Interview with fantasy fiction author Brett Matthew Williams

Fantasy author Brett Matthew Williams is in the spotlight today to talk about Time is Relative for a Knight of Time.

During his virtual book tour, Brett will be awarding a lucky randomly drawn winner with a $50 Amazon or Barnes and Noble (winner’s choice) gift card. To be entered for a chance to win, use the form below. To increase your chances of winning, feel free to visit his other tour stops and enter there, too.

Welcome, Brett. Please tell us a little bit about yourself.

Brett Matthew Williams (B.M.W.) is a born writer.

I wrote the above in third person - which feels weird. I'm not going to do that for the rest of the interview, cool?

The Los Angeles broadcast television gig was fun, and a lifestyle I could totally see myself getting into someday (fingers crossed), but those folks worked from 10AM to 7PM most days, often only seeing their kids in the mornings on weekdays. Since I didn't have a father growing up, and knew that I legitimately wanted to be a father myself; a father who was present for his children, I knew that wasn't the right path for me.

So, I moved back to Texas, completed my degree in History at Texas State University, and began writing the Time is Relative series in 2010. The second novel, Time is Relative for Wavering Loyalties, will be released Autumn 2015.

Please tell us about your current release.
Time is Relative for A Knight of Time chronicles the earliest days of Rolland Wright's journey to becoming the mythological figure known commonly as Father Time. In a novel Kirkus Review calls 'A mixture of X-Men meets Doctor Who' Time is Relative taps deeply into the fantasy fiction genre while presenting a unique, historical take on the origin story of a familiar character or two. The book opens with the execution of a revenge plot by Scott Wright on Edward Vilthe, who murdered his wife, Taylor, two years previous. The encounter ends with a revelation - a child , a teenager named Rolland, who was born in secret from both Vilthe, and the world and organization in which Scott & Taylor belonged, The Knights of Time of Eden.

A land that exists outside of time and space, accessible via the subbasement of public libraries across the globe (because why the hell else would public libraries still exist?) has gone by many names over the centuries, including El Dorado.

But even though Rolland becomes aware of his newfound abilities, has his time on the streets turned him into the kind of young man who would abuse that power? That's one of the many avenues that we explore with the character. Some heroes have a strict moral code, some have a lax set of rules, Rolland Wright is a survivor.

What inspired you to write this book?
I could go on and on about my duel passions of history and fantasy fiction, but instead I'd like to talk about Nancy Reagan. Yep, I went there.

Waaaay back in the late 1980's Nancy Raegan promoted this terrible amalgamation of a cartoon for the War Against Drugs in which all of my favorite cartoon characters (including the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, Winnie the Pooh, etc) went on a psychedelic adventure that preached the evils of drugs. While I may have completely missed the message this preposterous piece of propaganda, the idea of amalgamating things (in my case historical figures, events, etc) was a creative stepping stone that my imagination has clung to ever since. I think I was two at the time, so, we're going on twenty five years of good times with that memory.

Excerpt from Time Is Relative for a Knight of Time:

            “What do you think, then?” came Judah’s voice, as Blaisey zoned back into their conversation.

Blaisey looked at him and saw him staring back at her. To her astonishment, Blaisey realized that Judah was asking for her opinion. Aside from his rather informal introduction, this was the first time that Judah had addressed her directly. Her surprise must have been evident to him, as Judah’s lips crept into a thin, lopsided smile around the cigarette.

“I knew a man once,” Blaisey said, in a calm, soothing voice. She had been told by her father, Nahoy – leader of the Nabawoo, that white people prefer when natives speak in a calm, slow, relaxing tone. He believed that it goaded the white man into a false sense of superiority that their people could use as an advantage.

Blaisey, who was never any good with people (just animals), had seen this as slightly sneaky and underhanded, but those were thoughts from before the days of Jackson’s terror, before the days of being kidnapped by American soldiers in the middle of the night, and people falling out of the sky at daybreak. Now she saw the need for an ‘ace’ up her metaphorical sleeve.

“This man, he rolled and smoked his tobacco, like you.” Blaisey continued. She looked deep into Judah’s blue eyes and sensed no intent of malice, or evil. Quite the opposite, within the soul of this man were the most redeeming characteristics of all; love and loyalty. She guessed it was a woman’s influence that led the blonde man with the funny speech to a life like this. As such, Blaisey decided to let him off the hook gently.

“Oh yeah?” Judah asked, the cigarette in his mouth bobbing between his lips as he spoke. “What brand? I’m a Lucky’s man myself.” He sniffed and lifted his head proudly, his chin held high. When in doubt, it was always easier for Judah to rely on his quick wit rather than admit he was wrong – no matter the subject.

“This I do not know,” Blaisey said, smiling out of politeness. “And we cannot ask him, for he is dead.”

At this Judah stopped his search for the lighter and looked at Blaisey head on, giving her his full attention for the first time. “From smoking tobacco, right?”

“No” Blaisey said with vigor. “He was an ass like you, and somebody shot him.”

What exciting story are you working on next?
Time is Relative for Wavering Loyalties, the sequel to Time Is Relative for a Knight of Time, is due to be released in Autumn 2015. Much like the first novel, TiR WL will see the Knights of Time traveling from Lae Island 1937 to intercept Amelia Earhart, all the way to the Haitian revolution of 1803. We'll also be spending a lot more time in Eden, getting to know the different sub-species that live there, including the Mer people, the Nocturns, and the Elemenos.

When did you first consider yourself a writer?
I try not to think about it too much. I'll just end up psyching myself out. Writers write, that's what they do. I know plenty of want-to-be writers who like to talk big about their career aspirations while logging a total sum of zero words on an average daily basis.

Do you write full-time? If so, what's your work day like? If not, what do you do other than write and how do you find time to write?
I try to write between 3,000 and 5,000 words a day. Anything less makes me feel super guilty about my time management skills. I assume that's normal for writers, and since thats what I consider myself, that's what I do. I write. A lot.

What would you say is your interesting writing quirk?
 I can write with numerous other distractions. Never really understood these people who demand complete silence while writing, or have to be in some sort of 'zone'. I think all of that is pretentious, honestly. Most of my writing happens when I'm out in the world and inspiration strikes. The actual writing part happens naturally after I've sat on a thought long enough to form it into a coherent story. Then it happens in vast quantities. Like the aforementioned three to five thousand words a day.

As a child, what did you want to be when you grew up?
A superhero by night who wrote during the day. Seriously, no one ever told me that being Superman (or, at the very least, Batman) wasn't a realistic career path. Since you aren't' saying anything right now, I'm going to assume that you understand my career goals.

1.) Create awesome superhero costume, save people, moonlight as writer.

2.)

3.) Profit

Anything additional you want to share with the readers?
It's currently super hot in Texas with 114 days to go until Halloween. This year I'm going as Gaston from Disney's Beauty & The Beast. Been working out since Valentine's Day to prep. Gaston is by far my favorite Disney character.

Links:

Website | Twitter

Thanks, Brett! Happy writing!

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