You and I have collaborated enough times at this point that I was actually under the impression that we had already conducted an interview.\u00a0 That just goes to show you that there\u2019s always more to discuss and learn, and now I\u2019m very excited to get something concrete in the books.\u00a0 If you\u2019re ready, we\u2019ll jump right in!<\/p>\n
C. J. R. Isely: <\/strong>Thanks, Mike. It\u2019s always great when we can collaborate. Let\u2019s get started!<\/p>\n <\/p>\n T:<\/strong> I start most of my interviews with the same important beat.\u00a0 I\u2019m looking to see what sort of things inspired you to take your first creative steps.\u00a0 Every artist has someone or something that helped to push them on their journey, and I\u2019m interested in finding out what helped to mold you into the passionate storyteller you are.\u00a0 Did you have a favorite author who sparked some interest in your mind, or did you have a book or TV series or movie that helped to inspire you?<\/p>\n CJRI:<\/strong> Actually, it\u2019s kind of a funny thing, but I\u2019ve discovered that I am descended from quite a few authors. So, I think that had a huge influence. I knew when I was little that my dad had written\u2014though at that time hadn\u2019t published\u2014a western. At that time, I really loved creating stories too. In fact, when I was in first grade or so, the first story I ever wrote was the start of a western. I was homeschooled so when I started writing, we shifted the schedule around so I could actually have writing breaks between other lessons, since I loved it.<\/p>\n But, I learned pretty fast that my writing toward medieval history and fantasy because I\u2019ve been fascinated with the dark ages for as long as I can remember. It wasn\u2019t until later that I found out that I\u2019m the fourth generation of author in the family. So, I would say that has been an interesting piece of family history to uncover, and really did help me get started. In terms of shaping my writing, though, and helping me find voice in the fantasy and medieval genres, I have to say K. M. Grant and J. K. Rowling\u2019s works were near-and-dear to my heart. I keep a copy of Harry Potter and a copy of Grant\u2019s Blood Red Horse always on my office shelf, to help on days when writing seems difficult.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n T:<\/strong> How do your other family members feel about you writing not just one book, but a whole set of fantastic stories that help to develop this entirely different world from ours?\u00a0 They\u2019ve got to be excited and proud!<\/p>\n CJRI: <\/strong>That they are! I\u2019ve been very lucky in having an excellent support system of encouragement as I dive into writing. My dad gets especially excited and always comes to me asking for extra copies as he carries one on hand anytime he leaves the house and gives them away to people who mention they like the genre. In 2021 he even changed his fall plans when I won a ticket to the 20 Books to 50k convention so he could go with me. We had a blast and he turned around and went with me\u2014both of us paid our way because the books were doing well\u2014in 2022. My mom always reads my books prior to release and has to let me know her favorites and the characters she feels deserve a side story. And my husband is even the one who helped me redo all the covers. I doubt I could do half as much as I do without them.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n T:<\/strong> With as incredible of a shared universe as you have\u2014and a growing one at that\u2014your team also extends beyond your closest supporters.\u00a0 You have a handful of collaborators as well.\u00a0 Your books are all released on Audible, and you\u2019ve amassed quite a bit of talent there.\u00a0 What is it like working with so many people to make a dream like this come true?<\/p>\n CJRI: <\/strong>It\u2019s been fantastic! I have loved working with others, especially in bringing the audiobooks to life. Jordan, my first narrator, ended up stepping away from audio work after The Cutthroat Prince<\/em> but, at that time, I\u2019d met a found talent who was bringing Shadow of the Sword<\/em> to life and he said he could take on the series. So, Steve Coleman, who did an amazing job with Laster\u2019s story, has plunged right in and started on The Fallen Heir<\/em>. He\u2019s been great to work with, always very helpful and he really does an incredible job in giving each character their own voice and life. I was worried when this started that I wouldn\u2019t be able to work with others, not sure how to bring people into the world of Alamore to help it grow, but it\u2019s happened very naturally and I\u2019m so lucky to have met such brilliant people who give these books their heart and soul as well.<\/p>\n \u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n T:<\/strong> You mentioned that the books were doing well, but then you qualified that by adding in 2022.\u00a0 Does that mean that they slowed down since?\u00a0 I feel like there\u2019s always been a lack of consistency in the market.\u00a0 Do you think you know what might have caused that bit of change in your output?<\/p>\n CJRI: <\/strong>Well, it has slowed a little bit, but I\u2019m more referring to how they actually took off by percentage of growth in 2022. In 2021, when all was said and done, I could have bought maybe a couple dinners in royalties but not my way to Vegas. After that first 20 Books, they started to grow and that\u2019s how I paid my way. For example, the books went from getting about 30,000 page reads a month on KU in January, February, and March of 2022 to November of 2022, my best month, coming in at a staggering 398,000. That leap really floored me. They\u2019ve slowed a bit since December, but my slowest month since has been 200,000 page reads.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n T:<\/strong> I remember when we started off by promoting Ranger of Kings<\/em>\u2014which is currently a Kindle Deal for the month of May.\u00a0 Since we worked on that, you\u2019ve released four more books set in the world of Alamore, and you\u2019ve got another one set to release later this year in December.\u00a0 How do you stay dedicated to a world like that, and manage to keep things feeling so fresh and entertaining throughout?<\/p>\n CJRI: <\/strong>This was a struggle at first. I used to panic or grow bored with writing certain things, but the William of Alamore series has been a project that I\u2019m very close to, so I\u2019ve been determined to get that series out to the world. The whole series, actually, was written about 12 years ago, while I was in middle and high school, so I have an idea of where it\u2019s going. An idea, but not much more, because I\u2019m a pantser and have been going through all the books and rewriting the series as I go. The fourth book\u2014which I\u2019m actually hoping to drop early since it\u2019s almost through edits already\u2014was a complete rewrite without any of the plot.<\/p>\n There have definitely been days that I wanted to throw in the towel, but I have a few amazing readers who\u2019ve reached out and, when I\u2019m stuck, I remember that this story belongs to the readers as much as me and this is their adventure, too. They want to know what happens to these characters and\u2014being a pantser\u2014I wouldn\u2019t mind knowing it for myself.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n T:<\/strong> Speaking of being a pantser, and letting the story kind of tell itself, how do you try and figure out just where to put up rails?\u00a0 What I mean by that is, if you had an idea for how your story was going to go, and your character just sort of up and decided I\u2019m going to take that road there instead of the one that fate had in store for me, how tight would you hold them to the original path?<\/p>\n CJRI: <\/strong>I would venture to say that I have literally no control of my characters. A good example is that, when I was 12, I envisioned the world of Alamore to be an epic fantasy with magic, dragons, and beasts. I got through six books and there wasn\u2019t any of that. It fell right into low fantasy but I honestly love how that happened. For a while, though, I tried to fight tooth and nail to hold on, but now I\u2019ve realized that holding onto my story ideas sometimes runs me straight into writer\u2019s block, so I just offer a nudge in the right direction and back on track.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n T:<\/strong> One of my favorite metaphors for unearthing a story is that you have to use a toothbrush to make sure that it\u2019s done without interrupting the flow or strongarming the story into the direction you want it to go.\u00a0 With the way that you allow your characters to let the threads of fate beyond your influence dictate their story, how gentle would you say you are when you\u2019re exploring the content that is perhaps the most mysterious to you?<\/p>\n CJRI: <\/strong>I try to ease into everything for sure. If I am trying to push the story in any which direction, I just tend to know where I am going and try not to over think how I get there. If I do that, I end up with a flat tire at a writers block and delete pages upon pages of work. When I wrote the second book, that happened. I ended up trashing around the equivilent of 170,000 words because I wanted to push the story a certain direction and it didn\u2019t want to go there. There were plot twists that I didn\u2019t truly realize were coming that were continuing to interupt the flow. Once I took a step back and let each character act for themselves, the book came together in very little time.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n T:<\/strong> So, you\u2019ve been at this for a long while.\u00a0 Alamore has consumed more than half of your life at this point.\u00a0 How do you go about keeping track of all the details?\u00a0 Are the characters that you write akin to real people at this point?\u00a0 You must have a better understanding of them than most people do about their coworkers!<\/p>\n CJRI: <\/strong>Honestly, I think I do know them better than coworkers at this point! When I first got back into writing this series, after letting it sit around for all those years, I worried that I couldn\u2019t keep them straight. I made all these organized flashcards with character name, description, how they met the MC, etc.\u2026 yeah, I don\u2019t even know where those cards are at this point, so I clearly didn\u2019t use them enough! But, something that helps, is that my 12-year-old mind concocted Alamore into being, and the characters, and they had an extra 12 years existing only for me to each have their own story and background.<\/p>\n Some of the side characters that aren\u2019t major fall to the wayside for me, but even they have to have some form of background in my mind, a place they came from to get to that page. I\u2019ve had to flit through prior books to find minor details, but most live in my head with their own stories behind each.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n T:<\/strong> How do you think 12-year-old C. J. would react to this fantasy empire you\u2019re building now?<\/p>\n CJRI: <\/strong>\u00a0She would have been absolutely enthralled with it, though she may have wondered what took me so long in getting it out there to the world! I sometimes still realize I\u2019m that kid at heart when I get a message from a reader telling me that they love the world of Alamore. It gives me that giddy sense that I used to always imagine I would feel when I published. 12-year-old me would have loved to see how far the world of Alamore has come\u2014especially that Laster\u2019s story finally got put to paper in Shadow of the Sword<\/em>.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n T:<\/strong> A while back, you wrote The Falcon and the Stag<\/em>, which is meant to be an introduction to the world with some content that helps to fill it out and offer some context about how the world has ended up where it is now.\u00a0 What was it like stepping further back in the timeline?\u00a0 Have you ever felt the pull to tell those stories again?<\/p>\n CJRI: <\/strong>Honestly, I didn\u2019t know quite what would happen with that one. It was supposed to be just a super short snippet to give background but, I really loved stepping back in time with those characters. A few of them reappear in another spin-off\u2014Shadow of the Sword<\/em>\u2014and each, again, has their own background now. That being said, I can\u2019t shake these characters and have been tossing around the idea of writing a few more \u2018History of Alamore\u2019 style books that go further back, exploring the reign of King Valren of Alamore, or King Paradon.<\/p>\n \u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n <\/p>\n T:<\/strong> I\u2019m sure with those flash cards earlier, it helped to some extent, but your world has only grown since then.\u00a0 And with how far things are expanding, have you expanded to things like World Anvil or anything along those lines?<\/p>\n CJRI: <\/strong>No, but I\u2019ve been considering something like that. I feel that, as I break into spin offs especially, I will likely look into a more modern technique of organizing characters, ages, and backstories so they don\u2019t get too tangled in the chaos of creation.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n T:<\/strong> Of course, we can\u2019t call this a proper interview without talking about the next big steps in the William of Alamore story.\u00a0 Your fourth book in the main series is set to be released in December of this year.\u00a0 What can you tell us about Rogue Amongst Royals<\/em>?<\/p>\n CJRI: <\/strong>Well, right off the back, Rogue Amongst Royals<\/em> is going to bring in a new cast of old enemies, as the main villain hasn\u2019t reared his head before but was glimpsed in a prior book. I am excited for that, as it brings other characters forward, shows again more history and background. The characters are fifteen now, too, so training is intensifying and life at court is changing for them a bit. One of the things I look forward to most, and won\u2019t overshare on, is that the Ranger of Kings will take on a squire himself.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n T:<\/strong> That brings me to another point that is very interesting about your stories.\u00a0 Your books focus on a younger cast, but you never really make their age a detriment to their development.\u00a0 Just like in the real dark ages, people were forced to grow up early.\u00a0 What was it like telling these darker stories with a cast of characters who were still coming of age?<\/p>\n CJRI: <\/strong>They really would have. It\u2019s something I\u2019ve always thought interesting and a little terrifying to consider\u2014how much older the youthful years seem when times are hard. When I wrote the books originally, I aged with the cast of characters\u2014though they actually were ahead of me by the final books. This made a big difference, I think, because childhood me was a bit more fearless than the me who\u2019s broken a few bones and doesn\u2019t like to fall now. It makes me more aware that there\u2019s a strength in youth that is, too often, underestimated.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n T:<\/strong> Right!\u00a0 There\u2019s a bit of a naivete and fearlessness because we were all made of rubber back then.\u00a0 But that does bring up a bit of a good point.\u00a0 As we grow up as writers, it\u2019s hard to really get a good grasp on what being at that age was like.\u00a0 Now, you\u2019re certainly closer to that age still than I am, but how do you manage to stay truthful to the ideas of youth\u2014the foolhardiness, the risk-taking behavior, first loves?<\/p>\n CJRI: <\/strong>Exactly! Someone probably should have reminded me back then, though, that I wasn\u2019t made of rubber. I\u2019d have fewer scars and old broken bones to show if that was the case. Honestly, I try to remind myself to act childish at times. If it rains, I have two choices\u2014grumble at the mud or jump in it. I\u2019ve taken to calling it \u2018my inner Rowan\u2019 and I tend to make myself act and then think, because I\u2019m fairly confident that\u2019s how I handled most of my childhood. It holds true with jumping onto a horse from a fence, going out to shoot archery without an armguard\u2014which I don\u2019t recommend\u2014or falling in love and getting your heart broken for the first time. We dive into everything like we\u2019ll be fine at that age and that\u2019s what I constantly try to remember.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n T:<\/strong> While you\u2019re still hard at work with the main William of Alamore series, you did begin exploring side stories in Shadow of the Sword<\/em>.\u00a0 What other stories are you aiming to tell in the Alamore universe? \u00a0Are we going to see more spinoffs along the way, or even some other spots in the world that we haven\u2019t seen before?<\/p>\n CJRI: <\/strong>Oh, most certainly! As I mentioned in terms of the past stories, there are some other characters that will likely get their own spin-offs, some may get their own series. The Ranger is one that I have been tossing some ideas around about for a while now, as I think a trilogy about his becoming the Ranger of Kings would be a blast to write. He\u2019s got one of the most in-depth backstories already formulated. Another that I\u2019ve been looking at is Lady Serena, as her backstory would pull people from Alamore and into southern lands, such as Kelkor. Overall, I wouldn\u2019t mind giving most of the knights a background story, and some of the other cast of characters as well.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n T:<\/strong> There are certain places in the book series that sort of pop out at you, thanks to the way that you\u2019ve written them.\u00a0 We\u2019re certainly familiar with Alamore castle and the like.\u00a0 But are there places in your world that you\u2019re excited to explore in written form for the first time? \u00a0Are there places you\u2019re interested in your characters seeing that they haven\u2019t before?<\/p>\n CJRI: <\/strong>Yes! There are some that have been glimpsed\u2014Thornten and Kelkor especially\u2014but cultures and geography outside of the William of Alamore series interests me too and I hope to pull it into future works. I\u2019ve been wanting to explore the northern countries that are \u2018off map\u2019 with my readers and have a series in mind that may allow that, as well as the finer details of Alamore geography.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n T:<\/strong> Some of the things you do outside of writing are very much things that feel fantasy adjacent.\u00a0 You\u2019re working with horses; you have experience sailing\u2026 Do you think you were born in the wrong time period?<\/p>\n CJRI: <\/strong>There are days that I definitely do feel that way! Medieval history has always had such a strong pull for me that I think it would be fascinating to visit the time. I say visit, though, as I think I\u2019d like to have a longer life expectancy than my 30s. So, since I do appreciate electricity and indoor plumbing, maybe I am born in the right timeframe! I just can\u2019t shake the idea, though, that I would love to peer through those times and see the world then. Especially the trades and talents that are almost lost in the modern age. I love knowing what I write about, so riding and getting to know my own horses is very important for me in my writing, as is doing archery, learning a bit of fencing, some hand-to-hand combat, welding and metal work, and sailing. It makes it more entertaining to write those scenes for me, though I have to be careful I don\u2019t get into too much boring detail with all of it when I do.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n \u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n T:<\/strong> There is a fine line between entertainment and academia!\u00a0 But you manage to always toe the line gracefully.\u00a0 Readers feel like a part of your world because it\u2019s immersive, and they learn some things, even if they don\u2019t realize it at first.<\/p>\n As writers, we have to learn a bunch, too.\u00a0 Though you\u2019ve had some experiences that tie into what happened during the age that your books emulate, there\u2019s certainly been some things that you didn\u2019t have firsthand experience with.\u00a0 What does your research process look like, and do you enjoy it?<\/p>\n <\/p>\n CJRI: <\/strong>It can be anything from videos to reading to me getting up and trying something out! Researching for my writing is honestly one of my favorite parts, though it can become a rabbit hole and I get lost for hours if I\u2019m not careful. My process largely is decided by what feature of my writing I\u2019m working on. When it came to the third book, I wanted to get brushed up on some of my sailing knowledge but didn\u2019t want to bore my readers with those details. So, I\u2019ll go over some basics in video form or find easy descriptions of key knowledge on board. But, with fighting, I find it far more interesting. I took a little bit of martial arts, so balance and stance always entertained me to think about or get up and practice. Anything my characters do with horses, I tend to try out\u2014with the exception of trying to mount onto a fast-moving horse. When younger, I attempted it, but my poor mare was so bewildered and kept stopping to let me get on properly.<\/p>\n \u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n T:<\/strong> When we\u2019re telling stories, we\u2019re often doing so from a romanticized point of view.\u00a0 What\u2019s something that most authors do that is just completely out of touch from reality, compared to their tales?<\/p>\n CJRI: <\/strong>Over-describe. I have to be careful, because I\u2019ve been known to fall prey to this\u2014especially with horses. But when writing, we will over-describe something that is a normal day-to-day thing for our character. It\u2019s something they might not think twice about, and we\u2019ll spend a page trying to get the reader to understand it. But I\u2019ve realized as a reader that it just takes a person right out of the story and sticks them in front of a textbook. So, I work on describing just enough to make it clear that the character knows what\u2019s being done and that the reader can get a grasp of the idea.<\/p>\n \u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n T:<\/strong> Shortly before we came together for this interview, you began a pretty large rebranding lift.\u00a0 Your website has been given a facelift, and your covers have had a fresh coat of paint.\u00a0 What told you in your heart that now was the right time to begin such a large endeavor?<\/p>\n CJRI: <\/strong>It actually has been an internal battle for about a year! I\u2019ve been torn with riding through with my current branding from start to end so that people could have all the books in that style. I felt the covers were good but that they didn\u2019t capture the story. Still, I like matching books and didn\u2019t want people to be left out of that. But, after some serious debate and consideration over the last year, I realized that timing won\u2019t ever be perfect and that I needed to give the best branding possible to find the readers who will enjoy Alamore. So, after talking to some readers and getting their thoughts on if I should get newer covers, I got a few mock-ups and cover ideas, and began pushing for a rebrand. It\u2019s been a lot of work, but book four tips us into the second half of the series, so I figure it\u2019s a great time to plunge ahead with changes for last part of the journey.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Comparison of the original cover to the new one.<\/p><\/div>\n <\/p>\n T:<\/strong> Now, you say \u201cthe last part of the journey\u201d, but does that mean that you\u2019re considering a closing point on all of Alamore, or are you talking about the main William of Alamore series?\u00a0 Can you ever imagine closing the book on Alamore altogether?<\/p>\n CJRI: <\/strong>\u00a0I would say mainly for the William of Alamore series at this time. I would probably find a closing point for the world of Alamore but it\u2019s not quite there yet. There are a lot of characters who deserve their tales told and the future and past are both wide open. Will\u2019s story, his journey through training as a squire, will always be the foundation of Alamore in my mind.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n T:<\/strong> Also, speaking of websites, where could readers and fans go to learn more about you?<\/p>\n CJRI: <\/strong>My website, www.cjrisely.com is usually the best way! I love having readers reach out through there for discussions and thoughts. And, if people don\u2019t want to reach out, there are always fun bits and pieces around the site, such as character art and character backgrounds in the blogs. Soon\u2014I hope soon\u2014there are going to be some extra chapters available on there as well.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n T:<\/strong> Bonus chapters are always very much appreciated!\u00a0 I saw that you\u2019re also experimenting with AI to help visualize your characters.\u00a0 How has it been having a tool like that available to help you bring your characters to life in ways that you haven\u2019t had the chance to before?<\/p>\n CJRI: <\/strong>\u00a0It has been! I was really quite skeptical when I first dabbled in AI but, honestly, I do think there is a certain amount of wisdom in learning to work with the tools of the future. I\u2019m not sure I could handle AI taking over my books and writing for me, but to help piece together characters and create images that can inspire readers, it\u2019s been fantastic.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n T:<\/strong> And I do believe that it would be difficult indeed to replace you and your experiences for how to properly tell a tale that has been in your head and heart for so long.\u00a0 I can tell you that I am very excited for the next book to be released, and I\u2019m sure you\u2019ve got plenty of readers who are as well.<\/p>\n Thank you for spending the time to pull back the curtain on these adventures, and on your writing journey.\u00a0 It\u2019s been enlightening, and it\u2019s very interesting to see how your experiences have helped to form the tales in a way that only you could tell them.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n CJRI: <\/strong>And thank you, Mike, for spending this time and for all of your support throughout the wild adventures that are the world of Alamore. It\u2019s always a pleasure.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n T:<\/strong> I want to once again thank C. J. R. Isely for spending time with us, talking about the books that she\u2019s released, and those that are on the cusp of releasing and beyond.\u00a0 I also want to thank her for drawing back the veil and letting us see what the process of getting here looked like, and what sort of challenges she\u2019s faced and the successes she\u2019s found.\u00a0 We\u2019ve followed Isely for a while, and it\u2019s so exciting to see more new material come out.\u00a0 In fact, in the time between running this interview and publishing it, Isely\u2019s new book has indeed released.\u00a0 You can check out Rogue Amongst Royals<\/em> (William of Alamore Series Book 4) on Amazon<\/a> today!<\/p>\n <\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/tellest.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/05\/Isely-1-768x1024.jpg\")
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