The Next Big Thing

I was tagged by Jennifer for the Next Big Thing Meme

What is the title of your book?

A Mage's Power.


Where did the idea for the book come from?

This book was written to scratch three itches.
1. At the time I was watching a lot of general shonen anime. One after another the protagonist was an Idiot Hero who got by on guts alone. I found that annoying and so I challenged myself to remove that saving grace and start with a protagonist who had nothing at all.
2. I also wanted to write about tricksters because I like tricksters.  They're fun.  So I created a trickster that would mold this loser into a hero.
3. I noticed a trend in regards to magic in a setting. If the the setting was present day than magic would always be hidden. That bothered me because the reason (if one was offered at all) was flimsy at best. It seemed like the author didn't want to bother integrating magic into the 'real world' that their audience would be reading from so I decided to create my own. This became the stage for the trickster's work.

What genre would your book fall under?

Low Fantasy

Which actors would you choose to play your characters in a movie rendition?

No idea. I thought about it and simply doesn't compute.

What is the one-sentence synopsis of your book?


A trickster drops Eric in a world where magic and monsters are as common as homework and hotdogs, so he will grow a spine.


Is your book published or represented?

It will be published by me at the end of September 2012.
UPDATE: There's a learning curve when it comes to setting a launch date. Certain issues have delayed it. Thankfully, it was a self-imposed deadline. The new launch date was set to Dec.31

How long did it take you to write?

The first draft took a solid year. The next eight or nine drafts took place in short bursts over the next five-six years while I wrote the next three books in the "Journey to Chaos" series.

What other books within your genre would you compare it to?

Protector of the Small by Tamora Pirece

Which authors inspired you to write this book?

Naturally, Tamora Pirece is the biggest.  Hajime Kanzaka, author of Slayers, is right next to her though indirectly. I've only seen the anime that was based on his light novels.  Masatoshi Midori, the scenario writer for Radiata Stories, also merits mentioning.


Tell us anything else that might pique our interest in your book.

The soul of my book is a childhood spent on Action Adventure RPGs. I'm a fan of Final Fantasy and other games by Squire Enix, such as Radiata Stories. I tried to put the essence of such games into the setting. An adventurer class system, monsters that lurked outside cities, traveling to dungeons to complete an objective, and a story that evolves beyond it's initial premise; I kept all those things in mind. I believe a fan of those games will like "A Mage's Power".