This Week’s Featured Author Interview
is with Anthony Avina!
Hi, Anthony Avina, welcome to the Indie Publishing Group website. Introduce yourself to us. Tell everyone who you are, where you’re from, what do you enjoy doing, hobbies and interests.
Hello there. My name is Anthony Avina. I live in Southern California. I’m 27 years old and work as an author, a freelance writer, a blogger and a YouTuber. I became a self published author in 2010, and have published over 20 novels. I write mostly horror and YA novels, with a mixture of science fiction, fantasy, drama and contemporary romance for good measure. When I’m not writing or working, I like to play video games, hang out with friends, travel and spend time with my family. I have a Yorkshire Terrier named Sammy and two black cats named Batman and Robin.
When did you start writing and why?
Although I published my first book in 2010, I wrote my first story when I was 16. It was a creative writing class, and I wrote my first short story. Although it was a class assignment, it was incredibly fun and liberating, allowing me to flex my creativity and giving me a passion for the craft I never knew I had before.
Which is your favorite book you have written and what gave you the idea for it?
Although I love the book I wrote years ago that I just recently re-released, I Was An Evil Teenager: Remastered, my favorite book I have ever written is the first book in a series, Nightmare Wars Book One: Arrival. I love it because it’s my most ambitious and universe-expanding story to date. It’s the story of men and monsters, war and survival, and a look at what makes someone a monster. It has spawned two sequels thus far, as well as short stories and spin-off series that are both published and in development. I wrote it because I love horror stories, and whenever I read a horror story they usually involve the monster hiding in the shadows, striking when people least expect it. I thought to myself, what would happen if the monsters of myth and legend were real, and they got tired of hiding in the shadows? What if they decided to take the world for themselves, and humans were suddenly not the top of the food chain. That’s where Nightmare Wars began.
How did you come up with the title for your book?
I Was An Evil Teenager: Remastered is the collection of three stories: I Was A Teenage Killer, I Was A Teenage Zombie, and I Was A Teenage Demon. It’s the story of evil in mind, body, and spirit. It’s the story of one young teenage girl’s dark secret, and the terror she brings as a result of it. So, I thought this was the story of one evil teenager, and the title should reflect that.
Who helped you with the cover? Or did you design it yourself? What was your inspiration for your cover design?
I actually designed the cover myself. I found some royalty free photos that I think depicted each stage of the main antagonist’s progression in the book. From killer to zombie to demon, each picture is an evolution of the character, and I think the cover does a good job of reflecting that.
What are some of the themes of your story?
Some of the themes are perseverance, not judging a person based on looks and finding hope in hopeless situations. I hope these themes shine through in the story.
What’s your process when you sit down and decide to start writing a book? What is your process, and do you have a system?
Usually, I start out with writing an outline. I like to get the main plot of the story down, followed by a list of characters and key settings. After that, I write out a rough outline of what I want to happen in each chapter of the story, and once the outline is done, I just start writing.
Who are some of your favorite characters and why?
In this book, my favorite characters are Dave and Aly Trent, two of the protagonists of the story. They are directly affected by the actions of the antagonist and go through their own character evolution throughout the series and rise through the ashes of the fire left in Lisa’s wake to become stronger. Their strength and bond as brother and sister is something I relate to as I myself have a sister, and I put my experience and love for my sister into this story, and I hope it shows. Lisa Etron is, of course, the antagonist of the story, and her evolution as a villain is great for me as a writer, as it allows me to explore what drives a person to such evil acts and shows that not all evil resides in monstrous looking outsiders, but from common, everyday people.
Who are some of your favorite authors?
My favorite authors are Stephen King, Dean Koontz, George R.R. Martin, Cassandra Clare and J.D. Barker.
Have you got anything you’re working on now?
I’m working on my NaNoWriMo 2017 project, which is a sequel to my contemporary romance novel VOID. I’m also working on book four of my Nightmare Wars series, and have ideas for some short story collections set within the Nightmare Wars universe.
If you could have any superpowers what would they be?
Wow, that’s a tough one. Of course, I’d love to have Superman’s powers of flight, invulnerability, super speed, super strength, and so many other powers. However, if I’m picking just one, I think I’d like to fly. I love to travel and to be able to fly to any destination in the world at a whim would be so fantastic and allow me to explore the world more frequently.
If you could travel to any location in the world where would you go?
If I could go anywhere, I’d want to go to the UK. I’d love to spend most of my time in London, but still be able to go to places like Scotland and Ireland. The scenery out there and culture is something I’ve always dreamed of exploring, and I’d love to go there and spend some time writing, photographing the scenery and being inspired.
Where do you hope to be in 5 years’ time?
In five years’ time, I hope to be a full-time author. I want to be living somewhere near the beach, writing full time and having time to travel more and explore the world.
Thanks so much for taking the time to do an author interview, Anthony Avina! Take a minute and check Anthony Avina out on the links below. Anthony Avina’s book, I Was An Evil Teenager – Remastered, is available now on Amazon!
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