Fallen Angel 2018 Awards Winners Book

Thomas-LF Interview

2nd Place Winner in Fantasy

Username:
Thomas-LF

Title of book:
Beyond Legend: The Unbreakable Kingdom

What inspired your book:
I wanted to tell the story of a grand adventure. I had this idea for years now of a young girl living in a world of magic who comes from nothing and wants to become something. The imagery and idea behind Knights and their valour appealed to me in such a way, I wanted to use that as a playground for me to test the limits of my imagination. I wanted to create a world that could be explored and where anything is possible. I like the idea of writing a high-stakes and epic tale with noble heroes that also has some wackiness and reliability. There are dark moments and times where tough questions are asked, but I still wanted to create a feel good story for everyone that's filled with a good amount of heart and humour.

Who inspires you the most when it comes to writing:
I could go on about the authors and storytellers we all know and love. JRR Tolkien, Akira Toriyama, JK Rowling, Rick Riordan, Tamora Pierce, Stan Lee, Eiichiro Oda, Steven Spielberg. There are many creators that have inspired me, in big or small ways. But I also want to highlight some friends of mine too.

My girlfriend, Laura. Her incredible writing style always makes me want to do better. Her strengths with detailed descriptions and emotional writing is something that I think about whenever I need to motivate myself. Through her, I know that I can always improve until I'm the best writer I can be.

Harley, one of my best friends for over ten years now, since Secondary School, was writing before me and inspired me before I realised.

Becky, a talented writing who I started talking with through fanfiction and has self-published a fantasy book of her own. Seeing how far she's come and how skilled of a writer she is inspires me every day.

The many others from a fanfiction Facebook page I'm apart of; Jen, Kari, Merissa, Ashleigh, Baillie and many more. Their endless encouragement keeps my brain flowing with ideas and the will to write to never end.

What do you like read/write the most:
I am opening myself up to more genres. At the moment, I love reading fantasy and science fiction. Especially stories that are set in worlds different from our own. World building is something that I love and the idea of seeing new landscapes, mythologies and ways of living is thrilling for me. I've always had a tendency to write action-heavy stories. I love being creative with action/fight scenes and that's what I tended to focus on most when writing. But, over time, I've found myself becoming more fond of the quieter moments between characters, hence why I'm challenging myself to write a story for every genre.

How do you feel about winning:
I'm ecstatic and still in a bit of shock about the whole thing. I never thought this story would come as far as it has. I'm not the most confident person and there are days where I do doubt myself, but the moments where you find that inner belief and want to keep going are some of the best. In the end, winning or losing a contest doesn't matter too much for me. It's about having fun and giving people the opportunity to make new friends, either in the story or in our world.

Will you be entering Fallen Angel Awards 2019:
Definitely. I'm hoping to keep pushing myself to tell my stories the best way that I possibly can.