Samuel Taber – nurse by day, author by night.

Originally from Clark, Taber went to Sturgeon High School before pursuing a nursing degree at Columbia Area Career Center. He recently came to Mexico for his nursing job at the Missouri Veterans Home and has since self-published his first book: Echoes of Fangs and Thorns, a dark fantasy young adult fiction novel. This is the first book in what Taber hopes will become a series of at least three books and a prequel.

This interview has been edited for length and clarity.

How long did this book take you from your first idea to publication?

I started this book back in 2009 during a writing group in high school. I graduated and then did not touch it until last year. I finished it last year in about six months. It was a lot of writing every single night and a lot of editing.

What inspired you to start writing?

I was always in the library – I practically lived in the library for a while. Eragon (The Inheritance Cycle) was a big inspiration when it came out. Christopher Paolini, he was 15 when he wrote Eragon, and I wasn’t much older. He was a big inspiration.

What are some major themes in your book?

There are themes of war, politics and coming of age. I have multiple points of view and most of my main characters are under the age of 16, so coming of age is a big theme, especially in today’s society – it’s not the same world. I feel having young characters who are coming of age hopefully inspires people who read it that they can do things and that they are strong.

What advice do you have for aspiring writers?

Sit down and just do it. Indie authors are where it’s at compared to traditional publishing. There are new indie authors every day and I recommend going the indie route. My dream is to be picked up by Tor or Dragonsteel.

What is the most difficult aspect of self publishing?

Marketing. It’s cheap to self publish. You can go through Amazon or IngramSpark and once you have the ISBN, you have a book but actually getting your book put there, ahead of other authors, that’s where it's difficult. You have to market yourself and that is where I struggle.
When I first did the art copy of the book, I reached out to traditional publishers and I didn’t hear back from them for six months. It’s hard and emotional because I put a lot of work into this. This is my dream.

What is your cure for writer's block?

I like to go sit outside – that helps a lot. Sometimes I get inspiration from reading another book or watching a TV show. Anime inspires a lot of parts.

What tools could you not live without as a writer?

AutoCrit. It is the app I use that helps edit and organize ideas. It is amazing and I highly recommend, if you are going to be writing a lot, you get the lifetime membership. It analyzes your plot holes, it does everything.

Are there plans for more than one book?

I know I will have at least three books in the main series and at least one prequel that will explain the previous war and some of the backstories. I didn’t want to write that one first because it will give a lot of spoilers to book one and two. Book two will focus on the magic system that I have created and set up for the big battle in book three and our surprise villains. I don’t even know the ending yet. I have a general idea of where I want to take it.

What is most difficult about the creative process?

Creating new characters and connecting them. I can create all the new characters I want but if they are not tied to the story somehow or tied to somebody else. … Right now I have about 20 different characters. Some of them are minor, some are major but tying them all together is tough.

What was the last book you read that you couldn’t put down?

I am currently reading the second book in the Morcyth saga. The book is Fires of Prophecy.

How has the fantasy genre evolved over the years?

When I first started the book, it was just supposed to be fantasy but it has kind of become more dark fantasy and that seems to be where a lot more fantasy authors are going now. Everyone's going towards romance fantasy and I am trying to stay away from that because that’s a big genre to get into. Dark fantasy has tropes that are more personal. I would say it has more redemption arcs, dark themes, killing, more twisted villains and it’s typically for a higher age group, 12 plus.

Echoes of Fangs and Thorns was released last year but Taber is currently in the process of editing it again. He is anticipating a re-release in April this year – just in time for the second book in the series to come out.