Tom has been a part of the Celthric community since I first started and I noticed the talent right from the start. I am very glad to have Tom as part of my ever growing community of authors and artists of fantasy and science fiction. His dedication to his work is evident in his books, the artwork looks amazing and the worlds he creates really takes you from reality to another world where you can get lost in the story and if getting lost in another world is what you want, I believe this is one book that will do it.
Author Bio: Tom Fallwell
I’m a retired software developer who spent many years programming backend software for web sites. Yet, even before that, I was always an avid reader and gamer, devoted to the genres of fantasy and science-fiction. It is from reading and gaming that I learned to create my own stories and characters, and while I never actually considered being an author before my retirement, I felt the creative urge through most of my adult life.
Now, with plenty of time to do so, I write. Novels, short stories, serials; wherever my muse takes me. I write fantasy, science-fiction, and sometimes a blend of both. I live in Oklahoma, am divorced, and have one grown-up son. I recently celebrated by 67th birthday, and love movies, games, and meeting people on the Internet, or though live events that I attend.
How did you get into writing?
I’d written a few paragraphs of what I had planned to be a role-playing game scenario that I had thought of creating and finding players for, much like Dungeons & Dragons, though this would be more of a scifi theme. I’d created a sort of landing space for players, based in a mysterious tower. I had the notion of actually making this a story, rather than a game, and encouraged by a close friend, I decided to give it a shot.
The result was not at all what I expected, and I found it fascinating that the story seemed to come from somewhere within me, a place I’d never fully tapped into. I consider this my creative muse, though at the time I had no idea what it was. It was a gift from God, and I embraced it. The story I wrote was only a short story, but was ell received by friends and family, and through their further encouraging, I decided to write a novel.
It is through my love of fantasy and the encouragement of people throughout my life, that I decided to go down the road of author. I’ve enjoyed every minute and have no plans to stop. I will write my stories until my days are done.
What can you tell us about your daily routines that help you focus and your creative habits? So, for example how do you come up with some of your ideas and inspiration for your book?
Many of my ideas come from watching TV, movies, and playing games. Sometimes, an idea comes from something I dreamed while sleeping. I have no daily routines. Somedays I write, somedays I don’t. When inspiration comes, regardless of the time of day (or night), I write.
I don’t really do anything special to find my focus. If it is there, I’m writing. If it’s not, then I’m doing something else. Being retired allows me to be very flexible in how I spend my days.
Is this book very personal for you? If so, how?
This book was my first novel, though it was originally published under a different name. I’ve since re-written it and re-published it under the current title. It came from an idea I received when creating a character to play a game. It is personal to me, because it was my first feature-length story, and it flowed out of me very fast. I amazed myself, and my friends.
I would never have thought I could write a full novel, and then, suddenly I had. This book, more than anything else, launched me into my writing career, and it will always have a special place in my library of books that I write.
Dragonblood Throne: Legacy
How did you come up with the book title?
The story’s main character is Delina, one of a race called the dragonbloods. Her father was king and sat upon the Dragon Throne. Thus, it was his legacy to her. Her inheritance.
Plot and Synopsis
Can you describe what the book plot and give a detailed synopsis of the book, of course without any spoilers.
Orphaned as a young child and growing up alone in the forest, Delina lives a life of isolation; her only companion a saber-toothed panther. Her strange eyes frighten those she occasionally encounters, so she keeps to herself, until a young, wounded warrior ends up at her doorstep. As she nurses him back to health, she discovers she is more than just a young woman with unusual eyes, she is a dragonblood, destined to become the ruler of Almar.
Now hunted by the dark sorcerer who murdered her father, usurped his throne, and killed all her kin, she must find out how she can release the essence of the dragon inside her to defeat him. Everything depends upon her willingness to embrace her legacy and reclaim the Dragon Throne.
The story follows Delina and her companions on her journey to discover who she truly is, and how she can become the dragon she was meant to be. All the while, she is being chased by the evil sorcerer who seeks to kill her, and all who side with her.
Is there any movie, book, or television series that you can somewhat liken your story to? So for example, some books you can say are like Game of Thrones or Star Wars, what mainstream and popular movie do you think your book somewhat “feels” like? Did you want this to be the case?
I don’t seek to write anything to be like anything else. I’m sure some will see things they can relate to other stories, but I don’t think about that when I’m writing. I am attempting to write something that flows up from within me. I don’t stop to analyze where such inspiration came from.
Themes or Messages
What themes and deeper meanings or messages can we expect to find in this book if any? Is there any deep meanings or philosophical questions being explored in the book?
While I didn’t really plan to write any such meanings, it was inevitable that some of my deepest beliefs would come out in the story. In this book, I seem to have dealt with the issues of hatred and love, what drives either, and what can result. How acting in anger can cause us to do things we regret, and how we should feel compassion for each other, even for those who seem evil to us.
I think also, this book deals with the issue of accepting one’s true nature and events, both good and bad, that happen in their life. We cannot change what is past, but we can look forward to the future. We must learn to be content with ourselves and out situations, enduring hardships, and celebrating good days.
Off the wall question, but would some of the issues being explored in the book relate to us here in the real world?
Absolutely. I think that is true of any writer, whether they are writing fiction or non-fiction. What we write is as much a part of us as anything else in our lives.
Setting
What can you tell us about the setting that we will be seeing in this book?
The story is set in the fantasy kingdom of Almar. I don’t deal with the entire world, only this piece of it. Almar is a land that for hundreds of years has been ruled by a race called dragonbloods. A dragonblood has the ability to assume the form of a great dragon. Yet, as we discover early in the book, a dark and evil sorcerer has killed all the dragonbloods and usurped the throne. Now he rules Almar with an iron hand.
What cultures or societies can we expect to see and can you tell us about how you came up with creating these societies? Was it difficult to get deep into how the societies function?
For this book, I tended to fall upon traditional fantasy as far as the race of Elves. They are your typical elven race, living in a jungle-like forest and attuned to nature. I also have a race of desert nomadic people, and these I fashioned after the typical Arabian style, but I don’t delve too deeply into either of these cultures.
The dragonbloods, however, I get more into, and there is a planned prequel in the future (likely a short story) that will deal with their origins.
Tell us about the history of the land or world or worlds that we will be exploring through out the book?
Almar was once a land ruled by necromancers and sorcerers, and the people lived in fear of magic, as these generally evil magic-users enslaved many. It was a dragonblood, and his kin, who discovered the land and its predicament, and they fought a long war to free Almar from the evil magic that ruled it. Not much more detail is told in this first book. There is a planned prequel, as well as a sequel novel that will come later, though this book is a complete tale in itself. More will be revealed about Almar in the future.
Characters
What can you tell us about some of the main characters and villains in this book?
Delina is the main character. She lives alone, in the woods, with a shadowfang companion. A shadowfang is a large saber-toothed panther. How she come to be there is part of the story, and her background is revealed as the tale unfolds. Another character is Merric, a young human scout that Delina discovers on her doorstep. Merric is wounded and unconscious, and she nurses him back to health, and they become close friends, even romantically entangled later in the story.
Kargoth is the villainous sorcerer who has usurped the Dragon Throne and killed all the dragonbloods. But he didn’t know there was one left. He is determined to rid himself of Delina and the rebels who oppose him. His back story is also revealed in the tale, so you’ll have to read it to learn more.
Promotional Links
Website: http://tomfallwell.com
Youtube: https://goo.gl/EYqoh8
Facebook Page: https://goo.gl/6KjdHz
Twitter: https://goo.gl/mhdzrZ
AUTHORSdb: https://goo.gl/XDnH3n
How to buy
Amazon: http://myBook.to/dbtl
Universal Link: http://books2read.com/dbtl
Nomination:
Aaron-Michael Hall. She is a fantastic author and currently my favorite. Her latest book, Kurintor Nyusi is masterfully written and an amazing fantasy tale that I believe is one of the best novels I’ve read, ever. I highly recommend her books, and feel she is extremely gifted. https://aaronmichaelhall.com
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