Michael, thanks for doing this interview.
First question: Your new book, Paladin Pawn has a lot of chess references,
which I love. Were you a good chess player in middle school or did you get
crushed most of the time?
Haha, I was all right. Not
exactly grand-master material, but I did play often with my brothers and
friends. I often won or at least got my opponent to a stalemate. We even had
this intense version called “Nightmare Chess” where you each had a hand of
cards that gave your pieces special powers.
What gave you the idea for Paladin's Pawn? How long has this
book been playing out on the board in your mind?
Some of the ideas from the
book have been playing around in my head since about Junior High, but I didn’t
actually try to put any of them down until I was in college. It’s a good thing
too, because I’m a much better writer now than I was then. It comes from
growing up loving stories about knights and acting them out with my siblings.
How much does the main character in Paladin's Pawn resemble
yourself? What is the most similar thing to you in the character, and what is
the least similar thing?
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| Paladin's Pawn Author Michael D. Young |
Very much like the main
character, Rich, I got picked on a lot when I was in Junior High. I was
studious, had thick glasses and liked thick fantasy novels. Unlike Rich, I’m
not good with putting together with my hands, especially the little models he
works on. I’d probably have wasted a bunch of money on those things, because
I’d have been breaking them all the time.
If you were a chess piece, which one would you be, and which
chess piece do you most like to kill whenever you're playing?
I’ve always liked the
straight-forwardness of the Rook, and its ability to “castle”. I think though
I’m more like a “bishop”, kind of the spiritual/intellectual kind of guy. And I
just played a bishop last summer in Les Miserables, so I’m definitely going to
have to go with bishop. I like to take out knights when I’m playing, because
they can be difficult to watch for at times, because of their erratic movements
and ability to jump over other pieces.
When you were writing this book was there a moment when you
finished some part and yelled "Checkmate!" If not, how did you feel
when you finished the first draft?
Oh, I should have done
that! Maybe when I’m done with the next book in the series. In many ways, I
felt like finally finishing something I’d been mulling over in my mind since I
was the age of my protagonist, so, yes, it felt pretty great. To quote a famous
fictional knight, I had “reached the unreachable stars”.
Optional question: No big spoilers, but what was your
favorite scene to write in Paladin's Pawn?
There’s a scene where Rich
is introducing his guide from the Middle Ages to the wonders of chocolate milk.
Medieval mind blown.
Synopsis of the Middle Grade Fantasy (Trifecta Books), Paladin's Pawn by Michael D. Young
When nerdy Rich Witz
unwittingly becomes a Paladin, a white knight, in training, he is thrust into a
world where flunking a test can change the course of history and a mysterious
bully is playing for keeps with his life.
Rich’s grandmother leaves him with one thing before disappearing for good: a white chess pawn with his initials engraved on it. The pawn marks him as the next in an ancient line of white knights. He must prove himself in a life or death contest against his Nemesis, a dark knight in training, all while dealing with math homework and English projects. With the ghost of an ancestor for his guide, he has seven days to complete four tasks of valor before his Nemesis does, or join his guide in the realm of the dead.
As Rich rushes to complete the tasks, he realizes the chilling truth: his Nemesis is masquerading as someone at school and will stop at nothing to make him fail. As the tasks grow ever harder, the other knights reveal to him that his failure will break a centuries-old chain and bring the Paladin order to ruin. If he fails, the dark knights win the right to control the fate of the world, a world without hope or the possibility of a new dawn. So this is one exam Rich has to ace, with no curve and no extra credit.
Author Bio:
Michael is a graduate
of Brigham Young University and Western Governor’s University with degrees in
German Teaching, Music, and Instructional Design. He puts his German to good
use teaching online German courses for High School students. Though he grew up
traveling the world with his military father, he now lives in Utah with his
wife, Jen, and his two sons. Michael enjoys acting in community theater,
playing and writing music and spending time with his family. He played for
several years with the handbell choir Bells on Temple Square and is now a
member of the Mormon Tabernacle Choir.
He is the author of the novels The
Canticle Kingdom Series, The Last Archangel Series, and the Chess Quest
Series. His also authors several
web serials through BigWorldNetwork.com. He publishes anthologies for charity
in his Advent Anthologies series. He has also had work featured in various
online and print magazines such as Bards and Sages Quarterly, Mindflights,
Meridian, The New Era, Allegory, and Ensign.
Follow Michael . . .
Twitter:
http://www.twitter.com/mdybyu
