Timothy Metivier was born in Madison, Wisconsin and grew up in Buffalo, New York. He enjoys the cold weather so much that he went to college at Colgate University in upstate New York before returning to Madison for his MA in Classics from the University of Wisconsin. He runs competitively as part of the Bergen Elite Running Club and also enjoys playing racquet sports of all kinds.
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Tell us a little about yourself.
I’m a bit of a fitness junkie/sports nut. I love playing pretty much all sports, but my favorites are football (American), soccer, and tennis. I was a D1 athlete in track and field and I’ve continued to run competitively after college. I’ve bounced around between a few programs and currently race for the Bergen Elite Running Club in Upstate New York. I also coach track and field at my alma mater high school and am hoping to soon make the jump to the collegiate level.
When did you start writing?
Oh, boy. You’ve got to go back to elementary school for that one, scribbling nonsense in the back of a spiral notebook when I was bored in class. That was the first seed, and it grew in fits and starts for a while. Then I basically abandoned it when I was in high school, only to go back in college when—again—I was really bored and needed something to keep me from going crazy. I wasn’t really planning on it coming to anything, but the project built its own momentum to the point where I realized I might as well see where it took me. My first novel (Veil of Darkness) came out in April 2015 with the second (Chains of Mist) due for release November 2015, and hopefully at least three more to come.
Is there an author or book that influenced you in any way?
I think the first ‘grown-up’ book I ever read was Sword of Shannara by Terry Brooks. So that definitely played a big role in getting me into the fantasy genre. But actually the author who probably influenced me the most was Jude Watson, who wrote a series of youth Star Wars novels (Jedi Apprentice series) right after Phantom Menace came out. Since I was about 10 years old and a huge Star Wars fan at the time, I was immediately hooked. I actually wrote her a letter as part of a school project—and got a reply! It was very cool.
Where do your ideas come from?
Pretty much every time I read a new book (or an old one), I’m looking for things that I can work into my work. That applies to movies and even some video games as well—I’ve gotten some really good ideas from the Mass Effect series. Of course, this occasionally makes it hard for me to settle into a book, because every few pages I’ll stop and think ‘wow, that’s a good idea/character development/whatever’ and then jot down a note for later. But you never know when inspiration will strike!
Is there anything in Veil of Darkness based on real-life experience or is it purely imagination?
I don’t think so. I can’t say that with 100% certainty—life experiences and personal values tend to bleed into a person’s writing to some degree no matter how you try to avoid it—but I don’t start out specifically trying to do it.
What was your favorite part to write?
I enjoy writing action sequences, especially ones that are small and personal (huge battle scenes like in LOTR are trickier and not as fun, because the grandness of the setting often takes away from the personal aspect of the participants’ internal and external struggle for survival). The last 50 pages or so of Veil involves a raid on an enemy fortress, and I got a chance to write a bunch of those small, individual battles, taking a look at the action through the eyes of each character at least once. I had a lot of fun with it and (in my admittedly biased opinion) I think it turned out pretty well.
If you could go back and do it all over again, is there anything you would change about Veil of Darkness?
Oh, yes. Several things. One of the problems with writing a book series that had been percolating in the back of my mind for almost a decade is that I became attached to certain characters/events/ideas because they were in earlier drafts, even after it became obvious that they had no place in the current version. I guess if I had to single out one change I would move the spotlight a little bit away from my Tellaria storyline and give Roger more page time throughout the first two books. He was a minor character in earlier drafts, and by the time I realized that his story was the more interesting it was too late to go back. But I do plan to atone for that mistake in the remaining books of the series.
What are you working on now?
Book 3 of the Chalas Peruvas, of course! But I’m also doing a fair amount of worldbuilding/groundwork for two other potential large-scale writing projects. One is your basic swords-and-sorcery epic fantasy, the other is a more free-form, character-driven science fiction saga.
Now that you are published, what’s been some of the hardest criticism you’ve dealt with? Best compliment?
At the moment I’m not really wide-spread enough to have faced much criticism (or received many compliments). I guess the toughest thing is just trying to get exposure. With some 500,000 new books published each year, it’s very difficult to make yours stand out. I’m still learning about social media marketing and other techniques.
Any advice you’d like to share with aspiring writers?
Never give up. But also don’t expect it to be easy all the time (or even most of the time!) There will be hard times, there will be setbacks, there will be times when you’re feeling so overwhelmed that you never want to write another word for the rest of your life. They’ll pass. Trust me, they’ll pass. And that feeling of success when a scene comes together perfectly is sweet enough to make it all worth it.
Anything you’d like to say to your fans?
Check out my website www.tcmetivier.com for excerpts and purchasing information for both of the first two books.
Now for a few fun questions…
Favorite color?
Silver
Favorite movie?
Favorite TV show?
Favorite place to write?
At my desk at home. Boring, I know, but I’m a rhythm writer and I have a hard time getting in the ‘zone’ in different environments.
If you had to choose just one book, what would it be and why?
Ender’s Game. Really crisp writing with keen insight into the human psyche, and of course the twist at the end is a classic.
Last question and possibility the most important…what brand of cereal best describes you and why?
Well, that is an odd question! Um, I don’t know. I like Cheerios. And I’m a cheery person. That’s the best I can do.
Don’t Miss Veil of Darkness, Available Now!
Veil of Darkness by T.C. Metivier Series: Chalas Peruvas,
Published by Self Publish on 2015-04-01
Length: 298 pages
For eight hundred years, the Federation of Worlds has reigned supreme over the galaxy. Under its banner, eleven sentient races have put aside their quarrels to work towards their common prosperity. But now something stirs. A hundred worlds have broken free from the Federation fold. They have made no demands, no threats. There is no evidence that their movement is anything but benign.
And yet the whispers have already begun. Whispers that the fires of revolution have been stoked. Whispers that war is coming.
The planet Tellaria is the birthplace of the human race and the backbone of the Federation. Admiral Drogni Ortega leads the finest planetary fighting force the galaxy has ever known. But now he must confront an enemy unlike any he has faced before, a foe who wields ancient power infused with infinite malevolence…and is seemingly determined to exterminate all life from the face of the galaxy.
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