ll be keeping up with school work and writing another novel for my Honors
thesis. It’s due April 15th, so I’m going to have to keep a pretty
tight schedule to make it all work! There’s always something new going on, so
be sure to check out my contact information for the latest.
Where
can readers find out what's new and how can they contact you?
For
the latest, up-to-the-minute news, I invite you to check out my Twitter feed
@Author_JSWayne or my Facebook page @js.wayne.5 . You can also visit my blog at
http://jswayne.wordpress.com, or
even email me at jswayne702@gmail.com.
I love receiving letters from readers, so don’t be shy! God knows I’m not!!
Do
you have a strict writing schedule? How do you balance your personal and
writing time?
My
writing schedule has to be fairly fluid, considering I’m working around 16
college credit hours and promoting my work in between bouts of writing. Even
so, I try to get about a novel (80-100k words) out every month depending on
what else is happening.
The
sad truth about my life is that I have very little “personal” time. Just about
everything I do ties into my writing somehow or other. Ask the folks at the
local watering hole, who see me walk in, order a beer, open my laptop and get
to work. I might come up to go have a cigarette or order another beer, but it’s
a pretty rare day when I don’t have my computer or am not sitting around
thinking about the current or next story.
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Out
of all your books, do you have a favorite one? If not, then which one is
closest to your heart?
My
favorite stories so far have been my Angels, which are also about to get the
editing and reworking treatment just like The
Wildsworn. Not only were they my first published stories ever, but I think
in a lot of ways they are the ones with the most to say about the human
condition and what love can and should be, and what kinds of obstacles love
makes it possible to overcome. All my stories do that to some extent, but an
angel of death who falls so desperately in love with a human women he’s willing
to place the entire cosmos in jeopardy? That’s a pretty damn tough act to
follow.
What character out of all your books is the closest to your personality?
All
my characters reflect some aspect of my personality to one degree or another,
but I’d say the closest to me personally is Det. Michael “Dutch” Grunhauer,
from Sock It To Me. He definitely has the most snark and sarcasm, both of which
are personality traits I indulge liberally in real life.
If you could throw a party with any five people (living
or dead) who would you pick and why?
Jim Butcher, because…Harry Dresden! I’d love to get some
pointers from THE urban fantasy master.
Morgan Freeman, because he’s easily one of the greatest
actors in the history of ever.
Kim Harrison, because I love The Hollows series and I
have a particular soft spot for redheads.
Nero, because he had that special kind of crazy I really
enjoy (even if the story about him fiddling while Rome burned is apocryphal)
Sappho, because I’d love to hear her insights on the
various shadings of female love and desire. The Ancient Greek might be an
issue, but we can assume if she’s present there’s not likely to be much of a
language barrier.
When you're not writing, what do you like to do to just kick back and have fun?
This may seem awfully sophomoric, but I like to hang out with my
friends, watch the UFC, and then
play beer pong. Alternately, I go over and hang out with my friends in the
local Cedar City band Regards From Gotham and listen to them play their
original songs. (Every once in a while, I even get to help out with a lyric or
two!)
What is the strangest source
of writing inspiration you’ve ever had?
I don’t know if this is the strangest,
but it was certainly the most public! Back at the end of December, I posted a
contest inviting readers to tell me what they wanted me to write next. As far
as I know, there aren’t many authors out there doing that, so it was something
unique and fun. I really enjoyed seeing what different folks wanted to see me
do. I was surprised when the contest ended and the winning concept was MFM
ménage, set in the future, with magick, aliens, and an evil magician. (I was
NOT surprised that the heat level specified was overwhelmingly thermonuclear!)
After doing some blinking, a little cussing, and a lot of mental contortions
trying to figure out how the hell I
was going to roll all these disparate elements together, I came up with Dusk, the first installment of which is
coming Thursday, March 17th, 2014 from Changeling Press!
If there was a soundtrack to your latest novel, what genre/songs
would be included?
This is probably my favorite song for the Dusk soundtrack:
I can actually see Astaroth (Dusk’s moon) rising over the ocean
when I hear it, and it sets up the tension nicely!
This is a good, all-purpose sexy song:
I DARE you to listen to this song and not start feeling a little
warmer!
This one just says “Sex on the beach” to me…
Great relaxing music, or something put on while giving your
lover a massage…or more!
Aside from these, Daft Punk, Orbital, or other good techno and Within Temptation or Nightwish would be good picks.
About the Author
J.S. Wayne describes himself as "a male romance writer, without apologies!" J.S. can be found on Twitter @Author_JSWayne, maintains a blog at jswayne.wordpress.com, and can be contacted via email at jswayne702@gmail.com. He enjoys talking with and hearing from his readers, and he invites you to drop him a line!
The Gael and the Goddess
Changeling Press
Paranormal Erotic Romance
Buy HERE
Every millennium, the Ocean Goddess Yemala makes a pilgrimage to the shore to continue good relations between land and wave. Leaving her watery realm in the hands of her Chancellor, the nymph Amphichrale, she travels to the surface for the first time in a thousand years. A lot has changed since she last surfaced, and the goddess immediately finds herself in the clutches of the mortal law... and unable to use her oceanic powers.
Liam McGrue is a hard-headed, hard-drinking, hardworking fisherman. He asks nothing of life but an easy catch during the day and a warm fire and a glass of whiskey at night. The fiery redhead who claims to have come from the sea itself intrigues him, and his rash, poetic Gaelic heart jumps to her defense and aid. But when he realizes she's not daft or telling him a tale, that she really is who and what she claims to be, Liam will have to choose between his lonely life on the surface and a completely new existence beneath the waves as the consort of a goddess.
