Saturday, November 21, 2015

Author Spotlight: B.I. Woolet



Guess what! I joined a blog tour group! My first post will be featuring B. I. Woolet. A husband and wife team who authored the World of Arcus series.














1.   Tell us about your series and Arrows of Darkness.

Arrows of Darkness is the newly-released second book the World of Arcas series. The series battles amid realms and rulers who disagree with whether they should reunite an ancient pathway severed long ago between Earth and Arcas. In The Hunter, the Bear, and the Seventh Sister, Jackson is sent on a mission to insure peace by cutting the last ties between the two worlds, but lines quickly get blurred between friend and foe in this traveling adventure full of beasts and beauties. In Arrows of Darkness, Jackson returns to Arcas to escape troubles at home, but the peace he expects to find has been consumed by a violent new ruler that the teen unknowingly helped bring to power.

2.   You're a husband and wife team. What made you decide to join forces and write together?

Though I (Ila) studied and taught English, I never ever considered writing and publishing books. But Benji had this idea for a story brewing in him, and he wasn’t going to give up until I at least wrote the first chapter from his notes. I finally caved, but once I wrote the first chapter with him, we never stopped. J


3. What was the hardest thing about co-authoring a book together?

Finding the right rhythm of life is always a struggle. Like many authors today, we are trying to balance writing time, family time, recharging time, job time, and church/community time. We want don’t want to be overly consumed by any one area, but all of these are important to us!  We also have to compromise over plot-lines to find a balance that we both are happy with.

4. What was the best thing?

While it’s often difficult for busy couples to find time to connect, writing as a team gives us opportunities to enter another world where we can just escape everything else and create together.  

5. What makes your book stand out from the others in it's genre?

Though many tales have borrowed names from the stars, our connections intertwine within almost every fiber of the World of Arcas. We studied both the mythology the science behind the stars before we connected a character or place to them. Readers can enjoy quite the scavenger hunt of deep space objects, nebulae, and wonders in the world of astronomy if they want to while reading our books.

6. What's something you both enjoy together when you're not writing?

We love playing music and singing together (show tunes, gospel, jazz, pop, oldies), taking walks through wooded trails, and playing games like Carcassonne or Settlers of Catan. 

7. Who designs your gorgeous covers?

Regina Wamba is the amazing artist who designs our covers. Though we didn’t use live models on the World of Arcas books, she also does beautiful work using custom photography, make-up, and costumes for cover designs. Check out her other covers at www.maeidesing.com !

8. What advice do you have for other aspiring writers?

Though many people think of writing as a solo sport, that definitely has not been our experience! Besides writing as a duo, we also reached out to a close group of friends and family throughout the process. Some helped us with editing; some just encouraged us to continue to writing and would ask us frequently about our progress. It’s a powerful thing to surround yourself with people who support you, challenge you, and encourage you. Find those people in your life and hold on to them!

9. If you could double date with any couple, alive or dead, who would it be?

We would love to have a double date with C.S. Lewis and his wife Joy. He was an amazing writer of fantasy and theology, and Joy published a book of poetry. We would love to hear their writing advice and learn more about their experiences and passions.

10. What's next for B. I. Woolet?

Though we know we have a least one more book to write in the World of Arcas, we aren’t completely sure how long the series will go. We have book ideas outside of fantasy, but we are definitely going to finish Jackson’s current escapades before we tackle any new realms! Nevertheless, the star-studded world of Arcas will probably always be beckoning us back for just one more adventure…

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