Welcome Brian Knight, author of Born of Blood

Here's a chance to get to know Brian better. He writes a thought provoking interview:

1. What is your favorite book?
Well, I would say my favorite series is The Lord of the Rings. My favorite nonfiction book is the Bible and my favorite novel is The Sword of Shannara by Terry Brooks.

2. What writing style do you most abhor?
To be honest, I don’t abhor any of them. I think it comes down to the author’s voice. If I read a novel and it is evident the author is struggling or the story is not flowing it makes for a difficult read. Maybe if the author wrote with a different style that would not be the case. Granted, some styles are harder to write than others but it still boils down to the author’s ability. I have read many books written in different styles and the one thing I do notice is it takes a little time to get adjusted to that style.

3. When and how do you write? (typewriter, Mac, in a café, for four hours each morning, etc?)
I write on my laptop just about every night for 2 to 4 hours. I favor writing late at night starting around 8 or 9 o’clock.

4. What is your greatest fear when you first turn in a manuscript? I’m not sure. Rejection is part of publishing but I would say my greatest fear is having my manuscript accepted only to be shelved and never released. That is kind of like winning the lottery and never getting paid.

5. In what era do you wish you’d been born?
Oh wow! I’ve thought about this one a few times in the past. I guess you could say this comes from me reading so many Fantasy books but I wish I was born during an era when life was defined by simple means. No, not easy, just simple. Being a Knight I should say the medieval era and that would be an interesting time to live but I think I would prefer the colonial era in the US more.

6. Which words or phrases do you most overuse?
I really work hard to avoid overusing a word or a phrase. It is one of the things I pay close attention to when I’m revising a manuscript. With that said, I do tend to refer to the eyes a great deal. Be it to express what is seen or to convey an emotion. The eyes can share so much about a character in a particular situation. I remind myself that there are other senses such as feel, hear, and touch…sometimes even taste.

7. Which talent would you most like to have?
This might surprise you but I already have it…I think. Let’s see how well received my debut novel is. Just kidding, I think writing is it though because no one believed I could or even wanted to be an author (myself included). It just erupted one day and here I am. I can say that after reading many Fantasy authors I often wondered if I could write a novel like that and generate a story that rich.

8. What do you consider your greatest achievement?
I actually thought about this one over lunch. There was a time in my life when things were rather dark and I was at rock bottom. I would say my greatest achievement was standing up on my own and pressing on but, in truth, the achievement came when I decided to lean completely on my faith. It was the first time I ever did that or even had to. I was lifted up and shown a new way and in doing so my faith gained in strength greatly. That achievement and lesson has lead to many others but none are more important than that one. I do think my greatest achievement is yet to be accomplished but I know I have the support needed to accomplish it.

9. Who is your favorite hero of fiction?
This could be a long list and to pick one is difficult. In the end though, I have to go with Allanon from the Sword of Shannara Trilogy. He was wise, powerful, a little dark and did what was right no matter what. He wasn’t perfect by any means but loyal to the end.

10. How would you like to die?
My wife hates the thought of this but I would like to kiss her goodnight, tell her “I love you,” go to sleep, and start my journey into eternity from there.

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I think his book has a tantalizing title, Born of Blood. Read further for more 'tantalization', if that's a word:

Book Blurb -
In BORN OF BLOOD, Jesse Banks unknowingly steps into the middle of a battle between good and evil that has raged on for generations. As the danger escalates, she begins to put the pieces of her clouded past together.

Jesse discovers the truth about her ancestors and the horror that relentlessly pursued them — a horror that now pursues her. To survive, she must join the fight. But the immortal monster that stalks her has other, more sinister, plans, and will stop at nothing to see those plans accomplished. Can Jesse escape a fate worse than death and defeat an age-old evil?

Excerpt
The rider’s head swiveled as she searched the hillside for any sign of pursuit. Wet mud flew high in the air from her horse’s hoofs as they thundered down the rutted trail. She shifted her eyes for a split second to look at the bundle snugly bound against her midsection.
“Just a little further now,” she whispered.
The cold night air whistled past her ears, but sweat continued over her brow. The barren trees reached out with their finger-like limbs, threatening to rip her off her mount. At the last second, she swerved her horse down a side path. A glimmer of light in the distance called to her, and a burst of speed brought the weary rider to a ramshackle farmhouse with a single light glowing from a lone window.

The smoke from the fire was a welcoming sign of warmth as she approached the door. A soft knock, and it cracked opened. An old woman gazed beyond the traveler’s shoulder for a moment until she stepped aside and waved her in.
“You sure you weren’t followed girl?” a gray-haired man asked from a seat in the corner next to the fire.

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SB Knight
Website: http://www.sb-knight.com
Blog: http://the-new-author.blogspot.com
Business: www.premiumpromotions.biz