Interview with Michael Wigington

Author of The Mist Witch of Dreydark Forest

Where are you from originally and where do you reside now?

I am originally from Garland Texas, and now I reside in Tyler Texas.

If you currently reside somewhere besides where you were born, what’s the story that lead from there to here?

I lived in Garland Texas for 10 years, when I was around 7 or 8 my mother decided the city was too dangerous and that we needed to move to East Texas. My grandfather had a small farm and so we bought a small plot of land from him and started building a house on it. After two or three years we decided to move even though the house was not finished. We put our house in Garland up for sale and moved into a small house my grandfather owned on his property.

We lived in a two bedroom house, all 6 of us, for two years before our house was finished. I lived on that same property for nearly 40 years, having had my own house built after buying land from my grandfather myself, but when my first marriage ended, that land and house was sold. My current wife already lived in Tyler so when we got married I moved here with her.

What made you decide to write and publish your first book?

That would be my current wife Kara. She was the director for the Longview Public Library for 20 years. She started reading my work and told me I should be writing books.

How would you describe your books to first time readers?

Traditional/medieval fantasies that are young adult to new adult.

Who do you feel is most likely to connect with the topics you write about?

I like to put my characters into situations where they have to make decisions that are bad or worse. I think everyone can relate that. This decision is bad, but that decision is worse. So there are no easy choices. The weight of those decisions can be heavy and how we deal with them defines us.

What unexpected or surprising thing did you learn during the process of writing and publishing?

That I am the god of this world, that life and death was in my hands and the fate of my characters. It is an interesting perspective in that, you have created this one character, this life, they were born, they have lived and now they die because it was your decision. It makes one reflect on how difficult a military general’s job is, knowing they are sending some to their death.

That their death is necessary in order to achieve victory. How that must weigh on the soul of a person to have to make that kind of decision. Life and death in your hands.

If you could, what advice would you give to your past self before embarking on this journey?

Start 30 years ago! You are good enough to make it, polish that skill early and by the time I am my age now I would be established.

How many people would you ideally like to reach with your books?

Millions. Who doesn’t like an adventure? Well besides a Hobbit.

What has been the biggest challenge and frustration during the process to date?

Learning how to market my work. You fight obscurity and that is the hardest battle.

What’s your biggest strengths when it comes to book a) writing, b) publishing and c) marketing?

My biggest strength for all three of those is sheer dogged determination. I will not quit, I will never surrender.

What’s your biggest weakness when it comes to book a) writing, b) publishing and c) marketing?

Honestly when it comes to writing my biggest weakness is believing it is good enough, that I am worthy to be liked by many, that my stories are worth being told. Publishing, I would say my weakness is I want to hurry the process, but I know I can’t.

When do you think you will write your next book?

I am already writing it. I am 100k words into my next novel and around 20k words into the third novel in my series. I also have around 30k to 40k words done in another book that is related to the series but it is separate story from it.

Are you self published or did you use a hybrid publisher, or a traditional publisher?

I am self-published.