TALK: William King.

#selfpublishing #books #author #fantasy

William King is a fantasy author of the acclaimed Kormak Saga and Terrarch Chronicles. 

Tell me about Ocean of Fear!

It’s the sixth novel in my sword and sorcery series about Kormak, a wandering monster hunter in a dark medieval fantasy world. Along with a ship full of bounty hunters he’s seeking the Kraken, a pirate sorcerer with a claim to a kingdom’s throne and a plan to awaken the most powerful demon of the ancient world. Somebody once described the series as being a bit like Jack Reacher Meets Game of Thrones.

You’ve been quite a trailblazer in the world of self-publishing. You were already an experienced writer: what made you ‘go it alone’?

I laughed when I read the word trailblazer. I’ve always felt I came to the self-publishing party very late. I’d been reading Joe Konrath’s blog for a couple of years, thinking this Kindle thing sounds interesting, before I decided to give it a try. It was Joe’s blog and the writings of other indie trailblazers like Dave Gaughran that got me into self-publishing. That and the fact that I was sitting on a pile of manuscripts that had been published in German, Spanish, Czech, Polish and Hungarian but not in English.

How do you find the world of self-publishing? Is it difficult being your own boss?

I find self-publishing enormously liberating compared to conventional publishing. It’s no more difficult than being a freelance writer already was, perhaps even a little less so since I get to set my own deadlines.

You’ve been brilliantly honest about your career and the self-publishing business on your blog. The big question is: is it rewarding? (in both senses of the word) Can you support yourself, and are you fulfilled creatively as a writer?

I earn more from indie publishing than I do from traditional publishing and I’ve made my living from trad pub for a couple of decades.

And I am writing the stuff I dreamed about  writing when I got into fantasy and SF in the first place. I loved the old Weird Tales style sword and sorcery when I was growing up. Now I get to write it when I want. I’ve published books outside the genre I am known for. I am writing short stories again. I don’t think I have ever been more excited about being a writer than I am now.

What books/TV/films inspired you to start writing? 

As you’ve probably guessed, it was mostly fantasy and SF from the 60s and 70s (Conan, Lord of the Rings, Michael Moorcock’s Elric and Hawkmoon and Roger Zelazny’s work) along with Raymond Chandler and Dashiel Hammett.

What’s your work schedule like? Do you have regular times, places, routines, superstitions, etc.?

The main thing is to write every day. It’s gotten a bit more difficult since I spend a couple of my former work days each week looking after our hyper-active two year old. I’ve built my schedule around his nap times. Recently I have been finding The Pomodoro Method very useful.  

Are you working on new anything at the moment?

I am currently editing Born of Darkness, book seven in the Kormak Saga, and a couple of short stories also in the series. 

Thanks!

Thank you for inviting me

Check out Bill's work at his website www.williamking.me