Jaime Castle

I write character-driven stories. I like to dive into why people are the way they are and really pull out the core of a person and what drives them. My stories, for the most part, are drenched in humor of some sort or another, but none of them are comedies. I think laughing is a natural part of life, and even in the direst of situations, gallows humor finds its place.

I grew up in hell, AKA South Florida. I don't know that it influenced my writing necessarily. That said, it's difficult to know, right? You don't know what you don't know. Would I have written differently if I'd grown up in Idaho? Would I have written at all?

I've lived in Texas since 2012, and living here has without a doubt influenced my writing. The Black Badge series would not exist without my having lived here. Furthermore, many of the phrases came from real-life encounters. People here "talk different", and I like to incorporate realism at every point I can.

I don't think I really started reading until I was a teenager, but I recall the first "real" book I ever read. Jurassic Park by Michael Crichton. I was probably 14 at the time, and I remember having the book confiscated at school because I was reading during class.

Beyond that, I've been studying religion since I was 11 years old. Something came over me at a young age, so I read every form of the Christian Bible, Torah, Koran, and even the Satanic Bible. That fascination hasn't left me. Though I identify as a Christian, I don't think those other things are taboo or somehow dangerous. They are no off limits, and a lot of my writing can be traced back to things I read and understood about various religions. When I write about gods and goddesses in Fantasy, there's probably a real-life counterpart that influenced it.

I don't want to write like anyone else. Do I respect a lot of writers? Absolutely. But I've never wanted to be anyone but me in any area of my life.

I feel like this is a trick question. Tastes change, but maybe I'll do my best to compile my top five authors over the years. In no order: J.K. Rowling, Jim Butcher, R.A. Salvatore, Anne Rice, Rhett C. Bruno.

Fault me for it, but I've given people more Bibles than any other book. If we are talking something more entertainment-valued, probably my own book Cold as Hell.

All of my characters have a bit of me in them. You write what you know.

Whitney Fierstown from The Buried Goddess Saga is the character who says off the wall stuff and gets away with it because he's so quirky. That's me to a T.

James Crowley (Black Badge) is the rebel.

Danny Kendrick from An Unexpected Hero is the musician whose story sounds a lot like mine.

But perhaps the one that is most like me is Screenie from An Unexpected Hero. He's the snarky AI who says whatever is on his mind, though it's always designed to make people laugh. I have trouble at times when people don't understand my sense of humor. It can be dark.

No way this can be answered. I've written 40+ books and I love them all for different reasons or I wouldn't have written them.

When people ask me which book they should read first, my answer is always "What kind of books do you like?"

My writing covers the entire gamut of Science Fiction and Fantasy from Military Sci-Fi/Space Opera to Epic Fantasy to LitRPG all the way to a Weird Western series that breaks the mold.

My office is colloquially described as one wing of my house. It's three rooms. Downstairs, I have a library/bar with floor-to-very-tall ceilings packed with hardcovers from books I've read and loved. A circular staircase takes you up to a loft with a TV and recliners where I play video games when I need a break. Then, up two steps from there is where I actually work. I've got a modest desk. My walls are covered in guitars and posters of my book covers. Most of my rooms look like Harry Potter and Marvel threw up on the walls. And for the first time in my life, I have a balcony overlooking our beautiful backyard with a lake through the trees.

I listen to a lot of books. So, for me, anywhere is my favorite reading place. However, if I have a physical book, I prefer to read out by the pool when the weather is in the 60s or 70s.