J. W. Webb - Twisted Webs, Epic Tapestries, and Staggering Battles

J. W. Webb is an English writer living in Georgia. Mostly he writes fantasy, though sometimes diverts in even stranger directions. His epic saga titled the Legends of Ansu blends the mystic grandeur of JRR Tolkien with the gritty realism of GRR Martin. Webb's characters are three-dimensional and flawed, their world a tapestry of vivid color and constant motion. All the books feature beautiful bespoke sketches by the late Tolkien Illustrator Roger Garland. As our Author of the day, he tells us all about his book, Gol: The Legends of Ansu Series Prequel.

Please give us a short introduction to what Gol: The Legends of Ansu Series Prequel is about.

I see Gol as the mythic backdrop for my ongoing fantasy series. The tale takes place 1000 years prior to events in the next book, and sheds light on all that follows. Darker than most of my novels, the subject matter deals with the nature of love and loss, greed, cruelty, power and destructive vengeance - I lost my first wife Rae to cancer while I wrote this tome in a tiny caravan in a windy-wild field in Cornwall, England. It's been described as 'bloody and passionate and not for the faint of heart.' But I sprinkled the vibe with wry humor and a good deal of world-building to soften the edges.

Gol's unravelling tapestry opens with the doomed lovers Lissane Barola and Erun Cade, baron's proud daughter and blacksmith's unruly son. We also meet Eon the cynical baron, and Lissane's ghastly brothers and soon realize the danger the lovers are in, particularly the dreamer Erun Cade.

Meanwhile, a prophecy warns of the Sea God's rising wrath, while, at the far end of the world a vengeful sorcerer unleashes a fire demon, lighting a fuse which will blaze throughout the pages in this book. Time runs short for the continent called Gol. Can Lissane and her lover stop the inevitable? Destiny shall decide. The capricious gods play a large part in reshaping the lives of our protagonists, so by the end of the tale we are looking at two very different individuals.

Why epic fantasy? What drew you to the genre?

I've always loved epic fantasy. I grew up in the 60s, a huge JRR Tolkien fan, and influenced by the likes of Michael Moorcock's Eternal Champion series, Jack Vance's Lyonesse, Evangeline Walton's, version of the Welsh Mabinogion, and Poul Anderson's helter-skelter Norse Saga - The Broken Sword - to name a few. More recently I've enjoyed watching the genre develop on the big screen with shows like GOT and Witcher.

Tell us more about Lissane Barola. What makes her tick?

Lissane lost her mother to suicide and blames her father - the bully, Baron Barola. She is proud, often misunderstood. Doesn't suffer fools (except Erun.) People think she's cold, remote, but she's trapped by the pseudo-medieval politics of the day. Her weakness is Erun and their desperate dream of escape. Her head knows its folly, but her heart ... well ... she's trapped like a moon-gazing hare.

What makes Erun Cade so special?

Erun Cade starts out as a naive fool. He comes across as irritating and immature, but harrowing events in the book chisel him into someone we can route for. A dreamer and poet, Erun believes he'll find a way for him and Lissane to escape from Barola Province. Especially after the baron announces she's to marry a despised noble from another realm. Erun the future hero, deems it time to act. Cruel fate and meddling gods have big plans for Erun Cade. Our boy must undergo three great labors, after enduring the ordeal of chapter two. Frankly, I don't envy him.

You also included some romance in your story. Why did you take this approach?

I agree with John Lennon - 'All You Need Is Love.' So, yes, there is a background - albeit tragic -a slight sprinkle of romance in this novel. But it's super-twisty and don't expect a happy ending - I will say no more!

Besides writing, what other secret skills do you have?

I used to practice Kungfu, nowadays being 62 I prefer, Qigong and garden design. I'm a touch arty farty, purchase rocks and plants and landscape my yard. It's just a thing. I also speak fluent cat.

This is a prequel to your Legends of Ansu Series. How does it tie in with the other books in the series? Can it be read as a standalone?

Gol can be read as a standalone as the events are already ancient history in book 2. There are many references to the fate of Gol and its few survivors throughout the series, though much has changed and even the gods have different names. FYI–– I'm in the middle of creating a complex world map with a fabulous cartographer and will be adding more content to the Gol prehistory of Ansu in the form of two more prequels. Apropos, Gol was written in UK English as were a few others of my early books. This has led to some reader confusion; hence I write in US English these days.

Interesting cover. Please tell us more about it.

I wanted something evocative that hints at the depth of this fantasy saga. I found this wonderful American cover designer living in the UK. She has since worked on twenty covers for my books, box sets, audio versions, promo images, etc. A joy to work with.

Have you always wanted to be a writer? Tell us a bit more about your journey.

Funny, I never saw myself as a writer. But I've always been a storyteller. I like to think my writing improves with every book, but for me the energy source is the story itself. That's the passion. I served in the British Army, drove big-rig trucks for a quarter of a century, hitched across America, sailed a tall ship off South Australia - where I met my second wife Joanne, from Georgia, where we now live. I've worked in construction, and agriculture, many other blue-collar jobs, - heck, I never switched on a computer before I was forty. T'was a long road getting here.

Readers say your characters are very relatable. How did you pull this off?

People are fascinating, nothing is straightforward in life. I see my crew the same way. Ansu's occupants are flawed, and often jaded - there are no shiny heroes here. There is a lot of banter - my characters like a good chat when they're not hitting each other with sharp objects. The females have an edge, especially in the later books. They're usually smarter - because in my experience women generally are. My latest starlet, Arraleen Caze is a good example of gritty, foul-mouthed feistiness. She's an assassin, btw.

Did you plan out the entire story before you started writing, or did some of it just "happen" along the way?

I had rough ideas of where the plot was going for Gol, back when I came up with the vibe in 2010. It evolved, like most my scribbles into something I hadn't expected. I sketched a rough blueprint A to Z, and rode the groove to see who does what. Catching the big wave. Yeah, apropos of nothing, I surfed once but was total pants. I don't always know who pulls through in my stories. Ansu's a dangerous planet. I do know the ending, I think it's important to mark your destination, else the thing rambles on and you have to put it out of its misery.

Do you have any interesting writing habits? What is an average writing day like for you?

I focus on writing a chapter a day. I don't fuss with word count or edit until later. It's first draft down (usually awful - and I don't like writing fd's.) The magic starts with draft 2. I'll edit a bit here, mostly to tidy up, as I'm a crap typist. Draft 3 joins the dots, and it's off to my editors - I use two since my books can get complex, one for structure, the other for copy, and final proofs. I was very ill during '22 which hampered my progress, but I like to publish two books a year.

What are you working on right now?

I've recently finished first-drafting books 2 and 3 to my latest spin-off - The Slayer Trilogy. The first book - Dreamslayers- was released last autumn. Slayer 2. Dealers in Death and 3. Midnight Slayer will follow this summer/fall. After that it's finishing another trilogy with - The Sea God's Woman due next spring, then back to the Gol time zone, with Archer's Moon next fall, and onwards. So, plenty of work still to do.

Where can our readers discover more of your work or interact with you?

Via my website - jwwebbauthor.com. Or the J.W. Webb Amazon Author Page. Also, Facebook Jameswebb61 where my page has 2500 Likes, though I've been quiet on social media lately. Still in recovery, I've not been running on a full tank of gas. But ... don't fret. I'm coming back strong later this year. Thank you, and Good Night!