Edward Swing
Welcome! This weeks Author of the Week is Edward Swing. Edward is a fantasy author with several books under his belt. Taking time from his busy schedule Edward was kind enough to take time out to answer these questions!
Hi Edward! Welcome to the Author of the Week interview! I hope you’re prepared to get down and dirty as we have some nosey readers! Lets start with a list of your books.
Hi Elizabeth, Thanks. I’ve published,
New Pantheon series (YA modern fantasy, five books planned)
1. Awakenings
2. Conundrums
Gozen Saga (Sci-Fi Military mecha, 3–4 books planned)
1. Dance of the Gozen
2. Pride of the Gozen (currently writing this one! Look for it in late 2021)
Adventures of Gavin Greene (MG Fantasy with Sci-Fi elements, 5 books planned)
1. The Wondrous Wayfarer
Thanks Edward, so tell me and our readers a little about yourself!
I live in Laurel, Maryland, which is halfway between Washington DC and Baltimore, with my wife and three teenage children (oh, the drama…). We also have an entire menagerie of pets: four cats, two guinea pigs, two rabbits, and a ball python. So our home is quite lively at times. Originally a software developer, I retired a few years ago and turned to writing. I’ve always had a strong creative urge, but I have little artistic talent. But I’ve always enjoyed creating adventures and characters for Dungeons & Dragons. And the transition to writing novels came naturally from that.
When I was younger, I participated in the Society for Creative Anachronism, which is an international medieval recreation organization. I learned to fight with sword and shield and with polearms (don’t worry — the weapons are wooden). I also learned medieval dances and games and wore medieval garb. Since I’d adopted a Scottish persona, I even wore a kilt sometimes (and yes, I wore it properly).
Aside from gaming, I also am an otaku — a fan of anime and manga. I collect some of the figures, and even do some amateur figure photography. You can see some of my photos at https://myfigurecollection.net/profile/blackdaggr/pictures/
Well on two notes I can relate, firstly you wore the kilt correctly thankfully, as I’m descended from the Murray clan! And I’ve three teenage boys so I can seriously understand DRAMA! What got you into writing?
My need to create and an overactive imagination. And my experience with gaming certainly helped. I’ve used a few elements of my games in my writing, and I also have some anime influences too.
The New Pantheon series came about as a melding of my interests in mythology, comic books, and a few other elements. I thought about how beings, particularly super-powered beings, might come to be worshipped in the ancient world. And I took inspiration from Frost and Thunder by Randall Garrett and The Death of Superman storyline.
The Gozen Saga owes its genesis to anime. I developed the initial concept when I began to wonder how giant mechs could move as fluidly as humans when their pilots are moving switches and pushing buttons. I incorporated other technologies in the story too, from bio-engineering to interplanetary teleporters. And I threw in some weird aliens — no rubber foreheads here!
The Wondrous Wayfarer actually came about from an image I had of an ogre stealing a kid’s bicycle because he didn’t understand what it was. And my cover artist (Mike Rankin, who does the Rusty & Co. webcomic at http://rustyandco.com) captured the essence of it perfectly.
To read more about Edward, please find his interview at, https://www.elizabethnharris.net/post/edward-swing
