Here is an interview with Author and Teacher, J Christopher Wilson. He is the author of the book series, The Wards of Iasos. The first book in the series, The Wards of Iasos: Book 1: The Leftovers, has been available to purchase since last summer. I interviewed Chris before the release of this book but my recording was messed up. Here is our second interview.
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GK(GeekyKool): First off, thank you, Chris, for this second interview.
Tell our readers a little bit about your novel, The Wards of Iasos: Book 1: The Leftovers, and the world of D’wyee (and how to say Iasos).
JCW: The Wards of Iasos (pronounced yah-sus), is a young adult fantasy novel where the two All-Smiths, a male and a female, each have a forge and create the entire universe. Each forge is a sun, which provide the energy needed for the planet of Akkad.
Iasos is a country on the planet of Akkad. The government was established after the various tribes and clans were being decimated by other countries. The tribes and clans united and established a militia to defend themselves and eventually a government.
When a child is about 10, they are sent to the Iasos Unified Preparatory Abbey in the capital city of D’wyee. The abbey trains each child in everything the need to survive in a harsh medieval environment: hunting, fishing, agriculture, cooking, canning, sewing, tanning, medicine, and military defense among other things. When you are 15, they have a good idea what you excel in and they specialize your training. When you complete your training, you have a trade and are able to be a contributing member of society.
The government controls poverty, homeless and crime. If you are not successful, they do not kick you out and let you wander. They make you a slave in a mine. Everyone contributes.
The protagonists in this story––kids and teens––have not been successful. They are not wanted by their families and they have no friends. They are outcasts. They have been sent to Erlend Andvari. He is their last chance. It is this dwarf’s job to help these kids and teens find a path to success before they end up in slavery.
It’s a story of hope when there appears to be no hope. It’s the story of people who do not fit in trying to find their way.
GK) What is the reading level of this novel?
JCW: Young adult. If you can read Harry Potter or The Hunger Games, you should be able to read this. The reading level is higher. I read it aloud to my fifth graders and they did very well. But we stopped and discussed it, as we do every read-aloud. Some of them would have struggled otherwise. A handful of my students who are advanced readers, read it by themselves and did great.
GK) You used to work as an advocate for people with disabilities. Your current day job is as a fifth grade teacher. How strong does your experience as a teacher and advocate play into your creation of this world and this special school for the “leftovers” in society?
JCW: As with every writer, our life experience shapes our work. In both fields, there a great many people who feel they live on the outskirts of society. I have a tag line in my book: “Some people are just weird” because many kids and do not feel like they fit in. This novel is for them. I wanted to tell their story. I wanted to give those kids, teens and adults who feel weird in their own skin a book that understands them and sees the good in them. The protagonists in this story are called the Leftovers. They live in Panae Hall, which is on the abbey grounds but is separate. The kids at the abbey negatively call it “Leftover Hall.”
I’m weird. I’ve always functioned just outside the norm of social conventions. When I became a teacher, I embraced that weirdness and use it in school to connect with those kids who feel the same. I want to be the teacher who gets them. So I talk openly about geek- and nerd-pride, being weird, and how those things are good. I specialize, if you will, in kids who are Leftovers. We understand one another. Thus this book is called “The Wards of Iasos: Book 1: The Leftovers.”
GK) Often times authors will pull a piece of themselves into their protagonist characters. Do you identify with one of characters more than another or do you see a piece of yourself in every character?
JCW: People who know me look for me, my family, or themselves in my book. The truth is that no character equals a real person. However, there are some characters who are more like some friends/family than others.
I love to cosplay. I am part of a “Lord of the Rings” cosplay group. When I started writing, I purposely created a character with my body type so I could easily cosplay a character in my own book. That makes sense, right? I decided the mentor of the Leftovers––a dwarf named Erlend Andvari––would be my cosplay character. He works with kids who do not fit in just like me. Why not?
Andvari, however, is not me. He is who I wish to become. He is my superhero. Erlend Andvari is patient, wise, and calm. He is the type of teacher I aspire to become. In truth, my personality is more like the character Adrastos. She is impulsive, she interrupts, has a hot temper, and reacts without thinking.
GK) The title of your book, The Wards of Iasos: Book 1: The Leftovers, implies there are more books to come in this series. I know you have been working on the second book. How is the process going?
JCW: As of today, I am at page 175 in my manuscript on Book 2 So, I think I’m a little over halfway done, but I never really know how long a book will be until it’s done. With Book 1, I finished and had it read by a couple of trusted friends. Based on the feedback, I added another 100+ pages and completely changed the ending.
Up until a few weeks ago, I had three books planned in the series. However, I wrote a Dungeons & Dragons® encounter and DM’d that story for some friends. I really loved the story. It was unique and interesting and focused more on the characters than battle. They said it was the best D&D they ever played. The story fits so well into Wards of Iasos, I think I might putting it into the universe.
The process of writing book 2 is going very well. The flow and the pace of the craft is much smoother and some of the mistakes I made the first time are not happening now. The first time I had to go back and rebuild some scenes, adding details to them, sometimes adding pages to the story. I feel like this time around, I am doing that more instinctively. Now, that’s my perspective. We will see what happens when my editors get their hands on it. The process feels smoother and faster than before.
GK) The concept of The Wards of Iasos was originally a comic book. Tell us about the process of creating a comic and then transitioning it into a novel. Is it a different style of writing? Was it difficult to transition from comic to novel?
I wrote my master’s thesis on comics in education. I’ve written extensively on the subject even being a contributing author to a couple of literacy textbooks for educators. Goldminds Publishing contact me because I knew a lot of illustrators. They asked me to find one for some of their properties. I did. Later, I had a conversation with the owner of the company about that experience. I casually mentioned that I wanted to write a book and that I had a degree in English with an emphasis in creative writing. She was interested and so I pitched an idea for a fantasy comic. I write -page graphic novel manuscript. Goldminds loved it. However, the cost for a full-color, 60-page graphic novel turned out to be more expensive than the independent publisher could afford. They were going to drop the project, but I asked about other formats. Goldminds was excited and we switched to an illustrated novel. They sent me a contract and then I started writing.
The transition was incredibly easy. I tend to think in images when I write. I can see what’s happening like a movie in my head. Oftentimes, strong emotions are attached to those images or movies. Rather than describe what things look like in a note to the illustrator for the comics, I simply write the description for the reader of the novel. Obviously, I add more details for the novel, but I also expanded scenes and feelings. The graphic novel only covered a few chapters of the book. I had to really expand the universe and the storytelling for the novel.
GK) Many first time writers are self published. You teamed up with Goldminds Publishing. Tell us a little bit about how you developed a relationship with Goldminds Publishing and the experience of having a publisher.
JCW: Brenda Bradshaw is the owner of Goldminds Publishing. She used to be a public school educator and was one of my professors when I went back to school to get my teaching certificate and my master’s in education at Missouri State University. I didn’t become a teacher until my late 30s. She knew I was writing about comics in education. When she needed an illustrator, she asked for my help. And as described above, that help turned into a pitch, which lead to a graphic novel script, which lead to a contract and a year later a novel was released.
GK) What are your Convention plans for 2017? I know you are a big time guest at a local convention early in the season.
JCW: Right now, I have VisionCon in Branson, Mo and Lebanon MegaCon in Lebanon, MO booked. I am working on Planet Comicon in Kansas City, Mo. as well. The local library system has LibraryCon and I am hoping to return to that. DragonCon a local renaissance style fair, which I attended last year and hope to go to again in 2017. There are some others that are on my radar.
GK) The Wards of Iasos: Book 1: The Leftovers is available on Amazon for $16.99 and Kindle for $6.49. What other ways can readers pick up their copy?
JCW: A hardback edition is now available for $27.99
Barnes and Noble store in Springfield, Mo.
https://stores.barnesandnoble.com/store/2931
They still have autographed copies left in the store.
Barnes and Noble online
http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/the-wards-of-iasos-j-christopher-wilson/1123788665?ean=9781942905707
Follow The Ward of Iasos on FB, you will get notifications of book signings and events.
Wards of Iasos on Facebook —https://www.facebook.com/WardsOfIasos/
Christopher Wilson on Twitter–@J_Chris_Wilson
Christopher Wilson website —https://www.jchristopherwilson.com/
GK) Thank you, Chris, for letting us interview you again.
JCW: Thanks Larry. Independent authors live and die by reviews and media exposure. I appreciate it any time a media outlet wants to discuss the book or writing. And I love talking with fans.
