Blog Tour: Interview with sci-fi fantasy 'The Knights of Galleria' O.S. Gill

O.S. Gill grew up on the Caribbean island of Barbados. He was educated at The Lodge School, a 300-year-old former British boarding school and the second oldest learning institution on the island. A certified information technology professional, he has worked for The Banks Holdings Limited, a local conglomerate that owns the local brewery (Banks Beer) and Coca-Cola manufacturing plant for fourteen years. A Systems Analyst, he has been positioned in various capacities, primarily dealing with sales and distribution, as well as the sourcing and implementation of new technologies to further business efficiency. He always had a passion for writing and published his first novel, THE KNIGHTS OF GALARIA: THE CRYSTALS OF POWER, in 2012.

You can visit his website at www.osgill.com.

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Q: Welcome to The Writer's Life!  Now that your book has been published, we’d love to find out more about the process.  Can we begin by having you take us at the beginning?  Where did you come up with the idea to write your book?

I’ve long been a fan of fantasy, particularly fantasy involving quests and groups of people. I knew that I wanted to write about an adventure on a far off world, with a group of young people. Then I got the idea to make them part of this military organization, and give them all their own special skills and powers. From there the story took on a life of its own, and was a pleasure to write.

Q: How hard was it to write a book like this and do you have any tips that you could pass on which would make the journey easier for other writers?

Well writing any book is not an easy process. It is very involved, and takes a lot of time and effort. The best advice I can think of to give other writers is to plan your novel thoroughly. Plan everything, every character, every place, every chapter. Make notes. That’s what I did, I planned each detail for over a month before I wrote the first word in the novel, and it worked out really well for me. I also took it to the next level; I wrote the last page of the novel before I wrote anything else, this way the entire time that I was writing the novel, I knew exactly where I was going and I never rambled, I never veered off course. This I think makes for the most efficient writing process.

Q: Who is your publisher and how did you find them or did you self-publish?

I self-published. Not to say anything against the traditional publishing process, but at the end of the day, whether I succeeded or failed, I wanted it to be on my own terms.

Q: Is there anything that surprised you about getting your first book published?

Yes, the amount of legwork involved in getting it sold. I guess it not something you necessarily think about beforehand, you just want to write a good story.

Q: Can you describe the feeling when you saw your published book for the first time?

It was pure euphoria. To actually see the printed version of your work, complete with book cover, acknowledgements etc. was one of the greatest feelings of achievement I have ever had.

Q: What other books (if any) are you working on and when will they be published?

I am working on the second novel in this series. I hope to have it finished by the end of year.

Q: Fun question: How does your book contribute to making this world a better place?

It is a great form of escapism. For those who deal with the world’s problems by getting lost in the pages of a good read, then my book is for you.

Q: Finally, what message (if any) are you trying to get across with your book?

Perseverance. In the novel, the central characters would have failed at their mission and probably died, had they not the will to carry on. But they persevered.

  

Q: Thank you again for this interview!  Do you have any final words?

Just to thank you for having me, and to say to all the readers of sci-fi/fantasy or young adult fantasy, that if they love a good adventure yarn, then The Knights of Galaria is definitely for you.