Free Book Friday April 12: Euphrates Vanished ARC now available! Plus, In Conversation With – W.D. Kilpack III – Lines by Leon: Leon Stevens, Science Fiction Author and Poet

Now available for preorder on Amazon! The new sci-fi adventure from Leon Stevens!

In the last couple of weeks we have enjoyed hearing from some of the authors in the Indie April promo. I hope you have had a chance to check out their books. Want another interview? Request granted!

In Conversation With: W.D. Kilpack III

Today I have the pleasure of sitting down with author W.D. Kilpack III. So… the third. You, your Father, and Grandfather share the same name? Doesn’t bode well for creativity running in the family, does it?

Continuity was important in the family. Maintaining a sense of family history and heritage. There are actually eight of us, I think, with the same first and last name, but my great-grandpa had a different middle name.

Thanks for clearing that up. Can I offer you anything to drink?

Sure. I like a good stout. If the beer is black and the foam is brown, life is good.

I agree!
One more item before we get started: Did you know the Goodreads link on your website goes to your LibraryThing page?

What? Aw, man. I hate it when that happens. I’ll fix that ASAP!

Wait, one more: What are the odds that Salt Lake City will get an NHL team?

Wow. Fun question! In college, I had some friends who were hockey groupies, so I went to a bunch of games and the after-game parties at the arena with the Golden Eagles. Great fun if they won. Not fun when they lost. Anyway, I can’t see Utah ever getting an NHL team. We’ve had professional hockey since 1969, but never had a team from that top tier. The Grizzlies have done well, but don’t seem to have the same level of support that the Golden Eagles did.

Okay, enough chit chat. Let’s take about writing. Your books have won some awards, 18 to be exact. Are you running out of shelf space?

Never! I’ve actually installed floating shelves! And wrestling trophies have been moved elsewhere, since I retired from coaching so I can finally pursue my dreams as an author. I put them on the back burner to raise a family.

What book got you hooked on reading?

I’ve always been a storyteller, even before I could write. Then, I would draw my stories. So comic books became my gateway drug to reading. (I still love comic books!) So my first life goal was to open my own comic-book company, until I wrote my first novel, when I was 12. Aside from that, my family was financially strapped when I was young, so I did not have a lot of toys that the other kids did but, if I asked for a book, the answer was never “no.” So I learned fairly early that I could get a feeling of satisfaction like the other kids talked about when they got cool toys when I got cool books and would tell them about the stories I read. Another major influence was my Aunt Jan and Uncle Wayne, who had a little library in their house that was loaded with science fiction and fantasy novels. When I saw that, I thought it was about the coolest thing I’d ever seen! They told me which ones they loved and I made my mental list. I also made a goal to have my own little library just like theirs. I have achieved that goal and now Jan and Wayne have added my books to their little library, which is about as cool a thing as I can imagine.

What authors influenced you?

I loved science fiction from the start, being raised on reruns of Star Trek, Lost in Space, and Logan’s Run. As I got older, Star Wars came out and blew my mind. (And, of course, Star Wars and Star Trek both came out in comic-book form, as well.) Then there was Battlestar Galactica on TV and movies like Beastmaster, Krull, Dragonslayer, Highlander, Willow, Labyrinth, Dark Crystal, the Lord of the Rings cartoons, the Rankin-Bass Hobbit cartoon, and Legend. All those things were cinematically influential.

For reading, in third grade, I started reading mythology. I think it was from watching Shazam on Saturday mornings, wanting to learn more about “the strength of Hercules” and so on. I just loved it. There was a kids’ version of Bulfinch’s Mythology, then I read every single book the school library had on the subject. So that was when I was introduced to Homer, who influenced everyone in fantasy (whether they realize it or not). The next year, when I was 10, I read The Hobbit and it blew my mind in the same way that Star Wars did! That was also the same year that I started playing Dungeons & Dragons. So, first, I read this amazing book! Then I get to pretend to be in that book! My life was never the same.

So first major influence: Homer. Then Tolkien blew my mind. The next major influence for me was Piers Anthony with his Xanth series, then everything else he wrote (he was very prolific). I loved Terry Brooks so much that my senior thesis in AP English was comparing and contrasting Brooks with Tolkien. When I discovered a vein of fantasy that I call “realistic fantasy,” which is where I would categorize my own, then I really started consuming: David Eddings, Stephen R. Donaldson, Robert Jordan, John Adams, Robert Holdstock, Tadd Williams, Marion Zimmer Bradley, Anne McCaffrey, Melanie Rawn, Elizabeth Haydon, and George R.R. Martin. In all of these, the characters are very real, but in fantastic settings, with fantastic things happening to them.

I was also academically influenced by the writings of Robert Frost (I’m an internationally published poet), William Shakespeare, and Aristotle.

Do you have a favorite book?

I don’t have a favorite book. There are too many that I love. However, the one book that I have read the most times is The Sunset Warrior by Eric Van Lustbader. There were a number of reasons why (size of my library at the time among them), but it spoke to me.

Most of your books are Fantasy. Why write a science fiction book?

That’s just my published books. I have written more than 30 novels. They’re just in the bullpen waiting for their moment. In fact, my next release is epic sci-fi: Battle Calm. A good many of those thirty-plus were written in pencil in a three-ring binder. I love science fiction and fantasy equally. They are mirror images of each other. Both use distortion and exaggeration to illustrate aspects of the human condition more clearly through that particular lens.

Let’s chat about music. Other than the Mormon Tabernacle Choir, what famous bands/musicians have come out of Utah?

The ones that always pop into my head first are The Killers and David Archuletta. Of course, when I was a kid, there were The Osmonds and Donny and Marie had their variety show on TV. Both also had successful solo music careers. Stevie Nicks lived in Utah for a couple years. Most recently, however, Royal Bliss and Imagine Dragons are from Utah.

Imagine Dragons. I think I knew that.
What is your preferred genre of music to listen to, and do you have any favorites to recommend?

Again, I don’t have a favorite. I love heavy metal. I love Southern rock. I love grunge. I love speed metal. I love hard rock and classic rock (60s and 70s in particular). I love 80s and 90s Canadian rock (when it still had its own distinct identity). I love Celtic music. I am a Beatles and Elvis fanatic. My favorite bands are (in no particular order, aside from the two already noted) KISS, Def Leppard, Guns N’Roses, Shinedown, Days of the New, Live, Lynyrd Skynyrd, .38 Special, Ted Nugent, Bad Company, Led Zeppelin, Metallica, Foreigner, Brighton Rock, Stone Fury, April Wine, Little River Band, Clannad, Jethro Tull, Supertramp, ELO, and Tom Petty. To name a few.

Are you ready for the lightning round?

Uh-oh. I have issues with word limits.

Is the Great Salt Lake really that salty?
Yes. Nine times saltier than the ocean.
Most beautiful place you have ever stood?
I love the Pacific Northwest. But some of the most awe-inspiring places were on Stewart Island in the San Juan Islands.
Name a bucket list item you have crossed off and one you haven’t.
Visiting Alaska. Check. Visiting Scotland. Not yet ….
Favorite city?
Seattle, Washington
Ever walked on The Oregon Trail?
Yes. When I was a kid, on a family vacation with my folks.
Scariest animal you have encountered?
Mountain lion at my family’s remote cabin at night, no flashlight, walking to the outhouse when I was 14. I heard it roar, could not see it, and the only thing I knew for sure was that it was above me in the trees. I was about an eighth-mile away from the cabin and my feet didn’t touch the ground once from that spot to the cabin. Next day, we found paw prints almost as big as my hand. I have never gone out at night again to this day.

This has been a pleasure. Thanks for chatting. Any links you want to share? Mabye the correct Goodreads one?

Funny. (That’s fixed, by the way.)

My Web site is the communication hub of my dreams. That’s what I’m doing: living my dreams. https://kilpack.net/

Goodreads
https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/19339956.W_D_Kilpack_III
Amazon https://www.amazon.com/W.D.-Kilpack-III/e/B07TT3RQYT
Facebook https://www.facebook.com/wdkilpackiii
Instagram https://www.instagram.com/wdkilpackiii/
Twitter https://twitter.com/WDKilpackIII

The story behind Free Book Friday:

I’ve met many authors and readers during my time marketing, cross-promoting, and blogging. I think writers have a responsibility to inform readers about all the indie authors out there in the very crowded world of book publishing. You can’t do it alone, and why would you when you have a supportive group available?

Readers don’t just read one author – they stick with their favorite genres. Therein lies the power in cross-promotion. If one of my readers buys a book from an author I promote, then chances are there will be a reciprocal effect, or so is the hope. Do I want to boost sales? Of course I do. Do I want to boost other’s sales? Why not. It’s called karma.

Some free book offers require a newsletter sign-up, which is a small non-monetary price to pay to try out a new indie author.

Reads From StoryOrigin and BookFunnel

StoryOrigin and BookFunnel allows authors to advertise their books to each other’s audience. I hope you have been able to discover a new favorite!

Since my newsletter goes out bi-weekly, I offer book promos on those dates, so here are what’s running right now: Discover New Authors

Review Copies (These are free!)

Review copies: Like reviewing books? Try my two poetry collections: Lines by Leon and A Wonder of Words

Leon Stevens is a multi-genre author, composer, guitarist, songwriter, and an artist, with a Bachelor of Music and Education. He published his first book of poetry, Lines by Leon: Poems, Prose, and Pictures in January 2020, followed by a book of original classical guitar compositions, Journeys, and a short story collection of science fiction/post-apocalyptic tales called The Knot at the End of the Rope and Other Short Stories. His newest publications are the novella trilogy, The View from Here, which is a continuation of one of his short stories, and a new collection of poetry titled, A Wonder of Words.

My new book page: http://books.linesbyleon.com/