On this episode we spoke with Patrick Carr, author of the Staff and Sword Series, about his venture into the Darkwater Saga and the Shock of Night.

A trilogy of trilogies awaits!

In these episodes, Patrick keeps us laughing. Also, you’ll never believe how accident prone Patrick is!a1lciw73q9l-_ux250_

All of us wax nostalgic at some point…you’d think we’re old or something!

In Episode 29

  • Odd character traits with Patrick’s main character. (How does sleep walking and murders correlate?)
  • Writing with an unreliable protagonist.
  • Hating your writing while you’re writing.
  • Juggling. Emergency room visits! We manage to gross Aaron out. How Patrick uses his own accidents to inform his books.
  • How to recast your books from one setting to another when your editor and agent tell you to.
  • Fencing stories! Some engineering talk, which is totally fascinating.
  • Googling has some interesting answers…including how dogs see.
  • We get off into old time radio and radio broadcasts in general because of Patrick’s answer to the superhero question.
  • You will NEVER guess Patrick’s answer to his Captain. Never, never, never!
  • Patrick’s looking forward to teaching a class at Realm Makers!

51kwf1dzaql-_sx322_bo1204203200_In Episode 30

  • Character-driven fantasy, and how he accomplishes this in his plotting process.
  • Patrick and his disagreeable muse.
  • Planning for a series long-term + happy circumstance
  • Re-doing books from scratch…under deadline
  • Carrying around your books and your characters in your head all the time.
  • Patrick’s advice: be a merciless critic where your writing is concerned.
  • Patrick’s methods for attacking writer’s block
  • Candy bar in a cup drinks at Starbucks at Christmas
  • Patrick shares some of his techniques for making perfect fudge (yes, seriously)
  • Patrick and Liberty discuss rigor mortis…and gross Aaron out
  • Traditional marketing advice from Patrick’s agent, Steve Laube. The phrase “literary Amway guy” comes into play.
  • Patrick’s funny experiences of being an author

Links:

Patrick Carr
The Darkwater Saga
The Shock of Night
Home Improvement
Steve Laube (Patrick’s agent!)
David Eddings (The Belgariad)
Steven R. Donaldson (The Chronicles of Thomas Covenant)
Robert Ludlum
Brandon Sanderson
C. S. Lewis (Screwtape Letters; The Space Trilogy)
Robert Jordan’s The Wheel of Time series
The Magician by Raymond Feist