Tell our readers briefly about yourself.
The writer of fantasy and military fiction, Lyman Rate is from Kansas and is glad to be here today. His passion for writing, creating worlds and stories is shown throughout his books and in his free time, he creates light displays that are timed to music.
What books do you have available?
Wizards’ War book one of the Beacon Series, Operation: Jaguar book one of the Ghost One Series, Code of Deceit book two of the Ghost One Series
Can you tell us about your most recent release?
Latest release is Wizards’ War which has taken over five years to get to this point. The first book is about a young man who finds himself unexpectantly a part of a war between two wizards. He becomes the messenger for the council and this changes his life entirely.
Do you stay in one genre when you write or do you find yourself veering toward others? I started with military fiction as I am an army veteran. I had no plans to write fantasy until I needed some teeth worked on and got the laughing gas. That gave me an idea and I ran with it.
Are you a panster, planner, or someone in between?
I’m more a pantser than planner. I like having a plan or outline, but I am easily taken in other directions if the story or characters want it.
What is your writing routine like?
I like to write for one hour each night if I can. I usually do this after work and getting dinner. Then I’ll relax and then get some sleep.
Tell me about your favorite character that you’ve created?
By far one that resonates with me the most would be O’garis because of how he is. I love food, he loves food, he’s portly and jolly and I’m jolly and not exactly skinny.
Where do you get your ideas for world building?
I love the early medieval time period but I also love to use other time periods if I can make them fit. A lot of the ideas come from my love of nature and being out in nature.
Do you add romance to your writing?
I do, but I don’t like it to be the focal point. It adds to the entire story line, but it’s not the driving force.
What was your favorite scene to create?
Favorite scene is also my saddest scene and it really shows the emotion between Harsohn and his horse and their connection to each other.
Where do you get character inspiration?
I love getting inspiration from people around me. My characters also have a bit of me in them which allows me to really let them be themselves. I also love to use unique names of people I’ve met and I will ask them for permission to use their names. Most of the time they are okay with it, but sometimes, not.
What genre do you prefer to read?
I love to read anything but the super sappy or erotic types of books. I love to keep myself busy with different genres because everyone has a story to tell and I might find inspiration from a genre I least expected.
Do you have any specific authors you follow and try to craft your work after?
I love Robert Jordan, Andy Peloquin, Seth Ring, Kelly Blanchard Dale, Katie Cherry, Brandon Sanderson, and J.R.R Tolkien. I mention all of them because I have truly enjoyed all of their books that they have written. I do write more in a mixed style of Tolkien and Jordan with a bit of Brandon Sanderson thrown in. I can be a bit descriptive but it all balances out.
Do you have any recurring themes in your book?
Dragons, magic, swords, fights, and I’m not afraid to unalive one of my darlings. Sorry readers, I will unalive one if I feel it fits the story and the time.
What does your editing process look like?
Hectic but yet methodical. When I finish with a first draft, I will let it rest without looking at things for one week. Then I will print it out, go through page by page and the first thing I check is spelling and that is with blue ink. Next is punctuation which is done in red. Last is plot issues which is done with a green pen. Then I go back in and work on it on the computer. From that point I use the speech to text function in Word to hear the story. I have caught quite a few things that way.
Do you have a preferred drink or snack that you eat/drink while writing?
I am a guy who loves his coffee, an energy drink every now and then, and will drink diet coke or water the rest of the time. As for snacks, beef jerky or crackers and cheese.
When is your favorite time of day to write and why?
With the new schedule with work, I now have evenings free so that has become my favorite time to write. But, if I truly had a preference it would be overnight as there are almost no distractions, it’s dark, no traffic, no activity outside and I can just focus.
What is your favorite vacation spot?
That’s a tough one, but if I had to pick it would be something fun and unique. The last one I went to was an old jail that was turned into an AirBnB. Those kinds of things are fun because they are creative and I may gain ideas out of them.
Marvel or DC?
Do you have a favorite character? This is a hard one and I have characters from both that I really love. I can’t pick one over the other.
What hobbies do you have?
I run a podcast called That Writer Guy Podcast that’s on all major platforms, I animate christmas lights to music for the holidays, and I love to do nature photography when I have time.
What is something your readers don’t know about you or something unique about yourself?
I can play all the brass instruments and I have been classically trained in voice since the 4th grade.
What defines success for you as an author?
Success means so many things to so many different people. To me, success as an author is creating worlds and words that others will enjoy to read. If I can get one person to read my book and enjoy it, then I have done exactly that.
What is your work space like?
It’s small. My office space is also where I work since I work from home so I have two monitors for my work computer and then 2 for my personal computer. I have lots of dragon figurines and trinkets around my office to help me with my thoughts of fantasy writing, but it’s cozy. The summers it’s cold, almost too cold and winter time, almost too warm.
Do you have a selfcare routine that you follow?
I honestly don’t which is sad, but it’s true. The only thing that I really do is try and write every single day for one hour. I don’t usually eat breakfast unless I’m hungry and I usually get 4-5 hours of sleep per night. I should do better, but it’s just something I’m used to.
What advice would you share with new or aspiring authors?
Don’t be afraid to write. It’s not going to hurt you or bite you if you do. If you feel you have a story, write it. If you are afraid someone my not like what you write, they are one person out of billions in this world. Someone, somewhere, in some form or fashion most likely will read what you write. But, you have to write it.
Where can our readers find you?
I am on Facebook as Lyman’s Words and Worldsand also Twitter. I’m mustering the courage to expand to Instagram and tik tok but not yet.
Wizards’ War