Interview with an Author - Deston Munden

• Tell me a little about yourself, personally.

Hello, I’m Deston J Munden. I’m an African American high fantasy and science fiction author from North Carolina. I also have a Bachelor’s Degree in Game Art Design. I’m a huge fan of old samurai films, cooking, Dungeons & Dragons, competitive video games and orcs that fight to the death and go into a bloody rage.

• What is the name of the book or books you have published?

Tavern (Book 1 of the Dargath Chronicles) and Dusk Mountain Blues (Book 1 of the Dusk Orbit Blues).

• Where can they be found?

Amazon. The link can be found at the end of the interview.

• Do you have any current WIPs?

My current project WIP is Dusk Ocean Blues, the sequel to Dusk Mountain Blues. I also have Duke’s Brand, the sequel to Tavern, on the back burner and currently within the hands of my beta readers.

• How are they going?

EHHHHH. About that…

Okay.

Dusk Ocean Blues is going slower than I want. I have a lot of things going on but I’m working on it every day still. I feel like the story is solid and it’s going a direction that I want it to go, but I’m just taking my time with it. I’m focusing on improving my narrative style and that tripping me up a bit. There are times where I have bursts of progress and then there are days where I don’t feel like I’ve made a dent on this project. I also have to be aware that this is the first draft. There are going to be problems. This is my first delve into sci-fi so I’m trying to give myself a break.

• What got you into writing?

Video games. Honestly, it’s true. Video games got me into writing. When I was younger, I would make stories about my characters in certain video games such as Pokémon (which I still play) and Final Fantasy (which I also still play). Soon, they started to develop into original stories…. well as original as they could be to a youngster. It wasn’t until high school when I got incredibly serious about the topic. I started writing full novels around that time, some of which I still have on flash drives and my hard drive. They are terrible but I’m still proud that I have gotten this far.

After college, however, was when I decided that I wanted this as a career. My Game Art degree was done but I felt like I wanted to write more than I wanted to draw. I was a decent artist, but I had a passion for writing and everyone in my programs saw it. So, I took the time to focus on that. From then on, it was a huge strive to get better and better. Earlier this year, I published my first book and I’ve never been happier.

• What keeps you focused?

Music and sheer willpower. I work at the same time every day. I start the day by responding to emails and doing some marketing/social media posts. Once 8:30 hits, my writing begins. This is currently my job, so I take it very seriously.

• What gives you inspiration?

Anything, to be honest. For the sake of discussion, however, I’m going to say video games, books, music, and research. The first three are common. I get inspired by just playing through video games, listening to a lyric of a song, or getting thrashed by an author that is better than me (Nicholas Eames, James Jakins, and Jonathan French). When it comes to research, I fall down rabbit holes. There are small things that just push me into a research frenzy. You don’t know what you can learn that will give you some inspiration for your novel. Try to learn something every day.

• How do you battle writer’s block?

I write anyway. It sounds easy but it’s not. When it’s your job, you don’t have the luxury to sit on the writer’s block. Your job wouldn’t allow you to take a rest if you weren’t feeling it.

• Did you decide on traditional or self-publishing?

Self-published. My goal is to be a hybrid though.

• What made you make that choice?

I wanted to get it published with my creative control. After almost getting scammed by a vanity publisher, I decided that I wanted something that I could control. I’m enjoying it so far. I do want to get more into the traditional side of things. Besides, as a self-published author, I get to have a stronger say in stuff like the cover. That’s a big part that sold me on the process.

• How does it feel to be considered an author?

I still don’t believe it. A few of my friends often introduce me as an author and I get warm in the face. A lot of my writer friends are now intimidated by me. When I ask to read their work, they will shy away and tell me that I’m a real author, so they don’t want me to read their work. I try to ensure those people that I’m still very much a normal person, just with a book out. It’s still surreal to me as I got into my next book. A part of me even believes that it’s all luck and I can’t do it again. I hope I can prove myself wrong in that regard.

• What’s your social media platforms for people to find you?

Website: www.djmunden.com

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/authordjmunden/

Twitter: https://twitter.com/SrBuffaloKnight

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/D.J.Munden/

You can also buy my book here on Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/Tavern-Dargath-Chronicles-Book-1-ebook/dp/B07PWTR89Q/