I have a treat for my readers today, an indie author I just ran across, Geoff Wakeling, has agreed to be put in the hot seat! Do read on and let’s give Geoff a warm welcome on this cold day.

Why don’t you tell my readers a little about yourself and your work, Geoff? How did you first become acquainted with the fantasy genre?

Geoff Wakeling: I’ve always been acquainted with the fantasy genre, and even as a child I was crazy about films and books that transported you into another realm…..I suppose I’ve never really grown up. I loved ‘The Never Ending Story’, Colin Dan’s ‘Animals of Farthing Wood’ books and ‘The Hobbit’, and was always upset when the book or movie ended. I’m a complete dreamer and hate to conform to society, and so have never managed to stay in an office job or anything similar for very long. I get too bored, and I’m off in my own head writing tales to amuse myself throughout the day.

Now I work from home as a copywriter and author. I also have a little gardening business, so life is pretty nice – gardening in the mornings, and then heading home for lunch and writing. It might not be the best existence for some, but it suits me just fine!

What was the inspiration for Inside Evil?

Geoff: Do you know? I really can’t remember. Even though I only started my publishing journey this year, Inside Evil has been hidden away in my computer files for at least half a decade – it needed some serious dusting off before it hit Amazon. Most probably I just sat down and started to write, saw what was coming onto the page and decided to continue. I find inspiration from everything, from a creature or plant I might see when gardening, to a conversation I overhear in the supermarket or a scene that I watch in a film. It all formulates in my head somehow, and out onto the page it comes.

I can understand that. You’ve got a new title out now. Tower of Souls is your second Indie published work. Do you have any advice for those just starting out?

Geoff: Really the best advice is to write and not have high expectations. I read an article with Amanda Hocking, published Inside Evil and then waited to make my fortune. It didn’t happen, the industry is not like that and you have to be very fortunate to get that lucky rush.

When you’re starting out, just hone your craft. Write every day, concoct stories in your mind and just keep at it. Use professional copywriters, editors and cover artists when you publish your work so that it’s as near perfect as possible. Then, keep writing. The more work you have on the shelves, the more likely you are that one of those novels will hit the big time.

If you weren’t a writer, what career might you have pursued instead?

Geoff: I’d have stayed in TV most probably. Growing up, I always wanted to be David Attenborough, or at least tag along on his field trips. I didn’t even really want to be on TV, I just wanted to be behind the scenes with the crew, traveling the world. I’ve dabbled in the media, both backstage and in front of the camera as a garden expert and have a degree in zoology, so I’d have probably continued down that path. However, writing drew me away, and though I still stick my head into the industry now and then to see what friends are up to, I’m concentrating more on my novels.

Now that the follow up to Inside Evil, Tower of Souls, is out, what can curious fans expect from you next?

Geoff: Quite a few things actually! Along with Inside Evil, I had a science fiction novel stowed away on my computer, and that will publish next month. It’s not your typical lasers, spaceships and aliens though, it’s more of a look at our current fascination with celeb status and the latest craze. Rather than placing a careful eye on climate change and other matters which could be our undoing, people are living beyond their means, and when our lead character gets a chance to enter a cryogenics program and escape the world, he jumps at the chance.

Then, I was rather undecided for NaNoWriMo and I ended up writing a zombie novella. I’ve never wanted to write about zombies, but this story popped into my head. Again, it’s not a classic tale of apocalypse and surviving zombies. It’s more about what happens to the undead when scientists developer a drug to pacify them. How with humans harness these creatures? Are there any remnants of consciousness, or the former people, within the dead shells?

And, of course, the third book of the Inside Evil series is due out March 2013.

Congrats on your upcoming release! We will be looking forward to it.  Is there anything else you’d like to share with our readers? Would you like to share anything more about your work?

Geoff: I suppose just that you should expect the unexpected in my books. I tend not to read in the same genre that I write in because I don’t want to draw too many ideas from existing novels. I’m always trying to find a new take, and several readers have commented that I’ve offered an original twist on traditional genres. It’s not for everyone of course, and it makes it incredibly hard to try and genre-label my books as they have elements of many different works. Inside Evil could be described as a murder mystery, but it has paranormal and fantasy elements too, and then in the second book there’s a whole new realm to explore with steampunk, fantastical beasts and supernatural threads all being involved.

Sounds like my kinda book! Now for a fun question: if you could face and vanquish any literary (or movie) villain, who would it be?

Geoff: Now it’s time for the inner geek to be unleashed….

hehe. There’s nothing wrong with that!

Geoff: It has to be the Emperor from Star Wars. Yes, I know he’s killed in Return of the Jedi, but did you know that in the expanded universe he actually comes back after using the force to save himself? I LOVE Star Wars, you could say obsessively, so facing Palpatine and being victorious, now that would be pretty darn awesome!

Thanks for being with us today, Geoff. Before you go, where can my readers learn more about you and your work?
Here:

Twitter: @GWakelingWriter

Thank you for being with us today, Geoff! Folks, we hope you enjoyed this glimpse into the mind of this interesting author. Got any questions for our guest? Please feel free to leave him a comment. As ever…keep reading!