Interview with L J Ussery

1. When did you decide you wanted to be a writer?

In 2016, I joined the Houston Writers Guild and started learning how to write a novel. The month before  National Novel Writing Month (NaNoWriMo)  in 2016, I imagined the story that would become Priestess of the Mountain City, of which The Heir of Naldukar is book one.

• How do you schedule your life when you’re writing?

I have another full-time job during the week. I try to get two nights a week to put in two to three hours and then I try to find one or two five-hour slots during the weekend. Soon I will be retired and my full-time job will be my writing. Landscaping, bicycling, and archery consume all my other time outside of work.

• What would you say is your most interesting writing quirk?

I will pick a tune to listen to and set it on repeat and listen to it for hours while I write. My favorite place to write is in my recliner. Frequently, I am inspired while listening to Expository preaching.

• Where did you get your information or idea for your book?

The two stories that had the greatest influence on my writing are Tolkien’s Lord of the Rings and David Eddings Belgariad series. My studies for this book included: theology, human biology, birds, trees, home building materials and layouts, Druidism, witchcraft, molecular science, horses and wagons, textiles, and languages. This is not an all-inclusive list, and it leaves out all my studies on writing. The Heir of Naldukar started out from the idea of dealing with anger, but it grew into so much more.

• What do you like to do when you’re not writing?

My wife and I do landscaping, archery, and bicycle touring. We take our landscaping from Japanese gardens. Our bows are recurve, not compound, and our cycles are a pair of 559 electric Catrikes. We also share our lives with two Havanese.

• What was one of the most surprising things you learned in creating your book?

I spend far more time in editing than in drafting, but the most important time I spend is spent on knowing my characters.

• Is there anything you would like to confess about as an author?

When I started down the path to write this book, my vision was to produce a good novel in my own words and put it on a shelf. As I polished the story and saw the interconnections take shape, my desire for this book changed. This book has become a personal letter from me to others who might find comfort and joy in reading it.

• How do you process and deal with negative editor comments?

As an author, there are three ways to respond to criticism. The first is to agree and make the required changes. The second is to agree, but to correct the problem from a different direction. The third is to smile and wave as you drop their comment into the waste basket. The most important thing to know about criticism is what the critic is talking about. Only after you understand their concern can you appropriately choose your response.