Featured Artist Friday: Frank Luke

Today I welcome Frank Luke to the blog to talk about his writing journey. Also, don't miss the giveaway at the end! Mr. Luke is giving away two e-versions of his book (your choice of epub, mobi, or pdf)!

He played the flute while his wife lay dying because she wanted to hear her favorite hymn one last time.

Derke, a blessed man and a prophet, loses his wife, his family, and his faith in a single day of disasters. Enraged at the Father, he embraced the tool of their oldest enemy--black magic. Derke decided to bring his family back from the dead.

But there's more to being a necromancer than just making skeletons walk again. Derke can't just go by rote; he has to give himself to the magic to regain his family. If he does, though, how much of himself will he lose?

In a world where God's children thrive but so do dark forces of magic and evil, this promises to be a binding tale for any who have ever had to face troubles of their own making. Derke's painful journey takes him through the darkness of death into the brightness of Rebirths! 

1. Why did you choose to write in this genre?
2. Fantasy stories can hit the reader where it matters most. Christian fantasy adds a needed spiritual element. Tolkien was unabashedly Catholic, and he whispered it throughout his work. He never shouted. The whole Middle Earth is shaped by Christendom. Personally, it's more a question of not being able to avoid writing in this genre.

Is anyone else in your family musical/artistic/writers? Describe your family members’ artistic interests and abilities.We've had a couple of Southern Gospel bands come out of the family and a cousin of mine sculpts. He was studying to be a make up artist before he decided sculpting is where it's at for him. He's good at both.Which authors do you admire? Why?C.S. Lewis, G.K. Chesterton, and John C. Wright. Those authors are unable to write something boring. They bring a classical light on the modern world that lays bare its problems and errors. Another of my must-read authors is Lars Walker. He writes about the societal upheaval when a new faith is coming in and the old faith is faltering. The Norse books show how Christianity came into a land. The modern settings show how the world looks when the foundation of western civilization is removed. I can't speak highly enough of Death's Doors. I howled when he named the euthanasia clinics “Happy Endings.”Please describe your process for writing/completing a novel.Once I get an idea for a story (and those come from anywhere), I write down where the story begins and where it ends. I need both places. Then I plot to the main events, the turning points and disasters. As I go, I divide it up into chapters and scenes with a brief description of what will happen. That's the broad strokes, but every work is a little different.What is your favorite thing you have written? Why?Many authors will say their most recent work is their favorite. I've written several short stories and even published some of them since Rebirths, but Rebirths is still my favorite. I love Derke's character arc. Every one of us goes through dark times, but we don't always deal with them well. Derke goes through some of the worst things I could imagine and grows from it. He doesn't stop with being redeemed, though. He keeps growing even after that.Who has been the biggest influence on your writing? Why?CS Lewis. Someone said about Rebirths that it is like CS Lewis wrote a novel for Elder Scrolls. I've never played that, but I like the comparison. I have wanted to write my entire life, both fiction and nonfiction. CS Lewis did that well.What is something (book, short story, poem, paragraph, sentence) that you wish YOU had written, and why?John C. Wright's Somewhither. I've thought about alternate dimensions and parallel histories before, but never written on it because I couldn't figure out how to make it work well theologically. Mr. Wright not only figured how the theology behind it worked, but he pulled it off like no other. Imagine a timeline where the tower of Babel was completed and now it's trying to take over all the other timelines. An awesome idea!Can you pick a favorite character from your book or series? Why is that character your favorite? My Favorite character is Father Phaeus. I love that dwarven priest. He looks at life differently than the other characters and usually has such witty and wry observations. One thing about Phaeus is he came to mind clean shaven. Shocking for a dwarf, I know. The reason is that he's a priest and dwarves are proud of their beards. Therefore, dwarven priests shave their beards in humility.What do you do when you’re NOT writing? (hobbies, things you do for fun, your day-job, etc?)In my day job, I'm a programmer for a major manufacturing firm. I build web apps that the different departments and dealers use. I'm also an associate pastor and Royal Rangers Outpost Commander for the church.Are you working on anything new, and would you be willing to tell us about it?I'm plotting the sequel to Rebirths right now. I call it Weavings. It will be three novellas linked and each will have a vignette introducing it. The vignette shows an event in the past while the corresponding novella shows how those actions are coming to fruition in the present. I had a lot of trouble with Weavings at first because I kept thinking of it as Derke's second story. It's not. It's Syantere's arc. She's the focal character of all the novellas even though Derke is the point of view character.On a lighter note:What is your favorite flavor of ice cream? Neapolitan. It's a little bit of everything.Favorite season? Why? Spring. Not too hot and no snow. The no snow part is important. I spend many hours a year shoveling snow in Iowa. It gets old faster than anything I've ever seen.Favorite hot beverage? White chocolate cappuccino. I actually have asked my wife not to get that for me because I drink it very fast.Favorite song? (or, if that’s too hard, favorite band/musician… or genre?) If I'm listening to something modern, I like Apologetix. But sometimes, I get into western kicks and have to fire up Marty Robbins. (I love Marty Robbins! Grew up listening to my Daddy sing his songs)The best pizza you’ve ever had was from….? Ken's Pizza, a small chain in Texas, Oklahoma, and places around that you almost can't find anymore.How many siblings do you have? Two sisters, both younger. Thanks for coming and being part of Featured Artist Fridays! Don't forget to enter the giveaway to win a copy of Rebirths!a Rafflecopter giveaway