Author Interview - J. Scott Savage

by Tristi Pinkston | More from this Blogger

28 Jul 2008 10:00 AM

Today we are joined by author J. Scott Savage, who is getting ready to release his new book, "Farworld: Water Keep," in September.

Scott, I'm glad you could be here to talk about "Farworld." Is it your first fantasy novel?

It is. I honestly never thought I could write a fantasy novel. I started writing this book at 2:00 AM one morning to exorcize a story that wouldn't leave my head. I knew for a fact that I could not write fantasy, and yet I kept seeing these characters and hearing their dialog. I figured if I rolled out of bed and proved to myself that I couldn't write it, the story would go away. That has actually worked for other projects in the past. But this time I found myself still writing five hours and five thousand words later. So I went with it. And I've actually enjoyed writing this more than anything I've ever written.

I reviewed this book the other day, but I'd like to hear a description of it in your own words. Can you share a synopsis with us?

In one way this is a story about a boy and a girl saving their respective worlds. At the same time it is about a boy and a girl saving each other. Marcus and Kyja are both outcasts in their own ways. He uses a wheelchair and she is immune to magic in a world where magic infiltrates every part of life. When they discover that it is up to the two of them to save their worlds, they consider it ludicrous.

I've had a lot of people comment on how they thought it was going to be just another boy saves world story with a little twist. But there's a lot more to it then that. For one thing they have to find four groups of elementals that will have nothing to do with humans, and get their help. For another thing, this is not a story where the heroes suddenly find that they are the best magician or the most powerful warrior. They are a couple of kids trying to accomplish the impossible because it's the right thing to do. And part of their discovery is that some of the most powerful magic is what's inside us.

How did you come up with the idea for this book?

I've always thought that magic is much more prevalent that we think. I look at someone who can take a handful of colored pencils and turn it into a picture that takes my breath away, and to me that's magic. I look at the roses that keep growing in front of my house, despite my non-existent gardening skills and that has to be magic.

I believe that the world is full of magic. We just don't always recognize it as that. Heck, I'm getting paid to tell stories. Is there anything more magical than that? So what cooler story than a couple of kids discovering the power of real magic. What is inside of them already. Of course there are spells and magical creatures too. But if I could sum up the story in three words, it would be "Finding your magic."

That sounds about right to me!

We'll continue our chat with Scott tomorrow, but in the meantime, you can click here to learn more about him.

Other Author Interviews:

Abel Keogh

Janet Kay Jensen

J. Adams

Learn more about Tristi Pinkston

I've been a blogger for Families.com since August of 2006.

View Full Profile | More from this Blogger