Outlaw - From L.A to Apocalypse

I was supposed to publish the interview of author Alan Janney today. I know I've already covered his superhero novel, The Outlaw, but that was only after I read the first book.

And honestly, this series has so much more than meets the eye, that I could have an entire blog around it. That's why I think it's smartest to open up something more about these stories, before bringing the man behind the keyboard out...

Notice, that this contains mild spoilers on both The Outlaw and Carmine saga's. So, if they're on your reading list and you want to be surprised by the end (which you will be!), then please stop reading now!

That said, you read right: It has two saga's. The Outlaw, which focuses on our favorite fictional quarterback, Chase Jackson. Carmine is all about his girlfriend Katie Lopez.

This book series is one of my favorite YA series's. It's right up there with Hunger Games and Harry Potter. Though not for the same reasons. Hunger Games and Harry Potter are Hero's Journey, told brilliantly In a way Millennial and Zoomer Kids enjoy them.

Outlaw is character-driven In the same way as these. It starts as a Hero's Journey. Chase has to grow from an amateur vigilante-detective to a celebrity-superhero In contemporary L.A (actually it's the dark not-too-distant future of 2017!).

It turns out, that the reason for his Inhuman reflexes and strength are, because he's In a group, that has been genetically modified, or infected, after birth. This group calls themselves The Infected.

The Infected have enhanced strength and reflexes. Many also have unique powers, like insanely magnetic charisma or ability to read and manipulate minds.

The Infected are lead by two masterminds: Carter and a man known as The Chemist. He’s a Voldemorty villain, with an obsession to Outlaw. Carter is not much better, except his followers don't worship him, like those of The Chemist.

These men hate each others guts and the plot centers around their conflict. Outlaw and his friends, both normal and Infected, fall between these two maniacs. Instead of having to pick a side, they have to do something more basic: survive. And then help others survive as well.

This becomes difficult, as the whole US government is drawn In the conflict, which soon becomes an all-out civil war between normal humans and the Infected. US is torn. Sound familiar?

It's hard to believe, that Alan Janney started this series In 2013 and finished it in 2018. It's so mirror-image of the chaos we're seeing by just tuning on any media. Outlaw starts with racial riots of unsatisfied Spanish communities and then progresses into a point, where The whole Western civilization is torn apart. It's really hard to say, whether to laugh or cry.

This plot could easily become disoriented mess, like Disney Star Wars, but thanks to Alan Janney's passionate urge to drive the story forward and likable characters, it stays enjoyable.

Though I have to admit, that I've only reached to the third act of Carmine. There's still three books to go. Carmine is the second saga of the series, that's post-apocalypse.

Just this progress makes it super interesting. It progresses like Mad Max movies, where The world crumbles more and more between each movie. Imagine if Mad Max had started from Max Rockatansky's time in police academy and then worked its way to end of the world. Hard to imagine, I know. Even harder to imagine, that it just works, like with Outlaw.

Granted, it does over-stay its welcome at times, but then it picks up the pace again and keeps us readers at the edges of our seats.

Outlaw is amazingly energetic and enjoyable series and a welcome addition to a tired superhero genre. Tired? Sure, but only In the mainstream media. There are lots of original superhero stories from passionate writers. Tom Reynolds's Meta and Alan Janney's Outlaw will be classics of this bunch. But there are others, if you know where to look. And there will be more.

How Did you like the Outlaw? What other superhero novels come to your mind? Please comment below. Also, don't forget to share this in your social media. Next week, I'll be interviewing the man behind the Outlaw, Alan Janney himself!

Till then, check out the Outlaw yourself from here! 

Thanks for reading!

-Alex

Monique De La Uz - The incredible power of Words

This is a classic article from my old blog, Author Alexander Greenwood.

I know this kind of seems to break my usual topic, mythology. But this is about one persons survival and growth In the modern world. The novel Eight Words is about danger in a modern society. A society that shouldn't have danger. And it's based on real experience my friend went through and was able to mold it into a brilliant thriller. That's what myths are made of. So, without further ado, my friend, Monique De La Uz.

Note: This article contains spoilers on the novel Eight Words. I highly recommend you to read it first!

Lately I've felt extremely lucky about the people I've met. Ever since I decided to be a professional writer and storyteller, I've found some incredible people in the same situation as me.

One of these is a Floridan author Monique De La Uz, who's just published her debut novel Eight Words. The novel is a drama-thriller based around a teacher Daniella Dean, who gets falsely accused for sexual conduct with her student. The novel is a masterpiece and hopefully, one day, it will be a classic. It's also very much in line with what has actually happened to Monique herself. As she says, the first seventy pages are one on one accurate to what actually happened.

Inspired by mental issues

De La Uz used to work as a teacher in a troubled neighborhood, just like her heroine Daniella. The protagonist is clearly based on Monique, but she's not the only character. During her time as a teacher she encountered several troubled students, some of whom even fell into a life of crime. The book introduces school shooter Jared, who has several traits of troubled youth she met. Monique reminds, that Jared's deed is a cry for help, though not necessary something he'd realize himself, as he is most likely a sociopath or a psychopath.

As it turns out, Eight Words is mostly about mental health issues. Something that's very current in today's America as well as Europe. Monique's state Florida is somewhat diverse and aware of these issues, but there's still work to be done. The characters project all the different stages of mental problems, with Jared being among the worst cases.

Daniella's thirteen year old brother John is bi-polar and has all variations of treatments from institutions to group therapy and medication. His family also suffers as they try to support him for the best they can. This is something Monique tried to include in Eight Words the best she could: The impact on family.

This and the other problems have given Daniella a situational depression, which might be the easiest of these problems. But it's still Something she has to fight to get out of. I won't spoil the story of Eight Words anymore, as you absolutely should read it. But seeing as Monique has clearly fought her way out of it and into success, it's safe to presume that Daniella can survive it too.

After survival

Currently Monique De La Uz lives a peaceful life with her family in Florida. It's been years since she worked as a teacher and had to deal with the false accusation, that started from nothing but eight words. When I asked, if she thought she would ever get back to teaching, the answer was clear "NO"

It might have taken eight words to try and ruin Monique's career as a teacher. But it's Eight Words that will give a strong start to her writing career. Nevertheless, it took years before she decided to write the book. But when she did, it took four and a half months to finish the draft.

After this it was time for beta-readers to have their say. And they certainly did. Monique had to learn to leave her ego at the door and just listen. Especially tough was one beta reader who had Monique rework almost entire book. But she was also right about 95% of what she said and thus gave Monique an opportunity to give us the best possible story.

Although the story of Eight Words is fictional, it's as true as the authoress herself. The characters too are also based on real people De La Uz has encountered during her journey. Some are directly inspired by an actual person, while others are a mix of different people.

What next?

Monique hints in both the book and our conversation, that this won't be the last we hear about these characters. She hinted about something revolving around John, Daniella's bi-polar little brother, who would arguably make a great protagonist in his own story. But right now, Monique is focusing on the marketing of the Eight Words. And well deserved rest. So, only time will tell what we'll get next.

Monique De La Uz is a living example of the eternal wisdom of storytelling: The story is absolutely the best, when it tells the truth. Monique has managed to tell that of both her life and those of her readers. And their numbers will grow in the future.

Thanks for reading!

Don't forget to get your copy of Eight Words. It won't fail you!

-Alex

Borne, Derek Borne - Ultimate Author

Attention! The following information is top secret and meant for your eyes only! If anyone else sees this post, the Mission will be aborted. Be prepared to destroy your devices and flee the country!

Now that I got your attention, it's time I share my knowledge on Ultimate Agent - A novel trilogy from Canadian author Derek Borne.

With the sweet aroma of the best Finnish pizza, I managed to lure him to reveal some highly confidential information on his series and life as a storyteller.

Before that, it's time I share my classified information on this saga. This message will self-destruct In five seconds, so read quickly.

You probably already guessed what genre Ultimate Agent deals In, if not from my spy clishe's, then from the title.

UA is not only an agent story. It's also a superhero story. Imagine Jason Bourne In the Marvel universe.

Epic, sure. But the very Core of the story is the friendship between the two main characters, Brett and Devon, the two agents In secret service called the Ultimate Agent. And the love triangel between them and the third agent, Jade Hathaway. As if that wasn’t enough, the headaches are offered by Russian terrorist Maximus Romanov. But what's the deal with his sister, Valeriya? You'll have to plug In to find out.

But now it's time to let the Man himself reveal few secrets. His name is Borne, Derek Borne.

When did you first decide to become a writer?

Ever since I was little, I loved writing my own silly little stories. I was about 14 when I got a bit more serious about writing. About 3 years ago, though, I decided to finally make the jump to publish through Amazon and get even more serious as a writer.

How long did the idea brew, before you decided to write it down?

It didn’t take much to brew, actually. I’m a pantser when it comes to writing, so things shaped up as I went along. I like being able to surprise myself with the ideas I come up with! 

How long did it take from idea to published book?

Well, I originally wrote it when I was 14, which is 17 years ago now. Because I'm a pantser, it took me between half a year to a year to write

The UA world seems like a combination of Marvel movies and Jason Bourne. Is there one bigger inspiration for the story?

Those are really the main two inspirations. Other than that, I wanted to tell a story about family, and how anybody who comes along in life can become a part of your extended family too.

These characters have been with me for a while, which is what has made it so hard to end the series.

How did it feel? 

I cried 

Some writers come up with the characters first, some with the story and some with the world. What was the first in the UA?

The first thing was the general idea. I was chatting with a friend and we said “Wouldn’t it be cool if there was a superhero who was a spy, or vice versa?” And that’s how the Ultimate Agent was born. I knew I wanted to set it in our world, but still give it enough of a Sci-Fi feel with the tech and abilities.

Would you wish to bring UA in any other form (Movies/TV-show, videogames, etc)? If Yes, what would be your favorite platform?

If UA ever made it to be a movie, that’s the “Ultimate” dream… see what I did there? Anyway, it’s a bit of a toss-up between a feature film or a tv show on a medium like Netflix or Amazon. A show allows you to get even deeper into the story, but either way would be AMAZING! And for video games? Why not? You could play it over and over again just like being able to read the book as much as you want.

Is there a real-world inspiration for Devon and Brett?

Devon and Brett are basically me and the brotherly friendships I have with most of my guy friends. The banter, the teasing, the inside jokes, that all comes from real life buddies of mine.

What about Jade and Valeriya?

Jade is based on a girl I liked when I was 14... but as time went on and the rewrite came, Jade is a lot more like my wife.

Valeriya is just more of the characteristics I love and respect about a lot of my women friends

What about the Romanov siblings? What was their inspiration? Any connection to the czar family?

I’m aware of the Czar family, as I did my research, but there’s no true connection there. When I was younger, I always thought the surname had a certain sinister sound to it and so I ran with it. I knew I wanted to have villains with a Russian background, and it just seemed to fit for Maximus Romanov. When I was younger, before Avengers came out, I originally had Valeriya’s name be Natalia, but then I realized how close it was, so I changed it to Valeriya. As for their dynamic, there’s so much I can’t say without getting into classified territory…

Any classified information you're willing to sell?

Depends on what intel you're looking for 😆 I accept pizza bribes 😜

UA3 just launched. What can we expect from it?

This is an emotionally-driven story with back-against-the-wall tension. This is a story that took a lot out of me to write, and I hope readers will be able to tell how much of my heart I truly poured into this one. When it comes down to it though, when you think you have everything figured out, expect the unexpected!

What can we expect from you next?

Next up, I’m finishing writing a dinosaur/time-rift novel that’s subtly connected to the UA-verse (thanks to a certain cryptid that pops up in the superhero series). It’s my passion project before I move on to other planned spin-offs from the UA-verse. There may or may not be more bigfoot stories to tell 😉

What is your ideal reader?

The ideal reader… I would say is someone who loves action, some sweet romance, loves to laugh, and is super into Sci-Fi. I’ve had 12-year-olds read my work and love it (because I write clean, no sex, swearing, etc.)

What advice would you give to aspiring storytellers?

Write what you know, and be genuine with your storytelling. Write with your heart, because readers can tell when you’re putting books out with a stale story with no heart.

Don’t write for the dollar signs. Write to change someone’s life.

"Write to change someone's life". Could it be said any better? That's not only the dream of every storyteller. It's the power of every story.

I hope you enjoyed this interview as much as I did. I also hope you got the same vision of Derek as I did: He's just like his text. Funny and likable.

Be sure to get the Ultimate trilogy and the anthology of short adventures, Helios Files while you still can. This post will self-destruct In five seconds.

5... 4... 3... 2... 1...

Oh...

Bummer! A dud! At least the book's aren't. Please comment, what did you think of them. Also, be sure to share this so any Ultimate Agent can get their share of information!

Thanks for reading!

-Alex