Welcome to our first interview for this month! We are with this talented author FritztheGrim who penned the story, Tales of the Vangen: The Black Ministry's Betrayal.

Dark Fantasy Team: What was your overall experience while writing this story?

FritztheGrim: I have to admit there was a lot of uncertainty when I first started writing Tales of the Vangen. I would write each chapter from the seat of my pants, mostly on lunch breaks at work, but as the story progressed and I started writing a chapter a week, I began to feel more and more secure in the story, if that makes any sense. I remember when I finished the final chapter and I just sat back staring at THE END I had written on the bottom page thinking, "Holy Cow. I did it. I wrote a book. I completed book." And let me tell you, it was the greatest feeling in the world.

DF: What inspired you to write in Dark Fantasy?

F: A lot of authors who inspired me tended to write Dark Fantasy. Glen Cook. Mark Lawrence. Joe Abercrombie. They tended to focus on the more darker aspects of people, the less noble professions of the world. Mercenaries, Bandits, morally gray characters and the like. I found myself drawn to these types of stories, like there was a certain truth to them that made sense. That the world isn't all black and white, that you can have complex people in stories that might not 100% agree with each other, or even like each other, but have to work together for the same common cause. That, and Dark Fantasy does tend to have some wicked fight scenes, of which I enjoy writing just as much.

DF: How would you describe your main protagonist(s) in one word and why?

F: For Libro it would be naive. Being a young man with an innocent view on life, Libro is forced through out the story to confront some harsh realities about the world he lives in, about his people, about the Empire, and more importantly, about the Empress whom he lovingly serves.

DF: Is there going to be any further series of this book? If yes, give a little teaser about it.

F: My goal is either to make Tales of the Vangen a trilogy, or go even further and make it a series, complete with large rotations of new characters and the retirement (or even deaths) of old characters. Book 2 is currently on Wattpad, although it's incomplete for now. I plan to finish it once Book 1's manuscript has been fully polished. Book 2 features an entire new cast of villains, the ancient and mysterious Stelecasters, who can magically bend and transform metal at their will. It is here the Vangen discover their hand in the Black Ministry's conspiracy to usurp the Empress. And the war continues.

DF: Who is your favourite author in Dark Fantasy and how did they inspire you?

F: Joe Abercrombie is by far my greatest inspiration. I'm always pouring over his books to understand his writing style, how he describes things, how his characters talk to each other. Ever since I took up the author's pen (or keyboard in this case) I've been reading more to understand the author's intent then the actual story itself. Oh, what a curse indeed.

DF: What other genres interests you other than Dark Fantasy? How would you compare them with Dark Fantasy?

F: Crime Noir stories have always been a favorite of mine. Again, it's that dark aspect of humanity that I'm drawn too. That mindscape of the criminal, the washed up private eye or the cop who has a hard time walking the straight and narrow. Grimdark science fiction/science fantasy is also a favorite of mine, such as the Warhammer 40k books. I read a lot of them back in highschool and I can safely say my love for action scenes stems mostly from them.

DF: Tell us about your journey through out writing this story. What inspired you to finish it?

F: The start was very rocky. I had somewhat of an idea on what I wanted to write. Seven soldiers vastly different from each other working together to fight for an evil Empress. It started as a short story and then grew from there. I remember watching the view counter tick slowly by. One view a week. Then five. Then ten. I think it was a good four months before I broke one thousand views. By then I had a schedule. A chapter a week. I think what really inspired me to finish writing the book was from all the amazing comments I was getting from readers, telling me how excited they were for the next chapter. It's really amazing you know, having people excited to read your work. It gave me a surprising amount of inspiration.

DF: Let's assume you are a half breed of Werewolf and Vampire. When a fight breaks in between the two clans, who would you fight for and why?

F: Given my possible unique status as a hybrid, I'd start reconciling with both sides, working from the shadows, tugging at the strings to get the two breeds to put aside their differences and meet together to put an end to the hostilities. Then, once all the leaders were gathered, I'd shut and lock the doors, declare myself the new supreme lord of the night, putting silver and stake to anyone who disagreed with me.

DF: What are the goals you'd like to accomplish in the future whether at Wattpad or in general?

F: I'd like to publish Tales of the Vangen one day. I think it has a lot of potential either in the traditional book sense or as something else entirely. Maybe even an audiobook. That would be pretty grand.

Thank you so much, FritztheGrim, for being with us and agreeing to our interview. Check out the story,  Tales of the Vangen: The Black Ministry's Betrayal to support our author!

- The Dark Fantasy Team