Today’s special guest author is musician and author Sydney Williams. She’s chatting with me about her debut fantasy novel, Princes & Kings, the first in the series, A Rose in a Thorn Bush.
During her virtual book tour, Sydney will be awarding a $15 Amazon or Barnes and Noble (winner’s choice) gift card to a lucky randomly drawn winner. To be entered for a chance to win, use the form below. To increase your chances of winning, feel free to visit her other tour stops and enter there, too!
Bio:
Sydney has a big imagination and has been writing and performing from a young age. After going blind from Leukemia at the age of three, she found release from the medical part of her life through her music and her writing. In high school she excelled in English and history and after she left school she continued to write and to create her music. She formed her band, The Undercurrents with her best friend and drummer, Alex Nacci at the age of 22 and has been playing music with the band ever.
Her book, Princes and Kings, is her first professional novel and it is book one of the historical fiction series she is writing titled, A Rose in A Thorn Bush about the last king of Wales. She was introduced to her main character in high school and with the encouragement of her Business Abilities coach she finely decided to write his story. Splitting the story into three books. Sydney has always enjoyed reading historical fiction and has found it an interesting genre to write in. After her series is finished, she plans to continue writing about different historical British characters for as long as she can. Being Welsh on her father’s side and Scottish and English on her mother’s Britain is a place that interests her greatly and she has enjoyed writing about one of its characters. Giving her a chance to explore her heritage in a fun and exciting way and she looks forward to sharing her passion for the genre and the history of the British Isles with the world.
What inspired you to write this book?
History has always been an interesting subject to me and historical fiction is a great way to learn about historical figures and events and I have wanted to write a historical fiction novel of my own for quite some time. When I was in grade 12 I came across my main character’s story in a history class and knew then that one day I would write a book about his story. I think that I was drawn to his story because I am Welsh on my father’s side and so anything to do with the history of that country interests me.
Excerpt from Princes & Kings:
Chapter 2: Sanctuary in Flight
The town of Aberfraw Castle in the Valley of Clwyd Snowdonia, Gwynedd, Wales in the year 1240 AD
Feeling the need for a hot bath, and a good meal, he started walking down the hallway towards his room. It had been a hard day, but he didn’t plan to stay at home for long. In the morning, he decided he would head into the Welsh countryside to get away and clear his head. Whenever he was troubled, he would take his horse, Arling, and ride off, he didn’t care where, sometimes for weeks at a time until he felt clear enough in both body and mind to return home once more. He had always found the fresh air a balm to his nerves when he was upset over something that had been said or done that he had no control over. He had learned a long time ago that when he was feeling like blowing up it was better just to leave and go away for a while until he felt like himself again. Owain talked about him being reasonable and diplomatic, but in reality he was just as angry and confused as his brother most of the time. He just chose to take himself away and work through his feelings rather than let them burst out of him in anger at random.
He smiled at the thought of his horse. Arling was his pride and joy. He had raised her from a small filly and had trained her himself. Now she was one of the best warhorses in the land, never shying away from danger, and Llywelyn trusted her to carry him through any battle. She was always a brave companion wherever he went, and he always grateful to have her by his side.
Reaching his bedroom door, Llywelyn opened it and went inside. Sitting by the fire was his man-servant Olan, busy cleaning one of his many surcoats. A smallish man, Olan made up for his lack of height with a muscular body. His short black hair, and deep-set lake blue eyes, seemed to see everything, giving him an-other-worldly appearance. This ability to see through any situation had come in handy more than once over the years. He looked up when the door opened and saw Llywelyn standing there dripping wet from the rain. Upon seeing him, Olan put down the surcoat and stood up, giving him a small bow. Llywelyn smiled at him.“Very funny Olan,” he said. Olan smiled back.
What exciting story are you working on next?
Princes and Kings is just book one in the three-part series I am writing about my main character. I am now starting to work on book two which focuses more on his time as ruler of Gwynedd Wales. Book one focused more on how he became ruler.
When did you first consider yourself a writer?
I think the first time I truly considered myself a writer was when I published my book.
Do you write full-time? If so, what’s your work day like? If not, what do you do other than write and how do you find time to write?
As well as being an author I am also a musician/songwriter. I try my best to work both things into my day with leaving at least one day a week where I take a break from both.
What would you say is your interesting writing quirk?
I don’t know if I do have one really. When I get into writing I can focus in to the point where I can ignore everything else around me. But I don’t know exactly if that could be called a quirk.
As a child, what did you want to be when you grew up?
As a child, I always wanted to be what I am today. I grew up in a musical family and I have been singing since I was a child. I have always loved stories ever since I was young and I enjoyed writing even when I was a child so I knew that I would be a writer one day.
Links:
Goodreads | Website | Barnes and Noble | Amazon | Indigo Chapters | Book Depository | Kobo | Smashwords | Apple Books
Thanks for hosting!
I liked the excerpt, thank you.
Looks like a good read.
Sydney, I enjoyed the interview and excerpt and I enjoyed following the tour and learning about Princes and Kings, which sounds like a thrilling read and I like the cover! Good luck with your book and I hope the tour was a success! Thanks for sharing it with me and have a wonderful day!
This sounds like an interesting story. Thank you for sharing.