Author Spotlight: Aaron Christopher Drown

• an award-winning writer and freelance graphic designer

Readers, thanks for checking out another Author Spotlight Interview. Let’s give a good, hearty welcome to this week’s guest!

Aaron Christopher Drown is a Maine native who’s lived all over, and whose stories have appeared in equally numerous magazines and anthologies. His debut novel, A Mage of None Magic, won the 2010 Darrell Award for Best Novel, and as he’s promised his publisher for years now, he’s hard at work on the follow-up.

An award-winning graphic designer as well, Aaron is a frequent guest speaker who enjoys discussing not only the writing process but the important roles that branding and presentation play in promoting an author’s work.

Aaron resides in Memphis for the time being with his wife, Sarah, their dog and cat, and his trusty Macbook, Sancho.

Aaron, thanks for agreeing to be here today. Most author spotlight interviews start off with the boring stuff, but I know what readers REALLY want to know.

If you could have any pet (real/fantasy/no-allergies/no worries about feeding it) what would it be?

A sea otter. One who makes coffee, loves to fold towels, and can take over the driving for a while on long road trips.

Hey! Does this sea otter have any siblings looking for a home?

What do you write? And how did you get started?

Speculative fiction works as a catch-all. Though the series of novels I’m working on is straight-up fantasy, my shorter work runs the same gamut as a classic season of The Twilight Zone.

I like exploring the full spectrum of the spec fic genre!

What do you like to read?

Pretty much anything so long as it’s well written. Last year, I finished The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern. Before that was Project Hail Mary by Andy Weir, preceded by Thomas Jefferson: The Art of Power by John Meacham, and before that I re-read The Once and Future King by T.H. White. Next up was This Tender Land by William Ken Krueger, and I think after I may give Empire of the Vampire by Jay Kristoff a spin.

What a great selection.

Do you snack when you write/edit? What are your favorites!

I don’t nibble when I’m nibbing, but I do sip. Water, coffee, turpentine. The usual.

Ah, you’re one of THOSE. I’m a snack-fueled writer, myself.

Name one commonly accepted piece of writing advice that doesn’t work for you

Write every day.

My design work keeps me really busy, which is a good thing when one is a full-time freelancer and sings for one’s own supper, but the creative drain can leave the tank a little dry sometimes. Luckily, though, a lot of my writing process is internal anyway, so I’m constantly thinking about my stories—but usually don’t sit down at the keyboard until the little mental meat thermometer in my brain pops up and it’s time to purge some words.

So true, especially between projects, I usually need a break to think and dream and plot and plan.

Name one commonly accepted piece of writing advice they can pry out of your cold, dead hands

Write what you know.

If a character sees a shoreline, make it one you’ve seen. If she wears a perfume, make it one you’ve smelled. If someone enjoys a dessert or a beer or the warm flesh of their enemies, make sure you’ve done the same.

So true! When reading this advice, some people think they have to stick to the real world. Of course, they don’t, they just need to add elements of what they do know and it makes the world that much more believable.

What do you drink while you’re writing/editing?

If not the bitter tears of my own artistic shortcomings, then whatever my pet otter brings me.

I really need one of your otter’s cousins. Wait. Do they get along with cats?

---

Shameless Self-Promotion time!

A Mage of None Magic

Myth tells how magic came to be when the fabled gem known as the Heart of the Sisters was shattered by evil gods. The same tale speaks of the Heart being healed one day, unleashing a power that will bring the end of humankind.

While traveling to begin his magical studies, young apprentice Niel finds himself suddenly at the center of the Heart’s terrifying legend. Caught in a whirlwind of events that fractures the foundation of everything he’s believed, Niel learns his role in the world may be far more important than he ever could have imagined, and ever would have wished.

Begin an extraordinary adventure into a perilous land where autocratic magicians manipulate an idle aristocracy, where common academia struggles for acceptance, and where after ages of disregard myth and legend refuse to be ignored any longer.

The Gods Must Clearly Smile

From the distant future and the forgotten past…

From the far reaches of space and the house next door…

From award-winning author Aaron Christopher Drown, a collection of fourteen curious tales that wend and weave across worlds familiar and unthinkable—a captivating journey through wishes and nightmares, love and murder, war and magic, and the occasional dalliance with destiny.

Check out Aaron Christopher Drown/A. Christopher Drown across the web!

Website | Facebook | Instagram | Goodreads | Amazon AND Amazon