Author Interview: C.S. Wachter

I had the wonderful privilege of interviewing C.S. Wachter regarding her author journey and her amazing book series. Read below for her interview and to see if you would like to purchase her book!

What started your writing journey? 

In the spring of 2015 my friend Jan asked me to join her and another neighbor in a small writing group. They both wanted to write memoirs and were practicing by writing short (2-3 page) pieces using story starters. We met weekly and eventually were joined by another neighbor. Every time I read one of my pieces, the others were so encouraging: “You’re so good at this, you should write a book.” So one afternoon I came home from a meeting, sat down in front of my laptop, and started typing: ‘Travis Illk was a seasoned world skipper; he had skipped the lines into and out of all seven worlds of the Ochen system for the better part of fifty years” seemed to come from some internal source. Thus began The Seven Words series. This sentence was changed somewhat and moved to chapter 3, but it still exists in the published version of The Sorcerer’s Bane. Once I started, it became impossible to stop. The Seven Words originally began as a trilogy but grew into the four-book series it is today as the story seemed to take on a life of its own.  

How did you come up with ideas for The Seven Words series?

Wow! How did I come up with the ideas? Like I said above, the whole story poured out of me as though it was a reality elsewhere and I was just recording it. Not to say it didn’t need editing, it did. There was a lot of backstory I needed to cut and extra details that didn’t find their way into the finalized draft. So yes, I am a pantser, not a plotter. Usually by about the half-way point of the book, I begin to see the ending. At that point, I’ve taken the time to write what I call an ‘end worksheet’ which forms the basis for my final (or near to final) chapter(s).

I consider this so awesome that she can sit down and write all of this (her books are more than 300 pages!)

Your characters are so vivid and real. How do you develop them?

As I began writing, the characters took on a life of their own. One character in particular–and if you’ve read The Light Arises (book 2) you’ll know who he is–came out the opposite of what I thought he would be. Before I typed his first words, I imagined him as a strong support for Rayne (my MC). A cousin who would join Rayne on his journey and be a friend. Boy was I wrong. The moment I typed the first words out of his mouth,his hatred of Rayne became apparent and I just went with the flow, letting Brayden be Brayden. Other than that, I’ve used my background as a Performing Arts student to put myself in the role of the character just like I would if I was playing his/her part in a play. Immersed in a given character, I would try to speak from that perspective. I think that helped me to understand each character’s voice.

Why did you choose to write Christian fantasy, rather than regular fantasy?

Christianity is the bedrock of my life. It would be impossible for me to write in a way that didn’t reflect that fact. It’s so much a part of me, that its truths would naturally flow out in the words I write. Words have power; the power to lift up or tear down. This is a major theme in The Seven Words; Rayne as the One’s chosen Light Bringer is called to bring the light of the One to the worlds of Ochen by sharing the Words of the One. Through all four books, he is called to trust and be courageous, and to know he is never alone. These are truths I cling to every day, and the need to share them drives me to write. Frequently in fantasy today, God is shoved aside. We humans will solve our problems without him, even if they are supernatural. Oh, there is a strong demon we must defeat? We’ll call in a stronger demon to help us. We count on help from holy water and crosses (without considering why they might be effective), vampires, werewolves, or any number of other worldly beings. We tiptoe around the fact that God isn’t some far-off, impersonal force. He is personal and active. And so, I wanted to write books where his presence, love, and power were a natural part of the action. I didn’t want to be preachy and just slap my Christianity onto the story; I wanted the reality of God (the One, the Creator-Father) to be woven into the very fabric of the story itself.

I agree with Wachter’s words completely! I feel the same about my own books.

You’ve finished four books in a year, which is quite an accomplishment! What’s coming for 2019?

2019? Well … though The Seven Words series is completed, I am working on a sequel. Something that takes place about three years after the final action of The Seven Words and wraps up a few final loose ends (a response to requests from early readers for more about Rayne and Lexi). I hope to have that out before summer. Then I look forward to working on another project (possibly a two-book series) that I started but left hanging while writing the sequel to The Seven Words.

Go here to purchase the books: https://www.amazon.com/C.-S.-Wachter/e/B079Y2R2PJ/ref=dp_byline_cont_ebooks_1