What is your name and/or pen name?
J. Agombar
What genre do you write?
A mixture. I
mainly write dark fantasy and speculative crime and supernatural stories, but I
have also had some travel writing published.
What made you want to be a writer?
As I say, I
started out with travel writing. In 2008 I started journals which ended up
becoming ritual across Asia and developed a writing style as well as cultural
experiences. There are now several journals covering various continents; a few
pieces have since been published. I was always a fan of writing stories as a
kid at school and found ways of blending fiction with the descriptions of real
places I had visited.
How do you feel about the writing
community as a whole?
It’s great that
the community is thriving with writers. Once you start looking to see how many
local authors there are in your own area it can be a surprise, but the amount
of decent material that doesn’t make it off the ground is equally as shocking.
Unfortunately getting noticed is the hard part. It’s about advertising and who
you know these days, not always necessarily how well you can write.
Have you or will you be willing to
collaborate with other authors in the future?
Sure. I’m
willing to team up. I have already worked with a couple of local artists to
help with cover designs, but talking/working with other authors can be vital at
certain stages.
Tell us about your book and if it’s
upcoming or already published.
Crimes &
Apparitions
was released in June 2018 and is a short story anthology which mixes crime and
supernatural fantasy. It’s inspired by stylistic trends set by H.P Lovecraft,
Ray Bradbury, Stephen King and Richard Matheson. The stories differ in tone but
some have elements of horror and fantasy based on ancient myth and folklore
whilst others evoke a realistic, modern day whodunit? narrative.
The
blurb is as follows:
A mixture of strange and unsettling circumstances are ahead of you as
the vision of James Agombar pulls the strings of dark fantasy and harrowing
reality.
Criminal minds manifest in different ways as you will see in the
post-war trauma of a soldier trying to deal with modern life, a jealous lover
set on revenge, or the aftermath caused by the crimes of a government that
didn’t do enough. New parallels of fear also await you in the form of
witchcraft with unpredictable intent – an angry fire goddess – a devil who
watches from the fields of a corrupt landowner – unusual demons on a remote
island – and a séance with consequences that will haunt its attendees forever.
Nowhere is safe as your journey
of crime and terror will take you worldwide through the American rust belt to
the streets of London, the Indonesian jungle to Avant-Garde Paris, isolated
villages and Pacific islands. Based on mythological elements and folklore, the
extraordinary narratives found in Crimes & Apparitions will stay
with you through a new voice of the short fiction form.
Is your book or upcoming book an eBook,
paperback, or both?
Available in both.
Is this your first book?
Not exactly.
It’s my first anthology, but I wrote a travel novel (part fiction, part fact)
in 2011 under a pseudonym which was a bit of a car crash due to a bad
publisher. I think I also took on too much too early.
Are you planning to write more?
Yeah! The ideas
keep coming. I have already written two steampunk novellas which are planned to
become a trilogy, maybe four. There will also likely be some more speculative
short stories in between.
Is there anything you would say to other
writers, that want to write and publish a book?
For me, the
ideas are everything. If you have great ideas, take your time and get it right.
Don’t rush it out. People believe your story is real when you write from real
experiences too, even if it’s just the surroundings. Also, research your
publisher before taking ANY offers from them. Even self-publishing can be a
minefield.
Where can my readers find your book and
how they can follow you on social media? Leave only links that you want open to
the public.
All versions are
available from Amazon worldwide. Paperback and Ebook and free on Kindle
Unlimited.
Thanks so much for sharing with us. The process of becoming a
publish author is a learning experience and it’s nice to hear other authors
stories to learn from them. Thanks again J. Agombar.
As Always, Happy Reading and Writing
Everyone
G. D. Talbot
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