MY INTERVIEW WITH AUTHOR MIKKELL K. KHAN

 

 

What’s your name and what genre would you consider your books to be?

 My name is Mikkell K Khan and I write in the Epic Fantasy Genre as well as the Science Fantasy Genre.

 

Tell me about your book. How did you come up with that (story, angle, idea)?

The Enixar follows the story of several families that are fighting for the right to the Enixar, a sacred and ancient element created by the architects of the Universe. It’s powers give the families the ability of extraordinary power unlike seen before. The Enixar could give its wielder the power to control the universe or even the power to destroy it, if one were ever to fully understand and unlocked its full potential.

The first episode, The Sorcerer’s Conquest, takes place on the planet of Gramadon, where a sorcerer named Gudrunn takes over the land after thousand of years of skirmishes from rival armies. He is able to do so with the Enixar, which was entrusted to him from a council descended from the architects. They seek the secrets of the Enixar and passage to the first universe, Alpha Sinteres, the birthplace of all life.

However, Gudrun wrecks havoc on the lands and becomes more of a tyrant than a true leader. One of his young advisors stands up to him and receives the support of the council to go against the dictator.

The story comes from the concept of an all powerful entity that dictates the motivations of all those it possesses, similar to the one true ring from Lord of the Rings.

However, my focus has been on character driven novels, where the readers gets into the mind of each major character and understand their motives. My readers love the insight and how I leave it up to them to decide who really is good and who is bad. This is what I believe makes The Enixar story extremely interesting as everyone has their own opinion on what happens and if the ending is truly for the betterment of those involved.

What kind of research did you do for this book?

 I usually do research in the science portions of the book. Such as how would energy transfer work in relation to machines I present in the book? What would a universe of first origins be like? Where would it be and what would be around it? How would time be altered or modified as you moved closer or further away from such a universe? How would a black hole or big bang really work and what would cause them?

For the fantasy portions of the book, I would focus more on races, ladders of magic and spells, and what kinds of flora, fauna and environments would exist in an outlandish but still believable sense.

 

Can you tell me about your Series?

Sure, the series is primarily epic fantasy but it’s going to see a massive passage of time that will see it as a science fantasy as well. I think that is something different that I have not seen myself in a while. At the heart of it, there will always be the character driven story, the mystery and the discovery for the reader.

 

Do you have a favorite book out of this series?

Right now it’s the second of the series, Solitude of Sin. However, I believe by the time I’m finished the series, I’m going to have another favourite, because my readers keep telling me its getter better and better with each book. 🙂

 

Where did you get the inspiration/idea for your series?

It was a small story/comic that initially started in the modern era of the book and had a lot of unexplained backstory that lead up to the events as they would be.

However, when I realised that a lot really was left unexplained and I kept asking the ‘why’ as I always do with my stories, there was a rich and expansive universe that readers would definitely want to know more about.

The small story was never published but it keeps a special place in my heart as the origins of the Enixar. I await the day when I complete all the backstory I am currently creating and ‘reach back’ to the point of that small story, to see how much it would have evolved since that time. I sure it would be massive and my readers would be most pleased when they get to it.

 

What kind of research did you do for this book?

 I would say the same research I originally did before and still do now. I love when we are continuously finding out new mysteries in our universe. It makes me imagine and think of even more possibilities and potentials for the books.

 

Was it always meant to become a series?

 It was meant to become a series in the modern age, with the medieval age being something of mention by the characters, and at one point in time, a single prequel that I would have touched on. However, with the expansion and focus on the medieval age, as well as the positive reception I’ve received for it, it has become a bigger series than I originally anticipated. Once I write all the books in my lifetime of course. 🙂

 

 

What’s a typical working day like for you? When and where do you write? Do you set a daily writing goal?

I own a business that does digital advertising and marketing so a lot of time is spent between there, the gym and some errands. When I do get a chance to write its usually in the nights or the early mornings when things are quiet and slowed down. I can pen things at a reasonable pace and I believe that once you write within an hour, you can have a draft of a novel in a few months time.

My daily writing goal, I’m not too harsh on myself, so I aim for around 2000 words a day. Sometimes I get more, and sometimes I get less. Even if it’s not all on the current novel (it could be an outline for another book, or an article, blog post or a piece of copy), I ensure I do some writing when the day comes. I believe it is something that makes me happy when I do, its therapeutic to me to let my thoughts go and release the imagination on paper (or in this instance, screen).

 

Do you have a new book in the making and if so, what’s the name of your upcoming book?

Yes I do actually. It’s an interquel for the two published Enixar books. My readers have been asking for it as a lot of time passed between them. So again, the medieval story expands, lol.  It’s called The Enixar – Hail to The Queen and it revolves around the young Queen Amadalia, her marriage to King Meriaus and becoming the woman we experienced her as in Solitude of Sin.

 

How important are character names to you in your books? Is there a special meaning to any of the names?

Yes, in many cases character names are very important to me. It can give an impression of the nature of the character and in some cases even foreshadow the conflict the character can create. For example, Lord Gudrunn in the Sorcerer’s Conquest (first book of the Enixar), name means from Scandinavian, “gud”- God; “runn”- secret knowledge, which represents his character within the context of the book. Athena is a goddess of wisdom and war, from Solitude of Sin, its shown that Princess Athena can go down two totally contrapuntal paths, leaving the readers wondering which one will it be.

 

Where do your ideas come from?

I get a lot of inspiration from space operas such as Star Wars, fantasies like Lord of the Rings, Harry Potter, The Time Machine and also open world, choose your own adventure style stories and novels.

 

Is there a genre that you’ve been wanting to experiment with?

 Anytime there is a genre that I find fascinating, I just include aspects of it in my stories and writing. However, I would like to do children’s books very soon as I am sure there are readers who would love to read my stories for the fantastical elements but due to the scary or violent themes, prevents them from doing so. I believe I will make that one of my next projects in between the Enixar titles. 🙂

 

What is the hardest part of writing for you?

The hardest part has to be actually starting the writing process. Many times I can get intimidated by a blank page and sometimes when the days are long and there are lots of distractions, giving in can be the difference between getting a few hundred words down and getting nothing at all. But when you start, and let it flow, the words come to you and fill the screen. Understandably, not always the best ones as it’s a first pass, but it’s at least something on screen which can be edited and polished. A blank screen though, you can’t do anything but add more words to it and then do that whole process.

 

 

What do you think of book trailers? Do you have a trailer or do you intend to create one for your own book?

 I think they are great and coming from a film background, I believe that video is a great way to engage your audiences. What I usually do is have the cover animated with some sound effects, a music score and then push it online. It tends to get a lot of views and a lot of interest. I personally love it and would probably stop scrolling through my social media feed to check out any ad that has such (then again, I might be biased to such pretty effects).

 

What do you consider to be your best accomplishment?

Writing a book and putting it out there for the world to enjoy/critique. I was very fearful when I first did it, because in the past many projects I did were collaborative where a team was in charge of the outcome of the final product. However, publishing a book was the first time that I was entirely in charge of the outcome of the product and I had to take the good and the bad that came with it. Luckily, the worse criticism I got was helpful and I actually implemented it and made the books and my writing better. At least, that’s the criticism that I acknowledged. The majority of the readers enjoyed the book, and the story and I appreciated that very much. Every time I read a new review, it’s a new motivating experience to me.

 

What’s the best thing about being an author?

 I would say creating experiences for others to genuinely enjoy and immerse themselves in. Having the ability to bring a sense of wonder, imagination and that feeling we all had when we were growing up back into our lives to my readers means a great deal to me. Words are powerful, so why not use them to make the world a better place.

 

Where do you see yourself in 10 years?

I see myself with most of the Enixar series published, hopefully to a passionate and amazing readership eagerly awaiting the final books and the conclusion to the story. I also see myself still in a wonderful and loving relationship and great kids who would grow up reading my children’s book series and they can’t wait to grow up to read the Enixar series next. 🙂

 

Have you always liked to write?

I always have, ever since I was a child. I would draw comics and write catchy dialogue, but what always enticed me was telling a story and seeing it develop and grow in front my eyes. Sometimes even in ways I initially did not imagine.

 

What writing advice do you have for aspiring authors?

Keep writing. Every Day. Don’t ever stop. It’s like a muscle, the skill only gets better with practice and deteriorates the longer you don’t use it. It could be a paragraph or a whole chapter, an article or a facebook post, but the important thing is to express your creative and positive thoughts and put it into existence.

Dedicate that skill to writing an outline, even if it’s vague and then write your novel. It also helps to write the introduction and then the final scene of the book. Because then the book feels like it has an ending, and gives you a bit more direction when you are filling in everything else in between to reach that moment. No worries if it all changes by that time, the idea is that you mentally know that there is a finishing line and you can reach it.

 

 

If you didn’t like writing books, or weren’t any good at it, what would you like to do for a living?

The thing is I love the art of storytelling, so if I were not writing books, I would do something that developed or progress a story in some fashion. Before I did films, and with the novels I do casual video games and advertising campaigns. So I guess if not writing books, I would be doing a lot more of one of those things.

Now, if not writing and storytelling at all? I don’t know, maybe something in fibre optics because I remember as a child that was the other thing that excited me very much. The science and technology of it all. Probably would have been extremely wealthy had I gotten into it at that time. Haha!

 

Do you read reviews of your book(s)? Do you respond to them, good or bad? How do you deal with the bad?

 Yes, I read all reviews on my books. With a properly written review, someone took the time to write about your book and how it affected them, I think it’s worth checking out. I usually don’t respond to them, I just appreciate it for what was said and try to improve what could be better and give more of what people loved.

One thing I dislike though, is a low review with absolutely no explanation or writeup. It makes me feel that pressing the one star was done ‘just because’ and the reviewer could care less about the improvement of the writer and the series, and cares more about lowering the rank and having a sense of power over it. I get a few of these, but I learned that there is a lot more story to it than commenting on it can help solve.

Focus on what your fans are loving and if they see value in your books (they buying it when they can or when a new one comes out).

 

What is your least favourite part of the writing / publishing process?

Least favourite part is editing. I know that it needs to be done, but gosh, I feel like an auditor as we go through the book for errors and its no longer about the fun of the book but more so the perfection of it.

 

What’s worse?

Even after that process, readers still pick up on errors, argh! I’m glad they do though. 🙂

 

Can you give us a few tasty morsels from your work-in-progress?

I’ll be releasing bits of it for my mailing list (https://landing.mailerlite.com/webforms/landing/h2k4d9) and through my patreon (https://www.patreon.com/mindofkhan) soon. You can join to get a taste of the experience. 🙂

 

Why did you choose to write in your genre? If you write in more than one, how do you balance them?

I love fantasy and the magic delight of the unknown. Even more so, I love the idea of creating it and developing worlds and stories around it for people to enjoy. The balancing act comes from understanding what your story is truly about and who are your major readers. What elements truly dominate the universe.

For example: Yes, I can have technology in my story and its powered by magic. However, if someone is going to get blasted down by a plasma cannon no matter what scrolls or spells they have, then why learn deeper skills in magic at all when you could just invest in powering up an arsenal of weapons and it’s all good? Lol.

 

 

Where did your love of books come from?

It came from reading new titles that I thought were interesting. I always loved to read different styles, different situations, different outcomes and I always loved that each new book would teach you something you probably didn’t know.
If you did know it, you would learn it in the perspective of another person, and many times that can lead to you actually learning a new way to do something.

 

Do you have any favorite authors or favorite books?

 Yes, I do. I love JK Rowling’s work on the Harry Potter series. J. R. R. Tolkien for the Hobbit and the Lord of the Rings. H. G. Wells for the Time Machine. Dan Brown and his Robert Langdon Series. And Tom Clancy’s first book The Hunt for Red October.

 

Of all the characters you have created, which is your favourite and why?

Thus far my favourite character is Randor, the young boy who becomes a kingsguard from Sorcerer’s Conquest to Solitude of Sin. Even though he is under the king’s command, it doesn’t stop him from defying authority when he needs to for the best interest of those around him. A bit of chaotic but overall good which I can appreciate.    

 

Does writing energize or exhaust you?

Writing invigorates me when I am actually typing or writing away as I’m in the world and experiencing it as I do. However, it’s only afterwards I realise how mentally fatigued I can feel because a lot of thought and consideration goes into it.

It’s sort of like running for me. I love the feeling as it’s happening but as soon as I stop or do something else, all the physical strains of pushing myself hit me and it takes a lot of effort afterwards to continue.  

 

What is your writing Kryptonite?

I would say distractions. Before social media, I would be able to write an entire day with no issues. Now if I’m on a system that has internet access, I would be getting notifications and updates on what’s going on with my business page, my author page, likes, retweets, shares, etc.

It’s best to allocate some time offline and do your writing, after you’ve reached your goal for the day, then you can go back online. It’s amazing how well engineered these things are to take up our time.  

 

Do you try more to be original or to deliver to readers what they want?

I do a mix of both. Even though I understand and appreciate most of the major tropes of science fiction, fantasy and science fantasy, I like to add in a story or an outline that I believe would make readers smile at a breath of fresh air, but not disorient them too much from moving them away for all things familiar. I also care very much about my readers and what they like most in my books. I always consider feedback. I may not use it all, but I consider it.

 

 

What other authors are you friends with, and how do they help you become a better writer?

I’m in publishing and writers groups. Some are first time writers and other are established writers with many books out already. I’ve been able to get feedback from them on my work and also suggestions on my storylines that have lead me to become an overall better writer in my opinion.  

They have titles ranging from children’s books, to romance, to mystery, and some are in science fiction and fantasy just like I am. 🙂

 

If you were writing a book about your life, what would the title be?

The Fun Tales of a Human’s Random Challenges and Eventual Triumphs

Or

Where I know I’ve been, and Where I think I’m going

 

What question have you always wanted to be asked in an interview? How would you answer that question?

What keeps you creating?

And I would say, knowing that even if it matters to only a few people, leaving a legacy behind and being appreciated and remembered for that.

 

Where can your fans find you and follow??

Oh yes! They can find me on Facebook on my author page at: https://www.facebook.com/MikkellKhanAuthor/

My Twitter at:

https://twitter.com/mindofkhan

And my Instagram at:

https://www.instagram.com/mikkell_khan/ 

 

 

Thank you for taking your time to do this interview ❤️

Thank you for the opportunity to speak with your audience. I hope they enjoyed it and learned from it as well 🙂