Ed Ireland, the author that creates people, not just characters. Spend some time with people you care about. You'll be a better person for it.

1 - What is the biggest thing that people THINK they know about your subject/genre that isn't so?

 

The biggest fallacy in any genre is that it’s limited to the classification it’s under. I sat down to write a “man-story”, complete with swords, beheadings and as much gore as possible. Somewhere along the way, there was romance. There was horror. There was a moral story about self-pity. The biggest shock for me was the romance though. If anyone had asked me to write a romance novel, I would have said I can’t do that. Last Ranger, my current book told me that was a big load of hoo-ha. It showed me that, a good book will elicit a wide range of emotions and that can only happen with several genres present.

 

2 - Are you a full-time or part-time writer and how does that affect your writing?

 

I’ve never been anything but a part-time writer. And I blame all of you people that are not out buying my books for that. Seriously, writing for me is not a matter of looking for success. I have stories in my head that need to get out because they’re taking too much room. My philosophy has always been that if just one person reads that book, then I’ve done my job. Being part-time does have its drawbacks. Whenever I find the time to write, I always have to read where I left off. Other than that, I’ve got things under control thanks to post’em notes everywhere.

 

3 - What are some day jobs you have held?

 

I’m a cabinetmaker/carpenter by trade. It’s a field of work that I love doing. That is not to say I haven’t had other stuff as well. The most interesting job I had was working for Lowes Food Stores. My place was in Apex, N.C. for any Lowes fans and I had the title of Sausage Professor. Go ahead and take a minute to wrap your head around that. Of course, I sold sausage. The method of selling was what made it one of the better jobs I’ve had. I got to wear hats as garish as possible, be loud and boisterous and best of all, play with kids all day. My favorite thing to do was run after customers with samples and get them to put back their packaged sausage and buy mine. And yes, there were t-shirts that proclaimed “My Sausage Works”.

 

4 - What have you written so far?

 

I have written 8 books so far. Except for my current book, all are self-published. Thanks to Snow Leopard Publishing, every one of them will eventually be traditionally published. I have a trilogy in the fantasy genre called The Chronicles of the Free People, and I have my current book The Last Ranger of Sarn and its sequel, Blood Moon Sacrifice.

I have a crime drama called The Final Chapter and another crime drama under historical fiction called Crime Scene. Crime Scene might just be my favorite book, but it was an experiment that went horribly wrong. In a moment of demonic possession, I thought that having a book with a dual first person perspective might work. Eventually I’ll re-write it properly. Finally, I have a book with short stories and poetry called Forgotten Treasure.

 

5 - Can you share with readers a little bit about your latest book?

 

That’s why I’m here. The Last Ranger of Sarn is a sprawling, high fantasy book that follows the heroine, Vespias Firstlight, from birth to a point in her twenties. Her destiny has been fulfilled in a bittersweet way, leaving her troubled and angry for the next book in the series. In Last Ranger we see her go from a normal childhood into troubled years. After some time, she sees the light once more only to have it taken away by an invasion of undead into her lands.

Last Ranger is the age-old tale of good vs. evil, but the good is not as clearly defined as it should be. The book features many moral dilemmas and carries a message for strong family bonds to help through those times. And, along the lines of my first question, it has been described as both “a rousing love story set against the backdrop of war” and “a ripping good war story with a well-developed love story alongside”.

 

6 - Tell us more about your main character. What makes him or her unique?

 

I feel as if I’ve known Vespias my entire life. And I have. She is a composite of several women that I’ve known, and she carries the qualities of each that make them memorable for me. She’s just a simple girl who wants all the normal things in her life. At twelve, incidents happen that affect her, starting her on the path of alcoholism. Once she fights her way out of her depression, an army of undead attack her homeland and she must step up and help defend it. Incident after incident lead her along a path that will have you wondering, how much can one heart endure. I won’t give away her emotions at the end, but let’s just say that thanks to her family bonds, she has never been called tactful or fragile.

 

7 - If your book was made into a movie, who would you cast?

 

Oh my, I’m one of those writers that always thinks about this. I’ve even got a Pinterest page with my choices. For Vespias, I think I’d like to see Kate Winslet. For Bel, Scott Eastwood. For Mael and Braigon, I’m going with Michelle Pfeiffer and George Clooney. And for Yava and Tanis, Jane Fonda and Donald Southerland. The siblings were not a question for me; Evan Rachel Wood, Spencer Locke and Dean Geyer as Windsong, Rain and Conall. Rounding it out are John Bernthal as Romero and Anne Hathaway as Salaris.

Other than that, I haven’t given it much thought…well, except for Graham McTavish or Norman Reedus as General Jaslin. But, I really haven’t given it much thought.

 

8 - What role does research play in your writing?

 

Research is everything! Not so much in the fantasy genre, where maybe it extends to weapons, ships, etc., and I’ll research names as well, but for any other book, I research heavily. For Final Chapter I had to research cities so that my descriptions would help readers from those places see a bit of realism. For Crime Scene, I had to research that and an entire other time. It is set in the early to late 60’s, and while I was alive then, the 70’s insured I forgot everything about that time. So I had to research cars, clothing, nightclubs and so on. Maybe that’s why it’s my favorite book.

 

9 - If there was one thing you could do to change the world, what would it be?

 

Well, here’s where it gets tricky. My goal would be to make the world a better place. To do that, there needs to be an end to wars, prejudices and bigotry. So, as much as I hate to say it, I would remove religion from the world. Now, as I duck the empty soda cans and other garbage flung my way, I’ll ask that you take a moment to look at what I’m saying. Look through history; the wars fought forever over Jerusalem. The Spanish Inquisition. The European and American witch trials. The wars fought today in the Middle East. The list is endless and all fought in the name of God. I’m pretty sure that was not what God had in mind.

How much hate is there over difference in nationalities, skin color, gender, sexual preferences, and yes, religion? These are not all directly caused by religion, as not all wars are. But a good part of it is. So despite the number of readers I’ll lose, to make this world a better place, I would do away with religion.

 

10 - How can readers discover more about you and your work?

 

OK, for those still with me, the best way to discover more about me or my work, visit my website at www.edireland.net

Some other links are as follows:

Pinterest - https://www.pinterest.com/fabsfan/

Goodreads - https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/7146160.Ed_Ireland

Amazon - http://www.amazon.com/-/e/B00EU86VP6

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Or, just drop me a line at my email, fabsfan419@aol.com and be sure to put “author” in the subject line.

 

 

I’d like to thank Berneta and The Waking Writer for giving me this chance to talk about what I love best, writing. Thanks folks, and thank you for reading this.