Every now and then, I have the pleasure of welcoming another indie-author to my blog as a guest. Today, I am excited to introduce all of my readers to Jared Barlament, author of The Agony of an Age.

• What is your name and where do you call home? My name is Jared Barlament, and I reside in the midwestern United States.
• Do you have a pen name? I like to fashion my name as J. W. Barlament, because J. W. just sounds so much more formal and classical than Jared does. I don’t bother with any pseudonyms, though, because I don’t see the need for me to hide my identity like a secretive superhero.
• What is the name of your most recent book and if you had to sum it up in 20 or fewer words, what would you say? The title of my most recent book is The Agony of an Age. It’s an immense fantasy saga that tells three interwoven tales of power, warfare and incessant torment.
• Is the above book part of a series? Indeed it is. The first book in the series, The Plight of a People, was published on October 16th of 2017. The aforementioned successor is coming this October 16th of this year, and I hope to have the final novel out on October 16th of next year.
• What or who inspired you to start writing? And how long have you been writing? I’m still making my way through high school, so I haven’t had as much time to develop my craft as others. I’ve been writing creatively for as long as I’ve been able to, though. Ever since early childhood, I have always been able to feel a thunderous need within me to write down the ideas inside my mind.

How did you come up with the cover? Who designed the cover of your book(s)? Originally, my covers were going to be far more elaborate, but I was wary of hiring anyone. My sister, who is excellent at that sort of thing, volunteered to do the first book’s cover. She wasn’t entirely reliable, though, so my girlfriend ended up teaching herself Photoshop just to make my covers for me. If that isn’t dedication, I’m not sure what is.

• Did you listen to any particular songs while writing your book(s)? Typically, I listen to classic rock or jazz, but writing has made me appreciate classical music so much more than I used to. Nowadays, I listen to a wide variety of classical while I write, but Tchaikovsky and Holst have always been my favorites.
• How did you come up with the title for your book(s)? My first book’s title was its working title for a long time, and I figured it was unique enough to keep. Turns out, people weren’t fans of it, so I attempted to make the second book’s title much snappier within the same format.
• Do you have a book trailer? If so, where can we watch it? As much as I would love to display great armies of men, beasts and deities battling to the death, I’m not quite that good with a computer.
• Do you prefer e-books, paperbacks, hard-covers or audio-books? For reading, I definitely prefer hardcovers. They have a more classic vibe to them, and they’re certainly much less flimsy than a paperback. I tend to zone out on audiobooks, and my eyes just can’t take the monotonous screen gazing necessary for an e-book.
• Are you a self-published/Indie author? That I am. I attempted to get into the traditional industry for my first book, but I quickly found it to be a soul-sucking process. Thus, I chose to go my own way.
• If you’re a self-published/Indie author what made you go that route instead of the traditional publishing route? In addition to the reason listed above, I also enjoy the freedom of it all. I get to choose how much I make off of each book. I decide how to edit. I decide what the cover will look like. It’s certainly a big bonus to have that kind of creative control.
• Have you ever read a book more than once? And if so what was it? I read The Art of War a few times before realizing that I would be reading it and forgetting its material until death if I didn’t take notes. Since then, I have taken notes on the content and notable quotes of every book I read. Hopefully, this will prevent me from having to read anything else a second time.
• What is your opinion of novellas? They aren’t my cup of tea, but to each their own.
• Have you ever read a book just based on its cover? I can’t say that I have. I have picked up books based on their covers, but I always read the back cover and take a peek inside before I decide to buy.
• What is your favorite film based on a book? Without a doubt, Jaws. Very few films are even as good as the books they’re based off of. However, the film version of Jaws is vastly superior to its literary counterpart. There’s a reason barely anyone knows it was originally a book anymore.
• What is your favorite book genre at the moment? Classic literature, hands down. There’s just something so aesthetic and downright magnetic about reading a story written in a faint period of the distant past.
• What books have made it onto your wish list recently? And why? I don’t have a wish list at the moment, because I have a massive pile of books on my nightstand waiting to be read. Thus, I have sworn to hold off on getting any others until those are done.
• What book are you reading at the moment? And in what format? I just began The Divine Comedy in a beautifully decorated hardcover format.
• If you could invite any four (4) celebrities (alive or dead) to your dinner party, who would you invite and why? I don’t care much for today’s celebrities, but there are plenty of historical figures I would love to have for dinner. A grouping of Baruch Spinoza, David Hume, Carl Jung and Friedrich Nietzche would certainly make for an interesting discussion.
• What’s the best advice that you have been given when it comes to writing? Self-discipline is key. Anyone can begin to write a book, but very few people can ever finish one. Being overly harsh on yourself will do no good, though. The goal is to keep your mind under your control and prevent it from being seized by distractions.
• Do you have any hobbies that aren’t related to reading & writing? You know, I never realized how much my life revolves around those two activities until I came across this question. I do enjoy taking spontaneous walks in nature, as well as biking, drumming, and map-making.
• Where can your readers follow you? I do believe that’s what the links below are for. I would especially recommend checking out my website. It is there that I post a whole host of intriguing articles on political, philosophical, spiritual and societal topics.
  Blog: https://jwbarlament.wixsite.com/anindividualmind
  Goodreads author page: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/17243214.J_W_Barlament
  Twitter: https://twitter.com/anindivmind
  Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/J.-W.-Barlament/e/B076J36J31/ref=dp_byline_cont_ebooks_1

Do you have questions for Jared? Comment below so he can answer all your questions. If you’re an author and would like to be interviewed, check out the author interview submission here!