Jacob Donley is the author of the Chronicles Of A Rock Troll fantasy series. He took the time to answer my Blogger Book Fair Mini-Interview questions. Take a look and find out more about this new fantasy author!

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Brandon Luffman: To start things off, tell us a little about yourself. What do you write? Why do you write?

Jacob Donley: Well, I’m 30 years old and engaged to be married in June. I’ve been in love with books since I was young, but I really started to get into the stories when I was in high school. So far, I mostly write fantasy (Sword & Sorcery and Epic). Writing, to me, is my way of making the stories I read to live on and to give others the exciting worlds that I loved growing up.

BL: What’s your latest release?

JD: CHRONICLES OF A ROCK TROLL:  A PATH OF JUSTICE is my most recent release. It is the second installment in a series of short stories about Car’Al, a rock troll that was forced to leave his tribe because of his difference in ideals. I like to think of it as being a similar story as Drizzt Do’Urden. They obviously aren’t of the same race, but they have to deal with a lot of the same conflicts emerging into a world not of their own, trying to find a place for themselves.

(Note: A Path Of Justice is presently FREE on Amazon, and the first book, A New Beginning is FREE on Smashwords!- BL)

BL: Do you have a process when you write? What do you do to make it all come together?

JD: I usually start off with major brainstorming sessions. I like to use Evernote to organize my thoughts. Once I have the basic ideas, I do a basic overall outline in Scrivener. After that, I try to do a chapter outline. Once I have that chapter outline (with specific details), I just start hitting the keys and knocking out the story the best that I can.

BL: What about the editing and revision stage? What’s your process there?

JD: Once I have my first draft done, I like to let it sit and stew for a week or two. Once that’s been done, I go through the story and try to find things that don’t fit, could be done better, or simply don’t work. Once I have those figured out, I start going through for grammar checks.

BL: What’s something not related to writing that no one knows about you?

JD: As far as the writing community goes, I’m pretty sure that no one knows that I was a 3 sport Varsity player in high school. I was an All-Conference Football and Baseball player. I also played one year of Football at Monmouth College.

BL: What’s something about you that you want everyone to know?

JD: I love science. Before I decided on English for my Bachelor’s degree, I wanted to be an astrophysicist. I love science and the study of the physics of the universe. Of course, I’m horrible at math.

BL: When you get an idea for a new story, what do you do with it?

JD: I filed my idea in Evernote, as much info as I have at the time so when I come back to it, I can remember what I was thinking. I build on it for a while. You never know when that idea can flower into a great story.

BL: Who is your ideal reader? Describe who you feel your books are directed at.

JD: My ideal reader is someone that loves a good story. The worlds are new, diverse, or have a twist to them. I like to think that most of my stories are built around characters, characters that stir up a strong emotion.

BL: How did you decide to take up writing as a serious pursuit?

JD: I decided to seriously write when someone told me that they liked my work. It gave me the confidence to put my stuff out there. I figure that if at least one person likes my work, I am a success.

BL: What’s next for you and your work? What’s your next project?

JD: For the time being, short stories are going to be my pursuit. I have another series that I have started. It’s called THE COLLIDING EMPIRES. The second story in that series, A CHOSEN PATH, should be coming out in the next month or so. I plan to finish up that 10 story series, work on CHRONICLES OF A ROCK TROLL, and a few other smaller series.

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 About Jacob Donley

 

Jacob Donley is a 30 year old graduate of Illinois State University. He is one of 5 children. He is currently engaged and will be married in June. He loves fantasy and science fiction. The two types of stories are diverse but have many of the same mysteries and adventure that keep pulling him back in for more.

Visit Jacob’s Blog!