#AuThorsday with Paul Anthony Williams

Today I’d like to welcome Paul Anthony Williams, dark fantasy author of Behind These Walls and poet behind A Clown’s Journey. 

Can you give us your quickest description of your book?

Dark humour and chilling for my fantasy fiction and life telling for my poetry.

That’s quite the difference in range. Do you prefer one to the other, or does it depend on your mood at the time?

I have always enjoyed writing fantasy, but I also have a fondness towards poetry as that is what I started with.  I would have to say it depends on my mood at the time.

What are you currently working on?

I am currently working on several projects which include a third poetry book, a spy thriller titled A Death In Paris, a trilogy of books dealing with a serial killer, a final book in my current fantasy series.

Wow, busy.  Do you have to work to get in the right mindset/feel for each work?  How do you keep them straight?

I have a kind of schedule in my head on what project to home in on and focus upon, before moving onto the next one.

Who inspires me to write?

I have always enjoyed writing…but the biggest inspiration would have to be Stephen King. Since I first read The Dark Half, I knew that I wanted to be a writer.

I’m a fan of King as well.  What is it about his writing that you like the most, and do you learn from his writing and apply it to your own?

What I like about King is that he can describe a scene and whilst the main narrative is busy doing it’s job, he is able to bring the things in the background out into the eyes of the reader.  I try to learn from his writing and as a writer I believe we are all still learning with every book we write, it’s a journey….a long journey.

In a perfect world where you could cast your book for a movie – who would you pick for your main characters?

I would have to say the following actors/actresses…
Tom Huddleston, Benedict Cumberbatch, Emily Blunt, Ben Kingsley, Jeremy Irons, Ann Hathaway

Great selections! For those who’ve read your work, who would be what character?

For my current book Behind These Walls, I would say the following:

Tom Huddleston: Karl
Benedict Cumberbatch: Hal (The Dark Poet)
Emily Blunt: Michelle Banks
Ben Kingsley: The Warden
Jeremy Irons: Sam Mallows
Ann Hathaway: Kirsten

Do you use your personal experiences in your writing?

Apart from my two poetry books which deal with aspects of my personal life, I have used locations and characteristics of my characters in my fantasy and fiction books which have also flickers of my past within them.

So many writers find drawing from real life to be cathartic, in a way. In your poetry, do you get a sense of that? And for your fiction books is it something you do on purpose or do you find that your characters sometimes take after you?

Yes, I believe I offer a full range of my emotions within my poetry.  With my fiction books I think I do sprinkle some of my personal emotions within them, and also I believe my characters sometimes take bits of me, as they are born from the voices in my head and then take form upon the page as I write.

Thanks, Paul, for sharing!

WHERE TO FIND Paul Anthony Williams:
Amazon Page:  P.A. Williams
Facebook:  Paul Anthony Williams Author