Talkshow Thursday: Welcome Aubrey Taylor!

Talkshow Thursday: 

Welcome Back, Aubrey Taylor!

Hi Linda, thank you for having me again. I enjoyed our interview back in October, and I appreciate the opportunity to answer some questions we didn’t get to the first time around.

How do you develop your characters?

Character development is my absolute favorite part of writing. I get to know my characters over time, taking notice of anything that might blend well into their story. Sometimes, I end up with someone very different than I started out with. For example, I had encountered a villain named Lothar in a movie. I figured I could give that name to the unintelligent, woman-chasing comrade of one of my main characters, Jake Schmidt. The more I developed their interactions, I realized that deep down, my Lothar is a solid guy who looks out for Jake. At the same time, through my research I was learning a lot about things that went on in areas like Poland and East Prussia between the world wars, where the population was a mix of ethnicities. That information seemed to fit in well with who Lothar was becoming, and would give reasons for why he makes some of the choices that lead him to become the person he is in my WIP.

How are your characters like you? Different?

Aside from the fact that most of my characters are male, they are very much like me. Even if some of

them are incredibly energetic and friendly people, they all have a broody, serious side. Some of them are good at forcing themselves to be in the moment and have fun. Others, not so much. I’m the same way. Sometimes I can let my hair down and enjoy being around other people. Other times, I am so aloof people probably think I’m stuck up.

Have you ever considered writing under a pseudonym?

If I had some foresight when I began the series, it would have been nice to publish under the last name of one of my German ancestors. Kniss, Schwarzmüller, Reiss, Mayer, Schmidt—there is a long list I could’ve chosen from. On the upside, a good friend once told me that Aubrey Taylor would make a great stage name!

What draws you to the time period about which you write? Why do you write in your particular genre?

Since I was 7, I have always been drawn to the world wars. God led me to focus on the German side of the story because in fiction, the average German soldier has always been buried under an assumption of evil. Yes, there were a lot of bad guys, but there were also a lot of good guys who happened to have been born in an evil time. I hope that my writing helps to vindicate men like these. It may also encourage readers to consider the sobering questions, “What would I really have done in those circumstances?” “What could I really have expected of my husband or my son?”

If you were to write a spin-off book about one of your secondary characters, which one would you choose and why?

I’d love to dive deeper into both the historical aspect of Lothar’s backstory as well as some of the personal things that made him who he is in my WIP. I’ve also longed to give Chaplain Friedrich Schmidt his own book. Pieces of his backstory are contained in Sani: The German Medic and The Prodigal Sons, but someday I hope to write an epistolary filled with his letters, journal entries, and sermons from the years 1917 to 1944.

What is your next project?

I hope to publish Gott Mit Uns Book 3, The Rubicon, this fall. After that, I may take a break from writing to focus on other things and allow the ideas above to marinate for a while.

Thanks again for allowing me to share on your blog!

About Aubrey Taylor

After creating stories prolifically as a child, Aubrey has enjoyed a renewed interest in writing in her 40s. She lives in Upstate New York with her husband and three children, and enjoys reading, playing music, crafting, sketching, exploring the outdoors, and traveling whenever possible. She is a lover of Jesus, the Bible, history, German culture, tea, and cats, and has a special heart for those who struggle with severe anxiety and depression.

Social Media Links

Website: www.aubreytaylorbooks.com
Blog: www.aubreytaylorbooks.com/blog
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Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/21846520.Aubrey_Taylor