An Interview with James A Moore On THE BLASTED LANDS and other projects

James a Moore's latest book THE BLASTED LANDS

from Angry Robot Books has recently been released and he has taken time to answer some questions about his new book and future projects.

Barry - You are best known as a horror writer, what made you decide on writing a fantasy series?

James A. Moore - I’ve been a horror writer because the genre says I’m a horror writer. In all honestly I’ve always believed in writing whatever struck my fancy and I guess I just decided to was time to break a little new (for me anyways) ground.

Barry - Who would you say was a bigger influence on you – Robert E. Howard, Michael Moorcock or someone else?

James A. Moore - Only one? Hard to say. Michael Moorcock was one of my first serious influences along the fantasy lines, but Fritz Leiber, Robert E. Howard, H.P. Lovecraft, and at least a dozen others played their parts, too.

Barry - Seven Forges gave us a lot of background on the characters and their unusual religious customs. How did you use this in The Blasted Lands?

James A. Moore - Oh, I think the religious aspect will only get stronger as the series builds. The religious Customs of The Sa’ba Taalor are different from the rather lax religious beliefs of the Fellein Empire, but there are connections that neither group is truly aware of yet. The introduction of a character only called the Pilgrim is going to shake things up a bit.

Barry - Is Merros Dulver based on any other characters you have created, or did he come out fully developed?

James A. Moore - He pretty much just came out ready to go. Merros is a veteran of a long time in a peaceful army. Now he has to be a soldier in a serious conflict. For him that’s one of the biggest challenges.

Barry - There are Seven Forges and seven gods, why did you pick seven rather than some other number? Is there thing Biblical associated with it?

James A. Moore - I have always liked the number seven. And there is one god for each forge for a very deliberate reason. But no, nothing biblical. I just like the number.

Barry - How large a part will Swech’s child with Merros Dulver play in the future, or will all of that work out in volume three?

James A. Moore - Swech’s child plays absolutely no part in the third book. Swech on the other hand, stays very busy.

Barry - How did you come up with the metal replacement of limbs with the different metals as used by the gods?

James A. Moore - Each of the gods has a different metal that is their chosen metal. Though they can offer up rewards to any of their followers, those rewards (replacement limbs) will always be made of the metal they are associated with. That’s an important part of their culture.

Barry - You have recently begun writing with a partner. How did this come about?

James A. Moore - I’ve actually worked with several partners over the years. Charles R. Rutledge is a longtime friend of mine and used to be my sensei when I studied karate. We have a lot in common and we got to talking about writing on several occasions until I finally suggested we try working together on a project. Charles is rather unique in that he’s as fast as I am when it comes to writing and we’re genuinely having a lot of fun. There are several projects we intend to work on together.

Barry - If you were not a writer, what do you think your career would be instead?

James A. Moore - I’d still like to be a comic book artist. Or barring that, a comic book editor. Man, let me get my hands on a few of the titles out there…

Barry - Other than book three of this series, what else do you have planned for future offerings?

James A. Moore - There’s a new fantasy series I’m plotting out with Charles. There’s a straight crime novel that is tied in with Blind Shadows and Congregations of the Dead. I know I’ve said for years that I’m working on a new Crowley novel but it’s absolutely true and almost finished. It’s called Boomtown. I’m 10,000 words into an apocalyptic science fiction novel that’s coming out from Earthling publications. I still have to work out the proper outline for the next novel(s) in the Seven Forges series. I have few other top secret projects I’m working on as well.

Thanks to James A Moore for taking time out of his busy schedule and giving us some insights into The Blasted Lands and his other projects. I know I can’t wait for volume 3 of the Seven Forges saga and the other titles mentioned that he is working on.

The Blasted Lands, published by Angry Robot, $7.99 is available from your local bookseller and Amazon.com.