Author Interview: H.L. Walsh (part 2 of 2)
SPOILER ALERT
While every effort has been made to avoid spoilers in this post, anyone who has not read From Men and Angels by H.L. Walsh is hereby advised that this post may contain a few unavoidable spoilers.
‘From the dawn of man, the war between Demons and Angels has ravaged the land. Two thousand years of peace has lulled the people into a false sense of security. Malach is on a journey to find his place in the world and pick a side in the war that is quickly approaching, meeting unlikely allies along the way.’
H.L. Walsh is the author of From Men and Angels, the first in a trilogy of fantasy novels in which humans live and sometimes even fight alongside corporeal angels and demons (you can check out my review of From Men and Angels here).
I had the pleasure of chatting with H.L. Walsh about From Men and Angels, his writing process and the calorie content of caffeinated drinks. I’m delighted to add that H.L. Walsh has also given me the honour of revealing the title of the sequel to From Men and Angels. Be sure to read on to the very end of this post to find out what it is!
This is part two of our interview. Missed part one? Click here to catch up!
You mention in the book’s acknowledgements that the idea for this novel came to you while listening to a sermon in which your pastor mentioned spiritual warfare. Is there a peculiarly Christian theme or message in From Men and Angels?
Starting out it was never meant to be a ‘Christian Fantasy’. However, I found that I couldn’t stay away from it when I was writing because of how close to my faith the themes were. I don’t want people to be scared off by the Christian themes in the book. I’m not trying to beat anyone over the head with a Bible or push my own beliefs on anyone. I hope people take this book and enjoy it for the story that it presents and not judge it for the Christian themes in it. That being said, if anyone reads this and is curious about the Christian faith I would encourage them to learn more about our beliefs. I am a Christian and won’t hide that fact, however, my next few planned projects most likely aren’t going to have the Christian themes like this first trilogy. I wouldn’t say I’m a ‘Christian author’, I’m just an author who is a Christian.
Did you find anything particularly difficult about writing this book?
The world building. I found it very hard to weave in the world building without losing the reader. Both my wife and my editor, two separate people by the way, helped me a lot with this, cutting out a lot of unnecessary details or making me rewrite things. In the editing process, we ended up cutting about 25,000 words out of the manuscript which made the story much better. To hear people say that they loved the world building is amazing since so much care went into that aspect of the story.
What’s the best author fuel: Tea, coffee or ‘other (please specify)’?
For me its definitely coffee, although I try not to drink too much of it since I tend to like the sweeter stuff. I don’t want to drink all my calories.
Do you believe in writer’s block?
Absolutely! I really try to be prepared for writer’s block but I have gone a week plus with it hanging over my head. At first to get over writer’s block I would just write anything that came to mind, which included main characters being killed off and other crazy things that I never intended to include in my book. That helped me to get some creative juices flowing. Now I swap manuscripts to a totally different project and write there for a while until I have a break through. Then I jump back to my main project.
Who are some of your favourite authors?
J.R.R. Tokien, Terry Brooks and C.S. Lewis have got to be a few of my all-time favourites but recently I picked up a book by Cole Fox, who is an indie author and really enjoyed his writing.
Any goals for 2020?
Originally, my goals were to publish the sequel to From Men and Angels, launch my website, and publish the first in a novella series I’ve been working on. However, I recently went back to work full time and have checked some of those lofty goals. I’m now hoping to get all of the drafting done for my sequel and have it ready to start editing by the end of the year and launch my author website.
And finally, what’s your number one piece of advice for any new authors out there thinking about writing their first novel?
Just start writing! Get your thoughts and ideas on paper, or word document. Yes, planning has its place but don’t get so caught up in planning that you postpone writing. The great thing about writing is that you can change things and polish it later. My original outline looks nothing like the finished book. Also let the story take you where it wants to go. Don’t be so rigid in sticking to your plan that you miss a good creative idea that comes to you mid-story.
TO ASH AND DUST
Book #2 of the Deliverance Trilogy
by H.L. Walsh
COMING MAY 2021
MISSED PART ONE of this interview? CLICK HERE TO CATCH UP.
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ATTENTION AUTHORS:
Every Tuesday, I post a new edition of Spotlight: a short post which shines a proverbial spotlight on a published novel or collection of short fiction. If you would like to have your book considered for a future edition of Spotlight, drop us an e-mail including a short synopsis of your book and a link to where we can buy it. Better yet, send me a copy of your book and I can include a mini-review.
I’m still looking to interview fiction authors here on Penstricken, especially new or indie authors. Whether it’s books, plays, comics or any other kind of fiction, if you’ve got something written, I want to hear about it. If you’re interested in having your work featured on Penstricken, be to sure to drop us an e-mail or message us on Facebook/Twitter/Pinterest.
Please be advised that due to a recent surge in interest, I am presently committed to a significant number of reviews/interviews over the next couple of months. If you would like an interview or review, I would still love to hear from you, though it is unlikely that I will be able to begin work immediately.
You can check out our previous interviews here:
- Sharleen Nelson, author of The Time Tourists [2]
- D. Wallace Peach, author of the Shattered Sea duology [2]
- Jacob Klop, author of Crooked Souls
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