I interviewed GC Feuntz on 21/09/19 on another blog, now defunct.
Today, I am interviewing debut novelist, GC Fuentez about his recently released novel, Saint Michael and the Dragon. I was contacted via Facebook by the author to review this and upon reading its description from Amazon, I was intrigued by its description,
Saint Michael and the dragon.... fast paced fantasy fiction thriller. Swordplay and adventure in Medieval Spain. Christian based. Young Michael's wish to become a knight is fulfilled and he finds himself over his head in his journey to encounter the dragon. Spiritual situations and supernatural beings are dealt with along the way. Violent situations occur. This book is recommended for supervised reading to smaller children. Everyone else, sit back and enjoy as Saint Michael and the dragon takes you back to those days of the great paperback novels of your youth.
I contacted the author and offered to highlight this novel. He chose to be interviewed. So sit back and let’s see what motivated him to write this intriguing novel with a theme of spiritual warfare that is an important and significant element to living in Christ's victory and being a disciple of Christ.
If you think this is a children's novel, think again!
Welcome, Lou (his friends call him ‘Lou’), thanks for stopping by! Let’s start with you telling us a little about yourself?
I am a second-generation Californian and a veteran of Operation Iraqi Freedom. My grandparents on both sides originally came to the USA from Mexico over 100 years ago. And our family has a ranch in Central California near Fresno to this day. There are houses there that are probably some of the oldest in the Central Valley and they are still being used as residences. Of course, they have been modernized over the years. My late father G.O. Fuentez proudly served during the Korean Conflict. My mother is alive and well. She lives in the same area of the Central Valley where she was born.
I am an Alumnus of Cal Poly San Luis Obispo California where I studied both Agriculture Business and Applied Graphic Design. It’s also where I wrote my first book which I hope to get published soon. It is called “Mayan Sun” which is a play on words since the book is about a young man of Mayan ancestry living in the USA. In that book, I wrote from a perspective of a ‘born again’ Christian college student of Mayan descent who ends up fighting a spiritual war against the demons of ancient Mayan shaman. My writing has had a lot of influence from the Evangelical side of Christianity where the Holy Spirit can be called upon to intervene in real-life situations as in the book of Acts. Saint Michael and the dragon is not a book written for children (the original is a milder version, I wrote specifically for my kids 25 years ago) Do you remember two movies that come to mind… Jason and the Argonauts and the Exorcist? Yeah, there are scenes in these movies and even in Conan the Barbarian where the heroes fight witches and demons… very scary stuff. For me, one of the scariest movies I saw as a kid was Disney’s Darby O’Gill and the little people because of the ghosts and the Banshee. I always felt that those situations could have been handled differently by a Spirit-filled born again Christian hero. But we never see that. So, I am here to break the mold. My heroes call upon scripture and verse to handle those type of situations.
I have been living in Las Vegas since I came back from the Middle East where I worked for the US Army as a security contractor there for eight years. I spend a lot my time writing and travelling around the world with my wife and family (wife May, and 5 children: July, Caleb, Lily, Hannah Mae, Michael and one in the oven!). This year 2019, we spent a month in the Philippines visiting my wife’s family and a week in Hong Kong. I also have a grandson by my son Caleb and his wife Erica. His name is Oliver!!
What was the surprise about finding joy in writing?
Well, I have always loved to write, even in high school. During my early 20’s I worked for furniture stores as a salesman. I wrote for a trade publication and was paid for that. But my real dream was to have my books published and make a living that way. Over the years, I wrote many books but never submitted them for publication. Saint Michael is my first. My father turned me on to the fantasy fiction genre when I was a kid. He would read Jules Verne, H. G. Wells, Robert E. Howard, the Lord of Rings and he would take me to sci-fi movies at the theater: Planet of the Apes, 2001 a Space Odyssey, etc etc. So, I was hooked early on fantasy fiction.
What I am finding out, to my dismay, is that writing the book is one thing but getting it sold and marketed is another entirely. I say this: “You could have a Picasso hanging in your garage. And it could be worth a million dollars. But if no one knows it’s there?” Plus you have to find the right niche for your work. Saint Michael and the Dragon is not a cookbook. In fact, I know that the audience for a Christian – horror – fantasy – knights and dragons story is out there but won’t be easy to find.
You make reference to your story being realistic, but biblically relevant. Can you give an example?
This is an excerpt from the book. The knight Sir Carlos is having a discussion with the boy, Michael and his friend Argie.
"Yes, I serve the king and his kingdom. Everyone in this land is a part of the kingdom. I fight for you, Michael. I fight to keep you and your family safe. In the heat of battle, sometimes the only thing that keeps me going is remembering the faces of the children. When I look at the smiles of the little children like yourselves, I see the face of God. Didn't our Lord Jesus say, 'Let the little children come unto me and do not forbid them, for such is the kingdom of heaven?’” (Matthew 19:14)
"Yes, He did. Sir Carlos," Michael said smiling. "Jesus also said, 'There is no greater love than a man lay down his life for his brother." (John 15:13)
Sir Carlos' eyes lit up. He placed a clenched fist over his heart and spoke to the sky. "Lord, you speak to me through the little ones and I hear you!"
These are the types of characters and dialogue we don’t get in fantasy fiction today. My mission is to change that. I want to make Spirit-led individuals more mainstream.
Your book appears to be a Children’s book… the cover which you drew yourself and the title makes me think it’s a child’s bedtime story. But your description in Amazon says something different: “This book is recommended for supervised reading to smaller children”… Can you explain that in more detail?
Great question. Ok, my children love this book but I recommend it for ten-year-olds and up. Why? Because there are scenes which have demons and possessed beings in them. I don’t want to give away too much but I would prefer that older children and adults have access to this book. What we tend to minimize in today’s society is that our children are watching movies and reading books with much more gore and evil presented to them… the movies are full of it.. IT… that movie about a clown… the scenes there are of all kinds of horror and children being... Well, you know. And all the Freddy Kruger movies... kids today have seen it all. What I am bringing is a Christian perspective. The bible tells of the mad man of Gadara and the story of the possessed man in Acts 19, pure examples of demonic interaction. And we can’t ignore the angels who are mentioned in the bible. Some angelic beings posed as men… the story of Lot.
What Biblical themes or messages have you included in your novel?
At the end of the day, the main character learns that Christian principles were given to us to live by on a daily basis and that the final answer is always God.
How has writing and being an author impacted your relationship with Jesus Christ or vice versa?
I have talked to our brother’s in Christ and only those who have been in the military or police work have what I call an ‘applied’ walk. What I mean by that is, with my military background and many years in security, I have survived many situations by the pure Grace of God and Psalm 91. I really can’t attribute it to anything else. And so it feels more real to me than perhaps those who have never faced a gun or have been violently attacked and have overcome those situations, praise the Lord. In my soul, I believe that during those times his feathers covered me and kept me from harm. So, I can write about it from that very real point of view.
What do we have to look forward to in the future from you?
I have several books that I have already written but am working on the editing.
Mayan Sun... an Evangelical college student explores his Mayan roots and becomes involved in mysticism.
The Moral Compass... a young woman loses her way in the world because of neglect during her youth and regains her moral compass through Christian principles.
My son July has come up with some mockups for the cover of the Camel Spider.
Where can you be found online:
At the moment I only have a Facebook page.
Any closing comments before we go?
First, let me thank you for this opportunity. I don’t believe in chance. I prefer destiny. But let me say this about my future writings and Saint Mike … I am taking the secular hero and showing how it would have happened with a devout Spirit-filled Christian lead character. Some people will find it very difficult to palate but the books are already written. They just need some editing and promotion. I am already proud of this legacy. I hope our people will give my books a chance. I know that the success or failure of my work is out of my hands, PTL. Thanks again, my friend. God Bless everyone.
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