Interview with Steve DeWinter, author of A is for Apprentice

Title: A is For Apprentice
Author: Steve DeWinter
Release Date: November 2, 2015
Publisher: Ramblin' Rose Publishing
Genre: Science Fiction/Fantasy
Format: Ebook

It is said that when the student is ready the teacher will appear.

In Midguard, Spinners are practitioners of innate magic who must learn to control the power that lives inside them before it destroys them.

With the mysterious death of his father, only days before his training is to begin, the knowledge of Van’s lineage as a powerful Spinner is hidden from him. Five years later a near-death experience awakens the dangerous powers within.

Halen, a banished Spinner, is the only one willing to teach Van to manage the magic before it consumes him. He must train Van to hone it into the powerful force needed to stop a vindictive Spinner whose personal mission to conquer Midguard would start a war resulting in the deaths of millions.

But how do they save the world, and Van’s very life, when both apprentice and master are forbidden from ever crossing paths by the same organization created to bring them together?

A IS FOR APPRENTICE is a fantasy novel from the #1 Bestselling Amazon Action & Adventure Sci-Fi Author, Steve DeWinter. This is his next foray into the genre after releasing A Tale of Two Cities with Dragons, a fantasy mashup of the #1 Bestselling Novel of All Time, co-authored with Charles Dickens.

Yes! That Charles Dickens.

ORDER INFORMATION

A is for Apprentice is available for order at  

What are you most proud of accomplishing so far in your life?

I am most proud of the fact that I sat down to become an author and, rather than laboring over a single book for fifteen years, I’ve written over thirty books in the past five years.

How has your upbringing influenced your writing?

From a very early age I learned to enjoy entertainment in all its forms and found that a good story is a good story even if it’s not the story for me.

When and why did you begin writing?

I had written a few short stories and started a novel ten years prior to making my little movie but I wasn’t too serious about it at that time.  Only after I got to see the finished movie project did the writing urge finally take hold.

Do you recall how your interest in writing originated?

I always wanted to entertain others so in 2001 I wrote, shot, edited, and produced a 90-minute action-adventure movie.  It is available on DVD.  But out of all different tasks involved with making a movie, the thing I liked the most was the writing.  It quickly became evident that I wanted to blow expense stuff up in my stories and I could only do that, and do it well, in novel form. 

When did you first know you could be a writer?

I first knew I could be a writer in the eighth grade when we had a writing assignment and I wrote this story of a weed’s point of view of a lawn mower.  That apparently was not the assignment and I had to do it all over again but at that point I knew I could tell a fun and engaging story.

What inspires you to write and why?

I write because I love it and can’t see myself doing anything else.

What genre are you most comfortable writing?

No matter what genre I am writing in all my stories end up being white-knuckle nail-biting thrillers.  I love the concept of the thriller and bring those elements in to my science fiction, my children’s stories, and my fantasy novels.

What inspired you to write your first book?

The company I was working for laid off two-thirds of their staff and it was then that I decided to sit down and finish a complete novel to see if I could really do it.  I guess I could because here I am now with over thirty plus books to my name.

Who or what influenced your writing once you began?

The first two full length novels I wrote were straight modern day action thrillers and were inspired by the most amazing author Robert Ludlum after reading practically every book he wrote over the course of a couple of years.

What do you consider the most challenging about writing a novel, or about writing in general?

My biggest challenge about writing in general is that I can only write so fast.  If I could figure out a way to avoid sleeping and eating and write a full novel every week I would.  I find crafting a fun and entertaining story invigorating and have never once succumbed to writer’s block.

Did writing this book teach you anything and what was it?

My most recent novel, A is for Apprentice, taught me to stop resisting the urge to let fantasy elements creep into my stories and just run with it.

Do you intend to make writing a career?

It is the only thing I’m actually a really good at doing.  So it better be my career.

Have you developed a specific writing style?

After writing over thirty books I don’t know that I’ve really settled into a specific writing style as much as I’ve hit a good storytelling rhythm.

What is your greatest strength as a writer?

My greatest strength as a writer is I consider myself a plot machine.  I can take any group of characters, any setting, any location, and craft a compelling and entertaining story from those elements.  Or even know elements of all.  My imagination truly knows no bounds.

What is your favorite quality about yourself?

My favorite quality about myself is my generosity.  I like to help others and do what I can for those around me.

What is your least favorite quality about yourself?

My least favorite quality is also my generosity.  I often find myself giving up too much of my time and energy to others when I should be home writing.

What is your favorite quote, by whom, and why?

My favorite quote is a recent one from Michael J. Fox.  When an interviewer asked him about all the talk surrounding his Parkinson’s disease his response was, “What others think of me is none of my business.” I read that and knew it was the perfect response to what people said, good or bad, about any of my books.  Their opinion is their opinion and does not reflect, nor ultimately matter, on what I’m doing.

Steve DeWinter is one of the best adventure authors in the world and, after authoring over 40 books, he still works tirelessly to keep up with the growing demand of readers wanting more across multiple genres.

His books have hit #1 on the Amazon Children's Action & Adventure Sci-Fi Bestseller list and his adult thrillers reached as high as lucky #13 on the Amazon Action & Adventure Bestseller list. He also has the distinction of having nine books in the top twenty of the Amazon Children's Action & Adventure Sci-Fi Bestseller list all at the same time.

For More Information
Visit Steve's website.
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