Welcome to our next interview for this month! We are with this talented author Dante_Greywolf, who penned the story, A Blaze In The Dark.
Dark Fantasy Team: What was your overall experience while writing this story?
Dante_Greywolf: Pain.
I'm kidding. Well, half kidding. A Blaze In The Dark was my first story in a decade, and right after I finished it, I wanted to rewrite it. Which I did. Other than the (technical) writing journey, and watching myself grow as an author, I had a blast writing these four POV. A lot of stories start with the main protagonists in different parts of the world and end with the storylines overlapping. I went into a different direction, more inspired by Wheel Of Time where you have these main characters with the same starting point in the same village but the plot tears them further apart (and then reunites them at a later stage)
DF: What inspired you to write in Dark Fantasy?
D: Dark Fantasy is a great tool to explore the nastier side of humanity and morally ambiguous characters.
I remember being frustrated that a lot of books followed the same old formula. The main character overcomes a challenge/completes a quest, and thus grows and becomes the hero/heroine of the tale. I wanted to do something differently. I wanted to show various sides in a conflict, and how each side thinks they're the righteous one. I wanted to show the rawness of preteens growing up during a lingering war, and what effect that has on them as adults. And I also wanted to show mentors that were mainly having their own interest at heart instead of that of the protagonists.
The main emphasis of the story is on the failure that needs to happen before growth can take place. After all, it's always darkest before the dawn.
DF: How would you describe your main protagonist(s) in one word and why?
D: Sebastian: bad boy. Okay, that's technically two, but Seb is a play on the bad boy trope. He's stubborn and cocky, but deals with a lot of trauma throughout the story. He falls hard before he can grow.
Fox: naïve. He's very childlike, even for his age, and believes everything people tell him. Which makes him great to pair up with a dubious mentor.
Alex: idealist. She always fights for what is right, but the adults around her show her that was is right isn't always what is realistic.
Nick: booksmart. Put a booksmart guy in a war-like conflict, and see how he struggles. Nick's slightly based on myself and a comment someone made a few years ago that I was clever but the useless facts wouldn't save me in the wild.
DF: Is there going to be any further series of this book? If yes, give a little teaser about it.
D: The sequel, A Mightnight Storm continues where the first book left off. The world becomes bigger. The stakes too. And the children slowly take up their roles. The novella, The Witch's Hour, bridges the time gap to the third book, A New Dawn Rises, where you will see the children as young adults. The choices they made in the first 2 books impact where they are in the world and what they can and cannot do as war rages and thrones swap owners...
DF: Who is your favourite author in Dark Fantasy and how did they inspire you?
D: I have to admit that I mostly knew Dark Fantasy from the Gothic and Black Metal genre. You could say I devoured Dark Fantasy content long before I knew the term. It wasn't until 2-3 years ago that I started reading Prince of Thorns by Mark Lawrence, the Witcher series by Andrzey Sapkowski, RF Kuang's Poppy War, and the First Law trilogy by Joe Abercrombie.These authors confirm to me that characters don't necessarily have to be likeably in order to be liked by an audience.
DF: What other genres interests you other than Dark Fantasy? How would you compare them with Dark Fantasy?
D: I'm always interested in anything fantasy-related. Given the popularity of morally ambiguous characters, I am seeing more of these characters and themes popping up in the "regular" epic high fantasy and urban fantasy.
Other than fantasy, I also enjoy a good science fiction or even mystery/thriller that explore similar themes.
Add a psychological aspect and I'm game. Whatever the genre. I recently read My Dark Vanessa which recounts the abusive relationship between a student and a teacher, and how the girl experiences the relationship as an adults vs as a teen.
DF: Tell us about your journey through out writing this story. What inspired you to finish it?
D: I'm an incredibly slow writer. I know the end goal. I've known the end goal since before I wrote the first scene, and I even already know the last sentence of the series. Wattpad definitely inspires me to keep working on getting the new chapters out. Some chapters may not contain the most interesting scenes, but they're needed to steer a character towards a certain decision or to show the journey, mentally or physically. Having the support from the readers does help to consistently get out chapters and tell the story instead of only writing the cool ones for myself.
I do have to say. Timelines with 4 protagonists in 4 different parts of the world with their respective plots moving at different paces is incredibly difficult. GRR Martin, I'll cut you some slack (but please do finish Winds of Winter and A Dream of Spring)
DF: Let's assume you are a half breed of Werewolf and Vampire. When a fight break in between the two clans, who would you fight for and why?
D: Look at my username, it has to be the wolves. I have no choice 😊
But, to be honest, I find werewolves to be far more fascinating than vampires.A vampire is undead and needs blood in order to survive. A werewolf is still human, but with a monthly hairy biting problem. When it's not full moon, the wolf can very well just be Charlie in IT or Chelsey from Sales. Gregor the night janitor stands no chance. All we need to do is get him out of the basement during the day...
DF: What are the goals you'd like to accomplish in the future whether at Wattpad or in general?
D: I would like to finish the 'A New Dawn' series, expand my urban fantasy novella 'The Last Werewolf' to a full-fletched novel, and write a Steampunk novel about racing.
Apart from getting content out, I don't have any bigger plans. Some people tell me to get published. I have to admit that getting published is not a priority as I prefer writing to relax and escape my day job. Querying is everything but relaxing.
To quote my favourite F1 driver, Kimi Räikkönen: "It's more like a hobby for me. So, obviously, I don't need to do it if I don't want to."
Thank you so much, Dante_Greywolf, for being with us and agreeing to our interview. Check out the story, A Blaze In The Dark, to support our author!
- The Dark Fantasy Team
