Matt Posner and Aspry Jones
This week I kicked off something I’ve been wanting to do for a while: sitting down with fellow indie authors to talk about their books, their characters, their worlds, and what really happens behind the scenes when they write them.
I had the chance to meet four authors during my first week, and I’ll be sharing each of those conversations on Written Wanderer. First up are two fantasy authors, Matt Posner and Aspry Jones.
Their books are very different, and so were our conversations. Matt took me inside the mechanics of creating a magic system, while Aspry shared how he develops the characters who inhabit his fantasy world.
And this is only half of my first week’s author lineup. I still have two more conversations to share.
Matt Posner:
Mrs. Moore #1: Queen of Doubts
Matt Posner joined me to talk about Queen of Doubts, the first book in his Mrs. Moore series.
One of the most interesting parts of our conversation was hearing Matt explain the magic system behind the story and how he created rules for magic that work within the world of his characters.
That’s one of the things I love about talking directly with authors. As readers, we see the finished world on the page. We don’t always get to hear about all the decisions and imagination that went into building it.
Fantasy writers have the added challenge of creating things that don’t exist in our world while still making us believe they could. Magic can be mysterious, but there still needs to be enough structure behind it for readers to understand what is possible and, sometimes more importantly, what isn’t.
Hearing Matt talk about the thought behind his magic system gave me a glimpse behind that curtain and a new appreciation for just how much worldbuilding happens before a reader ever turns the first page.
Watch my conversation with Matt Posner to hear him explain the magic behind Queen of Doubts and learn more about the world of Mrs. Moore.
Aspry Jones:
The Light Crown Series
My conversation with Aspry Jones took me into another very different fantasy world.
Aspry is the author of Protectors of the Light Crown and its sequel, Beware the Golden Tigers, the second book in the Light Crown series.
During our interview, we spent time talking about something that fascinates me as both a reader and a writer: characters.
I can appreciate an elaborate world and a great plot, but characters are what pull me into a story. Give me someone I care about, worry about, root for, or occasionally want to shake by the shoulders, and I’ll follow them almost anywhere.
Aspry shared how he approaches creating the people who inhabit his stories and how those characters develop within the larger fantasy world around them. I especially enjoyed hearing about the process from the author’s side because, as readers, we meet these characters only after countless decisions have already been made about who they are, what drives them, and how they’ll react when their world starts falling apart around them.
We also talked about his newest novel, Beware the Golden Tigers, and the continuation of the world he began building in Protectors of the Light Crown.
Watch my conversation with Aspry Jones to hear more about how he creates his characters and the stories behind the Light Crown series.
Why I Started Wandering Chapters.
There are so many talented independent authors writing books across every genre, and sometimes finding them is the hardest part.
That’s one of the reasons I wanted to start Wandering Chapters.
I don’t want these conversations to simply be, “Tell me about your book.” I want to talk about the interesting stuff.
Where did that character come from? Why did you build the world that way? How does your magic work? What surprised you while you were writing? Did your characters behave the way you expected them to?
And selfishly, as an author myself, I love hearing the answers.
Talking with Matt and Aspry also reminded me just how differently two writers can approach the same broad genre. Their books, worlds, characters, and creative processes are distinctly their own, and that’s part of what makes discovering indie authors so much fun.
More Authors Are Coming
Matt Posner and Aspry Jones are the first two conversations I’m sharing from my inaugural week of Wandering Chapters but we’re not finished yet.
I met with two more indie authors this week, and I’ll be sharing their interviews soon. Then I’ll be back with even more authors, books, and conversations.
You’ll find the full interviews on Written Wanderer on YouTube, along with shorter clips and highlights on TikTok.
If you love discovering new books, supporting indie authors, or you’re simply curious about the people behind the stories you’re reading, I hope you’ll follow along.
Your next favorite book might just come from an author you haven’t met yet.
Are you an indie author who would like to be on the series? Click Here