Author Interview: John Gwynne

Author of The Faithful and The Fallen and Bloodsworn Saga

With his last trilogy, the Bloodsworn Saga, John Gwynne has shown he is a force to be reckoned with and one of the most exciting authors in the fantasy genre today. His first release, Malice, won the David Gemmel award and with each book his readership has grown. His vivid battle scenes, memorable characters, and classic themes have found an ever growing swath of devoted fans. He just also happens to be one of the most kind and generous authors that I have the pleasure to know, assuming you don't meet him on the battlefield! We are so excited to be able to bring you this conversation and hope you enjoy John's thoughtful answers and his love for all things fantasy.

Q: If there even is such thing as a traditional path to becoming an author, it seems like yours would be more indirect than most! You have spent time as a musician, in hospitality, refurbishing furniture, and in academia. Is there a thread through all of this that led you to eventually write your first book, and who/what were some of the biggest influences that pushed you to finally start writing?

Author John Gwynne and Courage

You’re not wrong, I did take a serpentine route to being published. The only thread running through my life that eventually helped lead me to writing was my deep passion for reading. And specifically for reading fantasy and historical fiction.

To be honest, there was never any plan to write. Certainly never any thought of being published. It didn’t enter my mind that I had the ability to write a novel, and it only came about through timing, circumstances, and the suggestion of my wife. We are going back here to around 2001/2002. My daughter Harriett was profoundly disabled and lived at home with us – me, my wife Caroline, and our three sons, James, Ed and Will. I was teaching at university, and Caroline ran a vintage furniture business which enabled her to work mostly from home so that she could care for Harriett. Harriett became increasingly unwell and so I took some time off from work to help out at home. Six months turned into a year, which turned into eighteen months, and I realized that I was needed permanently at home, so I stepped out of teaching to help look after Harriett full-time. I mucked in with Caroline’s business, although to be honest, I was not very practical back then. I chatted to Caroline about needing a hobby I could do from home, one that engaged the academic side of my brain, and Caroline suggested writing. I told her not to be ridiculous, I had no idea how to write a book, and was certain that I didn’t have the skills required. My sons James and Ed (Will had only just been born back then) chimed in enthusiastically, so I thought, okay, I’ll give it a go. It might be fun. I sat and brainstormed with them about the type of book I’d like to write, and out of that, the seeds of Malice, my first book, were sown.

So, really right from the beginning, my greatest influences were my family. If you’re talking about literary influences, then I have to mention Tolkien. He was at the heart of my love for reading and fantasy. And Gemmell. I read his first novel, Legend, when I was a teenager, and it was the first book I stayed up all night to finish. And, I must also mention Bernard Cornwell. He writes historical fiction, and his take on the Arthurian legend is one of my favourite series of all time.

Q: You attracted attention pretty quickly with your first book Malice, winning the David Gemmel Award for best debut in 2012. What was your expectation with Malice when it was first released? Did you have an inkling that it could turn into something bigger than a personal exercise in writing a story you were passionate about?

The Faithful and the Fallen Series

I went into publishing naively, not really having much of a clue as to how it worked or what to expect. It took eight years from starting on Malice to getting a publishing deal. The first year or two, I mostly just researched the series and came up with an overall story arc. Then I went back and started writing Malice. It must have taken me about four years to finish the first draft. At this point I still had no serious thoughts of being published, I wrote Malice for my wife, children and possibly, a handful of friends who might be interested in reading it. Then, I did an edit, and around that point Caroline started encouraging me to try and get it published. I bought the Writer’s Handbook, discovered that I would need an agent if I wanted to get published traditionally, and so after a bit more research I submitted Malice to John Jarrold. He took me on as a client, did another editorial pass and then submitted it to the ‘Big 5’ in the UK. To my even greater amazement, I received an offer from Tor UK, an imprint of Pan Macmillan. It was a terrifying and euphorically exciting time.

And as you mention, the following year Malice won the David Gemmell Morningstar Award for best debut fantasy novel. It was like a dream. Gemmell was one of my biggest inspirations, so to win that award, well, it was a dream-come-true moment. To be honest, ALL of this has been a series of dream come true moments. I regularly pinch myself to make sure that this writing for a living malarkey is not all one big dream. I consider myself extremely fortunate that Malice found its way to the right people. My agent, my editor at Tor UK, Julie Crisp. And of course, the amazing readers out there who have taken my made-up characters and worlds to their hearts.

Q: From spending time with you and your family, it is clear that you are extremely close, and family is the most important thing in your life. What has it meant to you to be so supported by your family through this journey of becoming an author, and what roles have they each played in getting you where you are today?

Thank you, Zach, it’s lovely of you to say that. You’re right, family is the most important part of my life. And they have all played a massive part in my life as a writer. As I’ve mentioned already, I wouldn’t even have attempted writing without my wife Caroline prodding me towards having a go. My children have been inspirational to me. They have inspired characters – Drem and Svik to name just a couple – and overall been just so incredibly supportive.

The Gwynne Family

Right from the beginning of my life as a writer, my wife and children have been inextricably involved. Every book event I’ve attended, my family have been there with me – sometimes some of them, sometimes all of them. Every book I write, I chat to them about what I’m doing, what I’m thinking, and they are always so helpful. My sons are my first readers. We all love talking books, talking book-art, talking writing. Books are part of our make-up. Even before I was a writer, stories played such a central role in our family life. Stories at bedtime for the children, reading together, sitting around the table telling each other tales.

And Harriett has been such an inspiration. Her bravery in the face of hardship. Her courage, the love she always managed to share, lighting up a room with her smile. She was incredible. Big-hearted, mischievous, she gave far more to me than I could ever give back to her. And as you know, Harriett died in 2021. Over three years ago now, but it does not feel like that. It has been unimaginably painful for us all. Really beyond words to explain. We have all learned about grief the hard way. It is not a linear thing. You do not go through the stages of grief and come out the other end. There is no getting over it or moving on, not in my experience, anyway. What we have done is slowly, very slowly, learned to live again, despite the pain. Learned to see the good around us worth facing each day for. Family, each other. It’s a different world for us all, now. A world that is less, because Harriett isn’t in it with us. 

Q. Many of your characters endure great losses and hardships. What’s your approach to writing grief and resilience in a way that feels authentic, and how do you decide when to give your characters moments of hope amidst the darkness? How have your own experiences shaped your writing in this area?

I have always tried to write characters and emotions as authentically as I can. It is part of the human experience to feel grief, I think. I have certainly experienced it, though I wish that I hadn’t. I hope that my experience of grief helps me to write it in a way that feels true and honest. And I hope I have written it in a way that will encourage people to hang in there. To try and face each day, sometimes each moment. I have been honoured and blown away by the messages I have received over the last few years, messages sending love and heartfelt sympathies over the loss of my Harriett. But I have also heard from people who have lost loved ones of their own, children of their own. And I have heard from people telling me that my writing has helped them through dark times. This is truly humbling, and the greatest honour. 

Q: There are strong Norse mythology influences in your most recent series The Bloodsworn Saga, as well as nods to the classic British Fantasy greats throughout your writing, at the same time, there is are aspects of your writing that feel firmly modern. What are some of your most important historical and literary influences, and what is your approach to integrating these into a modern fantasy series that somehow feels both nostalgic and relevant at the same time?

The Bloodsworn Saga

I grew up loving epic fantasy and historical epics, and I still love to read this type of fantasy. Lord of the Rings was life-changing for me.  I read David Gemmell’s Legend as a teenager in the 1980s and loved his focus on flawed characters and pacing. Bernard Cornwell is also a huge inspiration to me, and also books like Manda Scott’s Boudicca series. Novels like this will always be part of my inspiration.

When I write, I always start with a historical period. I research that, and also the mythology of that culture. So, for example, with the Bloodsworn Saga I focused on Viking Age Scandinavia, looking at the history and culture, and also at the mythology and source texts. Books like the Poetic Edda and the Icelandic Sagas. This all goes into the worldbuilding pot, and helps me to set the tone and characters. I want to be immersed in that world and hopefully come out with a story that feels historically authentic.

I’m really pleased you think my writing has a modern feel to it, Zach. To be honest, that part of my writing mostly just comes down to a gut feeling. I have a format for beginning the writing process – research, lots of research, and while I’m doing the research, I will be thinking about the worldbuilding, the story arc, the plot and characters, but once I start writing I don’t really have a science or format to it. I have a rough ‘essay plan’ of how the story goes, and then I begin writing. Each scene is really decided by my gut feeling as I’m writing it. All the character/story decisions are made in that way, so I’m pleased that you think my writing feels both nostalgic and modern, but I don’t really know how I do it.

Q: One of the things you are most famous for as an author is your ability to write extremely visceral and realistic battle scenes, placing the reader directly in the middle of the action. It is well known that you have spent time doing Viking battle reenactments and are a force to be reckoned with out on the South Downs. How has your personal experience recreating these battles influenced your writing, and how do you visualize the scenes as you are putting them to paper?

I remember watching Braveheart at the cinema, in 1995 I think, and at the time it felt cutting edge. It breathed new life into a faded genre. It was epic and bold, and the battle scenes felt real and visceral. They stripped the glory out of battle and showed the horror and pain. Like a precursor to the opening scene of Saving Private Ryan. This always stayed with me and played quite an influence upon how I try to write battle scenes, whether they are one-on-one combat or large-scale battles.

Endpapers from Of Blood and Bone - Broken Binding

And yes, I do participate in Viking re-enactment. That is a LOT of fun. Dressing up in historical Viking-age kit – breeches, winnigas leg-wraps, linen undertunic, wool over tunic, and a coat of mail. Then the weapons – spear, sword, axe, and shield. I train with a local re-enactment group and they are extremely knowledgeable. We work on combat technique, starting with spear and shield work, then learning how to use an axe and sword, and how to fight in a shield wall. It’s all great fun, and even better, my sons do it with me. It’s an incredible feeling to be standing in the shield wall, facing your enemies with your sons at your side.

Where Viking re-enactment has helped me to write combat is in the details. I’ve learned so many things that I wouldn’t have known or imagined without participating. Like how difficult it is to get into a coat of mail and how heavy it is. Little tricks to alleviate weight of the mail on your shoulders. How to use a shield as a weapon as well as a defensive tool. I hope that the re-enactment has helped me to add a layer of authenticity to the combat scenes I write.

As for how I visualize a combat scene before or as I’m putting it together, well, usually I do exactly that. I see it in my head before I write it, as if it’s a film. I try and make sure the combat will feel authentic to the period, and also to the personality and skill-set of the character, and then I write it.

Q: After the success of your first two series, which both take place in the same fictional universe, you pivoted to create an original world for your most recent trilogy, The Bloodsworn Saga. Was this an idea you had rolling around in your mind for some time, or did you have to create it from scratch? How you go about outlining such an epic and far-reaching story like that from the start? Is there a particular way you keep track of all the intricate plotlines to help you organize such expansive stories?

Of Blood and Bone Trilogy - Broken Binding

The Bloodsworn Saga came about pretty organically. I’d finished my second series, Of Blood and Bone, which was set in the same world as The Faithful and the Fallen, and I was thinking about my next project. It just seemed like the obvious thing to do. When I think about a writing project, I go to the things I love. For the Faithful and the Fallen my inspiration was my love of Celtic history and mythology.

For the Bloodsworn Saga I went full Norse. I’ve always loved Norse mythology. I remember reading an adaptation of Beowulf when I was maybe nine or ten, and that was my door into Norse mythology. I loved the dynamic of the gods, how they weren’t perfect, how they were devious and self-serving. As I grew older, I read more Viking historical novels, like Frans G. Bergströms The Longships, Bernard Cornwell’s Last Kingdom, Robert Low’s Oathsworn series and many others, and that led to me taking up Viking re-enactment. So, when it came time to think about my next project, I just knew it had to be something Norse-centered.

I set about writing the Bloodsworn Saga in much the same way as I did my other series. I always start with research, into the historical period and the mythology and folklore of the culture. I use this to inform my worldbuilding, and while I’m doing this, I’m working on the broad brushstrokes of a story. Once I have a loose outline and arc for the story, I start thinking about characters and about what kind of character would be most interesting to view the story through.

One other thing I do just before I start writing is I pin a large blank sheet of paper to the wall, and I draw a timeline for each point of view, writing in the events I’ve worked out for that character, and seeing where the arcs will cross paths. Once I get to a certain point with all these factors I start writing, and then a lot of what I’ve plotted goes out the window. But that’s fine.

Q: Within your stories, we often get the unique experience of seeing the perspective of characters that would traditionally not get viewpoints as they are antagonists within the story, even getting to see very important moments and sometimes their demise from their own perspective. What inspired you to give point-of-view chapters to these characters, and how do you approach making them more than one-dimensional villains?

Malice - Grim Oak Press

Right from Malice, I made the choice of including antagonist points of view in my writing, and it’s something that has stuck throughout all my series. I was mindful of staying away from two-dimensional bad guys and felt that the best way to do this was to see things from their perspective. I try to write my characters so that you can understand the logic and rationale behind the decisions they make, even if they are really bad decisions.

In the books I read and films I watch, I always feel more immersed when the bad guy is written well and has an understandable rationale behind their decisions. Take Thanos in the Avengers movies. He’s clearly insane, but his logic does make sense in a twisted kind of way. The ultimate ‘greater good.’ So, that’s what I try to do.

Q: Many of our readers are collectors and you have been approached by small press publishers to do limited editions of your books like The Broken Binding and Grim Oak Press. Can you tell us what your experience has been working with someone like Grim Oak, and what does it mean to you that people are so excited to get your books in these formats? Was this an area you were aware of before you were approached by Grim Oak?

I think special and limited editions are amazing. As a teenager, I remember loving the special editions of The Lord of the Rings, and also anything that featured artwork from fantasy books, so I’ve always loved seeing special editions and artistic interpretations of books. I remember being aware of Grim Oak Press years ago and I would daydream about seeing a Grim Oak version of The Faithful and the Fallen. And now it’s happening. Malice is done and has been published, and right now the internal artwork for Valour is being finalized.

This whole publishing journey has been a sequence of dream-come-true moments, and I am constantly stunned and surprised by what has happened. It is such a thrill to work with passionate publishers and artists. I feel like a kid in a sweetshop when I receive emails from the artists involved, talking over what scenes to turn into illustrations, looking at the artist's drafts and talking about the details. It’s so much fun and really a wonderful experience. And to see the reception that special editions of my books have had, it’s been mind-blowing and incredibly humbling. It is a surreal feeling to see that readers are so excited to add these special editions to their collections.

Marcus Whinney Cover Art for Valor - Grim Oak Press

Q: You metioned your respect for the writing of British greats like Tolkien, David Gemmell and Bernard Cornwell, whose influence can clearly be seen in your writing. Are there any authors or series that have influenced you or moved you in a way that we might be surprised by? Also, what have you enjoyed reading most recently?

You’re right, Gemmell and Tolkien have been huge influences in my writing. But really, there could be so many writers added to that list. I think everyone who I have read and loved has inspired me in some way. Influences come from so many places. I loved reading Dracula for the first time around the age of twelve, I think, and Stephen King’s Salem’s Lot soon after, and It not long after that, so I do have a nostalgic love of creepy horror. James Calvell’s Shogun. Manda Scott’s Boudicca series. I sometimes get asked if Craf – the talking crow in The Faithful and the Fallen – was inspired by Poe’s the Raven. I wish I could say yes, because that would be cooler, but honestly, the reason I put a talking crow into the story is because I loved Arabel’s Raven by Joan Aitken. It’s a children’s book and I remember hearing it read first on BBC1’s Jackanory. Influences come from all directions, and not just books. Films are inspiring to me, too. I’ve mentioned Braveheart already, but there are so many more: The Last of the Mohicans, Spartacus, the Lord of the Rings movies, Conan the Barbarian, Ladyhawke, just too many to mention.

After Harriett died, I stopped reading for a good long while, and even now my concentration isn’t what it was. But I have started reading again, and whilst I haven’t read many books over the last year, the ones I’ve read have been fantastic. Arthur, by Glies Kristian. The Outsider by Stephen King. Empire of the Damned by Jay Kristoff, and The Daughter’s War by Christopher Buehlman. All of them brilliant and five-star reads for me.

Q: How do you hope your work will be remembered within the fantasy genre? Do you aim to leave a particular legacy or message behind through your stories?

Of Blood and Bone Sprayed Edges - Broken Binding

That’s a great question. First and foremost, I write to entertain. When I started writing Malice as a hobby back in 2002, I was inspired by my love of fantasy, mythology and history, but my focus was trying to write a story that would move my readers emotionally (all four or five of them, back then). That’s what I used to love about reading. Being transported from my world into another place, where I felt what the characters were going through, where I cared deeply about what happened to them. That’s always the feeling I’m chasing when I write.

But I think there’s more in your question, and if entertainment is the only factor to writing, then it can become a little forgettable over time. A little bit popcorn. I do try to include issues that are important to me. Family values are important to me, and they will always be featured in my writing. The importance of truth and courage, of love and kindness. My teaching background before I became a writer was sociology, so issues of equality are always high in my mind. Threads about race, class and gender will always appear in my books. I don’t see writing as a platform to preach my personal values from, as I said, I write first and foremost to entertain, and I hope that my books will be remembered as something that swept a reader up on an emotional journey, but if I can add a little bit more to the mix, perhaps leave people thinking about the importance of family and friendship, and of equality, then I don’t think that’s a bad thing, either.

Q: There is a common refrain in your books “Truth and Courage,” and it seems to be somewhat of a mantra for you, even outside of your writing. What does this phrase mean to you, and how does it serve as a compass for your everyday life?

Yes, it’s funny how things grow, and it's interesting to look back on my writing and see what has stuck and resonated with readers. When I wrote Malice, my intended and only audience was my wife and my children, and for my children, I wanted to try and leave them something that contained my personal values on life. I wanted a saying that summed it up. The original inspiration to do this came from the film Gladiator. Russel Crowe’s Strength and Honour. But that didn’t quite sum up what I wanted. I think honesty is fundamental and so important. Honesty with yourself as well as others. It impacts so much, including our mental health, so I settled on truth. And I think courage is misunderstood. It’s not something that you either have or do not have. Courage is a choice, born out of fear. It’s about choosing to face and overcome your fear; not let it rule you. Courage shouldn’t be equated with ‘winning.’ It is more about facing something. Seeing it through. And, of course, none of us are perfect, we all fall short of even our own standards, and there’s no judgment for that. For me, it’s more about the trying. Trying to live a truthful and courageous life. So, that is where Truth and Courage came from.

Q: Do you ever see yourself returning to the world of The Faithful and The Fallen or Bloodsworn in the future? What’s next for you in the publishing world, and are there any dream projects you have thought about but haven’t come to fruition yet?

Map of The Banished Lands

I would love to. I’d like to say definitely, but I don’t want to make that promise yet. Really, it just comes down to my time management. I sat down with my wife and boys the other day, and just chatted through book ideas I have been ruminating on, and afterwards Will told me he’d written it down and it was a twelve-book plan over six years. I’m laughing now just thinking about it. I’m not sure that’s realistic for me, but who knows? If I do stick to that plan, then we will definitely see something else taking place in the Banished Lands, and also something else with the Bloodsworn at its heart. But plans change, so I’m not making any promises.

Right now, I am working on a new project. I’ve signed a contract with my excellent publishers, Orbit. The research is done. I’m just going over my notes and putting the story together, working on the characters and writing should begin imminently. It is working to my usual template. Taking a historical period and a world mythology as the starting point. I can’t say too much more about it, as I think my publishers will want to do some kind of announcement for it soon. All I can say is that I am really excited about it and can’t wait to get writing.

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This interview was done in a series of communications back and forth and I want to give a special thanks to John who was so gracious to participate in this interview. If you want to get more information on his books and latest news, you can also follow him on Instagram or check out his website. There is also some really great merch related to his books that you can check out here.

Interview by: Zach Harney, co-founder of the Collectible Book Vault