The Descendant by Jason Gabriel

Tanyl is an elf who has lived in solitude for over five hundred years. He is consumed by burning hatred for humans. He is called back to the elven kingdom and given a terrible and dangerous mission. To succeed, he must quell his anger and work with those he hates most in this world. If he fails, the world will burn.

Auriane is a soldier of the Alliance. She has lost everything and everyone important in her life. She is a ravaged soul who teeters on the edge of a black abyss. She joins an elite group of Alliance Soldiers. She soon realizes, the blackness in her own soul, is more dangerous than the mission.

Brandt’s life is over. His wife has left him for another man. His career as a lowly soldier is about to end. To make matters worse, he can’t remember how he ended up in a damp cell beneath the city. He thought his life could not get worse. He was wrong.

An ancient and powerful enemy has returned. It seeks the blue shard and the descendant who can use it.

Tanyl, Brandt and Auriane become chess pieces in a hidden war with ancient evil. Each of them is damaged in their own way. Can they overcome their inner demons and find the strength to confront a terrible enemy?

Join them as the hunt for the descendant begins.

Targeted Age Group:: 15 to 75

What Inspired You to Write Your Book?
I've been writing Fantasy and SciFi books for a very long time. Any writer will tell you, it's a very personal process. For me, it's always generated a tremendous amount of anxiety and trepidation. I remember a story, can't remember where I saw it, but Stephen King actually threw an early draft of "Carrie" in the garbage because he thought that's where it belongs. His wife fished it out of the trash and thought it was great. The rest is history. I'm not sure it's a true story, but it describes perfectly what I go through with everything I write. I've always worried, that it's not good enough, and nobody would ever want to read it.

One day, I set aside my fear and shared some of my latest writing with a group of individuals who read this genre.

They loved it, so here it is!

I hope you enjoy it.

How Did You Come up With Your Characters?
Good question. I start with a rough framework. Male/female,age, appearance etc…
I then try to create a clear definition of the one thing they desire most. That desire is what then becomes the core of the character, around which I add things like personality, quirks, humor (or lack of humor) etc…

Voice is a big one for me. I really focus on making sure all my characters have a unique personality, pattern of speech, perspective, dislikes etc… All my characters must be different. That rule is “set in stone” for me.

I'm also leveraging decades of my own personal experiences. I "generally" stay away from stuff for which I have no experience. I say "generally" because clearly I have no experience fighting demons or dragons, but I think the idea is pretty basic.

Another rule "written in stone" is no character gets a perspective unless they are somehow changing. That's why I stayed away from doing an antagonist. In this book they aren't changing. As an example, in LOTR, nobody knows what Sauron is thinking. He's not going to have a change of heart and decide to start gardening with Sam. Thus, he get's no perspective. I want to do an antagonist soon, and I've got a structure for it in mind, but I'm saving it for next time.