Dragon Soul Press took the opportunity to interview Clint Foster who is featured in Dragons and Heroines, History, Reign of Queens, and Organic Ink: Vol 2.
1. How long have you been writing?
I remember writing stories in middle and high school that were true nonsense. Fifty pages on Microsoft Word, single spaced, no indentations. Amazing stuff, surely. But I published my first book in 2018 and another forty some stories since.
2. How do you handle writer’s block?
I don’t get ‘blocked’ nearly as much as I just casually avoid writing by doing other things (like this interview.) But when I feel really stuck about a particular story I will just open another tab, among the hundreds, and start writing something else. Or I’ll read something. Just try to change the way my brain is thinking. Then I come back to it with fresh ideas and hope for something intelligible.
3. What comes first, the plot or characters?
The idea of a plot, to me, has always started with a character or two. Who is this antagonist and what do they want? But the characters develop along the way, then I have to go back and fix them in the beginnings of these stories when they still don’t know who they are yet. So I think the character instigates the plot, but the plot changes and truly creates the character. Chicken, egg, etc.
4. What time of the day do you usually write?
It depends on the day. Sometimes I write for four hours the second I wake up, others I write into the middle of the night because I had an idea.
5. How do you do research for your books?
All hail our overlord, the Google machine.
6. When you’re writing an emotionally draining (or sexy, or sad, etc.) scene, how do you get in the mood?
Music is always the answer.
7. How do you handle literary criticism?
I used to be extremely uncomfortable with it because I was also shy about having my writing out there, but it’s out there now, and I have succeeded enough times to know that someone must like what I’m writing, so I’ll keep doing what I’m doing and hope to get better.
8. How many books have you written? Which is your favorite?
One book, one epic poem. Favorite is such a final word. I’m obviously partial to my first novel, Pawns of the Shadow, because it was something I worked on for years, on and off, and was so proud to finally finish. But I always saw myself as something of a bard, and the idea of ‘singing’ a song by writing an epic poem was something I always assumed would be impossible. Final word – The Lay of Thorriman is my favorite of the two, but only of my two novel pieces.
9. What do you like to do when you are not writing?
I hang out with my wife watching true crime and bad tv shows. I relax with my puppies when I’m not watching them play in the backyard. I rot my brain with YouTube. I play (too many) video games. I read (never too many) books.
10. Where can readers learn more about you?
Dragon Soul Press 