Interview with J.M.D Reid
J.M.D. Reid has been a long-time fan of Fantasy ever since he read The Hobbit way back in the fourth grade. His head has always been filled with fantastical tales, and he is eager to share the worlds dwelling in his dreams with you.
Reid is a long-time resident of the Pacific Northwest in and around the City of Tacoma. The rainy, gloomy atmosphere of Western Washington, combined with the natural beauty of the evergreen forests and the looming Mount Rainier, provides the perfect climate to brew creative worlds and exciting stories!
When he's not writing, Reid enjoys playing video games, playing D&D, and listening to amazing music.
I've read you are a D&D player. How long have you played?
I've been playing since Junior High with a hodgepodge mix of 2nd Edition and Advanced D&D with my friends.
What is your favorite race and class to play?
I really like playing dwarven clerics. I love dwarves and I have a lot of fun playing clerics. Usually battle-focused ones. Do some buffs then kick some ass.
Is Diamond Stained inspired any previous games?
There is none of my D&D stuff in Diamond Stained. My main group for many years mainly played in Forgotten Realms.
Which character has had a mind of their own when writing them?
That doesn't happen to me very often. Twice, I've had characters go really off-script on me. One was a character who didn't like the story and just butted in and resolved some issues. Sadly, on rewrites, I took this away from the character and brought the agency of resolving the conflict back to my main characters. It was really my subconscious hating my current storyline and objecting. It was all for the best.
How long did Diamond Stained take from beginning to finished product?
I started writing it in February of 2019. It was a side project while I finished editing the last book of my first series. I finished the rough draft in May and then had editing finished by August of 2019. By then, I had the covers being finished up and I was writing the rest of the series for a spring 2020 rapid release.
Do you feel there is more of a sense of community in the writing world than most people realize?
I'm not sure if it's more than people realize, but there is a sense of community.
What's your daily writing process? Do you have a set time frame you write?
I wake up and start my writing. I take breaks for breakfast and to shower and lunch and then I switch to editing in the afternoon and doing things like interviews.
What would you say is your most interesting writing quirk?
I'm told that I'm a writing robot since I write usually 15,000 words a day both for my fantasy work and my ghostwriting work.
Go back five years. If you could give yourself advice about being an author, what would it be?
Stop procrastinating with the query process and being afraid to self-publish Above the Storm.
What trait do you think you share with your characters?
There is a lot of me in all my characters. A lot of my past depression has made it into some characters.
Follow J.M.D at these links:
Twitter: https://twitter.com/JMDReid
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/JMDReid
Facebook Group (Fantastic Worlds of the Imagination): https://www.facebook.com/groups/158087188138155
Newsletter: http://eepurl.com/61bSz
Website: http://www.JMD-Reid.com/